The lives of the most eminent English poets; with critical observations on their works

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T H E

t

. ~- OF T H E MOST E M I N E N T

E N G L I S H P O E T S ; W I T H

C R I T I C A L O B S E R V A T I O N S

O N T H E I R

W O R K S .

1 By S A M U E L J O H N S O N .

L O N D O N : ? X I W T L B F O X C. B A T U V R S T , J. B V C I L A N D , W . I T R A H A N 1 J . X I V I N Z -

T O N A N D SOEfS, T . DAVIES, T - P A Y N B , L. DAVIS, W . O W E N , B . W H I T E , S. CROWDEX, T . CASLON, T . L O N G M A N , B. L A W , C. D l L L Y ,

J. D O D S L L Y , J . W I L K I L , ' J . ROB SO^, J. JOHNSON, T . L O W N D L S , O . R O B I N S O N , T - C A D E L L , J . N I C H O L S , E . N E W B E R Y I

T. LVANS, P . E L M S L Y , J. R I D L E Y , R. B A L D W I N , G. NICOL, L E l G H A N D S O T H E B Y , J. B E W , N. C O N A N T , W. N l C O L L ,

J. M v n x n u , S. H A V E S , W. F O X , A N D J. P O W E X ,

M DCC LXXXII

i i i ]

I C O N T E N T S

T H I R D V O L U M E .

ATTHEW PRIOR is one of t h o ~ . th& have burn out. from an obfcure

r>riginat t o great eminence. H e was borri July 2 I, , I 664, according to iome, at Win- burne in Dorretihire, of I know not what. parents; others fay that he was the ibn of a Joiner of 1,ondon: he was perhaps willing enough to leave his birth unfettled, in hope, like ~~n:?&l?ote, that the h i~o r i an if his aEtions'rnight find hLp fome i'lluitrious alli- . . . . . n c e tic. ' .

I . , I.

6 . . - . . He

The difficultp o f fettting Prior's birth-pke is great. '1n . the regiRer o f his College he is called,- at his admitlion by 'the Prcfidmt,' Mdttbnu Prior of Winbarn id M~AI&Z ; by :hintelf next day, Mattbr;w Prior of Do./;tP{re, i n which county, not. in Middlefex, Winborn, or ~imOorne. as it dands in the F'ilfarc, is fouid. When he Rood candidate for f i is ' fe i lo~lhi~; five years afterwards; he was regibered again by himfelf as of Middk/cx. The lafi rrtord ought to ha

B 2 ' preferred,

He is fuppofed to have fallen, by his fa. thgr's death, into the hands of his uncle, a *vintner near Charing-crofs, who knt hi* for fome time to Dr. Buiby at Wt3fiminifer; but, not ifitendfng to give him any education beyond .that of the fccbool, took hip^, when he was well advaficed iri literature, to hia own houfe; where the earl of Dodet, celea brat& for patroiqe of genius, h& hisn kq chance, as Burrlet . relates, reading Horace, and was fo well p l d d with his pGfciency; that he undertobk the C& asd coif of hia ,audeyical education,. , . .

.. , : He his n k e i? St. ]ohxi%- College at Cambridge ' in 1682, : i n his eighteenth 'year; and it may be reafonably ib9pokd that he wag diftinguiihed among his oontempod iaries. He became -a- Bachelor, as is ufual, ia four years ; and two pears afrerwatds' wrote 'the poem an the Dciij, which Ran& firR h

, his vdurne. ,

It is the eitabliihed prru2ke of that COP* to fend t v a y year to the earl of Exeter Conr preferred, beeauk it war made upon wth. h h o b t m b l ~ that, as a native of Winborn, he is Riled k i h G q ' i Pn'e, gmcro/i; nat confitcntly dth tho -00 m a t of the meanaefs. of his birth.

poems

P R I O R . J poems wpon iacred Eubjeas, in acknowledg- ment of a benefaion enjoyed by them fionl, the bounty of his ancefior. On this occafion were tlmfe vedw.writtm,' which, though nothing ie &id of their fuceefs, feem t~ have recommended him to fome noticei for his pr?ife of the countefs's mufic, and his line4 OP the famous piahre of Seneca, afford rea- ibat for itnagidsg thqt he ww more or l& convcriPnt with that family.

The &me year he pbliihed the Cdy MO@ gad Country MO&, to ridicule Dryden'a Hnd and Puatbsr, ia corljun&ion with Mr. Mon-

T h a c is a b y f of great pain fuf- fend,- md d fear6 bed, on this accdon, by pryden, who thought* hard that an old'nan /bould b e 4 trrcr~d d j tba/r to wbom be bad 01- ways bee^ civill py tide8 like the[@ is the epvy raifed by Ebperigr abilities every day gratified; when they are attacked, every one hopes to ke them humbled; what is huped its readily believed, and what is believed is mnfidently told. Dryden had been more ac- ctdiamed to hoftilitia, than that fuch enemieo @odd break his quia; and if we cm fuppde

. . . Gpraa.

13 3 him

him 'vexed, it 'would.& hard to deny h i e fenfe enough to conceal his qneafind.. ' a ' ,

; . The City Moz@ atld Country Moge prdcurc:

ed its author8 more folid advantages than the pleafure bf. fietting Dryden;, for they were both fpiedily p r e f ~ d . l4lontagui )indeed obtained the firfi notice, with fome degree of difcontent;. as it feems, in .Prior, who-gkbaz bly knew that his own part of the pbrfmml ance was the beit. He had not, however, -,

much rearon. to cornplain; for! he cimd ' td London, and obtained fuuch notice, ,th'at (in r 69 I ) he. was Cant' to the congrefs ., at: The ) l a p 6 4s fecfeiae to the: &b8f+ . . In this %ffernbiy bfip*incei and hob~ks, to which . EU; .

rope has pishhs*'s f ia rch~y:hen , in~ thing equal, was fokried: the 'piddGllia& agiihlt Lewis ; which at b ~ - did not p rducc 'effeas prbpor: tionatc tothe &gnifice&e . if , the trinla&bnion, :

$ . . . . . . , . . ,- . . . .. . . . . .

I T h e condtiEt of ~rio9; in this Tplehdid ihitiatidn int6 . public . biifinih; wad fo . pleafing . .

io..king William, that hdl.rnade him one of jhc g e n r ~ & e n o f his bedchamber; - . . and he is

G i p ~ f e d . . 'to ha& patfed foke of the next

In . thg . cultivation of literature and poetry. T ~ G

-The death of Mary o n I 6g5ypro2 dtrcea ii 'fubjeQ-. far :all the writeis: *rhaps% nd ~ n ~ i s l . was evkr fo poetically attended.. Dryden, 'indeed, as a man difeountenaileeck add depiiveb,' was :fikiiti-but icarcely an$ other mikir! of verfes omitted- to bring--his tiikute of ;tuxkful' forrb*. 6An : emuldon of degy w i i bniverial. ' Wi-ii's prrxe I+&. xioi confined to the Engliih language, but .fills ' i great part of the Mzfe Anglcana.

. . . . I . . . . .-. - .

. I . L . . . .

prior, "wd8'was both a poet and a coiu-tier; l was not *likeij to mifi this opportunity of re- I fpeQ. F He wrote's . ... long . . ode, which was pre-

#$nted.to be . _ . . . &ng; . by . whom 'it was npt like17 I . . -

to be evd ieaa: , ,

. . ... . C I !

I[n two years hq was fecretary to another . emba* at the treaty efirfwick (in 1697) ; and next year had the f q n e office at the CO& cif'! ~ r a n i k , 'he ::is fiid to have

, . . , . - - , $ten &ih&:deksd8*th . , great ai[tfnltion: ,,

. , , . . I

$ ' , * I

A;; . -.he .w3s . one, day furveying tbe apart-, men.ts at ~erfaijles, being hewn the Vi&oriq ~f ,fe;5~is,:p<yted by ;Le Brun, and afire4,

B 4. \vT~etbqr

I

w ~ W the LSw af Eaglaod's- Macs bad My C& :aea~@fons; ?hi mlra~mtc dny M&er'~ adifjdm; faid he, my 46 60Jm ewrp -6 bir -bo& Tk @&urea of Le 8- )w usnot only ia thernWves i&dqtlp &qtitio~g but were, enplaimed by inlcrip tiom fa arr~gaat, that Boileau wd RGnu t?qught it necaf fq t~ make 44s? euwe, fimp#. a -7 . - ' .

He was in the foll&ing year at Loo with the king; from whov,- after a long audience, he + orders to EqzjaJ, and upon his arriyal became under-fecret&y pf it& in tha earl of Jerfey's office; a pofi which he' did not retain long, becaufe Jerky .was removedi but hawas ioon made ~omqiffioner of ~ & d e ,

. . - Ws (1790) p d u c c d QIU d .his long& and mofi fpfendid mmpofitions, thq Camcn &mla1"~, in which he exh&uits all his powers of celebmtja. I: mean nN to accuie him of flattery; hiprobably thought J that he writ, and retained as much veracity as

be propdy exa&ed ha a poet prw fifkdly endorniisftic. King Williarn fupph- Cd topiOlg matdab for either re& or pmfc.

Hif whole-life. had been &ion, and no man ever deuied him the reblcpdent qualities of Ready refolution and perf04J courage. He was ~ e d l y in Prior's .kind what he repreiimts him Ln , his ve&s ; be eonfidured him as a her9 and wa accufiomed to fay, that he p~a%!d'others in compliance with the faihion, but that in celebrating king Wiliam lie fol-a lowed his inclination. To Prior patitude would diaats . praife, . which redon. wsuld not. f&e. . . . . . .

. . .. . Among the advantages to. M e &om th

L . , future. xeaeg of Will~am S reign, he mentionr .!i'oiict;&$f, . . .. J t&hZ . hi& . . and among them

Some that with care true eloquence hall teach, &od *;jtl& idi- fixadr doubtfsll +eecP-i That from our .writers diRant realms may know T h e thanke we to our monarch owe, And fchods profcfs wr tongue through every . land, m a t has invok'd his aid, o r blcfiOd dir hand..

Tickell, in'hii Pro$& cf P w , has the b e hope of a new academy:

In happy chains our daring language bound, . eN.6pert ne Fore iq sybitrary f w d . ,

L Whahu

Whet& ' the . ~iirnilhude of thofe .'p&ig;~ which exhibit he Lme thought on-thd iam'e' 6ccaGon proceeded from accident or imitation, .

is not eafy t o deterniine. T'ickelt might have been imprefed with his +peaation by Swift's- PTO~&Z for 40-ttoinin~j-' ,r& EyZp Lam.'

, ., , . , . . . . buove then lately p,ublifhed, 6 . - 0 S . . . .> , . , . . . 1 .- ..-. - . . . . ...

the parliament that met in 1701,~ hq was ciiofen reprefentative of E-aft Grinfiead: Perhaps it was about this time that he chan-' p@ his fi?rgr; for he . . voted -. for the impewh- ment cE t hde . lords who had ,pe&adt$i-thp - ' . . king h ihe partition-tr=aty, , a treaty ift whict) he h~d1ihirniel~'been~ininiit'erially &mploi&l; -'

. I .. . . , . , . . . . . . . - .

' A great part 'of queen Anne's reign l r s s a time af:br, i n theie was lit& em-' ployrnent fbr negotiators, and pidr . ' had th'erkfbre 1kfure make o r to pblifi iieifes: When the I # . . battle , , of, Blenheim called . forth all the 'verfe-men, prior, Lmong t h e ieR," tooG Care to h e w Gs delight ill the incredng. bo-

d his coiritry @Epi?l~ td'~';iiI&, - - . . I.\ . . . . . . . . . . . . A

. . H e pAb~ified foori afie'rwards a vol*me'of

oems, 'with the encfiqiaflic charader of h a F - . . . ,. deceafc4

I deceafed patron the duke of Dorfet : i t b-4 wit6 the -College Exercie, and ended with the Nut-brown d.

. . . , : ' . . he battle of Ramillies - feon afterwards

(in 1706) excited [hid 'tq aAothh efforc of poetry. this ak f ion he Kad 'few&' '?i lefs formidable rivals; ?n'& it whld be not ,ear7 to name anp other com$iifit,ion produbeh by that event which is . . now remembered.

. " , . . . .7

.. . ,, . -

Every thing has; its.'day. T h ~ o ~ g h .;the reigns. of Wifiam and Anne no -profpekLii event p a s d undignified by poetry. I n -the lait 'war, . whea .,France; was1 dirdraced) and overpbwkrgd. in 'everp quartet of rho glob'i; wh&* Spain coming m her oifiltaaci oil$ fhared her cahiriitieg, and the namd cif. ad Iingliihman was igvereqced through Eurape; no poet was heard amidit the general acelay mation; the fame of our coun~ellors. and he-

. . . roes was intrufted:to' .the. Gizeueir. '.. .: -

. , . . . . . . . . .- . . . ,

The nation in time grew weary of the war, and the queen grew weary of her miniiters. The war was burdenfome, and the ,

piniRer6. were: . . . iddent. . I * ~ a r l e ~ ,. and hi; frienrl;~

friends 'begin to hopb thu they' might, bp Mving the Whigi fiom court and fim power, gratify at oncc.'thn qween and the people. There was now a call for writers, who might convey intelligence of pa$ abufes, . a ~ d ihew the waee of public money, th unrealonabk - Costdzd3 of tbe AIlip~, the nvar

af g d 5 me tytanny of minions, apd @e ,- -I r p a l , d a q p of approaching ruin.

. - - ' : For this purpofe a paper called the Exa-

m i p e ~ ww pt?riodicBlly pubBhd; 'written; as it ksppened, by my wit of W party, a d &iqpgtheg as b faid by Mrs. Mahley. fionao

c$wnd-tlp h i f t ; plod one, ip ridicule of FmB's, verfss -6oddphin pppdrr the lufe of Bie place, wae writtea Prior, ahd a d w e i d by AddXon, ' w b appaks to have kmwg $he artthdr rrirtdaer by m&€tue or ina&h gaee.

The T&s9 who wcbe lrow in power, w m in hafie to end the war; and Prior, being recalled -(X 7 re) to his hrnw mplopment of pakbg treaties, was fa (July' 1711) ,p& vgdy to Paris with pro+- of peace, Ji$e was' rernwbqred at the tow;

I ' and,

md, rimking h about a month, biought with him, M. Mefnagv, a lhinifier h m ' France, '

imeited with - full powers, and the &M Gaultiet, . - . . - Thia trada&on not being avowed,Mackaf, the m a h d the bwu packet-boatB either zealody br officioufly, feized Prior and his '

liTociatez) at Cadterbury. It is eAly fuppofed that they &re foon'releafcd. .

The fiepiation was begun at Prior$ houfc, where the Qeen's minifias met Mefnaga (sePt&b& 20, I 7 r S), arid =entered ~ r i d p ipon the great bufinefi* importance of Prior appears from the mention made of him by St. John in his Letter to the @eenb

My Lord Treafimr mmed, and dl m7 9 Lords were d t h e fame opinion, that Mr. ' .Prim &odd be added to h& wbo are c ' m r p o d to &p; the ~ a f b n for which U is, becadk he, having p e r f d y treated

with Mmf~ut de Torcy,. i s the befk wit- s d wd cm produce of the fence in which '& the gemral pidiminay engagement$ are

entered into: befdea which, as he ie the

5 beit

14 R. 1: a R. " befi vetfed ,in matters of trade of all ybwr " . ~ $ e i t ~ ' s . fervantswho have been truRed " . in this fecret, if you h11 think fit t,q e q d t' ploy him in the future treaty of commerce+ " it will be of confequence that he h'as been 66 a party--concerned. in- concluding that .con-

." vention, which muit be the ru1e:of this a treaty."

A . .

The aFembly of this impbean; night war in fome degree clandeftine, the deiign of treating not being yet openly declared, .and, 'when the Whigs returned to power, was aggravated to a - charge of high. tieafon ; though, as Prior re&rks in his ;mperfe& A.. . - . anfwei . . to the Report of the ~omhrittrr of $r- rrrry, no treaty ev& . . ,was ,made without, pi- vate interviews and preliminary dikulfionu.

. . . 4 . . : . 1 My bufinefs' is no4 the hifigry of the peace,

b t the life of WO*. The <onfeqe~es began at 'Utrecht on the -fitit ,of Jmuary (1.7 f .I - I 2),.

- .and the Englifi plenipotentiaries. a;riyed o n tbe fifieenth. The minijl-ers of the different potentates mdeerred and copferred ; but, the' peace advanced fo.. $owly, that fpeedier

I broke. .-was Grit to Paris to adjuit differences with lefs formality; Prior either accoppanied him or followed him; and after his departure had the appointments and authority of. an ambaffador, though no public charaaer.

By iome miitake of the e e e n ' s orders, the court of France had been difgufied ; and Bolingbroke fays in his Lettek, " Dear Mat, * hide the nakednefs of thy county, and '

give the befi turn thy fertile brain fur- ,&' niih thee with to the blunders of thy soun-

trymen, who are not. much better politi- U cians - than the French are poets."

Soon &er the duke of Shre+ury went on a formal embairy to Paris. It ' is relateh by Boyer, that the intention was to have

. joined Prior in the fame. cornmi~on, but that Shrewibury refufed to be aff~ciated with 'a man fo meanly born. Prior therefore cod- tinued to a& without a title till the duke returned next year to England, and then he dumed the fiyle and 'dignity of embaffador.

. , But, while he continued Ln appearanctt'a

private Inan, he was treated with confidence 8 by

4

by Lmis, =ha fat him with I l&r te &( *cm, d t t c n in h t i r of the clettor of Bavaria. U I fhdl ex@&," f a p he, U S# :U impatience, the return of Mr. Prior, vthofo

condue ia very aflcable. to .me.'*. M while the Duke of Shrewfbury was itill at Paris, BolingbtbLe m e to ,hior .thus: cc M d e u r d o Torcp has a & b a 'in

I yoa; make d c of it, once for all, +on this occkifion, and convince him thoroughly,

-W that we muit give a different turn to our -

prfiament and oar peeple, atcarding tb U 'thqir refolutim at this &ifis? 1 , . . ,

; J . .

Prior's public dig$tg' and fplendout cqm- mnced in Augufi r 71 3, and eoatinuqd the AuguR following; but I m ;Ifraid tbv, according to the ufual fate . . - .of &atntip, it was attended with h e perpledties yrd -P

tifications. He had not all that i8 cuaQm? ~ i l y gived to ambagadorar he hipts ta the queen, in an im~erf& poem, that he. had no fervice of plate) ral it appeared, by &e debts' which he cootraaed, that his rcmit- taaces were not puOuaUp made

I

o n the firR of Auguft J 714, eniijed the E ddwnfall'of the Tories abd the degradation

of Piior. He was recalled; but Was not able to return, being detained by the debts which

: he had found it ndceff'arf to e0ntraQj and which were not dilcharged before March; though bis \old friend Montague was now at the head of the treafuryb ,

Re' returned theri as foon as he could, and was welcomed on the 25th of March by a wartant, b i t +as, however, fuffered to live in his own houie, under ihe .cufiody.of the meffenger, till he was examined before 1 committee of the Pkvy Council; of ivliich Mr. Walpole was chairAan, and loid CO:

ninglby, h r . Stanhope, ind Mi: Lechmere, f ere the pr;ncipal interrogators ; who, in- this examination, bf which there i9 printed , - an - account not imintertaining, behaved b.ith the I

boiderouinefs of mixi elated by re&t 'QU-

thoritl. ,They are reprefefited -as aking yuekiois rometirnes vague, forhetimes i.nfidi-* oui, and writing anfwers . . different hdm thofe' tehi'ch they received. . Prior, however,, leems' . . . to have been overpowered by their 'turbd-, i

knee ; for h e ronfedes that h i figfied. what, C l

VOL. 111. C if i

if he had ever come before a legal judicat~re, he mould have contradiQed or expkind away.. The <o*h was adminitiered b,y Bofr

\

cawen, a M.Wlefex j*e, who at lJt yas

going to d e his atteitation cm the wrong iide of the paper. . . I

They were very induftrious to find f o m ~ tharge againfi Oxford, and afked Prior, with great earnefinefi, who was prefent when the preliminary articles were talked of or figned at his houfe. He tbld thein, that either( the earl of Oxford or the duke of Shrewibury was abfent, but he codd not ,remember which; an adwer which perpIexed them, - becaufe 'it hpplied no acclmfation againfi either. " Could any thing be more abfurd," fays he, " or more inhnman, than to propofk

to me a cpeition, by the ani'wering of which I , might, according to them, prove myretf a traitor? Add notwithitand-

'' ing their folemn promife, that nothing U whkh I could fay ihould hurt myfelf, I cc had no reafon to ~ u i t them : for they vio-

lated th& prowife about five 'hom'afier. .

F However, I owned I was the prefenr. . . Whether

I

{

1

P R I O R . 59 . Whether this 'was wifely done-or no, I

'' leave .to my fricnda to determine." l

When he had .iigned the p a p , he w a ~ '

told by - Walpok, that the committee were not latisfied with his behadour, nor could give fuch an account of it to the Com- mons as might merit favour; and that they now thought a iLiaer confinement n s e f f q than to his owa haufe. Here," iays he, " Boleswen playid the moralilt, and Co- '' ninplby the ehrifiian, hut both very auk- '' wardly." The meffenger, ih whofe cuf- tadp k *as to be placed, was then called, and very decently aded by Cmingiby, if bir bouJe ~ a ~ j c u r c d by bari and bolts? T h e qiefr fe~ger enfwered, with afianiihrnent; qc which Coniqgiby very angrily faid, Sir9 yeu ~ .PJ?Fw~ tb;l f..~bRcrg it ir for the $4)~ of dh W i o n : jfha ~c~pe,yeu@aZI m i r r for it.

They had already printed their repart; and in this examination were endeavouring to find prode. -

He continued thus confined for fome time; cad Mr. Walp~le (June I o, I 7 15) moved for

G 2 ) na

an impeachment againft him. What made him ib acrimonious does not appear: he was by nature no thirfier for blood. Prior was a week after committed to' cloCe'cuftody, with orders that ao pegoonJ;Soecld be admitted t o j c .him witbout leavefrom tbe S'eakei.. .

When, two years after, ah A& of Grace was paired, he was excepted, and continued Rill in cultody, which he had mjde lefs tedious by writing his Alma. He was, however, Soon after difcharged.

H e had now his liberty, but he had nothing elre. Whatever the profit of his employment~ might have been, he had always fpent it; and at the age of fifty-three was, with all his abilities, in danger of penury, haviag yet no iblid revenue bdt from the fellowihip of his college, which, hen in his exaltation he was cenfured for retaining it, he f&d, he could live upon at lafi.

Being however generally known and ef- teemed, he was encouraged to add other PO-

ems to thofe .which he had printed, and pub- .li&ed them by fubfcription. . - The expedieilt

fucccieded

P R I O R ; 2 I-.

fimeeded by the indufirp of many friends, . who circulated the propofals", and the care

of fome, who, it is faid, yithbeld the mone7 from ,him, left he fhould fquander i t .The k ,

price of the volume was two guineas; the whole collefiion was four thoufand ; to which lord Harley, the fon of the earl of Oxford, to whom. he had invanably adhered, added an equal fum for the purcl~afe of own-hall, which Pear was tp enjoy during life, and

- Harley after hib deceafe. *

He had now, what wits and philofopheri have often wifhed, the power of pafing the day in' contemplative tranquillity. But it feems that bufy men feldok live long in a fiate ~f quiet. It .is not unlikely that his health zedinkd. H e cornplains of deafnefs; for, fays he, I took little care of my earr whilc I was not fi,rg ifmy bead was my owlr, . !

Of any occurrences in his reinaining life I have found no account. In a letter to Swift, I have,', fays he, " treated lady Har- '' riot at Cambridge. A Fellow of a Colleee C' treat! and Goke verfes to her in a gown 6' and Gap What, the plenipotentiary, i'o fw

Swift obkaincd many fubfcriptions for him in Ireland. ' C 3 " concerneq

cc concerned in the damned peace at Utrecht! the man that makes up half the kolume of

U terfe profe, that makes up the report of the committee, keaking vedesl Sic bomo fum."

He died at WimpoZe, a fgat of the earl 04 .Oxford, on the eighteenth of September I 72 t , and was buried in Wefiminfier; where on a monument, fpr which, as the Zaz pitce o f burnan vanity, he left five hundred pounds, i s engraven this epitaph :

Sui Temporis HiRoriam meditanti, Paulatim obrepens Febris

Qperi iimul & Vita: fill~m abrupit, Sept. 18. An. Dom. 1721. Btat. 57,

' H. S. E. Vir Eximius SereniEinis

Regi GULIELMO Reginzque MARIAB In CongreRione Federatorum

Hag= anno 1690 celebrata, Deinde Magna Britannia: Legatis

Tum iis, * Qui anno 1697 Pacein RYSWICKI copfecerunt?

Turn iis, Q u i apud Gallos annis proximis Legationem obierunt;

Eodem etiam anno r697 in Hiberniae Sgc RE-

. P ' R I O R. 23

SBCRETARIUS; Net non in utrtbquk Honorabili sonfefi

Emurn, Qui anno 1700 ordin id is Comrnercii negoriis Quique a ~ h 0 i 3 J t dirigendis Portorii rebuf

Przfidebant, ( ~ M M ~ B S I O K A R I U S )

Pdrecno Ab ANWA

Pcllicifll~ memorie &legin8 A d . L u ~ o v ~ c v ~ XIV. Gallie Wegem

M i i h anno 171 r De Pace Rabilienda,

(Pace etiamnum dorante Diuque ut boni jam omnes fperant duratura)

Cum hmma potefface Legatus. . MATTHXUS PRIOR Armiger ;

Q1 i Hos omnes, quibus cumulatus eft, Titulos

Humamtatis,-Ingenii Erudicionis Laude Superavi t j

Cui enim nafcenti faqiles arriferant Mufz. Hunc Puerum Schola bic Regia perpolivit ;

Juvenem in Collegio 3ti. Johannis Cantabrigia optimis Scientiis infiruxit ;

Viri~rb denique auxit & perfecit Mulb aum virie Priucipibus confuetudo;

115 narus, ita infiitutus, A Vatum Choro avelli nunquam potuit,

.Sed fdebat Cipe erurn Civilium gravitatem A m ~ n i o r u m biterarum ~ t u d i i s condire :

c 4 Et

E t cum omne adeo Poetices genus Haud infeliciter feetaret, . *-

Turn in Fabellis concinne lepideque texen$iq. Mirus Artifex

Neminem habuir pareip, Haec liberalis anirni obleaamenta 3 Q a m pull0 Illi labere copititerint,

Facile perfpexere, quibus ufus eit Amici 4 Apud quos Urbanitaturn & Leporum plenus

Cum 'ad rem, quzcunque forte inciderat, Apt2 vari2 c~piofeque a l luder~ t~ .

Jntereo nihil qwditurn, nibil vi cxpreirum Vidcbatur,

Sed ornnia ultro eftluerc, : E t quafi jugi t fonte affatim exuberare .

Ita SUDS tandem dubios reliquit, Effetne in Scriptis, Poeta Elegahrior,

An in Convihu, Cp~nes Jucundior. .

Of Prior, eminent as he was, both by his abilities and itation, very few memorials bave bee; left by hi c,ontemporaries f the + c ~ p n t therefore niuit now be defiitute of hi9 pridate charafier and familiar praCtices. H e Iiwd at a time when the' rage of party deteaed all which it was any man's interefi to bide ; an4 9s little ill is heard df Prior, i t is certain that not much was known. He was not afraid of

provoking . . . cenfure ; for when he forfook t he ' > - .

Whigs I

Whigs +, under. whofe patronage he firit entered the world, he became a Tory To ardent and determinate, that he did not willingly conibrt with men of different opinions. He was one of the fixteen Tories who met weekly, and agreed to addreCs each' other bp the title

I of Brotbcr ; and feems to have adhered, not only by concurrence of political deiigns, but by peculiar afFeaion, ,to the earl of Oxford and his family. With how much canfidence hg was truited, has been already told.

. . . . He was however, in Pope's * opinion, fit ~ n l y to .make verfes, . and 1eG .qualified f o ~ bufinefs than ' AddXon himfeif. This. was furely faid Githout .- , confideration. Addifon, exalted to a high. place, was forced into degradation bp the fenfe ~f his own incapacity 3 f rior, who w a ef~lployed by men very capable of efiimating his value, having been hire- tary to one embaffy, had, when great abilities were again wanted, the fame office another time; and was, after fb much experience of his knowledge and dexterity, at lafi fent to tranFddCt a negotiation in the highee degree arduous and important ; for which he was quxli-

- ,

26 , P R I O R .

f i ~ d , among other requiiifes, in the opinion of Bofiagbroke, by his influence upon the French ninifier, and by %ill in quefiions of commerce above other mkn.

Of his behaviour in the lighter parts of life, it is too late m get much intelligence. One of his anfivers to a boafifid Frenchman has been related, ahd to an impertinent: he made an~Kcr equally proper. During his embaffy, be fat at the optm hya man, who, in his rapture, accompanied with his own voice the prin- dpd.fihger. P36r fell' to railinge at the per- h r m r with alt t h ~ ~ m t s of tepmach that 5e coald r d l l e ~ , ~in-(lle:~femhrna;l, eeafing from h5s hngj be@& to &k'poTtul&e &tli him for his harih ~ e r d i i e of d man wfi&&& ceonfeKedly the ornament 9f tke itage. I know ail C-L that:' Igysth aniba%dar, ' .naif d c b a ~ t c j l

ha t , q u e j n e h u r o i s vous ea:ntendre," I I

In a gay Frerich conipany, where every one fung a little long or fianza, of which the bm- den was, Bann&n~ kr Mci~~cbdie; when it came to his turn to fing, after the performance of a young lady that fat naxt hip, he produced there extemporary lines ;

Mais celle mix, et ces beaw yeux, ' ' . Font Cupidon mp dangerem, Et je his triite 'quand je xrie . . ,

, A

BanniKons la lklelancholie. \

. - Tradition reprerents him as willing to de-

fiend ' fro& the-&i&tf': bf the poet and tlie &tefkan to the low defiihts of mean cbmpany. His. ~ h l o k .p&bab~y' jii fometimes ideal ,,. ;, but the koigah with whom. h cohabited'. :Was a defpkable drab * of the' lowefi fpecies. ' One of his wpnches, pqbap Ghloe, while. be was abhnt from his ,hodk, , . . . fiolq his plate, a d ran away ; as was related by a woman who had been his fervant. OF this dropenfity to fordid r o n v d e I have feen an account fo feiioufly ridiculous, that it feems to deferve inf'ertion.

" I have been affured that Prior, after hav- L' ing ipent the evening with Oxford, Baling- " broke,Pope, and Swifi, would go and fmoke *' a pipe, and drink a bottle of ale, with a

common foldier and his wife, in Long- '' Acre, before he wept to bed ; not from any fb remains of the lownefs of his original, as !! pne faid, but, I Cuppofe, that his faculties

cc -Strain'd to the height, cc In that ccleftial colloquy iublimci :

cc Dazzled and fpegt, funk down, &h-fought - . l . ..

repair."

Poor Prior ! why was he foJrained, andin fuch want of rep&-, after a converlration with men not, in theopini6nof the world, much wifer than hidel f? But fu& are the eonceits of fp&datifis, whopr'aif~ theiifacuZtiir to find in a miiie what lies upon the &face.

is-opinions, fo f& as the means , . of judging . are left us, feern to :h+ been right; but his

-. .. .

,Efe was, it feems, irregular,. negligent, and fenfual. . . , . , .

. .

. . ' P R I O R ,

P R I O R . 2!J

PRIOR has written with great variety, and his variety has made ,him popular. 'He has -tried all ftyles from the grotefque to the iolmn, and has not fo failed in any as to in- cur &erifion or difgace. . .

His works may be diflinttly confiderad a, cornprifing Tales, L&-vedes, Occafional Poems, Alma, and Solomon.

IIisTales have obtained general approbation, being written with great familiarity and great: fpritelineis : the language is eaCy; but Lldom groL, and the numbera hooth , without appearance of care. Of there Tales thete atr only four. The -Ladle ; which ia introduced by a Preface. neither neceffq nor $eafing, neither grave nor merry. Paulo Pwganti ; which has likewife a Preface, but of more vaa lue than the Tale. Nan~ Carvel, not over- decent; and Protogene$ and Apt l I e~ , an old fiory, mingled, by an affeaation not difagreeable, with modern images. The Young GC*

ileman

$0 P R t O 8 . \ tkman in b v e has hardly a juA claim to the

title of n Tale. I know not whether he be the original author of any Tale which he has given us. The Adventure of Hans Carve1 has pded through many fuccefions of merry mits ; for it is to be found in Ariofio's Satires, aqd is perhaps petZ.older. But the merit of h& fioriea is the art of telling them,

fn his Amorous EEufions he is lefs happy ; fer: they are not d ih ted by nature or by p&i~a, ti~ld have d t k e r gdlantry nor ten- dernsfs. They h+ve the coldneis of Cowley, without his wit, the dull exerciies of a fkilful veriifyer; refolved at all adveptutes to mite fomething about Ghloe and trying to be .a- - m e w s by Qirl€ PS fid-y, His fieions there- for.e 4rq jpytholqgicd. Venus, after the ex- awpb & the Orsek Epigram, afks w h a ihe wae fwn rded bgthirrg. The? Cupid jq s$aRetz j then C'#$ is &'M; then he lofeb his d a ~ 8 to Gunypedg j then Jupiter fends him a funmons by Mexcury. Then Cbdrle goes a-hunting, with an .isor- +vet. graceful at ber

Jde; . Diana miRakes her for one of her nymphs, and Cupid laughs at the blunder. All, this i~ furely dekicabie ; and even when

be

P R I O R . 31 he tries to a& the lover, without the help af gods or goddeffes, his thoughts are unaffeeting o r remote. He ta lb not lihp a man oJf t&s world.

me great& of all hiss-ouji effayaie L4wr-y and E m ; a dull and tedious dial** whih excites neither efteem for the man nor tendsr- nels for the woman. The exampk of Emrna, who relolves to follow an outlawed murderer wherever fear and gu.ijt &all 'drive . him, *

defe~es na iqitatbq l qn8 the exp&ea by whicb Weary tries the lady's conitancy, is Eucb as muit. end either in infamy to %er, or in dil'appointment to himfew.

- His occafional Poems neceirariiy lofl part d$ their value, as their occafiorts, being l& remembered, railed lefi ernbtion. Some af them, however, are preferved by their inhs; rent excellence. The' burlelque of Boi.1eau9p Ode on Namhr has, in fome parts, ' h h airi;' &is and levity as will always procure it .readd ers, even among thofe who cannot compare it with the original. The Epiftle to Boileau h' not lo happy. The Poems to *the King aie

I now

how peruCt!d only by young fiudents, who read merely that they may learn to write; and of the C a m n Seculare, I cannot but fufpea that I might praife or cenhre it by caprice, with& out danger of deteeion ; for who can be Cup-. poied t~ have laboured through it? Yet 'the time has been when this negle&ed work was fo popular, that it was trarlflated into Latin br no cdmmon maiter,

His Poem an the battle of RamilIies is neceffarily tedious by the form of the fianza : ari uniform mafs of tdn lines, thirty-five times tepeated, inconCequefitial and nightly con-

, neaed, muit weary both the ear and the un- *

deritanding. His imitation of Spenfer, which coniifis principally in I ween and I weet, without excluiion of later modes of fpeech, makes

1

&is poem neither ancient nor modern. His mention of Mars and BeZZona, and his mm-

, pariibn of Marlborough to the Eagle that bears the thunder of Jupiter, are all puerile and uw deQing ; and yet more defpicable is the l o ~ tale told by Lwis in his defpair, of h t e and rroynovante, and the teeth of Cadmus, with his fi milies of the raven and eagle, and wolf

1

and

P R ~ O R . 33

ahd lion. By the help of fhch eafy fiaions, and vulgar topicks, without acquaintance with life, and without knowledge of art or nature, a poem of any length; cold 'and lifelels like this, may be eafily written on any fubjea.

In h& ~ ~ i l o ~ u e s to Pbrcdrcz and to LZIC~UJ, he is very happily facetious ; but into the Pro- logue-before the Qeen, the pedant has found his way, with Minerva; Pedeus; and Arfdro--

: His Epigrams and lighter pieces are, like thofe of others, fometimes elegant, fometimes trifling,' &d fometimes dull; among the beR are the.-~amelin, and the epitaph an John and p a n . i . .

. , . . - . .

Scarcely any one of our poets has written fo fiuch, and tranflated fo little : the veriion 6f Caliimachus is fufficiently licentious ; the paraphraie on St. Paul's Exhortation to Cha- rity is eminently beautiful.

l

!

Alms is written in profeffed imitation of Hudibras, and has at leait one accidental refemblance : Hudibras . wants a plan, becaufc it

VOL. 111. P is

34 . . P R J O R . is left, . imperfelt . . ; Alrna is irnperfea, . %eca& .

it . fesms . . . U . never . . .- . to ,., have ,.-. had a plan. Prior ap: - . .

pears not, . to . have .- proppied I . . to . hirnfelf . . . . . any _. _ . drift , . . or defign? .. bpt . to have .. .~. written the d u d . . di@tea .+ ., of the .. pxeient ..-- .. moment. I . , - . .. I . . , . . . . - .

What .. .Horace - U , i - faid . when . .. . he - imitated . . . -. +-.. Luci- -.

Gus, rnigh!. be faid, 4. g.utly- by Prior, . d . his -. numbers. were not. fxnooth . . . or . neat . . : . . Prior . ..A excelled: hi=' . - . in vehfication, , . : . - - . - - but - h c , y ~ . , . l i k i Horace, inventore minor ; he had not 'Butler'% .-.- -L .. exuberance of matter and variety of illuitra- tion. The fpapglgs. of wit which he cpqldaf- ford, h e . h i * h6iy to lpb;liih;' but he f aa*teq ,

the bullion , . of his mafier. Bqder pours. OK); a aegligcnt . ...- profufion, certain. of th.e . weight,, . Lt carelefs of the itamp. Prior has compara- tively little, but with that little he makes a fine ., iheuy. Alma has many admirers, and. was '' the onl,y,piece among Prior's work of which. Pope laid that,he ihonld~wiih , to . be the author. . . . .

S Z ~ is the w&k & which he en&$k4 the proteaion of his name, and which he ex- - peAed fucceeding ages t o regard . L with . .Tenera- tion. His &e&ion was natural ; i t . had un t doubtedly been . written . . with . . . great U . - U&, . - .. a d

* wd6

. . .. . * . 8

P # # . 3s khb b willing to think taat he has been I r bouring in train ? We had'idded into it much knowM$p and much thmght ; had d e n p Wed itto elegancq aften dignified it with $lendourb and fomedmea hGghtened it to fub- e t y : he perceived in it m q cdlencies , a d did not difcaver thd it wanted that with; mt which dl others are of fmall avail, thd

of engaging attextion and during tdridsv

T e d i d ~ f s is the &A fatal' of all h i t s ; ne@gtnces or ekrom are fingle and heal, but 'kdiautin'eib. p e ~ a d e s the whole ; other faultis m =hCd*d; andr fb~goten~ but. the power of ~diadfiefs.piqhpte8 itklf. He that is wcaky ClPe M-kou, is more weary the liiond ; as b d e & fwtd into -ion,. contrary to theii! 'retibeq;paf. more arnd rrione flowly through every Eia~effive immiai of {pace:

tTnhgppib thk pernicious failure, is that . which an author is leait able to difcover. We are feldom tireibme to ouriklves ; and the a&

d cotnpofitiari~ fills anddelights tlie mind ~ i t h change of language and - fucdflion 4- images.; every couplet when produced i s rie** and novelty is the great iburce of pledwei Pet.-

D 2 haps

haps no man ever tb~ugh t a line fuperfluous when he firfi wrote'it, or contraaed his work till his ebullitiqns of. invention had fubfided. If he ihould coptroul his deiire of immediate renown, 'and keep his work nine years unpub- lifhed, he will be Ai'll'the author, and ~~ in danger of deceiving himfelf; and if he con- fults . his friends, he will pro.bably find men who have more kindnefs than judgement, or more feai to offend than deiiire to i n h a ' .

r The tedioufnefs of this poein proceeds not from the uniforinity of the fubjea, for it is fufficiently diverfified, but from the continued . .

tenour. of the narration,; .in which Solomon relates the fucceifive' viciDitudes of his own .

mind, without the intervention of app other fpeaker, or the mention of any dther agent, un-

, lefs it be Abra ; ,and. the reader is only to learn what he thought, and to be told that hhe'&ought wrong. The event of every experiment is fore- ken, and therefore the proce$ -is r.ot . . much regarded. . . .

. Yet the work is far from deferving to be negle&e&. He that hall perufe it will be able to mark nany pafiges, to which he may re-

. cur . for initruaion or delight ; many from which

P R I O R . 37 which the poet may l;& to write, and the philofopher to reafon.

.If Pri,or's poetry be generally confidered, his praife wfl be that of corretlnefs and induitry, rather than if cornpafs of comprehen- Fon, or aQivity of fancy. H e never made any effort of invexition : his greater pieces vere all tiffues of .fentiment; and his hailer, which confi4 of light, images or iingle con- ceit~, were not always his own. I have traced him among the French Epigramma- tifis, and have been informed that he poached for prey among .obfcure aathors. The Tbief i d tbc Cord'rler is, I fiippofe, generally confidered as. an original produ&ion; with how much jufiice this Epigram may tell, which was written by G,eorgius Sabinus, a poet now little known or read, though once the friend of Luther and Mdanahon:

De Sacerdote Furem confolante,

Quidam facrificus furem cornitatus euntem Huc ubi dat ibntes carnificina neci.

N e fis mceitus, ait; fummi conviva Tonantis Jam cwm coelitibus (fi mod0 credis) eris.

Ille gernens, fi vera mihi folatia przbes, '

H o f p apud fupcros fin era, refert. ,

. D 3 Sacri-

Sacrifiqus contra; mihi non convivia -& rcR * Ducere, jejunans hac edo lucc nihil.

- ,

What he has valuable . be . .m~s to his dilis gence and his judgemgqt. His diligence h* juflly placed him amongit the xnc$ ,cone& -'of the Englifh poets; and he was one of the firit that refoluteiy endeavoured 'at correaneib. H e never facrifices accuraey to hafie, . . nor indulges himfelf in eontemptu~us negligence. or impatient idlenefs ; he . has . no cirelefs lines; or entangled fentiments; his words are nicely $ele&ed, and his thoughts hHy expanded, If

' this part of his Ehari&&'fuffers . . any abate- rnent, it mug' be from t h e diiproportion of his rhymes, which have not always fuficient conionanca, and from the' a&niflion of broken lines into his oho on ; but pgrhaps hethought, like ~ o w l e i , that hemiltichs ought . . to : be . . . ad; V

rnitted into hcroic poetry, ' "

H e had apparently fuch qeaitgde of judge: ment as fecured him from every thing that approached to the r id i~qloq or a g u d ; bUt ps laws operate in civil agency ~ p t ta the excitement of virtue, byt t b repfhan, of wickedneis, ( . fo judgement itq thk op-ions of - .

Z intellea

:inteIlii&. can hhder f a h , but .not pioduce excellence. Prior is never low, nor very often fublime. It is faid by Longinus of

: E~ripiSes, that lie ffries himfelf fimetihes into grandear by violexice 'of effort, b th'e lion kindles his -fury bp Mielhiheb of his o+& taiI. Whatevek Prior obtains 'atiove medL bcrity i iehs th i iffbrt d itmggle Bnd of toil. 'He has many vi&o'ious but few happy l ink ; he his everything 6) bbrchafe, and nothink .by gift; hk had no &$it8 v$taiidrrr bf th'e .Miiikj no infufiohd of Lhtlkent or felicities

&=cy..

His diaion, however, is more his own than that of any amdng b e fuiceffors of

. . . . . . . I

Drt;diii; he borrows no lucky turris, or com- kiodio~$ modes of lahkiage,. from his prede- ebK6i-i~. Hi i $ ika~d are dri ?nil; but thejr 1 ark f6hktim"el hirffi; 'k h e id 'ericed no ele- gances, none has he bequeathed. His ex- . ,. ) I .

preflion has eve ;p marE of- laborious Rudy ; the line. feldom kerns to have been formed at once ; : the words did nor come tiii they were calied, and were then put by confiraint into their places, where' they do their duty, but . .

do it i ' lmly. H his greater Cohpofitions.

P 4 ' there

there may be found more rigid Aatelinefs thai~ graceful dignity.

Of vedification he was not negligent: what he received from Dryden he did not 1ofe;- neither did he increak the difficulty af writing, by upneceflary feverity, but uks Triplets and Alexandrines without fcruple. In his Preface to Solomon he propofes fome improvements, by extending the fenfe horn one couplet to ap~ther , with variety of paufes. This he has attempted, but withcut fuccefs; his interrupted lines are unpleafing, and his fenfe as lefs diftine is Icfs firiking.

. H e has altered the Stanza of Spenfer, as

a houfe is altered by building another in its place of a different form. With how litrle refemblance he has formed his new Stanza tg that of his malter, thefe fpecimc;ss will 6ew.

She flying fafi from heaven's hated face, -And from the world that her difcover'd wide, ~ l e h - t o the walt.eful wildcrnefs apace, From living eyes her open ihame to hide, And lurk'd in rocks 3nd caves long unefpy'd.

3 But

But that fair crew of knights, and Una.fair, Did in that cafile afterwards abide, To reit themfelves, and weary powers repair, Where fiore they found of all, that dainty was

I and rak.

PRIOR.

. To the clofe rock the frighted raven flies, .

Soon as the rifing eagle cuts the air: .

The fiaggy wolf unfeen and trembling lies, When the heal-fe roar proclaims the lion neat.. Ill-itarr'd did we our forts and lines forfake, T o dare our Rritifh foes to open fight : Our conqueft- we by ftratagem ihould make : ,'

Our triumph had been founded in our flight. '

'Tis ours, by craft and by furprife to gain : .?Tis theirs, ts meqt in arms, and battle in the

plain. . . I

l

By thiS new itruaure of his lines he has avoided difficulties; nor am I Cure that he has lofi any of the power of pleaiing; but he no longer imitates Spenfer.

Some of his poems are written without regularity of meafures; for, when he commenced poet, we had not recovered from . our- Pindarick irrfatqation ; but he probably

I lived

lived re be convihceil tkat the e&iice &̂ 3-& is order and .confonance.

. .

Wis riuinbers are fuch aS mere 'diligence may attain; they feldom offend the ear, and feldom footh it; they commonly want airi- nefs, lightnefs, and facility; what is fmooth, is not'hft. His verfes always rdl,. 'bht -they kldorn, ,BOW. . .

A -fumey of the lffe and writings of Prior rnaf bxanpllfp a feptence which he doubtlefs underfiobd W-ell* when he .read Home at his unje's ; i'h v@ lmg r r t d n ~ tbc$rnl which it$$: +tmives. In hik private relaxauan he ydn;ed the iavern, and, iii hi8 anioious pi- dantry he exhibited the college. ;But on higher occaiions, and nobler hbjeas, when .h$bit 'was .overf>owercd by fhe . neceflifp of re- ftkaidn, hc wanted not wjSiin d i itttihm, -ndr phgance as a - p t .

CON-

C O N G R E V E ,

C O N G R E V E .

ILLIAM CONGREVE ddcerlded W from; P famil J i n StafFordih'ie, of great antiquity that it claims a place among the . few . that extend their line beyond the Norman Conqueit; and was the ion of Wd- fiam Congreve, fecond ibn of Richard Con- greve of Congreve aid Stratton. H e Gfied, once at leait, the re~denceof his ancefiors; and, I believe, more places than one are itill ihewn, in groves and gardens, where he is related to have written his Old Batcbelor.~

, .

Neither the time nor place of his birth are

1 certainly known: if the infcription upon his monument be true, he was born in 1672. For the place; it was faid by himfelf that he

1 owed his nativity to England, and by every

ern mentioned him with iharp cenfure, as a man that meanly difowned his native c a n 2 tq. T+ Biog~apbrs aGgn his *tivity. t~ ,

Bardfa*, near Leeds in Yorkfhire, from the account given by hidelf, as they fuppofe, tci , Jacob. . . - .- . . - ' . . ,

, . . .

Ciio 'doubt khetger a man of eminence has toId the truth about his own birth, is, in ;I-, 'to, k vuy' &fki&t ib Eahkbaq p t : B O ~ ~ & ~ k e . ,beg wlth~ut , k&wirg t b a ~ falWs& ~ f . qoaveiniwa' ar vanityi i3ikw fiolg; whiab no evil immediately vi&k-entutur, excent the general degradation

-

d &m& tc&qwhyi, "e veep &$dy uttered, er& o w u t tkd , , are fullenly iiqprted, Boileau, who &fired to. be thou&t.a rigorous and- Read2 mralia, having dd. a pet5 lie tc,

Lewis.XLV. cantinued it afterwards by falfi dates ; thinking himfelf obliged in - &ondurt lays his admirer, to maintain what, when he 5;id h, .was ih well iec.eived. . . .

. I _ .

' Wherever Coagreve ivas bofii, he &as rdh. sated:, firit . i t . Kilkenny, h d afte&vardsA a t Dublin, hisfathi; havibg b m e milit* em; ployhe& that ffationed him in Ireland! but

. . . . , .. - . d . . . .

. . The Villare has no Bart$a, noi a Bar&, in Yorkfhire. - after

C - O N O R E V E . 27

after 'havipg pm though, the dud prep* 1 xatory Rudi,e~,~ iy may be, redonably fugpokQ

with gre3t qelq&y. 4 , k c e i ' s , h.b ktlaep rhought i% ~ q x t m. him a p r o f d w bp: which .bg,ethiw qight be gotten;. h u g . the ti.me, OX the &volutior, i e ~ k him, at. the; age sf. fixtea, to fiudy law ib h e

1 Middle Temple, where hp lived fbr- ye^& years, but with .v little attention to. %tai tutes* or.Repori.e. . . . . . I

... .,-

His difpofKion to become an author ap- p ~ q ~ $ a mq e~+, - ag .b. v i ; w t y felt: &at @FC~-. of @g!;Irnatbp; ~ d : pofleffed. t b t . W piopfh& -of; kntitpe-. by which in&l@q& $Ipd~e c+g be g k n ; M.ip fir& p l e r f o w W*. a, wve!, called IqcognJta, .OK- LBW. (id '

D* reco,qiircd:: ~t is . pal~ed the biogrw @hers, , .. who Q W F ~ ~ Q W F p& of theiprdice, that is-indeed, for fuch a time of life, unt.. commonly, k d i c i ~ ~ , 1 would, ratkr, paiG it than-read , . . i t , ,

I His 6+. drawtiJ. la*r au . ihe OM B~tcbdoc; ; of ~ h i c h he rays, in. his defence

l Collier, '' thak comedy. W* writteq-, i !L as . i ~ ~ ~ a l . know, iome yeaxr, before . . it .

@ was atled. When I wrote it, I had little thoughts of the itage; but did it, to imufe

" 'mpfelf, in a flow recovery from a. tit of , ficknefs. Afterwards 'through' my indif-

" cretion it was feen, and in ibme little time more it was aaed; and I, through the remainder of my indifcretion, hKered myfelf

GC to be drawn in, to the prokcution of a 'G difficult and thankleiis fiudy, and to be in- " volved in a perpetual war with knaves and " f0016."

. - - .

: There ikems to he a itrange affeaation 'in authors of appearing to have d&e :every

' thing by- chance. The Old Batcbclor was written for amufement, in the languor of convalefccence. Yet it is apparently compofed with great elaboratenefs of dialogue, and inceffant ambition of wit. The age of the writer confidered, it is indeed a very wonder- ful performance ; fk, whenever written, it was a&ed (1693) when he was not more than twenty-one years old; and was then recommended by ~ r . .' Dryden, ~ r ; Southern, and Mr. Maynwaring. Dryden faid that he never had feen fuch a firfi play; but they found it -deficient in fome things rquifite to

the

C O N G R E V E . 49

the fuccefs of its exhibition, and by their peater experience fitted it for the itage. Southern ufed to relate of one comedy, probably 'of this, that when Congreve read it to the players, he pronounced it fo wretch- edly that they had almofi rejetled it; but they were ailerwards fo well peduaded of its excellence, that, for half a year before i t was aQed, the manager allowed its author the privilege of the hode.

Few, plays have ever been fo beneficial to the writer; for it procured him the. patronage of Halifax, who immediately made him one of the comrniilioners for licenfing coaches, and foon after gave him a place in the pipe- office, and another in the cufioms o f fix hundred pounds a year. Congreve's converfation muit furely have been at' leait equally pleafing with his writings.

Such a comedy, written at fuch an age, requires fome coniideration. As the lighter ipecim of dramatick poeti-y profeffes the imitation of common life, of real manners, and daily incidents, it apparently prefuppofes a familiar knowledge of many charaoers, and VOL. 111. E e x a a

50 C O M G k E V E; , k ~ a t t obfervatioh tif hi pdi'ili2 j the

diHiculty therefore is, to rdhCeive how .&is knu%ledgc can be obtairied by a bbF

But if the bidi batcbdi be indre heltlf eiirniried, it ill be found tb br: kin6 of t h f e kon$&dieb inrhich k i y be .hide bp- P mihd ir;giirbub aha aciite, ihd luliiiffied with CO-

Gick cbaii'Etkii by the pertlfil of . O&&

poets, without much ~Ltual &inrnkrkti with mankind. The dialogue is one. coneant reci- procatid* *k - . . :.. conceits, 6i clafi of wit, in which nothing flows necelfarily fro'm the iic'cifidh, bi is didited by nature. The chA- ?ader$ both of ihed wdinen Are either fi'&itioiis a r~d ~rtifidia!, ns thoik of UeimmeA? and the Ladies; or eafy and .common, as Witjot a tame idiot, Blu$ a f~iwaggering cow- r d , and- PandehifE a fialous puritan; and the catafirophe ariles %in a hihake hot verg probably produced,, by marrying a woman in a maik.

Yet this gay comedy, when all thefe de- duCtibns are made, will frill remain the work of a very powerful and fertile mind: the dialogue is ,quick and [parkling, the incidents.

fuch

fuch as ieize the aitintign, and the i i t To kxubrmnt that it o'm-infm its Cennireitt.

Nekt year fit -gave another fpe5men of his . abifities ifi f i t ~ o l r b z e fiialer, which was

h i t recdped with Cqual kihdneh; We write? to his patron the lord Halifax a dedi~atibn; in which he endeavours to reconcile the reader td that which found few friends among the audience. There apologies are always ufe- kh'; .dr ju&bus non eJ d#utanhm ; ' men inay be c6minckd, but they cannot be pleafed, dgainff their will. But though taRe is obfli- bate, it iE Geiy variable, arid time often p i e vails when arguments have failed.

*eeh Miry conferred upon both , thofi Plays the honour of her prefcnce; and when he died, ro6n after, CongreGe tefiified his '

batitude by a derpicable .eKufion of elegiac pailoral.; a combofition in which all is Liina- .turd, and yet nothing is new.

' In ahother yeat- ( 1 6 g ~ ) his prolific pen bfodiickil ~ ~ v i f o r Love ; a Comedy of n&fei'

i aIliahCti idlife, and &hibiting more real manners, thin either of the formei-. T h e . . E 2 charaaer

5 2 C O N G R E V E . charatter of For+gbt was then. common. Dryden calculated nativities; both Cromwel! and king William had their licky days ; and Shafteibury himfelf, . - though . he had no reli- don,, was ,. faid to regard predioions.. - The Sailor is not accounted very natural, but he *

is very pleaiant. . .

With this play was opened the New The- . .

atre, under the direaion' of Betterton the tragedian; ' where he exhibited twb afterwards ( I 697) Ibe Mourning Bride, :a tragedy, fo written as to ihew him f&cientIy qualified for either kind of diamatick

1 . , In this of which, when he afterwards

revifed it, he reduced the verfhcation to greater regularity, there is more buitle than fentiment; the plot is bufy and intricate, and the events take hold on the attention; but, except a very few paffages, we are: rather amuGd with noife, and perplexed with fira- tagem, than entertained with . any true deliy' neation of natural charaoers. This, however, was received with more benevolence

. than any other of'his works, and hill con- tinues to be aRed and applauded. '

. . ... . , 8 -. . But

C O N G R E V E . . 53

*- But whatever objeaions may be made either to' his comick or tragick excellence, they are loA at once in the blaze of admiration, when it is remembered that he had produced thefe fdur plays before he had paired his twenty-fifth year; before other men, even fuch as are fome time to ihine in eminence, have pairdd their probation of Kterature, or prefume to hope for any other notice than h c h as is beitowed on diligence and inquiry; Among all the efforts of early genius which literary hiRory records, I doubt' whether a n y one can be produced that more iurpaffes the common limits of nature than ~e plays of Congreve, .

