'"Sim, 1 ' '^ BOUGHT WITH THE INCOME FROM THE SAGE ENDOWMENT FUND THE GIFT OF 189X ..A'ji-^^?-?' : ^yw^? Cornell University Library PR 3726.F73 1876 The life of Jonathan Swift. 3 1924 013 201 276 Cornell University Library The original of tiiis book is in tine Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924013201276 JONATHAN SWIFT THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT By JOHN FORSTER VOLUME THE FIRST 1667— 1?11 KEW YORK HARrER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS FKANKLIN SQTJAEB 1876 ^/Ti PREFACE. The subject of this book has been in my thoughts for many years, and to the collection of materials for illustration of it I have given much labor and time. The rule of measuring what is knowable of a famous man by the inverse ratio of what has been said about him, is applicable to Swift in a marked degree. Few men who have been talked about so much are known so little. His writings and his life are connected so closely, that to judge of either f aii-ly with an imperfect knowledge of the other is not possible ; and only thus can be excused what Jef- frey hardily said, and many have too readily believed — that he was an apostate in politics, infidel or indifferent in religion, a defamer of humanity, the slanderer of statesmen who had served him, and destroyer of the women who loved him. Belief in this, or any part of it, may be pardonable where the life is known insufficiently, and the writings not at all ; but to a competent acquaintance with either or both it is monstrous as well as incredible. Swift's later time, when he was governing Ireland as well as his deanery, and the world was filled with the fame of Giilliver, is broad- ly and intelligibly written. But as to all the rest, his life is a work unfinished; to which no one has brought the minute examination indispensably required, where the whole of a career has to be consid- ered to get at the proper comprehension of single parts of it. The writers accepted as authorities for the obscurer portion are found to be practically worthless, and the defect is not supplied by the later and greater biographers. Johnson did him no kind of justice be- cause of too little liking for him ; and Scott, with much hearty liking as well as a generous admiration, had too much other work 4 PEEFACE. to do. Thus, notwithstanding noble passages in both memoirs, 'and Scott's pervading tone of healthy, manly wisdom, it is left to an in- ferior hand to attempt to complete the tribute begun by those dis- tinguished men. Some siich preface seemed necessary to so full an account of Swift's least important years as the present volume contains; and its minuteness of detail, in the fifth and sixth books more especially, must be left to the explanation its successors will supply. Here is laid the ground-work for the graver time which is to occupy exclu- sively the rest of the biography ; and, excepting for illustration of the individual career, there will be no introduction of history. Though the original materials thus far employed in the story will speak for themselves, it may be expected that the principal of them, as well as of other new matter to be used in the two remaining vol- umes that wUl complete the work, should have mention in this place. When the task was undertaken, Mr. Murray confided to the writer nearly fifty unpublished letters addressed by Swift to Archdeacon Walls after he was Dean of St. Patrick's ; and this incentive to far- ther research led to many richer acquisitions. More than a hundred and fifty new letters have been placed at my disposal. The value of the results yielded by collation of the later portions of the " Journal to Stella " with the original manuscript, can be judged only partially by the use of them in this volume. To later passages of the life their contribution wUl be extremely important. Some special blanks in the printed journal, on which Scott remarks, are filled up by them. By the courtesy of a' descendant mt Ai-chbishop Cobbe, some addi- tions are made to the fragment of autobiography first printed by Mr. Deane Swift ; and questions raised by that fragment in connec- tion with Swift's university career, are settled by one of the rolls of Trinity College which fell accidentally into my hands. Two original letters written from Moor Park clear up that story of the Kilroot living which has been the theme of extravagant misstate- ment. Unpublished letters in the palace at Armagh, obtained through my friend, the late Sir James Emerson Tennent, show clear- PREFACE. ly Swift's course as to questions whicli led to his separation from the whigs. Others of the same date place it beyond doubt that Lord Somers, as early as the close of 1707, had urged his appointment to the see of Waterf ord. At the dispersion of the library of Mr. Molick Mason, of Dublin, I became the purchaser of Swift's note-books and books of account ; of his letters of ordination ; of a large number of unpublished pieces in prose and verse interchanged between himself and Sheridan ; of several important unprinted letters ; and of a series of contempora- ry printed tracts for illustration of the life in Ireland, which I was afterward able, to complete by the whole of the now extremely rare Wood Broadsides. At Mr. Mitford's sale there came into my posses- sion the Life by Hawkesworth which Malone had given to Lord Sun- derlin, enriched with those MS. notes by Dr. Lyon, who had charge of Swift's person in his last illness, on which Nichols and Malone, who partially used them, had placed the highest value. By subsequent arrangement, much favored by the courtesy of Mr. Edmund Lenthal Swif te, transfer was made to me of the papers given by Mrs. White- way to Mr. Deane Swift, altogether more than thirty pieces ef con- siderable interest ; comprising several of Swift's important writings in his own manuscript, and, among transcripts of other pieces with corrections by himseK, a copy of the Directions to Servants, with hu- morous addition. To Mr. Andrew Fountaine, of Narford, descendant of Swift's friend, my warmest thanks are due. Mr. Fountaine opened to me the manuscript collections at his family seat, where, amidst much oth- er matter of a very attractive kind, I found unpublished poems and letters of much importance. Afterward I became the possessor of letters relating to OulUver ; of some to Stopford, and some to Ar- buthnot of peculiar value ; and of an unpublished journal, also in Swift's handwriting, singular in its character and of extraordinary interest, written on his way back to Dublin amidst grave anxiety for Esther Johnson, then dangerously ill. My friend, the Kev. Dr. Todd, late the senior fellow of Dublin University, procured for me this re- markable piece ; and to the late Duke of Bedford I was indebted for 6 PREFACE. the loan of a Tolume from the library at Woburn containing poems by Swift copied in the handwriting of Stella, which was given to the fourth duke by Sir Archibald Acheson, to whose father it had been given by Swift. For the use of a very striking unprinted letter to Delany, written from London during Walpole's ministry, I have to thank Lord Houghton. The most rare of all my acquisitions, obtained from the late Mr. Booth, the book-seller, by whom it had been purchased at Malone's sale, remains to be mentioned. It is the large-paper copy of the first edition of Gulliver which belonged to the friend (Charles Ford) who carried Swift's manuscript with so much mystery to Benjamin Motte, the publisher, interleaved for alterations and additions by the author, and containing, besides all the changes, erasui'es, and substi- tutions adopted in the latter editions, several interesting passages, mostly in the Voyage to Laputa, which have never yet been given to the world. Leaving to be named as they occur in the biography other illus- trative pieces (among them some valuable unprinted marginalia of Swift's readings in Baronius, and other books in the Marsh and Christchurch libraries, for which I had the ready service of my friend Mr. Percy Fitzgerald), I prefix to my last acknowledgment some sentences from an unpublished letter of Sir Walter Scott to Lady Charlotte Eawdon, written from his " wilderness " of Ashestiel by Selkirk in the autumn of 1808, when he had just undertaken his edition of Swift. She had recommended him, hearing of the de- sign, to apply for assistance to a distinguished Irish clergyman, him- self a man of letters, the Kev. Mward Berwick ; and thus (after promising, if she will visit him at Ashestiel, to " make up for nar- now lodgings and sorry cheer by old ballads, family legends of feud and battle, and tales of ghosts and fairies without measure or limit ") he thanks her for her suggestion. " Mr. Berwick has behaved to- ward me in the kindest way possible, and, what was still more flat- tering, has taught me to ascribe a great part of his civility to the in- terest your ladyship bestows on my undertaking. Every person to whom I have applied joins in representing him as most deeply skill- PREFACE. ed in all that relates to the interesting object of my present re- searches. In short, Go to Berwick has not been more frequently called for in a ball-room than it was returned in answer to all my inquiries about Swift. So. I went to Berwick accordingly, and have every hope of profiting by my journey. I am only afraid of weary- ing his kindness by the multiplicity of my demands." "With not inconsiderable success I may also claim to have gone to Berwick. The son of Scott's friend, the president of Galway Col- lege, is an old friend of my own ; and through him, among services to this work which will have other mention, I succeeded in getting access to the correspondence of Swift with his friend, Knightley Chetwode, of Woodbrooke, during the seventeen years (1T14-'31) which followed his appointment to the deanery of St. Patrick's. Of these letters, the richest addition to the correspondence of this most masterly of English letter-writers since it was first collected, more does not need to be said here ; but of the late representative of the Chetwode family I crave permission to add a word. His rare talents and taste suffered from his delicate health and fastidious temperament, but in my life I have seen few things more delightful than his pride in the connection of his race and name with the com- panionship of Swift. Such was the. jealous care with which he pre- served the letters, treasuring them as an heir-loom of honor, that he would never allow them to be moved from his family seat; and when with his own hand he had made careful transcript of them for me, I had to visit him at Woodbrooke to collate his copy with the originals. There I walked with him through avenues of trees which Swift was said to have planted, and was witness to his romantic in- terest in every minutest memory of the immortal Dean. A part of this interest he was so friendly as to transfer to the work in which I had engaged ; and it is no common grief to me to include, in the list of those now dead who encouraged the enterprise, Mr. Edward "Wil- mot Chetwode. J.F. Palace Gate House, Kensikgtok, June, 1875. TABLE OF CONTENTS. I'AGE PHEFACE 3 BOOK FIEST. ANECDOTES AND EARLIEST YEARS. 1667-1688. ^T. 1-31. Pages 17-03. I. Anecdotes of his Family and HmsELP, 17-31. Mr. Deane Swift's Essay 17 Additions to Anecdotes 18 Swift's Ancestors 19 Family Arms 20 An "Eminent SuflFerer" 21 Farorite Ancestor 22 Grandfather Tliomas 23 Uncle Godwin 24 Swift's Father 25 Temple and King William 27 "With the King 28 Swift's Ordination 29 Addition to Fragment 30 Its Illustrations of Character 31 II. Childhood, School, and College, 33-63. Jonathan Swift of King's Inns 32 Early Death, and Widow's Troables. ... 33 Petitions for Help 84 Yorkshire and Herefordshire Swifts 35 Intermarriage with Drydens 36 Connection with the Temples 37 Swift's Birthplace 38 Child and Nurse 39 A Famous School-fellow 40 Stories of School-days 41 PAGE At College 41 Earliest Writers on Swift 43 Orreiy and Delany 43 Deane Swift, Esq 44 Hawkesworth, Johnson, and Sheridan. .44, 45 Barrett's Essay 46 Richardson's Libel 4G Thomas or Jonathan? 48 Not proven 49 Adventures of a Literary Relic 50 College Examination in 1685 50 Fac-simile of Portion of a College-roll. . 52 Swift compared with other Students .... 53 The Hero of the Roll 63 Point missed by Malone 54 Specialis Gratia 55 Scholarship of Swift 56 A Difficult Time 57 Uncle Adam and Cousin Willoughby..58, 59 A Sailor "ex machinS," 60 Habits of Economy 60 Two Life-long Enemies 61 Swift driven from College. 63 BOOK SECOND. UNDER SIR WILLIAM TEMPLE'S ROOF. 1689-1699. Ml. 33-33. Pages 67-llT. I. FiTvST Residence at Moor Pakk, 67-86. Swift's Visits to his Mother G7 Observation of Common Life 68 10 TABLE OF CONTENTS. Betty Jones C'J Two Periods in First Temple Kesidence. 70 Temple's Letter to Secretary Soutliwell 71 Second Period of First Residence 72 Oxford Degree 73 First Attempts in Verse 74 Temple and Swift at Moor Park 75 Inmates of Temple's House 70 Occupations of Swift 7G Pindaric and other Flights 77 Self-portraiture 78 Swift and the King 80 Dryden's Harsh Sentence 81 Swift's Eetaliation 81 Poem toCongreve 82 Resolution to enter the Church 81 Offices then Open to Clergymen 84 Misunderstanding with Temple 85 II. In Okdeus and at Kileoot, 86-98. At Leicester with his Mother :. 86 Results of Temple Residence 88 Certificate for Ordination 89 Alleged Penitential Letter 90 The Varina Courtship 90 Invited back to Moor Park 92 Departure from Kilroot 93 Absurd Inventions 93 The True Stoiy told 94 Directions as to Books and Papers 96 Hopes as to Future Career 97 III. Second Residence with Tem- ple, 98-117. Esther Johnson 98 Statements without Evidence 100 False under Color of True 100 Terms with Temple 101 Love of Moor Park 103 Swift in State 104 Controversy of Ancients and Moderns. 104 An Ideal of Criticism 106 The Battle of the Books lOG Exploits of Homer and Virgil 107 Sweetness and Light 108 Beginnings of the Greater Satire 109 Posthumous Fame 110 Other Moor Park Employments 112 PAGE Revision of Temple's Writings 112 One Year's Readings at Moor Park 113 Strenuous Exercise 114 Death of Temple 115 "When I come to be Old" 110 Fac-simile of Paper of Resolutions 117 BOOK THIRD. VICAR OF LARACOR. 1699-1705. ^T. 32-38. Pages 121-189. I. Chaplain at Dublin Castle, 131-138. Esther Johnson and Swift 121 Moor Park Memories 122 Present Disappointments 123 Loss of Derry Deaneiy 124 Vicarage of Laracor 125 Earliest Poems of Humor 126 Petition of Mrs. Francis Harris 127 Other Scenes opening 128 Sequel to the Varina Story 1 28 Dismal but True Picture 130 Swift's Income from his Livings 130 Marriage of his Sister 132 Misstatements corrected 133 Taking Possession at Laracor 133 Restoration and Improvements 135 Condition of Laracor in 1875 136 Stipulations of Swift's Will 137 Doctor of Divinity 138 II. London Life, 138-1o4. Recall of Lord Berkeley 138 Determining Events in Life 139 Esther Johnson settles in Ireland 139 Arrangements with Swift 140 First Political Tract 141 Authorship avowed 143 Orators and Writers 144 Conditions of Party Service 144 The Queen and the Marlboroughs 140 Whig Vicissitudes 147 CoiTespondence with Tisdall 147 Occasional Conformity Bill 149 TABLE OF CONTENTS. 11 PAGT3 / Tisdall's Suit to Esther Johnson 150 Swift's Comment thereon 151 "In all other Eyes but Mine " 151 Honest Advice in a Difficult Case 152 Surrender and Equivalent 153 Publication of the Tale 154 in. Tale of a Tub, 155-171. Book-seller's Expl.inationx 155 Delay in Publication accounted for 155 How far a Dunce vfill go 156 The Three Brothers and their Coats.... 157 Peter's Lies and Misconduct 159 Martin's and Jack's Reform 159 How it struck Contemporaries 161 Wotton's Onslaught 101 Charges of Irreligion 162 Mistakes of Dullness -163 Coarseness of Language 164 Dedication to Lord Somers 166 How Time deals with "Pirst-rate" Poets 166 Origin of Martinus Scriblerus 168 Proposed Utilization of Bedlam 169 Wit's Disadvantages 170 Tributes to the Tale 170 Touching Incident 171 IV. Baucis and Philemon, 171-189. Addison's Senate 171 Noctes Ccenajque Deorum 172 Addison's Inscription to Swift, and same in Pac-simile 173 Swift at the St. James's 174 Poem on Vanbrugh's House 175 Swift Manuscripts at Narford 176 Unprinted Poem on Vanbrugh 176 Original Manuscript of Baucis and Philemon 177 How Swift took Advice 179 Original and Alteration compared 180 Opening as first Wi'itten 181 Superiority of Original Version 182 Extracts from Narford Manuscript 183 Inferiority of Printed Poem 184 Addison's Alterations 185 What becomes of Philemon 186 How both Parties then treated Par- sons 187 A Picture of Lord Peterborough 188 BOOK FOUETH. IRELAND AND ENGLAND. 1706-1709. JEt. 39^3. Pages 193-26T. I. Life in Lakacoe and Dublin, 193-318. PAGE With Duke of Ormond's Family 193 Primate and Archbishop 194 As to Government of Ireland 195 Irish Tenants and Landlords 195 Whigs and Tories imported 196 Gardening and Pishing 197, 198 Joe Beaumont and Parvisol 199 Vicar Kaymond and his Wife 200 The Dublin Ladies' Club 201 Ai'chdeacon Walls and his Wife 203 The Brothers Ashe and Fonntaine 203 Dean Sterne and Bishop of Clogher.. 203, 204 Lord Pembroke and his Secretary.. 204, 205 Vicar and Viceroy 205 Puns by Swift 206 Dublin Castle Dialogue 207 ' ' Castilian " from Narford MSS 208 Puns for the Ladies 209,210 Punning at Lord Berkeley's 211 The Journal for Esther Johnson 212 Games and Blunders at Cards 213 Morning Picture 214 November Walk 214 Hide in June 215 Common Interest and Ways 216 Three Wishes 218 II. Waiting and Wobking in London, 318-367. Recall of Lord Pembroke 218 Swift at Leicester 218 Business of First-fruits 219 Party Agitations.. 220 Unpublished Letters to Archbishop King 221 Famous Triflers 223 Swift named for a Bishopric 223 The Man who got it 224 Letters to Ambrose Philips , 225 Origin of two Famous Tracts 226 Inconvenience of abolishing Christianity 227 Churches us. Theatres 228 Project for Religion and Manners 229 12 TABLE OF CONTENTS. PAGE Unpunished Social Crimes 230 Advice to Clergymen 231 Meditation on a Broomstick ■. 282 Anthony Henley and Colonel Hunter.. 233 Social Gatherings 234 Astrologer Partridge ,' 235 Mr. Bickerstaff's Predictions 236 Mr. l^artridge disputes his Death 237 All the Wits take Part 368 Steele describes Swift 239 Jervas paints Swift 2i0 Original Poem from Narford MSS 241 Mrs. Barton and Mrs. Long 242 The Vanhomrighs 243 Esther Johnson in London 244 Sentiments of a Church-of-England Man 245 Advice to Whigs and Tories 246 Extremes meeting 247 Unpublished Swift Letters 248, 249 A New World 249 Desires to be Secretaiy at Vienna 250 Failure of Vienna Project 251 Addison and Swift of each Other 252 What was and what might have been... 253 With Somers and Godolphin 254 Maxim of the Great 255 How Not to do it 256 Attempted Bargaining 257 Swift and Lord Wharton 258 Original Letter to Archbishop King. ... 258 Tract against Repeal of Test 260 Character of Scotch Settlers in Ireland. 260 A Fault outweighing All Virtues.. 261 Ups and Downs of Non-conformity 263 Occupations and Amusements 264 Swift's Gain from the Whigs 265 Fac-simile of a Page from Account- books 266 Touching Entries from Note-books 267 BOOK FIFTH. WHIGS AND TORIES. 1709-1710. ^T. 43-43. Pages 271-8T3. I. Power changin& Hands, 271-287. Swift's last Visit to his Mother 271 Apology for the Tale 272 Desire for England 273 Correspondence with Halifax 274 Unpublished Letter to Pembroke 275 Attentions of Addison 276 False Imputations 277 Aloof from Wharton 278 Addison and Esther Johnson 279 Exciting English News 280 Test Question revived 281 Swift's Mother's Death 282 Letters written and Letters received.... 282 Losings and Winnings at Cards.... .283, 284 Overthrow of the Whigs, and Tlioughts of Another Book 284 Uncertain as to Future Course 286 'Embarks for England 287 11. Old Fbiends and Nbw, 287- 305. Kide to Chester 288 Begins his Journals 289 Reception by Friends 289 Interview with Somers 291 With Addison and Steele 291 Great Ministers deposed 293 Party Vicissitudes 293 Whig Entertainments 294 Dining and Lampooning 295 At Hampton Court with Halifax 29G A Westminster Election 297 One Flxception to the Whig Rout 299 Up to the Top of St. Paul's 299 Inteiposing for Steele 300 Addison's Sister...! 301 Swift among his Cousins 303 Whig Wits and Poets 303 Unexpected Attack 305 • III. Esther Johnson, 300-328. What Swift's Journals represented 30C The Journals as printed 307 The " Little Language" 308 Her First Letter 309 Injunctions to Him 310 Esther's Mother and Sister 311 New London Lodging 312 What he says of his Journals 313 His Life put into them 314 Is Fortune with him at last? 315 TABLE OF CONTENTS. 13 Page Joys and Disappointments 316 What he has been Publishing 317 Harley's Treatment of Him 318 First Mention of the Vanhomrighs 319 Unacknowledged Pieces 320 A Letter from Esther Johnson 321 Fancy to "go mad"for China.., 322 Fit of Giddiness 323 The Queen and the Tory Lords 324 Writing in Bed 325 Poetical Uses of a London Lodging 326 Keasoning Wrong at First Thinking. ... 327 IV. A LONG-PESIKED OBJECT GAINED, 328-336. Scoundrel and Prince 328 Harley and Swift Alone 329 Thinks of tlie "Tale of a Tub" 330 Esther's Opinion of "Sid Hamet" 331 State Visit to the Minister 332 111 News for Good News 333 "So goes the World" '.. 334 First-fruits finally remitted 335 DifBcult and Wary Walking 336 V. Robert Haelbt and Henet St. John, 336-373. Getting into Harness 336 The Charge of Ratting 337 Harley's Career 338 At the Summit 339 St. John and Marlborough 339 The Duke's Great Failing 341 The Examiner set on Foot 342 Swift takes it up 342 His First Contribution 344 Swift's Political Writing 345 Personalities 346 Thinking of Temple 347 Prior and Dartmouth 348 A Madman in Pall Mall 349 The Queen's Speech 350 Explanations with Harley 351 Thomas, Lord Wharton 352 ALibel cried as Swift's 353 Lord Rivers and the Duke's Officers.... 353 "Plain Honest Stuff" 355 Curiosity to hear Swift preach 355 Page Addison's Trap for Swift 35G Peterborough's Predictions 357 Arrival of Marlborough 358 Politics at a Barber's 359 Tories plaguing their Party 361 Reward for a Pamphleteer 362 Too Hard on the Duke '. 363 Dangers foreseen by Swift 363 ' ' School-boys on a Holiday " 365 Crossnesses of Language 366 Ministers in the Midst of Trouble 366 At Revel till Two in the Morning 367 " Irrepressible " Whigs 369 Promises not kept 369 The Minister out of Favor 370 The Queen not Manageable 372 Future Foretold 373 BOOK SIXTH. (appendix.) biographical notes from swift's letters to esther johnson; and passages in the letters correct- ed and restored prom the origi- nal manuscript. P.iges 37r-4T3. I. Biographical Notes, 377-420. Of Money Matters — Esther's, her Mother's, and his Own 377-378 •/. Of an Old Friend and a Christen- ing, with Cromwell's Daughter for Godmother 378-379 Of the New Irish Viceroy 379 A Purchase Useful for Lilliput 379-380 Arrival of Esther Johnson's Sixth Letter 380-381 -/ Visit to London of the Vicar of Trim 381-382 Irish Opinions of his Writings 382-383 Answers Esther's Sixth Letter 383-385 -^ Rogue Steele 385 An Evening atr Home 386 Coffee-house Adventures and a tu quoque 386-387 Arrival of Esther's Seventh Letter 387 Patrick locks up his Master's Work. 387-388 14 TABLE OF CONTENTS. Page Old Whig Connections 888-389 Answers Esther's Seventh Letter... 389-391 Postscript of Things Eememberable. 391-393 Illness of Sir Andrew Fountaine.... 393-395 Lord Herbert and Anthony Henley. 395-396 New Tatler with " Little" Harrison for Editor 39G-397 Incident on Christmas-eve 398 Christmas and New-year's 398-400 Economies and Domesticities 400-401 The Missing Box 401-402 Charles Ford and Addison 402^03 Patrick and his Linnet 403-404 The Archdeacon's Wife 404 Waiting for a Letter 404-406 Enjoyment of what Esther writes. . 406-407 Laughs at her Answers, and de- scribes his Own 407 Page Invention of Old Proverbs and Rhymes .' ■. 407-408 Sickness after St. John's Kevel 408-409 Writing in Bed 409-410 Living Wits, and a Dead One 410 Answers Esther's Tenth Letter 410-411 The Winter of 1710-'ll 412-414 Change at Last 414-415 Walking for Health's Sake 415-416 A Comfort in Sickness and Health 416 Old Scenes and Friends recalled.... 416-418 The Vanhomrighs 418-420 n. PuBLICATIOSr OF THE LeTTEES CON- TAINING THE JOUBNAI, TO STEL- LA, 420^24. ' in. TJnprinted and Misphinted Joub- NAL8, 425-473. INDEX. 475-487 FAC-SIMILES. PoKTioN OP Examination Roll at Trinity College, Eastek, 1685 52 Resolutions "When I come to be Old," 1699 117 Addison's Inscription to Swift 173 A Page from Swift's Account-book, December, 1708 266 BOOK FIRST. ANECDOTES AKD EAELIEST YEAES. 1667-1688. ^T. 1-21. I. Anecdotes op his Family and Himself. II. Childhood, School, and College. THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. 30th November, 1667 — 19th October, 1745. ANECDOTES OF HIS FAMILY AND HIMSELF. " He'll treat me as he does my betters, Publish my Will, my Life, my Letters." In the same year when Swift, playful in his bitter and kindly moods alike, so described a punishment then just invented, and inflicted ever since on famous men, he was doing his best to abate in some degree his own share of its penalties and pains. The anecdotes of his family and him- self were begun at the time, as portion of an autobiogra- phy. They were laid aside and never finished ; but such of them as he did complete are the highest authority for the matters to which they relate, and find their fitting place upon the opening page of the Life of Jonathan Swift. Essay. Bathurst the book-seller published in 1755 Mr. Deane Swift's Mr.Deane Essay upon the Life, Writings, and Character of Dr. Jonathan ^™f^'' Swift, containing, as the title-page expressed, "That Sketch of Dr. Swift's Life, written by the Doctor himself, which was lately " (23d of July, 1753) "presented by the Author of this Essay to the University of Dublin." The Sketch had been given to him by " his old, faithful friend, and cousin-german, Mrs. Whiteway," Swift's nurse and last companion, whose daughter by her first husband Mr. Deane Swift had married ; and from whom he de- rived the farther information that it was written " about six or eight and twenty years ago, as an introduction to his Life, which YoL. I.— 2 18 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. the Anec- dotes. lie had reason to apprehend would some time or other become a topic of general conversation." To this very valuable relic I am so fortunate as to be able to contribute several corrections, and Additions to a few not unimportant additions, undoubtedly authentic. Some years after the original was written. Swift permitted the then bishop of KUdare and dean of Christchurch (it was not until later years that the dean of St. Patrick's was also dean of the sister cathedral), Dr. Charles Cobbe, afterward archbishop of Dublin, to transcribe it ; and this copy, already difEering in some points from its predecessor, doubtless by suggestions made at the time when the copy was taken, appears to have been used by Dr. John Lyon, in or about the year 1738, for the insertion of corrections and ad- ditions manifestly derived from, and occasionally entered in the hand-writing of. Swift himself, at whose request Dr. Lyon was then engaged {Scott, i., 504) in biographical researches connected with his family. So it has remained, unused by any of Swift's bi- ographers, in the possession of the bishop's descendants ; and by their representative, Thomas Cobbe, Esq., of Newbridge, Donabate, Malahide, it was obligingly lent to me a few years ago, for the purposes of this work. The points in which it differs from Mr. Deane Swift's publication (which I have myself carefully collated in Trinity College with the manuscript in Swift's hand), as well as the variations from the original text of the copy as printed by Mr. Deane Swift, are noted at the bottom of the page ; and the additions, all of which are indicated by inverted commas, will be remarked upon in their proper place in the biography. Collation of the MS. Fkag-ment of autobi- OGBAPUY : 1807-1699. The family of the Swifts are(') ancient in Yorkshire. From them (iescended(') a noted person, who passed tinder the name of Cavaliero Swift, a man of wit and hmnor. Hfe was created(') an Irish Peer by King Charles the First, 20th March 1627,0 ^^^^ ^^^ ^i*!^ °^ Viscount(') of Carlingford, but never was in that kingdom. Many tra- ditional pleasant stories are related of him, which the fam- ily planted in Ireland hath(°) received from their parents. This lord died without issue male; and liis(') heiress, whether of the first or sec(^d descent ,(°) was married to Eobert Fielding, Esq., commonly called handsome Field- ing.(°) She brought him a considerable estate in York- shire, which he squandered away, but had no children. (') "Was": D. S. (') D. S. inserts in a note " Bamarn Swift, Esq." O "Made"; D. S. C) D- S. inserts "or King James." C) "Baron": D. S. (°) Incorrectly printed "had" in modern copies. (') "Daughter, Lady Margaret, an " inserted and erased. (") " Whether of the first or second descent" erased and restored. (°) Dr. Lyon substitutes, "member of parliament for Gowran Co., Kilken- ny, afterward pardoned, and died 12th May, 1712." § I.] ANECDOTES OF HIS FAMILY AND HIMSELF. 19 The Earl of Eglinton married another co-heiress of the Fkagment same family.(') 0™^™'' Another of the same family was Sir Edward Swift, well 1 667-1699. known in the times of the great Eebellion and Usurpa- tion, but I am ignorant whether he left heirs or no. Of the other branch, whereof the greatest part settled in Ireland, the fomider was "William Swift, prebendary of Canterbury,(^) toward the last years of Queen Elizabeth, and during the reign of King James the First. He was a swift's an- divine of some distinction. There is a sermon of his ex- ««stoi-8. tant, and the title is to be seen in the catalogue of the Bodleian Library, but I never could get a copy, and I sup- pose it would now be of little value.Q This "William married the heiress of Philpot, I suppose a Yorkshire(*) gentleman, by whom he got a very consid- erable estate, which, however, she kept in her own power, I know not by what artifice.(°) She was a capricious, ill- natured, and passionate woman, of which thereC) have been told several instances. And it hath been a continual tra- dition in the family, that she absolutely disinherited her only son, Thomas, for no greater crime than that of rob- bing an orchard when he was a boy. And thus much is certain, that Thomas never enjoyed more than one hun- dred pounds a year, which was all at Goodrich, in Hertford- shire, whereof not above one-half is now in the possession of a great -great -grandson, except a(') church or chapter lease which was not renewed. (') "As he hath often told me" adds Mr. Deane Swift, " find the name written in and erased by Swift after the word "family." C) In a note to this passage Mr. Deane Swift corrects his illustrious kinsman. "Had Doctor Swift," he says, "read the dedication of William Swift's sermon, it would have set him right. In that dedication we find that Thomas Swift, the father of William, was presented in the year 1569 to the parish of St. Andrew in the city of Canterbury: and, moreover, that upon the decease of Thomas, William Swift, in the year 1.591, succeeded his fa- ther." The same error leads to the description, in tha next following sen- of William Swift in the list of the prebendaries of Canterbury ; I sup- pose the Doctor took it for granted that the parish of St. Andrew's was one of the prebends belonging to that cathedral." (') It is described as "On the 8th Rom. verse 18 ; printed London, 1622. " C) D. S. corrects to "Kent." (') "I know not by what artifice" omitted by D. S. C) "I": D. S. (') This sentence is differently ar- ranged, but substantially the same. Scott incorrectly prints "great-great- grandson'' as "great-grandson;" con- tence, of " Philpot" as a Yorkshire founding Mr. Deane Swift, who is so gentleman. It was not William Swift, ' referred to, with his grandfather, Mr. but his father, who first moved from Godwin Swift, named in the next sen- Yorkshire to Canterbury. "I do not," tence. 20 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. Fragment ofAdtobi- OGRAPHT : 1667-1699. Family arms. His original picture was(') in the hands of Godwin Swift, of Dublin, Esq., his great-grandson ; as well as that of his wife, who seems to nave a good deal of the shrew in her countenance ; whose arms asQ an heiress are joined with his own ; and by the last he seems to have been a person somewhat fantastic ; for he altered the family coat of arms, and gives as his own deviceQ a Dolphin (in those days called a Swift) twisted about an anchor, with this motto, Festina lente. There is likewise a seal with the same coat of arms (his, not joined with the(') wife's), which the said William com- monly made use of ; and this was(') also in the possession of Godwin Swift above mentioned. His eldest son, Thomas, seems to have been a clergyman before his father's death.(') He was vicar of Goodrich, in Hei-efordshire, within a mile or two of Eoss : he had like- wise another church hving, with about one hundred pounds a year in land (part whereof was by churcli leases),(') as I have already mentioned. He built a house on his own land in the village of Goodrich,(*) which by the architect- (') " Is now " erased by Swift, and "was" substituted. In first publish- ing the original Mr. Deane Swift de- scribed these portraits as "in the hands of Mrs. Elizabeth Swift, relict of Godwin Swift, late of Swiftsheath, in the county of Kilkenny, Esq. His picture was drawn in the year 1023, SBtatis suas .57 : his wife's picture was drawn in the same year, setatis suaj 54." Q) "Of" erased and "as" substi- tuted by Swift. (') "For these he gives as his de- vice " : D. S. I C) Incorrectly "his" in D. S. and modern copies. (') " Is also now " erased, and "was also " substituted, by Swift. (°) Mr. Deane Swift explains this fact as made obvious by " the drapery in his picture, which was drawn at the same time with his father's, in the year 1623, aitatis sujb 28." Upon the statement in the next sentence " with- in a mile or two of Ross " his remark that it should have been "within four " would not be worth subjoining but that Scott, in copying it, has un- consciously left us an amusing illus- tration of his too hasty editorship. He probably made the' memorandum " it should be four " when his eye first rested on Deane Swift's note, and he seems to have forgotten, when he came to use it, what it referred to. But finding allusion in a following para- graph to "certain pieces of iron with three spikes" he gravely appended thereto (and so it still stands in both his editions) the ridiculous correction "it should be four." (') The words inclosed are inter- lined in Swift's hand in the original in Trinity College. They are not in the copy as printed by Mr. Deane Swift. (') Deane Swift describes it as not in the village, but in the parish of Goodrich, and as a house of the odd- est kind that certainly ever was built. " It has three floors, containing about twelve or fourteen rooms, besides vaults and garrets. The whole seems §!■] ANECDOTES OF HIS FAMILY AND HIMSELF. 31 ure denotes the builder to have been somewhat whimsical Fkagment and singular, and very much toward a projector. The °'^-^^'^<>^^- house is above an hundred years old and still in good re- i667-i699. pair, inhabited by a tenant of the female line ; but the landlord, a young gentleman,(') lives upon his own estate in Ireland. This Thomas was muchC) distinguished by his courage, as well as his loyalty to King Charles the First, and the sufferings he underwent for that prince, more than any person of his condition in England. Some historians(°) of those times relate several particulars of what he acted, and what hardships he underwent for the person and cause of An "emi- that(') martyr'd prince. He was plundered by the Round- '"'"* ™^®'"" heads six and thirty, some say above fifty, times. (') " The author of Mercurius Rusticus dates the beginning of his sufferings so early as October, 1642. The Earl of Stamford, who had the command of the Parliament army in those parts, loaded him at first with very heavy exac- tions ; and afterward at different times robbed him of all his books and household furniture, and took away from the family even their wearing apparel ; with some other to be three single houses all joining in one celitral point. Undoubtedly there never was, nor ever will be, such an- other building to the end of the world. However, it is a very good house, and perhaps calculated to stand as long as any house in England. It was built, according to the date of one of the pillars, in the year 1736." He adds, with reference to the subsequent men- tion of the " tenant of the female line," that " she hath been dead these many years." Of course the "young gen- tleman" in the text was Mr. Deane Swift himself, from the information of whose son, Theophilus Swift, Scott tells us he derived the note he has substituted for the above : which note, however, here subjoined, is only a, paraphrase of what Mr. Deane Swift had said in his 'Essay (Appendix, 21). "This house, now the property of Mr. Theophilus Swift, is still standing. A vault is shewn beneath the kitchen, accessible only by raising one of the flagstones. Here were concealed the provisions of bread and milt, which supported the lives of the family after they had been plundered by the Par- liamentai-y soldiers. The vicar was in those dai-s considered as a conjur- er, especially when, his neighbors be- ing discharged from assisting him, and all his provisions destroyed, he still continued to subsist his family. This vault is probably one of the peculiar- ities of architecture noticed by the Dean." C) "Who'' erased. OD. S. omits "much." C) To the original MS. Swift him- self subjoined, but Mr. Deane Swift did not print, the following note: " See a book called Mercurius Rus- tifus, and another in folio called The Lives of those who suffered Persecu- tion for K. Ch. I." O "Blessed": D. S. The word is erased by Swift from before " mar- tyr'd." (°) What follows this sentence is in Swift's hand in margin. 22 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. Fragment OF Autobi- ography : 1667-1699. Swift^s fa- vorite ances- tor. circumstances of cruelty too tedious to relate at large in this place. The Earl being asked why he committed these barbarities, my author says ' he gave two reasons for it : first, because he (Mr. Swii't) had bought arms and convey- ed them into Monmouthshire, which, under his lordship's good favor, was not so ; and, secondly, because, not long before, he preached a sermon in Ross upon the text Give unto Csesar the things that are Caesar's, in which his lord- ship said he had spoken treason in endeavoi-ing to give Csesar more than his due. These two crimes cost Mr. Swift no less than £300.' "(') About that time(") he engaged his small estate, and, hav- ing quilted all the money he could get in his waistcoat,(°) got off to a town held for the king : where, being asked by the Governor, who knew him well, what he could do for his Majesty, Mr. Swift said he would give the King his coat, and stripping it off, presented it to the Governor ; who observing it to be worth little, Mr. Swift said, Then take my waistcoat, and(') bid the Governor weigh it in his hand ; who, ordering it to be unripped,(') found it lined with three hundred broad pieces of gold, which as it proved a season- able relief, must be allowed an extraordinary supply from a private clergyman(°) of a small estate, so often plundered, and soon after turned out of his livings in the churct. At another time being informed that three hundred horse of the Rebel party intended in a week to pass over a certain river, upon an attempt against the cavaliers, Mr. Swift having a head mechanically turned, he contrived cer- tain pieces of iron with three spikes, whereof one must always be with the point upward ; he placed them over night in' the ford, where he received notice that the Reb- els would pass early the next morning, which they accord- ingly did, and lost two hundred of their men, who were drowned or trod to death by the falling of their horses, or torn by the spikes. His sons,(') whereof foui(°) were settled in Ireland (') The passage within inverted commas inserted by Swift. (') So the original. (°) As printed by Mr. Deane Swift, the passage runs "and gathered all the money he could get, quilted it in his waistcoat, got off," etc., etc. C) "He": D. S. O "Kipped": D. S. (') "With ten children" written and erased by Swift, (') To this passage, in the MS. I am using, the following note is sub- joined : " Tho. Swift married Eliza- beth, daughter of Jonathan Dryden of Northamptonshire, gent, by whom he had six sons, viz. Godwin, Dryden, Thomas, William, Jonathan, and Adam. As also four daughters ; Emily, Elizabeth, Sarah, and Kathe- rine. — Heralds' Office, Dublin." (*) Mr. Deane Swift lemarks (App. §!