About this time began the long-continued controverfy between Collier and the -poets. In the reign of Charles the Firit the Puritans had raifed a violent clamour againit the drama, which they confidered as an entertainment not lawful to Chrifiians, an opinion held by them in common with the church of Rome ; and Prynne publifhed Hgrio-maJtix, a huge wlutne, in which hge-plays were' cenfursd. The outrages and crimes of the Pu~itans brought afterwards their whole fyf-

- . I

tern

tern of doQrine into difreputp, and $iom the Reitoration the ppets and Qe ptayers were left at quiet; fur to have molefted tbsw would have had the appearance of teqdesrcy to puritanical xaaligpity.

%is dmger, however, was wora away by time; a d Collier, ;a fierce and implaeabl~ wonjuror, knew that ap attack u w n the theatre would never make him fuf$&ed h a Puritan; he therefare (1698) publi,hed d Qort Kew of th4 hmcorahty a d P~cy%ment$ ef the Eng/@ Skage, I believe with 0 t h potive than religious zeal and hooe& i n k ? nation. He was formed for a cpntmmt- . iit ; with fufficient learning ; with diQion vehement and pointed, though ~ R e n vulgar and incorrd ; with unconquerablq pertinacity; with wit in the higheft degreg keen and farcaitick; and with all thofe powers exalted and i~vigorpted by juit confideqce is his caufe.

Thus qualified, and thus incited, he walked out tq battle, and sailed at once m08 of the living writers, from Dryden to Dur- fey, gis onfqc was violent; thok paffag-es, . ' .. . 2 which

.which while t k y fipad iipgle bad pared with 4ittle notice, w f t p they were accpmulated . . qnd Fvpo(Fd tqgether, excited , . h o ~ p r ; thp

qnd the pious caught the alarp, and the . . R'a&n - . wo&red why it had fi*.l'ong fifered ipeligion ad licehtioufqd ts be openly taught . . at the . . publick . . . chqrge.

l

Nothing now remained for the poets but to refifi or fly, Dryden's confcience, or his prudence, angry as he was, withheld him fmxp - I the goqflip; Copgeve and Vanbrugh

, attempted anfwerb Gongreye, a very young . . , mar), elated with j ipe fs , arld jmpgtient af p ~ f p r e , qlfumed an a k of c~qfjdence qnd iecurity. His chief artifice of controverry is to retort upon his adverfary his own words : he is veyy aqgry, and, hoping to conquer

1 Collier with his own weapons, allows him-

I

felf in the ufe of every term of contumely 1 l and contempt; hut he has the fword with-

out the arm of Scanderbeg; he has his anta-

l gonift's coarfenefs, but not h i s firength. Col- lier replied; for conteit was his delight, he was not to be frighted from his psi-pofe or his prey.

1 The

56 C O N G R E V E . he caufe of Congreve was not tenable:

whatever gloffes he might ufe for the defence or palliation of fingle paffages, the general tenour and tendency of his plays muit always be condemned. I t is acknowledged, with univerfal conviaion, that the perufal of his works will mak,e no man better; and that their ultimate effeQ is to reprefent pleafure in alliance with vice, and to relax thoik obligations by which life ought to be regulated.

The itage found other advocates, and the difpute was protraeed through ten years; but at lafi Comedy grew more modefi, and Col- ,

lier lived to fee the reward of his lahour in the reformation of the theatre.

Of the powers by which this important

I viQory was atchieved, a quotation from Love for Love, and the remark upon it, may afford a fpecimen.

Sir Sampi: SampSon's a very good name; for your SampSonr were JZrong dogs from tbe beginning.

Angel.

C O M G R E V E . '57

Angel. Have a care-F you nmmber, tbc J m n - Sanpjn o f your name @Zrd an blk bouj over bir bead at ZaJ.

Here you have the Sacred HiRory bur- Iefqued, and Sampfon once more brought

'' into the houfe of Dagon, to make Eporc for the Philiitines !"

Congreve's lait ' play was The Way of tbc World; which, though, as he hints in his

I dedication, it was written with great labour and much thought, was received with fo little

I , favour, that, being in a high degree offended : and difgufied, he refolved to commit his quiet

I and his fame no more to the caprices of an

1 audience.

. From this time his life ceafed to be p u b lick; he lived for himfelf, and for his friends; and among his friends was able to name every man of his time' whom wit .and elegance had raifed to reputation. It may be therefore reafonably fuppofed that his rnan- ners were polite, and his converfation pleafing.

l

. ' He Ccew not trl barre fpkeq mqch plsafurure 'in *tipg, .as he c~qtributed no%wg to the SPcEfator, and only p4e pqper {Q the T'azZer, though publiihed by men with whom. he might be fvppafed willing to qffmiate, and though he lived rpanp yelrs Pfter fhe publi ~ i a n of hie 'viice&newp P ~ ~ ~ , he

1 added nothing to them,, but lived . . an in . . - tite- rary indolence ; engaged in no controverfy, gontendin~ with na nut& neither f~l ici~ing flattery bp publjck commepdations, nor pray yoking engify by malignrlnt criticil~, pan,, his time qmgng the great and fglendic& j~ the pJwid enjoyraept of bis fame and £oe

Having owed his fortune to HalifBx, bE continued always of his ~atron's party, but, ~g it ieerns, without violence qr acrimany; qnd 4 i s firmngib was naturally deemed, fig )jis abilitiq were reverenced. His iep& &eyefoye was never violqteh; and whppp vpon the extrufion of t h p Whigs, iome inr ttxceifi~n was ufed lea Congreve fhould b9 &{placed, the =arl of Opfprd made thip d w e r ;

Non

I - abtufa ades geRamus peCtor? P s n i , Nec tarn averfus equos TyriP foljungic ab urbe,

t , . -

He that was thus hopoured b . ~ the. advede party, rn i~h t natur~lly expea to be advanced when his friends returned to power, and he was made fecretary far the ifland of Jarnaicai a , plqce, . I iuppde,' without trufi or,care, but . .

which, with his poit in the cufi~ms, is faid to have afforded him twelve hundred ,pounds a year,

His honours were yet far greater than his. profits, Every w~iter . . mentioned ~ ~ J X I . . .wi!b reipeEt; and, among other teftimopies to his mefit, Steele. made 4im the patron' d his Mifcellany, and Pope idcribed to birn hi4 panflation of the Iliad.

- But he treated the Mufes with i q ~ a t b d e 1 . for, having long converfed familiarly wit4 ,

the great, he wiihed to be confidered rptbeq G . a. man of fafiioion than of wit; g d , when he received a vifit from Voltaire, difgp#~d biq by the defpicable foppery o f defiring ta be confidered not as an author but a Tap i to wbicb the Frenchman replied, t h a ~

66 if

60 C O N G R E V E . L' if he had been only a gentleman, he fhould " not have come to vifit him."

In his retirement he may be fuppoikd t o have applied himfelf to books; for ha dk- covers more literature than the poets have commonly attained. But his fiudies were in his latter days obAruCted by cataraos iri his eyes, which at Iafi terminated in blind- nefi. This melancholy fiate was aggravated by the gout, for which he ibught relief by a j o p e y to Bath'; but being overturned in his chariot, complained from that time of a pain in his fide, and died, at hi8 houfe in s u b itreet in the Strand, Jaq. 29, 1728-9. Hav- ing lain in Aate in the Jerufalem-chainber, he was buried in Wefiminfier-Abbey, where a monument is ere&e'd to his memory by Hendetta dutchefs of Marlborough, to whom, for reaibns either not known or not mentioned, he bequeathed a legacy .of about ten thoufand pounds ; the accumulation of attentive parcimony, which; though to her hper- fluous and ufelefs, might have given great afiitance to the ancient family from which he dercended, at that rime by the imprudence of his relation reduced to difficulties and diitrek,

C O N G R E V E . 6s

1 CONG R EVE has merit of the higheit

I l

kind ; he is an original writer, who borrowed nbther the models of his plot, nor the aanner of his. dialogtle. Of his plays I cannot fpeak diltinaly; for fince I idpetted -them many years have p a i d ; but what remains upon my memory is, that his charaQers are commonly fieitious and artificial, with very little of nature, and not much of rife. He formed a peculiar idea of comick excdence, which he fuppofed to confiR in gay remarks and .unexpe&ed anfwers; but that which hd ende&o&d, he ieldom failed of'petformirig.

. . His fcenes exhibit not much of hdmour, imagery, or paifion: his perionages are a kind -6f intelle&ual gladiators ; every . . fen-, tence is to ward or firike; the contefi of fmartnefs is never intermitted; his wit is a meteor playing to 'and .fro with alternate corukations. His comedies have therefore, in fome degree, the operation of tragedies; they Xtirprife ,rather :than divert, a d raife admiration oftener than merriment, But :they are the works of a mind, replete with images,

' and quick in combination. ' ..:-(

. . I . o f

Of his mXcellaneo.us poetry, I cannot iBy any thing very favourable. The 'powers of Co"greve- fern to del& him when. M 1e-e~ the itage, ak Antkm wat3 m bq&et #ox'g than he doohl touchth~ groand. It &tnl;or be &k~%ed dsithaht !tderr that a d a d $3 w i p ~ ~ , ~ fertile In draatick c ~ G t i o q hbutdon dhy other i k ~ a h q d%cQyer n o t h i , but i m ~ ad pmeFra He hash .the& ittfe @ i k s .n*her elevation of fafit%

ta& of kiiguage, .nor . itill in verfifkad~n ! ;

ret, S£ l. FMX requird :to feleQ frMn W hr

n*n*&-meii.~f ~nglib.pqetry the rgqit,paP, . ' &al paregraph, I kca~w RC& what , I CUUU prefer to. an exclamzthn in 2% .&&aw#iq$ Bride.: . '. . ,

L L ~ M O I I . . . . . . .

It bore tk accent of a.hwnan voice, . . . . .

, .

ALMEX~A. . ,. It w u thy fear, m elf2 reme trantleht kind

W.hiftling ib' holiowe af ;-this vaked ifk : We'll fin-

~ E O N O R A ,

Hark l ALMERIX.

' A L M B ~ I A. No, all is hulh'dj 'and itill as death.-'Tis

1 dreadful 1

3 % ~ rkverend'is the face of this tall pile I 1

.Whofe ancient pillars rear their marble heads, .. ?k6 bear aloft iti atch'd And bondkioii roof, - l

By its own weight made Redfait and ihmdreable, Lookihg tranquillitf 1 It f i ik ts ari awe And M m r 61-i my achihg bgli't; thk tbhbi Ahd nlonumental caves'of .death look cold, ' : And hdot a chilnbfs to mij tiernblidghkair. '

Give me thy hand, and let me heat t hy voicei ,

Nay, quickly rpeak to m?, hind Itt 'me hear "

Thy voic-my own affrights iiie with ils'ecboes.,

. . . . He who reads th&lines 'enjoys for a in*

ment t h e prjwlerg af a poet; h* feels what i& remembers 26 . have . dk1.t befort+, h t .h . f&!s it with great inctkaFe of hifi?Slitg; ht ftikiigiiiiei B fi~niliar image, But l h b e t ~ it tagia ampliked and expanded, kmbellilhid with .

beautg, and knksged wi<h rnajefip . .

Yet coxdd phe anthdr, who -appears he* m have enjdytd the corifidence .of N w e , h* rnent the death of queen Misy in Xnes l& theie : . . -

. .

The

T h e roclts are cleft, and new-defcending rills Furrow the brows of all th' impending hills. T h e water-gods to floods their rivulets turn,

'And each, with itreaming eyes, fupplies his wanting urn.

The Fauns forfake the woods, the Nymphs the grove,

And round the plain in fad diitraAions rove : In prickly brakes their tender limbs they tear, And leave on thorns their locks of golden hair. With their fharp nails, themfelves the Satyrs

wound, An'd tug their ihaggy beard; and bite with grief

the ground. La Pan himfelf, beneath a blatled oak, D e j d e d lies, his pipe in pieces broke. See Pales weeping too, in wild defpair, And to the piercing winds her bofom bare. And fee yon fading myrtle, where appears T h e Queen of Love, all bath'd in flowing tears 3 See howihe wrings her hands, and beatsher breait,

i And tears her ufelefs girdle from her waifi : I

Hear the fad murmurs of her iighing doves l For grief they dgh, forgetful of their loves.

And many years after he gave no proof that time had improved his wifdorn or his wit; for on the ' death af the marquis of Bland- 4

ford this was his fong: 1

1 .. And l

And n& thewinds, which had ralGg been Bill, Began the fwcllirg air wirh f@hs m .fill : .

.

T h e water-nymphs, who motionlefs remain'd, Like ima* of ici, -while he cornplainsd, ,'

'

Now loossd their Areams i as when defcending . . .riins. '

Roll the fieep torrents headlong o'er the plains, ?Ae . p r w creation, wbu fi, long had gaz'd, .

Gharm'd with her cries, and at hcr griefi arnaa'd, Began to roar and howl with horrid yell, .

Difmal to hear, and terrible to tell ; ..

Nsthing but groans and fi&s were heard around, And Echo multiplied each mournful found. . . .

In both there. funeral poems, when he . . has . .

je£Zcd out many jjiZabZelcr of fenfelefs dolour, he difmiffes . liis reader with fenfelefs conib- lation: 'frpm the grave of. Paitora riles a. light that forms a fiar; and, where Amaryllis wept fo? Alpyntas,- fiow euery.tear fprung up a violet.

. . .

But Williarn is his hero, and of William he ,+ill Gng;

. . I The hovering winds on downy wings hal l wait

around, ~ n d cakh, and wdr to foreign lands, the flying

found. .

VOL. 111. F . ~t

C O N G R E V E .

It cannot but 'be proper. to 0ew what they hall have to catch' and carry: ' '

'Twas now, when flowmy lawns the.pro&& made,

And flowing brooks beneath a foreit ihadc, A lowing heifer, lovelieR of the herd, Stood feeding by ; while two fierce b& prepar'd Their armed heads for fi&t; by fate of m to;

pqove The vi&or worthy of rhe,fair-one's love. Unthought prefage of what met next my view; For foon the i h d y kene withdrew. And now, for woods, and fields, and $ringing

Rowers, Behold a town arife, bulwark'd with walls and

lofty towers i Two rival armies. all the plain o'cripread, Each in battalia rang'd, and ihining arms array'd; With eager eyes beholding both from far, Namur, the priie and miRrefs of ehe war.

7%; Birth of th Mujc is . a miferable fic- tion. .One good line it has, which was borrowed from Dryden. The concluding uerfes q e thefe:

This faid, no more remainyd. Th'etherial hofi Again impatient crowd the cryital cod.

I T h e

C O N G R E V E . 67 The father, now, within his fpacious.hands, Encompafs'd all the mingled mars of feas and

lands ; And, having heav'd aloft the ponderous +here, He launch'd the world to float in ambient air.

Of his irregular poems, that to Mrs.*Ara- belfa Hunt feems to be the befi: his ode for Cecilia's Day, however, has lome lines '

which Pope had in his mind when he wrote his own.

His Imitations of Horace are feebly para-

l phraitical, and the additions which he makes a r e of little value. He fometimes retains

. what were more properly omitted, as when he talks of veroain and gum to propitiate Venus.

Of his Tranflations, the fatire of Juvenal was written very early, and may therdbre be forgiven, though it have not the maffy- nefs and vigour of the original. 10 all his verfions fiength and fprightlinefs are wanting: his Hymn to Venue, from Homer, is

l 1 perhaps the bek His lines are weakened

with expletives, and his rhymes are frequentlp. imperfeo.

F a )Iio

. . H~S' poems a r e feldom WO& the

coft of xriticifm: iometimes the thoughts are falfe, and ibmetimes.common. an his v e r h o n lady Gethin, the latter part is an imitation of Dryden's ode on Mrs. Killigrew; and Dork, that has been fo lavik1y flattered by Steele, hasindeed fome lively fianzas, but the exprelfion might be mended; and the moR &king part of the cha&&er . . Bad lken ;heady mew; in Love for LOVE. . His . Arf -. of PleaJng is founded on a vulgar but perhaps impraaicalde principle, and . t&, fiale- nefs of the fenfe is not concealed by any novelty of :illufiration or elegance of difiion.

. This tiKue of poetry, from which he ferns to have hoped a lafiing name, is totally negle&ted, and known only as it is appended t o his plays.

While corned y or while-tragedy is rigarded, his plays are likely to be read; but, except what rdstes to the itage, I know not .that he has ever written a fianza that is fung, or a couplet that is quoted; T4e general character of his Mbicellanics is, "that they hew fittk kit, and little virtue. L - 7 . - Ycr

C O N G R E V E . 69

Yet to him it mufi be confeired that we are indebted for the correQion of a national error, and the cure of our Pindarick madnefs. He firfi taught the Engliih writers that Pin- dar's odes were regular; and though certainly he had not the fire requifite for the higher fpecies of lyrick poetry, he has ihewn us that enthufiaiin has its rules, and that in mere confufion there is neither grace nor greatneib,

l

B L A C K - F 3

B L A C K M O R E .

B L A C K M O R H .

S IR RICHARD BLACKMORE is one of thofe men whofe writings have attraRed

,much notice, but of whofe life and manners very little has been communicated, and whofe lot it has been to be much oftener mentioned by enemies than by friends.

He was the fon of Robert Blackmore of Corfham in Wiltfhire, flyled by Wood Gen- tleman, and fuppofed to have been an attor- ney : -having been for fome time educated in 'a country-Cchool, he was fent at thirteen to 'Wefiminiter ; ,and in I 668 was entered at Edmund-Hall in Oxford, where he took the degree of M. A. June 3, 1676, and refided thirteen years ; a much longer time than it is ufual to +end at the univeriity. He after? wards travelled : at Padua he was made doaor .pf phyfic ; and, afier having wandered about

a year

a year .and a half on the. Continent, returned home.

In fome part of his life, it is not known when, his indigence compelled him to teach a ichool ; an humiliation with which, though it certainly lafied but a little while, his enemies did not forget to reproach him,. when he became conipicuous. enough to excite male&- lence ; and let it be re'membered for his honour, jhat to have been once a fchool-mafier ,

is the only reproach which all the perfpicacity of malice, animated by wit, has ever fixed upon his private life.

When he firR engaged in the fiudy of phyfic, he enquired, as he fays, of Dr. Sydenham what authors he fhould read, and was direQed by Sydenham to Don Quixote ; wbicb, kid he, is a very good book ; I read it Jil. The perverienefs of mankind makes it often mifchievous in men of eminence to give way to merriment. The idle and the illiterate wiU long ihelter thernfelves under this foolifh apophthegm.

i

Whether

Whether he reAed fatisfied with this direc- tlon, or fought for better, he commenced phyfician, and obtained high eminence and extenfive practice. He became Fellow of the College of Phficians April 12, 1687, be; ing one of +he thirty which, by the new charter of kmg James, were added to the former Fellows. His refidence was in Cheap- fide, and his friends were chiefly in the city. In the early part of Blackmore's time, a citi- zen was a term of reproach; and his place of abode was another topick to which his adverfaries had recourie, in the penury of fcandal.

Blackmore therefore was made a poet not by neceifity but inclination, and wrote not for a livelihood but for a fame; or, if he may tell his own motives, for a nobler purpoie, to engage poetry in the caufe of Virtue.

l

I believe it is peculiar to him, that his firR publick work was an heroick poem. l He,was not known as a maker of verfes, till he publifhed (in 1699) Prince Artbur, in ten books, written, as he relates, by fucb catcbe~ a n d j a r t ~ , and in fuch occajorza( uncertain &ours 1

1

or &J pof i f ion aforde, -and for the gre~leJ7 prt in mfee-hdqes, or ilr adgixg- q. apd down tkJrcets. For the latter pal? of this a p iogy he was accded of wciing to tke rm- $&rig of bis chariot-whek. He had read, he fay4 brit Zitclr poetry tbrougbovtpis wb& Z i f c ; . and forfifteeeen years before bad not written an bundrcd ve@s, except onc copy of Latin verfis in prug of a frignd'r book,

. H e thinks, and with fome rearon, that from Kuch a performance perfeaion cannot be expeaed; but he finds another reafon for the feverity of his cenfurers, which he ex- preffes in language fuch as Cheapfide eafily furniihed. I m not free af jhe Poets Corn- &ny, having never bged tbe govemor'~ bandr; mine t~ tberfore not j mucb as a ~ermlflont .poem, but a downrigbf interlaper. Tboj gcn- t h e n wbo carry on tbeir pottic& trade in U joint Jod, would certainly do what they could to jnk .and ruin ran unlicenz adventurer, not- witbJanding I dyfurbed none o f theirfu8ories~ nor imported any goods they bad ever deah in. He had lived in the city tiU he had l e a r d i ts note.

That

B L A C K M O R E . 77 . . . That Prince Artbur fbund many readers, is iertain; for in two years it had three editions; a very uncommon infiance of favour-, able reception, at a time when literary curif cfity was yet confined to particular claffeep of the nation. Such iucccfs naturally raifed ani- mofity; and 'bennip attacked it bp a -formal triticifm, more tedious and d&fting than the work which he condemns. . T o ihis'cenfure may be oppofed the apprebation of Locke ind.the admiration of ~b l?neux , which are found in their printed Letters. Mblineux is particularly delighted witli the fong of Mo- pm, which is therefore fubjoined to this narrative

. . It is remarked bg Pope, that what raijrr

tbe hero oJlen,Jinks the man. Of Blackmora it may be faid, that as the poet Bnks, . t he .man rifes; the animadveriiorls of Deunis, in-, ,iolent and contemptuous as they were, railed i Gm' no bplacable reikntmint: he and his critiek were -afterwards ' friends ; and in' one of his . latter . works he praifes Dennis. as, equal to ~oileuh in poetry, a?id/firior to him

criti{d~ -a!i~iiicr. , . . ..

. - ... He

7s B L A C K M O R E . - He feems to have been more delighted

with praire than pained by ceniure, and, in- Gead o f z flackening, quickened his career. Having in two years produced ten books of Prince Artbur, in two years more (1697) he fent into the world King Artbur in twelve. The pravocation was now doubled, and the refentment of wits and criticks may be f u p pofed to have increafed in proportion. He faund, however, advantages more than equivalent to all their outrages; .he .was this year made one of the phyficians in. ordinary to king William, and advanced by him to. the honour of knighthood, with. a prefent of a gold chain and a medal.

The malignity of the wits attributed his knighthood to his new poem ; but king Wid liam was not very itudious of poetry, and Blackmore perhaps had other merit: for he Gys in his Dedication to Ayred, that be bad a greater part in the fuccefin o f tbe bo@ of Hanovef than ever be bad boaJed.

. What .Blackmore could contribute to the Succefion, or what he imagined himfelf to have contributed, cannot now be known.

4 That

B L A C K M O R E . 79

That he had been of confiderable ufe, I doubt nor but he believed, for .I hold him to have been very honefi; but he might eafily make a falfe eitimate of his own importance: thofe whom their virtue reitrains from deceiving others, are often difpofed by their vanity to deceive thernielves. . Whether he promoted the Succefion or not,, he at leait approved it, and adhered invariably to his principles and party through his whole life.

His ardour of poetry Rill continued; :and nat long after (1.700) he, publiihed a e r a - fibraj oi tbe Book of Job, and other parts .of the Scripture. This performance Dryden; , who purfued him with great malignity, lived long enough to ridicule in a Prologue.

&The wits .eafily,confederated apinfi .him, as Dryden, whofe favour they almoit all courted, was his prefeffed adverfary. -He had 'beGdes given them reaibn for refentd ment, as, in his Preface to Prince Artbur, he had faid of the Dramatick Writers alrnofi all that' was alleged afterwards by Collier; but Blackmore's-- cenfure was cold and generat,

. - Collier's '

Collier's was .perional and ardent i Blackmore taught his reader to diflike, what. ColPefi incited him to abhor.

. . , .

: In hi& Preface to Kng Arthuc he a n d w ' troured to. g& at leait: one- friend; and prm pitiated Congreve bp higher praik of his Mourning B&& t h a c it ' has obtained from' any other critick.

The fame year he pubIiihed a Satire on WzS ; a proclamation of defiance d i c h united the pe t s - almoit all againit him, a d . whWr bmgh , upon him 1a.mpoons and. ridicule fiom every mel ' This he -doubtlefs forefaw, and evidently defpiled-; nor ihould his. d i i nity of .mbd be without its praife, had: he not paid the homage to greatnefs which he denied to genius, and dsgirkded Umlelf by mnferri.ng &at auth&y &er the national tafie, which he takes- &m 'the poets, upon men of 'blgh:ra&. a&, wide i d u w o , but of re6 wit, .wt g a e r vktue.

. . . . . . . . .

Here is - dilcovered the. inhabi.tant of Gheapfdc,, whp@ hwql,caago~ keep' his: poetry umingled with trade. T o hinder, that in-

telletlual

telleeual bankruptcy which he affeQs to fear, he will ere& a Ba?tRfor RTitb

In this p m he juNy cenfured Dryden's igpuritli, but praifid his powers; though in a fafequent edition he retained the iatire and omitted the praiik. . What was his reaibn 1 know not;. Dryden was then no longer in hii way.

His head Itill teemed with hqoick poetry, and ( I 705) he publifhed EZiza in ten book& I am afraid that the world was now weary of c ~ n t e ~ d i n g about l3lackrnbr~'s herpq ; fot -j &I .not, remember that .by any author, feerid ous M &l, I h a v ~ found EZi* either praift or blamed. She dropped, as it {kerns, &o&byn frmn the p$. , It is never men- coned, .asd was never feen by me till I bor- roarqd it h r the prefknt .occafwn~ Jacob Gys, it ir correRed, annd rev@d for another ~mpr@on; but the .labour of revihn was thrown away.

From this time he turned fome of his thoughts to the celebration .of living characd ters; and wrote a poem on the Kit-cat Club,

VOL. 111. i G and

and Advice t o the Poets bow to celebrate iib& Duke of Marlbsrougb; but on occaiion of another year of fuccefs, thinking himieif qualified to mare inftruttion, he again wrote a poem of Advice to a Weaver of rr'ap@ry. Stesle was then publiihing the Batier; and looking round him for fbmething at which he might laugh, unluckily lighted on Si? Richard's work, and treated it with fuch cow tempt, that, as Fenton obferves, he put an end to the fpecies of writers that gave Advice to Painters.

Not long after ( I 7 J 2) he publ;ihed Cm- tion, a fbiZojOpbfcaZ Poem, which has been9. by my recommendation, inferted in the late colle&ion. Whoever judges bf this by any other of Blackmore's performances, will do it injury. The praife given it by Addifon (Spec. 339) is too well known to be tran- fcribed; but fome notice is due to the tefii- many of Dennis, who calls it a cc philofo- " phical Poem, which has equalled that of " Lucretius in the beauty of its veriification, '' and infirlitely furpaired it in the foliditp " and firength of its reafoning."

w h y an author iurpaffes himfelf, it is natural to enquire. I have heard from Mr. Draper, an eminent boofiller, an account received by him from Arnbroik Philips, " That " Blackmore, as he proceeded in this poem,

laid his manufcript from time to time be- " fore a club of wits with whom he affociated; . " and that every man contributed, as he " could, either improvement or correttion; " fo that," faid Philips, " there are perhaps " no where in the book thirty lines together, '< that now itand as they were briginally " written."

- The relation of Philips, I fuppofe, was true; but when all reafonable, all credible allowance is made for this friendly revifion, the author will itill retain an ample dividend of prave; for to him muit always be afigned the plan of the work, the diitribution of its parts, the choice of topicks, the train of argument, and, what is yet -more, the general predominance of philofophical judgement and poetical. fpirit. Corfedion ieldom effeas more than the fupprefiion of faults: a happy line, or a fingle elegance, may perhaps be added; but of a 1,arge work the general cha-

G 2 raaer

facer muit always remain; the original con- fkitution can be very little helped by Iocal re- metfies ; inherent and radical dullnefs will never be much invigorated by extdnfic anid mation,

?'his poem, if he had writtm nothing elfe, would have tianiinitted him to pdterity anlong the firlt favourites' of the Engliih Muh ; but to make verfes was his trahi'cendent plea- hre, and as he was not deterred by cenfure, he was not fatiated with praii'e,

He deviated, however, fometimes into other tracks of lifetafure, and condelcended to entertain his readers with plain profe. Wheo the Spe8ator fiopped, he confidered the polite world as deititute of entertainment; and in aoncert with Mr. Hughes, who wrote every third paper, publifhed three times a week the Lay Monr@ery, founded on 'the 'fupofition that tome literary men, whfe cbraaers are defcribed, had retired to a houie in the cound try to enjoy philalbphical leifure, and reiblved to initrutl the public, by communicating their difquifitions and arnufernents %bather any real perfons were concealed under fieitidus .. . - names,

B L A C K M O R E , %S .

names, is not known. The hero of the club is one Mr. Johnfon ; fuch a conftellation of excellence, that his chara&er hall not be i i i p preffed, though there is no great genius in the deiign, nor &ill in the deliwation,

" The firR Z: ihall name is Mr. Johnfon, a U gentleman that owes to Nature excellent U faculties and an elevated genius, and to in- " duitrg and application many acquired ac- " ~omplilhmento. His t& b diltinguifhing, '' juil and delicate ; his jdgement clear, 2nd '' his d o n itrong, accompanied with an " imagination full of fpirit, of great compafs, " and itored with refined ikas. He is a " .critic of the f'lrit rank ; and, what is' his " peculiar ornament, he is delivered from the " dtentation, malevolence, and fupercilioue " temper, that fo often blemiih men of that " charaeer. His remarks refult from tha

nature and reafon of things, and are formed '' by a judgement free, and unbiared by the

authority of thofe who have lazily followed " each other in the fame beaten track of think-

iqg, and are arrived only at the reptation 'of acute grammarians and commentators 3

*' men, w h ~ have been copying one another

G 3 ~xlany

86 B L A C K M O R E .

" many hundred years, without any improve- " ment ; or, if they. have ventured farther, (C have only applied in 3 mechanical manner

" the rules of antient critics to modern writ- '' ings, and with great labour difcovered no- " thing but their own want of judgement and '' capacity. As Mr. Johnfon penetrates to Cc the bottom of his fubjea, by which means " his obfervations are iblid and natural, as

well as delicate, ib his defign is always to '@ bring to light fomething ufeful and orna- <' mental ; whence his charaaer is the reverfe " to theirs, who have eminent abilities in in- *' fignificant knowledge, and a great felicity i~

finding out trifles. H e is no lefs induitri- " ous to fearch out the merit of an author, " than fagacious in difcerning his errors and

defeQs ; and takes more pledure in com- " mending the beauties than expofing the G blerniihes of a laudable writing : like Ho- " race, in a long work, he can bear forne de-'

f~rmi t ies~ and jufily lay them on the im- perfellion of human nature, which is inca-

". pable of faultlefs produ&ions. When an excellent Drama appears in public, and its intrinfic w o i h attraasa general applaufe, he is pot fiung with envy and fpleeri ; no;

d~ea

does ,he exprefs a favage nature, in fafiening cc upon the celebrated author, dwelling upon '' his imaginary defeas, and 'pa&ng over his " +nfpicuous- excellences. Ile treats. all " yriters upon !he . fame . impartial fopt ; and " is not, like the little critics, taken up entirely

in finding out only the beauties of the an- '' ' cient, and notbing but the errors of the mo- 'F dern writers. .Never did any one exprefs more

kindnefs and goori nature to youhg and unfiniihed aithors.; he promotes ;heir infereits, prote&s their reputation, extenuates their faults, and . . fets off . their virtues,and by his can-

L! dour them ., . from thefeverity of his " judgement. H e is not like, thofe dry critics,

who are &rife becauce they cannot write themfelves, but is himfelf mafier ofagood vein

'L in poetry ; and though he does not often em- !' ploy it, yet he has fometimes entertained

his friendq with . his . , unpqblihd . perform- (' ances,"

The refi of the Lay monk^ feem to be but feeble mortals, in comparifon .with the gigan- tic Johnfon ; who yet, with all his abilities, pnd the help of the fraternity, could drive the publication but to forty papers, which were

G 4 after-

8% B L A C ' K M O R E , afierwards colleaed into a volume, and called ,

in the title a Sequel to tbc ~~~~~~~~S.

Erne years afterwards ( I 7 I 6 and 7 7 J 7) he publifhed tmto volumes of EGys in profe?. which can be commended only as they are 'written for the highefi and nobleit purpofe, the promotion of religion. Blackmore's profe is not the profe of a poet; for it is languid, fluggiih, and lifeleC9 ; his diaion is neither daring nor exaa, his flow neither gapid nor eaiy, and his periods neither h o o t h nor firong. His account of Wit will h e w with how little clearnefs he is content think, and how little his thoughts are recommended by kis law

'' Afi to Irs efficient caufe, Wit owes it$ pro- fS duaion to an extraordinary and peculiar

temperament in rhe conftitution of the pof- 6' feffor of it, in which is found a- concur? 6' rence of regular and exalted ferments, and C' an affluence of anihal fpirits, refined and

reaified to a great degree ofpurity ; whence, '' being endowed with vivacity, brightnefs,

and celerity, as well in their reflexions fL as dire& motions, they become proper in-

" firuments

B L A C K M O R E . 89 l

*C fimrnents for the fpritely operations of the " mind ; by which mearis the imagination can

with great facility range the wide field of " Nature, corrtemplate- an infinite vqriety of

- " objeas, and, by obfe~ ing the fimilitude and I 'c dilagreement of their feveral qualities, fingle I out and abitraa, and then Euit and unite

6' thoie ideas which will bee ferve its purpofe. CL ~ e h c e beautiful allufions, furprifing meta- 9 phom, and admirable Pentimerits, are always 6' ready at hand : and while the fancy is full

' !' of images colletled from innumerable o b j&s and their different qualities, relations,

" and habitudes, it can at pleafure d d s a common notion in a i)range but becoming

'' garb; by which, as before obferved, the ", h& thought will appear a new one, f 6 to 'the gat delight and wonder uf the hear- . , whit .wo call genitl~ refulta from this .

I @clJar happy complexion in the fire -

l l f o r a & of the @on that enjoys it, and 1 @C is pdature's gift, but diverfified by various

" fpecific charaaers and limitations, as its a&ive fire is blended and allayed by differ-

4' ent proportions of phlegm, or reduced and " regulated by the contrafl of oppofite fer- t' ments. Therefore, as there happens in the

" corn-

compofnion of a facetious genius a greatw . or lefs, though Kill an inferior, degree of

6' judgement and prudence, one man of wit will be varied and difiinguiihed fiom a n o ~ .

- ther."

In thefe Effays he took little Care to propitiate the wits ; for he fcorns to avert their malice at the expence of virtue or of truth.

Several, in' their books, have many far- " caftical and fpiteful itrokes at religion in '' general ; while others make themfelves plea- +' fant with the- principles of the ' Chriitian,

Of the lafi kind, this age has feen a moll audacious example in the book intituled, A %le of a 5%. Had this writing be&

4' publifhed in a pagan or popiih nation, who " are jufily impatient of all indignity offered

to the efiabliihed religion of their country, no doubt but the author would have received the puniihment he deferved. But the fate

eb of this impious buffoon is very different; f' for in a protenant kingdom, zealous of their

civil and religious immunities, he has not only efcaped afionts and the effeQs of pub-

" lic refentment, but has been careffed and patronized by perfons of great figure, and

" o f

a of all denominations. Violent party-men, who differed in all things befides, agreed in

'L their' turn to ihew particular refpe&t and 'I. friendhip to this infolent derider of the " worihip of his country, till at lafi the re- '' puted writer is not only gone off with im-

punity, but triumphs in his dignity and p r e ~ U ferment. I do not know that any inquiry " or fearch was ever made after this writing,

1 + or that any reward was ever offered for I the difcovery of the author, or that the in-

U firnous book was ever condemned to be U burnt in public : whether this proceeds

from the excefiive eiteem and love that men in power, during the late reign, had for wit, 'or their defe& of z e d acd concern for the Chriitian Religion, will be determined beR by thofe wbo are heit acquainted with

!I their charaaer."

In another place he fpeaks with becoming abhorrence of a g06ZleSJ author who has bur- lefqued a Pfalm. Tkis author was fuppofed to be Pope, who publiihed a reward for any one that would produce the coiner of the ac. qufation, but never denied it ; and was after- , 5 wards

wards the perpetual and inceffant enemy of Biackmore.

One of his Effays is upon the Spleen, which is treated by him fo much to his own fatis- fa&ion,'that he has publiihed the fame thoughts in the fame words ; firit in the Lay Monajery; thin in the Effay ; and then in the Preface to a Medical Treatife on the Spleen. . One pdige, which I have found already twice, I will here .exhibit, becaufe I think it better imagined, and better expreffed, than could be expe€ted from the common tenour of his prole:

" --As the feveral combinations of iplene- " tic madnefs and folly produce an infinite a variety of irregular underitanding, ib the " amicable accommodation and alliance be- ' c tween feveral virtues and vices produce an

equal diverfity in the difpofitions and man- f ib rier3 of mankind ; w h e w it- conics to pafs, 6' that as many monltrous and abfurd pro- w duaions are found in the moral ao in the in- 5' telieeual world. HQW fuufpaifing is it to

obferve among the le& iulpable men, {me 6' whole minds are attraaed by heaven and

earth, with a feeming equal force; fome who

.

B L A C K M O R E 93 who 'are proud of humility ; others who are cenforious and uncharitable, yet feu-deny- ing and devout; fome who join contempt of the world with fordid avarice; and others, who preierve a great degree of pietys with ill-nature and ungoverned paGons : nor are

a' inftances of .this inconiifient mixture lefs .

frgquent among bad men, where we ofien, " with admiration, fee perfons at once gene- " rous and unjufi, impious lovers of their

country, and flagitious heroes, good-natured U iharpers, immoral men of honour, and li- e~ bertines who will fooner die than.change " their religion; and though it is true that

repugnant coalitions' of fo high a degree Cc- are found but in a part of mankind, .yet

none of the whole mafs, either good or bad, are intirely exempted from fomk ab-

Ir fwd mixhre,"

H e about this time (Aug, za, 1716) be* came &e of the EIcar of the College of Phy- iicians; and was foon after (O&. I ) chafen Ccnfor. He kerns to have arrived late, what4 ever was the reafon, at hie medical hunoum

Having iueeeeded ib well in his book on, ~ r c d i o n , ' by which he efiabliihed the great

X principle

principle of all Religion, he thought his unh dertaking impede&, unlefs he likewife en. forced the truth of ~evelation; and for that purpofe added another poem on Redempion.

,

H e likewife wrote, before his Creation, three books on the Nature Qf Man*

he lovers of muGcal devotion have a]- ways wiihed for a more happy metrical ver- fion than they have yet obtained of the book of Pfalms; this wiih the piety of Blackmore led him to gratify, and he produced ( I 72 I )

a n e w VerJion of the Pfalms o f David,jtted t o

the tune$ scjd in C b u d e s ; which, being recommended by the archbifhops and many bifhops, obtained a licenfe for its admiffon into public worihip; but no admidion has it yet obtained, nor has it any dght to come where Brady and ate have got poffefioa Blackniore's name mufi be added to thofe of many others, who, by the fame attempt, have obtained only the praife --of meaning well.

I

H e was not yet deterred from heroick poetry; there was another monarch of this ifland, for he did not fetch his heroes from foreign countries, whom he confidered as worthy of the

Epic

kpipid Mufi, and he dignified Alfred ( I 723) with twelve books. But the opinion of the fiation wis now fettled ; a hero introduced by Blackmope was not likely to find either refpea or Undnefs ; Aped took his place by EZizn in .filence and darknefs : benevolence was afhamed to favour, and malice was weary of inhlting. ' Of his four Epic Poems, the firit had h c h reputation and popularity as enraged the critics j the fecond was at leait known enough to' be ridiculed; the two lafi had .neither friends nor enemies.

Contempt is a kind of gangrene, which if A ~t Feizes one part of a charatter corrupts all the reA by degrees. Blackmore, being defpifed as a poet, was ~ I I time negleaed as a phyf~cian ; his pra&ice, which was once invi- dioufly great, forfook him in the latter part of his life ; but being by nature, or by principle, averfe from idlenefs, he employed his unwel- come leifure in writing books on phyfic, and -

teaching others to cure thofe whom he could himfelf cure no longer. I know not whether 1 can enumerate all the treatifes by which he has endeavoured to diffufe the art of healing; foi there is Earcely any diitemper, of dread-

ful

ful name, which he has not taught his reader how to oppofe. He has written bn the fmall-pox, with a vehement invd ive agaluit inoculation; o n coniumptions, the fpieen, the goy^, the rheumam, the king's-evil, the dropfy, the jaundice, the h n e , the dia* betes, and .the plague.

Of thofe books, if 'I had read them, it could not be expe&ed that I ihould be able to give a critical account. I have been told that there is fomething in them of vexation and difcontent, difcovered by a perpetual at4 tempt. to degrade phflck from its fublimity, and to reprefeent it as attainable without much previous or concomitant learning. By the iranfient glances which I have thrown upo i them, I have obferved an def ied contempt of the Ancients, and a fuperciliuus derifion of tmnfmitted knowledge. Of this indecent arrogance the following quotation from his Preface to the Treatife on the Small-pox will afford a fpecimen; in which, when the reader finds, what I fear is true, that when he was cenfur- ing Hippocrates he did not know the difference between aphorym and ap~pbtbcgm, he will not pay much regard to his determinations concerning ancient learning.

B L A C K M O . R E . 97

" As for this book of Aphorifms, it is like my lord Bacon'e of the fame title, a

" book of jefts, or a grave colleLtion of trite and trifling obfervuions; of which though many are true and certain, yet they Ggnlfy nothing, and .map afford diverfion, but no i n h a i o n ; moit of them being much in-

L' ferior to the iayinga of the wife* men of - " Greece, which yet are ib low. and mean, " that we are entertained every day with '' more valuable ientiments at the table-con-

1, vexfation of ingenious and learned men." - l

. I am unwilling however to leave him in total difgrace, and will therefore luote from another Preface a pagdge lefs repre-

1 henme.

Some gentlemen have been difingenuous " and unjuft to me, by wreiting and forcing " my meaning in the Preface to another book,

as if I condemned and expofed all learning,

I I " though they knew I declared that I greatly

I " honoured and efieemed all men of fuperior ' literature and erudition; and that I only " undervalued falfe or fuperficial learning, '' that iignifies nothing for the Cervice of

VOL. 111, H , " mankind ; l

'T mankind; and that, as to phyfick; I ex- !! ~refsly affirmed that learning muit be joined '' with native genius to make a phyfician of

the firA rank; but if thole talents we iepa- rated, I agerted, and do itill infilt, that rt.

fc man of native faagacity and diligence will '' prove a more able and ufeful praEtifer,

than a heavy notional fcholar, encyipberect !' with a heap of confukd.ideis,"

H e was not only a poet and a phyfician? b;t produced likewife a work of a different kind, A t rue and impartial H i o r y ofibe Con-

j3iracy againz K* William, of gloriom Me- inorj~, in the Yenr 1695. This I have never feen, but fuuppofe it at leafi compiled with . integrity. H e engaged likewife in theological controverry, and wrote two books againfi the Arians; Prejudices ogainJ tbc Arian Hy- potht$~ ; and Moderjt Arians unmaJed. Ano- ther of his works is Natural 2-beology, o r Moral Duties conzdered apart from PoJitivc; witbJorne OEJcrvationr on the DeJrnbten@ a n 2 Necegity of a fiernatural Revelation. Thi$ was the iafl book that he publilhed. H e lef; behind him The a~comp~y2~dPreacber, o r on

E@'

EJay upon Divine Eloquence; which was printed afier his death by Mr. White of Nay- .land in Effex, the minifier who attended-his -deathbed, and tefiified the fervent piety of .his lait .hours. He died on the eighth of Oltobr, I 7tg.

, BLACKMORE, by the unremitted enmity of the wits, whom he pravoked more by bis virtue than his dulnefs, hqs been expaded to work treatment than he defqed; hia name was ib long ufed to point every epi-. gram upon dull writers, that it became at lafi a bye-word of contempt: but it deferves obicrvation, that malignity takes hold only of his writings, and that his life paired without reprdach, even when his boldnefi of repre- henfion naturally turned upon him many eyes defirous to efpy faults, which many tongues would have made hafie to publiih. But thofe who could not blame, could at leait forbear t~ praife, and therefore of his private life and domgfiqk chara@er there arp PO rncqorials;

As an author he may juAly claim the B o ~ nours of ,magnanimity. The inceffant attacks of his enemies, whether ferious or merry, Fir(: qever difcovered to have diiturbed his quiet, or to haye leffend his confidence iq 1 fiimfelfj they neither awed him to filencc: I

P& to caqtiofi; they neither provcked him !Q

. . to pethladce, nor depreffed him to complaint; while the d&ribbt~ts of literary fame wed &nde&ouring to depreciate and degrade him, he either defpifed or'defied them, wrote on as he had written ' before, and never turned afide to quiet them by civility, or tepref6 them by confutation.

I He depended with gteat fecuritp on his bwn powers, and perhap was for that reaibn lefs diligent in pending books. His literature was, I think, but fmall. What he knew of antiquity, I fufpeQ him to have gathered . fiom modern compilers : but though he could not baafi of much critical knowledge, his mind was Rored with general principles, and he left minute rerearches to thok whom he confidered as little minds.

i With this difppofition he mote mofi of his poems, Having formed a magcificent defign,

I he was carelefs of particular and hbordinatt elegancies; he itudied no niceties df verfification ; he waited for no felicities of fancy; but caught his firfi thoughts in the firit words

I h which they were prefented: nor does it appear that he faw beyond his own perform& \

1 H 3 BnCe6,

to2 B L A C K - M O R E . gnces, or had ever elevated his views to that ideal perfeQion which every genius born td excel is condemned always to purfue, and never overtake. In the firft fugeitions of his imagination he acquiefced; he thought *ern good, and did not feek fm better.

The poem on Creation has, however, the appearance of mdre circumfpe€tion; it wants neither harmony of numbers, accuracy of thought, nor elegance of dieion: it has either been written with great care, or, what cannot be imagined of i~ 10.q a work, with iuch. felicity. as made catre lefs neceffary.

r Its two confiituent parts are ratiocination dnd defcription. To reaion in ~e t f e , is allow& ed to be difficult; but Blackmore not only reafons in verfe, but very often reafons po- @cdly; and finds the art of' uniting ornament with firength, and eafe with clofeneh, bs is a Bill which Pope might have con, deicended to learn from him, when he need- sd it io much in his Moral Effays,

. In his defcriptions, both of life and nature* the p! and the philofopber happily co-ape+

rate j

I rate ; truth is recommended by elegance, and elegance fufiained by truth. .

l In the hu&ure and order of the poem, not only tbe greater parts are properly cod- fecutive, but the didatlick and iHuitrative paragraphs are fo happily mingled, that labour is relieved by pleafui-e, and the attention is led bn through a long fuccefion of varied excellence td tlie original pofition, the fundaa mental principle crf ~ i f i o m and of virtue,

AS the heroick poems qf Blackmore are now littIe read, it is thought proper to i~ifert, as a fpecim~n from P h c e Artbur, the fong of Mvar mentioned by Molineux. '

l b u t that which Arthur with rnoR plerfure 1

heard, Were noble ftrains, by Mopas Cung the bard, W h o to his harp in lofty verfc began, And through the fecret maze of Nature ran. H e the great Spirit fung, that all things fill'd, That the tumultuous waves of Chaos itill'd; Whofe nod difpos'd the jarring feeds to peace, And made the wars of hoitile Atoms ceafe. All Beings we in fruitful Nature find, Proceeded from the great Eternal Mind ; Streams of his unexhauRed Ipring of power, And cherilh'd with his influence, endure. H e fpread the pure cerulean fields on high, i

And arch'd the chambers of the vaulted ky,-' .! Which he, to h i t their glory with their height, 8

Adorn'd with globes, that reel, as drunk with light.

His hand direRed all the tuneful fpl~eres, H e turn'd their orbs, and polifh'd all the ftars. He fill'd the Sun's vafi lamp with golden light, And bid the filver Moon adorn the night. l

He

h

B L A C K M O R E . 1 95 He fpreld the airy Ocean without mores, Where birds are wafted with their fearher'd oars. Then fung the bard how the light vapours rife From rhe warm earth, and cloud the fmiling kies. H e rung how fome, chill'd in their airy flight, Fall fcatter'd down in pearly dew by night. How fome, rais'd higher, fit in fecrct Beams On the refleEted points of bounding beams; Till, chill'd with cold, they bade th' etherid plain, Then on the thirity earth dcfcend in rain. How fome, whofe parts a flight contexture ihow, Sink hovering through the air, in fleecy fnow. How part is ipun in iilken threads, and clings Entangled in the grafs in glewy firings. How others itamp to itones, with rulhing found Fall from their cryQal quarries to the ground. . How fome are laid in trains, that kindled Ay In harmlefs fires by night, about the iky. How fome in winds Mow with i~npetuous force, And carry ruin where they bend their courfc: While fome confpire to form a gentle breeze, T o fan the air, and play among the trees. How fome, enrag'd, grow turbulent and loud, Pent in the bowels of a frowning cloud; That cracks, as if the axis of the world Was broke, and heavepps bright towers were

downwards hurl'd. He fung how earth's wide ball, at Jovepscommand, Did in the midR on airy columns fland. And how the foul of plants, in prifon held, . And bound with fluggiih fetters, lies conccalpd,

Till

Till with the Sptirig's warm beams, dmofi relea4 From the dull weight, with which it lay oppreft, I ts vigour fpreadsj and makes the teeming earth Heave up, and labour with the fprouting Girth 3

The; atlive fpirit freedurn feehs in vain; It only works and twins a itronger chain. Urging its prifon's fides to break way, It makes that wider, where 'tis forc'd to itay: Till,.having form'd its livifig houfe, it rears Its head, a& in a tender plant appears. Hence fprings the oak, the beauty of the grove; W hofe itately trunk fierceitbrms can fcarcely movG Hencc grows the cedar, hence the {welling iiine Does'round the elmi its purple cluflers twine. I

Hence painted flowers the fmiling gardens blefi, Both with their fragrant fcent and gaudy drefs. 1 Hence the white lily in full beauty grows, I

Hence the blue violet, and bluihing rofe. l

H e fung how fun-beams brood upon the earth, I

And in the glebe hatch fuch a numerous birth ; . Whieh way the genial wafmth in Summer fiorms Turns putrid vapours to a bed of 'drorms ; l

How rain, transform'd by this prolifick power, Falls from the clouds an animated ihower. H e fung the embryo's growth within the womb, 'And how the parts their. various hapes affume. '

With what rare art the wondrous firu&ureYs wrought,

From one crude mars to fuch perfeaion brought'; T h a t no part ufelek, none mifplac'd we fee, None are forgct, and mbre would monfirous be;''

I F E N T O N .

T H E brevity with which I am to write the account of ELTSHA FENTON

fs not the effeQ of indifference or negligence. 1 have fought intelligence among his relations in his native county, but have pot obtained, it.

He was bosn near Newcafile in Stafford- &ire, of an ancient family, whore eAate was very confiderable; but he was the youngefi of twelve children, and being therefore neceffarily defiined to fome lucrative employment, was ient firfi tofchool, and afterwards to Cambridge; but, with many other wife and virtuous men, who at that time of difcord and debate con-* fulted confcicience, whether well or ill informed, more than interefi, he doubted the legality of the government, and, refufing to qual~fy bimfelf for publick employment by the oaths required, left the u~verfity without a de-

4 F e e ;

, gree; but I never heard that the enthufiaim of oppoGtion impelled him to feparation from the church, . .

By this perveriaqfs of integrity he was driven out a commoner of ~ature , : excluded from the regular modes of profit and pro- fpgrity, and reduced to pick up a livelihood bpcktiin and fortpitbus; but it muR be E- inembered that he kept his name upfullied, and never i'uffered himfe1f to he reduqed, like too many d the Lme fee, to hean. arts ahd diihonourable hifts: Whoever mkntioned Fenton, mentioned him - with honour,

4 - . -

The Iife that pares in penury, muR neceG farily pafs' in obfqurity. It is impofible to trace Fenton from year to year, or to .difcover what , - means he ufed for his fupport. H e was a while fqcretary to Charles earl of Orrery in Flanders, and tutor to his young Ton, who afterwards mentioned .him with great efteem and tendernefb. H e was at one time afG8iitant in the fchool of Mr. Bonwicke in Surrey ; and at another kept a fchool for himfeIf at Sevenoaks in Kent, 'which he brought' into reputation; but was peduaded

ta

te leave it. ( I 710) by Mr. St. John, with prcrpifes of a more honourable employment, :

H i s opiqions, as he was a Nonjuror, feem 'not to have been remarkably rigid. He wrote with great zeal and affeeion the praifes s f .queen Anne, and ve y willingly and liberally extolled the duke of Marlborough, when he was (r707) at the height of his glory.

H e expreffed itill more attention to Marl-' borough and his family by on elegiac Pailoral on the marquis of Blandford, which could be prompted only by refpett or kindnels; for neither the duke nor dutcheis defired the praife, or liked the CO? of patronage.

The elegance of his poetry entitled him to. the company of the wits of his time, and the amiablened of his manners made him loved wherever he was known. Of his friendflip to Southern and Pope there i r e laiting monuments. He publiihed in 1737 a colle&ion of poems.

-By Pope he was once placed in a itation $hat might have been of great advanragd.' . - I Craggs,

112 F E N ' T 0 N. Craggs, when he was advanced to be fecretary of fiate. (about 1720), feeling his own want of literature, defired Pope to procure him an inftruaor, by whole help he might fupply the deficiencies of his education. Pope recommended Fenton, in whom Craggs found all that he was feeking. There was now a profpeQ of eafe and plenty; for Fenton had merit, and Craggs had generofity: but the fmall-pox fuddenly put an end to the pleafing expeoation.

When Pope, after the great fuccefs of his Iliad, undertook the Odgey, being, as it feems, weary of tranflating, he determined to engage auxiliaries. Twelve books he took to hirnfelf, and twelve he diRributed between Broome and Fenton: thk books allotted to Fentorl were the hA, the fourth, the nine- teenth, and the twentieth. It is dbfervable that he did not take the eleventh, which he had before tranflated into blank verfe, neither did Pope claim it, but c~mmitted it to Broome; How the two airociates performed their parts is well known to the readers of poetry, who have never been able to difiinguiih their books from thofe of Pope,

IQ

h, i 7 i ) w u perfo*ed his tragedy of &izriamnc; to which Squthern, at whore houk it arittai is fpid to *hake Soutrib+ted iuch hints as his thiiatrical experience ftip- plied. When it was the& to Cibber it Gas ?jetted by him, 4 t h the additional i& lmce of advifiq Fenton to engage himfelf in fome employment of hone& labour, by which he d g h t obtain that f~ppori which he could never hope kiom his poetry. The play *Yi atted at the other theatre; aail the brut4

-petulance of &bbiir was conf;ted, though perhaps - not &amed, by general applaufe. Fenton's profits are fpid to have amounted to near a thouiand pounds, with w&ch he dg. charged a debt contratted b i hid ittehdadce i t court.

Fenton fiiems €0 have had fume peculiar . ryiteh of verlificatiotl. Jkat'iaiane is written h lines bf teh fyllables, with few of thofe reduri&nt .terminations which the .drama not bnly adniits but requirb, as more nearly approaching ;,tb real. dialoguei 'The tenor of ,

his veric is To uniform that it cannot be thought cdual ; and yet upon what principle he fo ebditu&id it, ip &&cult to diG~ova. -

Voz. UI. 1 . ::

. - .., m .A

The mention of his play brings to .kg mind a very trifling occun'ence: Periwri wag bne day in the company of Broome -his ilffo- ciate,: and Ford a clergyman, at &;at cime too well known, whofe abilities, hitead of fmnifhing convivial merriment to. the vorup- tuous and diffolute, might have enabled him to excel among the virtuous and' tbe wife, They determined a l l to fee the Mehy W h of Win@r; which was seed fhat night ; iind Fenton, as a dramatick poet, took 'them to the itage-dooi; where the door-'keeper m-. +ring 6 h o they were, was tdd tliit #&heJ were three very necefhy mm, h r d , & m e , and Fenton. The' name in the play, 'which Pope rebored to BmoR, w a s then &U&' .

I t was perhaps after his play that he un- dertaok to revife the pun&uation of Milton'sl Poems, which, as the author neither wrote the original copy nor correlied the preh wag iuppoied capable of irmendme~t. To this edition he p&xd a aart and h a n g account of Milton'-s life, smitten at me ,wit4 tender- tlefs and i n t e t y , *

H e p~bl,i$ed likewik (X pi) a very fflep- &d edition of Waller, with notes pften ufe

9 . . . . 2 ful,

aftkn entertaining, but too much extend- kd by long quotations from Clarendoa Illuf- trations drawn from a book fo eafily c~nfulted, fhould be made by reference ratha than

. trdriptionc

The latter pa& of his life *as calm and pleafant. The relia of Sir Wiliim Trumbal iayited him, by Pope's xeeommendatiop, to gducate her foe; whom he fir8 i n h e e d g horn, and then attended to Cambridge. The lady afterwards detained him with her as the auditor of her accounts. He ofien vaq- dered to Loadon, and amuEed hide l f _+tb $he convdatiori of big fiend%

He died in 1730, at EaRhampfiead in Berkibire, the feat of rhe lady Trumbal~ p d Pppe, w h ~ had bcen aIways his fri,end, bonouFed him with an spitaph, d , which horrbwed the m firfi lines frpm Craih3p.

Penton was tall and hub, ia~liadd to corpulence, which he did not Men bp @U& exercife ; @r he was very dugg;ih md ;tideo- tary, mfe late, and d e n he had r&n, iit down to, his book or pagers. A woman,

I 2 that

&at once waited on him in a lodging, told phi^, as the faid, that he would lie a-bed,. rmd k fed ~itb'aSpoon. This, however, was not h. wadi that might have been prognoiti- cated; for Pope fays, in his Letteis, that h died of indolence; but his immediate difiemper 'was th;e gout.

Of ' his morals and his convedati6n the account is uniform: he was never named but ~ t h praife and fondnefs,'as a man in the bigheR degree amiable and excellent. Such was the eharaaer given him by the earl of . ,

Orrery, his pupil; fuch is the t&imonp of l

1 Pope*, and fuch were the fuf iges of all who could boait of his acquaintance.

By a former writer of his Life a Aory is told, which ought not to be forgotfen. He ded, in the latter part of his time, to pay his re2atims in the country an yearly vifit. At an entertainment made for the family by his eider brother, he obferved that one of his Wen, who had. married unfortunately, .was abfent; and found, upon enquiry, that difa tr& had -made her thought unworthy of

!

l , , .

' - ~pencc. ' ' : :. i invitation,

P . E N - T Q N.' k 1 7 , invitation. Ad f4e was at no great . d b e ; he refded to fit at the table till fhe was called, and,. &hen. ihe hid taken her. place, wai careful to ihew her particular attention.

His col1eaion of potms is now to becon- Bdered. The od; tb the Sun is written +on B common plan, without uncqmmQq fcpti- rnents; bui its' greatefi fault is its length. No poem fhould be long of which . . the - pur- pore is only to firike the fancy, withoui enligktenhg the underitanding . , by pyecept, ratiocination, sr narrative. h bl<zq f$$ pleafes, and then tires the fight,

. . ..

Of FZortlio it is fufficient to fay that it is an occafional paftoral, which implies Come- thing neither nqtural' qor grtificial, . neitha

The next ode - is irregular, and therefore defeaive. As the fentirnents are pioui, they cannot eaiily b& new; for what can be added to topicks 01% which ,fuccefive ages have been

. . 'gmployed !- . , . .. . .. . Of the Parapb~aj Q ~ J @iab pothing' very

favowable wn be hid. Sublime and folemn

1 4 prcfe-

l prdc gains little by r change td blank veth i and tbe paraphrait has deferted his original, by admitthg images n ~ t . M a W , at .lipit qot Judaicd :

- Returning, Pace, . . Dwe-eyed, and rob'd ih whirc-- . . . .

i Of his petty poems fome are very trifling; 'without any thing to be praifed either in thb' thought or exprellion, He i s 'unlucXy in

l his competitions; he tells the fame idle tale bpith Congreve, and does not tell i t io well, He tranflates from Ovid the fame epifile as Pope; but I: am afraid not whh equa! happinds.

Tb examine his performances one b'y m e would be tedious. His tranflation from Ho- mer into blank vqrfe will find few readeri while another can be had in rhyme. The. piece addreKed to Laqbarde is no difagreeabk @ecimen of epifiolary poetry; and his ode tq

' the lord Gower was pronounced by Pope the n u t &e in the Englilh language to Dryden's Cecilia. Fenton may be juitly fiyled an ex-. d e n t vgrflfp-er aqd a good poet.

GAY.,

3 QHN 'GAY, defcended froni an old fi? mily that had been long in poffeffioi of

the manour of " Goldworthy in Devonihi* was born in 1688, at ar near BamRaple, where he. m educatsd by Mr. Luck, who taught the f c h d 0s that town with good reputation, and, a little before be retired fibm it, publfied a uolvme of Latip and Engli& yedcs. Under fuch a &its hc wat3 likely to form a tafte fw poetry. Being born without prgfpett sf hereditary riches, he was ht to Loadan in his youtb, and placed apprentick with a filk~mercer,.

m long &e continued behind the counter, or with what degree of MneG anddexterity be received ad accommodated the ladies, u

pqobablg tpak nQ delight in telling it, is

Gddwmb~ does not a p p ip the F&;.

not known. The report is, that he was fmn weary of either the reRraint or fervility of his occupation, and'eafily peri'uaded3is mafier-tq difcharge him.

The dutchefs of Monmouth, . remarkable for 'inflexible perfeverance in her demand to be treated as a princefs, in I 71 7 ~k Gay hno her fenice lebetti'p' 1 by quitting a Qop for fuch fervice, he might g& leilute, but he ~ r t a h i y advanotd'hk in the

of independence. Of MB kif ie he made fo g o d ure, that he pubKR\ed kxt year a *poem on Rural S'rt.r, a ~ d inhibed i& to. Mr. Pope, who was then riling &t ,ism q n i ~ - pation. Pope was pleakd with the W&; qnd d e n he became acquainted with Gap, found &h attraaions fn his m m n e r s . 4 oon- d a t i a , that he- ferns to have mitd hiaa dofo hi i d , d r t e n c e ; a id 'a fibdlip was formed between them which' lafkd t-a their feparation by death, without any knowq abgtement on ei thr pm. Gag wai a t h e g% n&nl dhvourire of the whole aflbeiation of vip ; but they regarded him aa a pf8'4"elllea sawr ahm r Fa-, and treated him avita more fondpefs than reipeo,

Next .

N- year he publiIh4 Tk Sbi$khd'* Wed, fix Engliih Paifiorals, in wbieh the irhages ars drawn from real life, fdch as it appears among the ruRicks in parts af Engla~d remete fiom London, S te le in fame papeie of the Guardian had praifed Ambrofe Philips, as the PaRoral writer that yielded only to Theocrims, Virgil, and Spenfer. Pope, who had a& publiihqd Pafiorals, not pleafed to be over- looked,. drew up a coinparifon of his own ,

eornp&ticms with thofe of Philip, in which be covertly gaaye bimfelf the preference, while he feemed to difown .it. Not content with this, he is fuppofed to have in6tted O a Y 'P wrice the ~hepberd's.'Wee'k, -to ihew, that if n be neceffary to copy nature with minutends, rural life mufi be exhibited iirch as groflnefs a id ignkance h a ~ c p a d e 'it. So far the plan bvas reafonab'le ; b,pt 'thk Paitorals are i11tr6- duced by a Proem, writ& with fiuch imitation as .they cmld attain of obfolete language-, and by coniequtnce in a fiyle that was never ipokeri nor *ritten in any age or h any place:

t

the effe& of reality and tmh b s a m c - .

~onfpicuous, even when the intention was to mew groveling ;md degraded. Thefe

Paitorals

Paftorals became popular, and were read with delight as juft reprefentations of rural manners and occupations by thofe who had no intereit in the rivalry of the poets, nor knowledge of the critical diipute, '

In I 71 3 he brought a comedy called TZe Wfe of Baih upon the fiage, but it teceived ho applaufe ; he printed I $ however ; ;md ieven- teen y e w after, having altered it, and, as he thought, adapted it more to the publick tafle, he offered it agaiq to the town ; but, though he was flufhed with the fucceis of tfie Be8;gar9j Opera, had fie moflificatipn tp fee i t agair) . S

?eje&&

I In the l& year of queen Anne's Me, Gay was made recretary to the earl of C l a ~ d o n ,

1 +mbaffidor to &e court of Hanover. -is was a itation that naturally gave him hopes

I df kindnei from every party i but the €&een9+ dcath put an end to h q favours, and h i ha4 dedicated his ~bqbcrks Wecl to Bolingbrokel which Swifi confidered as the crime @at ob- ttruaed all kindnefs from the bode of H+ nover,

G A Y. 1h3

Re did not, however, o d t to improve the right which his office had gi*en him to the notice of the royal family. On the arrival of the princefs of Wales he wrote a poem, and obtained CO much favour that both the Prince and Princefs went to fee his What

caN it, a kind of mock-tragedy, in which 'the images were comick, and the aQion grave; fo that, as Pope relates, Mr. CromwelI, ,who could not hear .what was laid, was at a lofs how to reconcile the laughter of the au+ dience with the folemnity of the fcene.

Of this performance the d u e certainly is but little; but it was one of the lucky trifles that give pledure by novelty, and was fo much favoured by the audience that envy appeared againit it in the form of criticifm ; and Griffin a player, in conjunCtion with Mr. Theobald, a man afterwards more remarkable, produced a pamphlet called the Key to tbr Kbat d'ye call it; which, fay$ Gay,\ calls me a blockbead, and Mr. Pope a Knave.

But ort tune has always been inconfiant. Not long afterwards ( I 7 I 7) he endeavoured to entertain the town with Three Hi#r~ after

Mar-

' Marriage ; comedy writt~n, as tide is; Sufficient rearon for believing, by the joint ;Jliitqnce of, Pope and Arbvtbnot. Onrj pur- poSe of it was to bring into contempt Drd Woodward the FoGliA, a man not r.e$y or: juitly contewptible. It had the fate which fuch outrages deferve : the icene in which Woodward wae direely and apparently ridid cuIed, by the jntrodyeiotr ,of a mummy and a crocodile, difgufied the ahdience, and the performance was driven off the itage with general condemnation. ,

, G,ay i s rcprdented as a man eafily incited $0 hope, and deeply depreffed when his hopes i l ,were difappointed. 'This is not &e charade of a hero ; but it may namally fuppfy f w a

thing more generally welcome, a iofi and civil ~ companion. \V.Vhwver is apt to hope good 1 from others is diligent to pleafe them3 but he that believes his pokers &ng pough to f o q . i their own way, c&.monly tries . anly . t o plea@ himlelf.

H e had been fimple enough ko imagine &at I

M e who laughed at the Wbat d)e caN ,a s ~ y l d ,raife the fortune of its iqt,~&w; a$

find^

bndkng nothing done, funk into- dej&ioa, His f i i d s endeavoured to divert him. The earl of Burlington kn t him ( I 7 I 6) into Deb vonfhirc ; the pear after, Mr. Pdteney took him to Aix; and in the following year lord Hancourt iayitgxl him t~ his feat, where, dur- iag his vifit, the two rural lovers were killed with lightning, as is particularly told in Pape'o

l I Letters.

l Being now generally known, he publifhed I I (1720) his Poems by rubicripti,on with .fuch

fuccefs, that be rqed a thoubnd pounds ; and called his fsends to a codultation, what ufe

! I

.might be be& d e of it. Lewis, the fieward I of lord oxf fad, dvifid him to intrufl it to the

funds, ar~d live 'upon ,the interefi ; -Arbuthno) ,bad Bi in& it. to Providence, and live upon the principal; Pope dire&ed him, ,and was

l feconded by Swift, to purchafe an annuity.

. Gay in that difaitrous year * had a prefent from young Craggs of fome South-fea-flock, and once fuppofed himfelf to be mafier of twenty thodand pounds. His 6r'inds -pe&adcd him to fd! his hare ; but he dreamed of dignity

and

hd'fplendoui, and cotild not beif tb (QRM& his own fortune. H e was then impoihlned to fell as much as would purchaie an hundred a year for life, which, fays Fenton, will m a k jou/..c . f a ;(can~hi?t atid rfiouIderr of muttori every day. This counfel was 'rejetled ; the ~ r o f i t and pririciial were 10% and Gay funk under the calamity fo low that his life became in danger.

8j7 the care of his fiiendsi among W% poke appears to haki: ih&n padcular tendeti nefs, his health was refiored ;' and, 2eturning to his hudies, he wrote d tragdy dalled The Captives, which lie Was ihvited tb read before the princefs of wales. When the hobr came, he faw the princefs And her ladies all in en- @e&t:ori, and advancing with reverence, tod great for any other attention, iturnbled at a fidol, and falling forwards, threw 'down a weighty Japan fcreen. The princefs fiarted, the ladies fcreamed, and pobr Gay .after ad the d h b a n c e was flill ta rkad his play;

The h e of CIbc ~ a ~ t i v e s * I know not ; but he x i c ~ thought himfelf in favour, and

It waa atled n DruryLLancin 1723. untiein

bdderrook .( I 726) to ?rite a v&e 8fiF&bles gor the ihprovement' of. t l ~ k yda$: dulke' of Cumberlan$ . - For' t& hi: is ' faid to - . have

; bden prmiired a reward, &hich- be. had doubtlefs magnified with $1. t8e wild exp& tations of.indigeince and ?hi-tp '.

- . i . . 9 I ::: ",,,, ' . # ' ,

* - - a Next pear the Wnce and PnnceP: heamr

King and Qeen, and Gay was to be great hnd happyl. but: upn..thb-: fettlerncni of the houfehdd he f&nd .hin?ieif appointid- deman to the pri&efi L~uid.: : 'Bp.rhis offer he thought himi'elf infulie4, :And fent' a meffage to the Qeen, that he was too old for the plaue, There: ike to .&am! - bten many. niaohinations emplayed. e r w a r d s iii his favaur ; and :diligent. sourt. was paid. Mrs. Hodard, afterwads countgfs of Suffolk; who 'was: niuch b e b e d by the ,K.iag . k d Qeen;, to engage her interafi f i r his.promrF tion ; :bit Glicitations, v t l s , .an&- fhtteties were thrown ' away; .the,. lady heard them; and did nuthing. .. . _ . . r . . a . . . .. . .

All the which he' h $ . from the tieglefi, or, as he perhaps terniied ,it, the in-. gratitude of the court, may k ft~ppokd. to

' VOL. 111. K . have

havs ., &ra::drfren -away by dx - hojrxampled ~fuwa1:i'. of the Bqgm's Opwa. This play3 wrirteo, ridicul! &. the rnufqal TtaIian

- @xbrnai was firit'diwed to Gibber. and his , been: at Drury-Lane, and rejeLted; it

being then carriced.to.aich, had the.&&, ~ Z I

was ludicroufly faid, of making Gay rich, and P i h g t v ; . : . . . , . , , ., . . , .. .. .

. . . d r . , L: . . , ..L '. . . 1 . 1 , , . . . df this .lgCkY: pidce,. ae * the'resder cannot . . bNt . , nhihi;to- kiow., the, .original md @ b g ~ f % j:.bve: inkrted thPI A t i o n which Speme. has giMen in.P*'s. &ch.&:. : . .

. - r . h . . L . < . . d . . . . . . .. .

.. Dt.: swift .had1: bkn tibfming ante- ta !L- M r . - - W , : what :an odd pretty: fort of a iC: t h i q a:. -Nowgate.. Pabral . might m&e~ !C .Gq- was i~nclinedltm . t ry at Tuch a thing !!. .hr fame time ; btr xdterwards thought it 6' mould 'be. better to: mite) a comedy m die tr fame: $an, This was what. gave ri& to tb Beggar's Q j ~ a . , H e b p s on it; and when firit he mentioned I t ta SW*, the DoRor did not much like the projee.

16 As. h5 ianied it .on, her &iswed &hat -he m & e to both. of .* a d ..we .nc+w-anda I

" then .gpe :a corre&ian, ot' a word. or. tttira . . . .

. . . . , A A - ' 'is Of

. .

cd'of advice; b;rt it ibis wholl~.of his own . . i+fitiiqj.-when it ~ i i hrie, &ither of

ki i s though€ ii w'ou1'd fucfiid.-%i' hewed - & ,

U: It to Congreve; who, a ter reading it over,

" faid, It would 6th iiki . , gfiitlf, 6 ~ . 6 "' damnedc ~ o d o u n d e d l y . ~ W & . , were. , . , all, at " fid night of it, in grist unceftaintjr

1'. df the weni; till pre w=re Gerf much exi- coqiaged by overhearing the duke of Ai- ix'.' -.:.. . .. . . . .

le,. who fat in the n6it box to dsi. /ayb -.. v. '' It -w';ii d'&t &fi do! I fe i it C thieyes 6f thk . i . ' TGii .was a geed while befor9

'' the firR A& kis &irj and B gave us eafq " foon; f o ~ that duke (befidcs h6 6Gn good * Jy a knicg, as any 6ne

now living, in' difmirering tlie tait'e of the U' Pdbli&. He' tkai quite rigfit in this, " as ukial ; the good natilrti bf the audience

.., . . appear&' &ib'iigef' and' hi&* every 63,

" . . aiid,%dli;lea ib a clamoui of ippli,GfidV

Its reception is thrts recorded in'& notes to the Duftciad:

'' S i g piece received wi,th g e a t r Q-

CC' pfaufe than .was eier knee. "BeGdes be-' , fi L- i+ aaed h. London &ty-t&& d q d

W; a without

," without interruption,, and renewed the " next . feafon with equal applaufe, ' i t fpread " into a11 the great towns of England; was " played in many places to the thirtieth and " fortieth time; at Bath and Brifiol fifty, &c. " It made its progrefs into Wales, Scotland, " and Ireland, where it was perfirmed twen- " ty-fob; days fuccefli+ely. The ladies car- -iit

" ried about with them the favourite fongs " of i t - in fans, and houfes were furniftied " with it in fcreens, The fame of it was " not confined to' the author only. The " peribn who a&ed Polly, till then obfcure, " became all at once t l e favourite of the

town; her piaures were engraved, and " ibld ip great numbers; her Life written,

books of litters and verfes ' to her pub- Iiihed, and pamphlets made even of her fayings and jefis. Furthermore, it drove out of England (for that feeaibnl the Italian

' " Opera, which had carried all before it for " ten years."

Of this performance, when.it was printed, thc. reception was different, according to the different opinion of its readers. Swift com- . .

mended it for the excellence, of its morality, as

-G -A Y. "33

as a piece that plocedall Iindr of vice in th ' Prong@ and'mojt 0diou.r lkht; but 'others, and among them Dr. ,Herring, afterwards arch& bihop of Canterbury, cenfured it as . giving encouragement n i t only to vice but to crimes, by making a ' highwayman the hero, and difmifilng him at l& unpunifhed. It has been even faid, that after the exhibiiion of the Beggar'$ Opera the gangs of robbers were evidently multiplied.

, .

Both thefe decifions are iilrely exaggerated.

I The play, like many others, was. plainly written only to divert, without any moral

l

1 purpofe, and is therefore not likely to do good; nor can it be conceived, without more

1 fpeculation than life requires or admits, to

1 be produRive of much evil. Highwaymen and houfe-breakers feldo~n fi-equent the play-

l houfe, or mingle in an) elegant divercon; I nor is it poable for any one to imagine that

he may rob with hfety, becaufe he fces Mac- heath reprieved upon the Rage.

l A .

. .

i his objeaihn 'however,; or &me other rather political than' mor'il; obtained fuch prevalence, that when Gay produced a fe-

K 3 , cond

.cond. $ . part under the, . .name .. . of FO~J; it -W#

rahibited by the Lord Chapbexjaje; and h.9 P. .. . wq 'forced . .. ... t o &compenfe big yepg#fe .g Eubfcription, which iq faid to haye, &yr!- ig 1ib&any; , . befiowed, . . . that what he ,called op; p ~ ~ f i q n p d e d ... . in . profit.. . ~ h ~ ' * iJ$licatioq w& , .- lo - - much, . . fivoured, th;)! thptgh {he fir& . .. .

part gajnqd .him. four :hund~ed -pop&, aeay

fhrice - . +S . mqch . p.as the profit of the iecoqd. . . . . -. .

H e received yet another recompenfe for tbis fuppofed hardihip, in the affeQi~nate.at- tenrib* of the duke and dut&e@ 6f Qegof- berry, into whofe houfe I\e y a s taJce6, .$kd pi th whom he paffe;d the rirnainjng pqt of bi6 life.. i _ _ . The* , . . duke,,'chnfide$& hig 'wpnt of Fconomy, undertook the rnana@&nt . , of . . his pphey, and' i t td him as he waoteb . . it; But - it is p that the di fcowtw~pce , . , . . S . of the C o q t uhk'deep into his heir!, and gave .

I

bim clifcontent than the applaures or ieidernefs . . o f . his Liends. could bverpbwer, ~e iopn fell in!; his old dif iep~er , ar+ habitual colick; -and Ianguifhed, though with many interyals of eare and cheerfulnefs, till 7 . ' '

kiolt$ :'fit i t ail feized ,him, ?nd hurried $ , . L . . . , l . . . . . . . . . . . .

I Mm to the gravei :as -sPrb\!thno\.- reported, with. .mgre prccjpitagce :he : &d . e m known. He died on the fburth of ikcern- ber 1732, and was buried iq Wgfimlnfier

i . Abbey. The letter %h.brought i s acoouit l ' - qf his death to Swifi- was laid $p for ibw

days unopened,. beeauk .when. he. pkeived i( . be was imprcR with ttK: p~conwption of Erne misfortune, - .

.I. I

M e r his death was -publifhed a Bcond lume of Fables more political than tbb former. His opera of 2cbilb.r was a&d, a d the prd, f i t s were gken . to. ~ F - w i d o w fiRersi whd inherited what, he'left, as Ms lawfuI heirs;' for he died without. a will, ihbugh he hid.& thered* three thbufand pounds. - ' have appe&d 4e+fc undi hi$ 'name i c6nikdy klled' the D@@ Wife; and tb,& R't&e$fi! &! . &tb, a piece af humoqr, - - '' .

:' . ' .. . . . , -

I l . . . , > . r

T& charahr given him by Pope* is.thi,s; that ,h - w a ~ a nuturd man, - witbotrt ' &Jgix wbo Jpke r d a t be tbougbt, and j r @ OJ be- cdPgbt . . it; and that Sd wor pj. o rimid tern&,

. -

.: a Sp*. - . . . .

$ 4 B ~ A

a'd fla$uZ of : gidrzg - oJcnce /o .. .tbr -.gnat l which kutiun :howevert ~Tays. Pope; ,was d

. . 1 . . , , v . .

RO avail? " -. 1 . - .- . . . , . .,.

. - , . . . . . . . - , . , , - ~ As . a poet, hccanndt be rated very high,

l

He wss, as I once heard a , f a d e critick remark, ofa Zswer ordt~. H e had not in any greati degree. the: mcm iiiuhiov, the dignity .

of genius, Muc4 however mufi be allowed i to tbe author of a new fpecies of compofi- tiop, thorgh it be .qot of the hi&eit kind. We owe to Gay the ~ a l k d ' O p e n ; D &o& of cqmedy .which at Erfi .was fqpofed tq I

delight pnly by itynoyeky,.. . , , . b i t , has now by the. qcpsrisn~e, of half, a . century been. ,found

1 . .. l

iq ye8 acc~mrnodatecj to the difpofitiQn of a . . papdar . pudience, t h y ,it-. h likely . _ . to . . keep 1 lqng p o ~ i l i o n of the' hge, . Whether this i new drama , . w3s the produ+of judgement or ii L&, the praiie' of it -x-qufi be given tq

I !

the inventor; and there, are many writers read with more reverence, to whom iuch o;les

l !

rit . of' ,. oTigingliti cannpt be qtribgt$d;

fir$ penformanc~ the. R u d @ o r f ~ ~ l

i s &ch as was eafily planned and executed j l it is never contemptible, nor evqr elrcell&t; ~ l

. . . .- T4e

The Fun is one of thofe mythological fittione which antiquity delivers ready to the hand; bul which, .like other things that lie open to cvery one's ufe, are of little value. The attention naturally retires from a new tale of Vepus, Diana, aiid Minerva.

a .

His Fables feem to have been a favourite work; fbr, having publiihed one volume, he left another behind him. Of this kind of Fables, the authors do not appear to have formed any diitina or fettled notion. Phz- drus evidently confounds them with Tale.r, and Gay both with %h and Allegories. A Fable or A!ologue, fuch as is now under confideration, feems to be, in its genuine flate, 4 parnative in which beings irrational, and fometimes inanimate, arb0re.s loqrirrtztrlr, non tantunz fern, are, for the purpofe of moral initruttion,' feigned to a& and fpeak with human interefis and paifions. T o this de-

1 fcription the compofltions of Gay do. not I qlyrays cpnfgrm. For a Fable he gives now 1 and then a Tale or an Allegory; and from

i bme, bp whateker name they may be called, it will be difftcult . to extrdA any mokal prin- ~iple. the^ are, . however, . told with live- '

linefs;

,

15.8 G- A Y, liwfs ;'. the v~rrifktttion . i s Emooth; and th6 &&&p, tttough now-and-then a little con- iLined by the rneafure Qr the rhyme, is ge4 nerally happy.

. .

T o T~izria may be allowed all that k claims3 it is ipritely, various, and pledant, The fubjea i s of that kind which .Gay was by Datqre qualifie4 .t9 . adorn ; yet 'fame of his

. decorations may he. jumy ,wp&txi -away, AQ boneit blackiinith might have dme -for Patty what, i s gerformed by Vu1-n. The appur- rnce of Claacina is .nauCeovs and luuperfluous ; a ihoeboy could have. been produced by thq iaiua1 coh;lbirati.on of mere lnortals. Horace's rule is b r ~ k e n in both caCs; there is no dig,' nur.vindice nodw, no, diiliculty that required any f~perR'~t~d.interpofition, ' A patten may be made by the harptser of a m s d , and q l&wd- may .be dropped by a human itdin- pet. O n great o&fions1 and on {mall, rhg mind b sepellgd .hp ufelqQ an4 qpparent fdfeho~d,

, - . . . . . a .'. .

hi lids Pmmr the ~ W B jdge- &ems to be- GgM j &y. 93 zr?), .~sitbk mu& sitem?, . : twp . ,Thok that : .. . . ' 2, pleaf~

the pieces to which GuZZivcp occafion; for who can much delight in

of an unnatural fiaion l

L _ Dionc is a counterpart to Amynta, and I P @ O ~ Fido, and other trifles of the fame.

kind, eafil;. imitateri, and unworthy of imitation. What t!le Italians call comedies from a happy conclufion, Gay calls a tragedy from a mournful event, but the nyle of the Italians and of Gay is equally tragical. There is fomething in the poetical Arcadia fo remote from known re~li ty and fpeculative pofibility, that we can never fupport its reprefentation through a long work. A Panoral of an hundred 'lines may be endured; but who will hear of fheep and goats, and myrtle bowers . and purling rivulets, through five aQs ? Such fcenes pleafe Barbarians in the dawn of literature, and children in the dawn of life; but will be for the mofi part thrown away, as men ~ o w vile, and nations grow learned.

GRAN-

G R A N V I L L E .

. .

0 F GEORGE GRANVILLB, or- as othe~s write GreanvilZir, or Gt-<nl~liZZe~ af-

tmards lard LandMoivn of Biddeford in the county of Devon, M is known t h e hjo name and rank rnighi give reafon to expea. H e . was born about I 667,. the ibn of Ber? nard-~Genville, who was entkfied by 'Monk with the mofi private tranfaaions of the Reitoration, and the grandf2n of Sir Bevil ~reenii l le , who died in the King's caure, at

th; battle of Landfdowne.

-, His early educarion was $uperintended by Sir William Ellis; and his progrels was fuch, that before the age of twelve he was fent to Cambridge, where he prtmounced a copy of his own vedes to the princds Mary d'EitC of Modena, then dutchels of York, when fhe vifited the 'univerfity.

At

At thea ccefiion of king James, being now at eighteen, he again exerted his poetical , ,

powers, and addreKed the new monarch ia three fhort pieces, of which the firit is pro- fane, and the two others fuch as a boy might be expetled to produce; but he 6 s .cdmd mended by old Waller, who perhaps was pleafed to find hirnfeif imitated, in fix lines, which, though they. begin with nonfenfe and end with dulnefs, excited in the young author a rapture of acknowledgement, in ambers

as Waller'rjymigbt U).

It was probably about this time that he tvrote the poem to the earl of Peterborough; upon his orcomp(ZJmetlt of the duke of ~ o r k ' s marriage with die princefs of ~ o d e n a , whore charms appear to have gained a ftrong prei valence over his imagination, and upon whoni nothing ever has been charged but imprudent piety, an intcmpaste and rnifguided zeal fog the propagation of popery.

However faithful Grarlville niighl have been to the King, or however enamoured of the @een, he has left no reafon for T L I ~ pofing that he approved either the artifices or

4 the

. .

. G ~ A N V I L L E . := 45

the violence with which the King's religion Was infinuated or obtruded. He endeavoured to be true at once to the King and t o the :Church,

Of this regulated loyalty he has tranfmit~ ted to pofierity a fufficient proof, in the letter hhich he wrote to his father about a month before the prince of Orange landed*

'' Mar, near Doncaiter, Ott. Bj r 68B1 T o the hbnourable Mr. Barnard Granville,

at the earl of Bathe's, St. James's;

S I R , Your having no 'profped of obtaining a

commiflion for me, can no way alter OI! c&l my defire at this important junaure

*' to. venture my life, in &me manner or' " other, fcr my King and my Country.

' I cannot -bear living ilnder the reproach " of lying obfcure and idle in a country ri- *' tirement, when- efery man who has the H leaf? fenfe G [ honour fhould be preparing

146 G R A N V I L L E . You may remember, Sir, with what re-

" luAance I fubmitted to your commands " upon Monmouth's rebellion, when no im- " . portunity could prevail with you to permit 'c me to leave the Academy: I was too young

to be hazarded; but, give me leave to fay, it is glorious at any age to die for

country, and the looner the nobler 'c the lacrifice.

I am now older by three years. My uncle Bathe was not ib old when he was

" left among the flain at the battle of New- " bury; nor you yourfclf, Sir, when you '" made your efcape from your tutor's, to

" join your brother at the defence of Scilly. l

- " The fame caufe is now come round about l

CL again. The King has becn mifled; let l

" thocg who have mifled him be anherable l

L' for it. N ~ L O ~ ~ can deny but he is facred , '' in his own percon,. and it' is every honeit

l

man's duty to defend it, 1

\

" You are pleafed to fay, it is yet doubt- " ful if the Hollanders are rafh enough to " make fuch an attempt; but, be that-as it

' 4 ‘c will,

G R A N V I L L E . l47

*ill, I beg leave to infiR upon it, that I may '' be prefented to his majefiy, a s one whofe '' utmofi ambition it is to devote his life to his '' fervice, and my country's, after the example " of all m y anceitors.

" The gentry aflembled at York, to agree " upon the choice of reprefentatives for the '' country, have prepared an addrefs, to affqre

his majeity they are ready to facrifice their " lives and fortunes for him upon this and all " other occafions; but at the fan& time they '' humbly bkfeech him to give them fuch ma- '' gifirates as may be agreeable to ' the laws

of the land; for, at pteieht, there is no au- " thority to which they can legally fubrnit.

They have bee'n beating bp far v~ lun - " teers at York, and the towns' adjacent, to " fupply the regiments at Hull j but nobody " will liit.

'' By what f can hear, every bdy wifhes " well to the King; but they would be glad " his minifiers mere hanged.

The winds continue io contrary, that no g6 landing can Le fo focn a-vas apprellendcd ;

L 2 " therc~

"- therefore I'may hope, with your l e a ~ e ' m d " afiltance, to be in readinefs ,before any aRion

can begin. I befeech you, Sir, molt hurnbl J

'! and mofi earnefily, to add this one a& of " indulgence more to io many other tefii- " monies which I have confiantly received of " your gcddnefs ; and be pleded to beiieve -

" me always, with, the utmofi duty and fub- miflion, Sir,

'' Your moit durifuI i'ioon,'

and moft obedient i'iervant,

G$o. GRANVILLP.)'

. Through the whole relgn of king Williant he is fuppafed to have lived in literary retire- I l ment, and indeed had for fo~ne time few other l

pleafutes h t thofe of fie in his powe.1'1 He was, as the biographers obferve, the younger Ibn of a youfiger brother ; a denomination by which our anceltors proverbially exprded the lcnyeit Aate of penury and dependance. He is faid, however, to have preferved hirnfdf a t

this time from difgrace and diaculties b j economy, which he forgar or ncgleaed in life mare advanced, and in better fortune.

' * A b c a

#

About this time he became enamoured ,of $he countefs of Newburgh, whom he has celebrated with ib .much ardour by the name of. Mira. ,He wrote vdee to her before he was three and twenty, and may be forgiven if he regarded the face more than the mind. Poets are fometimes in too much hafie to praife.

1n' the time of his retirement it is probable that he compofed his dmnatick pieces, the Sbe-Gallants (a€ted I 696), which he revifed, and called Once a h e r and a1wny.r a Lover; f i e . Jew of Venice, altered fiom Shakfpeare's Merchant of Venice ( r 70 1 ) ; Herotck Love, a tragedy ( I 698) ; 5% Britfl~ Enchanters ( I 706)~ a dramatick poem; and Peleu~ and fbetir, a maipue, written to accompany B e Jew of

Venice.

The comedies, which he has not printed ia his own edition of hi works, I never faw 4 Once a Lover and always a Lovcr, is faid to be in a great degree indecent and grofs. Granville collld not admire without bigotry ; he copied the wrong as well a8 the right fi-om his maiters, and may be fuppofed to have learned obfcenityfrom Wycherley as he learned mythology from Waller.

L 3 In

r 50 G R A N V I L L E . In his Jew of Venice, as Rowe remarks, the

~haraoe r of Sbilock is made comick, and wer are prompted t~ laughter infiead of detefiation,

I t is evident that He~oick Leve was written, I

pnd-prefented on the itage, before the death I

9f Dryden. It is a mythological tragedy, upon the love of Agamemnon and Chryikis, ! and therefore eafily funk into neglea, though i 1

praifed in verfe by Dryden, and in profe by I

Pope.

I t is concluded by the wife Ulyffes with this fpeech:

Fate holds the firjngs, and men like childreq move

But as they're led ; fuccefs is from above.

At the accefiion of queen Anne, having his fortune improved by bequefis from his father, and his uncle the earl of Bathe, he was choikn into parliament for Fowep. H e ibon after engaged i~ a joint tranflation af the Inve8ive.r pgainz Philip, with a defign, furely weak and puerile, of turning the thunder of Demoithe- nn u p ? %F head of Lewis,

G R A N V I L L E , , rgr

H e afterwards (in 1706) had his efiate again -augmented by an inheritance from his elder brother, Sir Bevil Granville, who, as he returned from the government of Barbadoes, died at &a. H e continued to ferve in parliament; and in the ninth year of queen Anne was choien knight of the h i r e for Cornwall.

At the memorable charige bf the miniitry ( I 71 0), he was made fecretary at war; in the place of Mr. Robert Walpole.

Next year, when the violence of party made twelve peers in a day, Mr. Granville became Lord Lanfdown Baron Riddefod, by a promotion juitly remarked to be not invidious, becauie he was the heir of a family in which two peerages, that of the earl of Bathe and lord Granville of potheridge, had lately become extin&. Being now high in the @een's favour, he (1712) was appointed comptroller of the houfehold, and a privy counfellor ; and to his other honours was added the dedication of Pope's Wingoor ForeJ. He was advanced next year to be tredurer of the houfehold.

Of there favours he foon loA all but his title; for at the accefion of king George his place was given to the earl Cholmondeley, and he was pcdecuted with the reit of his party. Havipg protefied againfi the hill for attainting Ormond and Bolingbroke, he was, after the infurreQion in Scotland, feized Sept. 26, I 715, as a i'ufpeaed man, and confined in the Tower till Feb. 8, I 7 47, when he was at lafi releafed, and rpitored to his feat in parliament ; where ( I 7 1 g) he made a very ardent and animated fpeech againfi the repeal of the bill to prevent OccaGonal Conformity, which however, though it was then printed, he has not infprted into his works,

Some time afterwards (about 1722), being perhaps embarraired by his profufion, he went into foreign countries, with the uCual pretenee of ,recovering his health. In this itate of leifure and retirement, he received the firR: volume o f Burnet's HiRory, of which he cub

no: be Ellppofed to have approved the general tendency, and where he thought himfelf able to detett fome particular falfehoods. He therefore undertook the vindication of gene- rql Monk f;om ibme cabumnies of- .Dr. Bur-

net,

net, and fome mifreprefentations of Mr. Echard. This waa anfwered civilly by Mr. Thornas Burnet and Oldmixon, and more

by Dr. Colbatch.

His other hiAorica1 performance is a defence of his relation 'Sir Aichard Greenville, whom lord Clarendon has hewn in a form . very unamiable So much is urged in thia apology, to jufiify many aaions that have been reprefented as culpable, and to palliate the refi, that the reader is reconciled for the greater part; and it is made very probable that Clarendon was by perfonal enmity difpofed to think the worft of Greenville, as Greenville was dfo very willing to think the worit of Clarendon. TheEe pieces were pub- w e d at his return to England.

Being now defirous to conclude his labours, and enjoy his reputation, he publifhed ( I 732) a very beautiful and fplendid edition

- . of his works,' in which he omitted what he diiapproved, and enlarged what feemed deficient.

He now went to Court, and was kindly feeeived by queen Camline; to whom and

to

154 G R A N V I L L E . to the princefs Anne he prefented his works, yith veriks on the blank leaves, with ,which he concluded his poetical. labours.

H e died in Hanover-fquare, Jan. 30, I 735, having a few days before buried his wife, the lady Anne Villiers, widow to Mr. Thynne, by whom he had fouf daughters, but no ibn.

- Writers commonly derive their reputation from their works; but there are works which owe their reputation to the charatter of the +niter. The publick fornetimes has its favourites, whom it rewards for one fpecies of excellence with the honours due to another. From him whom we reverence for his beneficence we do not willingly withhold the praife of genius; a man of exalted merit becomes at once an acco~npliihed writer, as a beauty finds no great difficulty in paffng for a wit.

Granville was a man illufiriuus by his birth, and therefore attraeed notice: fince he is by Pope fiyled the polite, he muit be fuppofed elegant in his manners, and generally loved;

he

b e was in times of conteA and turbulence fteady to his party, hnd obtained that efiecm which is always conferred upon firmnefs and confifiency. With tbofe advantages, having karned the art of verfi ing, he declared

1 himfelf a poet; and his claim to the laurel w i s allowed.

But by a critick of a later generation who takes up his book without any favourable . prejudices, the praife already received will

1 be thobght fufficient; for his works do not l ihew him to have had much comprqhenfion

from nature, or illumination from learning. H e feems to have had no ambition above the imitation of Waller, of whom he has' copied the faults, and very little more. He is for ever amuiing himfelf with the pue- '

rilities of mythology; his King is Jupiter, who, if the @een brings no children, has a barren Juno. The @een is compounded of Juno, Venus, and Minerva. His pcem on the dutchefs of Grafton's law-fuit, afier having rattled awhile with Juno and Pallas, Mars and Alcides, Caifiope, Niobe, and the Propetides, Hercules, Minos, and phadamanthus, at laft conclydes its folly with

His

156 G R A N V I L L E .

His verfes to Mira, which are moR fie- l

quently mentioned, have little in them of i

either art or nature, of the fentiments of a lover, or the language of a poet: . there may be found, now-and-then, a happier effort; but they are commonly feeble and unaffeeing, or forced and extravagant.

His little pieces are ' feldom either GriteIy or elegant, either keen or weighty. They are trifles written by idlenefs, and publiihed by vanity. But his Prologues and Epilogues h v e a juft claim to praife.

The ProgrG o f Beauty feems one of his moit elaborate pieces, and is not deficient in fpfendor and gaiety; but the merit of original thought is wanting. Its high& praife i3 the fpirit with which he celebrates king James's conibrt, when fie was a queea no longer,

The EJay on urznatl,rrcZ FZigbfs in Poetry is not ineIcgant nor injudicious, and has Some- thing of vigour beyond mofi of his other performances;, his precepts are jufi, and his vutions proper; they are iqdeed not. new,

I but

but in a didaQick poem novelty is to be expetted only in the ornaments and illuitrations. Qis poetical precepts are accompanied with agreeable and inftruQive notes.

The Mafque of PcIcaz atld T b e t b has here and there a pretty line; but it is not alwaya melodious, and the conclufion is wretched.

In his Bii@ Encbclnterf he has bidden defiance to aH chronology, by confounding the inconfiitent manners of different ages;. but the dialogue has often the air of Dryden's rhyming plays; and the fongs are lively, though not very correlt. This is, I think, far the beit of his works; for, if it has many faults, it has likewife paffages which are ag leait pretty, though they do not rife to any high degree of excellence.

l

l 1 Y A L

. Y A - L D E Ni

T B o M A ~ YALDEN, the fisth Ton of Mr. J o b YJden of Suffex, was born

in the city of Exeter in I 67 I. Having been ducated ip the grarnmar4khool belongiog to Wagdalsn College in Oxford, he was in I 690, et. the age of nipeteen, admitted commoner of Magdaleh Hall, under,the tuition lpS 30.. ,

$ab PuZZen, a man whofe name is itill ge- 2'

membered . . . in the univerfity. H e became qext year one ~f t$ebfchdars of M ~ d a l e p Ccdlege, where .he w p $iRinguimed by a

acci(lent6 ., .

i t was his turn, .one dzy, to pronounce a declamakon ; and Dr. Hough, the. prefidat, happening to attend, thought the combofition

A

too gmd to he the Epeaker'.s. Somc - t h e @er, the +@or, finding him a little irregv- l_arly bufy in the library, Cet him an exerae

VOL. 111, ' . A M for

162 ' Y A L D E N .

for puniihment; and, that he might not be deceived by any artifice, locked the door. Yalden, as it happened, had been lately reading on the iibje€t .given, and produced with. little difficulty a compofition which ib plealed the prefident, that he told him his former fipicions, and promifed to favour him.

Among 'his ' contempor~ies in the colleg2 were Addifon and Sacheverell, men- whd were in. thofe times friends, and' who both adopted YaIden to their intimacy. Yalden continued, throughout his life, to think' as probably he thought at firfl, yet did not lofe the friendhip of Addifon.

When Namur was taken by king ~i l l ia rn , Yalden made an ode. There was never any reign more celebrated by the poets than that of William, who had very little regard for fong himfelf, but happened to employ minx- tern who pleafed themfelves with the praife of patronage.

Of this ode mention is made in an humorous poan of that time, called The O x f d Lzwtat; in which, &er many Jaims had

been

Y A L D E N . I 63 been made and rejeaed, Yalden is reprdent- ed as demanding the laurel, and as being called to his trial, infiead of receiving a xe- ward,

H i s crime was for being a felon in verfe, And prefenting his theft to the kings .

The firit was a trick not uncommon or fcarce, But the laft was an impudent thing:

Yet what he had Rol'n was fo little worth flealing, They forgave him the damage and coft; . .

Had he ta'en the whole ode, as he- took it .piece-meding,

They had fin'd him but ten pence at moit.

The poet whom he was charged with robbing #

was Congreve.

He wrote another ppem on the death of the duke of Glouceiter.

In I 710 he became fellow of the college; and next year, entering into orders; was prefented by the fociety with a living in War- wicklhire, confiltent with his fellowihip, and chofen kaurer of moral philoiophy, a very honourable office,

P

On the acceaon of queen Anne he wrote another poem; and is faid, by the author of

, !he Diograpa, to have declared himfelf of the party who had the honourable diltinaion '

of ' High-churchmen.

In I jo6 he was received into the family of the duke of Beaufort. Next year he became doQor i n divinity, and foon &er reiigned

- - his 'fellowihip and .leQure; and, as a token of his gratitude, gave the college a p i h r e

\

i f their founder.

H e was made reQor of ~ b a ~ t o n and &an- 1 l

S e(ittc, two adjoining towns and benefices in kertfordhire; and had the . prebends, or

, finecures, of Deans, Hains, and PendZe~ in L)evonfhire. H e had before been chofen, in

l I 698, preacher of Bridewell H+ital, upon I the refignation of Dr. Atterbury.

-1 . , From this .time he feems to -have .fed a 1 quiet and inoffenfive life, till the .clamour was raifed about Atterbury's plot. Every loyal eye was on the watch for abettom or ,

partakers of the horrid confpiracy; aid Dr. 1 Yalden, having-fome acquaintance with the

bifhop, and being familiarly conredant with I Kelly his fecrethry, fell undet fufpicion, and

' was taken into cuitody, . -

Upon his examination ' he' was charged

I with a dangerous correCp~ndence with Kellyc The correfpondence he acknowledged J but maintained, that it had no treafonhle tend* ency. Hi$ papers were feized ; bltt nothing was found that could fix a crime upon him, except two words in his pocket-book, tbos rougrb-paced do#rine. This exprefion the imagination of his examiners. bid .impreg-

1 nated with trcdon, and the do&dy was en; joined to explain them. Thus preflied, he

, toid them that the words had Jain .unheeded in his pocket-bo& from the tinic 9f queen Am'e, and that he .was a ihamd. to, givc AIJ

accohnt of them; but the trutth-was, &at h@ had gratified his curiofity one day, hy hem

l ing Daniel BILY~$ in the pulpit, and thofe word's was a meVm&id hint of-;& re-marka%le h t e n c e by. which Ile warned hi's congregat

l t b n to beware. rf thd~ough-paced doOri~~.e,

I that doHrine, &hid, cami,ng ilt at onc paced &jT)ugb ntiC head, a ~ d ~ g o i r out at the

- .' other, . , I

i .. , M 3 'Nothing

l

Nothing worfe than this appearing in his papers, and no evidence arifing againit him, he was {et at liberty.

It will not be fuppofed that a man of this charaoer attained high dignities in the church ; but he itill retained the friendhip, and fre- &nted the converfation, of a very numerous and. fplendid body af acquaintance. He died July 16, 1736, in the 66th year of his age..

Of his poems, many are of that irregular kind, which, when he formed his poetical charaaer, was fupp6fed to be Pindarick. Having fixed his attention on Cmley as a model, he has attempted in fome fort to r i d him, and has written a Hymn to BarknCJJ,, evidently as a cmtercpart to Cowley's B'jvnn to figbt,

This hymn feems to be his beit pedorm- ance, and is, for the moft part, imagined with great vigour, acd expreired with great propriety. I will not tradcribc it. The feven firft bnzas are good; hut the. third, fourth, and fcventh are the beit: the eighth

3 fcemo,

Y A L D E N . : 167,

.fcems to involve . a contradiaion; the tenth is exquifitely beautiful; the thirteenth, fourteenth, and fifteenth, are partly mythological, and partly religious, and therefore not hi t - able to each other: he might better have made the whole merely phiioiophical.

There are two fianzas in this poem whve Yalden may be fufpeakd, though hardly con- vi&ed, of having coafulted the Npnm ad Umbram of Wowcrur, in the fixth fianza, which anfwers in fome fort to thde lines:

Illa fuo preeR no&urnis numine facris- perq& vias errare novis dat fpc&ra figurir, Manefque excitos medios ululare per agrai . Sub no&em, et quefiu notos complcn penatco.

And again, at the conclufion:

Illa fuo fenium fecludit corpore toto Haud numerans jugi fugientia fecula lapfu, Ergo ubi poflremum mundi compage folutt '

.Hanc rerum rnolem fuprema abfumpferit hora Ipfa leves cineres nube ampJe&etur opacii, Et prifco impcrio rurf~s dominabiur UMBRA.

His Hymn to Ligbt is not equal to the other. H e reems to think that there is an Eafi aMo- lute and poGtive where the Morning rifes.

M 4 In

Ih the 1aR' &anza, habink menti6n.d the I d e a eruption of new created Light, lie Gays,

- ,

Aw'hil? . .. ~hlAl6ighty .- c wolldering Ltood. . * - He ought to have -i.mem%ered that Tnfihite ~ n o w k d ~ e can never wonder. All wopder fi the ,<ffeii- . ?d . n&eity . , upos i&orahce. ? . . . . - ,

, . -. Of his bthet poems it is fufIiciin;'to fiy that

they deferve per&[& though they aie nbt alwaiq exi&tIp poliilied,b gnd 'the . rhyme's aie !oxni-. times very ill fortedi and though. his faults <eem:+b& ths omiffionsd i d l ~ d f s tbaptha ~ e $ i ~ i n c e s . . . . . . - of . eathuQai& . . ,

. . . . ; . . . - .

T I C K E L L , I

T I C K E L L .

1 H O M A S TICKELL, the fon of the reverend Richard Tickell, was born in

1686 at Bridekirk in Cumberland; and ia I April 1701 became a member of Qeen's

College in Oxford; in 1708 he was made Mailer of Arts, and two years afierwards

1 was chofen Fellow; for which, as he did not comply with the fiatutes by taking orders, he obtained a difpenfation from the Crown. He held his Fellowibip till I 726, and then vacated it, by marrying, in that year, at Dublin.

l

Tickell was not one of thoik fcholars who wear away their lives in clofets; he entered

I early into the wodd, and was long bufy in bublick affairs; in which he was initiated under the patronage of Addifon, whofe notice he is faid to have gained by his veries in praiie of RoJamond,

1 , 1 .

To

l?z T I C K E L L . To thofe verfes it would not have been

&A to deny regard ; for they contain fome l of the moR elegant encomiafiick ha ins ; and, 1 among the innumerable poems of the fame I kind,-it will be hard to.find one with w5ch they need to fear a comparifm. It may de- , ferve obfervation, that when Pope wrote long afterwards in- praife of Addifon, he has co- b i d , -a t leafi has refembled, Tickell. . . -. . . .

' : Let joy ,falute fair Rofamonda's fhade, 32-d'eiPeaths 6f myrtle crown the lovely maid, . *bile nov perhaps with ~ ido ' s~ 'ghof i h e roves,.

. ' And hears and reils.the fiory of their loves, .: Alike they mourh,' dike they blefs .their fate, eihce Loye, which made them wretched, rmdC

them great;. EI& longer ;hat relcntlet doom btrnoan, *which gain'd a Virgil and an Addifon. ,

..- . .: TICKELL;

f . . -Then future ages with .delight h a l l fee.. . Horn plate's; &cons;, - Newton¶!, looks agree; . J :

Or in 'fair ferigi l&dYd bards be fhown, . . ,Vir&il there, Bqd here an Addifon. .. - POPE;

., - . , . , . .. . . . . . . - - ' . .

ptbdured another piete of the fame kind . . iit 'th apptaHBk bf-Ciztb,. with .equaI &ill2

. . . but not equal happinefs! .. , .

, . Whe4

When the miniftea of queen Anne e e hegotiating with France, Tickell publifhed The ProSpea of Peace, a poem, of which the tendency was to reclaim the 'nation from the pride ' of ionquell to ' the pleafures ' of- tran-r quillity. How far Tickell, whom Swift afterwards mentioned as WhiggzJTrnus, had then connetled himfelf , with any party, I know not; this poem cer,tainly did not flatter the praaices, or promote .the opinions, of the men by whom he was afterwards befriended.

Mr~Addiibn, however he hated the men then in power, fuffered his ffiendfhip to prevail over his publick fpirit, and gave in the ~pe&i'ator fuch praifes of TickeU's pqern, $hl* when, after having long wi@ed to perufe it, I laid hold on it at lait, I thought it unequal to the honours which it had received, an4 found it a piece to 'be approved ratbet than admired, $ut the hope excited by a work ,of genius, being general apd indefinite, i s rarely gratifie.d. It was read at that time .with fo m J r f&~ur, that fw editiws were @d. l

At the arrival of king George he i i Tbe R y d Progrrjr ; which being inferted in 1 the S'e8dor is well known, and of which l

it is juit to fay that it is neither high nor low. 1

The poetical incident of m08 importance in Tickell's life was his publication of the firit book of the Iliad, as tranflated by him- * felf, an apparent oppofition to Pope's Nomer, of which the firit part made its entrance into the world at the h e time.

Addifon declared that the rival verfions were both but that Tickell's was the beit that ever. was made ; and with A d d i h the wits, his adherents and followers, were certain to concur. Pope does not appear to 'have been much difmayed; for, fays he, iT bave tbc town, tbat if9 tbG mob, on myJ& But he remarks, that Q ii common for tdt

f d e r party 20 male U ! in dil&tnct wbat t h y want in numbm ; he appeals to tbe pcofic as bir pr0pcrjudge~ ; and tbey are not inclinedd to1 condemn bim, be b in little care about tbc bigb--ycrz at Button's. 1

P o p ~

T I C K E L L . l 75

Pope did not long think Addifon an impartial judge; for he confidered him as the writer of Tickell's vedon. The reaibns for his Cuipcion I will literally tranfcribe from Mr. Spence's ColleQion.

There had been a coldnefs between Mr. " Addion and me for Come time; and we

had not been in company together, for a good while, any where but at Button's coffee-houfe, where I ufed to ke him ai- moA every day.--On his meeting me there, one day in particular, he took me afide, and faid he ihould be glad to dine with

! me, at' Zufh a tavern, if I itaid till thofc l.

people were gone (Budgel and Philips). We went accordingly; and after d i e r

I Mr. Addifon faid, ' That he had wanted for fome time to talk with me; that his friend Tickell had formerly, whilft at Ox-

'' ford, tranflated the firit book of the 27'4 that he dtfigned to print it, and had de-

U fired him to look it over; that he muit therefore beg that I would not defire him to look over my fidl book, becauie, if

'' he did, it would have the air of double- '' dealing.' I affured him that I did not

1" at

" at all take it ill of Mr. Tickell that he r i s ' " going to publiih his tranilation ; that he.

f' certainly had. as much right to .tranbte " any author as myielf; and that publiking " both: was entering on a fair fiage. I then U added, that I would not defire him to look " over my firR book of tbe fiiad, becauie " he had looked over Mr. Tickell's; but " could wilh $Q have the benefit of hi9 ob- U .fervatiop on my iecohd, which I bad " then,fin&qcj, - and which ~ r . . Ticltell had '' not to,uched upon. ~ c c ~ r d i h g l y I ient

. " .him the .fecond: book .the neyt. q o r n i ~ g l G< and Mr. bddiSq,n a few days after returned

; it, with yery high comrnendati9ns..-%oon - C' after it wag generally k n ~ w n that Mrb

Tikell y ? s ..p.ublilhing tbe Mt book . of . ihd ;C IZiud, I met Dy. Y o p g in the iLegt; and, Y w o n our GUing iqto that fvbje€t, t&

DoLtor expreqed ,a geat deal of furprize " at Tickell's having had {*ch a qanfla&on " fo long by him. . He faid, that it was in- " conc&vagle to him, and that there mu@

.be fir& emifiake i n tl~e mattet; that each ." uled t o communicate . . , to . the . other whath

ever verfes they wrote, even to the I' t h i s ; that Tiokell could not have been

I * bufied

bufied in fo long a work there without hie 'C knowing fomething of the matter; and '' that he had *ever heard a fingle word of

it till on this occafion. This furprife of Dr. Young, together with what Steele has faid againA Tickell in relation to this af-

" fair, make it highly probable that. there " was hme underhand dealing in that buG- '' nefs; and indeed Tickell hirnfelf, who is

a very faii. worthy man, has fince, in a manner, as good as owned it to me. Mr.

'' Pop~.--[When it was introduced into a Anverfatidn between Mr. Tickell and Mr.

U Pope by a third perfon, Tickell did not '' deny it; which, confidering his honour '6 and' zeal for his departed friend, was the " b e as owning it.]".

Upon there fufpicions, with which Dr. Warbul-ton hints that other circumitances concurred, Pope always in his Art of Sinking quotes this book as the work of Addifon.

T o compare the two tranflations would be tedious;. the palm is now given univerially to Pope; but I think the firfi lines of Tic-

VOL., 111. N kell's

kell's vere rather to be preferred, and Pop+ f i s to have fince boywed fomethiqg frcm them iq the correaion of his

4 ,

Whed .the Hanover Lccefion was diiputd ed, Tickelk gave what afiiftance his pea v ~ u l d fupgly. 13s Letttr io' A'~&npn fiands,- high runong party-poems; it expreires kontempta +thou! eqayfeqe@, aqd fuperijority. withoug- i !~ fo l~~c ,e , . It had the phi& 'it &A

. .

Md was now iotimately united to Mr. Adid diCon, who., when he went into Jreland a@ fecretary to the 1drd Sunderland, to& him thither, and em.played him'in publick bufine&; and when ( I 7 I 7) afterwards he rofe to ,b,e iecre- t a g of Aatk, made him under-fieretarpi Their ffierrdfiip, feems to have cop~inhed without &batewent ; for when AddiLbn died,

, h e . lefi him the charge of publiflning hi$ works, ,yith, a iblemn recommendation to the., patronage oE Craggs,

' i , To ,ththc& works he prefixed an elegy cni:

the . a d o r , . which could owe, none of its . . . . beautie

ik&utiei to the aIRance which might be i u f ~ petted to have Rrengthenea or embelliihed tiis earlier compofiti~ns; but neither he nm dadif& oier produced nobler lines. t h a n an contained in the third add fourth paragraphs, nor is a more fublime or more elegant funeral poem to be found in the whole compsfs of Englilh literature.