•] ANECDOTES OF HIS FAMILY AND HIMSELF. 23 (driven thither by their suiferings, and by the death of Fragmknt their father), related many other passages, which they "'^•^''''"bi- learned e'ither from their father himself, or from what had been told them by the most credible persons of Ilereford- shire, and some neighboring counties : and which some of those sons often told to their children ; many of which are still remembered, but many more forgot. " In 1646 "(') he was deprived of both his church liv- ings sooner than most other loyal clergymen, upon account of his superior zeal for the king's cause, and his estate sequestered. His preferments, at least that of Goodrich, OGRAPIIY : 1667-1G99. Grandfather Thomas. were given " at first to one Giles Kawlins, and after to William Tringham "{^) a fanatical saint, who scrapled not however to conform upon the Restoration, and lived many years,(') I think till after the E.evolution.(*) " The Committees of Hereford had kept Thomas Swift a close prisoner for a long time in Ragland Castle before they ordered his ejectment for scandal and delinquency (as they termed it), and for being in actual service against the Parliament. Gn the 5th Jiuy, 1646, they ordered the profits of Gotheridge (Goodrich) into the hands of Jonath : Dryden, minister, until about Christmas following ; and on 24th March they inducted Giles Kawlins into this par- ish : who in 1654 was succeeded by Tringham. His other living of Bridstow underwent the same fate. For he was ejected from this on 25th Sept., 1646, and it "was given to the curate, one Jonath : Smith, whom they liked better, and ordered to be inducted into his Hector's cure. "What became of him afterward I know not, but in 1654 one John Somers got this living."(') The Lord-Treasurer Oxford told the Dean " of St. Pat- rick's, the grandson of this eminent sufferer," (^) that he had among his father's (Sir Edward Harley's) papers, sev- eral letters from Mr. Thomas Swift writ in those times, to Essay 25) that he should have said five. "I suppose he forgot Drydsn Swift, who died very young and a batchelor, soon after he had come over to Ireland with his brothers. He recollects his name, however, in one of the subsequent paragraphs." (') " In 1646 " omitted by D. S. (') Words within inverted commas interlined by Swift. (') The two names put in a note by D. S. O "I have seen many persons at Goodrich, who knew and told me his name, which I can not now remem- ber," erased by Swift, evidently upon his obt.nining the two names, and ascertaining what he proceeds to state. (') All within inverted commas in- serted by Swift, the last line and a half in his own hand. Dr. Lyon had supplied the other facts. See Scott, i. 504, 507. C) Words within inverted commas Inserted by Swift. 24 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. Fragment ofAutobi- OGK-^PHY : 1667-1699. Uncle God- win. which he promised to give to the Dean ;(') but never going to his house in Herefordshire while he was Treasurer, and Queen Anne'sC) death happening in three days after his removal, the iJean went to Ireland, and the Earl being tried for his life, and dying while the Dean was in Ire- land, he could never get them.(') Mr. Thomas Swift died "May 2d,"0 1658, and in the " eSd'^") year of liis age. His body lies under the altar at Goodrich, with a short inscription. He died(°) before the return of King Charles the Second, who by- the recom- mendations(') of some prelates had promised, if ever God should restore him, that he would promote Mr. Swift in the church, and other ways reward his family for his ex- traordinary sei-viees,Q zeal, and persecutions in the royal cause. But Mr. Swift's merit died with himself. He left ten sons and three or four daughters, most of which lived to be men and women. His eldest son God- win Swift, of " Goodridge Co. Hereford, Esq., one of the Society of Gray's Inn "(°) (so stiled by Guillym in his Her- aldry)('°) was(") called to the bar befofe the Kestoration. He man-ied a relation of the old Marchioness of Ormond, and upon that account, as well as his father's loyalty, the old Duke of Ormond made him his Attorney General in the palatinate of Tipperary. He had four wives,_one of which, to the great offense of his family, was co-heiress(") to Admiral Deane, who was one of the Kegicides. " She was Godwin's third wife. Her name was Hannah, daugh- ter of Major Eiehard Deane, by whom he had issue Deane Swift, and several oth*er children."C') This(") Godwin left several children, who have all es- (') "Dean "substituted for "grand- son, whose life I am now writing." O " The queen's " : D. S. C) Strictly speaking, this paragraph ought not to have been imported bji, substituted for "the Inner Temple, Mr. Deane Swift into the text of the Anecdotes. It stands, in the Trinity College MS., as in that which I am quoting, as a marginal note in Swift's liand. (*) " May 2d " substituted by Swift for "in the year." C) A blank in the Trinity College MS., a year having been inserted and struck out. (°) "About two years" erased by Swift. (') Plural in both MSS. Printed in the singular by Mr. Deane Swift, (s) "And" erased by Swift. (°) Words within inverted commas Esq." ('") "In his Heraldry" substituted for " the Herald, in whose book the family is described at large." (") " I think " erased by Swift. (") Mr. Deane Swift more correct- ly suggests "sole heiress." (") Words in inverted commas in- serted by Swift. Q') "This" inserted by Swift, and new paragraph begun. §!•] ANECDOTES OF HIS FAMILY AND HIMSELF. 25 Fragment ofAdtobi- Uncle Thomas. Other nnclos. tates. He was an ill pleader, but perhaps a little too dex terous in the subtle parts of the law.(') The second son oi Mr. Thomas Swift was called by the i667-ig99. same name, was bred at Oxford, and took orders. He married the(^) daughter of Sir William D'Avenaiit, but died young, and left only one son, who was also called Thomas, and is now rector of Putenham in Surrey. His widow lived long, was extremely poor, and in part support- ed by the famous Dr. South, who had been her husband's intimate friend. The rest of his sons, as far as I can call to mind, were Mr. Dryden Swift (called so after the name of his mother, who was a near relation(^) to Mr. Dryden the poet), Wil- liam, Jonathan, and Adam, who all lived and died in Ire- land. But none of them left male issue, except Jonathan, who besides a daughter left one son, born seven months after his father's death ; of whose life I intend to write a few memorials. Jonathan Swift, Doctor of Divinity, and Dean of(*) St. Patrick's, was the only son of Jonathan Swift, who was the seventh or eighth son of Mr. Thomas Swift above mentioned, so eminent for his loyalty and his sufferings. His father died young, about two years after his mar- riage : he had some employments and agencies ; his death was much lamented on account of his reputation for in- tegrity, with a tolerable good understanding. (^) He mar- ried Mrs. Abigail Erick, of Leicestershire, descended from the most ancient family of the Erieks,(°) who derive their lineage from Erick the forester, a great commander, who raised an army to oppose the invasion of William the Con- queror, by whom he was vanquished, but afterward em- ployed to command that prince's forces ; and in his old age retired to his house in Leicestershire, where his family Father. (') The second sentence of this par- agi'aph, after having been inserted from the oiiginal into the MS. from which I quote, is struck through with a pen. Mr. Deane Swift remarks that the words ' ' perhaps a little too " appear, from the different shade of the ink, to have been interlined in the Trinity College MS. some time after it was first written. O " Eldest" erased by Swift. (') Mr. Deane Swift incorrectly ex- plains, "aunt." See post, 35. C) In the Trinity College MS. the initials only are given — " J. S. D. D. and D. of St. P ." (=) In the Trinity College MS. a fresh paragraph is here begim. C) "The family of Erick, which has produced many eminent men, is still represented by two respectable branches, the Heyricks of Leicester town, and the Herricks of Beaumanor. Of both these branches, distinct pedi- grees and many curious historical an- ecdotes are given in the History of Leicestershire, ii., 21u ; iii., 148." — Scott, \., 509. 26 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. Fragment OF Adtobi- osrapiiy: 1667-1699. hath continued ever but deelminj and 30th Knvem- ber, 1C6T. Mt.S Since, but declining every age, are now in the condition of very private gentlemen. This marriage was on both sides very indiscreet ; for his wife brought lier husband little or no fortune, and his death happening so suddenly(') before he could make a sufficient establishment for his family,('') his son (not then born) hath often been heard to say, that he felt the conse- quences of that marriage not only through the whole course of his education, but during the greatest part of his life. He was born in Dublin, on St. Andrew's day, " in the year 1667 ;"(') and when he was a year old, an event hap- pened to him that seems very unusual ; for his nurse, who was a woman of Whitehaven, being under an absolute necessity of seeing one of her relations, who was(') then extremely sick, and from whom she expected a legacy, and being " at the same time "(") extremely fond of the infant, she stole him on shipboard unknown to his mother and un- cle, and carried him with her to Whitehaven, where he con- tinued for almost three years. For, when the matter was discovered, his mother sent orders by all means not to haz- ard a second voyage, tiU he could be better able to bear it. The nurse was so careful of him, that before he returned he had learned to spell; and by the time that he was three(°) years old he could read any chapter in the Bible. After his return to Ireland, he was sent at six years old to the school of Kilkenny, from whence at fourteen he was admitted into the university at Dublin, " a pensioner, on the 24th April, 1682 ;"(') where, by the ill treatment of his nearest relations, he was so(°) discouraged and sunk in his spirits that he too much neglected his academic studies ; for " some parts, of "(") which he had no great relish by nature, and turned himself to reading history and poetry : so that when the time came for taking his degree of bach- elor of arts('°), although he had lived with great regularity and due observance of the statutes, he was stopped of his degree for dulness and insu%;iency; and at last hardly (') Mr. Deane Swift tells us he was about twenty-five years old. O "That" erased. (') Words within inverted commas inserted. C) Substituted for "being." (') "At the same time" is in both MSS., but was omitted from Mr. Deane Swift's copy. (») "Three" is in both MSS., and so printed by Mr. Deane Swift ; but Hawkesworth changed it to five, and Scott copied him. Swift first had written "two" years, for which be substituted " almost three," afterward erasing "almost." (') Words within inverted commas inserted. (") "Much" erased. (°) Words in inverted commas in- serted by D. S. in previous line. ('») "Degrees of bachelor:" D. S. §1.] ANECDOTES OF HIS FAMILY AND HIMSELF. 27 Fkagment or Autobi- ography : 1667-1699. admitted in a manner, little to his credit, whicli is called " in that college "(') speciali gratid " on the 15th February, 1685, with four more on the same footing :"(") and this discreditable mark, " as I am told,"(^) stands upon record in their college registry. The troubles then breaking out, he went to his mother, who lived in Leicester; and after continuing there some months, he was received by Sir William Temple, whose sirwimam father had been a great friend to the family, and who was Temple, now retired to his house called Moor Park, near Farnham in Surrey ; where he continued for about two years. For he happened before twenty years old, by a surfeit of fruit to contract a giddiness and coldness of stomach, that almost brought him to his grave ; and this disorder pursued him with intermissions of two or three years to the end of his life. Upon this occasion he returned to Ireland, " in 1690,"(*) by advice of physicians, who weakly imagined that his native air might be of some use to recover his health : but growing worse, he soon went back to Sir Wil- liam Temple ; with whom growing into some confidence, he was often trusted with matters of great importance. King William had a high esteem for Sir William Tem- ple, by a long acquaintance, while that gentleman was am- bassador and mediator of a general peace at Nimeguen. (^)The King, soon after his expedition to England, visited King his old friend often at Sheen, and took his advice in affairs of greatest consequence. But Sir William Temple, weary of living so near London, and resolving to retire to a more private scene, bought an estate near Farnham in Surrey, of about £100 a year, where Mr. Swift accompanied him.(^) About that time a bill was brought into the House of Commons for triennial parliaments ; against which the King, who was a stranger to our constitution, was very averse, by the advice of some weak people, who persuaded the Earl of Portland that King Charles the First lost his crown and life by consenting to pass such a bill. The Earl, who was a weak man, came down to Moor Park by his majesty's orders to have Sir William Temple's advice, who said much to show him the mistake. But he continued William. (') " In that college " erased by D. S. (^) Words within inverted commas inserted. (*) "As I am told " interlined. C) " In 1690 " inserted by Swift. (') A new paragraph begins here, in the MS. I am using. C) The words "lived with him some time" had been substituted for "accompanied him" in the second MS., but were afterward erased by Swift, and the reading of the Trinity College MS. restored. 28 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. 06KAPHY : 1667-1699. Swift with the King. Fkagment still to advise the King against passing the bill. Where- ofAutobi- .^poj-^ -j^j. s^ift ^as sent to Kensington with the whole ac- count of the(') matter in writing to convince the King and the Earl how ill they were informed. He told the Earl, to whom he was referred by his majesty (and gave it in writing), that the ruin of King Charles the First was not owing to his passing the triennial bill, which did not hin- der him from dissolving any parliament, but to the passing of (") another bill, which put it out of his power to dissolve the parliament then in being, without the consent of the house. Mr. Swift, who was well versed in English history, although he was(°) under twenty -one years old, gave the King a short account of the matter, but a more large one to the Earl of Portland ; but all in vain. For the King by ill advisers was prevailed upon to refuse passing the bill. This was the first time that Mr. Swift had ever(') any converse with courts, and he told his friends it was the first incident that helped to cure him of vanity. (')The consequence of this wrong step in his majesty was very unhappy ; for it put that prince under a neces- sity of introducing those people called Whigs into power and employments, in order to pacify them. For, although it be held a part of the King's prerogative to refuse pass- ing a bill, yet the learned in the law think otherwise, from that expression used at the coronation, wherein the prince obligeth himself to consent to all laws, quas imlgus elegerit. Mr. Swift havingC) lived with(') Sir William Temple some time, andf) resolving to settle himself in some way of living, was inclined to take orders. " But first com- menced M.A. in Oxford as a student of Hart Hall on 5tli July, 1692."(°) However, although his fortune was very small, he had a scruple of entering into the church merely for support, and Sir William,('°) then being Master of the KoUs in Ireland, offered him an employ of about £120 a year in that office ; whereupon Mr. Swift told him, that since he had now an opportunity of living without being driven into the church for a maintenance, "he was re- (') "That"; D. S. O "Of "omitted: D. S. (') " Then " omitted by Swift. A mark is also here attached in the MS. I am using, as if a correction were meant to be made : and in the Trinity College MS. the passage appears to have been written originally by Swift, and afterward erased, "under three and twenty years old." This would be the more correct date. C) "Ever "erased: D. S. (') A new paragraph begins here, in the MS. I am using. (') "Having" omitted: D. S. C)"Hira":D.S. 0"Bnt":D.S. (°) Words within inverted commas inserted. ('°) " Temple" inserted : D. S. §1.] ANECDOTES OF HIS FAMILY AND HIMSELF. 29 solved to go to Ireland, and take holy orders.(') In the Feagment year 1694 he was admitted into deacon's and priest's orders ofAutobi- by Dr. William MoretoHjC) bishop of Kildare, who or- i667-i699. dained him priest at Christ Church the 13th January that g^.^.^.^ ^^,^r year."n lie was recommended to the Lord Capel, then nation. Lord Deputy, who gave him a prebend in the north worth about £100 a year, " called the Prebend of Kilroot in the Cathedral of Connor,"(*) of which growing weary in a few months he returned to England, resigned his living in favor of a friend " who was reckoned a man of sense and piety, and was besides encumbered with a large family. After which he "Q continued in Sir William Temple's • house till the death of that great man, who beside a leg- aey(°) left him the care, and trust, and advantage of pub- lishing his posthumous writings. Upon this event Mr. Swift removed to London, and ap- plied by petition to King William upon the claim of a promise his majesty had made to Sir William Temple, that he would give Mr. Swift a prebend of Canterbury or West- minster. " Col. Henry Sidney, lately created "(') Earl of Romney, who professed much friendship for him, " and was now in some credit at court, on account of his early services to the King in Holland before the Kevolution, for which he was made Master-General of the Ordnance, Constable of Dover Castle, Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, and one of the Lords of the Council,"(') promised to second Mr. Swift's(°) petition ; but('°) said not a word to the King. And Mr. Swift, "having totally relied, on this lord's honor, and having neglected to use any other (') Up to the word " orders " Deane Swift prints the passage correctly. Scott makes nonsense of it by omit- ting every thing from the word "main- tenance" to "he was recommended." —Works,!., 50. C) Swift knew of this insertion, but his orders both of dean and priest were undoubtedly conferred by King, then Bishop of Derry. The original parchments came into the hands of Mr. Monck Mason, at whose sale I bought them many years ago, and they .are still in my possession. O Words within inverted commas inserted by Dr. Lyon. (*) Words within inverted commas inserted by Swift. (°) Words within inverted commas inserted by Swift. ' 'And continued : " D. S. C) After "legacy" in the Trinity College MS. Swift inserts "of a 100 lb.'' subsequently crossed through with a pen. (')"The" erased: words within inverted commas inserted. (^) Words within inverted commas inserted. ^"His" erased: "Mr. Swift's" inserted by Swift. ('") "As he was an old, vicious, illiterate rake, without any sense of truth or honor," inserted by Swift, and erased. They are retained by D. S. 30 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFr. [Book I. Fragment opAutoei- OGRAPHY : 1667-1699. Promises broken. Additions TO Frag- ment: 1700-1714. instrument of reminding his majesty of the promise made to Sir William Temple,"(') after long attendance in vain, thought it better to comply with an invitation, given him by the Earl of Berkeley, to attend him to Ireland, as his chaplain and private secretary ; his lordship having been appointed one of the Lords Justices of that kingdom, " with the Duke of Bolton and the Earl of Galway on the 29th June, 1699."{') He attended his lordship, who landed near "Waterf ord ; and Mr. Swift acted as secretary^) the whole journey to Dublin. But another person had so far insinuated himself into the earl's favor, by telling him that the post of secretary was not proper for a clergyman, nor would be of any advantage to one who aimed only at church preferments, that his lordship after a poor apology gave that office to the other. In some months the Deanery of Derry fell vacant ; and it was the Earl of Berkeley's turn to dispose of it. Yet things were so ordered that the Secretary having received a bribe, the Deanery was disposed of to another, and Mr. Swift was put off with some other church livings not worth above a third part of that rich Deaneiy; and at this present time,(*) not a sixth : " namely, the Eectory of Agher, and the Yicarage of Laracor and Kathbeggan in the Diocess of Meath ; for which his letters patent bear date the 24th February following."(°) The excuse pre- tended was his being too young, although he were then thirty years old. (')" The next year, in 1700, his grace Narcissus Lord Archbishop of Dublin was pleased to confer upon Mr. Swift the Prebend of Dunlaven in the Cathedral of St. Patrick's, by an instrument of institution and collation dated the 28th of September. And on the 22d of Octo- ber after, he took his seat in the Chapter. " From this time he continued in Ireland ; and on the 16th of February, 1701, he took his degree of Doctor of Divinity in the University o:^Dublin. After which he went to England about the beginning of April, and spent near a year there. (') 'Words within inverted commas inserted by Swift. (') Words within inverted commas inserted. C) Mr. Deane Swift here prints "during," but the word is not in ei- ther MS. (*) "Time" inserted. (') Words within inverted commas inserted. (°) All that follows, to the end, in- serted. As with all the other addi- tions or insertions, indicated in these notes, it is placed within inverted com- mas. § I.] ANECDOTES OF HIS FAMILY AND HIMSELF. 31 "He appeared at the Dean's visitation on the 11th of Additions January, 1702 ; at a chapter held the 15th of April ; and ^° ^"^^s- at the visitation on the 10th of January, lt03. He at- uoo^iju^ tended a chapter on the 9th of August, and the visitation of 8th of January, 1704. He was at two chapters held the 2d of February and the 2d of March following, and at the visitation the 7th of January, 1705. Also in April, Au- gust, and January, 1706 ; and in April, June, July, and August, 1707. Set sail for England 28th of November, 1707; landed at Darpool; next day rode to Parkgate; and so went to Leicester first. "He was excused at the visitation in 1707 and 1708; and on the 9th of January, 1709, expected at the visita- tion, but did not come. He spent 1708 in England, and set sail from Darpool for Ireland 29th of June, 1709, and landed at Kingsend next day, and went straight to Lara- cor. "Was often giddy and had fits this year. " He attended a chapter held the 15tli February, 1709 ; also at a chapter 29th July and 11th August, 1710. Ex- cused at the visitation 8th of January, 1710. He was not in Ireland after this till his instalment as Dean on the 13th of June, 1713. On the 27th of August he nomi- nated Dr. Edward Synge to act in his absence as sub- dean ; and came no more to Ireland until after the Queen's death. He set out to Ireland from Letcomb in Berkshire August the 16th, 1714 ; landed in Dublin the 24th of the same month; and held a chapter on the 15th of Septem- ber, 1714." To these Anecdotes reference will have to be made as occasion requires. Imperfect as they are, they are found to illustrate Swift's career. They show not alone the sense of worldly disadvantage that even during childhood and at school marred his enjoyment and chilled exertion, but the temperament which at later times fitted him as little iiuistrationa to receive obligation as to endure dependence. They ex- hibit disappointments such as fall to few men so endowed, and an eagerness to resent disappointments such as few men on earth are spared. There is in them also, especial- ly, a kind of family pride which he never more than half confessed, but which always strongly overruled him. Com- paring his claims on the side of both his parents with the imprudence of the marriage that had brought them to- 32 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. 1^67-1688. gether, he believed misfortune to have anticipated life, and — '- '- that the world had been made bitter for him even before he opened his eyes in it. Swift's father. Sleward of King's Inns. II. CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 1667-1688. ^T. 1-31. On the 25tli of January, 1665-6, the Benchers of the King's Inns, Dublin, were met to consider a petition pre- sented to them on the lith of the previous November by a young Englishman who had been admitted an at- torney and member of the society in Hilary term of the year preceding. It humbly set forth that the steward- ship of the King's Inns was become void by the death of Thomas Wale ; that the petitioner, Jonathan Swift, his father, and their whole family, had always been very loyal and faithful to his majesty King Charles the Second and his royal father, and had been very great sufferers on that aeecount ; that for six or seven years last past the said petitioner had been much conversant about the inns, and was well acquainted with the steward's duty and employ- ment, having assisted Wale in entering of their honors' orders ; and that he therefore humbly prayed their honors to be pleased to make him steward. The decision of the Benchers was favorable ; and their direction, bearing date that day, admitted Jonathan Swift to be steward of the King's Inns. Before this time he appears to have had no settled means of support. With what his son calls a reputation for in- tegrity and a tolerable good understanding, he had come over to Ireland, drawn by the success of his elder brother, on the final break-up of his father's house two years be- fore the restoration; but though he obtained some em- ployments and agencies connected with forfeited lands, he had no certain income, and, returning to England from time to time, was still wavering between such chances of § [I.] CUILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 33 a livelihood as either country presented, when a marriage I6G7-IG88. contracted with Abigail Erick* (or Herrick), a Leicester- — ■ — " ' shire girl of old family but no fortune, determined him to Abigail settle finally to what had mostly occupied him since his '"°^' father's death, and, having qualified himself in Hilary tenn 1664:-'5 by membership of the inns, he had served as as- sistant in the steward's and under-treasurer's ofiice until the date of his own appointment. Very brief was his enjoyment of this humble piece of fortune. He had held it little more than a year when there came under consideration of the Benchers another petition. On the 15th of April, 1667, the humble prayer of Abigail Swift, widow, was presented to them : setting forth that it had pleased God to take away unexpectedly Dies before her husband, the late steward of their honorable society ; that, being left a disconsolate widow, she could not with- out their honors' assistance get in a debt of about six-score pounds sterling due to her husband's estate for commons and cost commons from members of the inns, several of whom, on being applied to by her brother-in-law, Mr. Wil- liam Swift, had denied him on pretense of his having no authority to receive the money ; and she therefore petition- ed for an order to give him such authority. On the same day her petition was complied with, but her desire was as far as ever from fulfillment. As the days passed into months, her troubles and fears increased. She had been left with an infant daughter, but she earned another child widmv's unborn ; and she had scarcely, in the seventh month of her widowhood, laid down that burden, when from, her sick-room again the wail of poverty and anguish went up to the masters of the bench. Their new steward had been pressing her, even then, for payment of twelve pounds eigliteen shillings and elevenpence, alleged to be owing from her dead husband. There was also another debt claimed by the doctors for his last illness, and his funeral * He settled upon her, at the mar- riage, an annuity of i!20, purchased in England, and this was all she is Vol. I.— 3 known to have possessed afterward in her own right. 34 THE IJFE OF JONATHAN SWIFP. [Book I. 1667-1688. expenses remained unpaid. But how, she implored their — '- — '^-^ honors, were these debts to be discharged, while a hundred Petitions for -, . , , , . , , .,-, . , , n help. pounds 01 arrears due to his estate were still withheld from herl The reply was characteristic rather than mu- niticent. As to the twelve pounds and shillings, their honors were content to balance it against an equal sum from their late steward's arrears ; and as to the hundred of arrears, of which three-fourths were for commons actu- ally served at their own bench table, they made order that " William Swift should exert his diligence " to recover it. Whether the diligence so re-exerted had that result, there is no evidence to inform us.* The infant whose misfortunes thus began, upon the principle of Mr. Shandy's reckoning, eight months before he saw the light, and who at last had opened his eyes upon a world in which want and dependence were grim- ly awaiting him, lived beyond man's allotted term, and while conscious of any thing is alleged never to have omit- jonatiian's tcd, as surely as his birthday came round, to repeat the words of Job in which he wished the day to have perished wherein he was born, and the night in which it was said there was a man-child conceived. Allowance is in this to be made for exaggeration, as in many other like things said of him. A man does not socially celebrate what he is always savagely denouncing; and Swift not only kept his birthday with unusual regularity, but rejoiced when those who loved him remembered it in his absence. " O, then, you kept Pdfr's little birthday : would to God I had been with you !" He had indeed a habit of reading on the day the third chapter of Job ; and " What's here, now ?" he writes of a letter from Esther Johnson reproaching him for not recollecting the proper date. " Yes, faith, I lamented my birthday two days later, that's all !" The habit grew upon him as years and disappointments grew, until at last the day became indeed an anniversary of un- mitigable sadness. "It is a day you seem to regard, * The facts stated in the text are I printed in Duhigg's History of the derived from the original documents I King's Inns, Dublin (1806, p. 216). birthdiiy. § ir.] CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 35 though I detest it," he wrote to Mrs. Whiteway three years 1CG7-IC88. before darkness closed upon his mind, " and I read the ' ^' ^^^^' third chapter of Job this morning." It was his way of job. '"^° ° expressing, what more or less he doubtless felt all his life, that witii his birth had come inheritance of evil incurable by philosopher or physician ; but, beyond, there was also much he was well content should be otherwise expressed, and to show how far this counterbalanced the bitter disad- vantage must be the task of his biographer. Before the story is begun, some further notice of the Swift family, with brief recapitulation of the principal points of his own sketch, will explain both the kind of help the widow and her childi'en were to receive, and what it was that in- disposed them to receive it gratefully. The first notorious person of the name had been also Toricshhe the first to connect the name with Ireland. Barnam Swift, ^'''"^' representative of the elder branch of an old English fam- ily which had long been settled in Yorkshire, and who for his gallantry and jovial humor passed among his friends as the Cavaliero, became one of Charles the First's Irish peers under the title of Viscount Carlingf ord ; but, dying without male issue, this branch became extinct, and the whole of the Yorkshire estates passed through the female line by the marriage of his daughters, co-heiresses, one to that Kobert Fielding known as the Beau or Handsome Fielding, who had for his second wife the famous or in- famous Duchess of Cleveland, and the other to the Earl of Eglinton. It was, h9wever, from a younger branch of the same family, through a representative equally but less fortunately devoted to the Stuarts, in whose seiwice he re- ceived nothing and sacrificed every thing, that the great- est of the name was directly descended. The Eeverend Thomas Swift, whose father, also a divine of good repute Hercf.ua- in the church, had wedded an heiress of whose lands in " '"^ '"^""^ " Herefordshire only a very small portion descended to her son, possessed in the same county, besides that temporal estate increased by an inheritance from his father, the vic- arage of Goodrich and cure of Bridstow, and lost them all 36 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. 16G7-1C88. ^T. 1-21. Intermar- riage with the Drydens. Godwin, Thomas, and Jonathan. Uncle God- win*s fo9K wives. for his loyalty. In 1646 botli lands and livings were se- questered ; and at the close of that year, when Hereford had been taken by the forces of the parliament, he was a prisoner in Eagland Castle. It has been seen how exult- ingly liis famous grandson dwells upon these losses and sufferings in the cause of the king. Thomas Swift had in early life married Elizabeth Diy- den, daughter of Sir Erasmus Dryden's brother,* who bore him ten sons and four daughters ; and it is a family tradi- tion that, shortly after his sixth son, Jonathan, was born, the soldiers of the parliament made forcible entrance into his vicarage and stripped it, not merely of the last loaf left in the kitchen, but of the very clothes of the infant lying in the cradle. Up to manhood, poor Jonathan the elder seems to have had the same ill fortune ; for when his father died in 1658, he was one of the sons already grown to man's estate who were left without a profession, or any apparent dependence except on the elder brothers. Of the latter, Godwin and Thomas had certainly received advantages, while yet their father lived, not extended to the rest. Thomas, who was bred for the church, obtained an English living; and bettered his prospects, after the Kestoration, by mamage with the eldest daughter of Dav- enant, the poet. In earlier years his brother Godwin, the eldest of the family, called to the bar at Gray's Inn while yet the civil war was raging, had become favorably known in the courts during the Protectorate, and had improved his fortunes also by marriage, after the example generally of his race. The first of hi^our wives was a cousin of the old Marchioness of Ormond ; through the third he be- came possessed of a portion of the family estate which had been forfeited by her father. Admiral Deane, the reg- icide ; the last was sister to Sir John Meade ; and though he had wedded his second and only undowered wife, Mrs. * Sir Erasmus was the poet's grand- father, and the name of Jonatlinn was taken by the Swifts from the Dryden family, Jonathan Dryden, Mr. Thomas Swift's brother-in-law, having received the profits of the Goodrich living upon its forfeiture by Thomas Swift in ICiG. — See Malone's Dryden, i.,17. §ir.] CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 37 Catherine "Webster, before the restoration, his favor with 1667-1688. the Ormonds so far survived that new alliance as to secure — " "" ", for him, after the event, upon the first duke assuming his brief tenure of the government of Ireland, the office of Attorney-general for the palatinate of Tipperary. There connection is evidence also that he was on friendly and confidential Temples. footing with the Master of the Eolls, Sir John Temple, father of the more famous Sir "William. Ey all his marriages Godwin Swift had issue ; fifteen sons and three daughters survived him ; his brothers had also representatives ; and to his nephew Jonathan may be forgiven an alleged reproach, that when reputation and power wei'e his he would not recognize, in all this crowd of cotisinhood,* other title to notice than that of bearing a name made famous only by himself. But with the fami- ly increase Godwin's worldly successes kept pace, and at the date of his brother Jonathan's death he was undoubt- edly a prosperous gentleman. It was the sunshine of his fortune at this time which had brought within its reach not alone that brother, but three others, Dryden, William, and Adam, who believed they might profit by its warmth in making Ireland their home. To him, then, as to the The widow's acknowledged head of the family, Jonathan's widow had ''''°" '^°'^''' turned naturally in her trouble. "With exception of the small annuity of twenty pounds which her husband had been enabled to purchase at their marriage, she was whol- ly dependent on this supposed wealthy relative ; and ob- serving the circumstances in which her second child was born, and the privations of which she not unreasonably * " I dined to-day with Patty Rolt at my coz Leach's, with a pox, in the city : he is a, printer, and prints the Postman, oh ! oh ! and is my cousin, God knows how, and he married Mrs. Baby Aires of Leicester, and my coz Tompsoii was with us." — Journal, 26th Oct., 1710. " Did you ever hear of Dryden Leach ? — he acted Oroono- ko — he is in love with Miss Cross." (17th Jan., 1710-11.) Again, on a later day : "I went to-day into the A crowd oE city to see Pat Eolt, who lodges with conains. a city cousin, a daughter of coz Cleve (you are much the wiser). I had nev- er been at her house before. My he- coz Tompson the butcher is dead or dying." (2d March, 1712-'13.) Pat- ty Rolt afterward married one Lance- lot, whom Swift did his best to serve, being, he says, fond of Patty, as we shall see. 38 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. 1667-1688. Mt. 1-21. Swift's birthplace. complained, one sees wliat must have been the impression ineffaceably stamped upon Swift in his childhood, and imbittering every later experience of his uncle Godwin's bounty. The case is not altered by saying that the ex- pectations disappointed were not such as it was entirely fair to entertain. In a small court in Dublin adjoining the Castle inclos- ure, on St. Andrew's Day (30th of November), 1667, Jon- athan Swift was bom.