H e was afierdards (about I 72 j) made ika cretary to the Lords Jufiices of Ireland, a place of great honour; in which he continued till I 740, when he died on the twenty-third of April at Bath,- -

Of the poems yet unmentidned the long& eft is KenJington garden^, cf which the verfification is fmooth and elegant, but the fieion ' unikcilfully compounded of Grecian Deities and Gothick Fairies. Neither fpecies of thofe exploded Beings could have done much ; and when they are brought together, they only make each other contemptible. T o Tickell, howeyq,, c ~ n o f be refuikd a high place amohg the minor poets; nor ihould it be forgotten that he was one of the contributcm

N z to

I 80 T I C K E t f i : to the SpcAator.. With refpea to his perfon$ charaaer, he i s kid to have been a man of gay converhtion, at leaR a temperate lover of win$ ,

and company, and ip his 4omeQick relations withoyt ~enCure-

HAMMOND.

. -

O F Mr. H A M M 0 N D, though he be well remembered as a man eiteerned and ca-

reffed by the elegant and great, I was at firit able to obtain no other memorials than fuch as are fupplied by a book called Cdber's Lives of tbe Poefsg of which I take this opportunity t o tefiify that it was not written, nor, I believe, ever i'een, by either of the Gibbers;. but was the work of Roberr Shiels, a native of Scot- land, a man of very .acute underitanding, though with little lcholaitick education, who, not long after the publication of his work, died in London of a confumption. His lifg was virtuous, and his end was pious. Theo- philus Cibber, then a priibner for debt, ,imparted, as I was'.told, his name for ten guineas. The mnnufcppt of Shiels is 11ow in my poffeffion.

N 4 I have

I have fince found that Mr. Shieln, thodgh he was no negligent enquirer, has been willed by falfe accounts ; for he relates that James Hammond, the author of the following Ele- gies, was the b n of a Turkey merchant, and had fome ~ffice at the prince of Wales's court, till love of a lady, whdfe name was D&- wood, for a time diibrdered his underitand- in& H e was unextinguifhably amorous, and his mifirefa inexorably cruel.

Of this narrative,.part is true, and part fa& H e was the fecond fon of Anthony Ham- mond, a .man of note among the wits, poets, and parliamentary orators i n the beginning of tlris.centuty, who was.allied to Sir. Robert Walpole bp marrying his fifier. H e was born about I 7 X 0, and educated at Wefimin- iter-fchool ; but it does not appear that he was of any univerfity. He was equerry to the prince of Wales, and ferns to have come very early into publick notice, and to kave been difiinguiihed by thofe whofe patronage .

and friendihip prejudiced mankind at that time,in favour of thofe on whom they: were beitowed ; for he was the companion of Cob- ham, Lyttelton, and Chefterfield. He is laid

4 to

to have divided his life between pledure and books ; in his retirement forgetting the town, and in his gaiety lofing the fiudent. Of his literary hours all the effeQs are here exhibited, of which the Elegies were written very early, and the Prologue not long before hi8 death.

fn 1741; he was chofen into parliament for Truro in Cornwall, probably one of thofe who were eleaed by the Prince's influence ; and died next year in June at Stowe, the famua &at of the lord Cobham. His miitrefs long outlived him, and in 1779 died unmarried. The charahr which her lover bequeathed her was, indeed, not likely to attraQ court- h i p

- The Elegies wete publifhed afiet hi6 death 8 and while the writer's name was remembered with fondnds, they were read with a refolution to admire them, The recommendatory preface of the editor, who wati then bdieved, and is now affirmed by Dr. Maty, to be the earl of Cheiterfield, nifed Atong prejudices in their favour.

But

But of the prefacer, whoever he'was, it hay be reafonably iufpeaed that he- n&er read the poems; for he profeffes to value ihem for a'very high ipecies of excellence, and recom- mends them as the genuine e~ufions 01 the mind, which exprefs a real paGon in the land guage of nature. But the truth is, thefe elegies have neither pafion, nature, nor man- hers. Where theie is fiaion, there is no paifion ; he that defkribes hirnfelf as a ihepherd; and his Neaera or DeIia as a ihkpherdeis, and talks -of goats and lambs, feels no paflion. He that courts his rniftrefg with Roman irna-. gery defemr to lore her ; for fie. may with good reafon fufpea his finterity. Hahrnond has fkw feentiinents drawn from nature, and few images from modern life. H e produces nothing but frigid pedantry. It would be ha;dzio find in all his produQions three' ftanzas that: dekrve to be remembered

l i k e other lovers, he threatgns the 1-dp wkh dying; 2nd what thm ihall follov?

. . , .-

W i l r thou in tears thy.lover's corfe attend; W i t h eyes averted light the folemn pyre,

Till ail around the dolefill flames afcend, 'Fhen, Cowly linking, by degrees expire ?

I T o

H A M M O N D . 187

T o fboth the hovering bul be thine the care, Wi th plaintive cries to leod the mournful band,

Jn fable weeds the golden vafe to bear, And cull my afhes with thy trembling hand ;

Panchaia's odours be their coffly feaft, And all the p;ide of Afia's fragrant year,

Five them the treafures of the fartheft Eafi, And, what is Dill more precious, give thy tear.

burely no blame can fall upon the nymph who reje&ed a fwain of fo little meaning. '

His serfes are not rugged, but they have 90 fweetneis; they never glide in a h e a m of melody. Why Hammond or other writers haie thought the quatrain of ten fyllables elegiac, it is difficult to tell. The charaeer of the Elegy is gentlenefs and tenuity, but this fianza has been pronounced by Dryden, whofe knowledge of Engliih metre was not inconfiderable, to be the mofi magnificent of all the meaiures vhich our language affords.

I . . . , , . . . .

0 F .Mr.. 3OMERVIL E's life I am. -nota , ab)e M iay iriy thing can* iatkfi-

. , . . .

fie was- a gentleman whofe &dte -.id WamicBfiire; his houfe is, called Edfton, a Eat inherited frop a 10% liue of ancei;tozs ;. Gr he was fa'aid to be of: t,he iirfi family iris his country. He telb of' himlklf; that he Was . borp near :the .: & Q ~ ' s banks. He was bred at winchefter-khool, but I know sot whe&er he cwaS,;gf my upiverfity., t have never heard oi hi* bul as of .a poet, B country gentlemanl an4 a ikilfql and ufeful '

Ju&e of, t h Peace

Of the dofe of his life, thori whm, his. poems have delighted will read with pain- th*

following

following account, copied from the Letters of his friend Shenitone, by whom he waa too much refembled.

" --Our old fiend Somervile is dead! I " did not imagine I could have been io forry " as I find myfelf on this occafion.4ubla- " turn querimu.r. I can now excufe all his '' foibles; impute them to age, and to diG

treis of circumfiances: the Id%' of thefi U confiderations wrings my veiy :foul to " think on. For a man of high fpipirit, con-. " fcious of having (at lea& in one produc- " 'tion) generally' pleafed the world, to be '' plagued and threatened by wretches that' a arc low in every fenfe; to be forced to

drink himfelf into pains. of the body, 'in' order to get- rid of the pains of the mind,

U is a mifery.'*-He died July 14, 1 743. . .

It is with regret that I find myfielf noi better enabled to exhibit' memorials of a- writer, who at leait muR be allowed to havea let a good example to men of his own clds, by devoting part of his time to elegant knowledge; and who' has - hewn, by the fubjubjetts which his poetry has ado~ned, that it is prac-

ticable

S O M E R V I L E . 1 93 kicable to be at ,once a fkilful fpoqhjn and a rnan of letters.

Sornervile has tried many modes of poetry; and though perhaps he *Itas not in 'any reached fuch excellence as . t o raife ' much .envy, it may, commonly be laid at denR, that Ly writer very zcrcZZ for a gentleman. His Eerious pieces are ibmetimes elevated, and his trifles are fbmetimes elegant. Id his verfes to Addifoh the couplet which mentions Clio is written with the mofi exquifite delicacy of praife; it exhibits .one of thofe happy ftrokes that are feldom attained. In his Odes to Mnrlborough there are beautiful .lines; but in the fecond Ode he, fhews that he knew little of his hero, b h e n lie talks a f his private virtues H i s fubje&s are fuch as require no great depth of thought or. energy of expreifiori. His Fables are generally flale, and therefore excite- no curioiitp. . Of his favourite, The Tao S'ring.r, the f&ion . is unnatural; nod- the m-oral inconfequential. In his Tales there is too much coarfgncfq, with too little care of lan page , 2nd.-not.' fi~Gcieilt .rapidity p f narration.

His great work L his Cb@, which he undertook in his maturer age, when his ear was improved to the approbation of blank verfe, d which however his two firit lines give a bad fpecimen. T o this poem praik cannot be totally denied, He is allowed by ipoktlmen to write with great intelligence of his fubjett, which is the firit requifite to excellence ; and th~ugh it is impoGble to i n t e reit: the common readers of vede in the d a d gers or pleafures cif the &ale, he has done all that tranfition and variety could eafily effd; and has, with great propriety, snlarged his plan bp the modes of bunting dd in other countries,

With Ail1 lek judgement did he chde blank verfe as the vehicle of Rural Sport$. If blank verfe be not t u d a d gorgeous, it is crip- pled profe ; and familiar images in laboured langvage have nothing to recommend them but abfurd novelty, which, wanting the attraaions of Nature, cannot pleafe long. Qne excellence of the Splendid Shilling is, that it is ihort. DiEguife can gratify no longer thau it deceives.

SAVAGE

S A V A G E .

T has -been obferved in all ages; that the advantage8 of nature or of f6nllne have

caitribuied very little to the promotioxi of happinefs; and that thofe wh'om the f p ~ n d o u r of their rank, or thk extent of their capacity, have placed upon the fummits of human life, have not ofien given any jufi occafion to envy iii thofe 'who look up to them fi& a lower itation': ,whethit it be thai apparknt iiipetlb

- ority incites great defigns, and great defigns aie naturaliy liable, to fatal rniicarriiges; o t that the geneial lbt of mankind is mifery, and tfie misfortunes of thofe- 'wkofe ' eminence drew upon-them an.univda1 attention, have been more carefully recordedi becaufe they were more gerierally oblerved, and have in reality been only more confpicuous than

.- - . . . 0 3 ' - ' thofi

thcke of others, not more frequent, or more fevere.

That dueme and power, advantages ex- trinfic and adventitious, and therefore eafilg feparable from thoia by whom they are pof-

I feffed, fhould very often flatter the mind with expeaations felicity which they cannot give, raifes 90 afionifiment; but it feems rational to hope, that intelleaual greatnef~ %odd produce better ereas; that minds qualified for great attainments fhouN firft chdeavour their own .ben&; and that t b y who are m& able to .teach otheqs the waig to -happinefs, fiould with mo# certainty fd- low i t hmklves .

a t this sxpCtation, however pJauGble, has been very frequently diiippointed. The bsrogs of literary as well as civil hifiory have $een very often RO leji remarkable for what 6e.y -have atchieved ; and volvmes have be- &$ten only tp enumewte the d e r i e s of the -]earned, and relate their anhappy lives, and pntimely deaths.

To thefe mournful narratives, 1 am about 'p add tbr: Qf Pisbwd -Smage, a man .

l

wbok

S A V A G E . 499

i whole writings entitle him to an eminent rank in the cldes of learning, and whofe

l

I t

misfortunes claim a degree of cornpallion, not always due to the unhappy, as they were often the confequences of the crimes of others, &$er than his own.

In the year 1697, AnneCountefs of Mac- clesfield, having lived for fome time upon very uneafy terms with her hufband, thought a public confefion of adultery the moit ob- vious and expeditious method of obtaining her liberty; and therefore declared, that the child, with which &e was then great, was begotten by the E.ar1 Rivers. This, as map be imagined, made her hufband no lefs defirous of a kparation than herfelf, and he profecuted his defign in the mofl effeeual manner; for he applied not to the ecclefi- a i c d courts for a divorce, but to the parlia- s e n t for an a&, by which his marriage tqight be diffolued, the nuptitl contraa totally qnnulled, and the children of his wife illegitimated. This a& after 'the uhal de- liberatian, he obtained, though without the approbation of fome, who confidered marrid age 4s an affair only cognizable by ecclefiaf-

O r tical

. . tical judges*; and on March sd was feparated from his wife, whore fortune, which was very great, was repaid her; and who having; as well as her huiband, the liberty of making another choice, was in. a fhort time married to Colonel Brett.

While the Earl of Macclesfield was profe- cutkg this affair, his wife was, on the loth . . of January I 697-8, delivered of a ibn, and the Earl Rivers, by appearing to confider him as his own, left none any reafon to doubt of the fincerity of her declaiation; for he W-as his godfather, and gave him his own name, which was by hi3 'dkeQion iniirted in the regifier of St. Andrew's parifh' in Holborn, - but unfortunately left h i m to the o r e of , his

This year was made remarbble by the diffolutien of a marriage folemnized in the face of the church. SALMON'; REVIEW. . .

T h e foll&ng piuteil is regiitacd in the bonks.~of 'the H o u e of Lords. . .

Diffentient. .

BecauCe we conceive that this is'the firR bill of that nature &at hath paffed, where there, was not a divorce firQ obtained in the Spiritual Cburt; which we look upon as an iH precq dent, and may be of dangir&s confequence in the future.

. HALIFAX. R o c n m ~ e n . ' :

S A V A G E . *of l mother, whom, as ihe was now fet free front

her huiband, he probably irndgified likely t6 treat with great tenderneis the child that had contributed to ib pleafing. an event. It is

1 not indeed eafy to difcover what motives

could be found to over-balance that fiatural a f f a i o n of a parent, or what intereit could be promoted by negleft or cruelty; The -

dread of 'ihame or of poverty, by which 'fome wretches have been incited to abadon or to' murder their children,. cannot be fuppofed to have affeQed a woman who had

l proclaimed her crimes and iblicited reproach, and on whom the clemency of the legiflature had undeie.peedIy beitowed a fortune, which would have, been very little dimininled by

I the expences which the care of her child c ~ u l d have brought upon her. It was therefore not likely that fie would be wicked without temptation, that ihe would look upon her fin from his birth with a kind of relent- merit and abhorrence; and, infiead of h p - porting, aflifiing, and defending him, delight to fee him firuggling with mifery, or that f ie would take every opportu~lity of ag- gravating his miafortunes, and obfirueting

.his refouces, and with an ir~placnble and refilers

202 S A V A G E . , reitlefs cruelty continue her perfecution fiolq the fir# hour of his Sic to the lafi.

But whatever were her motives, no ikon= was her [on born, than fhe difcovered a rdb- lution of difowning him; and in a very ihog time removed him from her fight, by com- mitting him to the care of a poor woman. whom h e direQed to educate him as her own, and injoined never to inform him of his true parents, ,

Such was the beginning of the life of Ri; chard Savage. Born with a legal claim to h* nour and to &uence, he was in two months illegitimated by the bkrliament, and dirowned by his mother, doomed to poverty and o b fcurity, and launched upon the ocean of lifeq only that he might be iwdlowed by its quick.. finds, or dafhed upon its racks, . -

His mother could not indeed infeQ others with the fame cruelty. . . As it was impofiblc to avoid the inquiries which the curiofity ar tendernefs of her relations made after her child, f i e was obliged to give fome acco+

' -QT

of the meafuxts that f ie had taken ; and her mother, the ~ a d y Mafon, whether in approbation of her defign, or to prevent more criminal contrivances, engaged to tranfaCt with the nurfe, to pay her for her care, and t o {uperintend the education of the child.

Ia this charitable office ihe was afified by l& godmother Mrs. Lloyd, who, while ihe lived, always looked upon him with that tendernefi, which the barbarity of his mother .made peculiarly neceiT'; but her death, which happened in his tenth year, was an* ther of the misfortunes of his childhood ; for though f ie kindly endeavoured to alleviate his loii by a legacy of three hundred pounds, yet, h he had none to profecute his claim, to fieltex him from oppreEon, or call-in law totheaif iance of jultice, her will was elud- ed by the executors, and no part of the money was ever paid.

\

He W&, however, not yet wholly a b a 9 doned. The Lady Mdon itill continued he^ .care, and direeted him to be placed at a finall grammar-fchool near St, Alban's, where be a* called by the same of his nurfe, with-

out

204 ~ A V A O E ;

out the Ieafi intimation that he had a ciaid to any other;

Here he was inkiated in literaturk, and pared through feverai of the claffee, with whaf rapidity or what applaufe cannot now be known. As he always fpoke with refpea of his maRer, it is probable that the mean rank, in which he then appeartd, did not hindet his genius frbm being difiinguifhed, b1- his inddfiry from being rewdrded ; and if in fd Idtv a Adte he dbtained difiid&tim dnd re~varrIs, it is hot likely that they were gained but by genius and induftry.

' It is very reafonable to conjeaure, that his application was equal to his abilities, be; caufe his improvement was more than pro& portioned to the opportunities which he en; joyed; nor can if bc doubted, that if hi$ earlieit Frodu&ions had bten prefervtrd, like thofe of happier fiudents, we might in fome have found iigorous illies of that fprightly humour, which diftinSuifhes The Aatbor t o be let, and in others Arong touches of that ardent imagination which painted the folemn fcenes of The Wunderet-. ...- .

While

While he was thus cultivating his genius, his father the Earl Rivers wak Eeized with a diiternper, which i~ 9 fhort time put an end to his life. H e had frequently inquired after his fon, and had always been amufed with fallacious and evafive anfwers ; but, being pow in his own opinion on his death-bed, he thought it his duty to provide for him among his other natural children, and there: fore demanded . , a pofitive account of him, prith an importunity not to, be diverted or denied. His mother, who could no longer refufe an anhe r , determined at leait to give fuch 3s aould cut him off for ever from that pappinefs which competence affords, and therefore declared that he was dead; which is perhaps the 'firf infiance of a lye invented by a mother to deprive her f in of a rovi- fion which was defigned him by a n o t h g anh which fhe could not expelt heyfelf, though be ihould lole it.

I

This was therefore an a& of wickednefs which could not be defeated, becaufe it could not be fufpetted; the Earl did not imagine that there could erzifi in a human form a pother that would ruin her ibn witiiout en-

r i c h i ~ : ~

riching herfelf, and therefore beflowed upoa fome other perfon fix thouiand pounds, which he had in his will bequeathed to Savage.

The &me cruelty which incited Ks moth& to intercept this provifion which had been intended him, prompted her in a ihort time to another projelt, a projea worthy of fuch a difpofition. She endeavoured to rid herfelf horn the danger of being at any time made known to him, by fending him fecretly to ihe American plantations*.

By whofe kindnefs this fc,heme was. couna teraeed, or bp what interpofition fhe was induced to lay afide her defign, I know not3 it is not improbable that the Lady M h n

perfuade or compel her to defiit, of S fie could not eaiily find accomplices

wicked enough to concur in fo cruel an a&ion; for it may be conceived, that thofe tvho had by a long gradation of guilt hardened their hearts againit the Ienfe of common wickednefs, would yet be Lhocked at the dc+ fign of a mother to expofe her ibn to flavexy and want, to expfe him without interefi, and

. . Savage's Preface to his Mifcellany.

5 without

, - . .&thout provocation ; and Savage might on this occafion find proteaors and advocates among thofe'wllo had long traded in crimes, and whom compafion had never touched before. I

Being hindered, by whatever means, from baniihing him +to another copntry,ihe formed 'foon after a fcheme for burying him in poverty and obfcurity in his own; and, that his itation 'of life, if not the 'pl&e of his refidence, might keep him for evcr at a diitance from her, f ie ordered him to be placed ,with a ihoemaker in Holborn, that,'after the ufual time of trial, he might become his apprentice *.

It is generally reported,that this projea was for Come time hccefihl, and that Savage was employed at the M longer than he w8s willing to confeiii ; nor was it perhaps any great 'advantage to him, that an unexpeoed dif- coverg determined him to quit his occufiation.

About this time his nude, who had always keated him as her own ion, died; and it was natural for him to take care of thafe effees,

Preface to Savage's Mifccllanics. which

~ D Q S A V A G E which .by her death were, as he imagined, become his own; he therefore went to her houfe, ~pened her boxes, and exapined her papers, among which he found fpmc letters written to her by the Lady Mafon, which informed him of his birth, and fhg reafpns for whkh it was concealed. - . , -

' H e was PO longer fatisfied with the emr ployment which had been allotted him, but thought he had 9 right to jhare the affluence of his mother ; and therefore without fcruple app!ied to her as her ibn, and made ufe of , every art to awaken her tendernefs, and attraQ I

her regard. But neither his letters, nor the intcrpofition of thofe friends which his merit

i pr his difirefs procared him, made any impref- fion upon her mind: She fiillfrefolved to ne- - gIeB, though fie could no longer diibwn -him.

Jt was to no purpole that he frequently foli7 cited her to admit him to fee her ; ihe avoided him with the rnofi vigilant precaution, and ordered him to be excluded -from her houfe, by whornioever he might be iptrodsced, and what rearon foever he might give for entering it. .

S A V . A G E. 109 kavige was at the &me time to touched with

ilie dircovery of his real mother; that it waa his frequent praaice to walk in the dark even- ings * far feveral hours before her door, in hopes of Eeing her as ihe might come by ac;

l cidtnt to the window, or crofs her apartment 1 with a candle in her hand;

But all his aaduity and tendernois were without effeCt, for he could neither fofien her heart, nor open her hand, and was reduced to I the utmofi .dl'eries of want, while he was

1 I endeavouring to awaken the aKe&ioxi of a

inother : H e wis therefore obliged to feek rome other meaqs of fupport ; add, havidg no profeflion, became by necefIity, an author.

Ai this tide th2 attention of all fhe.literaqt Woild was engroffed by the Bangorian coniroi verfy, which filled the prefs with pamphlets, iind the coffee-houfiis with tl!fputant& Of this fubjea, as mofi popul~, he made choice for his hrfi a t temp~~and, without any other knowledge of the &eitipn than be had ca- fually colleaed from convcrhtion, publiihed a . poem againit the Biihop.

See the Phin Dealcr. I VOL. 111. P . What

$113 S ' A-. V;. A , - G',. E m a t 'was. the iitliccdb .or merit nf &S pet's

fomance, I b o w ndt ; it : was *r&blY l& among -the iinudrable pomphl;ts to which &it difpute gave otcpfion Mr. saw& F V ~ ,

hirnfel'f in a little time aibamed d .it, .and endeavoured to fupprefi it, by deitroying . aU the copies that he could colle&

C .

.' . H e . then attempted a more gainful kind of writing *, and in his eighteenth year'offered ( . ' . to . the . itage a comedy borrowed fr0m.a Spaniih ' lot, which was refufed by the players, and p .;, - 7

was therefore givin by him to Mr. ' Bullock, hho, I ' 'having &ore interefi, made lame sight . . alterations, and brought it upon the itage, u'n- der the title. o f t WOMAN'S A a r m l n , but qllowed the unhappy author no p% of the profit. . . .

Not difmura~ed however a his repulfe, he . . . ,wrote twq years afterwards LOVF IN A V4ib another comedy, borrowed likewife from the

U.

sPilniib, but with little better ~ U C C ~ G *an before; for though it was received., and aQed, .F -.-.. .. . . . . . .

Jacob's Lives of Dramatic Poets. f T& play was printed firfi in 8vo;. and afcerwprdr h

&-the fifth edi&on. . . . 3:; .L :,

2 yet

6 . - v,. A , 6 jE. 4 f r

5;it *it .appeared fo late in the year, that the author obtained no other advantage from it, than the &quaintme bf E& RiAard Stede, and Mr. W i s ; by whom he was pitied, ca- hEd, and t$ievedb

I l

Sir ~ i c h a r d Sieele, hiving declared in his . favour with a11 the ardour of benevolence which mdituted his charatler, promoted ii* interefi with the utrnofi zeal, related his m%- fortunes, applauded his merit, took all the o p portunities of recommending him,and aITerted, that * " the inhumanity of his mother had \' given him a right to find tvcry gobd man

his father."

NO^ was Mr. Savage admitted to hi, Z-

Quairitance only, but to his confidewe, of khich he fonietimes ?elated an infiance too extraordinary to be omitted, as it affords irery jliP M u of his patrods cfiaralker.

H e &AS once defred by S i Richard, with an air of the utmolt importance, to corneavery early to his h d e the next morning.. Mr. Gavage came as he had promad, found the

Plain Dealer. .., .. P a chariot

212 S A V A G E chariot at the ddor, tuid Sir Richard waiting for him, and ready to go oat. What was ih- tended, and whither they were to go, Savage could not; conjehrc, and was not willing to enquire; but immediately f e d himfelf with Sir Richard; the coachman was ordered t o drive, and they hurried with the utmofi expe- dition to Hyde-Park Corner, where they f iop ped at a petty tavern, and retired to a private room. Sir Richard then informed him, that. he intended to publifh a pamphlet, and that he had defired him to come thither that he might write for him. They fmn fat down to the work. Sir. Richard ditlated, and Savage wrote, till the dinner that had been ordered, was put upon the table. Savage was fw- prized at the rneannefs of the entertainment, and &er fome hefitation ventured to. a& for wine, which Sir Richard, not without re- IuBance, ordered to be brought. They then finiihed their dinner, and proceeded in their pamphlet, which they concluded in the &er- noon.. '

S Mr. Savage then imagined his taik over, and expetled that Sir Richard would' call for the reckoning, and return home ; but his expeaa- . .

t i o h

tions deceived him, far Sir Richatd toId him; that he was without money, and that the pamphlet muit be fold before the dinner could be paid for; and Savage was therefore obliged to. go and offer their new produ&ion to file for two guineas, which with Come difficulty he obtained. Sir Richard then returned home, '

having retired that day only to avoid his creditors, and compofed the pamphlet only to d i E charge his reckoning.

Mr. Savage related another fa& equally uncommon, which, though it has no relation to his life, ought to be preferved. Sir Richard Stecle having one day invited to his boufe a great number of ped~ns of the fire they were furprized at the number of liveries- which furrounded the table; and after dinner, when wine and mlrth had [et them fiee from the obfervation of rigid ceremony, one of them enquired of Sir Richard, bow fuch an expen- five train of domeRics could be confifient with his fortune. Sir Richard very frankly confeffed, that they were fellows of whom he would very willingly be rid. And being then aiked, why he did not difcharge them, de- glared that they were bailiffs who had intr-

p 3 duce4

duced themfed*& W anexecution, and whrmq' iince he.could not fend them away, he* had' thought it converlientto embellifi with liveries, @at they might do him credit while they itaid!

His friends were &ertod with, tho apodi-. ent, and, by paying the debt, difchargedltheir attendance, having obliged Sir Richard to pr* d e that they ihauld. never again find fTirp) graced with a retinue of .the iama hind.

- Under bch a tytor, Mr? Savage was not &ke&)z to.1- p d e n ~ e or fiugdty ; and per- basa:-mny of the misfortunes, which the want- d ,.tW# h u e s brought upon him in the f ~ k . ]ming puts of his life, might be jdUy i m ~ p u f & t ~ ~ $ ~ unimpr~ving an example. ,

3 , . - . , N ~ P did. the kiqdrrefs of Sir Richad end iq

~ ~ ~ t j i l ~ n ~ ~ v o u T ~ . ~ ! Hq i propofed ta have e h pliiJaqd h i p f-iettlled fcheme of life, apd $0 ' have contraed: a ,kind of allisnce with him, by marrying bihn to a natural- daughter,

- ep w h m he &endadd to beltow s thodand pounds. But though he was always lavi& 9f future bounties, he eondu&ed his &airs iq

r WD~@, he was very fcldom able ts

S A, v- A-. o a to -h* his;pmmifes, or .execiuta his d n in+ tentim,;, and,. as be wab -Jiev& able, to raiiis die Lm)::Hhich he had or&& the &wriagu was de l i i~d; . the Wan tide hs.W;ai&fEq cioully informed, that Mr.. Savage had +&C,

culed him; by which he was io.rnuch e x a f p fated, : that he :.+if.b%kathev. ~116w'aniie &ch hi hab;$ai&' hih,...lld. nqsr idkitkindo ad- .

. - . ,' miued hw us U&: ' :. . : ' c ' -

. ^ ) . I , . . . . . . . ..' . ,, . .W . .. , . , . . I 4 ..._ ~i ib i&kK&@ m;ght,

by ,hW~~~ig tpdence , , exp~fe hirnfelf .. . to . . the m d i d a&~la.i:talo-b&dr~ifar his patran:.had ma:ny f@A&i" +hiih;,'ass . # . bis:difttrnnie~eifi!.f ) ,

a ~ c o ~ d . i;rimagin,itlon might i&eS&~ incitt him' to mentibn. too ludicroufl~.. . Ai little knowledge . J . .. ., . o f the 'edo+~it i i , fiflubiait . t@ difcover that fuch weakdhfs is very cqplgo*, and hat-thete ate few who do not birr=ti#n&& in. t%r .~a;~t.bnjefi . . ,. . .. ., . -.. pf jfldir@tle~ rij!!&i!?;-d the heat ok7.n&fit& di$itdent..'~ppal:df thtir . , . . .fn'w~?I?$'a~d . , . . . . b&e'fa&of d+Wth',k9w an8

, , ,, , . . . . . , . contenip't, thou'gh in th6r cooler monients they . wadr *either f d k of their . kind&, nor r'evii&ice for theii: virtue, ' T h e fault

8 I . ' , , . .. 6 . . thereforcGi*. Savage was r9ther ,nedigeni'. ehen idifi&ude; but S i r , Rich& m&- l i b

P &'. ; : . . ..* . , . . .., . -. . . . ;

L - +iG?

1'6 $ A V ? A ( P . r i , wife be acquitted .of EeveGty, for who them that can patiently bear contempt from o m whom he ha$ relieved and fupported, whofe eitablifhment he h a laboured, and vyhofe in? ~c2:c# 4q promoted i!

. . , He -as now qg+ie abandoned to for-.

-tune, - without any athcr friend than Mr, Wilks; a man, who, whatever were his abilities or &ill as an aaor, deferves at leait to bq remembered - . . , for his virtues*, . . . w w are not

. . As it is a lofs' to karikiid when any good &on is for-

gotten;. l hall inf& andg. i d b & of Mr. ged* roiity,. vuy little knoym. W. Smith, a gentlem~edycated at Di61in, being hindkid by an impidimGnt in his pronun-

- hation frdm+ngaging in &rders,'for which his friends 'diiigncd him, left. Gs mm counuy, and came to Lopdon in qpee of tmploym,ent, but found his felicitations fruitlefi, and his iecehties every day more preffing. In this di ief i he wrote a tragedy,, and offered it to the players, by -w%m it was rc- jetted. .Thw ~ m s bin I# bopc? d?G?td, 4 .he h 4 as ~ f b e r profpeft than of the-mqft deplorable poverty. Fut Mr. Vtrilkj' i I i ~ " ~ h t ' h& peaforplance, though not ,perfelt, at'leihl iusrtky:d:fome rewktd, and therefore ,o&red him a bentht. Thi f a ~ q r he impropd with fo pluch giligence, that the houfe afforded him a coddyable. fupl, with which ha went to ~eydkn;";pp'iied him?elf to the &dy of phyfic; and e o t e d h& dafiin 'with h mu+ 'diligence and -fscrrbs, .thnt,. when Dr, Bqcrhaave was $fired by thg C e n a to recommend proper perfohs to introduce into 'Ru0ia the 'pr&ce and ftudy i f phyfic, Dr. Smith was one of .&ofe-'whom he fele&ed. He. had a cqnfiderable penfion Oultd'h him at hii a ~ i v a l ? pd was one of +e chief phyyillqs at the R U ~ & court.

' Q*

d e n to be found in the world, a ~ d perhaps kij &en. in his prafeffioa than in others, To be humane, generous, and candid, .is a very high degree of merit in any cafe; but th& qualities deferve itill greater praXe, when they are found in. that. conditipn, which makes dmoit every other man;. fot y h w e r re&, contemptuoue, irdolent,. petulant; f a , a d b d * . .

. .

As Mr. wilk was me of <bore to whom calamity feldom complained without relief, he naturally'touk an unfmtunnte wit it intg pmte&ion,. +-id not only. afified him h aI1.p cafiual. diitreffes, but continued an equal and. Peady kindnefs t o the time of his death.

-.

By his interpofition . . Mr. Savage once obtained from his mother* fiftp pounds, and a promife of one hundred and Hty more; but it was the .fate of this unhappy man, that few promifes of any advantage to him were* performed. His mother was infeeed among others with the general madnefs of the South

This I wn'te upon the uedit of the author of hb life, war publiihed 1727.

S?a

Sea tdit ; asd, . having be& dihp$omted ia her exp&tions, tefirfitd t o p j&bit: pirh*~! aorhing :%U butthc#nfpe& of fuddm prordpted her to-prode. . '

-. i - . . . , . . . . . . _ . I . . , ... L.',.. . , , . '

2': &rrg&jt& &p&&. the- &?&fiV-d.NI:r. %%M, he was confaqutmly dnidiit#iW ffplut&#r &f rhc t h r m t ~ ; : and in a fhort time the amdcments of the hge'tmk fuch poffefion of his mind, that he never

-, Thi'ti ~OnBantt auendance: .natttra.HP-$mxuM. &:hiai rhi .'&qdintdce d. the:playasi, andi &dn'g::ahas, of & Oldfield, a h t ~ . ~ a $ fi, much.. pleafed with. his ' convahidri, mb- touched with his misfortunes; that ihe allowed -

higr) a a t l e d pen f i : of ,*.pounds; A ...- a year, vbcb was dbrieg ka .HQ faqguIa.$y p#. - . . . , ' . _ . . - - . . I . . . . , . ,

. . * .A..; ." - - . That this ,a& d. ge,n%of!ry .may .fgeive. its' - ..

due .praiic, a*d .that the gqqd-@ions of ~ r s . . Oldfield may not. be, i G e d bp her .general' c&o@er, it,-is proper to ?enti&ahat Mr;. . .

Savage often declared in the itrongiR terms, that he'.never faw .her alone, or ,in any other place than behind the fceaess. . . . * .

IA- her death he e n d e a w ~ e d to' ihew his ptitude , i n the:, mofi decent manner, by' wearing wurx$lg ae. for a mother; . but && aqt celebrate her in.elegie~, becaule he knew @ ~ t too great prahfion of !ptaife wobld only have revived. th& fdults which his a a t a r a l a equity did P O ~ allow @m m-think lef$ be-

they were committed by one wtro favoured him j - but- ~f-,~wki&~,thoughhis. +irt=: would not endeavour to pdlittte t h e , :his, gratitude tw~u1d not.fuffer- h h to pm- the mmory, or. di.ffde the'c9nEtnA. . ' . .

In. bis W:an&rict:, h9 ba idctd.taken ark ~ ~ t q n i t y of 'rnmtiening h e , but cdebratw her not for her viwe; But har behy, ar$ exccUencc which none ever dci~ied htk : thia

the only cncQqthar with which he hai re4 w u d d her liberality, ahb- perhap Ae: has .

even in $hie: been too lavi-ih of his praXe; He: &ems. to have thegllt6 that to e t i o n bis benefa0refs would have an appearitnc'e & idgatitudk, though to hiwe dedicatkd any particular perf~marsrr to het mehmry w@uld ' have only betrayed an officious partiality, that, without exalting her charaaer, wodd have eeprered his own. .

. . . , . . - . - .

He had fometimes, by the kindnefi of Mr. Wilks, the advantage of a benefit, on which occafion6 he often received uncommon marks of regard and compflion; and was once told by the Duke of Do&, that it was jufi to confider him as an injured nobleman, and that in his opinion the nobility ought to think thedelves obliged, without iblicitation, to take every opportunity of fupporting him by tb ir countenance and patronage. .But he

' bad generally the mortifcation to hear ttut the whole intereft of his mother wis -em-- ployed to fruftrate his applications, and that ihe never left any expedient untried, by which he might be cut off fiom the pofi- biity of Zupporting life. The Game d i f p

i fition. iht endeavoured to d f i f e among all, thofe over whom nature or brtum gave her any influence, and indeed fucaeeded too we1 in her defign; but could not always propagate her efkontery with her cruelty, fbr f ime 06 thofe, whom ihe incited againft him, were afhamed of their own condu&, an4 boafled of that relief which they never gave him, ~

In this cedwe I do not indikriminatel~ inv~lve all his relations; for he has mention-

ed l

d with gratitude the humanity of one Lady, whofe name I am now unable to recollea, and to whom therefore I cannot pay the praXes which &c defmes for having a&ed well in oppofition to iduence, precept, and example.

The puniihment which our laws infliEt upon thde parents who murder their infants Gael1 known, nor has its juRice ever been contcRed ; but if they deferve death who de- Bray a child in its birth, what pains can be' here enough 'for h a w h o forbears to deRroy him only to inflitt fharper d e r i e s upon him ; who prolongs his life only to make him mi- krable; and who expofes him, without care and without pity, to-the malice of oppreflion, the caprices of chance, and the temptations of poverty ; who rejoices to fee him overwhelmed with calamities ; and, when his own induitry, or the charity of others, has enabled him to rife for a fhort time above: his miferies, plunges him again into his former d i e t ?

T h e kindnefs of hi fiiends not affording him any conitant fqply, and the proipea of

. , impraving

imProvbg his fortune by enlarging his is& quaintance neceffsily leading him to .place6 of expence, L found it neceffary * to endea; vour once reore at dramatic poetry3 for whicli he was now better qualified by a more. extenfive knowledge, and longer obfervation. But having been unfuccefsf~l in comedy; though rather Eor want of. oppprtunities -than genius, he reiblved now to try whether he ihoulQ not be mbre fortunate in exhibiting a m- ged~b -

. ,

. .

The Lt~q which he chore for tbe l~&&~ ?as that af Sir Thoixw Overbury, a f t o q wt$i adapted to the hge3 though pwhaps mt fav enough removed - from the prefkn~ age, to &a tnit properly the fiaions neceffary ta COW

plete the plan : for the d h d , which naturall~ loves truth, is always m& ~ffcnded wi* the violation of thofe truths bf which we a* moit certais ; ad we ef cm& conc$qe t b k , ti&s 94 eert+in, which apprqcb nc-fi t ~ ,

our OWQ timer

Out of this i t ~ r y be forked a trageq, 1

~ & h , ifthe Qrcupitantes in whkh hc , * ~ c i

. *I@>*yc

it be co~fidered, wiil aff~rd at once an un- cornmop proof of itrength of genius, and evenndi of mind, ~f a ferenity not to be maedb and an imaghatian not to be prsad*

-Wog a conGdcr4ble pat of the time in which he was employed upon thii pdorrn~ ance, he was without lodging, and ofien without meqt; .nor - . ... had P: any pther xonve- &ewes fpr qudy thap the fields qr the itreef allowed kip; there he uied to wdk and f ~ r m '

qs Ceeches, a* aftemads itep into a hop, beg for s few mownts the ufe of the p &d - . i*, and write down what he had corn- pokd, UQQR paper whiqh he h d pigked up by =GM

: E the pedo,nuance of a writer thus diitrefP d 'is not perfea, ito hults ought furely ts be imputed to a cade very differerit fiom want of genius, and muit rather excite p iv .than provoke cenlme;

But when under thek dikouragements tragedy was finiihed, there yet remained the labour of introducing it on the hge, an un- r. . ,

. i t . . dertaking,

dertaking; which, to an ingenuous mind, d& In a very high degree vexatious and difguA2 ing; forl having little mtereA or repatationj he was' obiiged to. fubmit himfelf whblly td

the players, and admit, with whatever relus tance, the emendatio& of Mr. Cibber, which he always codsdered L the' clifgrace of hib performancC;

He had indeed in Mr. Hill anbthei cr$ik d a Vcky different cm, from whofe friend& fhip he! redeed great & h n u on many oc3. caiidnS, and whom lie never mentioned but with the utmofi tendernefs and regard. He had been for fomk firhe diftinguiihed by him with very particulii kindhefi, and on this occafion it was natural to apply 3 him ad author of an ehbliihed charaaer. He there fore fent this tragedy to him, with a iliort, copy of * vedes, in which he defwed his correaion. Mr. Hill, whofe humanity' and politenefi are generally known, readily complied with his requeit ; but as he is rernark- able for fingularity of fentiment, and bold qeriments in language, Mr. Savage did not

Printed in the late colle€tioxr of his pOCItl8~

t h i i l k

ihink his play much improved by his inno- vation, and had even at that time the CDU-

rage to reje& ievenl paf?gages which he could not approve; and, what.@ .itill more laudable, Mr. Hil1,had . , the 'generdty not to refent the ncglea of his alterations, but wljctre the logue anfi epilogue, in which he touches ~a the circumitances of the author with great tendernefi.

- . I f .

After all the& obflru&iotis and complid ances, he was only able to bring his play upon the itage in the fummer, when the chief attors had retired, and the reit were in pof- ikfion of the houfe for their own aduantage. Among thek, Mr. Sa$age was admitted to play the part of Sir Tbxnas Overbufp, by which he gained no great reputation, the theatre being a province for which nature feemed to have deiigned him; for nelther his voice, look, nor gefiure, *ere fuch as we- expetted on the itage; and he was fo much aihamed of having been reduced to appear as a player, that he always blotted but his name from the lifi, w h q a copy of his tragedy was to be ihown to his friends.

DHL& more I~~cef&l,- f& the rays of genius &iit glimmered in itc:that glimrntkcd thrdugh dl t in. hi f ig which poverty and Cibbrr hid &d~able to fpreadowr it, procured him the no'ti=e azld efieem of many p e r h i ~rninent for.their rank, their vinue, and their wit.

Of this play, aoed, printed, and dedicated, the accumulated profits aroi'e to an hundred pihmds, which he thought at that time a ve y lage fum, having been never maRkr of lo much before. , . , .

l

. . - .. - . . . - , . ,., . . . . , , ,

.: Dedication*,.-fa which he- received 1 ten .- gtlineas, there i6 nothhg- . -r&mzrkaMe. The fieface contaim a very &rid eticomim on the - blooming- rxcelkncik 6f l&., Theo- philur Gibber, ~ h . i c h : .&. satage. c~uld not In the latter plii 'of..lds Pfe $& ee' .&ieds ~ iboGt to readr wi&o~~ifiat:8hing .&s fliy out ~ af their haklg. . .fhe ef M. f l i A ~ did -not .en.d on this oc~aficin; -foi trft~rwards~ &hen Mr. S~vryFe'b. nkceWi. rietmb.e& he 'encouraged a fuMcri-ption a W&1m d

. .

I S A ) V A ' G E. 937 l

Poems in a very extraordinary manner, by . publifhing his fioy in the .Plain Dealer*, with l i e affeQing lines, which he afferta to have been written. by Mr. Savage upon thi

l treatment received by him &om -his mother, but of which he .was hid&, .the a h o r , as Mr. Savage afterwards declared. Thefe lines, and the paper in which they were inferted, had a very powerli effeo upon aH but his mother, whom, by making.her auelty more public, they only hardened in her 'a~erfion. -

Mr. Hill not only promoted the liubfcrip- tion-to the Mifccllaay, but furniAred l&wife the great& part of, the ?oe& of which it is .compofed, and garticuhriy Tbe Happy M15 which he publifhed as a @eci3Pw.

The fubfcriptions of thofe whom thefe papers &odd influence to patronize merit in diilrefi, wkhmt any other ibficitation, 'nTere direQed to be lefi at Button's coffee-

. * The PI& Dealrr was a periadi~al paper, writtenby Mr. Hill and Mr. Bond, whom Mr. Savage called the two contending powers of light and darknefs. They wrote by turns each ii~ ERBya; a ~ d the charatkr of the w k was d&rved regularly to rifein Mr. Hill's weeks, and fall-in Mr. . W d l s .

houfe; .

houfe ; and Mr. Savage going thither a feft days afterwards, without expeltation .of an7 effelt .from his propofal, found to his iurprife fetenty guineas*, which had been fent him in confequence of the compaaion excited by Mr. Hill's pathetic reprelentation.

T o this r if cell any he wrote a Preface, in . 'which he gives an account of his mother's cruelty in a very uncommon itrain of humour, and with a gaiety of imagination, h i c h the fucccfi of his iubfcription probably '

produced. .

The Dedication is addreKed to the Lady Mary Wortley Montague, whom he flatters 1 without referve, and, to confefs the truth, 1 with very little t art. The fame obfervation ,

The names of thoik who To generoufly contributed to his relief, having been mentioned in a former ac'munt, ought not to be omitted here. They were the Dutchefs of Cleveland, Lady Cheyney, Lady Caitlemain, Lady Gower, Lady Lech- mere, the Dutchefs Dowager and Dutchefs of Rutland, Lady Strafford, the Countefv Dowager of Warwick, Mrs. Mary Floyey, Mrs. Sofuel Noel, Duke of Rutland, L o ~ Gainiborough, Lord Miliington, Mr. John Savage.

, - t This the following extra& from it will prove,

Since onr country has been honoured with the'glob of your wit, as elevated and immortal as your foul, it no

longer

may be extended to all his Dedications: his aniplirnsnts are conitrained and violent, heaped together without the grace of order, or the decency- of introduc2ion; he. feems to '

have written his Panegyrics for. the perufd only of his patrons, and to hark imagined that he had m 'other talk than to pamper them with praifes however grds, and that flattery. would make its .way to the-:heart,- without the afiltance of elegance or i~vention.

Soon afterwards, the death of the king fur- nified a general f~bje€t for a poetical contefi, in which Mr. Savage engaged, and is allowed to have carried the prize of honour fiom his competitors i but I know not whether he gained

" longer remains a doubt whether your fex have Rrength of " mind in proportion to their fweetnefi. There is fomething '+ i n your verfes as diftipguibd as your air.-They are as " &osg as truth, as deep as tealon, as clear as innocence, " and as fmooth as beauty-They contain a namclefi and Cc peculiar mixture of force arid grace, which is a t once i~ " movingly ierene, and fo majefiically lovely, that it is too * # amiable to appear any where but in your eyes and in your 9' writings.

As fortune is not mare my enemy than L am the enemy of ffatteq, I know not how I can forbear this application to your Ladyihip, becaufe there is fcarce a pofibility that I mould fay more than I believe, when I am facaking of

'! y6Uf ExccIJc~cc."-

by. his pirfkimakce any othb .advantagd than the :i ierde: oE his roputTgisn ; thou& it ~ u B crtainly. have .:be.eri. .wilh farther- ykwg t H a ~ he prevailed. upon hi@elf, to attempt 4 fpkcies of: writin& o f . which all the t?p&r had been h@ before. exkaufied, and wh&I~ ... was made at tmce difficult by tht multitudes that h& failed in it, and thofe that had (U& -ceeded.:. ,

- .

. *

H e was now advancing in repqtation, and though fieqbeetlp involved in very diltr&ful perple;xit(ie$, . weared however to be gaining upcm rnirkiad, when both his . fame . ..... and his lifC wexk ..eodsagrred by ap event, #of. whi& it is not yrt:defetmieed, whether it aught t.0

be mentioned as a crime'or a calamity. . . . * . . . .a .

. . On the 20th d ~ o v ~ k b e r - 1717, Mr. Sa-

vage came . , . ffom ~ichmonh, where he then lodged, that he might purfus hie firdies with lefs inrertuption, with an intent todifcharge another lodging pvbich h e had in Wefirni+ fier; and arcidontally meeting two gcnrlcmn b,is ~quainrances, ~ h o f e . . * . . - nqmes were 'Mer- cllant. and Gregory, ,lie , yeiit ' iri .. with .. . them to a peighboliring coffee-houfe, . .and fat

drinking

dAnki~g. .fill ?it wm h&) it' being in -m 'time of &l~,.-S;t~@eIs- l i f b ~ r t y part. of his - charac& t q ,W . k t thee firit. .of. ;the ~cotnp8~ly tbat'.det Gred . , .& &prate. would'wiUingfy hive gplc W.; W: in -B:.* b~ui? . ; bm rhsn was not room for the whole company, aild therefore they agreed to ramble about the jh-eetq. and divert thcrni'ehes - - with . -,fnch amufements 3 ihwld o&r t4e.qi'elpea. till momirkg. . . .

. . . -.

,. - . . 0 l .

. . . In rhia walk th$ happened unluekilg difcovs~' a light in -Robinfon's c & W e , near Charing-crofi, . a i d : theieforg-- *tnt iri. Merchant, with fom'e*.-rudenefs, dedanded : b Toam, and: wis &d+ld there'w& a goad fire in the mxt parlow,. whichn the&ihpnp lpere ;bout to leave, being then paying their r e c k M g . . Mercilyp!, ~ n a .krisfi84 .~&]rl,this qder, rulhd iqt(c:: the. r-, anti MM.&& !pwed hy bia: ooqq+~i9!~s,-. He. th?q.!p~~- h + y . pkeed hjn?@lf. be-mew the1-a- ,and +?F, ; k e y a 4 ,hq*ftez Icick4. .rF,wn-.@ .hbAe, ,rThiF wodyFCd a. ~ I S ~ ) K ~ ~ I C& ~ w a A~we.;an r . $ ~ h fidqsr,:~d a*:. J ~ a m &M :W. ,kiw. 7: :;S?%!$%.: b v i ~ ~ w 4 - d. Ji-1 S A%i$ i,*t,.Qdd,:$iw,

.! :.it 4 4 his

"3? S. A. -v:. AV' G' E,. his ,way .with Much* put of ' the houfe but* being intimidate@and cotlfded, without.

. . refolution. either .to flp .or Ray, they were rakci! .h a back-court by one of the-company and. Come' fokdias, whom he haddlcd . . .. t o his ~iliitance. . .. - . . A . .

. , . . ,. .d .. . . . a

-Being fecured and guarded that nigk,they &ere - in the nioinini carried befor: thm? j ufices, who committed them to the:'~ate: 'houfe, fi-om whence, upon the death of Mr. &n g&,' which happened the iaxqe day, they we~e, jc~mov~d in the night to Newgate, where e 4 . .

.*ey!. yere however treated with' h m e . dif- rfin&jo~.r,., - ~xempted. .fipm the ignainihy of .Chains, 4d;confiqed:not among the cofnmon

miml , , , b t in the.Prefs-yard! -fFi . , . C . " 1 ' , , . . , , , r , , . ! . . . - - , . . (

~ r d i U % e % &day of trjil came, the court wag !iiir:a 'cry unufual manner, and thp '

$ublic'~tpbedred to intereft . . . . , itfelf as in a cauk -H1 '@rit?rd-:$oneern. ' T h e witieffis $ . & a i d . . ..

' 1 ~ r ~ d ; h & a r ; d liiifiiends keie, the wbmq <l& %a,; h i c h . ;is a 'houfc of

'91 ;ind her l a id , 'the men , who . were . .. .ik-kEE~w~b:*tkkk~r; &inelaiIj and a

cfjj&,L.'~a&~d been ePg . , . . . , . . . . a . . . . .2 !

.r ,, . I k 3

. .

S A V A G E . . 23$

&cm; i-nq with whom one of them had been feen in bed. They fwore in. geneial, that Merchant *. gave tbe provocation,, which Savage i$iii, G r e p r y drew their fwords to

l l juKiy; t b d :Savage .drew firfi,' and that he

'hbbed Sinclair when he was not in 'polture of defence, or while Gregory commanded his fwor4;' ' that after he had given. the thruif 4 e turned. p i e , and would have retired, but t hd maid c i ~ ~ n ~ round him, and bne of

! .. - the cdnipabYJ cddeiivoured to detain- him, from whom he Groke, by ;wing the maid

i on the head,, but y a i ifterwards takgn in a . - . court.

t

l l . There was. ibme differeqce in their depofi- I tiona; one did not fee Savage give the wound,

another law it gives when Sinclair held his . . ..

point towards the ground; and the woman of ,

the town afferted, that ihe did not fee Sin- clair's {word -at all: t&s difference- however. .was very far from amounting to incodif- tency; but it was fdc i sn t to mew, .that the hurry of the difpute was fuch, that. it was . . .

riot eaig. to diicover the puth with relation to i

. . l particular circumfiayes, . . , , and that therefore

fome' . . . , .

forqe deduQions were to be made from the ci-edi6il'ity of theteltimonies. . . , ' .

Sinclair had declared ieverai tirriei before his death, that he received his W O & ~ from Savage, nor did savage at his trialideny the fa&, but endeavoured partly to extenuate , . . it, by urging the iuddennefsof the &ion, arid the irnpofibikty' of any ill defign, ',or p-ernkditated malice, and t~ juQZf it by. . th; . .. nicef i ty of felf-defence, and the ba- zara of: his own lifi, if h i had IoR thit bp- poituniti of . . 'giving. *? thruRi he'bbkked,

. . . , . _... L . .

that neither reaion nor law -obliged man to wait for the blow which was threatened, and which, if he i h o ~ l d fuffer it, he might nevir be able to iet&fi, that 'it-was always

t

allowable to privkni. i n iffauli, i n d to pre- ferie life b i takirig away'that o f the adverfary,' by whom it &as endangered.

I . ' .

With regard 'to the violdnce with which he \

endeavoured to ercape, he declared, that it was not -his defign ,to fly from julticr, or 'decline a trial, but to avoid the expences and feverities o b ~ a prihii ; and that he intended to %ave ahearkd at the bnr- withut compdfion.

This

S*: .. . . A. V - A; G .. . E. . , , . This defqn~,. which took up more thaq ;in hour, was heard by the multitude that throng- ed the 'court with the moit attentive and refpe€tful . Qence; . . . . . , thole . , who- . , though; he . . . gught pot . tp _ _.., .be. . -acrju,itted, . owned that applaufe I ! :

couldinot . . he. rqfded him;, and thofe who before pitied- hjg misfortunes, now reverewed . . . , . - .

hjs Mities. ' ;:,- . - . - - . ..- .. - ,- . .. . I a . # . , . a . . , - . . . . 2

-.* -..,-.

The witnefTes which &peared gg&R were; proved to be perfins of $ga&erslvv~kich did not entitle them to much'.~~edit a &xpmoa humpet, a woman by whom itrumpets were citertained, and a man by whom they atere fupported ; and the charaQer of S e v a s by feveral perfons of diitinRion aRerted to be that ,of a modeit inofknfive man, not inclin-

. ...-.- ed, to, b~oils, . . ,pr to. iofolence, . . and who had, to that G&, been only known for his mis- - - . fortunes.anrd - . his ., wit. . . '.

. .. . . . - . ' . .. ..,A h . . . ,. . ... 1. . . wad his. abdience betp his judges,. he.hqd

I . .

.1+~3oubt,ed) y, .been . acquitted;, but . M?. _Ragg,

with hi8 i t f ~ p l .infolence iiM &u4rky, qnd wh-m i l e had furniqed up. the -&da~e, e n d e r n o d

to exafperitte the jury, as Mr. Savage ufed ta Xlate it, with this eloquent harangue; - . . . - . -.

't r

- - ~ i ~ i t f e r n e n o f th,e j j r j , you &e to con: bder that Mr:f&age is'a.very great man, a

. . . much geater min than you or I, gentlemen of the jury ; that he wears very fine clothes; much finer clothes than you or I, gentle-

' men of the jury; that he has abundance h d honey inshis pocket, much more money .b than youor I, *gentl&e.n of the.jury ; bur,

gentlemeh of the jury, is it not a very hard ' cde,' gentlemen of the jury, that Mr. Savage ~ . . h u l d therefore kill you or. me, -,gentlemen . 'V&.thejury?'. . . . ,

. r . Mr. Savage, hearing his defence thus mifre-

preiknted, and the men who were to decide his fate incited againit him by invidious com- parifons, reiolutely afferted, that his caufe was not candidly explained, and began to recapi- d a t e what he had before faid with regard to his condition, and- the necefity of endeavouring to efcape fhe expences of irkprifonment ; 'but the judge h a v i ~ g ordered him to be filent, and repeated his .orders without effe&, corn- .

5 rnanded

'

handed that he iho~ ld .be taken from the bar by force. . ,

The jury then heard the opinion of the' judge, that good charatters were of no weight againit pofitive evidence, though they might turn the kale where i t was doubtful ; and that though, when two men attack each o&er, ,

the ,death of either is only. manflaughter ; but ' where one is the aggreffor, as in the d e before them, and, in purhance of his firfi attack, kills ' the other, the law fuppofes the aaion, however fudden, to be malicious. They then deliberated upon their verdie, and determined that Mr. Savage and Mr. Gregory l were guilty of murder, and Mr. Merchant, who had no fword, only of man- Qaughter,

Thus ended this memorable trial, which lafied eight hours: Mr. Savage and Mr. Gre- gory were condulled back to priibn, where they were more cloiely confined, and loaded with irons of fifty pounds weight : four aays a f i e ~ a r d s they were feht back to the court to receive fentence ; on which occafion Mr.