* Portions of this " Hoey's Court" are still standing ; but the only house possessing interest in it, foiinerly numbered 7, and occupied within living memory by small dealers in rags, earthenware, and such- like merchandise, was fallen into so ruinous a state a few years ago that it had to be pulled down, and the site was then taken into the Castle gi-ounds. The principal houses now in the court are on the side opposite to that where Swift's mother lived ; and, judging from the look of those still left on the side where number 7 stood, were probably of later date and of greater pretensions. How long she continued here after her son's birth, is not exactly known. She seems at all times to have made regular visits to her friends in Leicestershire, and Swift declai-ed that at the time of his birth she was about to return there ;t but it is * Mr. Deane Swift says in his Es- say (22), and in a lettei- to Mr. Nich- ols, which I will here quote, that the hirth took place in Godwin's house. Writing nearly a hundred years after the event, he speaks of it with a mi- nute particularity which will be alway^ , found to characterize his alleged facts in the exact ratio of their unlikeli- hood, or (if likely) of the impossibili- ty of their being known to him. "Her husband having died a very young man about the time of the Spring Assizes in the year 1667, she was invited to my grandfather Counselor Swift's house in Dublin. And as I have been told, and believe it t6 be true, she was then so young with child, that properly speak- ing she was not aware of it ; and the Doctor was born at my grandfather's house the 30th of November follow- ing." It would not be worth advert- ing to this if it had not imposed on Nichols and others, and if it were not an illustration of the entire untrust- worthiness of nil Mr. Deane Swift's family flourishes. It found a place in Joseph Spence's biographical sketch (printed in Notes and Queries of Jan- uary, 1861), but no careful inquirer has adopted it. Spence's sketch is worth- less. t "As to my native country,'' he ■wrote to Mr. Francis Grant (23d March, 1733-'4), " I happened indeed by a perfect accident to be born here, my mother being left here from return- ing to her house at Leicester, and I §11.] CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 3'J off by nurse. ^t. 3. at least certain that there is no trace of her in Dublin aft- I667-1G88. er Jonathan's school-days began. — '- — ^^ Before the beginning of even these, however, or of the second year of the little fellow's existence, an incident had occurred claiming mention in his history. To the English chua carried nui'se who had charge of him he had so endeared himself, that, upon the occasion of a relative's death calling her sud- denly to her native place of Whitehaven, she carried off with her the child whom she could not bear to part from ; " stole, him on shipboard, unknown to his mother and vmcle," says Swift himself ; and did not take him back to Ireland for more than two years. Her care of him had not slept in the interval. Before his return he had learned to spell ; and " by the time that he was three years old,"* his fragment of autobiography has told us, " he could read any chapter in the Bible." He had no pride of birth in the country to which he was thus taken back, and with which his name is eternally associated. He never called himself, nor permitted others to call him, an Ii'ishman. He was an Englishman settled in Ireland. He was in the habit of saying frequently to others what he wrote to the second Lord Oxford in ITSY. He happened to be dropped No prkie in there ; was one year old when he left it first ; and to his sorrow did not die before he went to it again. He had a sickly childhood ; and it was his mother's fear that a second sea voyage might be dangerous to him which led her to consent that he should stay so long with the woman who had shown him so strong an attachment. Abigail Swift depended mainly at this time on her hus- TreliUid. was a year old before I was sent to England ; and thus I am a Teagne, or an Irishman, or what people please, although the best part of my life was in England. What I did for this coun- try was from perfect hatred of tyran- ny and oppression I believe the people of Lapland or the Hottentots •ire not so miserable a people as we." Grant was a London merchant, who wished to interest him in a fishery scheme. * "Almost three'' is the first ex- pression of Swift, altered by him to "three;" and this followed the era- sure of "two years," which at first he' had written. Mr. Deane Swift print- ed "three" correctly; but Hawkes- worth altered the word to "five,"and was copied by Scott. 4:0 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. 1667-1688. band's eldest brother for help in her widowhood : and it ^T. 1-21 '— "— was because he stinted, not what he gave, but the kindness with which he might have given it, that the bread of de- pendence was made very bitter to her. Godwin had the reputation of being wealthier than the sequel showed him to be ; and, though a cold, unsympathizing man, there is no ground for thinking him an unjust one. " He gave me the education of a dog," said Swift ; who thought, perhaps justly, that, but for his uncle's connection by marriage with the Ormond family, he would not have been taken from his mother's side at the early age of six years, and At KiikeuDy placed, under the care of a Mr. Ryder, in the foundation- school of the Ormonds at Kilkenny. Whether at the same age the assistance was withdrawn which until now enabled the child's mother to continue her residence in Ireland, there are no means of ascertaining ; but shortly after her boy had thus been taken from her care, she is found to be School- living among her own relatives in Leicester. Kilkenny ^ ""^^ school, however, had some repute in those days ; and here, where a youth named Stratford well known to him in his famous time was in the same class with him, he was joined, after a couple of years, by his cousin Thomas, son of his Oxford uncle of that name ; and he had for a later school- wiiiiam f ellow a lad named William Congreve, two years his junior, son of a younger brother of a good English family, whose father was then managing Lord Burlington's Irish estate, who entered Trinity College under the same tutor as Swift two years later, and was to achieve a reputation only less famous than his own. Swift remained till he was fourteen ; but, except his name cut by himself on the sideboard of the seat of his class, no trace of him survived in the school. He told Doc- tor Lyon that the first Latin words which struck his child- ish fancy soon after entering it, " Mi dux et amasti lux," had touched him more durably than the graver teaching ; for with them began his whimsical taste for the rhymed Latin-English indulged largely in his later years. There is also a hint in one of his letters to Pope and Bolingbroke § II.] CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 41 that other pursuits than of Latin or EngUsh may have oc- 1667-1688. cupied him at Kilkenny, and we know with certainty that -— — -- what he mentions here was among his subsequent amuse- ments at Laracor. " I remember, when I was a little boy, I felt a great fish at the end of my line, which I drew up almost on the ground; but it dropped in, and the disap- pointment vexes me to this very day, and I believe it was a type of the the type of all my future disappointments." Another school recollection, of less certain authenticity, appears in some personal experiences with which he is al- leged to have enforced an argument on the improvidence of marriage where means were scant and health indifferent, addressed to one of the many young clergymen helped by him when Dean of St. Patrick's. " When I was a school- story of boy at Kilkenny, and in the lower form, I longed very much to have a horse, of iny own to ride on. One day I saw a poor man leading a very mangy, lean horse out of the town to kill him for the skin. I asked the man if he would sell him, which he readily consented to upon my offering him somewhat more than the price of the hide, which was all the money I had in the world. I immediate- ly got on him, to the great envy of some of my school-fel- lows and to the ridicule of others, and rode him about the town. The horse soon tired, and lay down. As I had no stable to put him into, nor any money to pay for his sus- tenance, I began to find out what a foolish bargain I had made, and cried heartily for the loss of my cash ; but the horse dying soon after on the spot gave me some relief." An extract from the senior lecturer's book in Dublin University exhibits the next step in Swift's career. It in- forms us that on the 24:th of April, 1682, from the school of Mr. Kyder at Kilkenny, there were admitted into the college as pensioners,* under the tuition of St. George Ashe (who became afterward bishop of Clogher), " Thomas Swift, son of Thomas, aged fifteen years, born in Oxfordshire ;" and " Jonathan Swift, son of Jonathan, aged fourteen years, lege. * Stratford had been admitted under another tutor some months earlier. 42 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. Dnratiou of lesideuce. iG6r-iG88. born in the county of Dublin." For nearly seven years — ^— - - Jonathan remained here, taking his bachelor's degree in February, 1685-6, and passing the three following years also in the college, which he did not quit until the " break- ing-out of the troubles " at the opening of 1689. That is his own expression; and of all that has been written on his university career, including a volume by a learned vice- provost of the college,* there is hardly any thing really authentic excepting what was written by himself. Famous men may suffer quite as much by excess as by want of curiosity about them, and more would certainly now have been known of Swift if less had been written respecting him in the half-century following his death. His Own anecdotes, in a passage it will be well here to reproduce, inform us that by the ill-treatment of his near- est relations, in other words the insuflSciency of the help afforded him by his uncle Godwin, " he was so discouraged and sunk in his spirits, that he too much neglected his ac- ademic studies, for some parts of which he had no great relish by nature, and turned himself to reading history and poetry ; so that when the time came for taking his degree of bachelor of arts, although he had lived with great regu- larity and due observance of the statutes, he was stopped of his degree for dullness and insufficiency, and at last hard- ly admitted in a manner, little to his credit, which is called in that college speciali gratia. And this discreditable mark, as I am told, stands upon record in their college reg- istry." Here the truth substantially is related, no doubt ; but with coloring from the ironical tone which he so often gave to his mention of the Ii-ish college in the days when it was written. Famous as he was then, any discredit from the special grace would go to the giver ; and while its im- port may have been harmless enough, as will shortly be seen. Swift preferred to tell the M'orld that Trinity College had thought him too dull for a degree. But this is not the His degree by special grace. * An Essay on the Earlier Pari I John Barrett, D.D., Vice-Provost of of the Life of Swift. By tlie Rev. I Trinity College, Dublin. 1808. § It.] CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 43 view that has found favor with commentators and critics. 1667-1688. They have made a very serious business of it indeed; ' ^' ~" -^ though the matter would hardly have been worth even wdteraou brief illustration, but for the light it throws on the claim ®"''''' to authenticity of the four earliest writers who have been accepted as original authorities for the Life of Swift. First came, seven years after the death, the Hemarlts of Lord on-ery. Lord Orrery, who knew Swift only during his last six or seven years of consciousness, who had been shown by Mrs. Whiteway the anecdotes given by her afterward to her son-in-law, Mr. Deane Swift, and to whom the latter had told sundry stories of his kinsman's last illness. In the Remarks it is declared that Swift's sole occupation at the university had been to turn all its studies into ridicule except history and poetry ; that on his appearing for a de- gree he was set aside for insuificiency, obtaining it only in a manner that was dishonorable ; and that when, on pre- senting himself at Oxford for an ad eundem, he handed in his Irish, degree sjueciali gratia, the English Dons took the words to signify a reward, not a reproach, and Swift never tried to imdeeeive them. Of the source as well as truth of this anecdote the reader will shortly be able to judge. Two years after the Remarhs, Doctor Delany published Doctor De- his Observations, in which he confirmed Lord Orrery's ac- '"^^' count of the degree, " which Swift hath been often heard to say was owing to his being a dunce ;" and added that the disgrace of it had nevertheless a happy effect, for it made him immediately turn his thoughts to useful learn- ing. His mistake at his outset in Trinity College, Doctor Delany stated, he had himself frequently explained to be " that he looked upon the study of Greek and Latin to be downright pedantry and beneath a gentleman; for that poetry, and plays, and novels were the only polite accom- plishments." "We shall soon see how near this is like to have been to the truth ; and of the four authorities un- der illustration, Delany is undoubtedly the most to be esteemed. A year after came Mr. Deane Swift, grandson of God- 44 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIET. [Book I. 1667- Mr. Deane Swift. -1688. win by his mamage into the family of Deane the regicide, who published his Essay ten years after the death of his great kinsman; whom he personally knew only on the eve of that event, in his last year or two of consciousness ; but of whom he speaks like one familiar with his prime, and says he took an opportunity of telling him that he cer- tainly must have been idle in his college days. " But he assured me to the contrary ; declared that he could never understand logic, physics, metaphysics, natural philosophy, mathematics, or any thing of that sort ; but I will teU you, said he, the best part of it all was, when I produced my testimonia,ls at Oxford in order to be admitted ad eundem, they mistook speciali gratid for some particular strain of compliment which I had received from the University of Dublin on account of my superior merit, and 1 leave you to guess whether it was my business to undeceive them." The reader who thus sees the origin of Lord Orrery's story, may appreciate also the value of such statements by con- sulting Mr. Deane Swift's own volume ;for the very copy of the Trinity College degree on which the Oxford ad eundem was granted.* The special grace does not appear in it. The proceeding speciali gratid was, in short, any thing but uncommon, and the degree thus 'granted, being as good as any other, was of course entered like any other. Hawkesworth's memoir appeared in 1755, but he had merely copied his predecessors ; though ten years later he did excellent service, with Mr. Bowyer, Mr. Nichols, Mr. "Wilkes, Mr. Deane Swift and Doctor Birch, in helping coiieciiim of toward the gradual coUectioi^ of the works, and addition thereto of the bulk of the correspondence, including the Hawkes- worth. the works. *"Nos praepositus sociique seni- ores Collegii Sacrosanetaj et Indivi- diias Trinitatis juxta Dublin testamur Jonathan Swift die deeimo quinto Februarii 1685 gradiim baccaUuivea- t(i9 in artibus suscipisse, praistito prius fidelitater erga regiam magistatem juramento : quod de prajdioto testi- monium subscriptis singulorum no- minibns et collegii sigillo quo in liisce utimur confirmandum curavimiis. Da- tum die tertio Mail 1692. Kob. Hun- tington, I'rajpos. L.S. St. George Ashe, Rich. Reader, Geo. Brown, Ben. Scroggs. " For Mr.Deane Swift's attempt to explain the contradiction, see Essay, 44-46. §n.] CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 45 several parts of what is called the " Journal to Stella."* I667-1G88. I-Iawkesworth was followed in 1780 by Johnson, who con- '''''' ~ ^ tributed some solid reflection, but neither novelty in the johuson. way of facts, nor, happily, any pretense to it. Then, in ITSi, came the edition with a Life by Sheridan, to which the habit of confounding the writer with his father, and its adoption by Nichols, who prefixed it to his valuable editions of 1801 and 1808, has given a factitious impor- tance. A life by Swift's old friend would have been price- less ; but this was a life, written fifty years after the death of Swift's friend, by Sheridan's son, the actor and author sheridan. of the dictionary, himself not bom until 1T21, who was not nineteen in the year when Swift's mind was gone, who was little over sixteen when all personal knowledge or access had been closed by his father's death, f who had. been three years on the stage when Swift died, but who nevertheless, like all the rest, speaks of him as a familial* and equal, and whose minutely elaborate statements, supported by no bet- ter authority than flighty histrionic inferences from de- tached fragments of letters and poems, are still accepted to explain the most disputed passages in Swift's life. " He told me that he had made many efforts, upon his entering the college, to read some of the old treatises on logic writ by Smeglesius, Keckermannus, Burgersdicius, etc., and that Fancy pict- he never had patience to go through three pages of any ^an/ of them, he was so disgusted at the stupidity of the work. When he was urged by his tutor to make himself master of this branch, then in high estimation, and held essentially necessary to the taking of a degree. Swift asked him what it was he was to learn from those books ? His tutor told him, the art of reasoning. Swift said that he found no want of any such art ; that he could reason very well with- * Fov the times and manner of pub- lication of this, the most important of all the illnstrations of Swift's life, see post, 420-24. t Of whom we can not but recall, too, Johnson's description, which, whatever in other respects its Immor- ous exaggeration may be, describes only too faithfully the book about Swift. "Why, sir. Sherry is dull, naturally dull ; but it must have taken him a great deal of pains to become what we now see him. Such an ex- cess of stupidity, sir, is not in nature." 46 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. 1667-1088. out it ;" and so forth. " In going through the usual forms -^ — ^^ of disputation for his degree, he told me he was utterly un- acquainted even with the logical terais, and answered the arguments of his opponents in his own manner, which the proctor put into proper form. There was one circumstance swict berore in the account which he gave of this, that surprised me ^isexamm- ^^,j^j^ regard to his memory; for he told me the several questions on which he disputed, and repeated all the argu- ments used by his opponents in syllogistic foim, together with his answers." Surprising indeed to a raw lad of six- teen ! and still more surprising that a youth thus privi- leged to hear how Swift, when quite as young himself, had unsparingly handled the trained scholars of the college, should yet sum up and dispose of his Dublin-University career ia these half - dozen words : " By scholars h& was esteemed a blockhead." Such was the amount of information possessed by the public concerning Swift at college when Nichols had com- pleted in 1801 his collected edition ; and he was on the eve of publishing the second impression of that important book in 1808, when Edmond Malone, who helped him with it, having heard, through an intimate acquaintance high Dr. Banett's in the college who became afterward an Irish bishop, of ^ss^y- researches for trace of Swift's student days on which the vice-provost of the college. Doctor Barrett, had been some time engaged, obtained the use of them for his friend. The vice-provost had been moved to his inquiries by a published samnei letter of Samucl Kichardson, written to Lady Bradshaugh son''/ub'ei. ou the appearance of Orrejj^'s Bemarhs, in which, with other palpable misstatements, to be noticed in their place hereafter, he says : "I am told my lord is mistaken in some of his facts : for instance, in that wherein he asserts that Swift's learning was a late acquirement. I am -sery well warranted by the son of an eminent divine, a prelate, who " — that is, the prelate — " was for three years what is called his chum, in the following account of that fact. Dr. Swift made as great a progress in his leai-ning at the Uni- versity of Dublin in his youth as any of his contempora- § II.] CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 47 I ries ; but was so very ill-natured and troublesome, that he 1667-1G88. was made Terrse Filius, on pui-pose to have a pretext to — ^' ~ ' expel him. He raked up all the scandal against the heads of that university that a severe inquirer, and a still severer temper, could get together into his harangue. He was ex- pelled in consequence of his abuse ; and having his disces- sit, afterward got admitted at Oxford to his degree." Seiz- ing on this clue, Doctor Barrett set to work with such eager Ban-ett's re- desire to identify Swift as the expelled Terras Filius, that, ^^""^ ' though he could not discover that he ever played that part of scholastic lord of misrule, or was ever at any time ex- pelled, he gave him all the benefit of a discovery that both these things (substituting six days' degradation for expul- sion) had occun'ed to a fellow - student named Jones, in whose offending "harangue," consisting of nonsense and filth in about equal portions, he so elaborately stated his belief that Swift must have taken part, because of prepos- terous alleged resemblances to the Tale of a Tub and Gulliver, that Nichols, and Scott after him (though not without misgiving in Scott's case), were induced to ad- mit it into their editions. I have vainly attempted, in two careful readings, to discover in it any thing that should re- call Swift, however distantly. It is simply an outrage on his memory to call it his. Nor is the small residue of Doctor Barrett's' research Tervie Films entitled to graver attention. The most important fact es- jiiSy^iess. tablished by his " raldngs " in the college books and regis- tries, namely, that Swift's cousin and senior remained in the college during all the time that Swift remained, in- volves in quite hopeless confusion his attempts to identify either student satisfactorily with the rewards or the punish- ments he exhibits. He says that Swift senior (Thomas) ob- Two sir tained a scholarship, but supports it by no better reasoning than is used for establishing that Swift junior (Jonathan) had no scholarship : the presumption being that without a scholarship Jonathan could hardly, in his circumstances, have remained after his degree. He confirms Swift's own statement that up to the time of the degree (13th of Feb- 48 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. 1667-1C88. ruary, 1685-6), he had lived with great regularity and due — '- — ^1 observance of the statutes, for he declares that the at- tempt to find any earlier censures on him in the registries had entirely failed. But he makes up for this by pro- ducing a most astonishing number of unfavorable entries from the buttery books, besides two public censures from the college registry, subsequent to that date; with all of which he discredits Swift junior, it must be said on the most indifferent grounds. There is such a medley of sen- ior and junior books ; such a want of either, or both, at critical points in the evidence ; and a confusion between Thomas or the two Sir Swifts (Christian names being never employ- onat au? ^^^ ^^ hopeless of Settlement except when both are together on the scene; that the only safe conclusion is, whatever the increase at the latter time of Swift's discontents may have been, to believe in no such violent change of his hab- its before and after his degree as Doctor Barrett attempts to present to us. The just course might probably be to divide between the two cousins the not very large amomit College fines of moral blame involved in the numerous fines and pun- snre"" ishments ; and in this view it is noticeable that both cous- ins appear in the first of the two public censures, of which the date is a year after the degree: "Mr. Warren, Sir Swift senior, Sir Swift junior, "Web, Bredy, Series, and Johnson the pensioner, for notorious neglect of duties, and frequenting the town, were admonished." On the other hand, nothing is established by the second and graver censure, which bears date on the day, two years later, when Jonathan Swj^t completed his twenty -first year, except that it applied to one of the two Swifts. The offense was contumacious and contemptuous conduct to the junior dean, whereby dissension was created in the col- lege ; and for this " Sir Web, Sir Sergeant, Sir Swift, Maynard, Spencer, and Fisher," were to be suspended ; the principal offenders, " Sir Swift and Sir Sergeant," be- ing directed publicly on their knees to beg pardon of the dean. The suspension lasted for a month. There is no means of knowing if the public pardon was asked ; and §11.] CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 49 1667-1688. JEt. 1-21. Not proven. whether Thomas or Jonathan was the offender, the evi- dence does not in any way settle. Jones had been Terrse Filius five months before ; and the attempt to fix upon Jonathan the later degrading punishment by connecting it with an alleged earlier offense of having had part in Jones's filthy and slanderous harangue, fails quite absurd- ly. The buttery-book entries remain, and Jonathan may accept his full share of them. It is more than likely he irreguiaii- was a frequent offender in neglecting to attend the college jl^eiy" "" chapel, in missing night-rolls or halls, and in haunting the town streets.* The strange thing is, that all Doctor Barrett's most mi- nute searches, with every university record accessible to him, should have " raked up " nothing better than punish- ments or fines, and that from them no scrap of paper or other document should be forthcoming to indicate Swift's place in the college examinations relatively to his cousin and other students of his time. No such thing appears, and no surprise or regret is expressed at its absence. But it seems to have become matter of talk in the college ; and the well-informed historian of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Mr. Monck Mason, makes the following statement in his elab- orate chapter on Swift : " The learned Dr. Barrett, vice- provost of Trinity College, Dublin, informed me that he was present at a meeting of the board when the late Bish- op of Ossory, at that time a senior fellow " (Doctor Kear- ney, subsequently provost), " discovered among some loose Eight ciue papers a record of the judgments given at a quarterly ex- lo^t. amination of this period. The name of Jonathan Swift * "Most of his punishments," says Dr. Barrett, "are for non-attendance in chapel. The amount is £1 19s. 4d. confirmed, and 19s. and lOd. taken off. For surplice (that is, for non- attendance in chapel at those times when sui-plices are required to be worn), lis. 4d. confirmed, and 6s. 6d. taken off. Of his other punish- ments, those for lectures appear all confii-med ; and are, for catechism, Vol. I.^ 3s. ; Greek lecture, 9d. ; Hebrew lec- ture, 8d. ; mathematic lecture. Is. lOd. ; and those for missing night- rolls, or town haunting (that is, for. halls)" in other words, not being in the college -hall every night at nine when the students' names were called over, " amount to 3s. 4d., but are all taken off, the admonition being sub- stituted in their place." — £ssai/, 11, 12. 50 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT'. [Book I. 1667-1688. was discovered among the students ; -and upon his per- — '■ '- formance in some branches (but which, the learned doctor could not recollect) the very opprobrious censures of ' pes- sime ' and ' tacet ' were pronounced — judgments which are now rarely, if ever given : that of ' vix mediocriter ' calling forth what is emphatically styled ' a caution ' from the rul- ers of that seminary of learning. I have endeavored to obtain a sight of this valuable literary relic, but the repre- sentatives of the learned bishop have not been, hitherto, successful in their search for it." It has been reserved to the present writer, after this long intei-val of years, to ex- Adventares plain why. The relic had been sent by the bishop to his reik.'''*™'^ friend in England, Edmond Malone ; and was found by me, only a very few years ago, in a copy of Doctor Bar- rett's book which belonged to Malone ; in which were many notes in his handwriting, with a packet of letters addressed to him by the author ; and which was said to have lain undisturbed, since Malone's death, on the shelves of the London book-seller from whom it was purchased by my- seK. The value of this remarkable discovery is as great as its interest. It gives Swift an ascertained place among the students at college with him, and it shows on what in- sufficient grounds later inmates of the college connected " pessime " and " tacet " with his name. Neither word is attached to it in the college-roll. This contains 175 names, and those of the cousins Swift stand together, tweMth and thirteenth. Christian names are not in theirs or in any case given ; but the order as well of ad- mission into the college a^of seniority in age, which I have quoted from the senior lecturer's book, fixes it be- yond the possibility of dispute that Thomas stands before Jonathan. The internal evidence presented by this most interesting roll is not less decisive.' Its judgments, the re- sult of one of the last important quarterly examinations in College ex- Easter Term, 1685, which preceded the bachelor's degree ammationof .^ February, 1685-'6, not alone confirm Swift's own ac- count of his studies, but apply otherwise with a perfect exactness to what is known of the characters of himself § n.] CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AST) COLLEGE. 51 and his cousin. In the fac-simile here made of the first i667-io^?. twentv-one names, the reader will of course understand ^' "" ' that Ph., G L., and Th. signify respectively Philosophy, ty-one Greek and Latin, and Theology. The first is, in aU the ^^^Zx^ old tmiversity schemes, the general appellation for logic, metaphysics, and morality. It means mental philosophy, or the science of reasoning ; it appears also in the roll as Log., or logic, other entries presenting the contrast of Purs., or natural philosophy ; and in it are comprised those sub- jects of college study which Swift says he had too much neglected, having no great relish for them by natm^e. How far he had neglected others ; whether, as Lord Or- Test of reiy tells us, he turned into ridicule eveiy thing but histo- g^ay_ ly and poetry, or, as Doctor Delany says, he looked upon the study of Greek and Latin to be downright pedantiy, or, as Sheridan avers, he was by scholars esteemed a blockhead ; here are the means of detennining. He was ill in philos- ophy ; good in Greek and Latin ; and negligent in theolo- gy. His cousin Thomas was mediocre in all. Thepictm-es The cousins, are life-like. What Jonathan was to be, and Thomas was to remain, are to be read off in them quite easily. But can it be said, of the twenty-one names, tliat any swifts posi- one of them stands really higher in the examination than rou. that of Jonathan Swift ? Wade and Blany have the slight advantage of doing indifferently what he did badly, but in every thing else he compares favorably with the best ; and "male" or '• neghgenter " is not the worst censure, though " bene "' is the highest praise. There is " pessime," under which, in a later part of the roll not here presented. Ser- geant, Cardiffe, and Sheridan fall, in the same branch of study where Swift was deficient ; and in theology, where " negligenter " follows his name, "male neghgenter" fol- lows Vandeleur, Willson, and several others. With the exceptions stated, he is highest in the portion of the roll before the reader, where the fii'st dozen names are of high- er standing than his own ; he beats his school and class fellow, Stratford ; and some notes from its later portions, taken with the same impartiality, will show liis position 52 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book I. 1667-1688. iET. 1-21. r«v«.:^f^. g^^ f/: /^ ?: i<^t3 . "^'.^U-^- ff^'. /^u^ '^ ^^^^ '^':fhf^^J. f£.^m^Sril 30th, 1737. § ir.] CHILDHOOD, SCHOOL, AND COLLEGE. 63 him all his life to abstain from fruit, which he as passion- 1667-1688. ately likfed as he steadily forced himself to resist; but — ^' ~ ' there is a remark upon it by Johnson which has his char- acteristic common sense : " The original of diseases is commonly obscure; and almost every boy eats as much fruit as he can get, without any inconvenience." Swift was little more than two months past his twenty- first birthday, when Tyrconnel let loose the Celtic popu- lation on the English settlers in Dublin, and, quitting the swirtdriveQ college with a crowd of other fugitives, he found his way to his mother's house in England. BOOK SECOND. UNDEE SIR WILLIAM TEMPLE'S ROOF. 1689-1699. ^T. 22-33. I. FiKST Residence at Mook Pakk. II. In Orders, and at Kilroot. III. Second Residence avith Temple. Vol. I.— 5 FIRST RESIDENCE AT MOOR PARK. 1689-1694. ^T. 32-27. The little that is known of Abigail Swift accounts for 1689-1G94. the admiration as well as the strong affection uniformly '^' "'" ' shown her by her famous son. Character, humor,* up- rightness, and independence, are in all the traditions con- cerning her. She lived twenty-two years beyond the pres- ent date ; and, excepting two visits made to Jonathan in Ireland, never quitted the home in Leicester to which he Abigail is said to have traveled to see her rarely less than once a Leicester. year : by coach when he could afford it, by the wagon or on foot in his poorer days. Though with a reservation of dislike for its fools and gossips, he always remembered Leicester kindly ; and when he was the familiar compan- ion of dukes and first ministers, he took pains to choose a " Leicesterf lad " for the making of his periwig. He was there in the winter of 1Y07, and saw a popular whig visited by election, foreshadowing the general election so soon to fol- low, when, for the last time in the reign of Anne, whigs were to triumph at the polling-booths over tories and high- fliers. But never did he see so much of the life that is * This quality appears In a story told by Swift himself to Dr. Lyon, of the only visit she ever made to her son in Ireland, which was very short- ly after he took possession of Lara- oor; when she imposed on the cre- dulity of the lodging-keeper to whose house she went, by pretending she had come to receive the addresses of a lover, and in that character received her son's first visit, before slie con- fessed the truth. Mrs. Brent, Swift's housekeeper in later years, kept tlie lodging. t "It has cost me three guineas to-day for a periwig. I am undone ! It was made by a Leicester lad, who married Mr. Worrell's daughter, where my mother lodged ; so I thought it would becheap.'^ — Swift to Esther Johnson, 15th Jan., 1710-11. Nothing is found to be so character- istic of Swift as the invention of self- ish reasons for doing unselfish things. 68 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book II. iG89-i6fl-t. worth seeing, he used to tell the great men with whom he — '- — ^ was already familiar, than when he saw it in his earlier Observation travelings to and from that place. When life presented itself to him as he sat in a carrier's cart ; when he would dine with peddlers and hostlers at obscure ale-houses; when, seeing written over a door, " lodgings for a penny," he would hire a bed, giving additional sixpence for clean sheets ;* those were experiences that had been filled with all kinds of profit for him. Presumably they would be- long to the days when Leicester knew him first ; and what he thus learned of the ways and speech of the common people, enlarged and varied at every visit, is likely in so- ber fact to have been, thus far, not the least precious part of his education. The local historian naturally prefers to dwell on such traditions as that Sir George Beaumont re- ceived him at Stoughton Hall, and that the family connec- tions of his mother, the Herricks of Beaumanor Park, and the Hayricks of Thurmaston, were not ashamed of him ; but a greater probability seems to have been that his moth- er might for his sake be ashamed of them. Her worldly disadvantages never went before herself, in his own re- mark of her ; and what is said in many varying tributes to her quiet independencef is in effect the same which aft- erward was said of one who also dignified poverty — that no circumstances external to herself ever prompted her to make the least apology for them, or to seem ev& sensible of their existence. Dignity in poverty. * "This practice Lord Orrery in^ putes to his innate love of grossness and vulgarity: some may ascribe it to his desire of sui-veying human life through all its varieties." — Johnson. t "Her conversation,'' says Mr. Deane Swift, wnting in 1754, "was so extremely polite, cheerful, and agreeable, even to the young and sprightly, that some of the family who paid her » visit near fifty years ago at Leicester speali of her to this day with the greatest affection She was a veiy early riser; was al- ways dressed for the whole day at about six o'clock in the morning, in a mantua and petticoat, which, ac- cording to the fashion of those times, she constantly wore ; and her chief amusements were needle -work and reading She declared in her lat- ter days (for indeed she was a wom- an of an easy, contented spii'it) that site was rich and happy, and abound- ed with every thing." §1-] FIRST EESIDENCE AT MOOR PARK. 69 1 689-1094. ^T. 22-27.. Her son had need of her counsel soon. " "When I went a lad to my mother," he wrote to Mr. Worrall in January, lY28-'9, "after the Revolution, she brought me to the knowledge of a family where there was a daughter, with whom I was acquainted. My prudent mother was afraid I should be in love with her ; but when I went to London she married an innkeeper in Loughborough in that coun- ty, by whom she had several children." This was Betty Betty jones, Jones, who will re-apppear in his days of celebrity living apart from her " rogue " of an innkeeper. She was an edu- cated girl, notwithstanding the match she made, her moth- er and Swift's being cousins ; and it was a legacy of five hundred pounds from the mother on which she was living at the time of his later knowledge of her. Hardly had he escapejl from this Betty Jones, however, when there began to be talk of another; and long before the "some months " passed which he describes as the duration of this visit to Leicester, his mother must have been convinced of the truth of what her son already had been told by a per- son " of great honor " in Ireland who was " pleased to stoop so low as to look into my mind ; and used to tell me that it was like a conjured spirit, that would do mischief if I would not give it employment." How to give it employment was then anxiously consid- ered, and it was his mother's suggestion that he should ap- ply to Sir William Temple. Besides the old connection ,of Godwin Swift with Temple's father. Master of the Irish Rolls, which sinecure office his more celebrated son inher- ited from him, Temple's wife was. a coitnection of her own ;* and Lady Temple still lived when Swift's applica- tion was made, and received with favor. He joined the retired statesman at Moor Park, near Farnham, before the close of 1689, and continued with him, not without inter- vals of absence, until just before Lady Temple's death in 1694. These five years are to be regarded as the first res- Applicntxou to Temple. * "Sir William Temple's lady," says Lord Orrery, "was related to Doctor Swift's mother '' (Remarlcs, IR). Orrery knew the Temples then living, and his statement must be ac- cepted implicitly. 70 THE LIFE or JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book II. 1689-169-1:. idence with Temple : but there was one interruption to it -^T. 22—27 — '■ — ^ at the outset, which will be found, when closely looked at. First resi- ' ' •' deuce. to Suggest a less confused and unintelligible story of it than has heretofore been given. It has been treated by all the biographers as a period of sei-vice, at the close of which Swift was on the same footing as at the beginning. Of the second residence this might be said; but not of the first. He went from his mother's house to Sir "William Tem- ple's, in the summer of 1689, " a raw and inexperienced youth," as he described himself, but with mental equip- ment to set against this disadvantage ; beginning thus ear- ly, there can be no doubt, to feel conscious of unusual pow- ers, and with a ready observation for every thing around him. Temple then knew nothing of him but Jiis family claim, and received him as on this ground entitled to pro- tection ; though very soon he had intimation of qualities of intellect noticeable for themselves, and not easily com- pressible within the limits of the kind of service that at fu'st, perhaps, had alone been designed. The youth had not completed a year's* residence, when, as he says him- Two periods Self, " he returned to Ireland by advice of physicians, who residence.' Weakly imagined that his native air might be of some use to recover his health." Ill-health there was, but perhaps restlessness and impatience in greater measure; for the residence at Temple's, which was to prove in the end a priceless advantage to his young and teeming brain, could only have seemed at the beginning to make his future prospect more barren. Temple's behavior to him was nev- ertheless considerate. His friend Sir Kobert Southwell went this very year to Ireland as Secretary of State, and to him he made intercession for Swift. The letter, writ- ciose of first ten from " Moor Park, near Farnham, May 29th, 1690," and period: May, ^jjgpQygpg^ q^Ij yevy recently,"]- possesses remarkable inter- * He calls it himself " two years " in the first draft of the anecdotes; but, as has been seen, this is coiTected in my amended copy by the insertion, in his own hand, of "1690" as the date of his first return to Ireland. t It was first printed in Mr. Cun- ningham's edition (1854) of Johnson's § I.] FIRST RESIDENCE AT MOOR PARK. 71 est. " This afternoon I hear, though by a common hand, i689-ii;!)4. that you are going over into Ireland secretary of state for ^" """'' that kingdom, upon which I venture to make you the of- teTrecom-^ f er of a servant, in case you may have occasion for such a § ™ft,'May, one as this bearer." (It may not be needless to remind i*'"- the reader that the word " servant " here used, according to the custom of the time, carries no menial sense,, but is as the correlative of master, the person to receive employ- ment or place from him who has it to give : " a gentle- man to wait on you," as later words explain.) " He was born and bred there (though of a good family in Here- fordshire), was near seven years in the College of Dublin, and ready to take his degree of Master of Arts, when he was f oreed away by the desertion of that college upon the calamities of the country. Since that time he has lived in my house, read to me, writ for me, and kept all accounts as far as my small occasions required. He has Latin and Greek, some French, writes a very good and cm-rent hand, is very honest and diligent, and has good friends, though they have for the present lost their fortunes, in Ireland, and his whole family having been long known to me obliged me thus far to take care of him. If you please to accept him into your service, either as a gentleman to wait on you, or as clerk to write under you, and either to use him so if you like his service, or upon any establishment of the college to recommend him to a fellowship there. Suggesting a which he has a just pretense to, I shall acknowledge it as lowsWp.*' a great obligation to me as well as to him." The last lines of the letter, like a lady's postscript, contain what was probably Swift's object in getting it written. It can hard- ly be doubted that they expressed his own hope in regard to the college, and his return to Ireland would be thus better accounted for than by the reason put forward ; but though he must have placed the letter in the hands of Southwell, among whose papers it was found, nothing came of it except that he was shortly again at Temple's Lives : being then in the autograph | heath. These have since been dis- collections of Mr. Yonng, of Black- 1 persed, nnd it is now in my possession. THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book II. lGS9-169-t. iEi. 22-27. Second peri- od of fll'Bt residence : Aug., 1690. More of the Itictiardsou uUack. Worthless authority. Temple quarrels. on an improved footing. " Growing worse, lie soon' went back to Sir "William Temple's, with whom growing into some confidence, he was often trusted with mattei's of great importance." To service of that kind the account to Southwell would not apply, and far less the description by Kichardson at the appearance of Mr. Deane Swift's book which has since found a place in all the biographies. It has been shown how little reliable is one half of that letter ; and the other half compels the same distrust. " Mr. Temple (nephew to Sir "William Temple), who lately died at Bath, declared to a friend of mine that Sir "William hired Swift, at his first entrance into the world, to read to him, and sometimes to be his amanuensis, at the rate of £20 a year and his board, which was then high preferment to him ; biit that Sir "William never favored him with his conversation because of his ill qualities, nor allowed him to sit down at table with him." There is no anthbrity but this, for either the sum said to have been paid or the treatment alleged to have been received; and siich authority should at once have condemned both averments. After Temple's death, Swift had disputes with the sister, Lady Gtffiard, and her nephews, arising out of Temple's bequest to him of the publication of his writings ; and though these had been settled, and he was in not unfriendly correspondence six years later with the younger of the nephews, John Tem- ple, they had been revived and imbittered by an adver- tisement from Lady GifEard on the appearance of the last volume, and at various times yet later there passed intem- perate words. " I thought l saw Jack Temple and his wife pass by me to-day in their coach," he wrote on his arrival in London in 1710, "but I took no notice of them. I am glad I have wholly shaken off that family." In his next letter he says, " I will not see Lady Giffard until she begs my pardon ;" and six weeks later he calls her an " old beast," repeating that in honor he can not see her.* For * "The other dny I saw Jack I was the first time of seeing him ; so Temple in the Court of Requests ; it | we talked two or three careless words §!•] FIRST RESIDENCE AT MOOR PARK. 73 all which she paid him back, peHiaps more than suffi- 1G89-1694. ciently, when she permitted a friend of her family to tran- - '^-'^~- ' scribe a letter never yet seen in the original, which she had indorsed as " Swift's penitential letter," and which Macau- Alleged lan- lay has characterized, with a degree of accni-acy that will ^uuence. appear when the story of it is told, as the " language of a lackey, or rather of a ' beggar." In eiiect it takes blame to himself for the troubles and infirmities that had closed this first residence with Temple ; and before the difference which led to it is described it will be only fair to quote what Swift wrote to the head of the Temple family some years after the quarrel: "I own myself indebted to Sir swifttoLora William for recommending me to the late King, although 29th Jan., without success, and to his choice of me to take care of his ^^^^' posthumous writings. But I hope you will not charge my living in his family as an obligation, for I was educated to little purpose if I retired to his house on any other motive than the benefit of his conversation and advice, and the opportunity of pursuing my studies. For, being bom to no fortune, I was at his death as far to seek as ever, and perhaps you will allow that I was of some use to him." Thus to repel altogether the sense of obligation, was in other words to say that he gave more than he received; and taking as a whole his intercourse with Temple, from the date of its resumption after the brief interval of ab- sence at the close of 1690, there is every presumption that he was entitled to say so. A particular kindness now rendered is mentioned by Eemaiks.ir. Lord Orrery, who says that Temple " most generously " stepped in to Swift's assistance in the matter of his Ox- ford mastership of arts ; and though he a little overpraises it as " uncommonly magnificent," moving thereby much wrath in Mr. Deane Swift, it was at least a timely service. Writing a few weeks afterward to thank his uncle Wil- and pai-tecl."^5 nothing of his own but his wings and his voice, his flights and his music, which enable him, by infinite labor and search, to range through every corner of Nature, and to fill his hive, not, like his adversary, with dirt and poison, but with honey and wax, " thus furnishing mankind with the two noblest of things, which are Sweetness and Light." The same argument is in the greater satire which Swift had in hand at the same time ; and proper significance has § ill.^ SECOND EESIDEN'CE AVITII TEJIPLE. 109 never, 1)V any of his biographers or pritics, been given to ICOO-IGOU. the fact that the corruptions of rehgion and the abuses of — ^' ' ~"" learning handled in the Tale of a Tuh are but the contin- satfrel " ued piu-suit, in another form, of the controversy between '"'"^ the claims of ancients and moderns. Peter, Martin, and Jack do nothing for the first seven years after their father's death (by which are expressed the seven centuries of early Christianity) but carefully observe theii- father's will ; and, while they travel together, and have a reasonable number of hazardous but victorious adventures, they keep their coats in very good order. It is not until they fall in love with Covetousness, Ambition, and Pride, that, becoming slaves to a then prevailing religion that the Universe is only a large suit of clothes, and Man himseK nothing more (what the world calls suits of clothes being really the most refined species of animals), they take to embroidery, fringes, and gold lace, and fall into all their misfortunes. And as with Eeligion, so with Learning. At the time corrnp- when this befalls the brothers, there has ceased to be any iigU)n°and^ such thing ; and a method of becoming a scholar without ^''™™s- the fatigue of reading or of thinking has come into vogue. A book being, governed by its index as a fish by its tail, thorough insight into an index is become all the labor nec- essary for mastery of a book ; and it has been found also that books may_be served as some men do lords — first study their titles exactly, and then brag of their acquaintance. Xor is there any lack of books for the purpose. The mod- est computation of that " present month of August, 1697," was, that nine thousand seven hundred forty and three wits of eh- persons (a stroke of wit lying underneath this number, fog" which was exactly that of the chm-ch livings then in En- gland) were reckoned to be pretty near the current num- ber of wits in the island, and corresponding numbers of books were produced with every revolution of the sun ; though it was unhappily the case that books, which, like men, had only one way of coming into the world, had ten thousand ways of going out of it : the business of the last volume being merely to displace the first, and mock the 110 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book II. 1696-1699. ^T. 29-32. Books com- pared to clouds. ■ Posthn- mous fame. The Tale not printed for eeveu yeara. lookers-on with a fresh set of titles. " If I should venture in a windy day to affirm that there is a large cloud near the horizon in the form of a bear, another in the zenith with the head of an ass, a third to the westward with claws like a dragon ; and you should in a few minutes think fit to examine the truth, it is certain they would all be changed in figure and position : new ones would arise, and all we could agree upon would be, that clouds there were, but that I was grossly mistaken in the "zocigraphy and to- pography of them." To this remarkable passage, whose writer must have known perfectly well the famous lines in Antony and Cleopatra* may be added one other which probably took its rise, half jestingly, half sadly, in the com- parison of books to dissolving and dispersing clouds. . It is very .affecting to me, because it is the only passage in Swift's writings where he seems openly to ask for some foretaste in life of what so often fails to come until life is passed away. " I have a strong inclination, before I leave the world, to taste a blessing which we mysterious writ- ers can seldom reach till we have gotten into our graves : whether it be that Fame, being a fruit grafted on the body, can hardly grow, and much less ripen, till the stock is in the earth ; or whether she be a bird of prey, and is lured among the rest, to pursue after the scent of a carcass ; or whether she conceives her trumpet sounds best and far- thest when she stands on a tomb, by the advantage of a rising ground, and the echo of a hollow vault." Yet the man by whom those words were written showed himself so far indilBEerent to qjiy fame that might arise to him from enriching English literature with its greatest " Sometime we see a cloiul that's drag- oiiish ; A vapor, sometime, like a bear or lion, A towei'd citadel, a pendent rock, [ry A forked mountain, or bine promonto- With trees npon't, that nod unto the world, And mock onr eyes with air: thonhast seen these signs ; They are black vesper's pngeants — That which is now a horse, even with a thought The rack dislimns ; and makes it in- distinct. As water is in water." — Act iv., sc. 12. Swift was very often in his writings (especially these envlier pieces) fignra- tive in a high degree, and fond of im- agery, though Johnson absnrdly says of liim that "the sly dog never vent- ures at n metaphor." § in.] SECOND RESIDENCE WITH TEMPLE. Ill prose satire, that the bulk of it remained in MS. for seven 1696-1G99. years, and was then alleged to have been printed from a ^' " ' " (ijopy in possession of a friend which had not had the ad- vantage of his own final correction. There is some doubt about the story that will have again to be referred to, and Swift studiously refrains from clearing it up. " How the author," he says, " came to be without his papers is a story not proper to be told, and of very little use, being a pri- vate fact ; of which the reader would believe as little, or as much, as he thought good." One thing is certain, that portions of both pieces got into the hands of Thomas Swift, never named by his great kinsman without contempt, but latterly become resident chaplain to Temple ; and this po- sition at Moor Park of the " little parson-cousin," as his great cousin always called him, during the composition of both works, which the bearing that both were meant to have on the Temple controversy would necessarily make him privy to, may hereafter somewhat explain the mystery. What further belongs to the present point of time is the personal description Swift gave, when he undertook the writing of his greater satire, of the qualifications he believed himself to possess for discharging such a task. By the as- sistance, he said, of some thinking and much conversation, he had endeavored to strip himself of as many real preju- dices as he could ; the study, the observation, and the in- vention of several years had yielded as their product what he then wrote. He often blotted out much more than he left ; and if his papers had not been a long time out of his possession, they must have undergone corrections still more severe. " He resolved to proceed in a manner that should Resolve in be altogether neui, the world having been already too long nauseated with endless repetitions upon every subject."* He kept his word : having rare qualifications for keeping it. He was young, his invention at the height, and his reading fresh in his head. Such was Swift during his second residence with Tem- Swift's qualifica- tions for satire. wilting it. * He has a pregnant remark on this: "It is reckoned that there is not at the present time a sufficient quantity of new matter left in nature to furnish and adoril any one particu- lar Subject to the extent of ii volume." 112 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book II. 1 G96-1699. ^T. 29-32. Other em- ployments at Moor Park. Eevision of Temple's writings. Ante, 99. "A thing in my way." pie ; and of tlae character of his employment o\er Temple's writings when he was not engaged in writing for himself, there is some account in a letter to Lady Giffard of somegj years' later date, replying to her attack upon him for pub- lishing a third part of her brother's Memoirs, which she alleged to have been taken from an "unfaithful copy," containing laudatory notices of Godolphin and Sunderland it had been her brother's intention to orait, and omitting a remark on Sunderland which he meant to have retained. " By particular commands," wrote Swift,* " one thing is understood, and by general ones another. And I might insist iipon it that I had particular commands for every thing I did, though more particular for some than others. Your ladyship says, if ever they were designed to be print- ed, it must have been from the original. The first Merrh- oirs was from my copy; so were the seconA. Miscellanea ; so was the Introduction to the English History ; so was every volume of Letters. They were all copied from the originals by Sir William Temple's direction, and corrected all along by hjs orders ; and it was the same with these last Memoirs ; so that whatever he printed, since I had the honor to know him, was an ' unfaithful copy ' of it, were it to be tried by the original." Then came what has been quoted of his not pretending to share in Tem- ple's confidence above his relatives or commonest friends. " But this was a thing in my way. It was no more than to prefer the advice of a lawyer, or even of a tradesman, before that of his friends, in things that related to their callings. Nobody else ha^ conversed so much with his manuscripts as I ; and since I was not wholly illiterate, I can not imagine whom else he could leave the care of his writings to. Your nephews say the printed copy differs from the original in forty places as to words and man- ner of expression. I believe it may in a hundred. And that passage about my Lord Sunderland was left out by his consent ; though, to say the truth, at my entreaty ; and * This letter has not been included in any of the editions of Swift. It was partiiiUy printed by Mr. Conrte- nay in his Life of Temple (10th No- vember, 1709). § III.] SECOND RESIDENCE WITH TEMPLE. 113 I would fain have prevailed to have left ovit another 1696-1099. These Memoirs vs^ere printed by a correct copy, exactly after the same manner as the author's other works were, his'editor" He told me a dozen times, upon asking him, that it was his intention they should be printed after his death; but never fixed any thing about the time. The corrections were all his own ; ordering me, as he always did, to correct in my copy as I read it." He closes by telling her that, knowing her opinion to be against the publication of this particular portion of the Memoirs, he had published it without her knowledge, on purpose to leave her wholly without blame. All this is proof that Swift did not live idle days at Moor Park ; and his own memorandum of one year of his reading, from Yth January, 1696-"r, to 7th January,1697-'8, shows a strenuous employment of his leisure. He had read the Iliad and Odyssey of Homer, Yirgil twice, and one year's an elaborate edition of Horace, eminently a favorite with Mooi°Park. him. Thrice he had read Lucretius, and thrice Lucius Floras, Petronius Arbiter, the first volume of JElian, Cic- ero's Epistles, and the Characters of Theophrastus. Of English books he had read the folio translation of Thu- cydides by Hobbes, making an abstract of it, which was an excellent habit he had; and three other folios — Lord Herbert's Harry the Eighth, Camden's Elizabeth, and Bishop Burnet's Reformation. He had made abstracts of Sleidan's Commenta/ry on the Reformation, of Father Paul's Decrees of the Council of Trent, of Cyprian and Irenseus, and of Diodorus Siculus. And, in addition to sevei'al out-of-the-way voyages and travels, and curious French books,* the same year's reading comprised Tem- ple's Memoirs and Int/roduction to History, Sir John Da- vies On the Soul, two volumes of French Dialogues of the * The memorandum speqifies, be- sides those in the text, the following as having been also among his read- ings of that jingle year: Voiture, Prince Arthur; Histoire de Chypre; Voyage de Syam ; Memoires de Man- Yoh. I.— 8 rier ; Count Gabalis ; Conformite de Religion ; Histoire de M. Constance Histoire d'CEthiopie ; Voyage de Ma- roc ; Bernier's Grand Mogol, 2 vols. (Euvres MeUes, 5 vols. ; Vossius de Sibyllinis. 114 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT, [Book IX. 169G-1699. ^T. 29-32. Strenuous exercise. Passion for walking. Dead, and two volumes of Essays by Jeremy Collier, with whose assault on the indecency of the stage, published in the following year, he expressed always the strongest agreement. Occupied thus in his hours of business or leisure, there is other proof that his relaxations were hardly less active. A hill was long pointed out near the house as the scene of his daily exercise ; and Mr. Deane Swift, professing to correct what Dr. Delany related from Swift himself — that for seven years from the time of taking his Oxford degree he studied at least on the average eight hours a day — de- clares it as a fact known to the family "that from the time Swift went to Sir W. Temple in 1688 until the death of Sir W. in 1699, he spent ten hours a day, one with an- other, in hard study, abating only the time which he con- sumed in bodily exercise, for every two hours (since we are fond of the most trifling anecdotes) he ran up a hill that was near Sir W. Temple's, and back again to the study : this exercise he performed in about six minutes, backward and forward : it was about half a mile." The anecdote may be believed ; notwithstanding " the family," and the absurdly obstinate particularity, already named as Mr. Deane's never-failing characteristic. . All his life long, sharp exercise was essential to Swift, who protested con- tinually that without his walk or ride he could not exist at all. He walked to make himself lean, he said, in de- scribing his long walks with Prior a dozen years later, and his fellow-poet walked to try and make himself fat. Irish- women could not abide walking, he would add, and that was why he disliked them. He always cried shame at them, as if their legs were of no use but to be laid aside. It is his first and last advice to Esther Johnson never to lose the opportunity of using her legs, and he bought a little horse for her to ride which was called by her name. " At your time of life," he wrote in his declining years to Pope, " I could have leapt over the moon ;" and his " walks like lightning" in the parks, between London and Chel- sea, and in the Windsor avenues; have prominent mention in his journals. There also lie mentions a design he had, § III.] SECOND RESIDENCE WITH TEMPLE. 115 on leaviiia: for Ireland after he obtained the deanery, to 1696-1699. " walli it " all the way to Chester, his man and himself, — ~ by ten miles a day. " It will do my health a great deal of good, and I shall do it in fourteen days." One special walk of his earlier years, also recorded there as if not in- uoi April, frequently taken, deserves a line to itself. It was from Farnham to London, a distance of thirty-eight miles. The death of Sir William Temple in 1698-'9 closed oioseofa what without doubt may be called Swift's quietest and tSe'" happiest time. In the three peaceful years of that sec- ond residence he had made full acquaintance with his own powers, unconscious yet of any thing but felicity and freshness^ in their exercise ; and the kindliest side of his nature had found growth and encouragement. The soil had favored in an equal degree his intellect and his affec- tions. More than one feeling of this description, we may be sure, contributed its earnestness to his pathetic mention of the day and hour of Temple's death. " He died at one Death of o'clock this morning, the 2'7th of January, 1698-9, and ^'^ ^' with him. all that was good and amiable among men." There was afterward some natural disappointment at the smallness of the legacy left for editing the writings ; but though Swift in a not undignified way (as we have seen) referred to this when he repelled Lady Giffard's charges against his editorship, it never colored unfavorably any other of his allusions to Temple. The opinion now ex- pressed he never changed. He continued, speaking rath- er with affection than judgment, to characterize him as a statesman who deserved more from his country by his em- inent public services than any man before or since, and as the most accomplished writer of his time. Temple's legacy of money to Swift was in express ac- Legacy of knowledgment of the pains already taken with the writ- writings, ings. This is apparent from the date of the codicil, which was executed less than a year before the death, and four years later than the will. But it left also to Swift the emolument derivable from the works so edited, or, as Swift expresses it, " the care, and trust, ^CMid ack)(mtage, of publishing his posthumous writings ;" and, as Temple was 116 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book II. 1696-1699. ^T. 29-32. Promise of the preb- end. never in the habit of undervaluing any part of himself, he may have taken this to represent a larger return in money than Swift would think likely. The amount re- ceived for the live volumes was about £40 apiece, which by present money value would be upward of £600. Nor was Temple otherwise without fair expectation for his kiasman. Swift himself still believed in the royal pledge for the first prebend that should become vacant at West- miaster or Canterbury ; and though he was in his thirty- second year when, upon Temple's death, he removed to London, it could not be said that the future, which then at last seemed to be opening to him, was devoid of reason- able promise. "When I Come to t.e Ofd." At this turning-point of his life his paper of resolutions " When I Come to be Old " was probably written. It has the date of 1699, and was found by Mrs. Whiteway at his death. Too much importance may be given to such things, which are just as likely as not to represent a whim or mere passing fancy ; but as the original is in my posses- sion, a fac-simile of it will have interest. One can hardly help connecting the first and fifth of the resolutions with what must still be called the mystery of his life, whatever the solution offered for it ; and something of a strange and even touching character is suggested by the erasure in the fifth, under which the words originally written are trace- able still. The erasure was not Swift's, but that of the person who in printing it would have shielded his memory from an apparent coldness o:^nature implied. But may it not bear a meaning other than hard and unfeeling ? " Not to be fond of children, or let them come near me hardly.'''' Such a fondness had begun at Moor Park in his youth, and all that was to follow it he did not yet know ; but if, in the pain of quitting Moor Park, the thought had risen to him not to reu'cw the same kind of intercourse in his age, who will say it was harshness that prompted the fancy ? We do not fortify ourselves with resolutions against what we dislike, but against what in our weakness we have rea- son to believe we are only too much inclined to. §ni.] SECOND EESIDENCE WITH TEMPLE. 117 fvft. ^. "^of ^ JuXff J)"^ ^lA^trt-y VMjIijl Umt fuSy Q^/'l ,y *•*»%: 4 ^ /^o^,^* * "When I cojie to be old. 1699. Xot to many a young woman. Not to keep young company, unless they reely desire it. Not to be peevish, or morose, or suspicious. Not to scorn present ways, or wits, or fashions, or men, or v^ar, &c. Not to be fond of children, \or let them come near me hardh/.^^ Not to tell the same story over and over to the same peopl?. Not to be covetous. Not to neglect decency or cleanli- ness, for fear of falling into nastiness. Not to be over severe with young people, but give allowance for their youthful follies and weaknesses. Not to be influenced by, or give ear to knavish tattling sonants, or Eesolntions others. ^i" "Id age. Not to be too free of advice, nor trouble any but those that desire it. To conjure (altered to "desire") some good friends to inform me which of these resolutions I break or neglect, and wherein ; and reform accordingly. Not to talk much, nor of myself. Not to boast of my former beauty, or strength, or favor with ladies, &c. Not to hearken to flatteries, nor conceive I can be beloved by a young woman ; et eos qui hcereditatem cap- tant, odisse ac vitare. Not to be positive or opiniative. Not to set up for observing all these rules, for fear I should observe none. ' Words in brackets erased in printed copy. BOOK THIRD. VIOAE OF LAEACOE. 1699-1705. M-r. 32-38. I. Chaplain at Dublin Castle. III. Tale of a Tub. II. London Lieb. IV. Baucis and Philemon. Johnson and Mrs. Dingley. CHAPLAIN AT DUBLIN CASTLE. 1699-1701. ^T. 33-34. The death of Temple did not alter the position of Lady i699-i70i. GifEard, or the relation to her of Esther Johnson's mother, ^^^•^'~ " who continued to manage the house and act as her com- panion.* But Temple's legacy to Esther (" of a lease of some lands I have in Monistown in the county of WicMow in Ireland") gave her the means of living independently of his sister; and, soon after Swift's removal to London, she and her friend, Mrs. Dingley, who had at her disposal Esther a small property of which Swift had undertaken the man- agement for her, were living together in lodgiags at Farn- ham. Mrs. Dingley was older than Swift by two or three years. Esther Johnson, bom fourteen years later than Swift, was in her eighteenth year when the second resi- dence closed. He had known her from seven years old ; and his ascer- tained position to her during the whole of the Moor Park life, confirming all that followed on the life breaking up, forbids the possibility of his having ever assumed to her, thus far, the pretensions of a lover. There is not the shadow of a ground for assuming it. It was the tenderest Esther and possible connection, but in no respect that of the mistress and admirer. They were playfellows, as father and child are; they were master and pupil, as the growth of her mind began to interest him ; and in all the attempts to ex- * At what time Mrs. Bridget John- son became Mrs. Bridget Mose does not exactly appear. Swift calls her "Mrs. Johnson" as late as March, 1710-'ll ; but this may have been a slip, from old habit. Mose managed the GitFard property after Temple's death, and it seems nnlikely that the marriage should have been delayed so long. 122 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1699-1701. Mt. 32-31. The litae language. Moor Park memories. plain tlie "mystery" of their later connection, sufBcient weight has never been given to the character in Avhich re- spectively they thus stood to each other, and to all that was implied in it, at the very outset of her life and the maturity of his. One thing between them, common alike to the later and to these earlier years, is itseM a proof of the durability of such first impressions, and of the difii- culty of changing the relations they involve. There can not be a doubt that what he afterward called " our own little language," hitherto all but suppressed by those who have supplied the materials for his biography existing in his Journals, began at Moor Park ; and began in the man's imitation of a child's imperfect speech. The loving play- fulness expressed by it had dated from Esther Johnson's childhood; it in some way satisfied wants of his own nature, or he would not have continued so lavishly to in- dulge it ; and the passion for good-humored trifling, pun- ning, and such innocent indulgences, which attended him, all his life and often contrasts so strangely with his great robust intellect, is perhaps mainly due to its influence. During Anne's last ministry he wrote to her of a dis- pute at Bolingbroke's about the house of a Colonel Graham at Bagshot-heath. " Psha ! I remember it very well, when I used to go for a walk, to London from Moor Park. "What ! I warrant oo don't remember the golden farmer neither, Figgarkick Soley." That is a bit of their peculiar language of which the mystery will never be solved ; and abundant addition might be made, from the same source, to the proofs already given of the interest which Moor Park had for them both, and which he seizes every occasion to remind her of. Had she forgotten one Trimnel, whom they saw there on his travels with the lord's son, to whom he was tutor? That was the man who had since become Bishop of Norwich, and had just preached so whiggish a sermon before the commons that the question for thanking him and printing it was negatived. He brings to her recollec- tion a high-church parson they used to laugh at together — one Savage, who preached at Famham on Sir William § I.] CHAPLAIN AT DUBLIN CASTLE. 123 Temple's death — ^wlio had lately been seen in Italy in red 1G99-I70i. and yellow, not content with the extravagance of kissing — ' the pope's toe, but kneeling to him at the Palm-Sunday cer- emonies. The neighborhood's commonest folks, in those grand days of his, were still vividly borne in memory. "When the Farnham carrier, " Smithers," brings him a let- Paruham ter from her mother, he tells her he has been asking him all about the people at Farnham, and adds, by way of news that will specially interest her, that " Mrs. White " had left off dressing, being troubled with lameness and seldom stirring out ; but that her old hang-dog husband was as hearty as ever. What now befell Swift, and the next step to be taken in his life, is the final bit of autobiography told in his frag- ment ; and there are some not unimportant new touches in the version I have been enabled to give, to which the reader is referred. In substance the relation is that Swift, after applying by petition to the King for the promised prebend, had relied, for the support necessary to back it ef- ficiently, upon Lord Komney, who professed much friend- ship, but said not a word to the King. That having to- swifi'a tally relied on this lord's honor, and having neglected to present dis- use any other instrument of reminding his majesty of the ^JJ^"'" promise made, Mr. Swift, after long attendance in vain, thought it better to comply with an invitation from Lord Berkeley to attend him to Ireland as chaplain and private secretary on his appointment as one of the Lords Justices of that kingdom ; and that he acted as secretary the whole journey to Dublin. On arrival, however, such arts and in- sinuations were practiced on Lord Berkeley by a person bent on obtaining the secretaryship for himself, who said it was not proper for a clergyman, and could be of no worth to one who was bent only on church preferments, that the earl, after a poor apology, gave it to the other man. Upon this Mr. Swift had held himself entitled, and • his claim seems to have been admitted, to the next church preferment that should fall to the Lords Justices. But, upon a deanery falling vacant which it was Lord Berke- 124 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1099-1701. JEt. 32-34. Lops of Ber- ry deanery. Cbaplain at the castle. ley's turn to dispose of, again the new secretary interfered, having received a bribe of a thousand pounds from a ri- val candidate ; the deanery of Deny was given away from Swift; and he was "put off" with church li\'ing8 which the new dean was required to resign for him, " not worth above a third part of that rich deanery, and at this present time not a sixth," the excuse pretended being that he was too young, "although he was then (above) thirty years old."* The result of it all was, that, in the summer of 1699, Swift was again resident in Dublin, quartered for a time in the castle with Lord Berkeley's family ; and that in the Februaiy following he became Vicar of Laracor. Other evidence amply confirms this account. The chaplainship had been accepted for the sake of the secretaryship, and it was only in the hope of some imme- diate preferment that the one was retained without the other. The same feeling existed now as at the later time, when, upon a vague hint from Harley while his patent of earldom was preparing. Swift promptly exclaimed, " I will be no man's chaplain." Even with the promise now re- ceived, he would probably not have continued as the Lords Justices' chaplain but for the connection with public af- fairs incident to a residence in the castle, and the liking for him that had at once sprung up (where success never seems to have failed him) among the women of the fami- ily. Then came the incident of the Derry deanery ; his * What Lord Oirery says of the interference of Bishop Win. King, of Derrr, to prevent Swift's acquisition of the deanery would not have been worth mention but for its adoption by the biographers. "I have no ob- jection to Jlr. 8"ift," he represents King saying. "I Icnow him to be a sprightly, ingenious young man. But instead of residing, I dare say be will be eternally flying backward and for- ward to London ; and therefore I en- treat he may be provided for in some other place." — Remarks, p. 30. This ' is manifestly sheer invention, suggest- ed by the mention of youth in the frag- ment ; by the fact that King at a later time, when Archbishop of Dublin, ob- jected to the liabit Swift then had (which certainly he had not exhibit- ed yet) of flying backward and for- ward to England ; and by the oppor- tunity it gives Lord Orrery to point a mond against the bishop, who, having denied a deanery to Swift on account of his youth, was himself aftenvard denied the primacy of Ireland be- cause of his age. § I.] CHAPLADf AT DUBLIN C.