Savage

238 S A V A G - E; Savage made, as far as it could be retained in memory, the following fpcech.

c c It is now, mp Lord, too late tb aaiany thing by way of defence or vindication.; nor can we expeCa from your Lbrdfhips, in this court, but the fentence which the law

f c requires you, as judges, to pronounce agaidk - f t ' men of our calamitous condition.-Bwt we Cc are ,alfo perfuaded, that as mere men, and

out of this {eat of %goroue juitice, you are fufceptive of the tender paaoni, and too

" humane, not to conamiferate the unhappy fituation d thofe, whom the law foixietirnes perhaps--ex&s--frorn yau to pi ono^

fi upon. No doubt yotl difiinguilh between *c offences, which arik oclt of preaeditation, . .

and a difpofition habituated to vice or im- morality, and rranfgrefions, which are the

'' 'unhappy arid uaforcfeeri &etis of eafual . " abfence of reafbn, and O&dEn imp* c6

paffion: we thedare hope you will contri- " bute all you can to an &on of t b ~

mercy, which the gentlemen of the jury b m pleafed to ihew Mr. Mcrchsrat,

U who (allowing f&s as , f w m a g a i d us by 6 " the

U the evidence) has led us into this our cala- CC mity. I hope this will not be conftrued;

a i if we meant to refleCt upon that gentle- " man, or remove any thing from us upon

him, or that we repine the *ore at our fate, becaufe he has no participation of i t : No, ,

H my Lord ! For my part, I declare nothing fodd more {often my grief, than to be

a w i t h d t my companion in fo great a mis- " cortune "" . .

Mr. Savage had now no hopes of life. h a from ' the mercy of the crown, which 'was very eafflefily folicited by his friends, and which, with whatever difficulty the itory may. obtain belief, was obitruRed only by his i+other.

- To prejudice the @een againit him, f ie made ufe of an incident, which was omitted in the order of time, that it might be mentioned together with the purpofe which it was made to ferve. Mr. Savage, when he had difcovered his birth, had an inceITint defirc to {peak to his mother, -who always avoided

Mr. Savage's Life,

him

him in publick, and refukd him admillion intbl her houfe. One evening walking, as.it war his cuftom, in the fireet that h e inhabited; he Taw the door of her houfe by accident open'; he entered it, and, finding no perfon h t h e paffage to hinder him, went up itair8 '

to falute her. She difcovered him before he . could enter her chari+er, alarmed the family

k id i the moh difirifsful oiitcries, and when ihe had by her {creams gathered them about her, ordered them to drive out of the houfe that villain, who had forced himfelf in upon her, and endeavoured to'murder her, 8avage, who had attempted with the mofi fubmiflive tendernefs to foften her rage, ,hearing her utter fo deteltable an accuiation, thought it to retire; and, I believe, never attenipted af% terwards to Cpeak to her.

But, ihorked as he w a i with her falfho~d and her cruelty, he ifnakinkd that f ie intended no other ufe of her lye, than to fet herfelf free from his embraces and folicitations, and W& very far from iuipe&ing 'that ihe would treafure it in her memory, as an infirumetlt

*of future wickednel, or that .fie would en* ,

deavour

S A V A G E %*

deavom fat this fi&itiotts aG& to apt iv t him of hi, lift,

But when the @em #as fdicited for his pardon, and informed of tht fmere treatment which he had futked from his judge, &e an- itoered, that, however dnjufiifiable might be the nr;mner of his trial, or whatever extenuation the adioa for which he was condemned

. might admit, fhe could not think that man a proper ~ b j & of the King's mercy, who had been capable of etltering his mother's houk in the night, with an intent to murdcr.hcr.

By tvhottl this atrocious calumny had been kranfmitted to the @een ; whether ihe that invented had the front to relate it; whether fhe found any one weak enough to credit it, or corrupt enough to concur with her in her hateful defign, I know not : but methods had been taken to pwfuadc the Queen fo firongly of the truth of it, that ihe for a long time refufed to hear any of tbofe who petitioned for' MS life,

Thus had Savage paifhed by the evidena d a bawd, a ftrumptt, and his mother, h 4

VOL. 111. R - pet

:not juitice and cornpailion procured him an advocate of rank too great to. be rejeQed un- heard, and of virtue too eminent to be heard .without being believed. His merit and his :calamities happened to reach the ear of the Countefs of Hertford, who engaged in his iilpport with all the tendernefs that is excited l

.by pity, and all the zeal which is kindled by

.generofity ; and, demanding an audience of the Qeen, laid before her the whole feries of his

' l mother's cruelty, expofed the improbatiilitp I of an accufation by which he was charged with an intent to commit a murder that could produce no advantage, and ioon con- .vinced her how little his former condue could .dekrve to be mentioned as a reaibn for extraordinary ieverity.

\

The inte~poiition of \this Lady was fo; f u c ~ cefsful, that he. was loon afier admitted to bail,, and, on the 9th of March I 728, pleaded the 1 King's pardon.

8 , I . - It is natural to enquire upon what motives

his mother could profecute him in a man- $er ib outrageous and implacable ; for what .reatan f ie could employ- all the arts of mad

- . . . I lice,

1

I h e , and all the Cnares of calumny, to take away the life of her own Con, of a Con who never injured bet, who was never fupported by her expeace, nor obitrut3ed any proCpeR of pleaiure or advantage; why ihe ihould endeavour to dehoy him by a lye-a lye which could not gain credit, but mufi vanifh of 'itfelf at the firlt moment of examination, and of which only this can be faid to make it probible, that it may be obfeived froin her condu&, that the mofi execrable crimes are fomehmes committed without apparent kmptation.

'I'his mother is rill alive, iuid map per; Laps even jet, though her malice was fo of-. ten defeated, enjoy the pleafiire of refleaing, that the life, which h e often kndea+oured to d e h y , was at leafi ihortened by her mater- nal offices; that though fie could not tranfport her ibn to the plantations, bury him in the h o p of a mechanic, or hafien the hand of the public executioner, ihe has yet had the fatisfaaion of imbittering all his hours, and forcing him into exigencies that hurried on his death.

R 2 It

It is by no means neceffary to aggravate the enormity of this woman's condue, by pIacing it in oppofition to that of the Coun- tefs of Hertford; no one can fail to obferve how much more ainiable it is to relieve, than to opprefs, and refcue innocence from de- hruaion, than to dchoy without an injury.

Mr. Savage, during his imprifonment, his trial, and the time in which he lay under fentence of death, behaved with great firmnefs and equality of mind, and confirmed by his fortitude the efieem of thole who before admired him for his abilities. The peculiar .

circurnfiances of his life were made more gemally known by a fhort account*, which was then publiihed, aqd of which feverd thodands were in a few weeks dilperied cver the nation: and the compaflion of mankind operated io powerfully in his favour, that he was enabled, by frequent preients, not only to fupport himfelf, but to aaft Mr. Gregory in prifm; and, when he was pardoned and releafid, he found the number of his fiiends not leffened.

W~itten by Mr. Beckingham and another gentleman.

The

The nature of the a& fbr which he had been tried was ip itfelf doubtful; of the evidences which appeared againfi him, the charaaer of the man was not unexceptionable, that of the woman notorioufly infanious: he, wh& teitirnony chiifly influenced the jury to condemn him, &erwards retrdkd her aE Qrtbn~: H e always himfelf denied that he mas drunk, as had been generally ieportcd. Mt. Gregory, who is 'now Colle'&or of An- tigua, is faid to declare him far 14 criminal than he was ' imagined, even by ibmc who

- favoured him: and Page hirnfe~afhrwards confeffed, that he ' had treated. him with uncommon rigour. When all thefe particulars are rated together, perhaps the memory of Savage may hot be much fullied by his trial. l . -

Some tim &er' he had obtained his iiL bcrty, he met in the . fireet the woman that b;rd fmrn with. $0 much malignity again& ,him, She infarmed him, that ihe was in diitrefs, and, vfith a . degree of confidence not eafily attainable, defired him to relieve her. He, infiead of infulting her miikry, and t a k q pleafure in the calamities of one w b had brought his life in@ dangerl reprov-

R 3 ed

ed her gently for her perjury; and changing the only guinea that he had, divided it.equally between her and himfelf.

This is an aQion which in Fome ages would have made a faint, and perhaps in others a hero, and which, without; any hy-r yerbolical encomiums, mufi be allowed to be an infiance of uncommon generofity, an a& of complicated virtue; by which he at once relieved the poor, correaed the vicious, and forgave an enemy; by which he at once remitted the honongefi provocations, and exer? cifed the moit ardent charity.

Compiffiop was indeed the difiinguifhjng quality . of . Savage; he' never appeared . in7 . clined to .take advantage of weakneis, to attack the defenceleis, or to prers upon the falling: whoever was difirefid was certain at leait of his good wifhes; and when ht could give no ifiltance to extricate them from . . misfortunes, he endeavoured to' iooth them by fympathy andtendern&.

But when his heart was not foftened by the fight of mifery, he was fometimes o b pinate in his refentment, and did not quickly

lofe

1 lore the remembrance of an injury. H e always continued to ipeak with anger of the

i , infolence and partiality of Page, and a fhort time before his death revenged it by a fGire*.

It is natural to ehquire in what terms Mr. Savage fpoke of this fatal aaiori, when the

1 danger was over, and he was under no ne- 1 cefity of uGng any art to iet his condue in

the fairefi light. H e was not willing to ' l

dwell upon it; and,-if he tranfiently men- I tioned it, appeared neither to confider him.. l I felf as a murderer, nor as a man wliolly free'

from the guilt of blood t. How much and how long he regretted it, appeared in a poem. which he publifhed many years afierwards. On occafion of a copy of vedes, in which the failings of good men were re- counted, and in which the author had endeavoured to illuhate his pofition, that " the " befi may fometimes deviate from virtue," by an initance of murder committed by Sa- vage in the heat of wine, Savage remarked, that it was no very jufi reprefentation of a good man, to fuppofe him liable to drunken- nefi, .and difioied in his riots . . t~ cut throats.

Printed in the late colle&ion. t IL one o f his letters he ftyles it a fatal quarrel, but

too-weli known." ,

R 4 He

He wag now indeed at liberty, but was, ae before, without any other Cupport than accidental favour8 and uncertain patronage af9 forded him ; iburces by which he was f o x n e w times very liberally fupplietl, and which at other times were fuddenly fiopped; fo that

fpent ?is life between want and plenty; or, what waa yat wode, between b e g g q . and extravagance; for a whatever he ra- ceived was the gifk of, chance, which might as well favour him at. one time as another,

was tempted to Equander what Be had, becaufe he always hoped to bq iqmediatelly iupplied.

Another caufe of his prohfion was the ab- fird @sdncfs of his friends, who at once rewarded and .enjoyed his abilities, by treating him at taverns, and habituating him to pleafures which he could not afford to enjoy, and which he was not able to deny hidelf, though he purchafed the luxury of a fingle night by the any!# of cold an4 hunger fos a week.

The experience of thefe inconveniences &tqqiqed hiq. tp qndeqvour after fome {et-

?led

tled income, which, having long found Cub- rniDion and intreaties fiuitlels, he ittempted te extort fiom his mother by rougher methods, H e had now, as .he acknodedged, loit that tenderneh for her, which the whole feries of her cruelty had not been able wholly to reprefs, till he.found; by the efforts which fie made for his deitrultion, thai ihe was wt content with refufing to aiIifi hiin, and being. neutral in his Rruggles with poverty, but was aa ready to fnatch every opporrtuility of adding to hie misfortunes, and t b t ihc was to be confidered as an 'enemy implacably malicious, whom nothing but his blood could fa t ie . H e therefore threatened to harda her with lampoons, and to publifh'a~copious m a t i v e of her condue, unlefs h e confented to purcwc an exemption horn infamy, by d!owiDg him a penlion.

This expedient proved fuccetftl. Whether ihame itill iurvived, though virtue was extin&, or whether her relations had more delicacy than hedelf, and imagined that ibme cif the darts which fatire might point at her would glance upon them; Lord Tyrconnel, whatever werF his motives, upon his promifa

to

l

to lay gfi& .his defign of expofing the cru- ! -

elty af his mother, received . him . .into his I family, treated him as. his qqual, and end . . pged to allow him. a penfign of two, hundred p~.unds a.year. - . 1

, . . - !

This was. the golden part of Mr.. Savage's I

life; and for fome time he had no reafon to

complain of fortune; his ' appearance was fplendid, his expences large, a n d hii =c- quaintance extenfive. He' was courted by all who endeavoured to be thdhght men bf genius, and careffed by all who valued them- Eelves upon, a . refined tafie. : T o admire Mr. Savage, was a proof of difcernment; and to be acquainted with him, was a title to poetical reputation. His prei'ence. was fuffi- ciem . . to make any place of public. entertainment popular; and his approbation and. example conitituted the faihion. So powerful i s genius, when it is invefied with the glitter of afflueqce! Mqn willingly pay to fortune that regard which they owe to merit, and are pIeafed when they have an - opportunity at once .of gratifying their vanity, and pratfifing their duty,

This

S A V A G E . 25s

This interval of profperity furnilhe& him with opportunities of enlarging his knowledge of human nature, b y contemplatiqj life from . its higheft gradations to its loweit ; and, had be &erwards applied to dramatic poetry, he would perhaps not have-had many fuperiors; for as he never fuffered any fcene to pafs before hie eye$ without notice, he had treafured in his mind all the different combinations of palons, and the innumerable mixtures of vice and virtue, which diitinguiih one chara&er from another; and, as his conception -was itrong, his expreiIions were clear, he caiily .reqeived impreffions from objeas, and very forcibly tranfmitted them to others,

Of his exa& obfervations on human life he * has left a proof, which, would 40 honour to

the ' greatefi names, in a h a l l pamphle~, called,. The Aufbor to. be /@?C, where. he .in- troduces. Ifcariot Hackney, a pra~i'tute . '.. i c r ib . . . :

bler, giving an account of his birth, his . . . - education, his difpofitiol; and morals, .habits .of life, and.maxims of condua. In the idtrq- (luaion are related many bcrct hiifories of

* Prigted in his WO&, vol. 11. p. 23 I . . . the

the petty writers of that time, but fomc- times mixed with ungenerous refleaions on their birth their circumitaaces, or thofe of heir rdatiom; nor can it be denied, that fhac pdagcs are fuch as Ifiiriot Hackney e h t hirnfelf have produced.

H e was accuicd likewife of living in an appearance of friendfhip with iome whom be ibtiriied, and of making ufe of the confidence whi* he pined by r f&rning kindnefs to didcover fiilings and expofe them: it muit be confeff'ed, that Mr. Savage's eittem was no very mrtain @tfion, and tbat he wouM lampoon at one time thofe whom hc had praifed at another,

h may be alkged, that the fame man may change his and that, he who was oncc d d i e d l y commcnded, may be &c+ wads fitiriiied with equal jultice, or tbat the

' poet was dazzled with the appearance of virtue, and found the man wham he had eel- b t e d , when he had an opportuni~ of ex- amining him more narrowly, unworthy of the panegyric which he had ,too h&ly befiowed; and that, as a falfe fatire ought to .be

recanted,

S - A v A G E. recknted, for the f&e of him who6 'epud tation may be injuied, f2lfe prpik ought Iikewife to be obviated, lea the diitinaioa between vice and virtue fhould be 10% h& a bad man' fhould be 'truited upon the credit of his encomiait, or leit others ihould endeavour to obtain the like #CS by the &me means.

,But though thcfe elrcufa map be ofien praufible, and iometimes juft, they are very leldom iatisfaQorp to marskind J and, the writer, who is nor mnitpnt to his fubjea, quickly finks into contempt, his &tire Ides its force, and his panegyric its value, qnd he is only confidered at one time ae B httqer, and as a calumniator at another.

T o avoid thife imputations, it is only ne- zeff' to W o w t.& riles of Srtue, md to p r e f i e ad unvaried regard to &h. Fot though it is tlndonbtedly poffible, that.a man, however cautious, may be ' ibmetimes decei* ed by an appearance of virtue, or by falfe evidences of guilt, fuch errors will not be frequent; and it will be allowed, that the name of an author wouId never have been made contemptible, had no man ever faid

what

what'ke did not think, or mifled otlim birt krheri h& was h i d l f deceiqedr .

..-. . .

* 1f l'bc Aurbor t b be Z t t was'fid publifh; ed in a , fingle paniphlkt, And afterwards in-

' ~erted in a 'colle€ti~n 6f pieees relating ta the ~unc t id ; i~hicli were addread by Mi. Sa- vage t o the Earl of Middlefex, in a *dedi- tation r which ' he ' wag prevailed II~OXI to Ggn, though'.he did not write it, andin whiih thefe'ar'e fome pofitions, that the true authof would perhaps not have publiihed under his own name, and on which Mr. Savage after-. wards reAeEted with no great . fatisfaaion ; the emmeration of 'the bad effe&s of .the uncontroled freedom of. the pref3, and the airertion that the " liberties taken by the

writers . of Jouinals with' their' iupekiors were exorbitant and urijuftifialile,". very ill

became men,. who have themfelves not al- ,ways fhewn the' exaaefi 'regard ta the laws -of fubordination in their writings, and who have. often fatirifed thofe that a t leaf? thought thernie1t.e~ their fuuperiors, as they were erni- nent for their hereditary rank, and employkd I

See his, Works, vol.'II. p. a33.

in the higheft offices o f the kingdom. But .&is is only an inflance of that' paftiality which almofi every man indulges with r e gard to himfelf; the liberty of the p re t is a bleifing when we are inclined to write againit '&hers, and a calamity when we find ourfel~es overborne by the muhitude of our affaiianrs; as the power of the crown is. always thought too-great 6fr thofe who Cuffer by its influence, .and too little by thofe in whofe favour it is exerted; and a fianding m y is generalIy aci counted . ncceffary by rhofe who command, .and dangerous and A opprefive by th'ofe who .fupport it.

.Mr. Siiage was likewifeire'very far from t e - lieving, that the letters annexed to each fpe-

- ?i& of bad p6ets i n the Bathos, were, as hc 'was dire&ed to affert, I' fet down at iarl-

dom ;" for when. he was charged by one of his friends with putting 'his name to fuch afi 'improbability, he had no other aniser to make; than that " he did not think of it ;" and his friend had too much tenderne& to reply, that next to the crime of writing contrary t o what he thought, was that of writing without thinking.

After

, After having remarked what is f a e in iGs dedication, it ie proper that I obierve the im- partiality which I recommend, by ~declaring what Savage afferted, that the account o f the circumfiariees which attended the publication of the Dunciad, however iirangc ind- imp* bable, was examy true.

The publication of this piece at this time raifed Mr. Savage a great number of elnemiea among thofe that were attacked by Mr. Pope, with whom he was confidered as a kind of confederate, and whom he was iufpetied of iupplying with private intelligence and k e t incidents: io that the ignominy of an in4 former was added to the terror of a iatiriit.

That he was not altogether free k m litea r a y hypody , and that he hmetimes fpke one thing, and wrote another, cannot be denied ; becaufe he himfelf confeged, that, when he lived in great familiarity with Den- nis, he wrote an epigram * againwhim.

Mr.

This epigram was, I believe, never publilhcd. Should Dennis publih you had Rabb'd yourbrother, Lampoon'd your monarch, or debauch'd your mother;

say,

S A V A G E . =S7 a . Mr. Savage ho*ever fet all the malice 6f all the pigmy writeis at defiance; and thought

.the fricndfhip of Mr. Pope cheaply purchafed

. b y being expofed to their c d u r e and the? h a t 4 ; nor had he any re& to repknt of the pHerence, for he found Mr. Pope a fiead7 and unalienable Mend almofi to the! end of his life.

About this time, notwithitandtnng his avow.. ed neutrality with regard to party, he pub-

-1iihed a panegyric on Sir Robert Walpole, for which he tewarded by him with twenty guineas, a fum not very large, if either the excellence of the performance, ds the a u - enoe of the patron, be confidered ; but greater than he afterwards obtained from a peribn of yet higher rank, and more defirous in appearance of being diitinguiihed as a patron of literature.

Say,. what revenge on Dennis can be hod, Too dull for laughter, for reply too mad ? On one fo poor yopcannot take the law, On one fo old your fword you Dorn to dmw. .

Uncag'd then, let the harmlefs monRer rage, . .

Secure in dulnefs, madnefi, want, and age. .

As 'he *as tiefy fdr 'Mm -1wuking'the .canda& of Gir 'Robett Walpoie, m.ccwr- ' irerration mentioned Mm iiimhimcs di: 6 'mohy, brit1 .gmraily. with -cbritetnp)tl; &S ;he -was ,brre & ihcife '-w%o were always -bus 'in their ;dErfions o f 'the Juntce d .C& d p ~ 'oppiition, j e b ~ i r s -of 'the rfgkrs 6E she !pm- ple, and alarmed by the long;conii&&dr* umph of the court ; it was natural to aik him

'w3at: koultl.;induk him 'tb ~ n @ o j r %%S > p & q ,

, -in pfziire of 'that. man who was, . in hisyopiL - nim, 'anieneWy.m lib-, and .an op$d i i of %is m m t i y ? 'Re . ~ k g e d , &at !he ;m :then a klepe&ciit iqon -the .k@ T w , b&o wii an'imp1ici.t 'fdIollt$~er~&f.*lemiaritry; 'arid lhat-;bking enjoined :by, him, & wiekart 'men&es, .'to write in .praife ,of 'Ms.le;t&r, lie

h. 'h3d n b ~ ~.rduhriion . Hficknt . to &M&: t& ' p7&;tfme&af rafffuence- to that --of: intP&.

On this, and on many other occafion~, he l

was ready. to lament the milery of liiriag at 1

the tables of-other L men, which -was his fate 1 from the 'beginning fo 'fie end 'df fiis life ; for- I knoy not mhether .he ever had, for three months together,' a fettled habitation,

in

l

! l - To this u~happy~dlate; i t is juft . to .impute

l l l much of the inconhncy of his condu& ; ,fa

though a readinefs to. comply ~ t h the inclination of, others was nd .pvt, qf hjs natural charah, yet he qas fometimes ' . . obliged . ,qo ,*elaxGQ o$fiQa& ?&h @mit his. jl\dge- , mept, pnd ,qxn .hi ,rique, .tp t b e . g ~ x e ~ k p t of thofe b phom &e : ~ s f k o r i e d : fits, if his d e r i e s were fometimes the c o d e -4wncecs ~ f . his. faults, he ought sot y@ .tq be mbqll y a+td,ed, fig-a &mpaqon, his faults were :very .often, 4h.e [email protected] &is .QX- . .

, fwtuxs.

In ~his..my ,psrig&*I,pf .his ,life,.-while. wis furrounded by dyepw nndpldwe,';be - - . -- ..-. publifhed i'. Wandm, a m o d poem, of w&h ,the &fign is compriied in t+fe i;ys : : . . I- .,. . , , .,. 3

' 9 1 fly, all public care, ,all venal firif& To try the Rill cornpu'd kth a&= lik T o prove, by theh the fons of men '~JEL~,OWC

: The .h i t s d blifs to )budking l o d a 9f. mc j

: .:!?W S P That

260 S A . V A G E. ' Thnt n'n calamity, by'thought refidd,

lnfpiriu and adorns the thinking mind.

And more d ' i d l y in the fol ldng p&- f q e :

. . By woe, the ibul to daring &ion fweUs ; By woe, in plaintlefs patience it excels; *

From patience, prudent char experience fprings, And traces knowledge thro' the courfe of things! Thence hope is form'd, thence 'forti'k~de, iucccfs, Renown :--whatgm rnen covet md . . c a d . . .

Thl performance was aIways confidered by himfelf as his ' mafier-piece ; and Mr: Fbpe, when he aiked' his opinion of'it, told him, that he read it once over, and was not dif- pleafd with it, that it gave him more pleafure at the fecbnd perufal; and' &lighted! hLn Ail& more at the third;

It his'been generany obje&ed to T.t FA- derer, that the diipofition of the parts is irregular; that the defign is obfcutre, and the plan perplexed ; that the images, however beautiful, fucceed each &er without order; and that the whole performance is not ib much a regular fabric; as a heap of ihining

S _ materials

mate~ials'thrown together by accident; which ft'rikes rather with the f~lemn magnificence of a itupendous ruin, than the elegant grandeur of a finifhed pile, .

This criticiim is univerfai, and ther!fbre it is redonable to believe it at leafl in a great degree jub ; but Mr. Savage was always. of a 'contrary ppinion, and thought his drift could only be miffed by negligenee or , fiupidity, and that the whole plan was regular, and the parts diitina,

It ww never denied toaSound with Rrung repreientations of nature, and juit . obfervations upon Iife; and it may eafily be obfer- red, that moR of his pieures have an evident tendency to illuitrate his firfi great pofition, " that good is the confequence of evil." The fun that burns up the mountains, hai- fies the vales; the deluge that rufhes down the broken rocks with dreadful impetuofity, is feparated into purling brooks; and the rage of the hurricane purifies the air..

Even ip this poem he'has not been able 'to forbear one touch upon the cruelty of his mo-

S 3 ther,

&er,* wlii~fi, tliotr&i; tt%naika%lf d=lieb<e && -tendet; is rt' proof how deep an. itapi&m it ~Lid'kipie66 E6 mind'

This muit be at leaf€ acknowledged, which t o 68 thdhght eqiiv3iirit t o &aht otGa

~ I C C O R C ~ C ~ ~ , tht. ttrirs p b e d d i n nd &kdr #urp6fCs than thofi of +i+tihui, dni &at L g- &Ircefi with. a . ~ e i ~ itroiti ~ d k OT thit Eflic4q+ of r&li'&oni

But my province is rather to giiie-tEe b& tory ~f Mr. .Savage's performances, than to difrjla'f &eir beauties, of fb bb+iite the criti-

- ;fin$ ~diririth thti'f have dccalidned; a d diere-' I &ill h6t- ddelf.hpoii fie pa.i+i'cuhr p&-

Ggei &11ith dekivii rppiauie : I Ball neicbei (he+ he eiedeiitk of his defcn'fitigis, nqr clipif'iatb on t& tiriific poitr4i iuirideq i o i pbtn' iiyt the dr&ul tauches, bf bkich he gad d;fiikgul&i~ tb.k ilitel1e&ltudl fk=fer~s of the febt~i, , whb: fu#eied death i& hi$ kR . .

eanio. It is, hovy&er, proper to obferve, that Mr. Savage always declqred the cliar~.c- ters wholly fitiitious, and without the leait alhcb;ti tk iidy real pkfl01is or aCtidds.

. Eram a poem f~ diligently labouredb and i~ f'uccef%Eully f i n i b d , it might be reaion- ably expeaed that he fhould have gained confiderable advantage; nor can it, without fome degree of indignation and coxkern, be told, that he fold the copy for ten guineas, of which he dterwards' returneb two, that the two la@ fheets of the work might. be reprinted, of which he had in his abfcnce i e ~ r u b c t the com€tion to a friend, who was too indo- knt to pefferrn it 6 t h accuracy.

4 fuperititious regard to the' correaion . . of l i ' '

his & ~ t s was; one qf Mr., Sav;)g9s peul@+- tips : . he offen iltert$,. , , revifed, +fed t g his firq reaging or , . punQuatio9 and again +bited the +ter+tiqx-i; he was dubibus I . . -. , and i r~e fowe yifhout end, on 1 guefiion of the-l,# E T p p ~ y e , and a;t laR yapfeldom fatisfied : . the intruGon or - orn@oa qf a comma was fufficient to difcompofe him, *

aitb S* ~dd .m. eqpx Q& a, tingle IRtw W ? kqy c a h i t y . In eve ~f his

1 l a ~ i ~ IW 19 . a ~ i l ~ ~ f i q ~ Pf Css~ ~ e r f e ~ , l ! ' . h$ T E W ~ , tb3f -kw M, yai* to the ! c~q&icy+ of the p r d , " a @ell WQS him;" 1 a d bdesd the gq&y uylth which ka dwett

upon

2 6 4 S A V A G E . upon the minutefi and moit trifling niceties, deferved no , . other . . . . name than . . that . . . of faicba- tioa,

That he fold fo yaluable a performance for fo f iqd a price, was not to be imputed e i the~ to necefity, by which the learned and ingenious are ofien obliged to fubmit to very h d 'conditions; or to avarice, by which the book: .felle~s are frequently incited to opprds tlpt 'genius by which they are iupported ; But ta that intemperate defire of pleafure, and ha- bitujd Qavery to. his pafions, . . . which involved him in many perplexities. He. haGen?d at that time to be engaged i n t h e .. . iurfuii of iome , . , trifling . . gratificationi and, being P;ith- out money for the prkent. 4cafion, fold his $ern so the' , , fi'rfi . .. .bidder, .. and perhapi . , . . . for . t6e firRhice that . . was . propofed; and wauld bably have been content . . wiih . . . . L 1 9 ' . . > if .. W been , , , . ,offered . . - . hi?. . ., .

This poem was a d d d e d to the Lord TF- connel, not only in the firit lines, but in a formal dedicatioh filled with the hi@& hains of panegyxlc, and the parmeft profdOns of gratitude, ' but by 'no means remarkable for delicacy of conne&ion or elegancr of Rpk.

6. p e r $

' Th&e praifm'io a koft time he fouhd hi& '

(elf inclined to retra€t, being difciirded'. by the man on whom he had behwed the*,. Ad whom he then immediately difcbv~red not to have deierved them. Of this quakeI,' vyhich every day made mpre . bitter, .Lord Tyrconnel and Mr. Savdg~ afiigned .very d G . . I

Eerent reafons, which ;night piihaPo .all reality concur, tbbugh they were not all c&- venient to be alleged by either party. Lord. ~ ~ r c o n n e l affirmed, that it ' was the conitant kraOice of Mr. Savage to, enter- tavcrp with any company that propofed it, dri* the mofi expenhe wines' with great profu-' Gon, and when the reckoning was demanded, to be without money: -16 as i t often happened, his company were - wiliing to ' d e fray hi6 part, the afiir ended, without any. ill c~nfgquences; bqt, if they were refiac- toty, and expelted &at the wine fhould be paid for by bim that drank it, his niethod 6f

' qomppiition was, - to take .them with him tq his own apastmeqt, affume the government

, of t b houfe, and arder the botler in ad impetbus m;\nneE to fet the bek wineiri the. Cellar before. his company,. who often 'drank till they Forgo$ the refpe@ due t~ the h9.M~-

is

a f s S:. A> IV A , G, E, in, d k b tbq ,\8arc: entertainad, induiged t b k l x e s in .the ut11u)A elFtrayag;PPlG .of. m;mirilcnt, praWk& the xpoiE ljcepfiolls fror. &lrs, arrd coauPritW all the 0- c$ W e & . .

Nor wal thig the only cdarge whichLord brpuiht aggnf3 him: Having a coI'Ie&ion of .vaIuahIe books,

&Inpeawith his own arms, he had the mor- dfiktion ts ke them io a thort time expofed tb' fde upon the fiafls,, it being. uhal with Mr. savage, w l \ e ~ hc kanhd a final1 rum, to take

books to the pawnbroker.

Whoever war acqnainted with Mr. Savage eredited both tMe xcufations: fa,

having bem o W i d from his fid entrance inte the world to IubfiR u p n expedients, d h e n c e was not able PO exalt him above t b m i and fo much w a s he delighted with wine and. cmvt?rfaha, and CO long had Be bee& ttecufiomed to li* by chance, that he

at any 6mc go to the tavern without fa f i e , and t d for the reckoning to the li- h l i t y of hi6 c q a n y , and Requently of &mpany to whom be was very little known. %?his c o d & iadecb wry fddogl drew upon . . - - him

fiim tlioik i~omelikdcee; t3r& e: be . h r - eb by dny,otAer pdon; h&: e:fm was fo entertkiaing, a d hid adtlr& l b ~ p i d . -.

iYg, d a f few tbm2@l! f%b p h d ~ r 8 tbep rixdve@ &m h $ ~ - &dar+.y pmahded,. b~ Hi* fir h& wie. IV W* ira psoutta bp pinefs, that A s fcaed? c i ~ found. a hanger, *km h$ Q d rtot 1 ~ s l ~ u friend ; butl in m& liI?tiHe be ;idde& &it he, Id ila sfielr z Gmd bn'g; aithdnc obsging h;ni ca bmarr d fftanger.

Mr.. &+age9 anr the other ha&, ik.hpddYrd+ tlid L d TyrcoweR* qwrrelled with him, becaufe he would fubitraQ fiom his own luxury and exttavagance what he had promifed to allow him, and that his refentment was dnty a for the n'otation d hi's po'mife: He an'eried, that he-had don4 nathitrg that oighs to excInde hilii fr6m rharfirWft~m which he tho%ht n6t fo much a hm, ' a$ a debt, fimce it w&i &ere& him apcn cm- &ions, which he had nevet brokehi and that h;s oh1y fault was, that he rmld mt be f u p pdWa iirifi hcifiihihg.

Eh erpnh~n in w e of Iris ktiten m, &a L+ rn Tyrconnel had involved his eftate, and thucfore poorly t* fought an o c d o n to'quarrc1 with him."

He

268 S A V A G E . H e acknowledged, that Lord .Tyrconnel

oftenv exhorted him to regulate his method of lie, and not to fpend all his nights in taverns;. and -that he appeared very defuous, that he would pds thofe hours with him, which he 'h freely beitowed upon .others. This demand Mr..Savage confidered as a cenfure of' Pis condutl, which he could never bear; ' and which,. ina the latter, and cooler part of his life, was fo offenfive-to, him; that he declared it as his refol'ution, " to fpurn.

that fiiend who Ihould piefume. to diaate (c' to hi& ;" and it is not likely, that in hib earlier years he received admonitions 'with pore calmnefs.

]He was likewife inclined to refent {U&

expe&ations, P tending to infringe his liberty, of which be was very jealous, when it was neceffky to the gratification of his paifions; and declared, {hat the requeit was qill more unreafoonablh the ;ompany to which he 'was ta have been confined was in- iupportabl; difagreeable. This affertim d- fords another infiance of that inconfifiency df his wfitings with his converfation, which was io pfien to be obierved. He forgot how' ,. L laviihl y

S A V A G E . 2.%

lavifhly he had, in his Dedication to Tbe. ~arzdeier, extolled the delicacy and pene-

tratinn, the humanity and g m e r d i , the candour and politenefi,' of the man, who&+ when' he no longer loved him, he declared to be a wretch ,without underilanding, without . ,

good-nature, and without juitice; of who& name he thought himfelf qbliged to leave no trace in any future edition of his writings; and accordingly blotGd it out of that copy , of Tbi ;branderer which was i n hi; hands.

a . . . Durmg his continuance with the . L o d

Tyrconnel, he wrotC' %he brriumpb of Heal& a d Mirtb, on,. the recovery of Lady Tyr- .connel from a langgifhing illneii. This per- . forrnqnce , is reniarkable, not . only for the gaiety. of the ideab; 'and the 'melody of the numbers, bot for die. ibeeable fiLtion upon which .it. is' formed. *. . Mirth, overwhelmed with forkaw for-. the f i n d s of her favourite,

-takes a' 'fliighi 'in queP df hcr f i R u Health, whom. fie finds:..redilicd upon the:bmw of p lofty mountqi'n, amiillt': the fragrance of perpetual' fpring, aith the breezes of the m m - ing fporting about her: Being folicited by

- her

rlurFc, . $ A Y & @ E* *.bar MW ' W, $a ~prPrnXes SShar atlinizn~, : h away in ,a dbd, and ;mPreg~ m e s &W .mers .of W with .new xirtuq, %,wbicb rBe fid~.4~.%?f &hda; i s .(~&bd.

)As &e :ropwatian S s abilities, the par- drmnifiances uf': flis-birrh and life, the

qfilehdour cif his appearance, and the dif- ?in&iion which was 'for fome time paid him :by Ldrd 'Tyconnel, W e d him to famili- &tp. -with pdons ofi higher rank. than thofe to whore converfation he had been befote admitted, he did not fail to gratify that curi-

&y, sxbhiuh' induced ifiim ao t&ke a nearer 8- hbaCe ,wham. their 4 i i , . heir ern-

..playnrents, or their fmtuncs, mc&;uily plaoe -at .a d'iince. from the.greatefi part .c8 man- &d, . and .to examine whether- their merit 4 s -mqpified a r dimiqriihed bg &c m& &m .through which: it was -cmtpmphd;

!,.arahether.&e @Lendour .x$th,whirrh&ey --daz- . zled &air .admirers .iras .inhexnt in Phern- , idvtx, or ohly reffraed pn .&ern;* .the sb ..j&s ,that furrounded &ern ; and ~oohether -great men .were kleRed for hq$-i*atioqs, RK

-high itrrtioms made great Raen.

4 For

*Sor&is , p q & tobk 411 ~oppwtutlidcs .uf ~convdmg Sd~l t r iy with -Jl& mIro

. :roere -mofi .uop@aorts .st tbat t h e e r power or their influence; he wat- ,tQleir loofer moments, and examined their domef-

-tic behauiour, thrrt :ac& d a i i l a na- bture -had &h, iand dhid-dre ~)mmm- mo* ~~vedetp f*f hh iiffe -hrul CO- m

' ..., ihcreak, isad &tt .inqditig~pl& ,* -M 1 tdways heqmdtmad lh c a 4 g o ~ w s daj, ,&

:aa -abMnte ; M a m : ftwn .d pre@ -,or,& -sae!&c -am. Wis Bis-t -S

(quick, a d -- h e ibrm h a & in mtxy pdi , . A d m r q :&,. !bosabi@ :that * ' d & d ,attmtkm; ;he .:W= @d :&y &h, wdthora~np:;cetre& W,.d ,t&&foxe tat . S i r e .m +td&e :his , I&&- w t i ~ n a ' .

More circumitances :to -mnQitote :a:* on human life could not eafily concur; nor Sridd :odnld ..any . @a, aPeO d b n d from r a r c i a d -:adtpaota@. : - w e : praife .&an &.he oeutd jdi)l dlaiin 1 bmn:& real merit, ,id&

ampaintame rnobe dadg~rous ,than ..&hat af SavqJe;. .of * ~ ~ b a o bhmrXe 5 t . d .L m d f i , . &at ,diMes. -?l y .fe~r&ed.aBoPe

the

272 S A V A G E . the common level, or virtue refined f r m p&&, or a g a i d corruption, could not d y find an abler judge, or a warmer advocate.

. . . . . .

What was the refdt of Mq. Savage's ert- quiry, though he was not much accufiomed to conceal his dikoveries, it may not be eo- tirely rafe to relate, becaufe. the perfons whore ~haraaers he criticifed are powerful; and power and refentxknt are feldom itrangers; n6r would it perhaps be wholly j&, b e a u k what he afferted in conveaation might, though true in general,. be heightened by foxpe momentary ardour of imagination, .and, as it can be delivered only fiom memory, may be

- imperfeQly reprefented ; CO that the pi€ture at firR aggravated, and then .unikilfully cop& ed, may be jufily fufpe&ed to retain no great refemblance of the original.

- .

It map Lowever be obfemed, that he did not appear to have f m e d very elevated ideas of thofe to whom the adminiitration. of affairs, or the condutt of parties, has been in- trufled; who have been confidered as thk advocates of the crown, or the guardians of

the

thepeople; and who have obtiined tlie d implicit confidence, and the loudeit' applaufk. Of one partictilar perfon, who has been at'. one tinie fo ,popular as tb be generally efu teemed, and at another fo firmidable as ta be uniqerfally deteitect, he obferved, that hia acquifitions had beerr fmall, or that his cali pacity was narro-W, and that the whole range' of his mind was from obfcenity to politics,

from iolitics to obfceditg. q

But the oRportunity of indulging his Ipe- ' cuIations ~n . great charaQers was now a t an

end. He was banifhed from the table of Lord* Tyrconnel, and turned again adriff upon the world, without pro@e&k of finding quickly any other harbour. As prudence was not one of the viriues bp which he was diiflngtlihed, he had made no p v i f i o n agbinR. a midortune like thisr A d &m&

' it ibi not; be imftgined but that the fepam don! mufl for fome time have been precccM' by coWefs, peevifhnefs, or qk&, tbtrgb it was undoubtedly the confequencc of accu- mulate& ptovecations on b& fides;, peb every one-that knew Savage wit1 readily believe, that to him it was i'&m as a fkroke of thunder;

VOL. Ill , T that,

that, though he might have tranfiently fuk peeed it, he had never fuffered any thoughr fo unpleafing to fink into his mind, but that he had driven it away by amufements, or dreams of future felicity and affluence, and had never taken any meafures by which he might prevent a precipitation frbm pknty to indigence. . :

This quarrel and feparation, and the d a d . culties to which ~ ~ r . Savage was expofed by &em, were ibon known both to his friends and enemies ; nor was . it long before he perceived, from the behaviour of both, how much is added to the lufire of genius by the ornaments of wealth. ,

: His condition did not apperti' to. excite much compafion; for he had not always been careful to ufe the advantages he enjoyed 'with that moderation which. ought to have been with more .than ufual cautiorr pre* krved by him, who knew, if he had re- fleaed, that he was only a dependant on the bounty of another, whom he could expea to fupport him no longer. than he endeavoured to preferve his favour by complying with his

inclinations,

S A V A G E . 275

u;dclinations, ahd whom h& nevertblefs let at .'defiance, and was , obntfnually irritating by .aegligence or encroachments.

l .. , - . . . - .

Examples need not be f i g h t at ahp great difiance to prove;' that f i ~ ~ e r i o r i ' t ~ of fortune ..ha$ a natural ftendenc y t o kindle pide, and that pride feldom fails to exeft itfelf &I c&& :tempt -,- and infult ; and if this is often the :effe& .of hereditary ' wealth, and of honours ..renjdyed anly by the merit .of others, it is h m e extenuation of any indecent triumph; .to which this unhappy man may have been betrayed, that his profperity was heightened by the force of novelty, 'and, made more in- toxicating by a fenfe of the mifev in which 'be had fo long languiihed, 'and perhaps of the infults which he had formerly borne, and which he might now think himfelf entitled 'to revenge. It is too common for thole who have unjuitly fuffered pain, to inflia it likewife in their turn with the fame injuf ice, and t o imagine that they have a right to treat ~thers as they have themfelves been treated. .

. '. - 1 . - '

That Mr. Savage was too much elevated by any good fortune,.is generally known; and

,. _ . T 2 ibme

forne psffiges of. his Introd&on .to Tbc .A tbor to be let fufficiently hew9 that be ,did not wholly refiain from hch i k as he a& terwards thought very ~njvcit, when he was sxpofed to it bkkfj for w k 4 be Was a f t e k d 8 ridiculed ie the cbr&er. of a &&.refled poet, he v- eafily dilcwe~ed, that dids wiy not 3 prqer Mje& h: msmt. rgent, or topic. of i~v+ive= HQ was than able to difc~rn, that$ if wifery; bb the ~f virtue, it .wgh~. W bg ra~w~nced-: if of ill-fortune, to be pitiad.; a d i f of 6ce, to be_ iqfultqd, bey* it is- pm%aq;)s ithlf puniihmecpt': ;t.*quate to the csime by which . it mwfpr+. A& €Be h r a p d ~ of that man cap &&rue no pnegyric, w b ;is a p Me. of reprarching a cchiaat: in tha h;rads.d h e . p c u tioper.

But theb refl&ioqs,, though they &d]r occurred .to .him in the fi& and l& g a ~ ; Q f

life, wee,. I a m .&ad, fpl a bqpi tim forgotten;. at lea# they were, Wre maay other maxims, treafured up iq his +&. rw ther for hew than u.fe, and operated very little upon his condua, however elegantly, he might fometimea explain, or $owevet fQrci: bly he might. inculcate,.. &ern. - -- - - '

His

His d@adation therefitre fidm the condi- &n which he had enjoyed with fuch wintofi tk-tkffn'cf~, ddnfideicd by many as an tmcafim of tkiumph. Th-afe who had before paid their cdhrt to him withmt fweefg, foon =turned the contempt dthich they had fuflkr- ed ; and they who had receivkd favours frbrk him, for of fuch favours as he could beitow be was very liberal, &d not al~rrys remern-

- ber rhem. So rrupch more certain are the ef- feQs of refentni- than of gratitude : it is not only to matly more pleafine; to recofl& th& faults which place others below them, than thok v i ~ u e s by which they are them- iElves compararively jdeprefid ; but it is likewife more eafy to negle&, than tb rq6m- penl'e ; aqd though there are few +ho will praaife a laborilom virtue, thkre %ill never be wanting mukitydes that will i ~ d * e an eafy vice,

Bavage however *as very Wtile dllfvrbed at

the marks of 'cdtitehhpf wM& his ill-fodhc brought upon him, &m thoie w h d he never efleemed, and with whom he never confidered himfelf" ae level4ed By any cahmi- des: aad thabgh it %'BB %Pt dviihout fome

T 3 uneafinefk

978 S A'. V- A G' E. uneaiinels that he faw fome, whole fri'id-, fhip he valued, ahango their- behaviour ; he yet obferved their coldneis without ,much emotion, confidei-ed them as the flaves 06 fortune and the worlbipers of profperity; and'was more inclined t s defpife them, than to lament himfelf.

It does not appear, that, after this return of his wants, he found mankind equally fa-. vourable to him, as at his firit appearance in. the world. His fiory, though in reality not. lefs melancholy, was lefs affeaing, becauls it was no 19nger new j it therefore procured him no new friends; and thole that had formerly relieved him, thought they might now confign him to others. He was now likewife confidered by many rathet as criminal, than as unhappy; h r the fiiends of Lord Tyrconnel, and of his mother, were luffici- ently induitrious to publifh his weakneffesl which were indeed very numerous ; and nothing was forgotten, that might make him ,

either hat&\ or ridiculous., 1 It cannot but be imagined, that luch repre-?

* ' num- Ewtatio~e 6f big faults muit .make $ra

# bers

bers lefs fenfible of his diltrefi ; many, who had only an opportunity to hear one part; made no icruple to propagate the account. which they received; many aifified their cir- . .

culation from malice or 'revenge ; and perhaps many pretended to credit them, that they might 'with a better grace withdraw their regard, or withhold their aGfiance.

Savage however was not one of thoik, who kf5ered'himklf to be injured without refiit- ance, nor wr)s lefs diligent in expofing the faults of Lord Tyrconnel, over whom he obtained at leait this advantage, that he drove him firit to the pratiice of outrage,and violence; for he was fo much provoked by the wit and virulence of Savage,' that he came with a number of attendants, that did no honour to his courage, to beat him at a coffee- houie. But it happened that .the bad left the place a few minutes, and his lordhip had, without danger, the pledure of boafiing how he would have treated him. Mr. Savage went next day to repay his vifit at his own houfe; but was prevailed on, by his domar- tics, to retire without infilling upon feeing bim.

?l 4 Lord

280 S A V A G E , Lord .Tyrconnel was accukd by Mr. Sa-

vage of fome aQiens, which Ecarcely any provocations will be thought fu&ient to juf- efy ; fuch as fe'iziag what he had in his lodgiqgs, d other idlances of wanton'cru- .

elty, by which be incream the difirefs o f $avage; . . without any advanrage to kinifelf.

Thefe mutual accufations were retorted on both fides, for many. years, with the utnsofi degree of virulence and rage ; and time few1 ed rather to augment than diminiih their re-

( ientment. That the anger of Mr. Savage fiould be kept alive, is not itrange, becaufe he , . felt every day the con&quences of the quarrel; but it might reafonably have been hoped, that Lord Tyrconnel might have relented, and at length have forgot thofe pray vocations, which, however they might have Dace inflamed him, had n a in reality much hurt him.

The fpirir of Mr- Savage indeed never fuf- &re$ him to Sl id a recmcuiatiae; he r e turned reproach fbc repoach, and inC& for infdt; bj, fqeriority of w i ~ i'uatpiiad the diG advantages of his fortune, and enabled him to

7 form

S A V A G E , 281

&m t~ party, and prejudice great numbers is - $is h.0ur. .

But though this might be forne g r i t t i f i ~ ~ i o ~ of his vanity, it afforded very little relief to his neceifities; and ha was very f ~ e q u e n t l ~ reduced to Uncommon hardihips, of which, however, he never made any mean or im- portunate complaints, being formed ruher to bear miCery with fortitude, than enjoy profperity with moderation.

He now thought hidelf agai-n at liberty to expie the cruelty of his mother, and there- *, 1- b e b e , a'bout this time, pubW4 The w a r d , a poem renoar-krrbb .fgy h vi. vacious fallies of &h~\rght :,h the beginai- -where he makes a pompous enumeration of the imagiqary advantages of bafe birth.; -and the pathetic iehtiments at the end, where ho recounts the real calamities which he fufered by the crime of his patents.

T h e vigour a d fpirit of the verfes, the.peculiar circumitances of the author, the novelty d the. fubje&, and the ndtoriety of the ffory to which the allufiqns are made, pro-

cured *

l

382 S A V A G ' E . eured this performadce a very favourable re:. ception ; great numbers were immediate1 j difpeded, and editions were multiplied wi& undual rapidity.

One circumfbnce attended the publicationl which Savage ufed to relate with great fatisfaaion. His mother, to whom the poem I was with " dpe reverence" infcribed, happen- I ed then to be at Bath, where ihe qould not I

l conveniently retire ffom cedure, or conceal herfelf from obfervation; and no fooner did I

the reputation of the begin to fpread, than ihe heard it repeated in all places of con-? j courfe, nor could f ie enter the affembly-rooms, or crofs the walks, without being i'alutcd wit4 Come lines from Fbe BaJard,

This was perhaps the firit time that evq fie difcovered + . , . a fenfe of fhame, and on this occafion the power of wit was very confpi, cuous; the wretch who had, without fcruple, proclaimed berfelf 3s adultereis, and who had firft endeavoured to fiarve her fon, then 'to tranfport him, and afterwards to hang him, was not able to bear the reprefentation of her wn condud; but fled from rsproach,'thou& p . . @e

fhe felt no pain from guilt, and left Bath with the utnioft'hafie, to ihelter herfelf among the crowds of London.

Thus Savage had the fatisfatlion of finding, that, though he could not reform his mother,. he could pllnifh her, and that he did not always fuffer .alone?.

The pleafure which he received from this. increafe of his poetical reputation, was fufficient for fome time to overbalance the mi-. h i e s of want, which this performance did not much alleviate; for it was fold for a very trivial fum .to a b~okfeiler, who, though the hccefs was ib uqcornmon that five imprei; iions were #fold, of which many were undoubtedly-very numerous, had not generofity fifficient'to admit the unhappy writer to any part of the profit.

- . The f& of this poem was always mentioned by' Savage with the utmoR elevation of heart, and referred to by him as an in- contellable proof of a general acknowledge-' rnent of his abilities. It was indeed the.only produaion of which he could juitly boall a ~enerpl receptioq . .

But

S A V A G E g84 But thwgh he did not loiie the opportul

nity which fucccfs gave him; of fetting a high rate on his abilities, but paid due&fe- rence to the fuffrages of mankind when they were given in his favour, he did not -fuger his eiteem of himfelf to depend upoh others,

found any thing facred in r h voice of the people when they were inclined ro een- fure him ; he then readily hewed the folly d erclpe€ting that the publick fiould judge right, obferved how flow1y poetical merit had often forced its way into the world; he can, t e ~ e Q himcelf with the appIanfe of men d judgement, and was fbmewhat difpofed to exclude all thde fiom the charaaer of men 6f judgement who did not applaud him,

. But he was at other times more favtiurabIe to mankind than to think them blind to the beauties of his works, and imputed the flow- nefs of their fale to other caufes ; either they -re publied at a t h e when the town was empty, or when the attention .of the publick was engr&d by Kome firug#e in the pariia- ment, or ibme other obj& of general concern; Dr thej. were by tlie n@e& of the publifher' not diligently dilperfed, m by his

avarice

s A V A a E:. $83 . . - hirarke not adverttfed 'with fufficient frei quency. Addids, or induftry, or liberality, was always wanting; and the blame waslaid rather on,any perfon ttiin..the authorc

By arts ilk& thefe, arts which every praeifes in fome degree, and to which too mpch of the little tranquillity of life is to* be daiW, Savage WM &aJd abk to b e at p a c e 4 t h -himielfi Had he indeed onIy m& uk ofl thek expedients to ~llkvia'te the bfs or via& a$ fornine or reputation, pr any @he &ntage~, which it Is not in power- m b&bw upon himfelf, they mkht k e been juitfy. mentioned as infiances cif is phi1ofop)lieaI mind, and very prcperly. prop-. fed to. the imitation of multitu&es, who, f o ~ want of dhedng heir haginati;ns with & fawe dcaterity, languifh undhr d i i i o n s which- might- be eafity &more&

, It were doubtleh t6 be wilhed, that truth and ~ a f o n were. unfverfally prevalent; that

thmg were efieemed rccorfing to ite real valde; and- that men would f iurt t h e w felves from being difkppolnted in their endeavours after happinefs, bp placing it onlp

itt

in virtue, which is always to be 0btained.j but if adventitious and foreign plefures mu& be purfued, it would be perhaps of lbme beiefit, fince that .puriuit . - muR fi-equqntly bc fruitlefs,' if the praaice of Savage could be taught, that folly might be ,an: antidote. to F61'1~lly,iild one fallacy' be obviated bp another.. c ..

. 'But The danger of this pleafing intoxica- tion muit not be concealed; nor indeed can any one, after having oblerved the life of Savage, need to be -cautioned againit it. By imputing none of his miferies to himfelf, he continued to a& ,upon the fame principles, and tb follow the fame path; was never made wirer by his fufferings, nor preferved by one 'kisfortune from falling into another. He proceeded throughout his life to tread the fame.: Reps on the fame circle; always ap- plabdiag ' his paR condutt, or a t l e d forgetting it, to amufe himfelf with phantoms of bappine&, which. were dancing : befare him ; and willingly turned his eyes from the light of reafon, when it would , . have difcovcred the illufibn, and h e w n him, what h e never wifh- kd to fee, his real &ate.

, *He is even accuied, after having lulled his imagination with thofe'ideal opiates, of hav- kg tried the fame exp&iment upon his con- icience ; and, having aceufiomed himfelf td impute ,all deviations from the right to foe reign caufes, it is certain that he was -upon every occafion too eafily reconciled to himfelf, ~ n d that he appeared very little to regret thofe praQices which had impaired his reputation. The reigning error of his life was, that ha miitook the love for the praQice of virtue,

- and. was indeed not fo much a good man, as the friend of goodneis.

This at leait mufl be allowed him, that he always preferved a firong fenfe of the dignity, the . b;auty, and the necefity of virtue, and that he never contributed deliberately to fpread corruption amongit mankind. His aeions, which were generally precipitate, were often blameable; but his. writings, being the pro- duQions of itudy, uniformly tended to the exaltation of the mind, and the propagation of morality and piety.

Thefe writings. may improve mankind, when his 'failings hall be forgotten; and

5 therefore . <

a86 . . .

S A V A ~ E . therefore he muit be confidered, upon &C ' khole, as'a b e n e f a h - to the world; nor carr liis perfonal example do an7 hurt, fincei khoevi t hears o t his faults, will hear of the miferies which they brought upon Iiim, and which W O U ~ ~ defe&e lets pity, had not his m&-isri been hch as made his faiiks para donable. He may be confidered as a child a@d. to all the temptations of indigence+ gt a i age when. rahludon m e nut pet ihengthened by convl&€ion;, nor viit& conr firme& bp habit ; ai ciicumfiance whiah in' his BaJzard he laments in &very aftk6hg.man.r ner :

. - . . . . . . .

N a Mother's care Shielded. my infant inn.0ceni.e 'with prayer : No Father's guardian-hand- my youth maintain'd; ~ a l l ' d forth my virtues, or from vice reltrain'd.

. . . Z 5 e BaJZaTd, howeser it might provoke ot

kortify hls motlier, could nat be expe€€ed to melt her to cornpailion, ib that lie was Rill under the fame want of the nece&ties of life; and he therefore exerted ad the intereft which his wit, or his birth, or his misfortunes, coufd procure, to obtain, upon the , death of Edden, the place of Poet Lamear;

and

and profecuted his application with fb mueh diligence, that the King publickly declared it his intention to befiow it upon him; but fuch was the fate of Savage, that even the Ring, when he intended his advantage, was

. diiappointed' i~ his fchemes; for the Lord Chamberlain, who has the difpofal of the laurel, as one of the appendages of his office, either did not know the King's defign, or did not approve it, or thought the nomi- nation of the Laureat an encroachment upon his rights, and therefore bellowed the laurel I

upon Colley Cibber.

. Mr. Savage, thus dirappointed, took a refolution of applying to the queen, that, having once given him life, ihe would enable him to fupport it, and therefore publiihed a ihort poem on her birth-day, to which he gave the odd title of Voluntetr Laweat. The event of this eKay he has himfelf related in .the following letter, which he prefixed to the poem, when he afterwards reprinted it in The Gcntlema~z's Mqazinc, from whence I have copied'it intire*, as this was one of the few attempts in which Mr. Savage fucceeded.

+ The poem is.inie;ted in the late colle&ion, I

VOL. 111. U " Mr. I

, .