\5TLE. 125 exclamatitin thereon, by way of intended final salute to 1690-1701. the earl and his secretary, being recorded by Siieridan, ' ""^ ' • C onfonnd you both for a couple of se. the sufficient answer is in these words : " I might, with — - — ^- ' good pretense enough, talk starchly and affect ignorance of what you would be at; but my conjecture is that you think I obstructed your inclinations to please my own. His own hi- and that my intentions were the same with yours ; in an- " "'" '°"^' swer to all which I will, upon my conscience and honor, tell you the naked truth. First, I think I have said to you before that, if my fortunes and humor served me to think of that state, I should certainly, among all persons on earth, make your choice ; because I never saw that per- son whose conversation I entirely valued but hers; this was the utmost I ever gave way to. And, secondly, I must assure you sincerely that this regard of mine never once entered into my head to be an impediment to you, but I judged it would perhaps be a clog to your rising in the No bar to world, and I did not conceive you were then rich enough '^'^''"^• to make yourself and her happy and easy ; but that objec- tion is now quite removed by what you have at present •and by the assurances of Eaton's livings. I told you, in deed, that your authority was not sufficient to make over tures to the mother, without the daughter giving me leave under her own or her friend's hand ; which I think was a right and prudent step. However, I told the mother im- mediately, and spoke with all the advantages you deserve ; but the objection of your fortune being removed, I declare I have no other; nor shall any consideration of my own misfortune of losing so good a friend and companion as her prevail on me against her interest and settlement in the world, since it is held so necessary and convenient a thing "for ladies to marry, and that time takes oS. from the lustre of virgins in all other eyes but mine. I appeal to "inniioiher my letters to herself whether I was not your friend in the Sife." whole concern ; though the part I designed to act in it was A proper couditiou. * "From the time of hor arrival in Ireland he seems resolved to keep her in his power ; and therefore hin- dered a match sufiieientlv advanta- geous, by accumulating unreasonable demands and prescribing conditions that could not be performed." — John- 152 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFf. [Book III. 1701-1705. purely passive, which, is the utmost I will ever do in things — '- 1 of this nature, to avoid all reproach of any ill consequences that may ensue in the variety of worldly accidents : nay, I went so far to her mother, herself, and, I think, to you, as to think it could not be decently broken ; since I supposed the town had got it in their tongues, and therefore I thought it could not miscarry without some disadvantage to the Esther John- lady's Credit. I have always described her to you in a man- Bcribed by ner different from those who would be discouraging ; and "' '■ must add that, though it has come in my way to converse with persons of the first rank, and of that sex, more than is usual to men of my level and of our function, yet I have nowhere met with a humor, a wit, or conversation so agree- able, a better portion of good sense, or a truer judgment of men and things— I mean here in England, for as to the la- dies in Ireland I am a perfect stranger. As to her fortune, I think you know it already ; and if you resume your de- signs, or would have further intelligence, I shall send you a particular account." Are these expressions capable of other construction than they suggest to an ordinary un- derstanding 1 Tisdall desired to marry Esther Johnson ; and submit- ted the proposal to Swift as the friend in whom she most trusted, with some misgiving as to what his own views Honest ad- might be. Swif t replied that if his fortunes or his humor flcuu case, led him to mamage, she was, of all persons on earth, the one he would choose ; but as this was not the case, her lover had nothing to apprehend on that score. His ad- vice, nevertheless, was against^he marriage, on the ground of prudence, and because he judged Tisdall to be not rich enough ; but, upon assurances that removed these objec- tions, he had spoken to the young lady's mother ; where- upon came Tisdall's letter characterizing the advice as un- kind and unaccountable. What had most jarred upon him appears to have been the intimation that Swift could not communicate with the mother unless the young lady un- der her own hand desired him to do so ; and whether such sanction ever was obtained seems open to much doubt. § II.] LONDON LIFE. 153 There is, in fact, no proof whatever that Esther Johnson I70i-i705. had Iierself approved of Tisd all's suit. But Swift did not ^■'■^^-^^- really press the objection far. Though he made it the condition on which he would speak to the mother, this was when he imagined Tisdall's means to be inadequate ; and he may have thought it no longer necessary after Tis- dall's reply on that head. He then also went so far as to say, both to Esther Johnson and her mother, that perhaps the affair could not " decently " be broken ; but this was said on the supposition, which we infer to ha-ve been a mistake, that there really was an engagement, and the town inight have got it on their tongues. With the letter all direct inf6rmation ends ; and Tisdall's name is hard- ly again found on Swift's lips uncoupled with some epi- thet of scorn. When he wanted a phrase of contempt for Steele, he called him a " Tisdall fellow." But, for the memorable disclosui'e thus made, Tisdall settlement will always have a niche in Swift's story. Written when between Esther Johnson was in her twenty-second year and Swift l^therJohn- in his thirty-sixth, the letter describes with exactness the ^°"- relations that, in the opinion of the present writer, who can find no evidence of a marriage that is at all reasona- bly sufficient, subsisted between them at the day of her death ; when she was entering her forty-sixth year and he had passed his sixtieth. Even assuming it to be less cer- tain than I think it, that she had never given the least fa- vorable ear to Tisdall's suit, there can be no doubt that the result of its abrupt termination was to connect her future inalienably with that of Swift. The limit as to their in- tercourse expressed by him, if not before known to her, she had now been made aware of ; and it is not open to us to question that she accepted it with its plainly implied con- ditions, of Affection, not Desire. The words " in all other eyes but mine " have a touching significance. In all other eyes but his, tiine would take from her lustre ; her charms would fade ; but to him, through womanhood as in girl- hood, she would continue the same. For what she was The snn-en- surrendering, then, she knew the equivalent ; and this, al- equivalent! 154 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1701-1705. JE-[. 34-38. Eestless thonghts. From Jane, 1704, to April, 1T05. most wholly overlooked in other biographies, wiU be found in the present to fill a large place. Her story has indeed been always told with too much indignation and pity. Not with what depresses or degrades, but rather with what consoles and exalts, we may associate such a life. This young friendless girl, of mean birth and small fortune, chose to play no common part in the world; and it was not a sorrowful destiny, either for her life or her memory, to be the star to such a man as Swift, the Stella to even such an Astrophel. The words that closed the Tisdall letters had a touch of sadness in them. Giving him joy of his good fortunes, and envying very much his prudence and temper, his love of peace and settlement, Swift adds that the reverse of all this had been the great uneasiness of his own life, and was likely to continue so. And what was the result? What was to grow in the fields he had sown ? He found nothing but the good words and wishes of a decayed ministry, whose lives and his own would probably wear out before they could serve either his little hopes or their own ambition. Therefore he was resolved suddenly to retire, like a discon- tented courtier, and vent himseM in study and speculation, till his own humor, or the scene in London, should change. As he said, he did ; but not till he had given sanction to an act which proved to be of the deepest moment to him. He went suddenly to Ireland at the beginning of June ; the battle of Blenheim was fought in August ; be- fore winter was over, the decayed ministry had been built up and strengthened ; and before the March winds ceased. Swift had again crossed the Irish Channel, and was once more in London, in April, 17(i5. The eve of that flight to Ireland is the date of one of the most important passages in his hfe. His title to take higher intellectual rank than any man then living, and his perpetual exclusion from the rank in the church which in those days rewarded the most commonplace ability and questionable character, were set- tled by the same act. The Tale of a Tub had been pub- lished. § ni.] TALE OF A TUB. 155. m. TALE OF A TUB. 1704. ^T. 37. I HATE spoken of the probable origLa of ttis famous 1704. production, and of the tone gi^en to it bv the time at -^^■^'- which the bnik of it was written. 'Whj it should have ^""■i'**-"- remained incomplete and nnprinted so many years, has not been cleared up; but perhaps tlie •■book-seller's'' explana- tion, though itself partly intended to mystify, had in it more of the truth than has been suppcised. The papers see "Sook- eame to him in 1698, he says, the year after they were Beato?" \rritten ; and he had delayed to print them until express authority to do so should be given. This he had not re- ceived, owing (he was credibly informed) to the author's having supposed that the papers in his possession were lost by •• the person since dead "' to whom they had been lent ; and he would not have ventured on the present publica- tioB. being indeed ignorant if his copy had received the author's last touches, but for having been " lately alarmed with intelligence of a surreptitious copy which a certain "San-epii- great wit had new polished and refined." In the "Apol- """"p^- ogy" prefixed to the edition of 1710. Swift substantially admits this " book-seller's " explanation to hare been his own ; but declares that the copy to be called " surreptitious " was rather that which Mr. Tooke had printed, and that the original remaining in his own hands was "a blotted copy "Bimted which he intended to have writ over with many altera- °^^' tions." Putting aside from this a very evident device to free liimself from direct responsibility for phrases found open to censure, what may fairiy be inferred is, that with the transcript of the battle of the Boohs certainly made for Temple (the " person since dead "'), a fair copy had also been made of portions of tlie greater satire, which after 150 THE LIFE 0¥ JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1704. ^T. 37. See letter of Doctor Dav- enaut: Nich- ols's Select Poems, iv., To his pnh- lisber: 29th June, 1710. "Contempti- hle " for con- temptnouB. Temple's death had fallen into Thomas Swift's hands ; and that Jonathan took his sudden resolve to complete and print his own copy because of some foolish brag by his namesake. The "little parson-cousin" certainly induced his uncle Davenant to make interest to procure him a war- chaplaincy on the ground of his having had some hand in the Tale. The same pretense had undoubtedly imposed upon Wotton, who, in his assault upon the Tale in 1Y05, says that Thomas Swift was its author ; and perhaps noth- ing in that effusion so much galled the real author, who afterward referred to it with emphatic contempt, when corresponding with Tooke about the printing of the Apol- ogy, which had been written in the summer of 1709. He- marking on Curll's scurrilous J^ey sent him by Tooke, de- scribing the Tale as "performed by a couple of young clergymen who, having been domestic chaplains to Sir William Temple, thought themselves obliged to take up his quarrel," he expresses wonder that the law should al- low any rascal to publish names so boldly; tells Tooke that he shall take a little " contemptible " notice of the thing ; and suspects his " little parson-cousin " to be at the bottom of it. " If he should happen to be in town, and you light on him, I think you ought to tell him gravely that if he be the author he should set his name to the die, and rally him a little upon it ; and tell hun jf he can ex- plain something, you will, if he pleases, set his name to the next edition. I should be glad to hear how far the fool- ish impudence of a dunce could go." In the little " con- temptible" notice, printed as^ P.S. to the Apology, he wrote to the same effect : " If any person will prove his claim to three lines in the whole book, let him step forth, and tell his name and titles, upon which the book-seller shall have orders to prefix them to the next edition, and the claimant shall, from henceforward, be acknowledged the undisputed author."* Swift never put his own name * The authorship became a thing known to all his intimates, and we shall find liim writing to Esther John- son of its having helped him to his great successes ; but excepting to her, and to Ben. Tooke, no avowal of it § ni.] TALE OF A TUB. 157 1704. ^T. 37. to the Tale of a Tub, but he took sufficient eare that no other name should be put to it ; and a few words thrown into Gullwei''s Travels identified the handiwork of both as one and the same. The earliest of the two greatest prose satires in the En- glish language, remaining with GuUvver, after the test of nearly two centuries, among the unique books of the unique world, might here have passed without other tribute to its fame, but for its influence on the life of its writer requir- ing a particular description. The description will be brief, for it can not deal with all the wonderful wealth of wit and learning that sustains the allegory. Three brothers Three bmth- born at a birth, none knowing which was the elder, Peter, coats. Martin, and Jack, have for some time enjoyed from their father each a special legacy of a coat having two miracu- lous virtues — that of lasting aU the life with good wear- ing, and that of lengthening and widening of itself so as always to fit the changes of the body. The will of the fa- ther bequeathing these coats had enjoined strict directions for their wearing and management, and the brothers, faith- exists under liis hand ; though he so far forgot himself, in drawing up a list of "subjects" for an intended volume in 1708, as to include "Apol- ogy for the Tale, &c." It is yet quite possible that he contemplate4 for it then, not the form it assumed when he wrote it s^ year later, but one that would less openly have broken the re- serve which he maintained steadily to the close of his life. In the only edi- tion of his writings overlooked before publication by himself (Faulkner's first four volumes had, as I believe, this advantage) it did not appear until after his death. When he was near- ly seventy, on his cousin, Mrs. White- way, asking him to give her the book, he excused himself at the moment; but after a week or two she received it from him with these words on the flv-leaf: "To Mrs. Martha White- way, a present on her birthday, 29th May, 1735, from her aifectionate cousin, Jonath. Swift." "I wish, sir, you had said the gift of the au- thor," was the remark of Mrs. White- way. "No, I thank you," was his answer, with a good-humored smile. As I have mentioned Faulkner's edi- tion, I will add a note of Mr. Deane Swift's to his publication of a letter of the second Lord Oxford mention- ing that edition (Aug. ,1734). " These were the first four volumes in octavo, which were actually revised and cor- rected by Swift himself, as indeed were afterward the two subsequent volumes printed by Faulkner in the year 1738." The writer was then in the habit of seeing Swift occasionally and Mrs. Whiteway frequently, and spoke for once with competent knowl- edge. Faulkner's edition. 158 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book 111. 1704. ^T. 37. Exploits and teniptatioua. Clothcs-wor- 8bip. Not totidem verbis or tot- idem sylla- bis ; but ter- tio rrwdOj or totidem lit- ei'is. ful to that condition, had lived together in friendship for the first seven years after their father's death (thus being expressed the first seven centuries of true because primi- tive Christianity). They carefully observe their father's will, and, while they travel together through several coun- tries, encountering a reasonable quantity of giants and slaying certain dragons, they keep their coats in very de- cent order. Tlien unhappily worldly temptations come in their way. They arrive in town, and fall in love with the great ladies. Duchess d' Argent, Madame de Grands Titres, and the Countess d'Orgueil ; in other words, Covetousness, Ambition, and Pride ; and this leads them also to become acquainted with a strange sect who hold the universe to be only a large suit of clothes, and humanity to be noth- ing but its outside covering;* what the world calls im- properly suits of clothes being in reality the most i-efined species of animals. Hence that remarkable sect ga^e their worship to an idol that created men daily by a kind of manufactory operation ; trimming up a gold chain, red gown, and white rod, into a lord mayor ; placing together furs and ermine for a judge; and converting lawn and black satin into a bishop. Under this teaching the broth- ers, no longer satisfied with the simplicity of their vest- ments, resort to their father's will for authority to make changes; into which they plunge accordingly. By call- ing in much subtlety of distinction, they adorn themselves witli shoulder-knots ; by help of tradition, get themselves gold lace ; they line themselves with flame-colcJred satin, by a supposed codicil ; cover tJiiemselves with silver fringe, by critical erudition ; and embroider their coats all over with Indian figures, by abandoning the commonplaces of a too literal interpretation. Once dressed up in their shoulder-knots, however, and walking about as fine as lords in their fringes and satins and " the largest gold lace in the parish," Peter somehow comes out first, showing a superior * Of the depth nnd range given to I er and greatest writer of our century, this fancy by the most original think- I it is not necessary that I should sjieak. § III.] TALE OF A TUB. 159 turn for worldly advancement. lie .worms himself into 1704. the confidence of a great lord, installs himself in comfort- ^' able quarters by turning out his lordship's family, tells Martin and Jack lie is their father's eldest and sole heir, orders them no longer to call him brother, and sets himself up as my Lord Peter. Then, for support to his grandeur, petersetsup he launches into a variety of projects to bring in money; "erf"'*^^" turns ofE his own wife, bundles out the wives of both Mar- tin and Jack, and orders in three strollers from the streets ; curses his brothers in the most dreadful manner if they make the least scruple of believing the huge palpable lies he tells them ; sets a brown loaf before them which he de- clares to be tiTxe, good, natural mutton as any in Leaden- hall Market, praying God to confound them, and the devil pete* s nes to broil them, both eternally, if they offer to believe other- auct™'^*^""' wise; and in short goes so distracted with knavery and pride that his brothers resolve to leave him. They had before taken part in locking up their father's will; but now, having managed to get at a true copy exposing all Peter's lying pretenses, they have dismissed their concu- bines, have sent for their true wives, and are in the act of telling a ]S"ewgate attorney who has brought money for a pardon to a thief who was to be hanged next day, that not Peter, but only the Sovereign can grant such pardons, when Peter himself interrupts them with a file of dragoons, " kicks them both out-of-doors, and would never let them His brothers come under his roof from that day to this." Hereupon they of-doorr'" take a lodging together, and a resolution to reform their coats into the prunitive state enjoined by their father's will. It was high time ; for what with lace, ribbons, fringe, embroidery, and silver-tagged points, hardly a thread of the original vestments remained to be seen. But in pull- ing off these trimmings, differences of temper showed themselves. Martin began rudely enough ; but proceeded Martin and more moderately as he found that parts of the ornamental ^^^^ ^^^°™ covering, especially the silver-tagged points, could not be got away without damage to the cloth ; and in the end he was content to leave whatever was not removable without 160 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book U[. 1704. ^T. 37. Jack goes too far. Snccess of the satire. injury to the substance of the stuff. Jack, on the other hand, would have no such compromises. In three minutes he made more dispatch than Martin in as many hours ; and such indeed was his tearing zeal that he rent the main body of his coat from top to bottom, and had to darn it with pack-thread and a skewer. Clumsy by nature as well as impatient of temper, he left even part of Peter's livery upon his own rents and patches ; so that, as it is in the nature of rags to have a mock resemblance to finery, there were some people that could not distinguish between Jack and Peter.* His rage against his brother Martin's patience 'vents itself in a million of scurrilities, and ends at last in a mortal breach. The rest of this portion of the Tale is taken up with the extravagances of Jack, and with those extremes of absurdity in which he and Peter are found to be continually meeting. The victory remains with Martin ; if not of absolute compliance with his fa- ther's will, of the nearest practicable approach to it. The satire had an effect apparently without example in matters of the kind. The hit was admitted by all who most strongly objected to the book. Congreve, to whom many strokes in it must have been distasteful, tells a friend * " It was among the great misfort- unes of Jack to bear a huge person- al resemblance with his brother Peter the similitude between them fre- quently deceived the very disciples and followers of both." Swift knew not only that there were extremes of be- lief in direct inspiration where Quak^ erism and some otlier forms of dissent ran into Eoman Catholic neighbor- hood, but that excess of zeal for relig- ious liberty by no means implied a corresponding regard for civil free- dom ; and he was old enough to have witnessed the support given by Wil- liam Penn to James the Second's claim for a dispensing power. But let me add that among his papers at his death Qnnker'elet- which had been treasured by him was ter to Swift, found a letter, now in my possession, printed by Scott, with the date of " Chilad " instead of "Philad" (for Philadelphia), 29th March, 1729. "Friend Jonathan Swift, Having been often agreeably amused by thy Tale, and being now loading a small ship for Dublin, I have sent theo a gam- mon, the product of the wilds of Amer- ica, which perhaps may not be unac- ceptable at thy table, since it is de- signed to let thee know that thy wit and parts are here ia esteem, at this distance from the place of thy resi- dence. Thou needest ask no questions who this comes from, since I am a perfect stranger to thee." We may be very sure that Swift never felt so kindly to the Quakers as when he re- ceived this delightful and substantial tribute. § III.] TALE OF A TUB. 161 1704. JEt. 37. that, though several passages had diverted him, he can not quite think of it as the million do, and he is in the mi- nority of "very few" against a "multitude."* Doctor Charles Davenant writes to his son that it had made as much noise as any book these last hundred years. Atter- bury, after saying that nothing could please more than the woits, \., book did in London, tells Bishop Trelawny of some fa- mous men at Oxford (among them "Eag" Smith and the author of The Splendid Shilling) charged with the author- ship, but goes on to remark that if he has guessed the man rightly he has reason to continue to conceal himself, be- cause its profane strokes would be more likely to do harm to his " reputation and interest in the world " than its wit could do him good. Smallridge, afterward Bishop of Bris- How u tol, replied to a compliment from Sacheverell on his sup- temporaries. posed authorship of it, that not all which they both pos- sessed in the world could have hired him to write it. Sir Richard Blackmore speaks with horror of such an auda- cious and impious buffoon being caressed and patronized by people of great figure and of all denominations. De Foe characterizes its author, with a happy touch of censure in the compliment, as a learned man, an orator in the Latin, a walking index of books, who had all the libraries in Eu- rope in his head, from the Vatican at Korae to the learned collection of Doctor Salmon at Meet Ditch. Doctor King, works, i., . 216 the civilian, prefaced an attack upon it by saying it had been bought up by all sorts of people, not only at court but in the city and suburbs. And Wotton justifies his onslaught by declaring that he thought it might be use- wotton's at- f ul, to the many people v/ho pretended to see no harm in what had been " so greedily bought up and read," to lay * Congreve to Keally, Berkeley's Literary Relics, 340. Of Voltaire's admiration there will be occasion to speak hereafter, but he placed Swift even above his great countryman, the Cur^ of Meudon. "C'est Kabelais perfectionne," he said, in his Steele de Louis Quatorze. For the monstrous Vol. L— 11 absurdity that ascribed the book to Lords Shrewsbury and Somers, to Lord Shaftesbury and Sir Wm. Tem- ple, see Haddock's Li/e of Somers, 34 ; and Cooksey's Life, 21. It pairs off with Harley's alleged authorship of Robinson Crusoe ! 162 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1704.^ open the mischief of the ludicrous allegory. Open he laid - ~ ' '■ - it accordingly, by illustrating its several recondite allusions with elaborate explanation of the subtleties and mysteries turned to referred to ; and what thereupon was done by Swift com- swift. ^ pletely turned the tables upon him. He printed these il- lustrations as notes contributed to the elucidation of its text by the worthy and ingenious Mr. Wotton, bachelor of divinity ; and its most envenomed assailant has thus, in countless editions since, figured as its friendly illustrator. Poor Mr. Wotton has been the slave in the victor's chariot, swelling the triumph he had so desperately fought against. He might nevertheless, unpleasant as this was, think it better than to be wholly forgotten with the other assail- ants of the Tale. Already, said Swift finely, while ex- tracting Wotton's venom, " such treatises as have been written against the ensuing discourse are sunk into waste paper and oblivion, after the iisual fate of common an- Assaiiautsof swerers to books which are allowed to have any merit, good books. Tijgy are like annuals that grow about a young tree, and seem to vie with it for a summer, but fall and die with the leaves in autumn, and are never heard of more." The charge Imputations, nevertheless, survived which Swift strong- igioD. j^ ^^^^ Charges of irreverence and irreligion came from quarters to which he fairly might have looked for protec- tion. Scott says the Tale had been written with a view to the interests of the high-church party ; but imreserved adoption of that epithet would be misleading. As a church- man, Swift was only high in the sense of a vigilant regard to church interests in state matters, and of a stout resist- ance to the extremes, on either hand, of popery and dissent- ing non-conformity. It is the English Reformed Church which the satire exalts at the expense of her rivals ; and Scott truly says that it rendered her the most important service, " for what is so important to a party, whether in church or state, as to gain the laughers to their side ?" offenee in But the satire went too deep. It reached the truth on too service."^ many sides, and what it was written to keep aloof it was thought likely to encourage. As it is the seamen's prac- § III.] TALE OF A TUB. 163 170i. Mt. 37. High-chnrch extremes. tice to fling overboard a tub to turn a whale from mis- chief,* Swift had thrown out the Tale to divert danger- ous assailants from objects that invited attack in church and state. But the clergy understood their portion of the danger in another sense, and preferred the mischief to his remedy. They would rather the whale should swallow them than have such a diversion. A powerful section of them were now making head in the Reformed Church who were high in another sense than Swift's, to whom gold lace and silver tagging were as dear as to Peter himself, and from whose pulpits had been heard not only approval of auricular confession, sacerdotal absolution, and prayers fbr the dead, but express teaching of the real presence, and of the claim of the church to atand above the state. The men most clamorous against toleration, said De Foe, and most eager for more power to ecclesiastics, are that part of the clergy who have made most manifest advances to Home. These men understood the satire too well; a majority of the rest of the clergy would not be likely in the least to understand it, and all were ready to join against the Tale of a Tub. It was a parallel case to De Foe's. The dis- senters gave up their stoutest champion because his ban- ter was unintelligible to them ; and for a similar reason Swift was thrown over by the party in the church whom he had most materially served, f The one was pilloried Mistakes of thrice, and the other punished for life. Yet he could *"""^*^- hardly have been quite unprepared for this defection of his professional brethren. He quietly remarks in his * Originating, doubtless, in this practice, the title chosen by Swift had passed into a common phrase, and had already been used by two men before him of whom Englishmen are proud. "Why, this is a Tale of a Tub!" exclaimed Sir Thomas More, at an incoherent speech in his court by an attorney named Tubbe; and the title was given by Ben Jonson to an early comedy, of which his hero was one "Squire Tub," into which he afterward introduced some satire against Inigo Jones. t When Gulliver in Lilliput extin- guished the flames that would have consumed the royal palace, his man- ner of doing it offended the queen mortally. All evils have some com- pensation, however ; and but for her majesty's persistent hostility on this point, Captain Gulliver might never have left Lilliput. 164 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1704. JEt. 37. lU-Juagment of clergy in church af- fairs. Blame well- founded. Coarseness of language. Apology the very frequent observation he had made (which Lord Clarendon made before him), that that rev- erend body were not always very nice in distinguishing between their enemies and their friends ; he declares his belief that if he had written a book to expose the abuses in law or physic, the learned professors in either faculty would have been so far from resenting it as to have given him thanks for his pains; of the book he had actually written he challenges its assailants to show that it had ad- vanced any opinion which the discipline and doctrine of the Church of England rejected, or condemned any which they received ; and he offers to forfeit his life if any one opinion could be fairly deduced from it contrary to relig- ion or morality. So much, which he said after he knew that the plea had availed to exclude him from the highest dignity of his calling, he was thoroughly entitled to say. But there was a grave objection on which the enemies of the Tuh', with more show of justice, had also fastened, and which remain- ed the unhappy peculiarity of Swift's writing in later days than these. If to owe nothing to other men is to be original, a more original man than Swift never lived; but, with the wonderful subtlety of thought so rarely joined to the same robustness of intellect which placed his wit and philosophy on the level of Rabelais, he had the same habit as the great Frenchman of turning things inside out, and putting away decencies as if they were shows or hypocri- sies. In both it led to an insufferable coarseness. Reply- ing himself to the charge, h(^said very earnestly that no lewd words would be found in the book, and that its se- verest strokes of satire were leveled against the prevailing fashion of employing wit to recommend profligacy. This was true, but it did not touch the imputation of indecency, for which he could only partially plead the example of contemporaries ; and he miglit have been better guided by one of his own wittiest illustrations in the Tale. You do not treat nature wisely, he says, by always striving to get beneath the surface. What to show and to conceal, she § IIL] TALE OF A TUB. 165 knows ; it is one of her eternal laws to put lier best fur- I'O*. niture forward ; and in making choice between the inside and the outside, though it be but skin-deep, better follow wUhont her suggestion. '• Last week I saw a woman flayed, and ""^'^ ^^^^ you wiU hardly believe how much it altered her person for the worse."' Under the process of flaying applied by himself so indiscriminately, he altered much for the worse, and did not get really nearer to the innermost depth of things. But this objection admitted (and, with full allowance for the manners of the age. it is a very grave one), hardly any praise can be deemed excessive for the Tale of a Tub. To the corruptions of learning it applies the same handling as to those of religion ; and in it first appears that great invention of a Grrub-street Dunciad to which Pope later prose Don- was to bring his poetry and personahties, but by which Swift thus early cleared an important ground from what might othei-wise have left it the property of dunces to this hour. Something to such effect has been shown ; but in 4n(e, io9. additions on the eve of publication the looser threads of the satire were knitted up and the purpose more closely interwoven in the texture of the whole. One or two illus- trations may express this part of his design, though it would be diflicult to give with them the faintest notion of the astonishing and never-ceasing play of wit and raiUery. The book-seller, obsei-ving Detur dignissimo written large Dedication, on the covers of the papers, fancied the words might have ' some meaning. " But it unluckUy fell out that none of the authors I employ understood Latin, though I have them often in pay to translate out of that language." So he has to get the meaning from the curate of his parish ; and, finding that the book is to be given to the worthiest, he asks of a poet in an alley hard by (" he works for my shop ") who it can possibly be that is intended : on which the poet tells him, after some consideration, that vanity is a poet's a thing he abhors, but by the description he thinks he must """ ^* ^' be the person aimed at, and kindly offers to write gratis a dedication to himself. Trying a second guess, however, 166 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1704. Ml. 37. Choice of worthiest. Immortal prodnctioDS Bwamped. Fate of one hundred and thirty-six first-rate poets. at the book-seller's request, he names Lord Somers ; and as the same thing occurred with several other wits of his acquaintance, it had finally dawned upon himself that the best title to the first place was likely to be his to whom every body allowed the second, and that the " dignissimus " must be Lord Somers. To him therefore the book-seller dedicates the book. The same turn is given to the author's Epistle Dedica- tory, addressed to Prince Posterity, in which intercession is made with the prince against the malice of his governor, Time, in i-uthlessly hurrying modern authors off the scene. Such had been his inveterate dislike to the writings of the age, that, out of several thousands produced yearly from that renowned city of London, not one was to be heard of by the next revolution of the sun. Many were destroyed even before they had "so much as learnt their mother- tongue to beg for pity." If the prince doubts this, let him ask his governor where they are. The author was himself acquainted with the names of " a hundred and thirty-six poets of the first rate " not one of whose immortal produc- tions was likely to reach the prince's eyes. Of course his governor (of whose designs the writer was well infoi'med) would ask the prince what was become of them, and would even pretend that there never were any because none were then to be found. Not to be found, indeed ! Who, then, had mislaid them ? "Were they suddenly sunk in the abyss of things? Certain it was that in their own nature they were light enough to swim upon the surface for all eternity. No, no ; there could be no doiJat, with any one who noticed the large and terrible scythe the prince's governor affect- ed to bear continually about him, who was really the author of this universal ruin. The writer of this book, however, was bent upon doing his best to baffle the destroyer by composing " a character of the present set of wits in our nation ;" and meanwhile he offered to the prince " a faith- ful abstract drawn from the universal body of all Arts and Sciences." In what are called the " Digressions " of the Tale that § in.] TALE OF A TUB. 167 deeper plunge is accordingly taken, the Arts and Sciences 1704. being called to render account. Frankly at the same time ~ — '- ,, , ., n- !/■ Ill • Conecien- the author describes himseli as a man who had written, tiouawiit- under three reigns, four-score and eleven pamphlets for """' the service of six-and-thirty faction^ ;* who had therefore passed a long life with a conscience void of offense ; and who now, finding the state has no further occasion for his pen, had willingly turned it to speculations more becom- ing a philosopher. He then proceeds to show that the philosophers who meet at Gresham's (the recently found- ed Koyal Society), and the wits to be met with nightly at Will's (Congreve, Vanbrugh, and the rest), are only two junior start-up societies that have branched of from Grub offshoots Street ; and that the two prodigals, whenever they should street, think fit to return from their virtuoso experiments and comedies of high life, " their husks and their harlots," will be received back with open arms. The several platforms of modem intellectual display are next ranged under three "oratorical" machines — the Pulpit, the Ladder, and the oratorical Stage ; illustrations pregnant with rarest humor and wit being applied to each kind respectively ; from which he afterward breaks off, for a correct estimate of results, to a digression concerning critics. These are shown to have proved beyond contradiction, with unwearied pains, that the very finest things delivered of old had been long since invented by much later pens ; and that the noblest discov- eries those ancients ever made, of art or of nature, had all been produced, on the three several platforms, by the tran- scending genius of the existing age. A digression in the modern kind follows ; whereby, among other things, the assertion that a certain author called Homer ("though oth- Homer's de- erwise a person not without some abilities, and, for an an- * That is the passage to which an ex- act parallel was discovered in Swift's later and greater satire. "On each side the gate," says Gulliver in Lil- liput, " was a small window not above six inches from the ground ; into that on the left side, the king's smiths conveyed four-score and eleven chains, like those that hang to a lady's watch in Europe, and about as large, which were locked to my left leg with six- and-thirty padlocks." This curious discovery was made by Professor Por- son.— Tracts by Kid'd (1815), p. 316. 168 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1704. Ml. 37. Origin of Martinua ijcriblerus. Jack com- peting with Peter. cient, of a tolerable genius ") had embraced omties res hu- manas in Ms poem, is shown to be absurd by proof of his " gross ignorance in the common laws of this realm, and in the doctrine as well as discipline of the Church of En- gland;" to which is added the hope that some famous modem may yet attempt a universal system in a small portable volume of all things that are to be known, or be- lieved, or imagined, or practiced, in life. That part of the book, in which we have the germ of the whole of Martinus Scriblerus, exposes the falsity and pretenses of prevailing forms of learning. The next digression is in praise of di- gressions, which are justified on the ground that the 'socie- ty of writers would quickly be reduced to a very inconsid- erable number if men were put upon making books with the fatal confinement of delivering nothing but what was to the purpose ; and then, though not so entitled, there is a digression in regard to a sect who maintain the cause of all things to be wind, being, in fact, progenitors of the in- numerable wind-bags to which attention has been since directed. These are the JEolists, whose primary rite, or mystery, is to stuff themselves to enormous sizes with the " spirit or breath or wind of the world," and who then, by disemboguing the same in varied and surprising ways, blow out their disciples to the same extent. Hence the expres- sion that learning puffeth a man up, which they prove by a syllogism : " Words are but wind, and learning is noth- ing but words ; ergo, learning is nothing but wind." From this too he is led — Jack having now launched into extrav- agances as mad as Peter's in the other extreme — to enter • upon a consideration whether great things have not been done by people with their brains shaken out of their nat- ural position like Jack's ; and whether madness so called, being but a redundancy rising up into the brain of the same vapor or spirit which the Latins called ingenium par negotiis, might not by re-adjustment be turned into the sort of frenzy never in its right element " till you take it up in the business of the state." He proposes a commis- sion, therefore, to report upon the fitness for employment, § in.] TALE OF A TVR. 169 1704. JEt. 37. Utilization of Bedlam. in a way useful to the public, of the inmates of Bedlam : supporting it as well by illustrious examples of the mad- men of history, as by homely resort to the requirements of the existing world. " Is any student tearing his straw in piecemeal, swearing and blaspheming, biting his grate, foaming at the mouth ... let the right worshipful the Com- missioners of Inspection give him a regiment of dragoons and send him into Flanders among the rest. Is another eternally talking, sputtering, gaping, bawling, in a sound without period or article? What wonderful talents are here mislaid! Let him be furnished immediately with a Fixed fare green bag and papers, and threepence in his pocket, and three-^nce! away with him to "Westminster Hall." The war in Flan- dei'S fixes the date of this passage, and adds another to the many proofs, all mystifications notwithstanding, that the publication of the Tale was exclusively the act of Swift. That Johnson should have doubted it, and even the au- thorship altogether, shows how strangely unreasoning a strong personal dislike may be. To think the thing not good enough to be Swift's, one might have understood; but to find it too good to be his, is a touch not intelligible from such a critic. In the life he speaks of it as a " wild " book, of which the authorship was never owned or proved by any evidence ; though it v/as not denied when Arch- bishop Sharp first, and the Duchess of Somerset afterward, debarred Swift of a bishopric by showing «t to the queen.* JohTiBon on the Tale. * Doctor William King (principal of St. Mary's Hall, Oxon), says in his Anecdotes (p. 60) that Lord Boling- brolce told him " he had been assured by the queen herself that she never bad received any unfavorable charac- ter of Doctor Swift, nor had the arch- bishop, or any other person, endeav- ored to lessen him in her esteem. My Lord Bolingbroke added that this tale was invented by the Earl of Ox- ford to deceive Swift, and make him contented with his deanery in Ireland ; which, although his native countiy, he always looked on as a place of banish- ment. If Lord Bolingbroke had hated the Earl of Oxford less, I should have been readily inclined to believe him." No belief can be given to such an al- leged statement by Bolingbroke, who would have had ten thousand reasons for disclosing it to Swift himself ; from whom, if it were true, he carefully with- held it. But even Doctor King, head- long Jacobite as he was, could not have put credence in his informant. And see what had gone before, post, 223. 170 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. 1704. JEt. 37. Odd reason for a doubt. Wit's disad- vantages. [Book III. In the life, also, Johnson remarks that it is not like Swift, because it has (what every one versed, in him knows him pre-eminently to have had) vehemence and rapidity of mind, copiousness of images, and vivacity of diction. More than once the same was said to Boswell. It was said at one of their earliest meetings at the Mitre, when they were together in the Hebrides, and when they met at the club. Often as it was repeated, no question was made of its rea- sonableness or fairness. Swift was to lose a bishopric in one generation because a piece of writing was thought too witty to be fathered on any body else, and in the next he was to lose the credit of having written the piece because it was thought too witty to be fathered on him.* No- Cobbett's first knowl- edge of Swift. * " The Tale cfa Tub is one of the most masterly compositions in the language, whether for thought, wit, or style." — Hazlitt. "An effusion of genius sufficient to redeem our name in that century's annals of fiction. The Tale of a Tub is, in my appre- hension, the masterpiece of Swift ; certainly Rabelais has nothing supe- rior even in invention, nor any thing so condensed, so pointed, so full of real meaning, of biting satire, of fe- licitous analogy." — Hallam, Lit. of Eur., iv. , 336. Another tribute should not be omitted. Cobbett had a passion for Swift, to whom 1* often refers as the first writer with whom he made acquaintance "after Moses:" the book that seized upon his fancy being the Tale of a Tub. He was, cunoui^ ly enough, a native of Farnham, and at eleven years old employed there as a gardener's lad, though he did not then know Swift's connection with the place ; when he heard of the beautiful gardens at Kew, and had the ambition to go and get work there. So he set off on a June morning, with no clothes except those on his back, and in his pocket thirteen half-pence ; of which he spent twopence on bread -and - cheese, a penny on small- beer, and. somehow lost a half-penny before lie got to Richmond in the afternoon with threepence left. " With this for my whole fortune, I was trudging through Richmond in my blue smock- frock, and my red garters tied under my knees, when, staring about me, my eyes fell upon a little book in a book-seller's window, on the outside of which was written The Tale of a Tub, price threepence. The title was so odd that my curiosity was excited. I had the threepence ; but, tlien, I could not have any supper. In I went and got the little book, -which I was so impatient to read, that I got over into a field at the upper corner of Kew Gardens, where there stood a hay.stack. On the shady side of this I sat down to read. The book was so different from any thing that I had ever read before, it was something so new to my mind, that, though I could not under- stand some parts of it, it delighted me beyond description, and produced what I have always considered a sort of birth of intellect^ I read on until it was dark without any thouglit of sup- per or bed." He slept by the stack till the birds woke him, went on to Keiv next day, still reading his little book, and got work from the kind §iv.]. BAUCIS AND PHILEMON. in where is there proof of the authorship so irresistible as in 1704. the reasons against it thus expressed by Johnson : " There '. — '— is in it such a vigor of mind, such a swarm of thoughts, so much of nature, and art, and life." These words exactly describe it. Swift could have desired no better to vindi- cate the claim. They might have risen to him on that ToncWng in- day of the dark close of his life, when he was seen by his kinswoman and nurse turning over the leaves of the copy he had given her, and overheard to mutter to himself as he shut them up, unconscious of any listener. Good God, what a genius I had when I wrote that hooh ! lY. BAUCIS AND PHILEMON. 1705. ^T. 38. 1705. ^T. 38. Sheeidaij would have his readers believe that Swift was not familiarly known at clubs or coffee-houses until after suspicions connecting him with the Tale had stirred curi- osity about him. But this is not better founded than the statement on the same page of the memoir, that he now first met Arbuthnot in the coffee-house where Addison gave " his little senate laws."* The " senate " did not Addison's come into existence for six or seven years, nor was " But- ton's " before then in vogue ;f and Swift certainly did not Scotch gardener, who, seeing him fond of books, lent him some on gardening. "But these I could not relish after my Tale of a Tub, which I carried about with me wherever I went, and when I — at about twenty years old — lost it ill a box that fell overboard in the Bay of Fundy, in North America, the loss gave me greater pain than I have since felt at losing thousands of pounds." One would naturally look for this interesting passage in the writer's Autobiography, but it is not to be found there. He published it in the Evening Post, when he was ap- pealing to reformers to pay for return- ing him to Parliament. * Or than .his other assertion that the Battle of the Books was published two years before the Tale of a Tub. They appeared together. t The date of Swift's last friendly intercourse with Ambrose Philips is 1708 and 1709 ; and in July of the former year he thus mentions to his correspondent their place of resort: Loss of his threepenny Tale. 1Y2 THE LIFE OF JONATPIAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1705. Ml. 38. Sappers of the gode. know Arbuthnot, who was not of Addison's party at all, until after six years :* but Prior or Congreve was not bet- ter known at Will's tban be was. At the St. James's, which for the present was the whig resort, he had turned the laugh against Yanbrugh a year and a half before by some verses on the house he had built in Whitehall ; and his note-books fix the present year as the beginning not of his acquaintance, but of his more intimate intercourse, with Addison. A batch of entries, clustered on the same page, are dry enough; but vividly behind them rise the nodes ccenceque deorwn : " Tav^" Addison 2*. Qd. Tav"" Addison Is. Tav Add'" Is. Qd. Tav™ Addis" 4s. M. Tav° Addis" 2s. 6c^." "I have heard Swift say," says Delany of such memorable nights in London and Dublin, " that often, as they spent their evenings together, they neither of them ever wished for a third person to support or enliven their conversation." There is a well-known saying of Addison that the only real conversation is be- tween two persons, and his own charm in this respect Swift has explained in what he says of Prior. He liked him, and thought him one of the best of the talkers of that day ; but he would say that he was not a fair one, be- cause he left no elbow-room for another, which Addison always did. There was, however, one point in which Swift had perhaps the superiority in friendly talk over all his Swift's talk, lettered friends. He was better able than either Prior or Addison, or even Steele, or any of the wits, to tolerate wit of a less grade than their own. This, in fact, arose from his regarding literature assess of a serious employment than they did, and it is a peculiarity to be always noted in him. " Col. Froud," he writes to Ambrose Philips, " is just as he was, very friendly and grand reveur et distrait. Real conver- BatioD. " St. James's coffee-house is gvown a very dull place upon two accounts : first, by the loss of you, and secondly, of every body else. Mr. Addison's lameness goes off daily, and so does he, for I see him seldomer than for- merly, and, therefore, can not revenge myself of you by getting ground in your absence. " '* Their first meeting is mentioned in the Jounial to Esther Johnson. §iv.] BAUCIS AND PHILEMON. 173 He has brought his Poems almost to perfection, and I 1705. have great credit with him, because I can listen when he — ^' ' - reads, which neither you, nor Mr. Addison, nor Steele ever can." Froud or " Frowde " was a small poet who had written two tragedies,* and whose recommendation to Swift was his intercourse with Addison. That most pleas- ing of writers and zealous of whigs, who was next year to have his party reward by appointment as under-secretary of state, had this year (1705) published his Tramels in It- aly ; and I possess a large-paper presentation-copy with an inscription in Addison's hand,t which is itseK an em- phatic memorial of one of the most famous of literary friendships. f Addison to Swift. That " the Authour " had then read the Tale of a Tub, and knew who had written it, we need not hesitate to believe. Nor is it incumbent on us to reject all that even Sheri- dan tells us, upon the authority of Ambrose Philips,, of Swift's so-called first appearance at the whig club. The * Philotas and the Fall of Jerusa- lem, long forgotten. Not to be con- founded, as he is by Scott and others, with "Old Froude," the squire of Favnham, who repeatedly appears in the Journal. And see post, 305. t "To Dr. Jonathan Swift, The most Agreeable Companion, the Tru- est Friend, and the Greatest Genius of his Age, This Book is presented by his most Humble Servant the Au- thour." 1T4 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1705. ^T. 38. Swift at the St. James's, A view of Pi'ovideuce, .Tonrnnl.Ttli June, ITll. misdate and misplace throw discredit' over it ; but what the old whig poet, to whom in his youth Swift had shown many kindnesses for Addison's sake, related to the young Irish player must have had some substance of truth. He says that they had for several successive days observed a strange clergyman come into the coffee-hous^, who seemed utterly unacquainted with any of those who frequented it ; and whose custom it was to lay his hat down on a table, and walk backward and forward at a good pace for half an hour or an hour, without speaking to any mortal, or seem- ing in the least to attend to any thing that was going for- ward there. He then used to take up his hat, pay his money at the bar, and walk a,wa,j without opening his lips. The name he went by among them, in consequence, was the mad parson. On one particular evening, as Mr. Addi- son and the rest were observing him, they saw him cast his eyes several times on a gentleman in boots, who seem- ed to be just come out of the country, and at last advance as intending to address him. Eager to hear what their dumb, mad parson had to say, they all quitted their seats to get near him. Swift went up to the country gentleman, and in a very abrupt manner, without any previous salute, asked him, " Pray, sir, do you remember any good weather in the world?" The country gentleman, after staring a little at the singularity of his manner and the oddity of the question, answered, " Yes, sir, I thank God I remem- ber a great deal of good weather in my time." " That is more," rejoined Swift, " than I can say. I never remem- ber any weather that was n^t too hot or too cold, too wot or too dry ; but, however God Almighty contrives it, at the end of the year 'tis all very well." With which re- mark he took up his hat, and, without uttering a syllable more, or taking the least notice of any one, walked out of the coffee-house. It has something of the same turn, and not without the same philosophy, as his own anecdote of " Will Seymour the general " fretting under the excessive heat, at which a friend remarking that it was such weather as pleased the Almighty, " Perhaps it may," replied the §IV.] BAUCIS AND PHILEMON. 175 general, " but I'm sure it jjleases nobody else " (as there 1705. was not the least necessity that it should). There is, how- — ~ — '- ever, as small probability that this was Addison's first uobody. ° knowledge of his great friend, or Swift's first introduction to Steele, as that the incident occurred in 1Y03. That year was the date of the earliest of the verses on Yan- brugh's house, " built from the ruins of Whitehall ;" and their writer was already as well known on the neutral ground of Will's as at the whig St. James's. But what Philips tells has in it a smack of the same grim humor that turned the laugh of the poorer wits against the pros- perous architect and playwright. It had not been Swift's intention at first to give to the Poem oe Vanbrugh poem the form which his printed works have house."" made familiar. It was to laugh, but not without decorum, at a wit who, after building comedies, had taken to build a house.* There was plenty of banter : but the wits were not to be shown running up and down Whitehall, every- where looking for, and always overlooking, what their brother Yan had raised for himself to inhabit; asking every body for its whereabouts, appealing to the watermen, even invoking the Thames, till at length they "in the rubbish spy A thing resembling a goose-pie" (which it probably did resemble, if a brother architect was justified in comparing it to a flat Dutch oven). Those jibes were in the second version of the poem. It was not * Vanbrngh had not quite got over the effect of the verses even after seven years were gone. Swift writes to Es- ther Johnson of a dinner with him and Congreve at Sir Richard Temple's on the 7th November, 1710. "Van- brugh, I believe I told you, had a long quarrel with me about those verses on his house ; but we were very civil and cold. Lady Marlborough used to tease him with tliem, which had made him angry, thongh he be a good-natured fellow." It is, however, to be added that what had given him most offense was not the first of the poems (printed with the dale of 1706), but some supplementary verses (printed in 1708) on the selection of him by Marlborough to build Blen- heim. " For if his grace were no more skill'd in The art of battering walls than huildhig, We might expect to see next year A mouae-trap man chief engineer !" 176 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1705. JEt. 38. Earlier un- printed ver- sion. Swift MSS. at Narfoid. Unprinted poem on Vanbnigh. in his first plan to give so strong a personal coloring as they express, or as the witty parallel between play-building and house-building conveys. His design was rather to jeer at the successes of the stage of the day (against which he had always the grudge which its profligacy too well war- ranted), and to show how structures out of nothing rise to the sky, while the solider and heavier can not get above the gi'ound. "After hard throes of many a day," verse-build- ing Yan is triumphantly " delivered of a play " "Which in due time brings fortli a house, Just as the mountain did the mouse : One story high, one postern door, And one small chamber on a floor." The MS. version of the poem from which these lines are taken exists still in Swift's handwriting at Sir Andrew Fountaine's house in Norfolk ; and at Narford,* which re- mains the property of Sir Andrew's descendant and repre- sentative, Mr. Andrew Fountaine, the jiresent writer dis- covered it. The lines just quoted, and the subjoined satir- ical parallel between a play-writer and a silk-worm, which in this earher version occupies the place given in the later to a comparison of house-building to play-building, have never until now been printed. "There is a wonn by Phoebus bred, By leaves of mulbeny is fed, Sir Andrew Fouutaise. * Fountaine's father built Narford in 1704, and, after his death there, in 1708, the house was let on lease for a time. His son, Swift's friend, edu- cated at Christcliurch, was selected by the dean, as one of the best Latin- ists of his year, to make the oration on King William's visit in 1699 ; and he then received knighthood. He was afterward much abroad. He had formed a friendship witii Leibnitz while at the court of Hanover in 1701 ; and in Italy became acquaint- ed with Lord Pembroke, having mucli the same taste as a collector in mat- ters of art and vertu. He was very rich in medals and coins, of which tlie greater part went ultimately to Wil- ton ; and of the wealth of his posses- sions in old pottery and ware, mag- nificent indication still exists at Nar- ford. There is a bust of him by Kou- biliac at Wilton as well as at Narford ; and ". painting in oils in the library at Ilolland House, which, till very re- cently, had peculiar honor as the por- trait of Addison, was a few years ago discovered to be Fountaine. Addison had probably received it after his mar- riage with Lady Warwick, as a present from Sir Andrew,of whom there will be other frequent mention in these pages. §IV.] BAUCIS AXD PHILEMOX. 177 Which, unprovided where to dnell, 170"). Consumes itself to weave a cell : ■"''''■ 3^- Then curious hands this texture take, And for themselves fine garments make. Jleantime a pair of awkward things Grow to his hack instead of wings : He flutters when he thinks he flies. Then sheds about his spawn, and dies. Just such an insect of the age Is he that scrihbles for the stage : His birth he does from Phoebus raise, And feeds upon imagin'd bays : Turns all his wit and hours away In twisting up an ill-spun Play : This gives him lodging, and provides A stock of tawdry shift besides, With the unravel'd shreds of which The under-wits adorn their speech : And now he spreads his little fans (Tor all the Muse's geese are swans). And, borne on fancy's pinions, thinks He soars sublimest when he sinks: But, scatt'ring round his fly-blows, dies ; Whence broods of insect-poets rise." Xor -was this tlie only discovery made by me at Xar- interesting ford. Another and more important was that of the first '^°"'^- draught of a poem of 1706,' a year after the present da,te, to which peculiar interest belongs. Among the papers in Swift's handwriting I found the original version of the poetical piece which Swift is known to have altered at Addison's request.* Xothing is better established in his literary history than that he made, at Addison's sugges- tion, extensive changes in one of the happiest of his poems, Goldsmith's favorite, the Baucis and Philemon ; " on the Baucis and ever-lamented loss of the two yew-trees in the parish of Ars't written! Cliilthome, Somerset. Imitated from the eighth book of Ovid." Scott speaks more than once, with something of a poet's wonder, of the " forty verses struck out, forty added. * "He himself," says Doctor Dela- ny, "was often wont to mention that in 3 poem of not two hundred lines (^Baucis and Philemon), Mr. Addison YoL.L— 12 made him blot out fourscore, add four- score, and alter fourscore." — Observa- tions, p. 19. 178 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1705. and forty altered," in that brief poem ; and mucli surmise — - -^ — ^ has been hazarded whether changes so great in tlie first conceptions of such a master in his art could possibly all of them have been improvements. Swift's own account makes the number of changes twice as large : " Mr. Addi- son," he says, " made me blot out fourscore, add fourscore, and alter fourscore ;" to which he adds, confounding nat- urally enough in his memory the original with the altered piece, " though the poem did not consist of more than one Tiie poem as hundred and seventy-seven verses." The poem, as print- '"'"*' ed, contains one hundred and seventy - eight lines; the poem, as I found it at Narford, has two hundred and thir- ty ; and the changes in the latter, bringing it into the con- dition of the former, by which only it has been thus far known, comprise the omission of ninety-six lines, the addi- tion of forty-four, and the alteration of twenty-two. The question can now be discussed whether or not the changes were improvements, and in my opinion the decision must be adverse to Addison. The story of the little poem is of course familiar, in oth- er shapes as well as Swift's ; and though M. Taine is an- gry that so touching a legend should be degraded by what he calls travesty, turning the two gods into begging friars and the two lovers into elderly "Kentish" peasants, it must be said, with deference to our French critic, that the Legend ac- travesty is in his own mind. The license of putting an- swift°° '" tique fables into homely modem dress is not disallowed to poetry ; and, worthily executed, is no violation of the an- cient beauty or nobleness, but ^ homage widening and dif- fusing it. " Two brother hermits, saints by trade " (on whose holiness, that is, attends the power of miracles), while exercising their trade in an English country village by putting to the test the hospitality and Christian kindli- ness of its inmates, are so unlucky as to find them by no means able to stand the test, and that, in fact, they possess nothing whatever of the desired qualities. The saints are scouted and flouted from every house, gentle and simple ; until, having arrived at the farm of Baucis and Philemon, § IV.] BAUCIS AND PHILEMON. 179 they are hospitably received and entertained with the best ; 1705. upon which they reward the good old couple by transform- — - — '— ing their cottage into a church, and Philemon, at his own lesson! ^ request, into the parson of it, and by finally metamoi-phos- ing the worthy pair, after sundry more years of happy life, into a couple of yew-trees in the chui'ch-yard. " Old goodman Dobson of the green Kemembers he the trees has seen ; He'll talk of them from noon till night, And goes with folks to show the sight; On Sundays, after evening prayer, He gathers all the parish there ; Points out the place of either yew, Here Baucis, there Philemon, grew! Till, once, a parson of our town To mend his barn cut Baucis down : At which, 'tis hard to be believed How much the other tree was giieved ; ' Grew scrubby,* died atop, was stunted ; So the next parson stubb'd and burnt it." Asked to describe briefly the two versions, reply might be made that, in the poem printed as it was altered for Addison, the story is very siiccinetly told, with complete- ness as of an epigram ; and that, in the Narford MS. as originally written, the narrative is not so terse or close, but The twove^ has more detail and a greater wealth of humor. It is the ten^zedL"""" old distinction (applicable to so much work that is yet en- titled, either way, to more than common praise) between correctness and enjoyment, regularity and abundance. The reader shall have the means of pronouncing for himself, by restoration of the lines struck out by the side of those wjiich were substituted for them ; and whatever his judg- ment may be, Swift's will not be brought in question. That he not only made such changes, but spoke of them always with pride as his friend's suggestion, never hint- HowSwift ing at the existence or desiring any revival of the origi- nal poem, is evidence simply of his manliness of character. * An amendment on the " scrubbed " of the printed version. 180 THE LIFE OE JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1705. J&t:. 38. A contrast. No vanities of auihor- Oiiginal and alteration compared. Opening as printed. Having sought his friend's advice, he acted upon it, and there was an end. In tTie ad\ice Addison might be right or wrong ; but Swift knew that he was honest, and what matter if he should be wrong ? When Pope found he had enchanted the town by putting the sylphs into the Hope of the Lock, he quarreled with Addison for having advised him not to make the change; but this was not Swift's way of holding the balance between a poem and a friend. The poem would always kick the beam. Doctor Delany tells a story of his having in later life asked one of the clergymen of his chapter to look over a piece of writing for him, the result being a recommendation, at once acted upon, to alter a couple of passages, which on the thing's appearance the critic saw to be a mistake. "Sir," said Swift, after hearing his regret, and his sui-prise that such changes should have been acquiesced in so easily, " I con- sidered that the passages were of no great consequence, and I made without hesitation the alterations you desired in them, lest, had I stood up in their defense, you might have imputed it to the vanity of an author unwilling to hear of his errors." If Addison, after seeing tlie printed Satids and Philemon, ever hinted a misgiving of the judiciousness of his own advice. Swift doubtless would have told him it was either way a thing " of no great con- sequence." It is nevertheless of some consequence now to recover lost fragments of such a writer ; and, apart from the in- terest of the discoveiy, the lines are capital specimens of Swift. The earliest and m^t important are in the treat- ment of the disguised holy men by the villagers whose vir- tue they are trying ; and as this is the ground-color as well as main inducement to what follows, the whole piece tui-n- ing upon the contrasted rudeness and hospitality, there can be little doubt that Swift was right in his first notion of showing both in detail. In the printed poem it stands thus : "It hnppen'd on a winter night, As authors of the legend write, § IV.] BAUCIS AND PHILEMON. 181 Two brother hermits, saints by trade", Taking their tour in masquerade, Disguis'd in tatter'd habits, went To a small village down in Kent, Where, in the strollers' canting strain. They begg'd from door to door in vain, Tried every tone might pity win ; But not a soul would let them in.'' Fi"om Swift's manuscript at Xarford here is tlie corre- sponding passage : "It happen'd on a winter's night, As authors of the legend write, Two brother hermits, saints by trade, Taking their tour in masquerade. Came to a village hard by Ri.s.ham,* Ragged, and not a groat betwixt 'em. It rain'd as hard as it could pour. Yet they were forc't to walk an hour From house to house, wet to the skin Before one soul would let 'em in. They caird at every door — ' Good people ! JNIy comrade's blind, and I'm a creeple! Here we lie starving in the street, 'Twould grieve a body's heart to see't, No ChiTstian would turn out a beast In such a dreadful night at least ! Give us but straw, and let us lie In yonder barn, to keep ns dry 1' Thus, in the strollers' usual cant, They begg'd relief which none would grant ; No creature valued what they said. One family was gone to bed : The master bawl'd ont half asleep ' You fellows, what a noise yon keep ! So many beggars pass this way We can't be qniet, night nor day ; We can not sen-e you every one ; Pray take your answer, and be gone!' One swore he'd send 'em to the stocks : A third could not forbear his mocks ; But bawl'd, as loud as he conld roar, ' You're on the wrong side of the door ;' 1705. JEt. 38. Opening as first written (MS.). * The " village hard by Rixham " of the original has as little connection with " Chilthome " as the "village down in Kent "of the altered version, and Swift had probably no better rea- son than his rlivme for either. 182 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1705. Mt. 38. Snpei'iority of the MS. Tersiou. The snints entertained (after Addi- son). One surly clown look't out and said, ' I'll fling a brickbat on your head ! Tou sha'n't come here ! nor get a sous ! You look like rogues would rob a house. Can't you go work, or serve the King? You blind and lame ? 'Tis no such thing ! That's but a counterfeit sore leg ! For shame ! Two sturdy rascals beg ! If I come down, I'W spoil your trick, And cure you both with a good stick!'" To say nothing of the rich filling -in, and coloring of humorous character, so much description as this we must think almost essential to give the proper shai-pness of con- trast to what ensues, when the holy men at last, leaving this " pack of churlish boors " behind them, come to " Where dwelt a good old honest ye'man, Call'd thereabout good man Philemon,''* (Narford MS.) by whom they are heartily invited to pass the night, which Goody Baucis and he busy themselves to render comfort- able ; she mending the fire, and he taking a flitch of bacon from off the hook in the chimney. Here is the printed version : "And freely from the fattest side Cut out large slices to be fried ; Then stepp'd aside to fetch them drink, Fill'd a large jug up to the brink. And saw it fairly twice go round ; Yet (what is wonderful) they found 'Twas still replenished to the top. As if they ne'er had touch'd a drop. The good old coupl^ere amazed. And often on each other gazed ; For both were frighten'd to the heart. And just began to cry, ' What ar't ?' Then softly tm-ned aside, to view Whether the lights were burning blue. The gentle pilgrims, soon aware on't, Told them their calling and their errand : "' More characteristic than the printed couplet, " Where dwelt a good old honest ye'man Call'd iu the neighborhood Philemon." §1V.] BAUCIS AND PHILEMON. 183 ' Good folks, you need not be afi-aid, We are but saints,' the hermits said ; 'No hurt shall come to you or yours : But for that pack of churlish boors, Not fit to live on Christian ground, They and their houses shall be dro\vn'd ; Wliile you shall see your cottage rise. And grow a church before your eyes.' " Swift's first version does more justice to the old couple's hospitality. Baucis is seen at her cookery, and Philemon as he taps the kilderkin brewed for a riper time. Their fright at the first miracle, too, and the doubt that besets Philemon (marked in Swift's manuscript with a long dash) before he pronounces them " saints," are strokes of humor incomparably better than the lights " burning blue " of the printed poem. "What follows is from the Jfarford MS. : "And freely from the fattest side Cut out large slices to be fried ; Which, tost up in a pan with batter And serv'd up in an earthen platter — Quoth Baucis, ' This is wholesome fare ; Eat, honest friends, and never spare ! And if we find our victuals foil. We can but make it out in ale.' 1705. Mt. 38. Hospitality to the saiuts (before Ad- dison); "To a small kilderkin of beer, Brew'd for the good time of the year, Philemon, by his wife's consent, Stept with a jug, and made a vent ; And having fiU'd it to the brink, Invited both the saints to drink. When they had took a second draught. Behold, a miracle was wrought. Por Baucis with amazement found. Although the jug had twice gone round, It still was full up to the top. As if they ne'er had drunk a drop. You may be sure so strange a sight Put the old people in a fright. Philemon whisper'd to his wife, ' These men are saints ! I'll lay my life !' The strangers overheard, and said, 'You're in the right: but ben't afraid ; MS. version. 184 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN HWIET. [Book HI. 1705. ^T. 38. House turn- iu<; to church (Swifl MS.). Other changes (Swift MS.). The pulpit (printed ver- Biou). No hurt shall come to you or yours : But for that pack of churlish boors, Not fit to live ou Christian ground, They and their village shall be drown'd ; Wliilst you sliall see your cottage rise. And grow a church before your eyes.'" No sooner said than done : " Scarce had they spoke, when fair and soft The roof began to mount aloft ; Aloft rose every beam and rafter ; The heavy wall went clambering after."* A wooden jack, fallen into disuse of roasting, is turned to a clock, and its friend, the chimney, to a steeple. The humor of the contrasts of jack and clock is droj)ped from the printed lines. "It now, stopt by some hidden powers, Moves round but twice in twice twelve hours. While in the station of a jack 'Twas never known to show its back, A friend in turns and windings tried Nor ever left the chimney's side — t The chimney to a steeple grown. The jack would not be left alone ; But up against the steeple rear'd, Became a clock, and still adher'd ; And still its love to household cares By a shrill voice at noon declares. Warning the cook maid not to burn The roast meat which it can not turn." Philemon's old creaking chair becomes a pulpit: the printed poem thus describing the change : "The groaning chaicbegan to crawl. Like a huge snail, along the wall ; There stuck aloft in public view, And with small change, a pulpit grew." * According to the printed version ; "They ecavce had spoke, when fair and soft The roof began to mount aloft : Aloft rose every beam and rafter; The heavy wall climb'd slowly after." The last is a good line; but the "clambering" it replaced has more of a humorous picture in it. t These turns and touches of en- joyment are not in the printed ver- sion : "Bnt, slackened by some secret power, Now hardly moves an inch an hour. The jack and chimney near allied Had never left each other's side : The chimney to a steeple grown," etc. §IV.] BAUCIS AND PHILEMON. 185 1705. Mt. 38. Pnlpitaud foul (Swift's MS.). Swift's MS. includes a font as well as the pulpit, and is so much better that one wondei's what Addison's objection could have been, if it were not one of those touches of ex- tra-solemnity in convivial hours which led to Mandeville's nickname of " a parson in a tye-wig." "The groaning cliaii' began to crawl Lilce a luige insect, up tlie wall ; There stuck, and to a pulpit grew. But kept its matter, and its hue, And, mindful of its ancient state, Still groans while tattling gossips prate. "The mortar, only chang'd its name, In its old shape a font became." The next transformation is of the pictured- ballads pasted other on the cottage wall, into the rude painted inscriptions so ' '"'^^°' common in old days of country churches, and to be met occasionally even yet, where Jacob's ensigns may be seen standing for the tribes of Israel, and here and there an aspiring church-warden will have found beside them a place for his own family heraldry. ' The ballads, pasted on the wall. Of Chevy Chace, and English Moll,* Eair Rosamond, and Kobin Hood, The little Children in the "Wood, Enlarged in picture, size, and letter. And painted, lookt abundance better. And now the heraldry describe Of a church-warden, or a tribe.t Swift MS. Next come into sudden shape the pews, oiit of a bed- what the f tead " such as our grandfathers use " (Addison's odd comes?'^ '^^' * In Percy's Reliques will be found a popidar ballad on Molly Ambree and her exploits in Flanders. t The printed version is certainly not so good. "The bfillftds, pasted on the wall, Of Joan of France, and Bngllflh Mall, I'liir Rosamond, and Eobln Hood, The little Children in the Wood, Now seom'd to look abundance better, Improv'd in picture, size, and letter: And, high in order placed, describe The heraldry of every tribe." The "painting" is wanted here, as well as the characteristic touch of the " church- warden ;" and though "Joan" pairs with "Moll" (or "Mall" as it is printed), tlie worthy couple are more likely to liave been students of " Chevy Chace." 186 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1705. JEt. 38. What is made of Philemou. Parson Philemou (Swift's MS.). amendment is " ancestors "), and .which retains in its new character its " former virtue " (better than Addison's " an- cient nature") of lodging folks disposed to sleep; after which we have the grand metamorphosis of Philemon into the parson. Of this I have placed in a note the version as printed,* and comparison of it with what follows here, from Swift's manuscript, will show what excellent traits of character were sacrificed at Addison's suggestion. The reason the good man gives for desiring to be made the parson, the gait and the look which he takes thereon, his changes of demeanor to his equals. and to the squire, and the decent uses of his gown on market-days, are Swift all over : but no trace of them will be found in the altered poem. ' ' The cottage, with such feats as these Grown to a church by just degrees, The holy men desired their host To ask for what he fancied most. Philemon, having paused a while, Replied in complimental style: ' Your goodness, more than my desert, Makes you take all things in good part : You've raised a church here in a minute. And I would fain continue in it : I'm good for little at my days — Make me the parson, if you please.' "He spoke, and presently he feels His grazier's coat reach down his heels : * In print Philemon thus became parson : Parson Phi- " The cottage, by such feats as these lemon (as Grown to a church by just degrees, printed). The hermits then desired their host To ask for what he fancied most. Philemon, having paused a while, Eetum'd them thanks in homely style ; Then said, ' My house is grown so flue, Methinks I still would call it mine. I'm old, and fain would live at ease ; Make me the parson, if you please.' "He spoke, and presently he feels His grazier's coat fall down his heels : He sees, yet hardly can believe. About each arm a pudding sleeve ^ His waistcoat to a cassock grew. And both assumed a sable hue ; But, being old, continued just As threadbare and as full of dust. His talk was now of tithes and dues : He smoked his pipe and read the news ; Knew how to preach old sermons next, Vamp'd in the preface and the text; At christenings well could act bis part, And had the service all by heart ; Wish'd womeu might have children fast, And thought whose sow had farrow'd last; Against dissenters would repine. And stood up firm for ' right divine ;' Found his head filled with many a sys- tem; But classic authors — he ne'er miss'd 'em." § IV.] BAUCIS AND PHILEMON. 