Mr. URBAN, ec I n your Magazine for February p'm

" publiihed thq lafi Volunteer Lau~eat, written m a very ml$ncholy occafion, t h e

" death of the royal patsonefs of arts and . , 6' literature in general, a d of the author of

that poem in particular; I now knd you - the fir& that Mr. Savage wrote under that

C' title.-This gentleman, notwithfianding a very confiderable interefi, being, on the death of Mr. Eufden, difappointed of the Laureat's place, wrote the before-mentioned poem ; which was no iboner publiihed, but the late e e e n fent to a bookfeller for it: the author had not at that time a friend

6' either to get him introduced, or his poem - II 6' preknted at court; yet fuch was the un- a Speakable goodnefs of that Princefs, that,

notwithilanding this a& of ceremony was wanting, in a few days after publication, Mr. Savage received 2 Bank-bill of fifty pouncfs, and a gracious meffage from her Majaty, by the Lord ~ o r t h ' and Guilford, to this effea; " That her Ma-

'' jeAy was highly pleafed with the vedes ; that, ihe took particularly kind his lines

p h e

l

then relating to the that hi had a permiflion to write annually on the fame

fubjee; and that he ihould yearly rekei* c' the like yrefent, till ibmething better

(which was hhd Majeity's intedtion) could K' be done for him." iWer this, he was

permitted to pident one of his annual poems to hw Majefiy, had the honour of king her hand, and met with the mroR gracious ~ p t i o n . Yours, &C."

Such was the performance, ahd f'ch It(s

reception; a reception which, though by no '

means unkind, was yet not in the high& dea gree generous i to chain dowh the genius of a ortriter to an anhual panegyric, fhetlred in the @een too much deiire of hearing her own praifees, and d greater regard to IierPelE than to him on whom her bounty *as conferred. It was a kind of avaricious generofity, by which flattery was rather p~rchared~ than genius rewarded.

Mrs. Oldfield had formerly him the fame allowance with mueh more heroic in& tentioh; ihe had no other view than to enable him t~ profecute his Audies, and to let

U 2 ' himfelf

hidelf above the want of airiitance, and l

was contented with doing good without iti- l

pulating for encomiums.

Mr. Savage however was not at liberty to !

!

make exceptions, but was raviihed with the favours which he had received, and probably yet more with thofe which he was 'promifeed; he confidered himfelf now as a favourite of the Qeen, and did not doubt but a few an-

' nual poems would eitabliih him in ibme pro- l

fitable employment. 8 l

He therefore affumed the title of Volunteer .Laurcat, not -without fome reprehenfions from :Cibber, who informed him, that the title of . l

l

Lwreat was a mark o f honour confkrred by the King, from whom all honour is derived, .and which therefore no man has a right to

' beitow upon himfelf; and added, that he pight, with equal propriety, Q l e himfelf a Volunteer Lord, or Volunteer Baronet. It cannot be denied that the remark was juit; but. Savage did not think any title, which. was conferred upon Mr. Cibber, fo honourable as that the ufuurpation .of it could be imputed to him as an infiance of very esorbitantvanity,

and

and therefore continued to write uiider the- fame title, and received every year the fame. reward, . . , .

H e did not appear to confider there enco- '

rniurns as teRs of his abilities, or as any thing more than annual hinfs to the. Q e e n of her promife, or sets of ceremony, by the per-. formance of which he was intitled to his penfion, and therefore did not labour then1 with great diligence, or print more than fifty' each year, except that for fome of the laR years he regularly inferted 'them in Tbe ,Gen- tZman's Magazine, by, which they were dif- perfed over the kingdom,

>

Of fbme, of them he 'had himfelf fo low^ ,

an opinion, that be intended to omit ihem in the collefiion of poems, for yhich he printed- propofals, and iblicited fubfcripdons; nor can it 'feem itrange, that, being confined to the fame CubjeQ, he ihould be at ibme times indolent, and at qthers unfuccef~ful ; that h e mould Bmetimes delay , a difagreeable tafk,. till it was too late to perform it well; or that he ihould ibmetimes repeat the Came fentirnentl , Qn the fame occafion, or at others be miaed - .

U 3 ' 2 ~

l by an attempt aftqr novelty- to forcd c ~ r p ceptions aed far-fmhed i m a ~ s .

He wmte indeed with a double intention, wh.ich Eupplied hixq with iblsle waristy; for his bufiqefs was to praife t h e ' 9 e e n for the. favours which he had received, &d to plain to he^ of the delay of t h ~ f e which ih.e: had promifed : iq k m e of his piece$; there?. fore,,' gratitude i.9 predaminant, ;in4 in icme,

~ dikoqttent; in fo-me he reprefe~ts 4imfelf as I happy in her patronage, and in others as dif- cqqf$?tg~ to fin4 himielf n e g l e ~ ~ d .

Her promi'fe, like d&eF proefes made m this unfortunate man, was never perfhrrned, 1 though he took fufficient care that it Aould not be forgoken. The publieatibn of his Vdunteer Laureut procured him no other ~eward t h a ~ a regular rernitta~ce of fifty poundsl

He was not fo,degref$ed by hb djfwpoint- merits, ss to negleo any oppofiunity that w w offered of dvancirg his interefii When Princefs Anne vqs married, he wrote a, poem* upon her departure, only, as he de:

ebred, U becaafe it was expeaed 'from him," and he was not will.ing ro bar hi; own pro- ,fpe&s by any appearance of negleR

H e never mentioned any advantage gained by this poem, or any regard that was paid to. it; and therefore it is likely that it was coniidered at court as an a& of duty to which he was obliged by his dependence, and which it was therefore not necxirary to reward by any new favour: or perhaps tbe Qeen really intended his advancement, and therefors thought 3 iuperfluoos to lavih prefents upon a man whom ibe intended to dablifh f o ~ life,

, .

About this time not only his hopes were $n danger: of being fruftrated, but his penfion likewife of being obfirufied, by an accidental calumny. The writer of Tbc DaiIy Courant, a paper then pablifhed under the direaion of the minifiry, charged him with#. a crime, which, though not very great: in idelf, would have been remarkably invidious - in him, and might very jufily have incenfed the e e e n againit him. H e was accui'ed by. name of influencing eleQioils g~air(f i the court, by appearing at the head

4 o f

296 S A V A - G E.

of a tory mob; nor did the accufer fail to aggravate his crime, by ' reprdenting it as the effe€t of the moft atrocious ingratitude, and a kind of rebellion againfi the ' q e e n , who had firfi preferved him from an infa- mous death, and afierwards diflinguiihed him by her favour, and fupported him by her charity. The charge, as it was open and confident, was likewife by good fortune very particular. The place of the tranfaoion was mentioned, and the -whole feries of the rioter's conduLt related. This exa&nefs made Mr. Savage's vindication eafy; for he never had in his life feen the place which was d d dared to be the fcene of his wickednel, nor. ever had been prefent in any town when its reprefentatives were chofen. This aniwer he. therefore made hafie to publifh, with all the circumfiances neceffary to make it credible; and v;ry reafonably demanded, that the ac- cuhtion fhould be retraaed in the fame paper, that he might no longer fuffer the imputation of kdition and ingratitude. ?'his demand was likewife preffed bp him in a private letter to the author of the paper, who, either trufiing to the proteaion of thoi'e whafe defence he had undertaken, or

liavir&g

S A V A G E . 297

having entertained fome peribnal malice, againp Mr. Savage,' or fearing, leit., by re- tf&ing fo confident an affertion, he lhould impair the credit of his gaper, rgf~fsd tq give him that iatisfktion.

i

Mr. Savage therefore thought it neceffary, to his own vi~dication, to profecute him in t h ~ King's Bench; but as he did not And aqy ill effeas from the accufation, having Eufficiently cleared his innocence, he thought any farther procedure would have the appearance of rvenge, and therefore willingly dropped it.

H e law foon afterwards a procefs commen~ eed in the fame court againit himfelf, on'an information in which he was accufed of wrk ting and publiihing an obfcene pamphlet.

It was always Mr. Savage's defire to be difiinguifhed ; and, when any controverijt became popular, he never wanted fome reafon - for engaging in it with great ardour, and appearing at the head of the party which he bad chofen. As he was never celebrated for #is S prudence, I h i had no fooner taken his

fide,

298 S A V A G E . fide, and inEormed himfelf d the chief tbs picks af the dipute, than he taok all opporL *ties of arming and propagating his yrrincigles, without much regard to his own intereft, or any other vifible deiign than that of drawing upon himfelf the attention of mankinrt,

8

' The difpute between the Efiihop of Lon- don an$ the Chancellor is well known t e have been fur fume time ' the chief. topic of political. mnverhtion; and 'therefore MC. Sa- wage, in. purfuance of his chm&er, endead voured to become confpicuous w o n g the controvertifis with which every coffee-houfe was. fiM on that occaiioa H e was an in- &fatiga,ble sppder of au the claims of eccle-c - fiafikd power, though he did not know on what they were founded; and was therefore PO friend to the Biaop of London. But he ,

&d another reafon for appearing as a warm advocate for Dr. Rundle; fot he was ths friend of Mr. Foficr and Mr. Thomfbn, who were the fiiende of Mr. Savage,

Thus remote was his. interelt in the q d y

d ~ n , which however, as he imagined, con? cgrne$

S A V A G E . 399

cersed hi& fo nearly, ' that it was not fug. ficient to harangue and .difpute, but neceffiry Iikewik to write upon it.

H e therefore engaged with great ardour in a new Poem, called by him, 7be ProgreSJ OJ

Divtnc ; in which he condvtks a profligate priefi by aH the gradations of wickednefs from a poor curacp in the country, to the fiighefi preferments of the church, and de- icribes with. that humour which was natural to him, a ~ d that knowledge which was ,extended to all the diverfities of human life, his behaviour in every ftatiqn; and .hfinu- ates, that this priefi, thus accomplified, found ' et kR 1 pqtroQ kl t,hq WQP of Londou.

'

When he* was a&ed by one of his friends, on what pretence he could charge the bifhop with fuch m a&€ion, be had no more to fay, than that he had only inverted the accufation, and that he thought it redonable to believe, that he, who ohitrulted the rife of a good r a n without reaibn, would for bad reafons promote the exaltation of' a villain.

The clergy were univerfally provoked by this i'atite; and Savage, who, +I was his

? c~ni tan t

conRant praaice, had fet his name tb his performance, was . c&hred in 7dc . Weekly M$dlany* with fevirity, which he did.not feem inclined to forget

But

A &ort fatire was likewXe piblilhed in the fnmt p a p , is which, wpre the following lines:

, For cruel murder doom'd tq liempen death, Sqvage, by royal grace? prolpng'd his breath. Well'might you think he Qent'his !uture yews ' I n prayer, and f&ng, and repentant teais. -But, 0 vdn hope !-the truly Saviige cries, ss Priefis, and t4eir flaviih dotbines, I defpife.

shall I- " who, by fiee-thinking to f r e ~ allion fir'd,

I n midnight brawls a deathMs name acqair'd, . ,

* c Now itoop to learn of ecdetialtic men ?- as -No, arm'd with rhyme, at priefis I'll take my aim, !! Though prudence bids me murder but their fame."

Ap anfwer Was publified jn The Gcntlemrm'r ilfqaz~kc~ written by an unknown hand,' from which the followin lines are GleRed :

6

Transform'd by thoug4tlefs rage, and midnight wiqe, From malice free, and pufh'd without dcfign;' In equal brawl if Savage lung'd a thruil, And brought the youth a vittim to the duft i So firong the hand of accident appears, The . royal . hand from guilt and vengeance clears,

Idlead of wafing all thy future years, Savalp, in prne r and vain repentant tears;"

Exert

S A V A G E . 301

But a return of inveaive was not thought a fufficient puniihment. The Court of King's' .Bench was therefore moved againit him, and he was obliged to return an anfwer to a charge of obfcenity. It was urged, in his defence, that obicenity was criminal ' when it was intended to promote the praQice of vice; but that Mr. Savage had only introduced obfcene ideas, with the view of ex- .poiing them to deteitation, and of amending .the age, by hewing the deformity of wick- ednefi. This plea was admitted; and Sir

Exert thy pen to mend a vicious age, T o curb the prieit, and fink his high-church rage; To ihew what frauds the holy veitrnents hide, T h e neRs of av'rice, luit, and pedant pride ; T h e n change the fcene, let merit brightly fhine, And round the patriot w i R the wreath divine; T h e heavenly guide deliver down tq fame; I n well-tun'd lays tranfinit a Fofter's name; Touch every pa5on with harmonious art, Exalt the genius, and correCt the heart. T h u s future times mall royal grace extol ; Thus poliih'd lines thy prefent fame enrol.

-But grant- -Maliciou!ly that Savage plung'd the Reel, And made the youth its lhining vengeance feel; My foul abhors the a&, -the man deteits; But more the bigotry in prieRfy breafts.

GENTLEMAN'S MAGAZINE, May 1735. '

. .. . I Philip

3a2 S A 'Ct A - G g. Philip Yorke, who then prefided- that , court, diiiniffed the information with enca- 1

miums upon the purity and excellence of Mr. l

Savage's writi~gs. ~ The profecution, however, a n k e d in l

iome meaiitre the purpofe bf thofe by whom it was fet on foot ; for Mr. Savage was fo fa intimidated by it, that, when the edition of' .his poem was ibld, he did not venture to lie- 1

print it; fo that it was in a ihort time f q t - ten, or forgotten by all but thofe whom it offended,

It is faid, that ibme eadeavours were uied to incenfe the e e e n againR him: but he , found advocates to obviate at leaa part of their effea ; for though he was never advanced, he itill continued to receive his peniion.

This poem drew m m infamy upon him than any incident of his life; a d , as his condua cannot be vindicated, it is proper to fecure his memory from reproach, by inform.. ing thofe whom he made his enemies, that he never intended to repeat the provocation ; and that, though, whenever he thought he had

any

S A V A G E .

redon to complain of the clergy, he uCca to threaten them .with a new edition of. 5% Progr~$ of r Divinc, it was ' his calm and [et- &led reiblution to fupprefs it for ever. .

. .

He once intended to have made a better reparation. for. the folly .or injufiice -*ith which he might be charged, by writing an-

. other poem, called Tbc ProgreSp of o Free- \

thinker, whom he intended to kad through all the Rages of vice and folly, to convert him from virtue to wkkednefs, and from re'T ligion to infidelity, by a11 the modiih f~phX- try ufed for that purpofe; and at Iait to dice mifs him by his own hand into the other

. ~ o r l d , , .

m a t he did not execute this defign is a real lofs to mankind, for he was too well acquainted with all the fcenes of debauchery to have. failed in MS reprerentations of them; and too zealous for Bfrtue not to have reprefented them in fuch a manne'r as fhould expofe them either to ridicule or deteftation,

But this plan was, Kke other^, formed and kid afide, till the vigour of his imagination

was

was fpent, arid tlie eSrvefcence of invention a

had fubfided; b i t foon gave way to fome other dkfign, which pleafed by its novelty for a while, and then was neglded like the former.

We was hill in his u h exigencies, having no certain fupport but the penfion allowed him by the Queen, which, though it ~hight have kept an exa& ceconomifi from want, was very far from being fdc ien t for Mr. Sa- vage, who had never been accuitomed to difi mifs any of his appetites without the gratification which they folicited, and whom nothing but want, of money withheld from partaking of every pleafue that fell within his view.

His condue with regard to his penfion was very particular. No fooner had he changed the bill, than he vanihed from the fight df all his acquaintances, and lay for fome time out of the reach of all the enquiries that friendihip or curiofity could make after him ; at length he appeared again pennylefs as before, but never informed even thofe whom he ieemed to regard mofi, where he had been, nor was his retreat ever difcovered.

8 This

This was his conftant praaice during the' whok time that, he received the ~enf ion from the Qeen: H e regularly difappeared and re;: turned. H e indeed affirmed that he retired to hudy, and that the money fupported him in folitude for many months ; but his friends declared, -that the ihort time in which it was fpent Lfficiently confuted his ~wn'account of his C O ~ ~ U Q *

His politenet and his wit Rill raked hini friends, who were defirous ,of letting him at length free from that indigence by which he- had been hitherto oppreffed; and therefore folicited Sir Robert Walpole in his favour with ib much earnefinefs, that they 'obtained a promile,~f the next place that ihouid %- come vacant, not exceeding two hundred pounds a .ykar. This promile w a s made with an uncommon declargti.on, that it . . was

:. . " not the promife of a miniiter to a pet+ " tioner, but . of . a friend to his friend," .

Mr. now concluded hirnlelf fit at eafe for ever, and, as he obferves in a poem written on that incident of his life, . truited VOL. 111. X 2nd

'306 S A V A G E . and was trufied ; but foon found that 'h is -confidence was ill-grounded, and this friendly promife was not inviolable. We Cpent a

.long time in folicitatio~s, and at l& defpair- - ed and defined.

He did not indeed deny that.he had given -the minifter fome reafon to .believe that he fhoild not f rengthen his own interefi by advancing him, for he had taken care to diitinguiih himfelf in eofke-houfes as an advocate

.for the miniftry of the l& years of @een 'Anne, and was always ready to juw the condu&, and exalt the charaaer of Lord Bo- 'lingbroke, whom he melitions with great regard in an epiMe upon authors, which h e wrote about that time, but was' too wife to -publiih, and of whieh bnly . ibrne fngments :have appdared, incertrted by him in the Maga- zine after his reti.rement. t

I

T o defpair was not, however, the character of Savage; when one patronage failed, 'he' had recoirfe to another. The.pGnce' was now e x t r e ~ l y pop~lar, and had, very libe-

. -rewer&d the, merit of fome .writers 1

- . .a 1

I whom I

wbom Mr. Savage did not think fuperior to himfelf, and therefore he reiblved. to addrefs a poem to him.

For this purpofe he made choice of a fub- j&, which could regard only perfons of the highefi rank and higheit affluence, and which was therefore proper for a poem intended to procure the patronage of a prince ; and having retired for forne time to. Richmond, that he might profecute his d e f p in full tranquillity, without the temptations of plealure, or the felicitations of creditors, by which his meditations were in equal danger of being difconcerted, he produced a poem On Public spirit, with regard to Pu6lic Works.

. The plan of this poem is very extenfive, and compriLes a multitude of topics, each of which might furni# matter fufficient for a losg performance, and of which forne have already employed more eminent writers ; but as he was perhaps not 'fully acquainted with the m whole extent of his own deiign, and was writing to obtain a fupply of wants too preifing to admit of long or accurate enquiries, he paires negligently over many publick

X 2 works,

308. S A V A G E .

works, which, even in his own opinion, de-. ~ ferved to be more elaborately treated.

, But though he may fometimes difappoint

his reader by tranfient touches upon thefe fubjeQs, which have often been confidered, and therefore naturally raiik expe&ations, he mufi be allowed amply to cornpenfate his' omiGons, by expatiating, in tlie conclufion' of his work, upon a kind of beneficence notp yet celebtated by any eminent poet, though ,

I it now appears more fufceptible of embelliih- ments, more adapted to exalt the ideas, and affeQ the paifions, than many of thofe which

l have hitherto been thought inofi worthy of' the ornaments of verfe. The fettlement of. colonies in uninhabited countries, the efia- bliflrment of thofe in fecurity, whofe misfortunes have made their own country no ldnger qleafing or fafe, the acquifition of property I

without injury to any, the appropriation of the wafle arid luxuriant bounties of nature,. and the enjoyment of thofe gifts which hea-. ven has fcarteted upon regions uncultivated and unoccupied, cannot be confidered with-, out giving rife to a great number of pieafing ideas, and bewildering the imaginatian in de-

- . lightf~il i

S A V A G E . 309

lightful profpeQs ; and, therefore, whatever - fpeculatious they may produce i n thofe who

have confined themfelves to political fiudies, nrtturaily fixed the attention, and excited the applaufe, of a poet. The politician, when he confiders men driven into other countries for ihelter, and obliged to retire to foreits and defxts, and pals their lives and fix their poC- terity in the remotcit corners of. the world, to avoid thofe hardhips which they fuffer car fear in their native place, may very properly enq;ire, why the legiflature does qot provide a .remedy for thefe miieries, rather than e n ~ courage an efcape from them. H e may conclude, that the Aight of every honeit man is a lofs to the community ; that thofe who are unhappy without guilt ought to be relieved i and the life, which is overburthened by accidental calamities, let at eafe by the care of the publick ; and thrtt tIrofe, who have by mif- condua forfeited their.claim to favour, ought rather to be made uieful to the lociety which they have injureh, than driven f rhn it. But the poet is employed in a more pleafing undertaking than that of propofing laws, which, however juit or expedient, will never be made, or endeavouring to reduce $9. ra-

X 3 tional

tional'fchernes of jpvernment focicti& which were formed by chance, and are condutted by the private paGons of thofe who prefidc' in them. H e guides the unhappy fugitive from want and yerfeution, to plenty, quiet, and fecurity, and feats him in fcenes of .peaceful folitude, .and undiililrbed repofe.

Savage has not forgotten, amid6 the pleafing fentiments which this proCpec3 of retirement fuggefied to him, to ceufure thofe crimes which have been generally committed 'by fhe difcoverers of new regions, and to ex;

the emrmous wickednefs of making wai upon barbarous nations hecaufe they cannot yew, and of invading countries becaufe they are fruitful ) of extending navigation only t~ propagate vice, and of vifiting diitant land4 only to lay them wage. -He has airerted the natural equality of mankind, and endeavoured to fupprefs that pride which inclines men t o imagine that right is the codequence .- , of power.

His defcription of the various miferie~ which force men to feek for rehge in diitant '

affords another inhnce of his pro- , , . -

ficiency

S- A V . - A G E, 311 . ficiency in the important and extenfive itudy of human life; and the tendernefs with which he recounts them, another p r o d of hi humanity and benevolence.

I t is obfemable, that the clofe of this poem difcovers a cbs~ge which experience had made in Mr. Savege's opinions, In a poem qrritten by him in his youth, and pubiiihed in his Mikelhaies, he ;declares .his contempt. of the

,

contraeed views and narrow profpeas of the middle itate of life, and declares his refolution either to tower like the cedar, or. be trampled like the ihrub ; but in this poem, thaugh ad* dreffed to a prince, he mentions this h t e of life. as comprifing thoie. who wght moit to attraa reward, thok who merit mofk the confidence of power, and the familiarity of greatnefs ; and; accidentally mentipring this yaffage to me of his friends, declared, that in &s opinion all the virtue of mankind was comprehended in that itate,

In defcribing villas and gardens, be did not .omit to condemn that abfurd cufiom which prevails among the Engliih, of permitting krvants to receive money from firangers for

X 4 the

the entertainment that they receive, there. fore inierted in his thefelines ;

But what the flowering pride of,gardens rare, However royal, or however fair, If gates, which, co accefs could itill-give way,

U ape but, like peter!; paradife, . for . pay? . . .

If pcrquifitcd varlets frequent Rarid, ,

- And each new walk'mi~k g new tax demand 3 What foreign eye but ;with contempt'furrreys? .

B What Mufe &all f w ~ q obliyion . . friatch their praire $ . .

But before the publication of his pedormt ance he recolletted, that the Qeen .allowed her garden and cave a t Richmond to .be fiewn for money, and thqt f i e io openly countenanced the pmLtice, that he. had be? flowed the privilege of hewing them as a place of profit. on a man, whpfe merit fie valued halelf upon rewarding, t h ~ u g h ihe gave him only the liberty of difgracing his country. . .

He therehre thought, with more prudence than was often exerted by him, that the pub7 lication of thefe lines might be officioufly re= prefentgd , . . as an inhl t upw the @een, to

Y P ? ~

wh&-iy,, he d d his life and his fubiiftence; and that the propriety of his obfemtion would be no fecurity .againit the cenfures krhich thd unkafonablinefs of it might draw upon him;; he therefore fippreffed the paKage in' the firR edition, .but after ,the G e i n ' s death thought the d m e caution no longer neceffary, and refiored' it to the propor

I . *lace,, . , - - - - - ., - ,

The poem was theqpfoye publiihed with- &it any- bli t ici l -faifis; and infcribed t o the Pritlce; but Mr. ~ & a i e , having .no . . friend upon' whom he could prevail to prefent it to .him, had .no other ,.mkthod of attraating, his dbkrvation than the. publication of frequent ndvertifernents, and therefore received no re- &&d from his patrqp, however generous on

T. . .@her occafionb. : . .

. . , . . ) .. .

: This difappojntment he never mentioned 'without indignation, being by fome means or other confident that the Prirlce was not ignorant of his. addrei's to him; and infinuated, that, if any advances in popularity could have been made by diitinguifhing him, he

l

4 had ,

had not written without naticc, OS without reward.

. He was once iscliaed to b a v ~ psedktd his poem in perfos, and fent to tBe ptinter for a copy with that d d p ; but either his opinion, changed, or. his rdoiution deferted him, and he continued XQ .rcknt negM without 'attempting to force hiflf iw '

regard. . . . . ,

~ b , r was the publick mueh more favwmble than his -patron, - for 'only kventy-two wae 'fold, though the performance , W& much 'commended by fome whore judgement iq that kind of writing. H g e n u a l l ~ allowed, But Savage eafily rec~inciled himfelf to mm- kind without imp{ti-ig myly defett..to h$ work, by . ~ b h r v i n g that his p- was uw luckily publilhed two days after the proro- gation of the parliament, and by confequmce at a time when all. thofe who could be expeaed to regard it were in the hurry of preparing for their departure, or engaged in 2aking leave of others upon their difrniaon

V -from public . . affairs.

It

S. A: V A G E. 31s

It mu8 be however allowed, in juRifi& -of the public,. that this performance is not the- m& excellent of Mr. Savage's works; .

a d t h a t though it cannot be denied to cow tain many itriking fentiments, majeitic fines, and jufi obfervations, it is in general not rid- ficigntlp poEfhed in the language, or er4iVe.n- cd in the imagery, or d igehd in the plan, -,

Thrus his poem contributed nothing to-the alleviation of his poverty, which was fuch as very few' could have fuppurted with equal ,

patience; but to which i t . muR SiwXe be confeffed, that few would have been expofed who received pun&ualIy fifty pounds a year; a falary which, though by no irteans equal to the demands of vaxiity and luxury, is yn found fufficient to fupport families above want, and was undoubtedly more than the wcefities of life require. . . .

But no fooner had he received his pencon, than he withdrew to his darling privacy, from which he returned in a ihort time to his former difireii, and for fome part of the year generally lived hy chance, eating odly when be y s invited to *e tables of his acquaint-

ances,

316 S A V A G.E ances,' 'fro'm ' which the meahnefs of his h i s .ofien excluded him, when the .polite- n& and variety of his converfatio~ would have been tho.ught a. fufficient rw.~mpence.fq his ihtertainment. . . . . . - .

9

. . -. . .I

- , He lodged as much by' accident as he dined, and paged the night- iome$imes .in mean .houfes, which are fet open at night to ahy cafuft' wanderas, fornetiws . in. cellars among the riot. and filth of tht mpanefl arid m& profligate of the rabble;. a& fometimes, when' he had not money to . f u p p ~ . e v e n the expences of thefe kkeeptacles,. walked about the itreets till he .pras weary,, and :lay - down in the ium~ner u p . = bulk, o r in,?& winter, with his arociates . in poverty, among the aihes of a gldshoufe. . . . . . . .

- 2 . . . In this manner were' paged th&. days and

thofe nights which nature had enabled him to have employed in -elevated fpeculatians, uf'eful fiudies, or pleafing converlation. On a bulk, in a cellar, or in a glds-houk among thieves and beggars, was to ' be found . the Author of I'he BTandercr, the man of exalted fentiments, extedve views, qnd cue-

OUS

ous obfeivations; the man whofe remarks on lifk might hare aifified the fiateiinan, whofe ideas of virtue might have enlightened the moraliit, whofe eloquence might have influenced ienates, and whofe delicacy might have polifhed courts.

. . : . 4 . . . I t cannot- but be imagined that fuch ~ e c e &

fities might fometimes force him upon dii- reputable. pra&2ces: and. it. is probable that thefe lines in Tbe Wanderer were occaiioned- by his refleoions on his own condua :

- ,. .. ,

Though mifery leads to happinefs, and truth, Unequal to the load, this languid youth, (0, iit none cenfurc, if, un&icdby grief, If, arnjdfi woe, untempted by relief,) He itoop'd reluttant to low arts of hame, Which then, ev'n then he fcorn'd, and.bluihgd

m name. , ,

Whoever was acquaintid with him . was certain to be iblicited for fmall fums, which the .- frequency. of ' the zequefi made in time confiderable, and he was rherefore quickly fhrtnned. by : thofe' who. were become ,fa&- liar..enough: to be trufied with his necejlities ; bir his' rambling :manner of life, and conitant - . . I appearance

appearance at h d m of public di, always procured him a newr fucdxon of friends, whore - kindnefi had not been ex- Baufted by repeated requefts ; Ib that he ww Mdom abiblutety without refources, but had in his utmoit exigencies this. comfort, that he always imagined himfez fiue of $eedr relief.

- It ms obferved, that he always ailred fa- murs of this kind without the kaft fubmifiion i or apparent confioulneiii of dependence, and tha he did not reem to id upon a corn- i pli~nce with his requefi as an obligation that dderved afiy extraordinary acknowledge- ments; but a refufd was refented by him as an &ont, or complained of as an injury; hm djd he readily reconcile biwfelf to thofe who either denied to lend, . or gawe him &erwards any intimation that they expeaed to be repaid.

Re wiu, ibmetimes b far c~unp-d by th& who Enew both his e t and dif- hteifes, .that they received hi= into their 6- milk, but they foon difcomr:ed.hirp to be a very incornmodiuuo %mate; for, king d-

Opap

ways accrdtomed txa m ir r rguk manner of l&, .he c d d not confine himcelf t o Bnj Aated .hours, or pa7 regard $0 'the rules of a family, but .W& prolong his- coner-

- Cation till :midnight, without confi&ring that bufmek might require his friend's application in the morning; and, d e n he had perfded hidelf to retire to bed, was not, without equ,al difliculty, cal.kd up to dinner; it y;ls therefore impoGble to pay him. any difiinc- tion without the entire fubverfion o f , all ceconomy, a k,iisd. of efiabliihment- which, wherever he went, he always appeared ambitious to overthrow.

It muR therefore 'be ackneledged, in' jufification of -mankind, that it was not al-' ways b~ the negligence or coldnefs of 'his Gentis that Savage was diitread, but becauie it -was in 'reality verp' dScult to preferve 'him long in a h t e of cafe. To fupply him with money was -a 'hopelefs 'sattempt ; for no fooner did he- he .himklf rnafter of a fum fufficient to- Eet him fiee :fmm a r e for a day, than' h i b&mc profuii and .luxurious. when m e

l -

he $ad entered a tavern, or engaged i n a- &henrc of -pleaiure, he.'neyer retired fill want

of

320 S A V A G E : of money obliged him to fome new e x p e dient. If he was entertained in a ' family, nothing was any longer to be regarded .there b<t amufexnents and jollity; wherever Savage entered, he immediately expe&ed that order and bufinefs ihould fly before him, that all I ihould thenceforward be left to hazard, and that no dull principle of domefiic ,manage& ment ihould be oppofed to his inclination, or intrude upon his gaiety. , I

His diflreffes, however affliaitre, never deje,&ted him; in his lomefi h e he wanted not fpirit to affert the natural digriity of -wit, and was always ready to reprefs that infolence which fuperiority of fortune incited, and - to trample on that reputation which rofe upon any other bails than that of peri it: he never admitted any grofs familiarities, or. hbmitted

. to be treated otherwife than as an equal. Once, when he was without lodging, - - meat, or tlothes, one of his friends, a maq not indeed remarkable for moderation in his profperity, left a meffage, that he defired to. fee him about nine in the morning. Savage knew that his intention was to a&fi him; but upas very much difgufted that he ihauld pre-.

fume

S A V A G E * 321

fume to prefcribe the hour of his attendance; and, I believe, refufed to viGt him, and re-. je&ed his kindnefs;

f

The fixhe invincible temper, whether firmnefs or obftinacy, appeared in his condue to the Lord Tyrconnel, from whom he very frequently demanded, that the allowance - which was once paid him ihould be reitored; but with whom he never appeared to enter& tain for a moment the thought of ibliciting a reconciliation, and whom he treated a t once with all the haughtinefs of fuyeriority, and all the bitternefs of refentment. He wrote to him, not in a fkyle of fupplication or reipea, - but of reproach, menace, and contempt; and appeared determined, if he ever regained his allowance, to hold it only -

by .the right of conquek

. , As . many more.can dilcover, that a man is richer than that he is wifer than themfelves, i'uperiority of underitanding is not fo re,adily 'acknowledged as.that of fortune; nor is that haughtinefs, which the coni'cioui'nefs of great ' i

abilities incites, borne with the fame hbmir- 'Y VOL. 111. iion

I

3 2 2 S A V ' A G E. fion as the tyranny of afftuence; and thetp- fore Savage, by aKerting his claim to dkfe- rence and regard, and by treating ihofe with contempt whom better fortune animated to rebel againR him, did adt fail to raife a great number of enemies in the different daffes of mankind. Thofe who thotrght themfelves raifed above him by the advantakes of riches, hated him becaufe th+ fodnif do prot&ion from the petdance of 'hls wit. Thofe who were eiteemed for th&r writihgs fkhfed him as. a critic, and maIigned liim a rival, and drnofi all. the f d l e r wits were h b pi6feffd enemies, 0

Among the6 Mr. Miner To far indulge-d - his rekntment as to introduke hit& in Tard,.

and difea him to be perionated on the &ige, in a drefs like th.at which he then wore; a: mean infult, which only infinuated that Sa- vage had but one coat, and which was therefore defpifed by him rather than rdented; for though he wrote a lampoon againit Miller, he never printed it: and as no other perfon ought to profecute that revenge from \vlGch the perfon who was injured defified,

I ftlall

3 A V A 6 . E . 32 j I i h a i nbt p r e i e h what Mr. Sa+age fup- pieied : ' of t~hich the publkadon Would indeed have been a puniihrncnt too ievere .& fo impotent an arault. .

TI& great had&ips' d pciveitp were to Sa+age not the want of lodging or df food; but thd" &&l?& and contempt which it drew upon him. He c.omplained, that as his A%irs grew defpekte, he found his reputation for tapacity vifibiy decline; that his 6piriiod i h qiefiions .of criticif? w a s no loi iei i+rded; ++hen h i s coat was out of FiYhion; and that thofe who, in the interval of hP i)rdpeAij, &ere al-s ericouraging him to grbt ii'ridertaki'ngs by encomiuins on his genius and ~ ~ u r a n c e s of iutcifs, now received aiiy mention af his de'iigns with cold- nkfs, thought that tHe iubjees on which he pi.opdied rb write were very ditficult, and were read'' to inform him, that the eveht .of a poem dPzls nkcertain, that an author duglit to emplby much time in the confideraiion of &is plah, and not prefume to fit down to write is confidence of a few curiory idea, and a fuperficial knowledge; difficulties were

Y 2 fiarted

fiarted on all iides, and he was no longet qualified for anp performance but Tbc VoZun- t , ~ ~aui-eai. . .

. I

Yet even this kind of contempt never. ded ~reITed him; for he always prderved a Rcady confidence in his own capacity, and. believed bathing above his reach which he fhould at any time earnefily endeavour to attain. He

' . forked fchemes of the &me kind with regard to knokledge and to fortune,, and flattered himfelf :with advances to be made . in . fcience, as with riches, to be enjoyed in fome difiant period of his life. For the acquifition of knowledge -,he was indeed far better iudified than for that of riches; for he was naturally inquifitive and defirous of the convedation of thofe ,horn whom any information was to be obtained, but by no means iblicitous to improve thoik opportunities that were fometimes offered of raifing his fortune; and he was remarkably retentive of his ideas, which, when once he was in poffefion of them, rarely foribok him; a quality which could never be communicated to his money,

While he was thus' wearing our h is life in '

expeltation that the Qeen would Bmi' time recollea her promXe, he had r e c o d e to !he yiual pr&.ice of writers, and pvblifhed pro? pofals f& ,printing his works by i$E,ription, to.&hich . . he was encouraged by . the . fuqcels; of many ,who had not a. better right to the

. , a ., . - A ' . . &

favour of the publick'; hut, whatever. wab the rearon, he did not h d the world .equally , .

inclined to favour him; and he obferved with hme difcontent, tkat, though. he o s r - ed ,his .works at half a guinea, h6 was abie to .proCure 'but a: fmall 'number .in - comparifon.:dth - thok :who iubkribed twice as mucb'to Duck, . ::. .: . - . . .

. . . . , . . .

- - ...

Nor was it Githolit - indignation that he f& his propbfals ncgkLted b j- ;h&' e e e n , . .

who patroniied M;. Duck's with uncommon ardour, and incited a competition.among thofe who attended the court, who ihould moit promote his inter&, and who- ihould firft offer a fubfcription, This wasA= d ikna ion to which Mr. Savage made no fcdple of af- rerting that his birth, his misfortunes, and his genius, gave him .a fakkr title, than

Y 3 could

could be. pleaded . . . . by . hiG ... on whpm..it , , as conferred.

Savage's applications were however qot tmivedally unfuccefsful ; for fome of the $0-

bifity. countenanced .. his defign, encouraged hispropofals, and fubfcribed kith g r%l ik r&ty. H; related df the ~ u k e of Chindog p~rticularly, that, upon . . receiving . . his . . iropo- lids, he ient him ' ten p ine&

But the money which his fubkriptioni af? forded him was not lefs volatile than that which .he .received from his mha icbapes ; sehcaev~r a fubfctiption was. paid him, ' he went to a tavern ; 'and, as moniy io coll&ed is neceffarily received in fmall fums, he never - .. . -'was .able to fend - . his p o e q t+, the

P refs, but for many years qontinued & foljcir ption, a id iipandered whatever he ob$qed. ...

T h i s projeQ of printing his works was frequently . . . rcvived; . and, as . his pz~pbls .. . .-

grew obfolete, pew on& were 'p jqted -yitl) frerher dates. . , ' To form f&erqe(? . t b r t b ~ .-. pub- Jication wwone of his favourite arpufewats por , . . was . 6'e . Cver . moge at . eaie &aq &hF%

. .. . - ,

wit&

. S A V A G E . 327

with any friend who . readily . fell-in with his ichemes, . I S . he was a ~ u l t i n g the print, forming the advertifements, and regulating the dif- pkrfion of hi's new &%on, which he really intendxl fo& time . to . , . publiih, Adwhich , 3s long as experience had . fhewn him the impofiibility of printing the volume together, he a t laR determined to divide into weekly or qonthly numbers, thqt the profits of the might fupdy the expenccs of th! next.

Thus he fpent his time in mean expedients and tormenting fufpenfe, living for the greatefi part in the fear of profecutions fiom his creditors, and conf'equently ikulking i l bbrcure parts of the jown, of which he was

. 1 .

np ifranger . . . to the remotefi corners. B U , ~

&herever he came, his 'addreis 'iecured him friends, whom his neceGties foon alienated; fo t h t . . . he . kad .. . ,.. . a more numerous ac- qu?i+nce than any man ever before attained, . , .... there being f i e l y any *erron . . erni- . .

nent on any acFount to whom b . w a s not known, . m or whofe +ara&er he was not in @me degree able to de1ineit.e.

338, ' S A V A G E . T o the acquifition of this extenfive acy

quaintance every circumfiance of his life con: tributed. H e excelled in the arts of converfation, and-therefore willingly praaifcd !hem : H e had feldom any home, or even a-lodging in' which he could be private i and therefore was driven into public-houiks for the common . ,

conveniences of life and i&orts of haturei H e was always ready to comply with every 1

l . . .

invitation, having 'no .employment to with- , hold him, and often no money to provide for himfelf; and by dining with one companyz 6k never failed of obtaining an introdudon ,

into another.' ' .

'

Thus difipated was hig life, and thus car l

I fual his fubfifience; yet did not the diitratlion '

of hie.views hinder him frdm refleetion, nor the unFertainty . . of his condition deprefs his gaiety. When he had wandered about with- but any fortbnate adventure by which.h;'was 3ed into a tavern, he ibmetimes retired into *he fields, and wis able to &mildy his mind in

, fiudy, or Pmufe it with' pleaGng imaginations ; and feldom appeared to be melancholy, but when fome fudden misfortune 'had juit falleh ppo? him and even then in a few moments , 1 .

- he , I

l

S A V A G E . ' 3 i g he would difentangl& himGlf from his perplexity, adopt the fubje& of converfition, and apply his mind wholly to ;ehe objeag that others prefefited to it.

> . . . . . . - . . , . I . . .

1 . . . .

This life, unhappy as it may be already imagined, . . was . yet imbittered, in 1738, with new' calamities. $he death of the @em deprived him of all the profpeas of preferment with which- he. fo ' long entertained his imagination ; and, as Sir Robert 'VValpole had before given him reafon to believe that he never &tended the performance of his promife, he :was now abandoned again to fortune.

H e was *however, at that time, fupported bf a friend; and as it was not his cufiom to 'look dut for dinant calamities, or to feel any other'pain than that which forced itfelf upon his iknfes, he was not much afflieed at his lots, and perhaps comforted himfelf that his penGon would be now continued without the annual tribute of a panegyric.

Another expeaation contributed likewife to fupport :him: he had taken a reiolution to gPrite a fecond tragedy upon the itory of Sir

Thomas

33Q . S . A V . A G E. . . Thorna, , l ' , . . Ovsbyyy, . a . . . in - which he prdemed a

fpw liws . . , of hi? foyqp play, b q a.tot+ .tta3tion J . I , . . of tbe plan, added pew incidents, and introduced new chwq&ters; $0' that it

. # I I . ' .

was a new tragedy, not a revival of the former. .. . ,. . .

. .

. &+y pf bis friends . . -ktameg him fq not making cboic; of another fib&&; but, in $&cation c$ hidelf, he pffiytcd, thin i t W* not $7 to fin$ 9 better ; and that- he thayght ... . it his intereR to ~illguiih the F-

of the firit tragedy, which he could onl i do by writing, one let6 defeai~e upqn the fame fiory ; by which he fhould entirely de- f e a ~ the grtifice. of tbc bqoldel!~:?, who, after ihs death of any author of reputatian, are jijurais indu.firioas , . to iwell. his 'korks, by upi- jipg his wori pr~duaitiong with his beb. I !

In the ellrecution. of tbk .fch.emc, ,hswever, he prgceeded but Qowly, and .pp&ibly only employed himfelf upori it when he could find no other amufement ; but he pleafed himleelf yirhxpuntjng the profits, and pqhqps ipagi-

. ged, ' that , . . the theatriFal spputation which he was .I I abgut . . ., tp acquire, . - . . V O ~ Q b i equivalent to

. . I all

S A V A G E . S . 33 7

all that he kd loR by the death- of his pa- tr0neIsr

We diP not, ip co.nfic?e&e qf his ap~?cb: ing riches, neglea the pr&ey2-@ cure the continuance of his penfion, though fame of &S favourprs thou& . .., .. h@ , y l ~ b h fix . . a&ting , _ . . , . . to . , w&te . . / on - $er , , _ .d$* , i 04 her birthaay r+eq;t yea?, h e g a m a . p rod of ~9 folidity of his juflgerpent, aqd the pswer d

d his gepiur -?$e Ii<cy. that:-tJ+e at: elegy' had' been . . fo . long beaten, th+t ir' impofible t6 travel in it without tregdiPd . . . - . iq .

the footfieps of thok who had gone before hiv; q?d that the~eforp + was . . n e p e O B ~ , . .that he might di@ingui& himiev from fpe . h&d pf . ~ncomio@s, to find . . . cut . . f?.me walk of fy-. ?era1 panegyric. . ,

Thig . . Gfficltll: taiS; he ~ ~ f 9 r m 9 4 i~ :-&h. e manner, that his poem may befjufily ranked among the $eft pieces, . that . -the death of

. has produced. Ey transferring the rnentioq of her d~?th t,o her b i ~ h ~ d q y , h i has formed 4 h3~p.y corn&4ati.on of topics, pphich. any other man would have thought ,it yery Pifficult .. . to come& . in I one yi,ew, but svhich he . .

has

. .

33 S A V A G E.' has united in fuch a manner, that the relation between them appears natural ; and it may be juitly faid, that what no other man would have thought on, it now appears fcarcely pc-

. . fiMe for any man to mifs. . -

The beauty of this peculiar combination of images is fo mafierly, that it is fufficient to feet this above ienfure ; and therefore it is not nkefEary to- mention many other delicate touches-which may be found in it, q d which would defervedly be admired in any other performance,

1

. . T o t thefe proofs of his genius' may b e added, from the fame poem, ' an infiance of his, p&dence, an excellerice for which he was not fo often difiinguiihed; he does not forget to remind the King, in the moit delicate and artful manner, of continuing his penfion? .

l . . .

With regard to tee fuccefs of this addrefi; he was for Come time in fufpence, but was in no great degree iblicitous about it ; and continued his labour upon his new tragedy with great tranquillity, till the friend who had for a confiderable time fupported him, removing

bis

S A V A G E . -333

his family to -another place, took occafion to dilmifs him. It then became neceffary to enquire more diligently what was determined in . his affair, having reafon to fufpee that no great favour was intended him, becaufe he had not received his .peniion at the ulual time.

It is faid, that he did' not take thofe me-. ihods of retrieving his intereft, which were inofi likely to fucceed; and fome of thole who were employed in the Exchequer, cautioned him againfi too much' violence in his proceedings ; but Mr. Savage, who 'ieldom regulated his condue by the adhce of others, gave way to his pailion, and demanded of Sir Robert Walpole, at his levee, the reafon of the diftinQion that was made between him and the other penfioners of the Qeen, with a degree of roughnefs which perhaps determined him to withdraw what had been only

Whatever was the crime of which he was- accufed or fufpetted, and whatever influence

- was employed againit .him, he received ibon after an account that took from him all hopes

of

bk rkgiiniti~ his petllion ; and he hxd now &j d fubfiiteiice but froiii his play, ,

and he kne* nd way o'f living for the fir& i+iifed to firiilh it.

So - were the misfort&ei of thb man, deprived of an e h t e and title by a particular law, expoikd and abandoned by a mother, defrauded by B i'nolhii of i f ~ n e khich his father had allotted him, he .kn.tered the boild without a: friend ; arid though hii abiktits forced themreIves into efikein and re- puiztion, he ivO never abie to obtain iriy real iidviiitate, and whatkvif prorpe&s aroh wiie UWaj,s inteiceptkd a & he bigah to ipproiiih them. The King'g intentions in his fivout ivefe fruitrated ; his dedicition to the Price, ivhofe geniroQP on iiiery bther bccafion aHj &in&, procured him no rewaid ; Sir KO- bert ~ V a ~ ~ o l e , who valued himielf upon kiip- ing his prcimife to others, bkxe it t b Kiii without regret; and the bounty of thl: Qeeii was, after her death, withdrawn from him, and fiom him only.

Such Tipere his misfortunes, which ykit h6 bore, not only with decency, but with cheer:

fulnefs ;

S A v A Q' E-; 35.j fulnkfs ; nor %as his gaiety cl6uded e4ih by his lafi difappointiiientb, though he was. in a f i o r t time reduced to the loweft degree df diltrcfs, and often wanted both lodging and food. . At this time, he gave ancithei iiit'<n,ce d the inrurrbduhtable bbiiniiy i f his fjiPirii: his clothes weEe worn out; and he receivkd notice, that i t . i cdffee-hbuie f h e d6theE and linen were left for him : the perfoh who Cent theh did not, I believe, inform hrm i6 ivhdni h& was to be obliged, ihit he 'rniihf fpare the perplexity of acknoiGlkdgihg t ~ i ' benefit; but thcugh the offer was fofar generous, it .was 'made with iome neglea of ceremonies, whiih Mr. Savage fo muck re- rented, that he refurid the peient, and de- clined to enter the bode till the clothes that had been d6figned for him were taken away.

His difbefs was now -publickly .&own, and his friends, thedore, thmght it p;'*& to concert fame meafures for his relief; and one of them wrote a letter to him, in which h e expreffed his concern " for the 'mtferable

9 9 " withdrawing of his penfion; and gave hin hopes, ' that in a fhoit time he fhdkld Cr.3 himfzlf hpplied with a competence,

" without

336 . . s A v . A G E. without any dependence on thofe littid

" creatures which we are pleafed to call thd CC Great;"

i

The fcheme propofed for this happy and independent fubfiltence, was, that he fhould retire into Wales, and receive an allowance of fifty pounds a year, to be raifed by a fubfcription, on which he was to live pri- katetdy i n a cheap place, without afpiring anf more to amuence, or having any faith& care- bf reputation.

This offer Mr. Savage gladly accepted; though with intentions very different from thofe of hls friends ; for they propofed that' he ihould continue an exile from Ldndon for ever, and fpend all the remaining part of his' life at Swanfea; but he defigned only ta take the opportunity, which their fcheme offered'him, of retreatmg for a ihort tiine, that he might prepare his play for the itage; and his other works for the prefs, and then to return to London to exhibit his tragedy9 and live upcm the profits of hi8 own labour.

With regard to his works, he propofed very great improvements; which would have

2 required

.

S A V A G E , 337 ~equired much time, or great application 3 sand when he had finiihed them, he deiigned to do jufiice to his fubfcribers, by publiking them according to his propofals.

As he atas ready to entertain himfelf with future plgfures, he had planned out a fcheme of life for the country, of which he had no knowledge but from paRorals and fongs. He imagined that he ihould be tranfported to fcefies of flowery felicity,. like thofe which one poet has refleQed to another; and had projeQed a perpetual round of innocent pleaa fures, of which he fufpeaed no interruptio~l from,pride, or ignorance, or brutality

With thik expellations he was fo en* chanted, that when he was once gently reproached by a friend for filbmitting to live upon a fubfcription, and advifed rather by a refolute exertion of his abilities to fupport . himfelf, he could not bear to debar himfelf fmm the happineib which was to be- found in the calm of a cottage, or lofe the opportunity of liltening, without intermiflion, to ' . the' rnelddy of the nightingale, which he be* lieved was to be heard & o n every bramble, and which he did not fail to mention as a VOL. 111, Z ver p

33s S A V A G E . very iniportant part of the' happinefs bf country life.

While this fcheme. was ripenihg, his friends diretted him to take a lodging' in the liberties of the. Fleet, that he might be fecure from his creditors, and lent him every Monday a guinea, which he commonly fpent before the next morning, and trufied, after his d u a l manner, the remaining part of the week to the bounty of fortune.

H e now began very ferrfibly to feel the miferies of dependence. Thofe by whom he was to be fupported, began to preicribe t o him with an air of authority, which he knew not how decently to refent, nor patiently t o bear; and he foon diicovered, from the con-' duQ of moft of his fuubfcribers, that he was yet in .!he hands of " little creatures."

Of the infolence that he was obliged to fuffer, he gave many inftances, of which none appeared to raife his indignation to a greater height, than, the methcd w4ich was taken of furnihing h i m with 'clothes. In-' fiead ' of conhlting him, a id ' allowing him ro fend a taylor his orders for what they,

thought

s A v A ' G E. 339

thought proper to allow him, they propofed to fend for a taylor to take his meaf~re, and then to confult how they fhould equip him.

This treatknent was hbt very delicate, nor was it fuch as Savage's humanity would have fuggefied to him on a like occafion; but it had fcarcely deferved mention, had it not, bp affeaing him in an uncommon degree, fhewn the peculiarity of his charaller. Upon hearing the deiign that was formed, he came t o the lodging of a friend with the moft violent agonies of rage; and, being aiked what i t could be that gave him fuch difiurbance, he replied with the utmofi vehemence of indignation, '' That they had rent for a taylor to medure him."

How the affair ended was never enquired, fbr fear of renewing his uneafinefs. It is. probable that, upon recolle&ion, he fubmitted with a good grace to what he could not avoid, and that he difcovered no refentment where he had no power.

He was, however, hot humbled to itaplizt' and univerfal compliance;. for when the gen-

. . Z z tleman,

3 10 S A V A G . E . tleman, who had firit informed him of the defign to iuppbrt him by a lubfcription, attempted to procure a reconciliation with t h e Lord Tyrconnel,. he could by nd means be prevailed upon to comply with the meafures thct were propoied.

A letter was written far him* to Sir Wil- liam Lemon, to prevail upon him to interpole his good offices with Lord Tyrconnel, in which he folicited Sir William's aafiance, " for a man who really needed it as much

as any man could well do;" and iuformed him, that he was retiring " for ever to a " place where be ihould no more trouble his

relations, friends, or enemies;" he confeffed, that his paflion had betrayed him to fome condua with regard to Lord Tyrconnel, for which he could not bat heartily a& his pardon; and as he imagined Lord Tyrconnel'a pafion might be yet fa high, that he would not receive a letter frcxm him," begged that Sir. William would endeavour to fofteu him; and expreifed his hopes that he would.

. comply wit? his reguefi, and that U fo h a l l .

. * By Mr. Fapc. . +

. , " a relrr-'

S A V A G E . 341

a relation would not harden his heart " againit him."

That any man ihould prehme to dillate a letter to him, was not very agreeable to Mr. Savage; and therefore he was, before he had opened it, not much inclined to approve it. But when he read it, 'he found it contained fentiments entirely oppofite to his ovtm, and, as he afferted, to the truth; and therefore, infiead of copying it, wrote hfs fiietld a letter full of marculine referltment and warm expofiulations. H e very jufily obferved, that the ityle was too fupplicatory, and the-reprefentation too abje&€, and that he ought at leaft to h.ave made him complain with " the dignity of a gentleman in diitrefs." H e declared that he would not write the pa-agrayh in which he was to a& Lord Tyr- connel's pardod; for, " he defplfed his par- " dun, and therefore could not heartily, and " would not h~ocritically, a& it." H e remarked, that his friend made a very unrea- ibnable difiinQibn bettveen himfelf and him p for, fays he, when you mention men of' '

high rank in your own charaaer," they are " thofe little creatures whom we are pleafed

3 " m

342 S A V A G E , C' to call the greati" but when you addre6 them in mine," no iervility is idc ient lp humble. He then with great propriety explained the ill coifi~queqces which might be expetted 'from hch a letter, which his relations would print in their own defence, and which: would for ever be produced as a full anfwer to all that he ihiuld alledge againR thern; for he always intended to publifh a minute account of the treatment which he, had received. It is to be remembered, to the honour of the gentleman by w h ~ m this letter was drawn up, that he yielded to Mr. Savage's reafons, and agreed . . that it ought ta be fuppreffed.

, After many alterations and delays,, a fib- fcription was at length railed, which did nor amount to fifty pounds a year, though twenty were paid by one gentleman; fuch was the generofity of mankind, that what had been done by a player without folicitition, could not now be effeQed by spplicatiori and in- tereff; and Savage had a great number to court and to obey for a penfion lefs than that which Mrs. Oldfield paid him without .ex- &ing any fervil,ities,

m,

S A. V.- ,- A. G E. 343

Mr. Savage however was fatisfied,' and willing to retire,:.and was convinced that the allowance, though fcanty, would be more than fufficient for him, being now determined to commence a- rigid cecon~miit, and to

.

live according' to the exaeefi rules of fru- gality; for no~hing was in his opinion more ,

contemptible than a man, who, when he knew .hP income, exceeded it; and yet he confeffed, that~ infiances o f , fuch folly were too common, and lamented that ibme men were not to be truited . with their own money.

- Full of thefe falutary reiblutions, he left London iri July 1739, having taken leave with gi-eat tesdernefs of his friends, and parted from the author of this narrative with tears in his eyes. H e was fbrnifhed with fifteen guineas, and informed, that they would be ilfficient, not only for the expence of his journey, but for his fupport in Wales for fome time; and that there remained but little more of the firit colle~ion, H e promifed a Aria adherence to his maxims of parcimony, wd went away in the itage-coach; nor did

4 his

344 S A . V . A G . E , his friends expea to hear fiom him, t i l l .b informed them of his ~ i u a . 1 at Swanfea.

But when they leafi expeaed, -arrived a letter dated the fourteenth day afier his departure, in which he feqt them word, that he was yet upon the road, and without qoney; and that he therefore could not proceed with- put a remittance. They then fent him the money that -was in their hands, with which. he was enabled to reach BriRol, from whence he was to go to Swadep by vater.

At Brifiol he found an embargo laid upon the hipping, fo thqt he could not immedi&ly obtain a p&?@; and being thereferc obliged to Ray t4e1-U iaine time, heq with his ufual felicity, ingratiated hidelf W-itb m n y of the principal inhabitants, was invited to totheir houks, difiinguifhed at their pub& feaiti, and treated with a regard that gratified his vanity, wd t4~refare eAly ~ n g s e d hi$. #Feeion.

He began very early after: his retirement- to .. caqpIain _ . . , af the . condug . . . .. of his friends in

London,

S A V A G E . 345

London, and irritated many of them fo by his letters, that they withdrew,

however honourably, their contributions; and it is believed, that little more was paid him than the twenty pounds a year, which were allowed him by the gentleman who propofed the fubfcription. , ,

After fome flay at Briitol he retired to Swanfea, the place origirially propcfed for his refidence, where he lived abour a year, very much diffatisfied with the diminution of his falary; but contraeed, as in other places, acquaintance with thofe who were moit diftinguiihed in that country, among whom he has celebrated Mr. Powet and Mrs. Jonea, by fome verfes which he iderted in Tbe Geatlc--

Magazine*.