187 The sleeves, new border'd witd a list, 1705. Widen'd and gather'd ai his wrist : JEiT^- 38. His waistcoat to a cassock grew. And both assum'd a sable hue ; But being old, continued just As threadbare and as full of dust. A shambling, awkward gait he took, With a demure, dejected look, Talkt of his Off'rings, Tythes, and Dues, Could smoke, and drink, and read the news ; Or sell a goose at the next town Decently hid beneath his gown. Contriv'd to preach old sermons next Chang'd in the preface and the text. At christenings well could act his part. And had the service all by heart ; Wish'd women might have children fast. And thought whose sow had farrow'd last ; Against dissenters would repine, And stood up firm for ' right divine ;' Carried it to his equals high'r, But most obsequious to the squire. Found his head fill'd with many a system ; But classic authors — he ne'er miss'd 'em." Swift did not retm'n to Ireland, until, in the autumn of 1705, the whig majority in the elections had restored Som- ers and Halifax to the council ; and this, presumably, was the date of the remonstrance he describes himself to have Eemon- ' made personally to both those statesmen upon the way in treatment which the clergy were treated by both parties in the state, of clergy. The tory lords, with plenty of profession of zeal for the church, treated " not only their own chaplains, but all oth- er clergymen whatsoever," with haughtiness and insolence ; the whig lords, with great courtesy to the persons of par- ticular clergymen, showed " ill-will and contempt for the order in general ;" and here, for one of the results, was Both parties poor old Parson Philemon. Swift was carrying back to blame. Ireland that picture in his mind, but the artists responsible for it were the great men of the state. It was probably on the same occasion he told Somers that he was himself, from his reading having given him a love for liberty, and from thinking it impossible on any other principle to ac- 1S8 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book III. 1705. ^T. 38. Translated from Derry iu 1T03. Desire to help the clergy. "Return to Ireland. Lord Peter- borongh. cept the Eevolution, much inclined to be a whig ; and that lie thought that party would strengthen themselves in Ireland if they could obtain for the poor Irish clergy the same remission of Urst-fruits and tenths which had been conceded to the English in the preceding year. Some sort of promise to this effect had already been given, at the Bishop of Cloyne's intercession, before the whig prospects brightened ; and on the eve of Swift's leading for London on his present visit, he had written to Archbishop King to beg of him also to press " that the crown-rent should be added, which is a great load upon many poor livings, and would be a considerable help to others. And I am con- fident, with some -reason, that it Avould be easily granted ; being, I hear, under one thousand pounds a year, and the queen's grant for England being so much more consider- able than ours can be at best." Easy as it might be, however, he went back without any step made toward it, or any better hopes for himself. Some pieces are in his works, and some letters, with the date of this visit ; but, excepting a few witty trifles for entertain- ment of the Berkeleys, they are more than a couple of years antedated. The only piece which may have been written before lie left, and that has any thing of a personal signifi- cance or bearing, is a little poem to Lord Peterborough, filled with movement and life ; and as his will be one of the most familiar figures of Swift's later London days, a few of his vivid lines shall place it here on the page for us. One of the characters in the book called Macki/'s Mem- oirs, to which Swift givesjrare approval as " for the most part true," sketches Peterborough as mightily affecting popularity, given to preach in coffee-houses, inconstant and fiery of temper, giddy in running from party to party and from place to place, with a good estate and not seeming ex- pensive, yet always in debt and very poor, " a well-shaped, thin man, with a very brisk look." All, doubtless, extreme- ly true, and such as a drawing by Jervas or Hudson might express. But Reynolds and Hogarth have no finer lines, more firm and more vigorous, than these that follow : § IV.] BAUCIS AND PHILEMON. 189 "Mordanto fills the trump of fame, 1705. The Christian worlds his deeds proclaiir, -^T. 38. And prints are crowded with his name. " In journeys he outrides the post, Sits up till midnight with his host. Talks politics, and gives the toast. " Knows every prince in Europe's face. Flies like a squib from place to place, And travels not, but runs a race ' ' A messenger comes all a-reek Mordanto at Madrid to seek ; He left the town above a week. "Next day the post-boy winds his horn, And rides through Dover in the morn : Mordanto's landed from Leghorn " So wonderful his expedition. When you have not the least suspicion. He's with you like an apparition. "A skeleton in outward figure. His meagre corpse, though full of vigor. Would halt behind him were it bigger." Swift was now to be resident in Ireland longer than usual, and I propose to give some description of his ways of life in Dublin and Laracor. BOOK FOUHTH. IRELAND AND ENGLAND. 1700-1709. ^T. 39-43. I. Life ik Lakacor and Dublin. II. Waiting and Wokking in London. I. LIFE IX LAEACOR AlO) DUBLIN. 170&-1708. ^T. 39^1. With the Ormond family attlie castle, during 1703 and 1706-1708. 1704, wlien the duke was in residence as lord lieutenant, -^ ' Swift lived in the same friendly association as with the mond'sfam- Berkeleys ; a touch of even greater intimacy being, per- '''^" haps, derived from the old Ormond connection with his uncle Godwin. When the daughters. Ladies Betty and Mary, had grown to womanhood, and after brief interval of absence he met them in London in 1710, he describes the " insolent drabs "* coming up to his very mouth to salute him : the epithet, of course, meaning nothing, but that, being fond of them, he was free to caU them what he pleased. Lady Mary was his greatest favorite ; he found Lady Mary a likeness in her to Esther Johnson ; and extremely pathet- ic was his remark upon her early death, not many months after a happy marriage to Lord Ashbumham : " I hate life when I think it exposed to such accidents ; and to see so many thousand wretches burdening the earth while such as her die, makes me think God did never intend life for a blessing." Swift's relation to these Irish viceroys, as already hint- ed, was something more than a mere chaplain's. It con- tinued through the government of Lord Pembroke, after his appointment at the close of 1706 ; and when discovery was made, in 1708, that Lord Wharton was to bring over * Giave ijiistakes hare been made and Lord Somers himself a "rascal," by giving importance to such chance words as these, which are as frequent as they are meaningless in the speech of Swift. When he calls duchess's daughters "insolent drabs," the Irish bishops " insolent, ungiateful rascals," YoL. I.— 13 the words ought not to be, as there will be other occasions more particu- larly to point out, credited with mean- ings such as would be given to them in present ordinaiy use. 194 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1706-1708. Ml. 39-41. Swift's chap- laincy. Objected to by Whartou, Piimate and arcbbiiibop. Wiiliam King. his own chaplain, the Archbishop of Dublin expressed great concern. " If you can attend the next lord lieuten- ant," he wrote to Swift, " you, in my opinion, ought not to decline it. I assure myself that you are too honest to come on ill terms ; nor do I believe any will be explicitly proposed. I could give several reasons why you should embrace this." But already, to the Irish primate. Swift had transmitted from London sufficient reasons why he could not. Doctor Lambert's appointment in his place had been made at the express instance of the lord treas- urer, Godolphin, and of influential English bishops,* by whom. Swift slyly added, " it was thought absolutely nec- essary, considering the dismal notion they have here of so many high-church archbishops among you; and your friend made no application, for reasons left you to guess." Narcissus Marsh, the primate, and William King, the arch- bishop,f were pretty nearly the only two men of superior ability in the existing Irish episcopate, and with both Swift was on friendly terms ; his communication with King be- ing necessarily frequent. Their agreement in church pol- icy was unfortunately but too close ; though, in King's ob- jection to the Northern Presbyterians, there was much less of Swift's general dislike of fanaticism and far more of the mere churchman's prejudice. King was a whig in pol- ities ; and, though a good, well-disposed man, possessed of very considerable learning, and unselfishly anxious to pro- mote what he believed to be for the benefit of Ireland, he never could understand Swift's contempt for the parlia- ment, intolerance of the convocation, and belief in the gen- eral government corruption. Nevertheless, through many differences, they did not lose respect for each other ; and when, at a later momentous time. Swift, on behalf of Ire- land, declared war against the government of England, King, with great courage, took a place by his side. * The l5\v-charch Archbishop Ten- ison took the lead in this: "The dullest good-for-nothing man I ever knew," says Swift. See post, 223. t Whately edited (Oxf., 1821) a dis- course by King On the Eight Method of Interpreting Scripture, preached at Christ Church, Dublin, in May, 1709. §1.] LIFE IN LARACOR AND DUBLIN. 195 Thos far no sucli questions had been raised. Until his 1706-1708. later life Swift can not be credited with so much interest j^ f^ to ffOV— in the country as to be thought likely to have even brought emmeut of under consideration how best it might be governed; but ^'^''""'• no one so keenly saw the extent of the misgovemment, and no clearer light has been thrown on its causes than may be found in his casual utterances from time to time. He had for the present persuaded himself that his proper task in Ireland was to ^ve more strength to the Estab- lished Church and a better provision to its clergy ; though it would be extremely difficult to say of which class of Irish residents he was even now least tolerant, the colony from England or the native population. John Temple wrote to him from Moor Park in June, 1706, to ask his help in some necessary aiTangements of valuing and leas- ing on his estates in Armagh. " 'Tis an advantage to Letter to you," after replying on the points of the letter Swift goes p^e^ii^' on to say,* " that land in this kingdom was never lower than now — ^I mean where it is far from Dublin ; and there- fore, if you have a fair return, you can not well be a loser whenever we have Peace. Xothing can be righter than your opinion not to let your lands at a rack-rent. They that live at your distance from their estates would be un- done if they did it, especially in such an uncertain coun- try as this. Therefore I should advise you to let it so eas- ily to your under-tenants, when you renew, that they may be able to repay you part of your fine, and then your rent is secure. If you have thoughts of selling it, your best way will be to offer it among the gentlemen of the neigh- borhood that will give most ; but I hope you will consid- er it a little longer, or else you may be in danger of sell- ing you know not what ; which will be as bad as buying so. J forgot to tell you that no accounts from your ten- ants can be relied on. If they paid you but a pepper-corn a year, they would be readier to ask abatement than offer ♦This letter ("for John Temple, Esq. at his house at Moor Park near Farnham in Surrey, England," dated "from Dublin, 15th June, 1706"), is now first printed. 196 THE LIFE or JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1706-1708. Ml. 39-41. Tenanls and landlords. Love of Moor Park. Changeeiuce early dnys. Pnrty in Iceland. An importa- tion from Eugland. to advance. It is the universal maxim throughout the kingdom. I have known them fling up a lease, and the next day give a fine to have it again. It has not been known in the memory of man that an Irish tenant ever once spoke truth to his landlord." The close of the letter, in which he speaks of an invita- tion from Temple, and of a common friend, a landed pro- prietor living near Laracor, whose opinions of Ireland were said to resemble his own, has much personal interest. " I am extremely obliged by your kind invitation to Moor Park, which no time will make me forget and love less. If I love Ireland better than I did, it is because we are nearer related, for I am deeply allied to its poverty. My little revenue is sunk two parts in three, and the third in arrear. Therefore if I come to Moor Park it must be on foot ; but then comes another difficulty, that I carry double the flesh that you saw about me at London, to which I have no manner of title, having neither purchased it by luxury nor good humor. I did not think Mr. Perceval"-' and I had agreed so well in our opinion of Ireland. I be- lieve it is the only public opinion we agree in; else I should have had more of his company here ; for I always loved him very well as a man of very good understanding and humor. But whig and tory have spoiled all that was tolerable here, by mixing with private friendship and con- versation, and mining both ; though it seems to me full as pertinent to quan-el about Copernicus and Ptolomee as about my lord treasurer and Lord Kochester ; at least for any private man, and especially in our remote scene. I am sorry we begin to resemble England only in its de- fects. About seven years ago frogs were imported here, and thrive very well ; and three years after, a certain great man brought over whig and tory, which suit the soil ad- mirably. But my paper is at an end before I am aware." * The chief of the family, also known to Swift, who mentions in his Journal occasional dinners at his honse (23d March, 1710-'ll, etc.), was Sir John Perceval, created Baron and Viscount Perceval by the wliigs after the queen's death, and ultimately made Earl of Egmont. § I.] LIFE IN LARACOB AND DUBLIN. 197 He nevertheless found space for a postscript characteristic 1706-1708. of him as any thing in the letter. " I was desired by a -1^ '- person of quality to get him a few cuttings of the Arboyse and Burgundy vines mentioned by Sir W. T. in his Essay on Gardening, because they ripen the easiest of any. Pray be so kind to order your gardener to send some against the season, and I will direct they shall be sent to London, and from thence to Chester." He was himself now engaged in planting at Laracor, not indeed Franche Comte or Burgundy vines, but cherry-trees in his river-walk, a grove of hollies, and quicksets on the flat in his garden. He was strengthening his river-bank improving against possible floods, putting in fresh willows, and in- iag.^'^"' creasing the number of his apple-trees. From nature, as well as by early association with Temple, he had a liking for such occupation ; and a little went a great way with him. " Pray keep the garden for me" he wrote to Dean Sterne, when changes were in hand at the deanery-house during his absence in London ; and it is a real sadness to him when his poor " half-dozen of blossoms " at Laracor are killed by frost. " Spes anni coUapsa ruit !" he exclaims, uncertain whether the words are his own or Yirgil's. When away in London his thoughts travel continually to Love of his garden. " I should be plaguy busy if I were at Laracor ^""^ """"' now," he says at the opening of March, 1710-'ll, " cutting down willows, planting others, scouring my canal, and ev- ery kind of thing." The useful activity, the movement and variety of scene, were the charm to him. When Ad- dison took him to see his sister's garden at Westminster, where her husband was a prebend, he found it to be a " delightful " retreat ; " yet I thought it was a sort of mo- nastic life in those cloisters, and I liked Laracor better." ISTever a spring day breaks with sunshine on his London life that he does not think of his willows beginning to His quicks peep and his quicks to bud, and what work he should have upon his hands if he were but beside them. He is always urging Esther Johnson and her friend to betake them- selves to Trim and tell him of his river, his banks and 198 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1706-1708. -iET. 39^1. Tronts nnd pike. Ante, 41. 21st Fel)., ITlO-'ll. Trim people. 30th Novem- ber, ITIO. groves of holly, his apples, and his cherry-trees. "And now they begin to catch the pikes, and will shortly the trouts (a pox on these ministers !), and I would fain know whether the floods were ever so high as to get over the holly bank of the river-walk ? If so, then all my pikes are gone ; but I hope not." Here was another of his sum- mer amusements ; and one may still bring vividly back the enjoyment he derived from it, in the years of which I am speaking, as one reads, in these London letters to his lady friends, what his injunctions were that they must do at his own return in the summer. They were to go and make the Raymonds a visit at Trim, and were to be joined by him there, and they were to have " another eel and trout fishing ;" and then, too, Mrs. Johnson on her namesake would ride by Laracor, and would see and greet himself in his garden in his morning-gown, and they would go up with " Joe " to the hill of Bree, and round by Scurlock's town. " Lord ! how I remember names ! 'faith it gives me short sighs." Not for itself, I should add, did he care for Trim, but only for its nearness to Laracor, and for the sake of one or two living in it. When the vicar asked him to help " Joe's " father to be elected portreeve, he said he would do any thing for Joe that he could ; but the Trim people had behaved ill in disregarding advice he had given them, and though he wished them their liberty to choose whom they liked, he would not trouble himself for them. Nor, upon their failure to cany the election against the influ- ence of a neighboring squir«| Tom Ashe,* the Bishop of Clogher's brother, did he scruple to say that he was glad to see the town " reduced to slavery " again : for " the peo- * Tom was the eldest of the tlii-ee brothers Ashe, "descended from an ancient family of that name in Wilt- shire,'' which had settled in Ireland. He had an estate of land of more than a thousand a year in county Meath. Nichols's description of him is derived from Mr. Deane Swift, but may be accepted: "He was a facetious, pleasant companion, but the most eternal unwearied punster that ever lived. He was thick and short in his person, being not above five feet high at the most, and had some- thing very droll in his appearance." — Nichols, second edition, xix., 185. §!•] LIFE IN LARACOR AND DUBLIN. 199 pie were as great rascals as the gentlemen." Joe Beau- i7oe-i708. mont was one of the exceptions. Engaged in the linen — ' trg,^, he had put forth some inventions recommended by nwu J"" Swift, for one of which a government reward was given ; but the too common fate of inventors befell him. His ingenuities withdrew him from the necessary attention to his business, bankruptcy followed, and, a few years after Swift was made Dean of St. Patrick's, on the eve of a sup- posed discovery in mathematics which had overtaxed his brain, he died by his own hand. To the last he had Swift's sympathy, and always some kindly allusion.* When Trim is mentioned there is commonly a word for Joe. Press- ing on Mrs. Johnson the necessity of country air and ex- ercise, and that she should " take a good deal of it," he asks, " where better than Trim ? Joe will be your humble servant, Parvisol your Slave, and Paymond at your com- mand, for he piques himself on good manners." Isaiah Parvisol, an Irishman of French extraction, was Pawisoi, the Swift's tithe-agent and steward at Laracor. Paymond, as ^ ^"'^' ' already stated, was Yicar of Trim. He was a common- place, worthy man, not provident in money matters, and only enabled to repay some advances from Beaumont through a windfall that had come to his wife.f He visit- ed Swift during his great time in London, and by him was- introduced to the solicitor-general, Sir Pobert Paymond, vkavEay- who acknowledged the family connection claimed by the Trim.' ° viear.:j: But, though he called on Swift many times oft-, ener than he had the good fortune to be seen, he was grate- ful when admitted (" drank a pint of ale cost me fivepence, and smoked his pipe "), overflowed with pleasure when put * It is Joe to whom there is alhi- sion in the delightful verses, "On the little house by the church -yari^ of Castleknock " (1709-10) : "Whoever pleases to inquire Why yonder steeple wants a spire, The gray old fellow, poet Joe, The philosophic cause will show." t " I am heartily glad of Raymond's good fortune, and I write this post to congratulate him upon it. I hope jou will advise him to be a good manager, without which the greatest fortune must run oil»." — Swift to Walk, 9th November, 1708. Un- published letter penes me. "In mon- ey matters he is the last man I would dependon." — Journal, 7th June, 1711. 1 Journal, 11th December, 1710; 10th January, 1710^'ll. 200 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. Vicai-'s visit to LoDdou, Post, 3Sl'. Vicar's wife. 1706-1708. among the beef -eaters to have a good look at the queen, and was altogether so easy and manageable, that, when he took his way back to Trim, Swift was " a little melancholy " to part with liim, and remorseful for having seen him so seldom. He has kind words for his wife also, though a grudge at her excess of motherly qualities, and not the highest opinion of her conversational powers. " Will Mrs. Eaymond never have done lying-in V is more than once his whimsical question ; and when he wants to describe the fall of a celebrated Toast from the brilliancy of Lon- don to the dullness of Lynn, only fancy, he says, " Poor creature ! It is just such a change as if Pdfr (himseK) should be banished from Ppt (Esther Johnson), and con- demned to converse with Mrs. Kaymond." Even the vic- ar's grammar does not always escape; for when he has written to Mrs. Johnson so that he can not read his own hand, he consoles himself with " I'll mend my hand if oo please ; but you are more used to it nor I, as Mr. Eaymond says."* Out of Trim, but in the Laracor neighborhood, Swift's principal friends were Mr. and Mrs. Perceval, John Tem- ple's acquaintance ; Mr. and Mrs. Garret "Wesley (the lat- ter a daughter of Sir Dudley CoUey), for both of whom he had such regard, that very often, when Mrs. Wesley was ill in London during Anne's last ministry, he would leave the great tables to go and read prayers to her ;f Sir Arthur Langf ord ; a friendly farmer named Johnny Clark ; and his curate Mr. Warburton, who did not resign to mar- ry a second wife, "Mrs. Meltkrop of my parish," until four years after Swift was dean. Altogether, with Squire Jones "and other scoundrels," the congregation at its most populous time mustered under a score. " I am this minute very busy," he wiites to Dean Sterne before setting out for Lofidon in lYlO, " being to preach to-day before an audience of at least fifteen people, most of them gentle Friends near Laracor, * Journal, 7th January, 1712-'13. t "She is much better than she as. I heartily pray for her health. out of the entire love I bear to her worthy husband." — Journal, ith of March, 1712-'13. §1-] LIKE AT LAEACOK AND DUBLIN. 201 and all simple." It can hardly be said that he stinted his 1706-1708. preaching in giving alternate Sundays with his curate to ''••-• Dublin club. this audience of fifteen. " Pray let the ladies continue to be part of the club," he had written from London to Archdeacon Walls two years earlier, " and remember my Saturday dinner against I return : it was a cunning choice that of Saturday, for Mrs. Walls remembered that two Saturdays in four I was at Laracor."* The club, of which the day was altered thereon to Friday, takes us back from Laracor to Dublin : its principal members, who dined or itsmembers supped and played cards at each other's houses, during the autumn and winter evenings, being the Walls family ; a worthy Dublin alderman, Stoyte, afterward lord mayor, his wife, and his daughter Catherine, great favorites with Swift ; Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Dingley ; the Dublin post- master, Manley, and his wife ; Dean Sterne ; and himself. It largely contributed to Esther Johnson's enjoyment dur- ing his longest separation from her; it survived many vicissitudes ; and it found mention, among graver things, in a letter from Swift to Walls in the autumn of 1713, when he had returned to London to complete that famous and eminently religious compromise by which one member of the club had been made a bishop that another might be made a dean. " Our club is sadly broke ! The ladies tell me they are going to live at Trim. The bishop " whilome dean " at Dromore, I " now the dean " here ; and none but you and Stoyte left. Our goody Walls, my gossip, will die of the spleen My service to the alderman, and Goody, and Catherine, and Mr. Manley and ]ady."f The club nevertheless did not finally break until Esther John- son passed away. Walls, a Dublin clergyman who held the rectory of Cas- tleknock, near Trim, created archdeacon in the summer Its break-up. Archdeacon Walls. ♦Swift to "The Keverend Mr. Archdeacon Walls at his house in Cavan Street, Dublin, Ireland." Un- published letter penes me. t Swift to "The Rsv. Mr. Arch- deacon Walls at his house over against the hospital in Queen Street. Dub- lin, 7th September, 1713," Unpub- lished letter ^enes me. 202 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. An Irish rectoiv. 1706-1708. of 1708, had been intimate with the Vicar of Laracor for — '- — ^— ^ some years, and long after the vicar became Dean of St. Patrick's continued to be a great poster in his affairs. He is the hero of a charming little poem which is like a page out of a poetical Gulliver, where Swift describes his country rectory as composed only of bits of wall, roof, and weath- er-cock blown down from his church steeple by a western breeze ; the walls in tumbling getting a knock, and the stee- ple a shock : " From whence the neighboring farmer calls The steeple Knock ; the vicar Walls."* But in Dublin he had a more commodious dwelling, which was a second home to Esther Johnson ; and though Swift's humorous objection to Mrs. Eaymond applied equally to Mrs. Walls, her kind- ness to his dearest friend insured her his regard. Already he was sponsor to one of her children, when he was asked to stand again ; but he protested he would not be " godfather to Goody that bout," and he hoped she'd have no more. Nevertheless "gossip Doll" succeeded in obtaining his consent twice more ; and by his influence her " son Jacky " was painted by his and Pope's friend, Jervas. Her hus- band he called " a reasoning coxcomb," which only meant, however, that the archdeacon, though not a man of note in any respect, was apt to go his own way, relying much upon himself ; and, excepting that stinginess is sometimes hinted, and too much deference to his wife, we hear of no other objection. His Ave days' visit to London, while Archdea- con's wife. Post, 404. * The drift of the poem is a de- lightful exaggeration of the minute- ness of the house, into which n^yer- theless *'The vicar once a week creeps in, sits with bis knees up to his chin ; Here cons his notes and takes a whet, Tin the small ragged flock Is met." Nothing will persuade people that it can be a house. Horsemen ride over it : crows and blackbirds are taken in by it : Swift's curate likens it to " a pigeon-house or oven, To bake one loaf, or keep one dove in." " Then Mrs. Johnson gave her verdict And every one was pleased that heard it ; All that yon make this stir abont Is but a still which wants a spout." But matters are brought to a crisis by one of the children of Doctor Eay- mond: " The doctor's family came by, And little Miss began to cry, Give me that house in my own hand I Then Madam bade the chariot stand, Call'd to the clerk, in manner mild, Pray reach that thing here, to the child : That thing, I mean, among the kale. And here's to buy a pot of ale, " The clerk said to her in a heat, What 1 sell my master's country-seat, "Where he comes every week from town : Why, he wouldn't sell it for a crown." §!•] LIFE IN LARACOR AND DUBLIN. 203 irOC-1708. JEt. 39-41. ABhe. Sir Andrew Fouiitaine. Ante, 170. Swift was all-powerful there, gives rather a favorable im- pression of him. lie took no gown or professional equip- ment, rode from Chester to London on horseback, lodged aeacou to with his horse in Aldersgate Street, and intruded only ^""^o"- once on his celebrated friend; who was thereby piqued into saying that he had no more curiosity than a cow, that his wife would not let him stay in London longer, and that all he did there was to buy her a silk gown and him- self a hat, and go with Dilly Ashe once to the play. Dilly Ashe* was- one of three brothers — the Bishop of Brothers Clogher, Tom Ashe, and himself — who, with Swift, Bishop Lloyd of Killala, and Sir Andrew Fountaine, now passed a great many pleasant nights with Sterne at the deanery of St. Patrick's. Fountaine had come over to Dublin with Lord Pembroke, as usher of the black rod in the new vice- roy's court ; and Swift, who at this time first knew him, told Sterne the following year that he had left him in Lon- don, declaring he should never be satisfied till he was happy again in the little room at Dublin at the expense of the dean's wine and conversation. The dean's claim to Swift's liking was the same as that of Walls, and at this time only second to his, no other houses being opened so familiarly to Esther Johnson ; and her great friend would often plague her to reveal her favorite, the tall brown arch- deacon or the black little dean. In that competition it Deansterne. was Sterne's disadvantage to be unmarried ; considerable eagerness in looking after his own interest is also often objected to him. Nor is he to have credit for any special ability ; but it was something to have an agreeable house, a well-fumished library, and a liberal table,f and, though Swift quarreled with him later, they had now much inter- * Tom Ashe has been refen-ed to. Dilly (Dillon) was Vicar of Finglas. He had held the living since 1694, and PaiTiell (tlie poet). succeeded him in it in 1718. There will be other notices of him. t "The Dean of St. Patrick's lives better than any man of quality I know," wrote Swift to Sternein 1710. "The worst dinner I ever saw at the Dean's was better," he said of a din- ner with Sir Thomas Mansell, who was enormously rich with a stingy wife. Mansell was afterward one of the famous "twelve." 204 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 170G-170S. -Et. 39-11. Bishop of Clogher. Likings born of ;» common iufirmiiy. A new Cns- tiliiin. Enrl of Pem- broke, course. The hospitable owner of good bits, good books, aud good buildings, Swift calls him ; adding, with allusion to a much dearer friend, that those were '• three b's " that the Bishop of Clogher would envy him for. The bishop was another of Mrs. Johnson's kindest allies, and for his own sake had inspired the strongest regard in Swift. It began in the old college days in 1GS2, when St. George Ashe was tutor to Jonathan, and it continued uninterrupt- edly until the close of Ashe's life in 1717. Swift told Lord Halifax in 1709 that it was " only the bishop and perhaps one or two more that rendered Ireland tolerable to him ;" and in the same year he heard from Addison with what warmth of expression the bishop had spoken of him, and reciprocated his esteem. Four years later they both stood with Addison behind the scenes at Drury Lane to witness the rehearsal of the tragedy of Cato. They would not like each otlier less for a weakness shared in common. The bishop and both his brothers were notorious for punning. As far back as the Tisdall letters, Swift sent a message to Esther Johnson that she, in this as in all else liis pupil, was to forbear punning after the Finglas rate when Dilly was at home f' and it may be doubtful if the Ashe family took it first from him, or he from them, as far back as even his college days. But, at the time under description, no one came near to Swift either in making puns himself or infecting others with a frenzy for it. High or low, every one punned that came within reach of him ; and at the castle, under his influ- ence, the disorder so ra§ed for a while, that a language constructed chiefly of puns was invented, and called the Castilian. The new lord lieutenant, Lord Pembroke, occupied wortliily the viceregal seat. He had served the highest * "Squire Tom lived not f«r awny from his brother at Finglas. " I won- der," Swift adds, "she could be so ■wicked as to let the first word she could speak, after choking, be a pun. 1 differ from }0'.i ; and believe the pun was just coming up, but met with the crumbs, and, so .itiuggling for the wall, could neither of them get b_v, and at last came both out together." — To Tisdall, 3d February, 1703-'4. § I.] LIFE IN LARACOK AND DUBLIN. 205 offices at home, was first plenipotentiary at the peace of 1706-1708. Kyswick, and, concurrently with his present appointment, •''^^~^'' still held that of president of the council in England. But he was more than all this. He was a man of independent conduct and capable of a great generosity ; had been dis- placed from the lieutenancy of Wiltshire for fidelity and spirit in the Monmouth rebellion ; in the strife of parties since, had been so temperate as to win consideration from all; and, under any other than the prevailing system, might have left his mark on Ireland. He took with him George Dodington as secretary, whom Swift characterized secretary as not disposed to give threepence to save from the gal- ° lows all the established clergy in both kingdoms; but in this there was strong coloring from his own church views. The utmost reproach against Pembroke himself was that his mind too readily took impress from stronger minds, and that there was a want of fixity in his opinions ; but of the many who veered, as he did, between tory and whig, there were few so little overruled by factious or unworthy motive, l^ot born to the earldom, he had received the ad- vantage of a younger brother's education, and was a man of books* and travel ; had brought from Italy the noble antique sculptures that are still the pride of Wilton ; and justly was it set down by Swift as " a very great mark An earPs of honor and distinction " conf eiTed upon an Englishman, ufc'tion.^"' when, during Anne's last ministry, Pembroke was elected into the French Academy. A yet greater honor had nev- ertheless been his, when, soon after the Revolution, Locke inscribed to him his Treatise on the Ilumam, Understamd- i/uj, in gratitude for kind offices in evil times. Swift and he had taken mightily to each other. Attending to pay his respects. Doctor Delany relates, the Yicar of Laracor found the viceroy listening to a lecture from a learned physician on the qualities of bees, which in every other sentence he called a commonwealth or a nation. " Yes," * When Swift first went to visit I some curious books." — Journal, 5th Pembroke in England, "it was to see I March, 1712-3. 206 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 170G-1708 Mr. 39-41 Why puns are despieed: interposed Swift, " no doubt, and very ancient. Moses numbers the Hivites among the nations Joshua was ap- ptin to Lord pointed to conquer." Pembroke was delighted, and pun- Pembroke. ^j^^^ became his great enjoyment after that day. It was Swift's remark later that he first hit Lord Pem- broke with a pun ; and the blow hit wider than the laugh it raised. Nor was it, at the worst, a missile with any harm in it. The pun is not a high kind of humor, be- cause it is a thing that can be made by almost any body ; and of course, on the viceroy's taste becoming known, every body about him took to the manufacture. But the best things in even this kind of wit remain, notwithstand- ing, the property of only the best intellects ; and there is also a sort of them so execrably bad, so far above ordinary intellects in the extent and degree of atrocity, as to claim and popular, rank On that very ground. These, and indeed the art or habit generally when taken up by superior men, are among those condescensions of the great which will always be at- tractive ; and low as the intellectual achievement is, a pun is mostly tolerated, and very rarely fails to amuse. Best and worst have contended for the palm of laughter, and Swift was unapproached in both.* In the two extremes of witty meaning and extravagant absurdity the best that have been preserved are his. "A fellow hard by pretends to cure agues, and has set out a sign, and spells it egoes. How does that fellow pretend to cure agues? said a gen- tleman observing it with me. I did not know, I said ; but I was sure it was not by a spell." An admirable pun. " I will tell you," he says in another letter, " a good thing I said to my Lord Carteret. So, says he, ' My Lord (blank) came up to me and asked me,' etc. ' No,' said I, ' my Lord (blank) never did, nor ever can come up to you.' We all Puns by Swift. * So was Charles Lamb ; a man of most delicate genius, who had also Swift's habit of saying, without a thought of irreverence, the most start- ling things. I once heard him ex- press a wish that his last breath might be drawn through a pipe and exhaled in a pun. He had then given up tobacco, but would go where smokers were, to enjoy " Its by-places And Ihe subnrba of its };rnces, And in its borders lake delight, An unconquer'd Canaauite.'' §1.] LIFE IN LARACOR AND DUBLIN. 2or pun here sometimes." Then follows an atrocity by Prior : 1706 -1708. JEiT 39-41 " Lord Carteret set down Prior the other day in his char '- '- 25th Dec. iot, and Prior thanked him for his charioty. That was mo-, ut fit for Dilly. I do not remember to have heard one good itki-iZ' one from the ministry, which is really a shame." A su- per-eminently good one by himself belongs to the days when Carteret was viceroy. At one of the Castle enter- tainments, a lady, whisking about her mantle, swept down with a crash a Cremona fiddle ; and Swift, who was by, re- peated Virgil's line — • Delany's Ob- servatious, 213. " Mantua, vod miseras niniium vicina Crenionx."