Here he cornpleated his tragedy, of which two B&S were wanting when he left London,-

- and was defirous df coming to town to bring it upon the itage. This defign was very warmly oppofed, and he was advifed by his &ief benefaaor to put it into the hands of

* Reprinted in the late $olk@on.

Mr.

346 S A V A G E . Mr. Thodon and Mr. Maet , that it might be fitted for the itage, and to allow his friends to receive the profits, out of which an annual penfioii fhould be paid him.

~ h & propofal he rejeaed with thk utmoR contempt. He was by no means convinced that the judgment of thofe, to whom he was required to fubmit, was hperior t6 his oen. He was now determined, a s he eeprehd it, to be ~o longer kept in leading-itrings," and had no elevated .idea of " his bounty,

whq propofed to penfion him qut of the profits. of his own labours,"

He attempted in Wales io promore a fub- kription for. liis wmh, and had once hopes of fuccefs; but in a ihort. time'%terwards formed a refolution of leaving that part of the country, to which he thought it not reaforiable to. be confined ,for the gratification of thofe, who, having *ro&ifed him a liberal income, had. no ibaner banifhed him to a remote corner, than they reduced his allowance to a falary fcarcely . . equal to the pecefi fities of life.

. ,

. . His , .

S A V A G E . 847 I His refentment of this ,treatment, which, in his own opinion at leait, he had not. d,e- ferved, was fuch, that he broke off all . cor- . .

refpondence with mofi of.. his .contributors, and appeared to confider . .. - them , . . as ieifefu- a

tors and oppreffors ; and .in .the. latter ;part of his ,life declared, that their cosdu& . toward J : . : ; ! i 8

him, fince his departure from . ond don, , bad Fc been perfidibufne~ imp~oving on perfidi-

oufiefs, asd inhumanity pn inhumanity.:' . . , S

It is not to be fuppofd, that the neceifitieg gf Mr. Savage did not fometimes incite him to fatirical exaggerations of - the behaviour of thofe by wbom he thought himiklf reduced to them., But it muR be. granted, that the diminution of his allowance was a great hardhip, and that thofe who withdrew their ilbfcription from a man, who, upon the faith of their promife, had gone into B kind of baniihment, and abandoned all thore by whom he had been before relieved in his diflreffes, will find it no eafy tafk to vindicate their

. . condue.

. I t may be , alledged, and perhaps. juflly, that he wqs petulant and .contemptuous, that^

he

348 S A ' V A G E. he mare fiequentIy reproached his fubfcribers for not giving him more, than thanked them for what he received; but it is to be remembered, that this condut?, and this is the worft charge that can be drawn up againit him, did the& no real injuiy; and that it therefore oughi' rather ro have been pitied than refented; at lean, the refentment it might provoke &ght to have been generous and manly; epithets which his conduCt will hardly deferve that itarves the man whom he has peduaded to put himfelf into his power.

It might have been reaibnably demanded by Savage, that they fhould, before they had taken away what they promiled, have re- placed him i n his former fiate, that they mould hare taken no advantages fiorn the iituation to which the appearance of their kindnefs had reduced him, and that he fhould have been recalled to London before he was abandoned. He might jufily reprefent, that he ought to have been confidered as a lion. in the toils, and demand to be releafed before the dogs ihould be,loofed upan him.

He endeavoured, indeed, to releafe himklf, and, with an intent to return to Lon-

don,

S A V A G E , 349

don, went to Briitol, where a repetition of the kindneis which he had formerly found ,invited him to Aay. H e was not only careffed and treated, but had a colle&ion made for him of about thirty pounds, with which it had been happy if he had immediately.departed for London; but his negligence did not iuffer him to confider, that iuch proofs of kindnefs were not often to be expetled, and that this ardour of benevolence was in a, great degree the eKe& of novelty, and might, probably, be evety day lefs; and therefore he took no care to improve the happy time, but was encauraged by one favour tq hope for another, till at length generafity was ex- haufied, and officioufnds wearied.

Another part of his miiconduQ was the prattice of prolonging his vifits to unfedon- able hours, and dilcconcerting all the families into which he was admitted. This was an error in a place of commerce which . all the charms of his converfation could not com- penfate; for what trader would purchde Cuch airy htisfa&ion by the lofs of folid gain,. wbich mu8 be the confequence of midnight merriment, as thofe hours which were

. . gained

gained at night were generally lofl in the morning ?

Thus Mr. Savage, af'ter the curiofity of the inhabitants was gratified, found the 'number of his friends daily decreafing, perhaps wrth- out fiufpeQing for what reaibn their condua was altered; for he itill continued to harafs, with his n o h r n a l intrufions, thofe that yet countenanced him, and admitted him to their houike.

But .he did n6t .fpend all the time of his !

refidence at Brifiol in vifits or at taverns, for he I'ometimes returned to his fludies, and b e

1 , gan feveral confiderable defigns. When he felt an inclination to write, he always retired fiom the knowledge o f his friends, and lay hid in an.obfcure part of the I'uburbs,. till he found himfelf again defirous of company, to which it is likely that intervals of abfence made him more welcome.

l

He was always full of his defign of returning to London, to bring his tragedy upon the Itage ; but, having negle&ed to &part with' the money that was'raifed for him, he could

not

S A V A G E . 35 I

not aftetwards. procure a fum fufficient to de- fray the expences of his journey; nor perhaps would a frefh fupply have had any other e&&, than, by putting immediate pleafures in his power, to have driven the thoughts of his journey out of his mind;

While he was thus fpending the day in contriving a fcheme for the morrow, diitrefs itole upon him by imperceptible degrees. His condu&t had already wearied fome of thofe who were at firfi enamoured of his converfation ; but he might, perhaps, itill have devolved' to others, whom he might have entertained with equal fuccefs, had not the de- cay of his clothes made it no longer confiitent: with their vanity to admit him to their tables,. or to affociate with him in public places. He now began to find every man from home at whofe houfe he called; and was therefore no longer able, to procure the neceffaries of life, but wandered about the town, flighted and negleeed, in queQ of a dinner, which he did not always obtain. ,

T6 complete his mifery, he was purlued by the officers for fmall debts which he had con-

5 traced ;

352 S A V A G E f . trkted ; and was therefore obliged to w i t h draw from the fmall number of friends from whom he had ftill reaibn to hope for favoursi His cufiom was to lie in bed the greatefi part of the day, and to go out in the dark with the utmofi privacy, and after having paid his vifit return again before morning to his lodging, which was in the garret of an ~bfcure . inn,

Being thus excluded on one hand, and confined on the other, he fuffered the utmoft extremities of poverty, an'd often fafied fa long that he was feized with faintnefs, and had lofi his appetite, not being able to bear the fmell of meat, till the aaion .of his fie mach was refiored by a cordial. . .

h this difirefs, he received a remittance of five pounds from London, with which he provided hirnfelf a decent coat, and determined to go to London, but unhappily fpent his money at a favourite tavern. Thus was he again confined to Brifiol, where he was

L

every day hunted by bailiffs. In this exi- gence he once more found a friend, who meltwed him in his houfe, though at the

4 dual

S A V A G E . I 353 ufual inconveniences with which his company was attended ; for he could neither be perfuaded to go tb bed in the nighr, nor ta rife in the dal,

It is abfertiable; that in thcfe varioud f~enea of mikry, he was always difengaged and cheerful: he at fome times purfued his fludies, and at others continued or enlarged his epiitolay correfpondence; nor was he ever fo far deje&ed as to eadeabour to procure an increafe of his allowance hy any other me& thods than .acc~fatisns and reproaches.

H e had now ho ioriger arip hopes bf af- hfiance from his friends at Br ih l , w h o as

' merchantss and by coniequ%nce fufficiendy . fiudioue of profit, cannot be fuppofed to

have looked with nluch compaiiion upon neg-f ligence and extravagance, or to think any excel!enca equivalent ta a fault of fpch c o w fequence as neg1eLt of economy, It is na; tural to imagine, that many of thofe, who would have r e l i e d his real wants, weri diC eouraged f i + m the exertion of their benevcr lence by obfervation of the ufe which was made d their ~avours, and conviaion that

VOL. 111, A a . relief

S A V A G E . relief would only 'be- momentary, and t h a the fame necefity would quickly return.

I ,

At lafi he quitted the houik of his friend, and returned to his lodging at the inn, filI intending ' to let out in a few days for Lon- don; but on the 10th of January I 742-3, having been at fupper with two of his friends, he was at his return to his lodgings mefied for a debt of about eight pounds, which he owed at a coffee-houfe, and-condudted to the houfe of a fheriff's officer. The account which he gives of this misfortune, in a letter to one of the gentlemen with whom he had fupped, is too rernar&tble to be omitted.

It was not a little unfortunate for me, that I fpent yeiterday's evening with you ; becaufe the hour hindered me fiom enter-

'' ing on my new lodging ; however, I have fc now gof one but fuch an one, as I believe

nobody would chure.

" I was arrefied at the fuit of Mrs. Read, Gc jufi as I was going up itairs to bed, at Mr.

BowyerXs; but taken in fo private a man- " ner, that I believe nobody at the White

5 cc Lion

S A V A G E . 35.5 M Lion is apprifed of it. Though I let the .

officer$ know the fbength (or rather weak- " nefs) of my pocket, yet they treated me " with the utmofi civility ; and even when " they conduaed me to confinement, it was " in fuch a manner, that I verily believe I " could have efcaped, which I would rather " be ruined than have done, notwithilanding " the whole amount of my finances was but

three pence halfpenny. 1 _

'c In the firfi place I muit infiit, that you will induitrioufly conceal this from Mrs.

6' S-S, becaufe I would not have her " good-nature fuffer that pain, which, I

know, ihe would be apt to feel on this oc- " cafioi

" Next, I conjure you, dear Sir, by all <' the ties of friendihip, by no means to have '' one uneafy thought on my account; but

to have the fame pleafantry of counte- " nance, and unrumed ferenity of mind,

which (God be praiikd !) I have in this, and have had in a much feverer &a-

" mitjr. Furthermore, I charge you, if . '' you value my friendihip as tmly as I. do

A a 2 y~urs ,

S A V A G E . U yours, not to, utter, or even harbour, the 'I' leait refentment againft Mrs. Read. I be- " lieve ihe has ruined me, but I freely for-. '' give her ; and (though I wilI never more

have any intimacy with her) I. would, at a due difiance, rather do her an a& of good, than ill will. Laffly (pardon the expref-

C' Gon), I abfolutely command you not t o U offer me any pecuniarg afifiancc, nor to CL attempt getting me any from any one of 'c your friends. At another time, or on f' any other occahn, you may9 dear friend, '' be well agured, 1 would rather write to

you in the fubrniifi* fiyle of a requeit, than that of a peremptory command,

. . - However, that my tmly valu'abk friend

may not think 1 am too proud to afk a fad c vour, let me entreat you to Iet me have.

your boy to attend me for this day, not only for the fake of .Caving me the expenw of porters,. but for the delivery c& fome let-

" ters to, people whofe names I would no$ have. kxtown,, ta hangers,

T h e divil treatmm ]C h ~ e &US .& Wet fmm thofe whofe $oner I am, m a k me JC ' " thankful

, 6' thankful to the Almighty, that, though he C' has thmght fit to viGt me (on my birth* C' night) with affliaion, yet (fuch is hi great S' goodnets !) my a t l i ~ n is not without a19 '' leviating circumfiar~ces. I murmur not j

" but am all reiignation to the divine will. " As to the world, I hope that11 ihall be e n ~ F' dued by' Heaven with that' preknce ' of C' mind, that ferene dignity in misfbttiule, " that c e d l i ~ t e s . the charahr of a true no.. " blemd ; a dignity far beyond that of co- b' ronets ; a nobility arifing from- the juA v principles of philofophy, refined ahd a d k 46 ed by thqfg of .chriiXanity,"e

He continued five days at the &er's, in hopes that he ihould be able to procure bail, and av&d the necefity of going to priion. The itate irr which ha pared his tfme, and the treatment which he received; are very jnffly sxyreffed by him in a letter which he .wrote to a friend : The whole day," fays he, " has been employed in various peoples' " filling my be& with their foofiih chimeri-

.cal fyfims, which has obliged me coolly " (as far as nature will admit) to digelt, and fi' accomm3date myklf to, every different

A a 3, S' perfon's

358 S A V A G E . " perfion's way of thinking ; hurried f rod '' one wild fyfiem to another, till it lias quite " made a chaos of my imagination, and no- " thing done-promiufed-dXappointed---or- 4' dered to fend, every hour, from one part 6' of the town to the other."-

When his friends, who had hitherto ca- r d e d and applauded, found that to give bad and pay the debt was the hme, they all refufed to preferve him from a priibn at the expence of eight pounds ; and therefore, &er having' been for fome *time at the officer's houfe, " at an immenfe expence," as he obferves in his letter, he was at length removed to Newgate,

This expence he was enabled to fipp01.t by the generofity of Mr. Nafh at Bath, who, upon receiving from him an account of his condition, immediately fent him five guineas, and prpnifed to promote his fubfcription at Bath with all his intereik,

By his removal to Newgate, he obtained . at leait a freedom from fuufpenfe, and refi

from - the difiurbing vicifitudes of hope and l

difappointment ; he now found that his fri.enQs

S A V A G E .

friends were only companions, who were willing to hare his gaiety, 'but not to partake of his misfortunes ; and therefore hc no l ~ n g e r expetted any ailiflance from them.

It muit however be obferved of one gen- ' tleman, that he offered to releafe him by

paying the debt ; but that Mr. Savage would '

not confeeat, I- fippofe becaufe he thought he bad before been too'burthenibrne to him,

He was offered .by ibme of his friends, -that a colleaion fhould be made for his en- largement ; but he '' treated the prppofal," and declared, " he i o u l d again treat it, with

dicdain. As to writing any mendicant let; '' ters, he .had too high a fpirit, and deter- '' mined only to write to lome miniiters of S' flate, to try to regain his peniion."

He continued to complain of thoik that had lept him into the country, and objeaed to them, that he had " lofi the profits of his '' play, which had been finiihed three years; 9 9

and in another letter declares his refolution to publifh a pamphlet, that the world might knpw how " he had been ufed."

A a 4 This

This pamphlet was never written ; for ha in a very fhort time recovered his ufual tranquillity, and chearfull~ applied himiklf to more inoffenfive itudies. He indekd Readily declared, that he was promikd a yearly allowance of fifty pounds, and never received half the rum; but he feemed to refign himfelf to that as well as to other misfortunesl and lore the remembrance of . it _ . . , in his mule- ments and ernployments;

The chearfulnefs with which he bore his canfimement, appears Trom the following let* ter, which he wrote, -januaty the 3oth, to one of his friends in London ;

" I natp write to yod from my confine- <' ment in- Newgate, where 1 have been ever '' fince Monday laf? was fe'nnight, and '' where I enjoy myfelf with much more " tranquillity than I have known for upwards " of a twelvemonth p& ; hiving a rgom '' entirely to mylelf, and puduing the a&uie-

ment of my poeticat ffudes, uninterrupted, and agreeable to my mind: I thank the

ti ~ l n r i f i t y , I am now AI c o ~ i e ~ ~ ~ ! d id my- {elf; and, 'though my perfa h .in eonfme-

'6 went,

S A V A G E , 36s f c ment, my mind can expatiate on ample

and ufeful fubjeQs with all the freedom !' imaginable. I am now more convexdint '6 with the Nine than ever ; and if, inffead r' of a Newgate-bird, I may be allowed to he

a bird of the ~ i f e s , I arure you, Sir, I +! Gng yery freely in my cage 3 fometimes fc indeed in the plaintive notes of the night- !' ingale ; but, at others, in the chearfd f' itrains of the lark."-

In another letter he obferves, &at he ranges from one fubjea to another, without =onfi,ning hi&lf to any particular t a k ; and that he was employed one week upon one attempt, and the next upon another.

Surely the fortitude of this man dderves, at leait, to be mentioned with applaufe; ancl, whatever faults. may be imputed to him, the virtue of fuffering well cannot be denied him. T h e two powers'which, in the opinion of EpiQetus, confiituted a G.fe man, are thofe of bearing and forbearing, which cannot indeed be &rrned to have been equally poffeff- ed bp Savage ; and indeed the want of one obliged him very frequently to praCtife the other.

6 Hc

363 S - A V A G E, He was treated by Mr. Dagg, the keeper

o l the prifon, with great humanity ; was fupported by him at his own table without

I

I

l 1 any certainty of recompence ; had a room t o

himreif, to which be could at any time retire from all difiurbance ; was allowed to fiand a t the door of the pril'on, and fometimes taken but into the fields ; fo that he fiffered fewer bardfhfps in prifon than he had been accuf- tomed to undergo- in the greatefi part of his life,

The keeper did not confine his benevolence to a gentle execution of his office, but made fome overtures to the creditor for his releafe, though without effea ; and continued, du-

l ring the whole time of his, impriforiment, to treat him with the utmofi tenderneis I

vility. . . . I

. Virtue is undoubtedly mofi laudable in that l

itate which makes it mofi difficult ; and therefore the humanit: of a gaoler certainly de- 'ierves this public attefiation ; and the man, whofe heart has not been hardened by fuch an employment, may be juftly propofed as ;i pattern of benevolence. If an infcription was

- '* awe

S A V A G E . 363

once engraved " to the honeit toll-gatherer," lefs honours ought not to be paid " to the

tender gaoler."

Mr. Savage very frequently received vifits, an3 fometimes prefems, from his acquaintances; but they did not amount to a fub- fiitence, for the greater part of which he was indebted to the generofity of this keeper; but thefe favours, however they might endear to him the particular peribns from whom he received them, were very far from impreff- ing upon his mind any advantageous ideas of the people 9f BriRol, and therefore he thought he could not more properly employ himfelf in prifon, than in writing a poem called '( Lon-

don and BriAol delineated."

When he had brought this poem to its - prefent itate, which, wifhout coniidering the

c h a h , is not perfea, he wrote to London an account of his defign, and informed his fiiend, that he was determined to print it with his name; but enjoined him not to communicate his intention to his BriAol acquaintance. The gentleman,' furprifed at his ~efolution, endeavoured to diffuade him from

. publifiing

364 S A V A G E . publiihing it, at leait from prefixing his name; and declared, that he could not reconcile the injunaion of fecrefy with hh refol~tion to own it at its firit appearance. To this Mr. Savage returned an anfwer agreeable & his qharaEter in the following terms.

' 6 I received yours this morning; and not cc without a little furprize at the contents. sc T o anfwer a queition with a qudion, you Sc -B& - the concerning Londoo and Br im,

Why will T add delineated? Why did Mr. Woolailon add the Came word to his RE^

fc L I G I O N OF NATURE? I fuppofe that it cc was his will and p l d u r e to add it in his 'C cafe; and i t is mine to do fo in my own?

You are pleafed to tell 'me, that you underitand not why fecrefy is enjoined, and '

" yet I intend to fet my-name to it. My " anfwer is-I have my private reaibns, '' which I am not sbligsd to explain to any " one. You doubt my friend Mr. S-, '' would not approve of it-And what is it

l

F' to me whether he does or not? DO you imagine that Mr. S- is to di&te to me? If any man who calls h ide l f my

t fiiend dhould aGme iq& air, I wouM " fp'pura

8 A V - A G g . 365 "'fPurn at his friendfhip with contempt.

You fay, I Ceem to- think fo by not letting him know it-And hppofe I do, what

" then ? Perhaps I can give reaf~ns for that " difapprobation, very foreign from what " you would imagine. You go on in faying,

Suppofe 1 fhould not put my name to it- '' M y anfwer is, that I will not fuppofe any

fuch thing, being determined to the con-. trary: neither, Sir, would I have you fuppofe, that I applied to you for want of

" another prefs: nor would 1 have you imagine, that I owe Mr. S- obligatione

" which I do not."

Such was his imprulerice, land f ~ c h his o b fiinate adherence to his own refolutions, however abfurd. A p r i b c r ! fupported by charity! and, whatever infults he might have received during the latter part' of his Ray in Briitol, once careffed, deemed, and prelentd ed with a liberal colleliion, he cadd fmget on a iudden hi danger and his obligations, to gratify tbe petulance of his wit, or the eagernch of ,his rehtmsnt, and publiib a fatire, by which he might realonably exp+ &at he ihould alienate thsfe who then hp*

ported

, ported him, and provoke thofe whom he could neither refifi nor elcape.

This refolution, from the execution of which it is probable that only his death could have hindered him, is fufficient to ihew, how much he diiiegarded all confi- -

derations that oppofed his prefent pafions, and how readily he hazarded all future advantages for any immediate gratifications. Whatever was his predominant inclination, neither hope nor fear hindered him from

with it; nor had oppofition any other effea than to heighten his ardour, and irritate his vehemence.

This performance was however laid aGde, while he was employed in.foliciting afifiance from feveral great perfons ; and one intermp- tion fucceeding another, hindered him from fupplying the chafm, and perhaps fiom re- touching the other parts; which he can hardIy .

be imagined to have finifhed in his own opinion; for it is very unequal, and Come of 1 the lines are rather inferted to rhyme to others, than to fupport or improve the fenfe; but the fi& and lafi parts are worked up with great fpirit and elegance.

His

S A V A ' G E. 367

His time was fpent in the pyifon-for the moit parr in fiudy, or in receiving vifits ; but ibmetimes he defcended to lower amufements,

.and diverted himfelf in the kitchen with the converfation of the criminals; .for it was not pleafing to him to be 'much without company; and though he was very capable of a

I judicious choice, he was , often contented with the firit that offered: for this he was fometimes reproved by his friends, who found him iurrounded with felons; but the reproof was on that, as on other occafions, thrown away; he continue'd to gratify himfel-f, and to fet very little value on the opinion of

, . . . . others.

But here, as in every other fcene of' his life, ' h e made ufe of fuch opportunities as -- occurred of benefiting thofe who were more miferable than himiklf, and. was always ready to perform any o$ye of humanity to-his fellow-prifoners.

H e had dow ceafed from correfponding with any of his fubfcribers except one, who yet continued to remit him the twenty pounds a year which h e had promXed him, and by

whom

whom it was expeaed that he would have! been' in a very ihort time enlarged, becaufc he had direQed the keeper to enquire after the Aate of his debts.

However, hie took care to enfer his name according to the forms of the court, that the creditor might be obliged to make him fome dlowahce, if he was continhed a priibner, and when on that occafion he appeared in the hall was treated with very unufuai d p e &

But the refentment of the city was afterwards raifed by fome accounts that had been. fpread of the latire, and he was informed that fome of the merchants intended to pay the allowance which the law required, and

a to detain him a prifoner at their own ex+ pence. This he treated as an empty me- &ce; and perhaps might have haitcned the. publication, only to fieas how much he was fuperior to their infults, had not all h;s fchems been fiddenly defiroyed.

When he had been fix months in prifon, he received from one of his friends*, in

Mr. Pope,

whofe

whofe kindnefs he had the greatefi confidence, , g ~ d on ,yvho[e aaQjftnce he chiefly depended, a letter, that contained a charge of very atro-

I cious ingratitude, drawn up in luch terms as

- fudden refernwent . di&at,ed. Mr. Savagq returned - a very E ~ p ~ & ~ ~ r o t ~ t f p t i o n pf his innocence, but howev.er appeared mwh diC- turbed at the acqdatioon. Some days afterwards he a s s feized with-= pain in his back and- fide, which, as .it. was not violent, was ,

pot fufpe&ed to be dangerous; but growing .daily more langGd and dejeeed, on the 25th 6f ~ u l y he confined bimfelf to-his room, and a fever feized his. fpirits. The fymptoms grew every day more formidable, but his condition did not en9ble him .to procure *any ajT~itanc.e. The lafi t i p e that. the keeper iaw him wis on ~ u l y tb &Pi when Savage, . - . feeing him at his bed-fide, faid, with an un- .-wmrnon- earnepnefs, " I .have lromething to ." i iy tb you, .Sir;" but, after a paufe, moved .his hand- , in a melancholy manner; and, finding .himElf unable. to recollea what he was going .to. communicate, hid, " 'Tis i" gone!" The .keeper Eoon after left him;

B b . YOL. 111. 'and

: and .the next mornik he- died. -fie W& bu- . :*sd: Jp the &mh-yad of ;&. . h e r ,

, . - expence of the keeper. I . . , +;

; Such were - the ' 1%~ aid death-'of Ricfmrd -Savage, a man ~ququillp d&n@ihed%y MS

- virtues and vices; and .at once remarkable. fdr *his .weaklieKes and abilities. . . . . , . - -

- ! . . . ... . . . . . . . . .

He was of i midal= fbtun'e, tgih dab& ; of body, a h g vifqe,'- coarie' '[dat'ipr'k~, >nd mdancholy - ~ 8 ~ e t t ; ~ iX .a and manly

Ldepeitment, a f o h n . . dignity , of' . . inikii ; Wt ' whioh, :upon a nearer-acquaiimnce, .foftened 'iitd * .Cngaging 'e;i~&d~ &' m&hed. ; H& . . .walk-dras flow, and' his doice khu lous and imour&l: He-was eafily, excited ,to frniles, but :very: . . feldoml prbv~kea ti la4hter. *

. . . . . . .. , . h . - . # ,.. . . 2 , 8 . .:

MS-nihh was in an' ~ A c ~ r d m o t l : dkgkb pi; -gorous - and a Q i m His judg&n&'~$bas~jiccu- . . l rate, his .apprehenfibn quick, andL-Tris , .. me- 'mory h . tinaciou$, thdt he waP1fi-ehumly obfehed to know what he'had'leiimed ffom

;others, in a fhort time,. bGt& than'thofe- by whom he was informed; and could frequently recollett incidents, with all their combi- . .

- - ..--. . i .. -nation

# A ' V - A ; a : E !

37* iik&i~ibf:: c ~ ; ~ f f a c i b , . dfikh f& w&]d

I

fidde ., &@ii€l& . . ~trtTie;$&hE. tiadei! b~owfiich ' & wlf& :& apirr&hr& c . jkp'*ae&

h#+li k2d &cdi& fell*, th$r - MS ~ & & # ~ r i * . n ~ ~ : d d & ~ l e & him;'; he . was.

ir?ekt.;tb .2Tdfj? *bjt~;-$)id 'xgardf&l of-the. rdbfl! &iRi 6t?tA~rknte% !-H& ha& the:* of iiEIarj'h@i~rbP.&s &W& ikMi'ongl ~ r i d r ~ & : - w & i r $ ~ h ~ ~ d f t ~ - e v e ~ i ~ . i c e n ~ I - !

r ..< ., - 8 . - . c ,.>ix,':, - ' J , ; L*; :-:- : ,b;. 'I.# g ,. - - . . l

. . ~ o ' & { ~ - ' ~ ~ l i t y is i b be impuied'the ~~~~

of his knowledge, compared with the.'-&al~ time which he fpent in vifible eildeavours to mpuim-; h: r : ~ H ' k fnirigM , iir ? o u m - - p n m r - .. -.- - f a t i m d ~ k h ~ t ~ ~ iamtReadb$rdt a t r e o n =?g aHcw q p l y ;m; E' kQuwg ad; I a t p i a --W ap~eake'.ofi~hytghdefs; ga&tyj :l& .go ide . i - tb~ .was , ;Aa.rteB, . . rfio! hint. tw:c?ylp, h! improved. -; He h G - t$erefori made, .in, q~fftx-hwfi: the1 fame. pr@i~ficjepcg. as- in ot&er. :,

@u&F~j.gnd it is . . . .remarkabk.that-khq -.- ., .. . ,- A. . &itT: of a . . _ , - _ , _ man pfi l i t t l e , d u c ~ t i D ~ -. . .-., . , 344 k&+

reading bauq L an ..-.. air ._ .;of . . ] w i n g . . _ , I la,%ce)r tq, fdund in . . . any. . other [email protected], l . . I . . , .bur

wh&hSpe&aps.as . . ., , . . often, . obtci.lres- . , a3 em,b'7$@e< p . ..

3

I '

" ( ' - . . . - - . . . . -. I -..--. . - r l

.d : '?h'

B ~ Z His

His judgemefit.. w36 ~minendy exaQ both ' with regvd:to e t i n 8 4 and m men. n e

knowledge of life - was indeed his chief at- tainment; and it i s % without fope fatic- f a a o i , that 1 Can produce the fu@aQe of Satrage in fqvour of h ~ m a n natyre, of which he never qppeared to entertain h c h o d i ~ u s ideas as fome, who perhaps ha$ neither his judgement nor experience, have publiihed, either in oflentation of their fagacity, vindication of their crimes, or gratification . ( of t w r malice.

His method of life particularly qualified him fbr cunver~ation; of which he knew how to praAife all the graces, He was never vehement or loud, b ~ t at once modeit and eafy, open and refpe&thl; his language was viva- cious and elegant, and equally happy upon

i grave or humorous fubj&s.' Hc was generally

I

cenhred for not knowing when' to retire; but that was not the aefe@ of m his judgehent, but of his forkne ; when h= left his company, he was frequently i o @end the remaining part of the night in the fireet, or at leaR was . . abandoned to gloomy refleeions, which

it ( l

S ' A V A G E. '3 73 i t is not mange that he delayed as long as he could; and fometimis forgot that he gave others pain to avoid it himfelf.

It cannot be faid, that he made nfe of his abilities for the direaion of hie'own condua : an irregular and dx~pated manner of life had made him the flave of' every pailion that happcned 'to be excited by the prefence of .its objea, and that flavery to his paifions reci- 1 procally produced % a life irregular and diifi- pated. - He was not mafter of his own motions, nor could promife any thing for the next day.

. - with regard to hi's ceconbmy, nothing ban

be added to the relation of his lifb. 'He- ap;. pearkd to think hirnfelf bbm to L fupporteh by:otheri, and difpenfed from Q all neceility of providhg for hidelfelf; he ~heiefbre nriver profecuted any fcheme 'of ' advantage, nor endeavoufed even to fe%e the profits which. .his writing; kight have afforded him. ' His h;hpkwa$ in codequence of the dominion of. 'his pafions, uncertain and capricious; he was .eafily engaged, add eafily difgufied; but he is . . . _ . . - - _ .

. . B b..3 accufed - -

H e was compaifionate both by nature and pr;'~iple, y+$ lwgp L 0 .read ( 1 1 y t a . ge*q pfficcs of humanity,; . . . > ' 8 but, t wkI3,-,$e C a Q P ! $r'Qk$d (and very fmall oflencep . v~~p . {ylident tp . .

pov&e .dip), he $vou,Id . . pr;fec~& . -. l$ .. revw - .

with the u~pnoit(acrimony,~l . . .. -. & 1 ~ ; ~ ? 5 n , , . . had . .

fub&ded. , , ' . .-. : , - , . . !. . - : . . . L.l r .. . . i'.

. . . * - , . r . - # B

. ..- -, . 7 . .-..- * ... . m .a - -->.d., . t

. .4&.-Gieqdlhip.gas therdojenf &1e vaiw for {hp* ::be'~was;ziea1nus id,* fuFpw .G; vindication of thole whom he . loved.,-,vt if was always dangerous to truft him, becaufe he confidered . hlpf$€, .. +S ,dikharggd . . . - - A - by . . he :m: l frQp, .+!;+S : gf MQJ~-!o~ gr* t;4e ; 4 +&W begay . t b ~ l . :fwetf ~ h i h - . l .

h .the b?rp+ ,~f,.$q9#ide~cq, ,been :imj <axiid . to ,hjxq. , ~ h i y pii@iCi: . : ; ~ I ;~LR ' .... him . L . _ L . an . unive* . . ,a&,~.Cabi(rn - , .g$, i$j&titudei .- . .

p p i t . be .degizd that be h+,vg : ~ d # ;t:@ife t . &imfi$f:fr~~ from the c ) qfj+p ,&!it ..*io,?. ; .;. . .for M; :q.swld , no6 .'&+E p o n c d v e

-;hirnW :in -9. %tfs $ependsw,- W. q r i d ~ ;bd!?g:-equ?ll~ : m e 6 1 .TBii!J C :0#Y' R& .fmp,,and appe&ixg;i4,the form o f iniolence - ,-

at I

S A V.. A,- G'. E., 37.9.

. at *one time, a n h f ;vanity at, another. ' Va-, nity, the moit innocent .Epecies of psi&, .was mofi. fiequatly predominant :. He cdu1d:not' eafily leave off, when' he had onk bkun to; mention himfelf or his works; nor ever read his verfes without fiealing his . . ,eyks: . . . fi.oa,lhe . .. page, $0 difcover, iq the faces of his aud&nc% how they were afk&?d, with any, favouritq pairage- . . . . . . .

. . . . ' :: . ; * I

a . . .

. A. kig&r name thaw ihat bf *.anity: oughg to be given to the delicacy :with which he was always careful to feparate his own merit from every other man's, and to mjea that praife to which he had qo claih. He did not .... :foWb. in . . mentioning . .. his performances,. t a mark every linq that had been luggeied aq,akadiJ ed.; add was fp accurate, as to . relate . . that ha. owed &ee , . words ixi The Wandetfit:. to :the nd-: vice of hia . friends. . . . .

A .

His :p&v was qwfiioned, but opith,:litd. tle - rgqfq ; his accounq, ..tbpugh wt. dpcjeed,- alxays the lame, . were: generally confifient,.

I when: he loved any map, be fuppreged a&

faults ; a ~ d , when be Bad beeb offended; ' by him, conc;eded 311 bjs virtues:. blit his

I . . B b 4 charaaers

charaaers were generally true, fo far as ha proceeded ; though it canfiot be denied, thaa his partiality might have fornaimes the &e& of fallehood.

In c;ifes indiffetent, he was zealous for vir- me, truth, and jnfiicr: he knew very well the necefity of goodnefs to the prefkat and fa- ture happincfs of mankind ; nor is thete perhaps any writer, who has lefs endeavoured to pleafe by flattering the appetites, -or pervert- ing . thr: judgement.

. . , . L- .- . .. -

C A; ari amhor, . . thefefore, and he now ceafes to- infl a e n ~ rndnkied in any other chara&er, !

iF one piecewhich he had fefolved to fuppreis !

b;eex6eptd,- he has very little to fear from' the ftriaeit metal or 1-eligiotrs cenfure. Anb though he rnaymt be altogether fecure again* the objeaions of the critic, it mufi howevef be acknowledged, that his works are the pro- mlt50ns of' a: genhs truly po&ical ; 'and, I what many wri~er6 who have beea more la-L I

1 vifhly applauded camot .boaik, that they have:

original air, which has no ref&rnblance of Ay foregoing writer ; that the verfification and f entheas have- a cafi peculiar to.-rhe&

\ . i --. {elves, .

klves, which no man can imitate with ' fdc~ sefs, becaufe what was nature in Savage,. would in another be affeaation. It mufi be' confeffed, that his defcriptions are firiking, his images animated, his fietions juffly ima- '

gined, . arid hls allegories artfufly purfued ; that his diQion is elevated, though ibmetimes forced, and his numbers Sonorous and majbf- tic, though frequently fluggifh and encum- bered. Of his fiyle, the general fault'i* harf?w nefs, and its general excellence is dignity; of his lentiments, xhe prevailing beauty is iubli- mity, and uniformity the prevailhg defea '

, . For h$ life, & for his writings, none, who

candidly confider his fortune, will think &i apoiogy either neceffary or difficult. If he was not always fufficiently inftI%€ted in 'his iubjeb, his. knowledge was at lea^ greatei than could. have been attained by others in the fame itate. If his works were fometimk unfiniihed, accuracy cannot reafonably be ex- a&id from a-man op$reffeed with want, whicli he has no of ieHiving but by's fpeedy publication. c The infdence afid refentment of which he i s accufed were. not eafily to' be' avoided by . .. a great mind, irritated by -perpe- , . , . - . a . tual

tua b$xdlhips,- an4 conItraine+ hbutly to return the fpurns of contempt, and ~ p e f s tbe i&lwce of prorperity; and vanity may furely readily be. pardo~ed. in him, to who# life afi

'- faded no other e&fms than barren praifes, and thl: confcio~fn~C_s of deferving them,

. Th~fe arc no groper ja&gsc of his caidu&, mho hqve numbered away., theu time on the down af duence ; .nor vriill . any- 'wXe man preiitrrig to fay, '.',Had I been in Savage's '' condition, I &odd . have lived or' written

bettet than 'Savage.": . . . . .

This relatiob will not* be whollp:without.its H~i, if th&, who ladguiih under.any part of hie . cufferingi, . . hall be .&nabled io. foztif!y heir. pieme,. by r e f l c a i , ~ that they .feel qx-11.~ thofe qf%Qioqs from, which the. . . . abilities of Savage did not exemit. him ; . , . or th&, -.... who, in . confidence of luperior capacities . . . or attain- mknys, difi;egard, the common maxims of Weife, ha14 be. rerni&edi that . nothiag ..will i w l y the want of *tud&ee ; and thL- . ,.- negligence . - and i,rregularity, ,19ng continued, mill . rn+q kqoyledledge n, ufeld,. . ? i ~ ridicul&s,, F<n(emp&le. . A .. . . .

.. .. ' S “ SWIFT<

W I F T .

ccount of Dr. Swift has been already AN A colle&ed, with great diligence and acute-

nefs, by Dr. Hawkefworth, according. to a fcheme which I laid before him in the intimacy of our friendfhig. I cannot therefore be expeaed to fay much of a life, concerning which I ha4 long iince communicated, my fhoughts to a man capable of dignifying his parratibn with ib much elegance of language and force of . . fentiqent, r

J 0 A T-H AN S W I F T was, according to an account faid .... to , be . written by hiifglf, the ion of Jonathan Swift, a? +ttorne+, and was born at Dublin on St. Andrew's day, 3 667 : according to his own report, as deli- ~ q e d by Pope to Spence, he was born at

Leicefier,

Leicefler, the fon of a clergyman, who was miniiter of a parifh in Herefordfhire*. Du- ring kis -ii& the -*--8f--kis birtk W* unde~ termined. We was contented to be called a n Irifhman by the Irifh ; but would occafionally call Gmfelf~ +n Engwman. ... he quefiion

k may3 without 'much rCgret, be 7 eft in the obfcurity in which he delighted to involve it.

. Whatever was his . ,birth, . , his . L .... education- , was kin;. -: H e was lent it' tKe: Age; of 6% i6 the -rChZ6i .' at : kilken;lji 'and in his 'fift$Lf& year a)4' i;;ii a.adi;ie;lvfritb' df . .. .. r 8 .

Dublin,' - A -

' ( , . . . __ . . . _ - ._ , . . . . ..- , , . . ' . . . . ) , '

. . . - . . . In, his academical Audies Fie %is:'eTt'liiir3nd hlligk hipi, y;-- 'If 4h~fi':df."

l appoint '&ev' reader's ei$$?i%tidn;. that, .&'hen at the

t;me, fie- .&i:JLdLtke.. B;Ygildr&p of

Arts, he was found 67 the' dirihi&i-$ t& confpicuoufly deficient for regular admiifion, hd ob;t~'ma& his' d'egr& ,at Edt by&&&$- 1 -7.'; !h 't&m ded:in \hat uniiififf to &no# ~

. a . . , hatt of merit: . . . ,

. : . c . . , . J 2 .:;l.. : L .. : ; . ,

. - t .

. . - T Spence's Anefdatn, ,vol. U R. 273.. - , . > ;','; .*.

S' W '.I F T. .73 83 of 'ihis &&hie it niay be ~iClf.f+$ofea

.that he was much afharned, and h& h$ its propei &eQ in reformation. He re: 'iolved :from that time to Rudy eight houis a-day, inid cbndnued his induRry fof fiveil

y e w , wirh what. improvement is fdc i en t ly known. This part OF - his 'fiery well 'deferveb to be remembered ; it may afford ufeful- ad- monition . and , powerful encouiagkiint to many men, whofe abilities have beeh mad= for a time .ufelefs by their pafions plea- rures, and who, having 2oR one p&:df lifk i n idlenefs, are tempted -to throw seat the remainder in defpair. ' . . .

In this ;ourre of daily yplication he eontif nued three years longer at Dublin ; ' and i; this time, if the obiervation and rnernoii'if an old companion may be truited, he .. - drew .

the firit &etch of his lole',bfa l&; , - -

- . . . - - * . . . ..

.- . 4 . - -. When he was about b h e - a n d k e n t y

( r 688), being by the death of Godwin Swift his umk, who had- fqpo&d: hi&,- l;! -with- w t fuubfifience, he went to c&fult his moth&, *

who then lived at' ~ e i & R k , ' aboi~t t he fumi i 1 cmrk 6f his l i e , and by hei dirci?ion-folk?-

384 S W I F T . ed the advice and patronage of Si Wilfiam Temple, who had married -one of Mrs. Swift's relations, and whofe father Sir John I Temple, Mailer of the Rolls in Ireland, had lived in great familiarity of friendfhip with Godwin Swift, by whom Jonathan had. been to that time maintained.

Temple received with fufficient kindneis the nephew of his father's friend, with whom h e was, when they converfed toggthq, fo p u c h pleafed, that he detained him two years in his houfe. Here he became known to King William, who fometimes vifited Tem- ple when he was difablbled by the gout, and, being attended by Swift in the garden, ihewed him how to cut abaragus in the Dutcb vay.

King William's notions were all military ; and he expreffed his kinanefi to Su i f tby offering to.make him a captain of horfe.

When Temple removed to Moor-park, he took Swift with him; and when he was con- f i l e d by the Earl of Portland about the ex- pedieqce of complying with a bill then d p

4 pending

ptniding for making ,parliaments triennial, againit which King. William was fiongly prea judiced, after having in vain tried to h e w the Earl that the propofal involved nothing dcingerous to royal power, he fent Swift for the fame purpofe to the King. SW*, who probahly was proud of his employment, and went with all the confidence of a young man, #bad his arguments, and his art of difplay- ing them, made totally ineffeEtua1 by the pre- determination of the King ; and ufed to meii- tion this difappointment as his firit antidote .' againit vanity,

. : Before h i left Ireland he.contra+d a dz- order, as he thought, by eating too inuch fruit. The original of dii'eafey is commonly

. obfcure. AlmoR every boy eats as much fruit as he can get, without any great'incon- venience. . The difeafe of Swift was giddinefs

with deafnefs, which attacked him from time to rime, begm very early, purfued him through life, and at laR fent him to the grave, deprid ved of.'reaion.

: Being much opprered at Moor-park by this grievous malady, he was adviikd to try . Vor.. 111. C c his

his native air, and went ro Ireland ; h; finding no benefit, returned Sir W1Viam+ at whofe houk he c m t i n k d his W s , and is known to bare read, among other books, C'riatr and henairs. He thqk exexile of great mc&y, and d e d to rua half a mik up and down a bill mry two hoks. . .

I t i s eafy to imagine that thr mode in ~ & c h his firit degree was conferred lef t him 'no &reat b fondncls for the Univeriity of Dublin, arid therefore he reiblved .to became a. M* of Arts at Oxford. In the tefiimon3al which he produced, the words of difgrace were. omitted, and he id& h i s hdafier's dcpjxe (July g, 1 $4) with fuch reception and-=- a r d as gdly contented him. '

While .he' .Ii'ved* with. Tempk,- he uEed pay his lnother at LeiceRer an yearly &lit., He traselled on foot, urilds forne violme d ikath,er drdvk him into a wagprq- at Gg?it he would go to a penny I.odging,.where he purchafed clean. fheets for f i ~ p e n c e . 'This pra&ice- Lord Orrery imputes to his innate love' of groffnefs and vulgaiii : iome may S i b e

. .

$11 its varieties; and bthers, perhaps with equal probability, to a - paffton which reerns to have been deep fixed. in his heart, ' the love of a fhilling. . .,

In time he began t o t&nk that his attend-' ance at hloor-park diferved Come other re- cornpence than the pleafure, however mingled with improvement, of Temple's converfation; and grew ib impatient, that (1694)- he went away in dii'c~ntent.

. .

. Temple, covfcious of having given rcafan for complaint, is faid to have a a d e him De- puty Mafier ~f the Rolls in Ireland ; which, according .to his .kinfman9s account, was an office which, he knew h i p not able to dii- charge. , S&@ therefore reblved to enter into the Churah, in which he had at fire no higher hopes than of the chaplainihip to the Fa&ory at ~ i i b o n but being recommended to Lord caPel, he obtained the prebend of IkTiJrooit in Connor, of about a hundred pounds a p m . - .. . '

, .

1' But the infirmities of Temple made a companion like [email protected], that he invit- .. - C c 2 e d

388 S-. W l F T. ed him back, with a promife to procure him. EngIiih preferment, in exchange for the prebend which he defued him to refign. With this requefi SW* quickly complied, having.; perhaps equally repented their feparation, and they lived .on together with mutual fatisfac- tion; and, in the four years that f l e d between his return and Temple's death, it is probable that he wrote the Tale of a Tub and the Battle of tbe Books.

Swift began early to think, .or to hope, that he was a poet, and wrote Pindarick Odes to Temple, to the King, and to the Athe- nian Society, a knot of obfcurc men, who publifhed a periodical pamphlet of anfwers to queitions, lent, or fuppofed to be fent, by Letters. I have been told that Dryden, having peruied thefe veriks, faid, " Coufin Swift, " you will never be a poet;" and that this denunciation was the motive of swift's perpetual malevolence to Dryden.

I11 I Ggg Temple died, and lefi .a legacy '

with his manufcripts to Swift, for whom he had obtained, from King William, a promife of the firit prebend that ihould be ?scant at WeAininiter or Canterburp

That

That this promife might not be forgotten, Swift dedicated to. the King the pofihumous works with which he was intrufied, but ~ e i - ther the dedication, xaor tendernefs for the man whom he once had ti-eated with confidence and fondnefs, revived in King William the remembrance of his prornife. Swifi awhile attended the Court; but fbon found hi foGdtations h6pelefs.

H e was then invited by the Earl of Berka ley to accompany him into Ireland, as his private fecretary; but after having done the bufinellb till their arrival at Dublin, he then

found that one Bl/6 had perhaded the Earl that a clergyman was not a proper fecretary, and had obtained the office for hidelf. In a man like Swift, fuch circumvention and int confiancy mufi have excited violent i n d i ~ nation. . .

But he had yet moro to fuffer. Lord Berkley had the diipofal of the deanery of Derry, and Swift expeaed to obtain it; but by the fecretary's influence, fuppofed to have been fecured by a bribe, it was beitowed on fomebody elfe; and .Swift was diiiniffed with the livings of Laracop

C f . 3 and

390 S W I F T , and Ratbbeggin in the diocefe of Meath? which together did not equal half the value of the deanery.

At Laracor he increafed the parochial duty by reading prayers on Wednefdays and Fri- days, and performed all the ofhces of his profefion with great decency and e i e n e f s ,

Soon after his fettlement at Laracor, he; invited to Ireland the unfortunate Stella, a young woman whofe name was Johnfon, the daughter of the Reward of Sir William Tem- ple, who, in confideration of her father's virtues, left her a thoufand pounds. With her came Mrs. Dingley, whofe whole fortune mas twenty-feven pounds a year for her lie. -With thefe Ladies he paired his hours of re- lasatioa, and to them he opened his boibm; but they never rliided in the fame houCe, nor did he fee either without a witnefs. They lived at the Paribnage, when Swift was away; and when he returned, removed to a

.lodging, or to the houfe of a neighbouring clergyman.

S W I F T . 39'

- Swifi was not one of thoik minds which amaze the world with early pregnancy: his firit work, except his few poetical Effays, was the DzJttntions in Atben$ and Rome, publifhed (I 70 I) in his thirty-fourth year. Aftq its appearance, paying a vXit to hrne biihop, . . he heard mention made of the new pamphlet that Burnet had written, replete with political knowledge. When hp feemed to doubt Bur- net's right to the'work, h: was told . . by the Biihop, that he was a young man; and, itill periifting to doubt, that he was 0 very poJtive, young man.

Three years afterward (1704) was publifhl: ed The Tak bf a Tub: of this book charity may be perriaded t o think that it might be written by a man of a peculiar charaCter, without ill intention, but it is certainly 0s

'dangerous example. That Swift was its author, though it be univerially believed, was.

. never owned by himfelf, nor very well pro- yed by any evidence; but no other claimant

- can be produced,, and he did not deny it when Archbiihop Shaspe and the Duchefs of Somerfet, by hewing it to the Qeen, de- barred him from . . a biihoprick.

c c $ When

392 S W I F T . When this wild'work firit raifed the attcn-

tion ' of the publick, Sacheverell, meeting Smalridge, tried to flatter him, by feeming to think him the author; but Smalridge anfwered with indignation, " Not all *that you f c and I have in the world, nor all that ever

we hall have, fhould hire: me to write the f b Tale of a Tub."

The digreaorls relating to W n t t ~ n and Bentley muft be confefled to difcover want of

' knowledge, ,or want of integrity; he did not underfiand the two controverftes, or he willingly miireprefented them. But Wit can' itand its ground againit Truth only a little while. The honours due to learrling have been jufily diitibuted by the decifion of pofterit y,

7be Battle 6f tbe &oks is fo like the Com- but de.s Livrrr, which thk iaqe quefiion con-

' cerning the Ancients and Moderns had produced in France, that the improbability af fuch a coincidence of thoughts without com- plunication is not, in my opinion, balanced by the anonymolls protellation prefixed, is which all knowledge of the French book i s peremptorily difow~ed,

For

S W I F T . 393

For fome time after Swift was probably employed in iblitary fiudy, gaining the quali- fications requiiite for- future. eminence. How ~ f t e n he vifited England, and with what diligence he attended his pariihes, I know not. It was not till about four years afterwards that he became a profeffed author, and then one year (1708) produced 5%- Sentimntr of 4 Cburcb-of-England Man; the ridicule of Aitrology, under the name of Bickegaf, the Argument igainJf abozfl~ing Cbrgianity; and the defence of the Sacramental r e p . ,

The Sentirnent~ o f n Church-of-England Man is written with great coolneb, moderation, eafe, and perfpicuity. The A&- ment againJf nbolging Cbrgianity is a very happy and judicious irony. One paffage in it dererves to be ieleaed:

'c If Chrifiianity were once aboliihed, how '' could the free-thinkers, the firong reafon- 'L ers, and the men of profound learning, be

.C 'L able to find another fubje& fo calculated,

in all points, whereon to difplay their abi- 'L lities? What wonderhi produQions of wit " ihdqld me . .. . be deprived of from thofe, whofie . . '' genius,

* &is, by continual praeice, hath beeq wholly t u n e d . upon raillery and inreaiveg

Cc againfi religion, and would therefore never: be able to ihine, or diitinguifh thedehes, upon any other iubjett? We Bre daily

'L complaining of the great decline of wit, anlcilg us, and would tike away the great-

cc eit, perhaps the only, topick we: have M, * v h o would ever have fufp&ed Afgill for

a wit, or Toland for a phibfopber,' if the 4' . ineshquff ibfe flock of Chriitianity had not

been at hand to provide them with mate- cc rials ? What other lubjdl, through all art sc or nature, could have produced Tindal for U a pofound author, or furnifhed him yith '' readers? It is the wife choice of the h b ~

je&,that alone adorns and difiinguiihe! the -" wxitcr.. For had an hundred fuch pens as

thefe been employed & the fide of religion, they would have immediately funk

" into filence and oblivion."

The reafonablenefi of a TeJZ is not hard to 'be proved; but perhaps i t mufi he allowed that the proper tefi has not been chofen.

' ,'The attention paid. to the papers publiihed h d e k the name of Bickc$az, induced Steele,

2 when

S W I F.. prhen he projeQed the Totlea; to affume an appellation which had already gained poEef- . ,

fion of the reader's'notice. 1 . . . . . In the year following he wrote a PrqeA

f o r the Advancement of Religion, addreffd to Lady Berkley ; by whofe kindnefs it is not. unlikely that he was advanced to his hene- fim. To this projea, which is formed with great purity af intention, and dilplayed with fpritelinefs and elegance, it can only be objeaed, that, like many projeas, it is, if pot generally impratticable, yet evidently hopelefs, as it fuppafes more zeal, concord, and perfeverance, than a view of mankind gives reaibn for expe&ing.

H e wrote Iikewife this year a Vindication of BickerJzaf; and an explanation of an Aacienf Prophecy, which, though not completed in .P

all its parts, cannot be read' without amaze- ment.

Smn after began the bury and important part of Swift's life. He was employed ( I 7 I o) by the Primate of lreland to iolicit the @een for a remifion of the Firit Fruits and Twen- tieth parts to the Irifi Clergy. With this

- purpofe A

396 S W'I F T. purpde he had recourfe to Mr. .Harley, to whom he was mentioned as a man negleQed and opprered by the l& m i d b y , . becauie he had refufed to cwperate with ibme of their fchemes. What he had refufed, has never been told; what he had hffered was, I fup~ofe, the exclufion fiom a biihoprick by the remonitrances of Sharpe, whom h e de- kribes as tbt barmIt$ tool o f 0 t h balc, and whom he reprefents as afterwards fuing fo r pardon.

Harley's defigns and fituation were fuch as made him glad of an auxiliary fo well qudi- fied for his fervice; he therefore foon admitted him t o familiarity, whether ever to confidence fome have made a doubt; but it would have been difficult to excite his zeal without perfuading him that he was trufied, and not very eafy to delpde him by falfe per. fuaficns.

H e was certainly admitted to thofe meet- ings in which the firit hints and original plan of atlion are fuppofkd to have been formed; and was one of the fixteen Miniftero, or agents of the MiniRry, whemet weekly at

6 each

S W I FT: 393 eich other's houies, and were united by the name of Brother.

Being not immediately confidered as an obdurate Tbry, he converfed indif~rirninatel~ with all the wits, and was yet the friend of SteeIe; who, in the 'Tatkr, which began in 1710, confeIfee the advantages of his converfation, and mentions Comething contriht- ed by him to hi8 paper. But he was now immerging into political controverfy ; for the fame year produced the Examiner, of which' Swift wrote thirty-three papers. In argument he may be allowed to have the advantage; for where a wide ij.fiem of condu&t, and the whole of a publick charaaer, is laid open to enquiry, the acwkr having the choice of faas, muit be very.unfkilfu1 if he doe& not prevail; but with regard to wit, I am afraid none of SwifYs papers will be found equal to thole by- which Addiron op pofed him. l

. . . .

Early in: the next :year he pubiiihed a Pro- t0J.l for. c ~ r d n g , i ~ o , w i n g , aJertain* ing #be ElzgZfi Tongue, in a: Letter to the Earl of Oxford ; wriken without much

1 know-

knowledge of the general nature of lingudge, and without any accurate enquiry into the hiftory of other tongues. The certainty and Oabiliry- which, contrary- to aU -experience, -he thinks attainable,. he .propd'es to fecure bp. W u t i n g an academy ; 4he decree29 c# which. eyev . man would .&ve beee will$& .ad. mzop v u l d have . proud and which, being renewed by. fucwi$w: ~k- tions, ,xyouh$ in a @art time h g v ~ :diEaed

. . . from . . idelf. . - .

He wrote the ra.rr\e.$&af a Acttci to ?be Ocj iokr Club, a number.-of Tory-Gentlemeri: ,

knt .from the cbunt?y'-' tb Parliament, wha fhrmed ihmfdtes a- club, ta'thk- number'

- of about a hundred,. and metro aniniate the ~ e a l end raife the ~xpe&ations of e& &her: T h e y :thou*, wih g h t r i~o? , , cat- tbd l~irhfiers weri lofing opportunitiis; that fufi firiient kk- was not made of the general aidour of the nation ; they called loudly- for more changes, and monger efforts ; and demanded the puniih3slerit of par% -and theilifmiflbn' of the 'r$t, df .~~IQP they coafihed as publick rdbas . , , . . . .

. . . . - Their

i h e i r eagetnefs was hot gratifidc! b y he Qeen, or by Harley. The @een was bably flow becaufe f ie was afraid, and Har- ley. was daw. baauie he was.-do&&3 . ,. -he was to17 by d e i e ~ t ~ , or fqr wnv& ence ; and , .. he had poxve; in his hands, ,

had no iutled ptxppie Gr 'which b e &b,&i ernploy it ; farced to gatay t& a ' c e r a i n -d.e?

i - ' * -

gree the Tories whofupported him, but unwilling. to make his. ceconcilegnent .to .the Whigs utterly defperate, : he , eorrefgonded' , at . . . once wit! the iwo -expeCtanis of - the Crowp, n d kept, as has be& d e r o o 4 . the fGcef.$& undetermined. ~ot 'knowihg Ghat to dp, he did , nothing ; and with the fate of a .d9.iblG+ dealer, a1 laYt, lie lofi his power, but kept.>ir ,

enemies.

Swifi Zeemrs to have concurired in opini& with the OEXokr CZub; b.u!t it WM not in &

' gpwm to quicken .the ~m&;Cs Q£ Har.+Y firham he fti,mulsted as mnch as be h* W& link e f f i . Be h o w s s~ot W&+

$het $to W,. -is in no h A e to mwe. . Harkr, xvho wtu g&qs not quick b.g'aatawe, be~a* yet ,more flow by irrefilatim ; a d was cam rent to hear that dilatorineh lamented as rasr

tural,

400 . l S W I F T .

turd, which he applauded in himiklf as pw ' kick. . .

' Without the T d e s , hmevm, nothing tould.be done ;' and as they were not td be gratified, they muit be appeded; and rhe conduCt of the Miniiter, if it could not be vindicated, was to be plaufibly excukd

Swift now attained the zetlith o f his political importance : he publiihed ( I 71 2) the Condu8 of the AZli'es, ten days before the Par- liament aiIkmbIed. The purpofe wai to pei;. Cuade the nation to a peace, ind never' Iiad 'my writer more luccefs. The people, who had been amded with bonfires dad tr'iumphal procefiions, and looked with idolatry on the General and his friends, who, as they thought,' had made England the arbitrefs of nations, were confounded between fhame and rage; when they found that mints bad been exbauj- cd, and million^' d@roycd, to fecure the Dutch ar aggrandize tde emperor, without any ad. vantage to ourfelvee; that we had been bri- bing our neighbouis, to fight their own quarrel ; and that amongft. our enemies we might number our allies. -

That

S W I F T . That is now no longer doubted, of which

the nation was then firft informed, that the war was unneceffarily protraQed to fill the pockets, of Marlborough ; and that it would have been continued without end, if he could have continued his annual plunder. But Swift, I fuppofe, did not yet know what be has fince written, that a commifion was drawn which would have appointed him Ge- neral for life, had it not become ineffeltual by the refolution of Lord Cowper, who rcfufed the feal.

Whatever i.s received, fay the fchools, is received in proportion t o tbc rec@ient. The power of a political treatife depends much upon the difpofition of the people ; . the nation was then combufiible, and fpark fet it on fire. It is boaited, that between November and Jad nuary eleven thouf~nd were fold ; a great number at that time, when we were not yet a nation of readers. To its propagation certainly no agency of power or iduence was wanting. It furnifhed argume'nts for converfation, i'peeches for debate, and materials for parliamentary reiblutions.

VOL. 111. D d Yet, L

402 S W I F T . 1 Yet, furely, whoever iurveys this wonder-

tvo~king pamphlet with cool perural, - will confer6 that its d c a c y \-.as hpplied by the pafions of its readers ; that it operates by the 1 mere -weight of fa&, with very little afiitance from the hand that produced them.

. .

This year (171 2) he publiihed his Rejec- tions on tbe Bmrier fierzty, which carries on the d e G p of his Col~dzz8 of the AIZicr, and hews how. little regard in that negotiation had been h e w n to the intereg of England, and how much of the conquered country had been' demanded by the Dutch.

This was followed bp Retnrarks on the Bi- $ 0 ~ OJ Sarwlr; btroduklion to bir third Volvne of the Hior- of the Reformation ; a pamphlet which Burnet p~btifhed as an alarm, to warn the nation of the approach of Popery. Swifk, who feems to. have difliked the Bihop with h e t h i n g m r e than political averfion, treats him Eke one whom he is glad of an oppostu- nity to dnfiult.

Swift, being now the declared fkvourite an&-fupgo{ed confidant of the Tory Minifrry,

was

S v l P - 4 : 403

was treated by a11 that depended on the Cburt with the refpeQ which dependents know how to pay. H e ibon began to feel part of the mifery of greatnefs; he that could gay he knew him, confidered himfelf as having for.; tune in his power. Coxpmifiions, folicita? tions, remonitrancee, crowded about h i~q , j

he was expe&ed to do every man's bufinefs, to procure employment for one, and to retain it for another. In afifiing thofe, who ad- tiregeed him, he repreiknts hirnielf as fufficiently diligent; and defires ta have others believe, what he probably believed himfelf; that by his interpofition many Whigs of. merit, and among them Addifon and Congreve, were continued in their places. &t every man of known influence ha$ Eo many peti- tions which he cannot grant, that he muit: neceffarily offend more than he gfatifics, as the preference given to one affords all the r& a reaibn for complaint. Wbzn I give away p place, faid Lewis XIV. I mak an bundred driontetzted, and we ungratfil.

. :

Much has been faid of the equality and independence which he prefetved in his,eon- .,

vcrfation with the Minifiers, of tbe:franknefs D d 2 of

404 S W I F T . of his remonhnces, and the familiarity of his friendkip. In accounts of this kind a few fingle incidents are fat againfi the general tenour of behaviour, No man, however, tan pay a more f e ~ i l e tribute to the Great, than by fuffering his liberty in their prefence tci aggiandize him in his own efleem. Bed tween different ranks of the community there is necendrily fome diitance : he who is called by his fuperior to pafs the interval, may very properly accept th t invitation ; but petulance? and obtruiion are rarely produced by magnanimity ; nor have ofien any nobIer caufe than the' pride of importance, and the maIice of inferiority. He who knows himfelf neceffary map {et, while that necefity lafio, a high va; lue upoh himfelf; as, in a lower condition, s fervant eminently ikilful may be faucy ; but he- is fidtxcy onIy becauik he is fervile. Swif? appears to have preferved the kindneG Sf thofe that wanted him no longer ; and therefore it muit be allowed, that the childiffl freedom, to which he feems enough inclined, was overpowered by' his better qualities.

. .

His difintereflednefs has been likewife mentioned ; a itrain of Ilei-oifm, which w o ~ ~ i d . - have

have been' in his condition romantick' and fu- perfl uous. EccleGafiical benefices, when they become vacant, mufi be given away ; and the friends of Power may, if there be no in- ,herent difqualifieatjon, reaibnably expeQ them. Swift accepted ( I 7 I 3) the deanery d St. Patrick, the befi prefkrment that his friends could yenture to give hiq. That Miniitry was in a great degree fupported by the Clergy, who were not yet reconciled to the author of the Tale of a Tub, and would not without much difcontent and indignation have borne to fee h i v ipftalled in an Engliih Cathedral, . . ..

He rehfed, indeed, fifiy pounds from Lord Oxford ; but he accepted afterwards a draught ~ f : a thoufand upon the Ex~hequer, prhiqh was intercepted by the Qugen's death, Bnd which he refigned, as Je , , birnf~lf, ._ pulda geqer, with many a groan. i .. . .

Ig the vir\R of his power and his politicks, he kept a journal of his vifits, his walks, his interviews with Miriiiterh and quarrels with llis fervant, and tranfnlitred it to Mrs. Johq- foq and Mrs. . . ~ i n g l e ~ , to whom he knew . , , .

~ d j " " that

406 S' W I F ' T. tbat whatever befel 3im was interetling, and .to whom no accounte could be to6 minute. Whether there diurnal trifles were properly eyPofed to eyes which had berer) qceived any plea6ure from the prefence of the Dean, may be reafonably doubted : they have, however, ibme odd at- traeion ; the reader, finding fiequent mention of names which he has been ufed to confider as important, goes on in h ~ p e of in- faination ; and, as there is nothing to fatigue attention, 'if he is diiappointed be can hardly .complain, It is eafy to perceive, froq every page, that though ambition preffed Swift into a life of bufile, the wiih pas always returning for a- life of ede.

H e went to take poffeflion of his deanev, as foon as he had obtained it; but he was .not fuffered to itay in Ireland more than a fortnight before he was recalled to England, that he might reconcile Lord Oxford and Lord Bolingbroke, who began to look on one another with malevolence, which every day increafed, and which Bolingbroke appeared tb retain in his laft years,

Swift a . ,

Swift contrived an interview, from whiclj they both departed dikontented: he procured a fmnd, which only convinced him that the feud was irreconcilable; he , tdd them his opinion, that all was Iok This denunciatian was contradiaed by Oxford, but Wingbroke whifpered that he was right.

Before this violent diffenfion had ihattered the Miniitry, Swift had publiihed, in the beginning of the year (i7 rq), The publick S ' i - rit of the Fbig~, in anfwer to Tde C~$J, a pamphlet for which Steele was expelled from the ~ o u i k of Commons. Swift was now fo far alienated from Steele as to think him no longer entitled to decency, a d therefore treats him ibmetimes with contempt, and fometimes with abhorrence,

I n this pamphlet the Scotch were mentioned in terms fo provoking to that irritable nation, that, refolving not to be ofinded with i?~$u- nity, the Scotch Lords ill a body delnanded an audience of the @een, and iblicited reparation. A proclamation was ifTued, in which three hundred pounds was dfired for difcovery of the author. From this fiorm

D d 4 he

408 S W I F T . h e was, as he relates, Jecured b j a-/eight; of what kind, or by whofe prudence, is not known; and fuch was the increafe of his reputation, that the Scottifh Nation afllicdagaitr &at be would bc their friend.

H e was become fo formidable to the Whigs, that his familiarity with the Minifiers was clamoured at in Parliament, particularly by two men, afterwards of great note, Agczbie and Wa4elk.

But, by the difunisn of his great friends, his importance and his deiigns were now at an end; and feeing his Cervices at lafi ufelefs, he retired about June ( I 7 14) into Berkihire, where, in the houfe of a friend, he wrote what was then fuppreffed, but has fince ap- ~ e a r e d under the title of Frte Thorgbt.~ on tbe p g e n t State of @in.

While he was waiting in this retirement for events which time or chance might bring to pafs, the death of the Queen broke down at once the whole fyjritern of Tory Politicks ; and nothing remained but to withdraw from

the

the implacability of triumphant Whiggifml and fhelter himfelf in unenvied obfcurity.

The accounts of his reception in Ireland, given by Lord Orrery and Dr. Delany, are ib different, that the credit of the writers, both undoubtedly veracious, cannot be iaved but by fuppofing, what I think is true, that they fpeak of different times. When Delany fays that he was received with kindnefs and refpe&, he nleans for the firit fortnight, when he came to take legal poffefion; and when Lord Orrery tells that he was pelted by the populace, he is to be underftood of the time when, after the e e e n ' s death, he became a fettled reiident.

The Archbiihop of Dublin gave hiin az firit fome difiurbance in the exercife of his jurifdioion ; but it was ibon difcovered, that between prudence and integrity he was feldom in the wrong; and that, when he was right, his fpirit did not .eafily yield to oppofition.

Having fo lately quitted the tuinults of a party and the intrigues of a court, they itill

kept

410 S W I F T . kept his thoughts in agitation, a; the fea fluauaies a while when the itorm has ceafd. He therefore filled his hours with fome hi[- torical attempts, relating to the Cbange of tbe Mingers and tbe ConduEt of tbe Miagry. H e likewife is faid to have written a Hgory of tbe Foar ZaJ Years of Anne, which he began in her lifetime, and afterwards la-

' boured with great attention, but never publiihed. It was after his death in the hands of. Lord Orrery and Dr. King. A book under that title was yubliihed, with Swifi's name, by Dr. Lucas; of which I can only fay, that it feemed by no means to corre- fpond with the notions that I had formed of it, from a converhtion which I once heard between the Earl of Orrery and old Mr. Lewis.

Swift now, much againit his will, com- ~

menced Iriihman for life, and was to con- , trive how he might be befi accommodated I

in a country where he coniidered himfelf as I

in a h t e of exile. Lt feems that his firit recourfe was to piety. The thoughts of death rufhed upon him, at this time, with fuch in- ~effant . . . importunity, , that . they took poffeffion

9f l I

of his mind when he firfi waked for man7 years together.

H e opened. his houfe by a publick table two days a week, and found his entertain- ments gradually frequentid by more and more .?ifitants of learning among the men, arid of elegance among the wcrnen. Mrs. Johnfon .had left the country, and lived in lodgings not far from the deanery. On his publick days fie regulated the table, but always appeared at it as a mere guefi, like other Ladies.

- On other days he often dined, at a itated price, with Mr. Worral, a clergyman of his cathedral, whofe houfe was recommended by the peculiar neatnefs and pleafantry of his vife. To this frugal mode of livi.ng, he was firfi difpofed by care to pay fome debts which he had contraaed, and he continued it for' the pleafure of accumulating money. His avarice, however, was not fuffered to abfiruCt the claims of his dignity; he was ferved in plate, and ufed to fay that he'was fhe pooreft gentleman in Ireland that eat up-

I on I

41P S W I F T , pn plate, and the richefi that lived withaw. 3 coach,

How be fpent the reit of his time, and how he employed his hours of fiudy, hab; been enquired with hopel$'s quriofity. For who can give an account of anotlpefs ftu. dies? Swift was n b likely tq admit any to his privacies, or to impart a pl i~ute accoyqt of his bufinefs or his leifie,

Soon after ( I 7 I 6), in his forty-ninth yea$ he was privately married to Mrs. Johnfon by Dr. Afhe, Biihop of Clogher, as Dr. m$den told me, . in . the garden. The marriage made no change in their mode of l i f~ ; 1

they lived in diffknt houfes, as before; nor did ihe ever lodge in, the deanery but what ~wif; ws4 fGzed with a fit of giddinefs. . U It " w o ~ l d be difficult," Gys Lord Orrery, " to " prove that they were ever afterwgrd+ togi.. " ther without a third pedon." / . 1

The Dean of St. Patrickk lived in a p& vate manner, known and regarded o d y by his friends, till, about the year I 720, he, by

a pam-

a pamphlet, recommended to the Iriih the ufe, and confequently the improvement, of their manufahre. For a man to ufe the produc- tions of his own labour is furely a natural right, and to like beit what he makes himCeIf is a fiatutal pafion. But to excite this par- fion, and enforce this right, appeared Eo cri- niinal to thofe who had an interefi in the Engliih trade, that the printer was imprifon- ed ; and, as Hawkefworth juftly obferves, the attention of the publick being by this outrageous refentment turned upon the propofal, the author was by confequence made popular.

' I n 1723 died Mrs. Van Homrigh, a woman made unhappy by het admiration of wit, and ignominioufly difiihguiihed by the name of VaneJa, whofe condua has been already {ufficiently difcuffed, and' whofe hiRory is too well known to be nimutely repeated. She was a young womar6 fond of literature, whom Decanrrr the Dean, called Cadcnur by tranfpofition of the letters, took pleafure in direeing 'and infiruaing; till, from being proud of his praife, ihe grew fond of his perlbn. Swift was then about forty-feven, at an age when vanity is flrongly excited by

8 the

the amarms attention of a youngs woman, If it be faid that Swift ihould have checked 1 p&on which he never meant to gratifp, recourfe mu8 be had to that extenuation which he fo much defpiied, me11, are but rnea : per-

h o w e w he did not at fidk know his own. mind, and, as he reprefents himfeu; , was undetermined. For his.admifion of h a coudhip, and his indulgence of her hopes after his marriage to Stella, no other honcA plea can be found, than that he delayed a diE agreeable difcovery fiom time to time, dread4 ing the immediate buds of dare&, and watching for a favourable moment. She thought herfelf neglded, , and died of di+ pointment ; having ordered by her will the poem to be publ ied , in which Cadenu.c had

I

proclaimed her excellence, and confeffed his love. The effea of the publication is thus related by Delany.

" I have good realon to believe, that they 1 Cc both were greatly ihocked and rtikired

(though it may be diffaently) upon thif l " occafion. The Dean made a tour to the

, ~ o b t h of Ireland, for about two months, at this time, to diiftpate his thoughts, and

l " give

S . W I F - T . 415

give place to obloquy. And Stella retired (upon the earneft invitation of the owner) to the houfe of ,a cheerful, geeemus, good- natured, friend of the Dean's, whom fie

fL alib much loved and honoured. There my irlformer often iaw her ; and, I have rea- km to believe, ufed his utmofi endeavours to relieve, fupport, .and amufe her, in this fad fituation.

- " Qne little incident he told me of, on. U that occafion, I think I hall never forget, 'C As her. friend was . an Mpitable, apes U hearted man, well-beIaved, and largely U acquainted, it happened one day that fome

gentlemen dsopt in .to ,dinner, who were itrangers to Srella'a fituation ; and as the

" poem .of ofdenur and Ya~eJa was then the general topic of converfation, one of them hid, ' Surely that Van&a muft be a n e w ,

" traordinary woman, that could infpire the &' Dean to write fo finely upon her.' Mrs. '' Johnfon hiled, and anfwered, " that ihe

thought tllat point not quite fo clear ; for . .

it Gas well known the Dean could write finely upon a broomfiick."

The

416 S W I F T . '

T h e great acquifition of efieern and influence was made by the Drapier'i Lerter~ in 1724. One Wood of Wolverhampton in Sraffordfhire, a man enterprifing and rapa- cious, had, as is faid, by a prefent to the Du- cher's of Munfler, obtained a patent empow- ering him to coin one hundred and eighty thoufand ponrrds of half-pence and farthings for the kingdom of Ireland, in which there was a very inconvenient and embarrafing fcarcity of copper coin ; fo that it was poifi- ble to run in debt upon the credit of a piece of money. The cook or keeper of an ale- houfe could not refufe to fupply a man that bad fiher in his hand, and the buy& would not leave his money without change.

T h e projet3 was therefore plaufible. The fcar'city, which was already great, Wood took care to make greater, by agents who gathered up the -old half-pence ; .and was about to turn his brafi into gold, by pouring the treafures of his new mint upon Ireland, when Swifl, finding that the metal was debafed to an enor- mous degree, wrote Letters, under the name of M. B. Drapier, to fhew the folly of receiving, and the mifchief that mufi enfue, by giving-

goid

gdd 'and Glveer for coin worth not a third part of its nominal value.

The nation was alarmed ; the new coin %as univerfally refufed : but the governors of Ireland cofifidered refifiance to the King's patent as highly criminal ; and one Whitihed, then Chief Jufiice, who had tried the printer bf the former pamphlet, and fent out the Jury nine times, till by clamour and menaces they were frighted into a fpecial verdie, now prefented the Drafier, but could not prevail on the Grand Jury to find the bill.

Lord Carteret and the Privy Council publiihed a proclamation, offering three hundred pounds for dikovcring the author of the Fourth Letter. Swift had concealed himfelf from his printers, and trufied only his butler, who tran- i'cribed the paper. The man, immediately after the appearahce of the proclamatiofi, firolled fiom the houfe, and fiaid out all night, and part of the next day. There was reafon enough to feat that he had betrayed his mafier for the reward; but he came home, and the Dean

h

ordered him to put off his livery, and lea= the houfe; " for," fays he, " I know that my VOL. 111. E e life

l

l 418 S W I F T . '' life is in your power, and I will not bear',

out of fear, either your infolence or negligence." The man excufed his fault with

great fubmiffmn, and begged that he might be confined in the houfe while it was in his power to endanger his mafier ; but the Dean refolut;ly turned him -out, wit6out taking farther notice of him, till the term of information had expired, and then received him again. Soon afterwards he ordered him and the refi of the f'ervants into his prefence, without telling his intentions, and bade them take notice that their fellow-fewant was no longer Robert the butler ; but that his integrity had made him Mr. Blakeney, verger of St. Patrick's; an officer whofe income was be-

I tween thirty and forty pounds a year, but he ftill continued for fome years to ferve his old l mafter as his butler.

, . Swift was known from this time by the a p

pellation of The. Dean. H e was honoured by the populace, as the champion, patron, ;nd inflruQor of Ireland; and gained fuch. power as, confidered both in its extent and duration, fcarcely any man has ever enjoyed without greater wealth or higher ftation.

. He

S W I F T . 419 H e was from this important year the oracle

bf the traders, and the idol of the rabble, and by confequence was feared and courted by all to whom the kindnefs of the traders or the populace was neceffaiy. The Drupier was a iign ; the Drapier was a ' health ; and which way foever the eye or the ear was turned, fome tokens were found of the nation's gratitude to the Drapier.

The benefit tvas indeed great; he had re- fcued Ireland from a very opprefiive and pre- datory invaGon; and the popularity which he had gained he was di!igent to keep, by appearing forward and zealous on every osca- Gon where the publick intereft was luppofed to be involved. . Not did he much lcruple to boait his influence ; for when, upon ibme attempts to regulate the coin, Archbiihop Boul- ter, then one of the Juitices, accufed him of exaera t ing the people, 'he exculpated hirnfelf by faying, '' If I had lifted up my finger,

they would have torn you to pieces."

But the pleafire of popularity was {oon interrupted by domefiic miferqr;.. Mrs. John-. ibn, whofe converfation was to him the great

E e 2 fof~ene;

420 S W I F T . ioftener of the ills of life, began in the year of the Drapier's triumph to decline ; and two years afterwards was 6 waited with fick- nefi, that her recovery was confidered as hopelefi.

Swift was then in England, and had been invited by Lord Bolingbroke to pafs the win-. ter with him in France ; but this call of calamity haitened him to Ireland, ,where perhaps his prerence contributed to reitore her to im- perfett and tottering health.

He was now fo much at eaie, that (1727) he returned to England ; where he colleQed three volumes of Mifcellanies in conjunQion with Pope, who prefixed a querulous .and apologetical Preface.

This important year fent likewife into the world Gulliveis Travels, a produQion ib new and itrange, that it filled the reader with a mingled emotion of merriment and amaze- ment. It was received with fuch avidity, that the price of the firit edition was raXed before the fecond k h l d be made ; it was read by the high and the low,; the learned and illi-

terate. B

S W I F T . 42 r

terate. Criticifin was for a while lofi in wonder ; no ruIes of judgement were applied to a book written in open defiance of truth and regularity. But when diftinaions came to be made, the part which gave leafi pleafure was that which defcribes the FZying $'and, and that which gave mofi difgufi mufi be the hiftory of the Houybnhnms,

While Swift was enjoylng the reputation of his new work, the news of the king's death arrived ; and he kiffed the hands of the new King and Qeen three days after their accefion,

By the Qeen, when ihe was Princefs, he had been treated with forne difiinaion, and was well received bp her in her exaltation j but whether ihe gave hopes which f ie never took care to fatisfy, or he formed expeaations which ihe never meant to raife, the eveqt was, that he always afterwards thought on her with malevolence, and particularly charged her with breaking her promife of forne medals which f i e engaged to fend him.

E e 3 I know

az2 S W I F T . I know not whether ihe had not, in her

turn, ibme reaibn for complaint. A Letter , was fent her, not fo much entreating as re-

quiring her patronage of Mrs. Barber, an ingenious Iriihwoman, who was then begging fubfcriptions for her Poems. T o this Letter was rubfcribed the name of Swift, and it ias all the appearances of his diaion and ientiments ; but it was not written in his hand, and had ibme little improprieties. When he was charged with this Letter, he laid hold of the inaccuracies, and urged the improbability of the accufation ; but never denied' it : he ihuffles between cowardice and veracity, and talks big when he fays nothing.

H e feemed defirous enough af recornmen: cing courtier, and endeavoured to gain the kindnefs of Mrs. Howard, remembering what Mrs. Mafham had performed in' former times ; but his flatteries were, like thofe of the other wits, unfuccefsful ; the Lady either wanted power, or had no ambition of poetical immortality.

H e was feized not long afterwards by a fit of giddineis, and again heard . of . the Gcknefs 1

and , : .

and danger of Mrs. Johnfon. H e then left the houfe of Pope, as it feemu, with very little ceremony, finding that two Jck fiend^ cannot live togtiber ; and did not wri'te to him till he found himfelf at Cheiter.

.

H e returned to a home of forrow: poor Stella was finking into the grave, and, after

6 a languiihing delay of about two months,

' died in her forty-fourth year, on January 28, 1728. How much he wilhed her life, his papers tell us ; nor can it be doubted that he dreaded the death of her whom he loved moit, aggravated by the confcioufnet that himfelf had hafiened if.

. Beauty and the power of pleafing, the greateit external advantages that woman can defire or poKefs, were fatal to the unfortunate Stella, The man whom fie had the misfortune to love was, as Delany obferves, fond of fingularity, and defirous to make a mode of happinek for himfelf, out of the general courfe of things and order of Providence. Frsm the time of her arrival in Ireland he feems refolved to keep her iq his power, and therefore hihdered a march fufficiently advan-

E e 4 ~ a e e o u s ~

tageous, hy accumulating unreafonable de- , mands, and prclcribing conditions that could not be performed. While ihe was at her own difpo,fal he did not confider his poffefion as fecure ; refentment, ambition, or caprice, might feparate them ; he was therefore refolved to make agirraace double Sure, and to appropriate her by a private marriage, t a which he had annexed the expeeation of al[ the pleafures of perfea friendihip, without the uneafinefs of conjugal refiraint. But with this itate poor Stella was not fatisfied ; 'ihe never was treated as a wife, and to the world fie had the appearance of a ~giitrefs. She lived fullenly on, in hope that in time he

. would own and receive her; but the time did not come till the change of his manners and depravation of his mind made her tell him, when he offered to acknowledge her, that it was too late. She then gave up herfelf to iorrowful refentment, and died by the tyranny of him, by whom fie was in the higheft degree loved and. honoured,

What were her claims to this excentrick tendernefs* by which the laws of Nature were

- violated to retain her, curiofify will eequire ;

b but

I

S W I F T . 425

but how ihall it be gratified? Swift was a lover ; his tefiimony may be fufppeLted. De- lany and the Irifh faw with Swift's eyes, and therefore add little confirmation. That ihe was virtuous, beautiful, and elegant, in a very high degree, fuch admiration fiom iirch a lover makes it very probable ; but ihe had not much literature, foi- f ie could not

4 fpell her own language; and of her wit, ib loudly vaunted, the fmart fayings which Swift has colletied afford na +lendid fpe-. cimen,

The reader of Swift's Letter to a Lady on her Marriage, may be allowed to doubt whether his opinion of female excellence ought implicitly to be admitted ; for if his general thoughts on women were luch as he exhibits, a very little fenk in a Lady would enrapture, and a very little virtue would afionifh him. Stella's fupremacy, therefore, was perhaps only locd ; ihe was great, becaufe her affo- ciates were little.

In ibme Remarks lately publiihed on the Life of Swift, this marriage is mentioned as f?bulous, or doubtful ; but, alas ! poor Stella,

as

426 S W I F T .

as Dr. Madden told me, related her melan- cErQly fiory to Dr. Sheridan, when he attended her as a clergyman to prepare her for death ; and Delany tells it not with doubt, but only with regret. Swift~never mentioned her without a figh.

The r& of his life was {pent in Ireland, in a country to which not even power almofi aefpotick, nor flattery glmofi idolatrous, could reconcile him, He fometimes wiihed to vifit England, but always found ibme rea- f ~ 1 1 of delay. F e tells Pope, in the decline of life, that he hopes once more to fee him ; but if not, fays he, we a@ part, as all bumatr beings have parted?

After the death of Stella, his benevolence . was contraCted, and his feverity exafperated ; he drove his acquaintance from his table, and wondered why he was dei'erted, But he '

continued his attention to the publick, and wrote from time to time fuch direeions, admonitions, or cenfures, as the various exigency of affairs, in- his opinion, made proper; 'and nothing fell from his pen iq vain.

Ilt

In a fh8rt poem on the Preibyterians, yhom he always regarded with detefiation, he bellowed one itriaure upon Bettefworth, 8 lawyer eminent for his iniblence to the jergy, which, from very confiderable reputation, brought him into immediate and uni- uedal contempt. Bettefworth, enraged at his difgrace and lofs, went to Swift, and demanded whether he d a s the author of that poem. " Mr. Bettefworth," anfwered he, 5' I was in my youth acquainted. with great rc lawyers, who, knowing my difpofition to '' fatire, adviied me, that, if any fcoundrel '' or blockhead whom I had lampooned, !'' ihould aik, Are you the author of this japer,

I fhould tell him that I was not the author; !g and therefore I tell you, Mr. Bettefworth, f b that I am not the author of thefe lines."

Bettefworth was ib little Ltisfied with this account, that he publickly profeffed his reiblution of a violent and corporal revenge; but the inhabitants of St. Patrick's difiriQ em- bodied themfelves in the Dean's defence; and Betteiworth declared in Parliament, that Swift . had deprived him of twelve hundred pounds a, year.

Swift

428 S W I F T . Swift was popular a while By another

mode of beneficence. He fet afide ibme hundreds to be lent in {mall fums to the poor, from five fhillings, I think, to five pounds. H e took no intereit, and only required that, at repayment, a iinall fee fhould be given to the accomptant; but he required that the day of promifed payment fhould be ex- allly kept. A fevere and punCtilious temper is ill qualified for tranfaaions with the poor; the day was often broken, and the loan was not repaid. This might have been eaiily forefeen; hut for this Swift had made no provifion of patience or pity. H e ordered his debtors to be fued. A fevere creditor has no popular charaaer; what then was likely te be faid of him who employs the catchpoll under the appearance of charity2 The clamour againit h i ~ n was loud, and the refentment of the populace outrageous; he was therefore forced to drop his fcheme, and own she folly of expelling p~n&uality from the poor.

His afperity continually inefeafing, condemned him to folitude; and his refentment of folitude iharpened his afperity. H e was

not,

i

DRoodman

Note

Unmarked set by DRoodman

S W I F T . 429

not, however, totally deferted : fome lneh of Aearning, and fome women of elegance, oftell vifited him; and he wrote from time to time either. verfe or profe; of his verfes he willingly gave copies, and is hppofed to have felt no dii-content when he faw them printed, His favourite maxim was vive la bagatelle; he thought trifles a neceffary part of life, and perhaps found them neceffary to himfelf. I t feems irnpoGble' to him to be idle, and his diforders made it difficult or dangerous to be iong ferioufly fiudious, or laborioufly diligent. The love o f eaik is always gaining upon age, and he had one temptation to petty amuiements to himfelf; whatever he did, he was lure to hear applauded; and fuch was his predominance over all that approached, that all their applaufes were probably fincere. H e that is much flattered, . ibon learns to flatter himklf: we are commonly taught our duty by fcar or fhame, and how can they a& upon the man who hears hothing but his own praifes?

As his years increafed, his fits of giddinefs and deafnefs grew more frequent, and his

5 deafnefs

S W I F T .

deafnd made converfation difficult; they grew likewife more fevere, till in 1736, as he was writing a poem called The ;bcgiofi Club, he was feized with a fit fo painful, and Ib long continued, that he never after thought it proper to attempt any work of thought or labour.

He was always careful of his money, and was therefore no liberal entertainer; but was lefs frugal of his wine than of his meat.

, When his friends of either fex came to him, in expeeation of a dinner, his cufiom was to give every one a ihilling, that they might pleafe themfelves 'with their provifion. At lafi his avarice grew too powerful for his kindnefs; he would refufe a botlle of wine, and in Ireland nd man vifits whkre he cannot drink.

Having thus excluded converfation, and defifted from fiudy, he had neither bufinefs nor amufement; for having, by ibme ridiculous reiblution or mad vow, determined never to -wear fpeaacles, he could make little ufe of books in his later years: his ideas,

therefore,

S W I F T . 431

therefore, being neither renovated by diG courfe ,nor increafed by reading, wore gradually away, and left his mind vacant tothe vexations of the hour, till at lafi his anger was, heightened into madnefs. .

He however permitted one book to' be publiihed, which had been the pro,duaion of former years ; Polite Convefation, which appeared in I 73 8. The DireRionr for S e r v w was printed foon after his death. Theik two performances h e w a mind inceirantly attentive, and, when it was not employed u,pn great things, bufy with minute occurrences. It is apparent that he mufi have had the habit of noting whatever he obferved; for fuch a number - of particulars could never have been affembled by the power of re- tolleaion.

H e grew more violent; and his mental pomnr decli~ed till (1741) it was Cound neceffary that legal guardians hould be appointed of his perfon and fortune. He now loit diitintlian. ' His madnefs was compounded of rage and fatuity. The lait f ice that

2 he

he knew was that of Mrs. Whiteway, afid her he ceafed to know in a little time. His meat was brought him cut into mouthfuls; but he would never touch it while the ferd - vant itaid, and at lait, after it had itood pera haps an hour, would eat it walking; for he continued his old habit, and was on his feet ten hours a-day.

Next year (1 742) he had an infl afnniatioa in his left eye, which fwelled it to the fize of an egg, with boils in other parts; he was kept long waking with the pain, arid was not eafily reitrained by five attendants from tearing out his eye.

The tumouf at lafi fubfided; and a fiott interval of reafoon enfuing, in which he khed his phyfician and his family, gave hopes of his recovery; but in a few days he funk into lethargick Rupidity, motionlefs, heedlefs, and fpeechlefs. But it is faid, that, after a year of total filence, when his houfekeeper, on the 30th of November, told him that the ufual bonfires and illuminations were pred paring to celebrate his birth-day, he an-.

hered,

S W ' I F Tb " 433 fwered, L? ir uZZ folly; tbg bad bettef let it atone.

It is remembered that he afterwards fpoke how a n d then; or gave fome intimation of a meaning; but at lait funk into perfeR filence, which continued till about the end of Oaober I 744, when, in his feventy-eighth peari he expired without a h g g l e .

W H F,N Swift is confidered as an author; it is juft ro efiimate his powers by their effe&s. Tn the reign of @een Anne he turned the ftream of popularity againit the Whigs, and muit be confeffed to have dieatecl for a time the political opinions af the Engliih nation. In the fucceeding reign he delivered rel land fro~.rl blunder and oppre%on; and ihewed

c that wit, confederated with truth, had fuch force as authority was unable to reiifi. He faid truly of himfelf, that Ireland cda~ bi.r debtor' It was f;om the time when he firit began to patronize the Irifh, that they may date their riches and profperitg. He taught

VOL. 111. F f them

them firR to know their own irrtexefi,, theif weight, and their kength, and gave &ern fpirit to affert that equality with their fellow& Eubjetko .to which they have ever fince been making vigorous advances, and to claim thoii, rights which they have ,at lafi eitabliihed. Nor can they be charged with ingratitude to their ,benefa&or ; for. they reverenced him as a guardiaq and obeyed him as a dietator,

In his work$ ke has g ~ v a very different fpecimens both of fentiment and expreEon. His Talc of a lub has little refemblance to his other pieces. It exhibite a vehemence and rapidity ef mind, a copiodneii of images, and vivacity of diaion, hcb a8 he afterwards never p&ffed, or never merteda I t is of a mode ib d i f t i d arrd peculiar, that it mufi be confidered by HeRi what is true of that, is not true of any thing elfe which he has written.

In his other works is found an equable te.. nour of eafy language, which rather trickles than flows. His defight was in fmpticity. That he has in his work no metaphor, as

has ,

s w i ~ . 433 has been faid, is not true; but his few rneta- phors fkem to be received rather by necefi t~

. . than choice. H e itudied purity; and though perhaps id1 his RriQ~res Are not ebao, yet i t is not often that iblecifms can be found;. and whoever depends on his authority may generally conclude himfelf fafe. His fenten- res are never roo much dilated or contraaed; arrd it will aot be eafy to find any embarrag- ment in the complication of his claules, any inconfequence in his corineCtions, or abrupt- n d s in his tranfitions.

His Ityle was well fuited to his thoughts, which are never fubtilifed by nice diipuifi- tions, decorated by fparkling conceits, ele- bated by ambitious fedtences, or variegated hy far-fought learning. H e pays no court to the pailionsf he excites neither ii.xprife nor admirationJ he always underfiands himklf, and his reader always underitands him : the perufer of Swifi wants little previous knowledge; it will be fufficient that he is acquainted with common words and common things; he is neither required to mount ele- vations, nor to explore profundities ; his par-

F f z iage

fage is always on a level,. along folid groan4 without afperities, without obitmaion..

This eafy and: Me. COrlVeya~xe of meaning it was Swifr's deGre to att'ain, and. f& having attaihed he certainly dderves praife, though perhaps not the highefi praife. For purpores merely didaaick, when ibmething is to be told that was not known befcre,. ir is in the high& degree. pmper, but againit: that in- attention by which knowd truths are ihffered' to lie negleaed, it makes no provifion;. it in- .firu&s, but does not perfuade,

By his political education he *as affociateff with the Whigs; but he deferted them when they deferted their principles, yet without running into the contrary extreme; he continued throughout his life to retain the difpofition which he aiiigns to the Cburcb-of-Eng- lnlzd Man, of thinking commonly with the Whigs of the State, an6 with the. Tories of the Church.

He was a churchman- rationalTy zcsl,:xs; 1 1 - he defired the profperity and ma!:;;al:-;cz

7 . - v .- .., jL1n.I ;.r

S W I F T . 437 honour of the Clergy; of the Diffenters he did not wiih to infringe the toleration, but &e oppoCed their encroachments.

Of his duty as Dean he was very obfer- want. H e ,managed the revenues of his church with eia& economy; and it is faid by Delany, that more money was, under his direaion, laid out in repa'irs than had ever been in the fame ltinie fince its firit eyepion, Of his choir he was eminently careful; and, *hough he neither loved nor a~nderitood mufick, ' took care that all the fingers were well qualified, admitting none withgut . L the tefimony of fkilful judges.

i n his church he refiored the praaice of weekly communion, and difiributed the fa- cramental elements in. the mofi iblernn and devout manner with . , his own hand. He came to church every morning, preached commonly in his turn, and attended the evening anthem, that it might not be ~egli. gently performed.

H e read the f m k c rqther with. a J'rung jiervous v o i q tban in a graceful nnnner; his

F f 3 vo ice

438 S W I F T , voice wa.r @rp and bigb-toned,, ratber tbaa harmonious.

l

He entered upon the clerical itate with hope to excel in preaching; but complGned, that, from the time of his political controverlie~~ h c o d nnly pmcb paq5bZet~. This cenfure of himfelf, if judgement be made from thofa fermons which have been publi@ed, was un-. reafonably fevere,

The fufpicions of his irreligion proceeded in a great meafure from his dread of hypocri- fy ; infiead of wihing to Bem better, he delighted in feeming worfe than be was. Hc

. went in London to early prayers, lefi he fhould be feen at church; he read prayers to his fervants every morning with fuch d'ex-

I terous fecrecy, that Dr. Delany was fur months in his bufe. befor'e he h e w it, He was not only careful to hide the good which he did, but willingly incurred the fufpicion of evil which he did not. He forgot what himfelP had &rmirly afferted, that hypoairy is lefss mifchievous than open impiety. Dr. Delany, with all his zeal for his honour, has juitly condernqed this part of his charaaer.

The

S W I F T ; 439.

' The pcrfon of Swift had not many recomc mendations. He had a kind of muddy complexion, which, though he wafhed himfeelf with oriental fcrupuloiity, did not look clear. He had a countenance four and feverc, which he feldom hftened by any appearance of gaiety. H e itubbornly refitled any tendency to laughter,

T o his domeflicks he was naturally rough; and a man of a rigorous temper, with that vigilance ef minute attention which his works difcover, muA have been a mafier that few could bear. That he was difpofed to do his. fervants good, on important occafions, is no

- great mitigation ; henefaaion can be but rare, and tyrannick peevifhnefs is perpetual. H e did not fpare the fervants of others. Once, when he dined alone with the Earl of Orrery, he kid, of one that waited in the room, That man das, Jince evcJat to the table,

. committed jftcen f a h . What the faults were, Lord Orrery, from whom I heard the fiory, had not been attentive enough to difcover. My nqmber may perhaps nQt be cxa&

440 S W I F T . In his economy he praQiikd a peculiar and

offenfive parcimony, without difguife or apology. The praaice of faving being once ne- cefiry, became habitual, and grew firit ridi-

\ culous, and at laft detefiable. But his avarice, though it might exclude pledure, was never fuffered to encroach upon his virtue, He was frugal by inclination, but li&ral by principle ; and if the purpole to which he defiinqd his little accumulations be-remember- cd, with his difiribution of oCca&onal charity? it wili perhaps appear that he only liked one mode of expence better than another, and faved only that he might have fornething tq give. H e did not grow rich by idjuring lils fucceirors, but left both Laracor and the Deanery more valuable than he found them. W i t h a11 this talk of his covetoufnefs and generofity, it ihould be remembered that he, was never rich. The revenue of his Dean- ery was nct much more than feven hundred q year.

His beneficence was not graced with ten- l dernefs or civility ; he relieved without pity, and afiited without kindneii;, fo that zhofc 1 who were fed by him cou!d hzrdly love him.

Hc

S W I F T . 4-41

H e made a rule to himfelf to give but one piece at a time, and therefore always.fiored . ,

his pocket with coins . . of different value.

Whatever he did, he ikemed willing to da , 3n a manner peculiar to him{elf, without f& ficiently confidering that fingularity, as it implies a contempt of the general praaice, is a kind of defiance which juitly provokes the hofiility of ridicule ; he therefore who indulges peculiar habits js yorik than others, if be not better,

Of his humour, a it07 told by Pape maF ' afford a fpecimen.

t Dr. Swift has an odd, blunt way, that Cf is mifiaken, by &angers, for ill-nature. 66 -'T~s f~ odd, that there's no defcribing it ( 5 bgt by faas. 1'11 tell you one that firft '5 comes into my head. One evening, Gay 'f and I wept to fee him: yau know how in- , 'f timately we were all acquainted. On our tc coming in, ' Heyday, gentlemen (fays the f! Doeor), , Q what's the meaning of this vifit?

$pence.

" How

4-43 S W I F T , HOW came you to leave all the great Lords, that you are fo fond d, to come hither ta fee a poor Dean ?'--Becaufe; we would ra-

6' ther lee you than any of them.--' Ay, any '6 one that did not know fo W-ell as I do, CC might believe you, But iince you are

come, I muit get fome fpper for you, ? fuppofe.' No, DoQor, we have fupped already-' Supped already ? that's impoi-

tc fible! why, 'tis not eight o'clock yet.? That's very itrange: but, if you had not itpprd, I mufi have got Comething for-

" you.--let me fee, what ihould I have " had? A couple of lobfiers; ay, that would

have dune very well ; two ihillings-tarts, a fhilling: but you will drink a glafs of-

" wine with me, though you fupped fo much before your ufuuaI time only to fpapare my

" pocket ?'--No, we had rather talk with 704 " than drink with you.--' But if you had " Cvpped with me, as in all reafon you ought 6c to have done, you muA then have drunk '' with me.-A battle of wine, two fhillings " --two and two i s four, and one is five: " jufi two-and-fix-pence a-piece. There, 4' Pope, there's.half a crown for you, and 5' there's another for you, Sir; for I won't

4' five

fb 'five any tlling by you, I am determined.'-- rL This was all bid and done with his ufud 6' ferioufn-qE6 on Euch occaGons ; and, in fpite

of every thing we could fay to the con- " trary, he aagally obliged us to take the Cc money."

In the intercourfe of familiar life, he in- dulged his difpofition to petulance and fir- cafm, and thought himfelf injured if the licentioufnefc of his raillery, the freedom of his cenfures, or the petulance of his frolicks, was relented or reprered. H e predominated over his companions with very high afcend- ency, and probably would bear none over whom he could not predominate. T o give him advice was, in the fiyle of his friend De- lany, to venture to f ja.4 t o bim. This cuf- tomary fuperiority ibon grew too delicate for truth ; and Swift, with all his penetration, allowed b i f e l f to be delighted with low flattery,

On ad common occafions, he habitually affeas a ityle of arrogance, and diQates raw ther than .perfuades. This authoritative and pagiit~rial language be expeQed to be re-

ceived

ceived .. . as his peculiar qode of jocularity ; but he apparently flattered his own arrogance by .

an affumed predomination, in which he was ,

ironical only to the refentful, and tq the fub-. ptifive i d d e n t l y ferious.

w e told Aories with great felicity, and d e ~ lighted in doing what he knew hinlfeU to do well. H e was therefore captivated by the refpeLtful iilence of a fleady lifiener, and to14 the fame tales too often. .

H e did not, however, claim the right of talking alone ; for it was his rule, when he had fpoken a minute, to give room by a paufe for any other fppeaker. Of time, on all occafions, he was an exaQ computer, and knew the minutes required to every commor) gperation.

I t may be juRly fuppofed that there was iq his converfation, what appears CO frequently in his Letters, an affeoation of familiarity with the Great, an ambitiqn of momentary equality fought and enjoyed by the negleo of thofe ceremonies which cufiom has efiabliihed ps the barriers between one order of fociety

, .

7 and

and another. This traafgrefion of regularity was by himfelf and his admirers termed greatnefs of ibul. But a great mind dif'dains ta hold any thing by courtefy, and therefore never ufurps what a lawful claimant may take away. H e that encroaches on another's dignity, puts himfelf in his power ; he is either repelled with helplefs indignity, or endured by clemency and condeicenfion.

Of Swift's general habits of thinking if his, Letters can be fuppofed to afford, any evidence, he was not a man to be either loved or envied. He feems to have waited life in difcontent, by the rage of negleaed pride, and the languifhment of unfatisfied deiire; H e is querulous and fafiidious, arrogant and malignant ; he farcely fpeaks of hirnfelf bt with indignant llamen:at?ons, or of others but with infblent fuperiority when he is gay, and with angry contempt when he is gloomy. From the Letters that pafs between him and Pope it might be ixiferred that they, with Arbuthnot and Gay, had engroffed at1 the pnderfianding and virtue of mankind, that their merits filled the world ; or that there was no hope of more. They Ihew the age

in~orved

involved in darknefs, and ihade f i e dtturS with fuuIIen emulation.

When the Qeen's death drove him intd :

Ireland, hk might be a l l o ~ e d to regret f d r d time the interception of his views, the ex- tinLtion of his hopes, and his' ejedibn from gay fceties, important employment, and fplendid friendihips ; but when titne had enabled reafon to prevail over vexation, the complaints, which at firft were natural, bei came ridicrilous becaufe they were ufelefss; But querubufnefs was now grown habitual+ and he cried cut when he probably had ceaikd

l

to feel. His reiterated *ailings perfuaded &lingbroke that he waci really willing to quit his deanery far an Englifh pariih ;. and hi lingbroke procured an exchange, which wzi rejeaed, and Swift Rill retained the 'pleafurl of complaining.

The peatea difficulty that occurs, in ana- I

lyfing his charaaer, i s ' to difcover by what depravity of intellea he took delight in reA trolving ideas, from which alrnoit every other mind ihrinka with difgufi. he ideas df pleafure, even when criminal, Inay iblicit

the

the Zmagination ; but what has difeafe, de-. forrnity, and filth, upon which the thoughts can be allured to dwell 7 Delany is willing to think that Swift's mind was not much tainted with this grofs corruption before his long vifit to Pope. He does not confider how he degrades his hero, by making him at fifty-nine the pupil of turpitude, arid liable to the malignant influence of an afcendant mind. But the truth i6, that Gulliver had delcribed his Yaboo~ before the vifit, and he that had formed thofe images had nothing filthy to learn,

I have here given the charaller of Swift as he exhibits himfelf to my perception ; bur how let another be heatd, who knew him better ; Dr. Delany, after long acquaint- tince, defcribes him to Lord Orrery in thefi terms.

- My Lord, wheri you cohfider SW&'$ " iingular, peculiar, and mofr variegated m vein of wit, always rightly intended (al*

though not alwafs To rightly direaed), . delighthl in many iniknces, and falutary, even where it is mofi offenfive ; when you .

4 . S " confider

confider his ftria truth, his fortitude in re2 GRing opprefion and arbitrary power ; hi9 fidelity in friendfhip, his fincere love and zeal for religion, his uprightnefs in making right relolutions, and his Aeadinefs in ad- hering to them ; his care of his church, its choir, its economy, and its income ; his

'c attention to all thoik that preached in his cathedral, in order to their amendment in

'c pronunciation and fiyle ; as alfo his remarkable attention to the interefi of his fucceffors, preferably to his own prefent

'' emoluments ; invincible patriotifm, even to a country which he did not love ; his very various, well-deviled, well-judged,

6' and extenfive charities, throughout, his life, and his whole fortune (to fay nothing of his wife's) conveyed to the lame chr3.1~ ian purpor~s at his death ; charities fiom- which ,he could enjoy no honour, a d v a ~

" tage or LtisfaCion of any kind in this 'c world. When you confider his ironical

and humorous, as well as his rcrious fchemes, . for the promotion of true religion and vir-

tue ; his &ccefs in foliciting for the F i b Fruits and Twentieths, to the unfpeakabla benefit of the eftabliihed Church of Ireland.;

. . " d

and. his Sklicity (to .rate. it no higher) in '' giving occafion to the building of fifty new " churches in London.

Cc All this confidered, the charaller of his " l i e will appear like that .of his writings ; " they will both bear to be re-confidered and " re-examined with the utmofi attention, " and always difcover new beauties and es-

cellencies upon every esaminrttion.

. .*

They will bear to be- confidered as the '' fun, in which the brightnefs will hide the

blemiihes ; and whenever petulant ignorance, pride, malice, malignity, or envy,

'' interpofes to cloud or fully his fame, I will take upon me to pronounce that the eclipfe will not lafi long.

To ' conclude-no man ever deferved " better of any country than Swift did of *' his. A P;eady, yerfevering, inflexible 'L friend ; a yife, a watchful, and a faithful " counfellor, under many fevere trials and " bitter perfecutions, to the manifefi hazard " 'both of his'liberty and fortune.

- VOL. III. G g " H e

He lived a bleffing, he died a beneflae tor, and his name will ever live an honow to Ireland."

I N the Poetical Works of Dr. S w E there is not much upon wh'ich the critick can exercife his powers. Thep are ofien humorous, almoit always light, and have the qualitiea which recommend fuch compofitions, ealinefs and gaiety. They are, for the moff part, %hat their author intended. The di&iion is correlt, the numbers are fmooth, and the rhymes exaa. There feldom occurs a hard& laboured expreGon, or a redundant epithet-, all his veri'es exemplify his own definition of a good ftyle, they conGfi of proper word in proper places.

To divide this Colleaion into cIaffes, and fhew how ibme pieces are grofs, and ibme are trifling, would be .to tell the reader what *he knows already, and to find faults of which

the

S \v I F r. 45 1 I

the author could net be ignorant, who certainly wrote often not to his judgement, but

l his humour. l

I t was faid, in a Preface to one of the Iriih l

editions, that Swift had never been known to 1 I

take a Gngle thought from any writer, ancient or modern, This is not literally true ; l

but perhaps no writer can eafily be found that l

l

has borrowed fo little,' or that in all his ex- 1 !

cellencies and all his d e f e b has ib well I ,

maintained his claim to be confidered as ~ original.

\

G g 2 B R O O M E .

B R O O M E .

, W I L L I A M B R O - O M E was bornin chefhire,' as is faid, of very mean

'&,rents, Of the place o! his . birth, or the :firit part .of his life, I have not been able to gain any intellrgence, . . . H? ;was educated upon -the foundation -at Eton, and was captain of b e fihool' p yhole year, without any va- cancy, by which he might, have obiained a icholarfiip at king's College. ' Being by this delay, fuch as is faid to have happened yerg rqrely; fuperannuated, he was ient to St.

'John's College by the cmthbutions of his . . friends, where ' he 'obtained , a f i a l l exbii bition.

At his College he lived for iome time iri \he {+me chamber with the \yell-known Ford,

G g 4 1).

456 B R O O M E . by whom I have formerly heard him defcribed as a contraaed fcholar and a mere verfi- fyer, unacquainted with life, and unfkilful in convedation. His addittion to metre was then fuch, that his companions familiarly called him Poet. When he had opportunities of mingling with mankind, he cleared hidelf, as Ford likewife owned, from great part of his fcholaitick ruR.

H e appeared early in the world as a tranf- lator of the 1Ziad.r into profe, in conjunQion with Ozell and Oldifworth. How their feveral parts were diitributed is not known. This is the tranflation of which Ozell boaited

l as fuperior, in Toland's opinion, to that of

l 1

Pope: it has long Gnce vaniihed, and is now in no danger from the criticks.

H e was introduced to Mr. Pope, who l was then vifiting Sir John Cotton at Ma- dingley near Cambridge, and gained fo much of his efieem that he was employed, I believe, to make extraas from Euitathius for the notes to the tranflation of the Iliad; and in the volumes of poetry publiihed by Lintot, I

commonly

B R 0 0 M . E . 457

commonly called Pope's MgeZZanies, many of his early pieces were inlerted.

Pope and Broome were to be yet more clofely conneaed. When the fuccds of the Iliad gave encouragement to a veriion of the Oajfey, Pope, weary of the toil, called Fen- ton and Broome to his aiflitance; and, taking only half the work upon himfelf, divided the other half between his partners, giving four books to Fenton, and eight to Broome. Fen- ton's books I have enumerated in his Life; to the lot of Broome fell the fecond, Gxth, eighth, eleventh, twelfth, Gxteenth, eighteenth, and twenty-third, together with the burthen of writing all the notes,

As this tranflation is a very important event in poetical hiftory, the reader has a right to know upon what grounds I efiabliih my narration, That the vedion was not wholly Pope's, was always known: he had mentioned the afifiance of two fiiends in his propofals, and at the end of the'work - -

fome account is given by Broome of their different parts, which however mentions only five books as - written by the coadjutors ; the .

fourth,

fourth and twentieth by Fenton; the iixth, the eleventh, and the eighteenth by himklf; though Pope, in an advertifement prefixed afterwards to a new volume of his vorks, claimed only twelve. A natural curiofity after the real condua of ld great an undertaking, incite4 me once to enquire of Dr, Warburton, who told me, in his warm language, that he thought the relation given in the note. p. h; but that he was not able to afceqain the ieyeral ihares. The intelligence which Dr. Warburton could not afford me, I abtained from Mr. Langton, . to , whom Mr* kpencd had imparted it.

. . , . . .

The priqe at which Pope purchdd th% a%Rance was three hundred pounds paid tq Fenton, and. five .hundred to Brome,. with as many copies as be wanted for his friends, which amounted to one hundred more. ?'h; payment made to Fenton I know but by hearfay; Brc~ome's is very d i f i i n ~ t 1 ~ told . by . pope, in the notes to the Dunciad.

' k is evident, that, according to Pope's own eltimate, Broome was unkindiy treated, If four books could merit three hundred

7 pounds,

B R O O M E . 459

+rids, eight and all the notes, equivalent at leait -to four, had certainly s right to more than fix.

Broome probably confidered hirnielf as injured, and there was for ibme time more than eoldhefs between him and his employer, He always fpoke' of Pope as too much a lover of money, and Pope purfued him with avowed hoitility; for he not only named him difrefpe€lfully in the Dmcind, but quoted him more than once in the bathor, as a pro- ficient in the Rrt of Sinking; and in his enumeration 'of the different kinds of poets &fiingui&ed for the profound, he reckons Broome among the Parrots who +eat am-.

tber'~ words in fuch a boar) odd tone ar makes fbPrajem dh~ir v*. I have been told tbar they were afterwards reconciled; but 1 am afraid their peace was without frienclfl~ip.

He afierwards publified a Mifcellany of Poems, which is inferted, with corre~ions, in th: late compilation.

I-Ie never rofe to very high dignity in the churctl. He was fome time rec'tor of Stur-

it011

iton in Suffolk, where he married a wealthy widow ; and afterwards, when the King vifited Cambridge (1728), became Doeor of Laws. H e was (1733) prefented by the Crown to the reaory of Pulbam in Norfolk, which he held with Oaklv Magna in Su~blR, given him by the Lord Cornwallis, to whom he wqs chaplain, and who added the vicarage of ,Eye in Sz@oZk ; he the9 refigned Pylbam, qnd retained the other two,

. Towards the clofe of his life be grew again poetical, and amufed himfelf with tranflating Odes of Anacreon, which he publifhed in the GentZeman'~ Magazine, under. the name of CbeJer.

H e died at Bath, November I 6, I 745, and was buried in the Abbey Church. -

Of Broome, though it cannot be faid that he was a great poet, it would be unjufi to deny that he was an excellent verGfyer ; his lines are iinooth and fonorous, and his diaion is feleQ: and elegant. His rhymes are fometimes un- fuitable; in his Mela~zcholp he makes brcatb

rhyme

B R 0 0 M . E . 461 rhyme to d i d in one place, and to eartb in another. Thofe faults occur but feldom ; and

' he had fuch power of words and numbers as fitted him for tranflation; but, in his original works, recolleQion feems to have been his bufinefs more than invention. His imitations are ib apparent, that it is.part of his reader's employment to recall the verfes of ibme former poet. Sometimes be copies the moit popular writers, for he feems fcarcely to endeavour at concealment; and fometirnes he picks up fragments in obfcure corners. His lines to Fenton,

Serene, the fiing of pain thy thoughts beguile, And make affliaions objeas of a fmile ;

brought to my mind fome lines on the death of @een Mary, written by Barnes, of whom I fhould not have expeaed to find an imi- tator ;

But thou, 0 Muie, whore iweet nepenthcan tongue

Can charm tht pangs of death with deathlrii iong ;

Canit /tinging plagues with ea fy tboclgbrr beguile, Mukc pains and torrures o&&?J of ajnile.

TO cietea his imitations were 'tzdious and ufelefs. What he takes he Eeldom makes

' wode; and he cannot be jultly thought a mean man whom Pope chofe for an .agociate, and who& co-operation was confidered by Pope's enemies as' fo important, that he: was attacked by Henley .with this ludicrous dil- tich: ,'

Pope came off clean with Homer j but &hey fay

Broome went before, and kindly fwept the way,

E N D OF T H E T H I R D VOLUME. .

The lives of the most eminent English poets; with critical observations on their works

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Transcript of The lives of the most eminent English poets; with critical observations on their works