* Such specimens of the Castilian language as I now add to these will not be thought so good ; but as they have not been printed, and are all that remains iu this form of so peculiar a speech, they will be worth preserving. I found them in Swift's handwriting, entitled by him Dia- logues in Castilian, among the manusci'ipts at the seat of Sir Andrew Fouutaine.f The reader is to imagine Lord Pembroke at the Castle, and around him the three mem- bers of the Ashe family, the Bishop, Tom, and Dilly ; two doctors, named Howard and Molyneux ; Sir Andrew Pount- aine, and Swift. Loed Lieut. " Doctor Swift, you know Gemelli says" — Tom Ashe (interrupting quick). " Jem- mie Lee,:j; my lord. Jemmy Lee, I know him very well, a Dublin Cas- tle dialogae. * The reader must be waraed against the many alleged productions of Swift iu this form of wit, with which he had nothing whatever to do, and of which not a few have fonnd theii- way into his collected writings by the carelessness of his editors. Any thing in the shape of a pun or an indecency it was long the fashion to father on him, without the least regard to either truth or probability. Almost the only genuine piece con- nected with this subject is his God'3 Revenge against Punning, in which lie sliows the miserable fates of per- sons addicted to the crying sin. One may be quoted for sample of the rest : "George Simmons, shoe-maker, at Turnstile, in Holborn, was so given to this custom, and did it with so much success, that his neighbors gave out he was a wit. Which report com- ing among his creditors nobody would trust him, so that he is now a bank- rupt, and his family in a miserable condition." t For other examples of Castilian, in letters, also found at Narford, see post, 248, 275. t Jemmy Leigh and Tom Leigh were friends who played cards with Mrs. Johnson, and visited Swift in 208 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFl'. [Book IV. "Castilian'' from Nar- ford MSS. 170G-1708. very honest gentleman." Dk. Howard. " My lord, there —^ '- is a great dispute in town, whether this parliament will be dissolved by your excellency, or only prorogued." Loed Lieut. " Doctor Swift, I did not see you at the society last meeting." De. IIowaed. " My lord, your excellency, I hope, is pleased with their proceedings this session." Loed Lieut. " Doctor Swift, won't you take another cup of coffee T An amusing hint is thus given of the degree of attention his excellency was disposed to bestow upon that most surprising of all constituted things, an Irish par- liament of those days. The subject is resumed in Castil- ian. Tom AsiiE. " Pray, Doctor Howard, wliich is the way to dissolve a parliament ? Should it be done in vine- gar or aquafortis f ' But a more pertinent question is put by his brother : Bishop of Clogiiee. " My lord, has your excellency considered whence comes the common saying among us of tag, rag, and bobtail 'T Loed Lieut. " No ; but now on the sudden I should think it were a descrip- tion of the three ways that beggars order their dress. Tag — that is, when their rents are sewn, tackt, or pinn'd to- gether. Rag — that is, Avhen they hang down in tatters. Bobtail — that is, when the rags are torn ofE, and daggle in the dirt." Sie Andeew Fountains. " Pozzitively 'tis so, my lord bishop." Bisiior of Cloghee. " Be assured it is, Sir Andrew. But pray, my lord, whence comes the way of calling a man fellow, when we have a mind to abuse him as base fellow, pitiful fellow. I believe it may be a cor- ruption of the French wordjilou." Loed Lieut. " It may be so, my lord, or it migjit be from the word fcio, which signifies all sorts of rogues, and was formerly more used in common speech than now. However, your lordship's may be the truer one." Bishop of Cloghee. " Oh, my lord, your excellency's is much more natural." Tag, rag. DnWin Cas- tle dialogue. London during his fumous time tliere. " Tell Jemmy Leigh that his boy that robbed him now nppeni-s about the town." 5th March, 1711-'i2. "I saw Tom Leigh in town once, 9th Oct., 1712." See also Journal, 23d Dec, 1712; 9th Jan., 1712-'13, etc., etc. And pailiciilnily IGth March, 1711-12 ; 30th Dec, 1712 ; and 20th Jan., 1712-'13. Tom was not popu- lar with Swift. § I.] . LIFE IN LARACOR AND DUBLIN. 209 and bobtail, fellow and rogue, are the associations brought 1706-1708. up by mention of the Irish parliament. ~ I—' Meanwhile Doctor Molyneux has launched into a learn- "Casuiian" ed argument against Doctor Swift's continued acceptance for^Mss' of the cups of coffee handed to him, for which he suggests a more wholesome preparation. De. Molyneux. "My lord, I do not think coffee so proper to help those who are troubled with a lacochymia, or dyspepsia, as the concha of testaceary fishes pulverized. I mean not only those to which nature has denied motion, but all that move in ar- matura articulata, and are crustaceous, as the Astacus major and minor. Which latter I take to be the crayfish, and both are indeed but a species of the Cancer marinus. In all which the chelae or acetabula, that is, the extremity of the forceps (improperly called crab's eyes), reduced to powder, Paracelsus recommends as a noble alkali." De. How- AED. "Chalk or powdered egg-shells are full as good." Tom Ashe. "Doctor, what do you think of powdered beef ?" De. Howaed. " Mr. Ashe, if I had an engine to shut your mouth, I should ' value it more than that we make use of to stretch open the mouths of our patients." Sir Andeew Fottntaine. " The doctor says that, I suppose, by way of os-tentation." De. Howaed. " Well but, os— a — why OS, ay, oh, oysters ! As for oysters, my lord, Pliny seems to prefer those of Brundusium ; Martial thinks the best come from the Lacus Lucrinus; and the British oysters were much celebrated by others. ' I find, in short, my lord, that the ancients differ very much, and are divided in their opinions about oysters." Loed Lieut. "Sir Andrew, do not some authors call that an ostra- DnWinCns- schism ?" De. Howaed. " Oysters, why, a — yes, I think ^ '" °°"'^' our best oysters come from Colchester; my Lord Piv- ers, as I take it, has for one of his titles Lord Colches- ter. He is not Earl of Pivers : he is only Earl Pivers. His name is Savage ; the seat of the family is called Pock Savage in Cheshire, as Sir William Dugdale takes notice. 'Tis a noble family, my lord, a very noble family." Dilly Ashe. " Pray, my lord, what town in England is that Vol. L— 14 210 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1706-1708. ^T. 39-41. Punning at its lowest. The ladies' clttb. Swift to Walls (MS.) 22d Jan., 1707-'08. where the people may afford to keep the best fires, and the lord is best able to put them out." Sie Andrew Fount- AiNE. " 'Tis Newcastle, I suppose ; because there are the most coals ; and the Duke ,of Newcastle is very rich, and rich folks can do any thing, and so they can put out fires." DiLLY Ashe. " No, 'tis Cole-chester, and the lord is Lord Elvers." Db. Molyneux. "Ay, but, Mr. Ashe, there are no coals at Colchester, you should have named a place famous for coals kut iS,oxnv." Tom Ashe. "Pray, doc- tor, when a cat takes a came what does she design to do with it?" DiLLY Ashe. ""Well — a — But if puss were tied to a post, how would she be useful in a library ?" De. Molyneux. "Why, to scratch those that came to steal the books." Dilly Ashe. " What, and be tied to a post ; no, no, she would be useful as a cat-a-log." Bishop OF Cloghee (whispering Doctor Swift). " There's anoth- er Catherine, to make up my set. Mrs. Catherine Logg, Kattylog." But more than enough of what we may hardly call exquisite fooling.* The bishop's whisper to Swift takes us back to the club of Walls and Stoyte, of which Mrs. Cathe- rine was a member ; and an mipublished letter of Swift's to Walls, a few months later, not only brings back the bishop's pun, but will fitly finish the sketch of the punning circle, by again showing Swift at his best and worst in that form of f acetiousness. " I have received your three letters, though 1 have not had the manners to answer any of them sooner. By manners we here mean leisure, but you Irish folks must have filings explained to you I am glad the punning trade goes on. Sir Andrew Fount- aine has been at his country-house this fortnight Pray, is your Dorothy, as you call her, any kin to Doctor Thindollf (you know h is no letter). . . . She should have * One or two specimens of Castilian will be found also in the printed works among letters addressed to Lord Pem- broke. One of them contains "The Dying Speech of Tom Ashe," which Mr. Deane Swift, who first published, it, says was given by Sir Andrew Founf.iine to Doctor Mon.sey, from whom he received it. — Miscell. (176.5), ii., 389. t Swift was at this time writing his Notes on Tindal. §1.] LIFE IN LAKACOR AND DUBLIN. 211 Lord Berke- ley's. eall'd it Mrs. Catherine Logg, not Katty Log : that leaves 1706-1708. nothing to guess Tell her a pun of mine. I saw a f el- -^ — ~^ low about a week ago hawking in the Court of Requests ciub. with a parrot upon his fist to sell. Yesterday I met him again, and said to him, ' How now, friend, I see that pan-ot sticks upon your hand still V* — When you had done with the Dean's books, I believe you were very glad of your liber-ty. Your cat-alogue puts me in mind of another pun I made t'other day. A gentleman was mightily afraid of a cat: I told him it was a sign he was pus-illanimous. And, Lady Berkeley talking to her cat, my lord said she PunniDg at was very impertinent; but I defended her, and said I thought her ladyship spoke very much to the poor-pus. — - Do you call Dorothy's puns a spurious race because they turn your stomach ? If you do not like them, let the race be to the Swift, and I am content to father them all, as you direct me. — Tell her I thought she had been a New- man,f but I find she is the old woman still I give no service to her because I write this to you both.";]: Anoth- er unpublished letter of some months' later date winds up with humble service to his " punning spouse. The Dean of St. Patrick's repeats strange ones after her and the oth- er ladies. They wash their hands of it, but how clean I can not tell. Let them look to that." Some view of Esther Johnson among these friends will complete, for the present, the Irish scenes. How she fared among them in Swift's absence, and what her general ways of life and recreation were, will tell us also, with more or less vividness, his ordinary relations to her, and what re- mains to be said of his manner of existence in Ireland during the years I am describing, when troubles spared Swift to Walls, lT07-'8. Esther Johuson. * The probable doubt and puzzle- ment of the pan'ot-seller may hereafter pair oft" with the effect of Swift's fa- mous question when he met a country- man carrying a hare, and struck him dumb with inability to reply by ask- ing him, "Is that your own hare or a wig ?" t Mrs. Walls's maiden name was Newman. t From the original penes me. "London, 22d of January, 1707-8. For the Reverend Mr. Walls at his house in Cavan Street, Dublin, Ire- land." 212 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 170C-1708. ^T. 39-41. Jonrnal ■written for her. Swift by nat- ure clieerful. 30th Jane, ITll. Esther'shab- its and ways. liim, and his grave employments left him leisure. The authority will be his own. It will be that wonderful Journal already often quoted, that unrivaled picture of the time, in which he set down day by day the incidents of three momentous years; which received every hope, fear, or fancy in its undress as it rose to him ; which was written for one person's private pleasure, and has had in- destructible attractiveness for every one since ; which has no parallel in literature for the historic importance of the men and the events that move along its pages, or the home- ly vividness of the language that describes them ; and of which the loves and hates, the joys and griefs, the expec- tations and disappointments, the great and little in closest neighborhood, the alternating tenderness and bitterness, and, above all, the sense and nonsense in marvelous mixt- ure and profusion, remain -a perfect microcosm of human life. Charles Fox had a theory that Swift must have been a good-natured man, for an ill-natured one never could have written so much designed absurdity as he did ; but no one would have made this a question who was well acquainted with his private life. What is over and over again remarked by himself was undoubtedly true, that he had a spirit naturally clieerful, and that spleen was a dis- ease he was not born to. What shall be our first picture ? " Go to bed and sleep, siiTahs, that you may a-ise to-morrow, and walk to Donny- brook, and lose your money with Stoyte and the Dean ; do so, dear little rogues, and drink Pdfr's health. 0, pray, do not you drink Pdfr's healtl# sometimes with your Deans, and your Stoytes, and your Walls, and your Manleys, and your everybodies, pray now ? I drink MD's to myself a hundred thousand times." A little later in the same let- ter come additional touches. " So, go to your Dean's, and roast his oranges, and lose your money ; do so, you saucy slut. Ppt, you lost three shillings and f ourjaence the other night at Stoyte's, yes, you did, and Pdfr stood in a comer, and saw you all the while, and then stole away." When he is not watching from a corner, he may himself be tak- § I.] LIFE IN LAEACOR AND DUBLIN. 213 ing part in the game. "An insipid sort of day ; I hope 1706-1708. MD had a better with the Dean, the Bishop, or Mrs. Walls. "Why, the reason you lost four and eightpence last night ing. but one at Mauley's was because you played bad games. I took notice of six that you had ten to one against you. "Would any but a mad lady go out twice upon manilio, basto, and two small diamonds ? Then, in that game of spades, you blundered when you had ten ace. I never Badpiay: saw the like of you. And now you are in a huff because j^^q, '' " "' I tell you this. Well, here is two and eightpence half- penny toward your loss." Or follow, on another occasion, when they have gone with Walls to the Dean's, and he has warned her not to play small games when she is los- ing. " You will be ruined by manilio, basto, the queen, and two small trmnps in red. I confess it is a good hand Mistakes at against the player ; but then there are spadilio, punto, the king, strong trumps against you, which, with one trump more, are three tricks ten ace. For, suppose you play your manilio — " And what does her friend and duenna do all the time ? "Poor Dingley fretted to see Ppt lose that four and elevenpence t'other night." Dingley is always at hand for a background to set off the picture. " How does Ppt look, Madam Dingley ? Pretty well ? a handsome young Duenna woman still ? Will she pass in a crowd ? Will she make °'"siey. a figure in a country church?" Answering, sympathiz- ing, helping, Dingley is the resource in difficulties. " Can Dingley play at ombre yet? Enough to hode the cards "fiode-for while Ppt steps into next room ?" If Ppt can not write, she dictates to Dingley ; if too ill to read, Dingley reads to her ; for " she is a naughty healthy girl, and may drudge for both." They are gone to Wexford together to drink the waters, and poor Ppt is fretting at the place, the com- pany, the diversions, the victuals, the wants, the vexations ; but the active Dingley is sending all over the town for a House cares. little parsley to a boiled chicken, " and it is not to be had, the butter is stark naught, except an old Englishwoman's, and it is such a favor to get a pound from her noAV and 214 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1706-1708. JEt. 39-41. Winter moi'uiug Sanday mormug. Bvery-day pictures. A Novem- ber walk. then." Or suppose them at dinner at home, with their loin of mutton and half a pint of wine, and the mutton underdone, and " poor Ppt can not eat, poor dear rogue ;" well, then, " Dingley is so vexed : but we'll dine at Stoyte's to-morrow." Or take Mrs. Johnson earlier than at dinner or cards. On a winter morning with a visitor, for example. " Starv- ing, starving, uth, uth, uth, uth, uth. Don't you remem- ber I used to come into your chamber and turn Ppt out of her chair, and rake up the fire on a cold morning, and cry uth, uth, uth." Or suppose it to be a Sunday morning. " Ppt will be peeping out of lier room at Mrs. de Caudre's " (lier lodgings) " down upon the folks as they come from church. And there comes Mrs. Proby, and that's my lady Southwell, and there's my lady Betty Pochfort."* Or yet earlier on a week day. " Ppt is just now showing a white leg, and putting it into the slipper. ' Present my service to her, and tell her I am engaged to the Dean, and desire she will come too ; or, Dingley, can't you write a note V That is Ppt's morning dialogue, no, morning speech I mean. Morrow, sirrahs, and let me rise as well as you ; but I promise you "Walls can't dine with the Dean to-day, for she is to be at Mrs. Proby's just after dinner, and to go with Gracy Spencer to the shops to buy a yard of mus- lin, and a silver lace for an under-petticoat." A couple of days before this we are shown her walking in Dublin streets ; it having come into his head to remind her, in the same letter, that from the very time she first went to Ire- land he had been always p^'ing her to walh and read. " I wish Ppt walked half as much as Pdfr. If I was with you, I'd make you walk ; I would walk behind or before you, and you should have masks on, and be tucked up like any thing. And Ppt is naturally a stout walker, and car- ries herself firm ; methinks I see her strut, and step clever * Journal, of the 22d January and 25th March, 1711. Explanation will liereafter be given of the Ppts, MD's, and Pdfrs, which appear in Swift's note-books as early as 1702, and were afterward used in his journals. See post, book vi. (Appendix), § ii. §1.] LIFE IN LARACOR AND DUBLIN. 215 A ride in Jaiie. over a kennel. And Dingley would do well enough if her 170G-1708. petticoats were pinned up ; but she is so embroiled and so — '—^ — ^ fearful ; and Ppt scolds, and Dingley stumbles, and is so daggled. Have you got the whalebone petticoats among The hoop, you yet ? I hate them. A woman here may hide a mod- erate gallant under them. Pshaw ! what's all this I'm say- ing ? Methinks I am talking to Ppt face to face."* Is he not audibly talking still, and do not we see again, viv- idly as himself, what had passed before his eyes so often ? There is a ride in June, too, as fresh as the November walk, and claiming a place beside it. She had told him at the time that she was riding every day, and it interrupted her writing somewhat ; on which his comment is that if she " rid " every day for a twelvemonth she would be still better and better. " O Lord, how hasty we are ! Ppt can't stay writing and writing ; she must write and go a cock- horse, pray, now. Well, but the horses are not come to Going out. the door ; the fellow can't find the bridle ; your stirrup is broken ; where did you put the whips, Dingley ? Marg'et,f where have you laid Mrs. Johnson's riband to tie about her? 'Reach me my mask.' 'Sup up this before you go.' So, so, a gallop, a gallop. ' Sit fast, siiTah, and don't ride hard upon the stones.' Well, now Ppt is gone, tell me, Dingley, is she a good girl ? and what news is that you are to tell me?" She gives him all the news,. and in due time Esther returns. " O, Madam Ppt, welcome home ! coming Was it pleasant riding ? did your horse stumble ? how often °™^' did the man light to settle your stirrup ? ride nine miles ! 'faith you have galloped indeed !". . . "Ah, that riding to Laracor gives me short sighs as well as you. All the days I have passed here have been dirt to those.":}: More than once had he told her that his journeys to Laracor did him more good than aU the ministries for twenty years. Not that he was unhappy among his great friends, but that * Journal of 12th, 4tli, .ind 10th of November, 1711. t Mrs. Marg'et (Margaret) was Mrs. Johnson's maid. t Joui-nal, 30th of June, 1711 ; and same of tlie 15th of November, 1711. 216 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. Common interests and ways. China and books. 1706-1708. things were tasteless to him for not being where he would — ^ '- be. No such cooler of making court as the want of health ; and in England he had not the opportunities he had in Ireland of preserving his health by riding, which now she so wisely did. Thus are his own ways shown by hers, and iDustrations borrowed from his journal serve for both. When he lays injunction on her that she is to get some- body to come and play shuttlecock if she can not walk or ride, he tells her he hopes soon himself to join her in the game. He rebukes her for being too fond of china ; but admits that he once took a fancy of resolving to go mad for it himself, and confesses to an itching of his lingers at a book-stall just as hers do in a china-shop. When he wishes her a happy new year on the 25th of March, the then statutory beginning of the year, he tells her that now she must leave oif cards and put out her lire, it being his intention, on the 1st of April, cold or not cold, to put out his. The same letter that he hopes will find her peacea- bly in Pdfr's lodging, or riding little Johnson at Trim, in- timates his own resolve to turn her out at Christmas, when he shall either have done his business, or found it not to be done. Having occasion to remind her that he had passed his last Michaelmas at Laracor, with this is coupled an express intention to eat his next Michaelmas goose in his goose's lodgings. When he wishes her to have a mer- ry Lent, she may infer that he does not mean himself to pass a gloomy one ; for he adds that he hates different diets, and f urmity and butter, and herb porridge, and sour, devout faces of people who oj^ly put on religion for seven weeks. When he tells her that he had made a " good " pun to the lord keeper* which Prior swore was the worst he had ever heard, he adds the characteristic admission that he said he thought so too, but at the same time thought it was most like one of Ppt's that ever he heard. He re- lates to her his practice, at the most luxurious tables, of Keeping Lent. Pnnning. *■ This was his remark on seeing spread between Lord Harcourt and Prior 11 doily napkin fringed at each end, that he was glad to see there was such a fringeship between them.— Journal, 21st April, 1711. §1.] LIFE IN LAEACOR AND DUBLIN. 217 1706-1708. Mt. 39-41. "Necessary woman." Preparing for Wexford. hardly ever eating above one thing, and the plainest ordi- nary meat, because he loves it best and believes it whole- somest ; but it is to contrast- such simplicity with her love for rarities. " Yes, you do love them ; and I vs^ish you had all that I ever see where I go."* To his information that the caps Dingley made for him are wearing out and he does not know how to get others, is appended a confes- sion of how strangely he wants what he calls a necessary woman, and how he finds himself " as helpless as an ele- phant." Upon her announcement to him that she and Dingley are going to Wexford, he jokes Dingley about the carking, caring, and scolding with which she'll set about the preparation for it ; laughs at Ppt for the " mill- ions of businesses " she will have to do before she goes ; and, with his own character running over at every word, makes whimsical pretense of his entire ignorance as to aR such places in Ireland, which they are to enlighten by writing a book of their travels. " Pray walk while you are there. I have a notion there is never a good walk in Ireland. Do you find all places without trees? Pray what to do observe the inhabitants about Wexford: they are old English : see what they have particular in their manner; names, and language. Magpies have been always there, and nowhere else in Ireland, till of late years. They say the cocks and dogs go to sleep at noon, and so do the peo- ple. Write your t/ra/oels." " Don't fall and hurt your- selves, nor overturn the coach. Love one another and be •good girls ; and drink Pdfr's health in water. Madam Ppt, and in good ale. Madam Dingley."f ■ The usual touching tenderness winds up that letter,:]: there. * Later he reminds her how, during foiiner days in Ireland, "Ppt used to maunder" when he came from a great dinner, and Dingley had provided for her that day " but a bit of mutton. I can not," he adds, "endure above one dish, nor ever could since I was a boy and loved stuffing." — Journal, 12th March, 1712-13. t Journal, 9th July, 1711 ; and the same of 26th June, 1711. t "Farewell, my dearest lives and delights, I love you better than ever, if possible, as hope saved. I do, and ever will. God Almighty bless you ever, and make us happy together; I pray for this every day ; and I hope God will hear my poor hearty prayers." 218 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1706-1708. iET. 39-41. Three wishes. and there is one expression at the very end which should perhaps be singled out. He declares that he is, as long as Ppt and DD are, well ; and he sums up all they want in three short rhymes — little wealth, much health, and a life l)y stealth. They were to live in their own way, and the world was not to share their confidences. 1707-1709. M-v. 40-42. Pembroke's recall. Swift fit Leicester. II. WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 1707-1709. ^T. 40-43. LoED Pembroke was recalled to England (leaving the primate and chancellor* as lords justices until he should return) in November, 1707. He had been lord admiral in the last years of William's reign, and the queen thought he might protect her husband, his successor in that office, and now sinking under a mortal disease, from the onslaught against the naval administration in which Somers and Wharton had lately joined with a section of the tories, and which led to the complete ascendency of the whigs at the close of the following year. Swift and Sir Andrew Fountaine left Dublin with the lord lieutenant, but they separated on landing ; Pembroke and Fountaine going to Wilton, and Swift to Leicester on a visit to his mother. From Leicester, on the 6th of December, he wrote to the Archbishop of Dublin ; and the letter, in many ways char- acteristic and here first priiij^ed,f shows strongly with what political leanings he was about to take his departure for London. * Freeman was now lord chan- cellor. t This end other very interesting letters from Swift to the archbishop, now first made public, were discover- ed by the Eev. Mr. Eeeves (Vicar of Lusk, Connty Dublin), in the recoid- room of the see of Armagh ; and, by permission of the primate(obtained for me by my dear old friend. Sir James Emerson Tennent, through the then member for Belfast, Mr. Dunbar), careful copies were most kindly taken for me by Mr. Reeves — now, alas ! fifteen years ago. § II.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 219 After stating his intention to join Lord Pembroke and 1707-1709. Sir Andrew in London as soon as the latter should give him notice of their arrival, he speaks of Leicester : " I came Aibp. Kmg round by Derby to this town (where I am now upon a short ^^^''^ visit to my mother), and I confess to your grace that, after an absence of less than foiir years, all things appear new to me. The buildings, the improvements, the dress and countenance of the people, put a new spirit into one, et tacit^ circum praecordia ludit. This long war has here occasioned no fall of lands, nor much poverty among any sort of people ; only some complain of a little slowness in tenants to pay their rents, more than formerly. There is An election a universal love of the present government, and few ani- (.ou„ty. mosities except upon elections, of which I just arrived to see one in this town upon a vacancy by the death of a knight of the shire. They have been polling these three days, and the number of thousands pretty equal on both sides ; the parties, as usual. High and Low ; and there is not a chamber-maid, prentice, or school-boy in this whole town but what is warmly engaged on one side or t'other. I write this to amuse your grace, and relieve a dull letter of business." The " business " is what had lately passed between him Business of and his correspondent in regard to the chances of obtain- ing for the Irish clergy the same remission of first-fruits and tenths that had been conceded to the Enghsh. "I confess I was always of opinion that it required a solicitor of my level, after your grace had done your part in it ; and if my endeavors to do service will be thought worth employing, I dare answer for every thing but my own ability. When your grace thinks fit to send me the papers, I would humbly desire your opinion, whether, if occasion should require, I may not with my lord lieutenant's appro- bation engage the good offices of any great person I may have credit with, and particularly my Lord Somers, and the Earl of Sunderland,* because the former by his great * Sunderland, the Duke of Marlborougli's son-in-law, was now secretary of state. 220 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. With Fount Aiue in Leicester Fielde. "07-1709. influence, and the other by his employment and alliance, — '- 1 may be very instrumental. I would not have mentioned this at such a distance if I had not forgot it when your grace discoursed this matter with me last." In a post- script he says he shall be at Sir Andrew Fountaine's house in Leicester Fields before the archbishop's reply, there di- rected, could reach him.* Believing both the war and the whigs to be popular, having still reason to think he had influence with the most powerful of that party in and out of office, Sunderland and Somers, and unchanged in his opinions against further meddling with the church. Swift found himself in London in the middle of December, and acknowledged on the 1st of January the archbishop's reply. The Houses were then up for the recess, but he had ascertained the probability of some attempt at compromise in regard to the naval mis- carriages ; the Duke of Marlborough, whose brother. Ad- miral Churchill, was of course deeply invoh'ed, having " made lately a speech with warmth unusual to him, and with very great effect. The admii-alty is certainly to con- tinue in the same hand, nor do I yet hear of any change in the privy council." But what he adds is in decisive sympathy with the line taken by Somers in opposition, whose ground of most effective attack upon the ineffi- ciency of the sea-service had been even less the dishonor Party agita- tions. Swift and the arclibish- op (MS.). * These sentences may also be worth giving : " Others would make excuses for taking up so much of your grace's time to read their impertinence. Wit I shall offer none, I, who know that no man's time is worse taken up than your grace's : which I am sorry to say of so great a person, and for whom upon all other accounts I have so high a veneration. The world may contradict me if tliey please. But when I see your palace crowded all day to the very gates with suitors, solicitors, petitioners, who come for protection,- advice, . and charity, and when your time of sleep is misspent in perpetual projects for the good of the church and kingdom, how suc- cessful soever they have been, I c:\n not forbear crying out with Horace, 'Perditur hasc inter misero lux.' No doubt, the public would give me little thaViks for telling your grace of your faults, by which it receives so much benefit. But it need not fear : for I know you are incorrigible, and there- fore I intend it purely as a reproach, and your grace has no remedy but to take it as it is meant. And so, in per- fect pity to that very little remnant of time which is left in your own disposal, I humbly kiss your grace's hands." § ir.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 221 to English arms than the iniury and loss to English com- 1707-1709. ^T 40-42 meree. " The sea commanders seem mightily pleased as at , Whig and a great point gained, and speak hardly of the merchants, toi-y attacks who are yet louder against them ; and those gentlemen mlVaity! " who go into the city return with melancholy accounts from thence. I shall enter into the merits of either cause no further than by telling your grace a story which per- haps you may have already heard. After the Scots had sent their colony to Darien, it was proposed here what methods should be taken to discourage that project with- out coming to any avowed or open opposition. The opin- ion of several merchants was required to that purpose. Among the rest, Ilaistwell advised to send over to them unpopniai-i- the lords of the admiralty; and if that would not ruin lords." '"^ them, nothing could ! Such a liberty of speech people are apt to take when they are angry." Other indications ap- pear also in the letter of its having probably been written after personal communication with Som^rs, but there is no avoidance of other matters in which their opinions widely diverged. Swift had led the opposition in the Dublin convocation iiish aiscon- to a revival, in the last sittings of the Irish parliament, of Test Act. agitation for repeal of the Test Act; and though Lord Pembroke's government, acting on direction from Lord Sunderland, had thrown out a hint of some such measure, a majority of four to one in the debate that ensued dis- couraged the introduction of any bill. But Swift has now to tell the archbishop, in connection with the business of the first-fruits (as to which he still waited to receive prom- ised formal instructions, and appears already to have felt the intermediate order referring him at all stages to Lord Pembroke as a bar to his chances of success), that he had heard it whispered by some who were " fonder of political refinements" than himself, that "a new difiiculty may arise in this matter ; that it must perhaps be purchased by a compliance with what was undertaken and endeavored in L-eland last sessions ; which I confess I can not bring myself yet to believe, nor do I care to think or reason 222 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. JEt. 40-42. Profltlng by nil expei'i- euce. Swift oil the Irish clergy. " Merit of trifling." upon it." This was undoubtedly tlie ground subsequent- ly taken both by Godolphin and Somers, to the former of whom was attributed, with what truth will shortly appear, the saying that as nothing had been gained from the En- glish clergy " after" the concession, it might be well to get something from the Irish clergy "before" any like conces- sion to them ; but Swift, though with a powerful motive at the moment for not placing himself in a direct antago- nism to Somers, declined to entertain it. He follows up some remark of the archbishop's on the difficulty that at- tended every effort to help the clergy with a somewhat notable comment of his own : " I should be surprised at what your grace tells me of the clergy if I were not sensi- ble how extremely difficult it is to deal with any body of men who seldom understand their true interest, or are able to distinguish their enemies from their friends. Your grace's observation is so great a truth, that there is hardly a clergyman in Ireland whose revenue is not reckoned in the world at least double what he finds it, besides the ac- cidents to which the remainder is subject. For my own part, I hope to live to see your grace very ill used ; that is, in other words, I wish this affair may succeed, and then you will be sure to be rewarded with a good conscience and detraction."* Other personal allusions were in the same vein of cor- diality. The archbishop had taxed his correspondent Avith injustice in denying him all talent for trifling. "I ob- serve your grace's artifice," says Swift, with pleasant con- fession of his own weakness that way, " to bespeak my good opinion by pretending to the merit of Trifling ; but I, who am a strict examiner and a very good judge, shall not be so ready to allow your pretensions : without some better title than I ever yet knew or heard you were able to set up. And, if this trifling yon boast of were strictly inquired into, it would amount to little more than talking * A personnl nllusion not now ex- plainable Iiirks under what follows : "And then likewise .those Woodcocks may have a better reason for hiding their lieads. They may liida them for shame." § II.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 223 with a friend an hour in a week, or riding to Clontarf on 1707-1709. a fair day. "Would Socrates allow this, who at fourscore — - - was caught whistling and dancing by himself ; or Augus- tnfiers.^ tus, who used to play at hucklebone with a parcel of boys ? Your grace must give me better proof before I shall ad- mit your plea." Hardly less interesting in a personal sense are the opening and closing words of the letter. In the former Swift relates the incident of treasonable cor- respondence discovered in Harley's office, which, though Harley was cleared of complicity, loosened the last hold for their places that he and St. John possessed ; and in the other he mentions the great storm of 1703. "The The great storm your grace mentions did not reach England ; and I 170™ " remember about the same time four years ago I came just to have my share of a much greater in this town, when Ireland received no damage. I am glad your grace says nothing of any people killed or hurt." By the storm that Swift shAred, whole fleets were cast away and cities deso- lated ; high and low were swept down alike ; and a bishop and his wife were buried under the ruins of their episco- pal palace. But we are not all " alone " either unhappy or happy. The success of a simile suggested by that aw- ful tempest was Addison's first step upward in his life of fortune. While yet writing his letter to the archbishop, Swift might have thought that at last his own foot was on the ladder. A vacancy had fallen in the see of Waterf ord ; Lord Somers, though not now a minister, but indeed rath- er strongly opposing the court, had promised to do what he could to recommend his claim for it ; and, probably through Lord Sunderland or other influence from the Somers party in the government (though Swift had as yet seen only the ex-minister), his pretensions had been placed swin named strongly before the queen and Archbishop Tenison. But Hc^Jra!!'''^ the cup, to appearance so near his lip, was promptly dashed i™'-'8- away, and in the middle of January he knew that Doctor Thomas Milles, a person veiy distasteful to him, was the new bishop. Walls had written to him from Dublin at 224 THE LITE OF JONATHAN SWIET. [Book IV. 1707-1709. ^T. 40-42. His ncconnt to Walls (MS.). The man who got it. Swift to the archbishop. Proof of what was only sur- mised. the occuiTence of the vacancy, and on the 22d Swift re- plied : " I thank you heartily for the care, and kindness, and good intentions of your intelligence, and I once had a glimpse that things would have gone otherwise. But now I must retire to my morals, and pretend to be wholly with- out ambition, and to resign with patience. You know by this time who is the happy nian ; a very worthy person, and I doubt not but the whole kingdom will be pleased with the choice. He will prove an ornament to the or- der, and a public blessing to the church and nation. And after this if you will not allow me to be a good courtier, I will pretend to it no more. But let us talk no further on this subject. I am stomach-sick of it al- ready."* He goes back to it, nevertheless, with an allu- sion pointing at Lord Pembroke's great present influence with the queen, and that this, if set in motion through their common friend, might have given the affair another turn: "Sir Andrew Fountaine has been at hi^ country house this fortnight. And he has neither influence nor eifluence from thence to London, else perhaps things would not have gone as they did." The quiet bitterness that closes the letter may be forgiven him : " Pray send me an account of some smaller vacancy than a bishoprick in the government's gift." To Archbishop King, a fortnight later, he wrote with a dignified reserve: "Your gi-ace knows long before this that Dr. Milles is Bishop of Wa- terford. The court and Archbishop of Canterbury were strongly engagedf for another person not much suspected in Ireland ; any more thaji the choice already made was, as I believe, either here or there." Hitherto, it has been mat- ter of guess-work only that such a disappointment had so early befallen Swift, and that, five years before the hopes which the tories had raised so much higher were also dashed to the ground, he had been so near promotion by the whigs ; but here the fact is established in place of mere sunnise, * A portion of this letter, descrip- tive of the punning at Lord Berkeley's, has been printed ante, 210. t In other words, interceded with, or pressed. §n.] WAITING AND WORIvING IN LONDON. 225 and a passage in a letter of a year's later date fixes the 1707-I70n. part taken by Lord Somers, to whose friend and then fel- ~ — l-^' low-minister, Lord Halifax, it is recalled by Swift.* The minister had written to him shortly before to assure him of continued efforts in his behalf,'!' and Swift replied by asking him to use his credit, that, " as my Lord Somers thought of me last year for the bishopric of "Waterford, so my lord president may now think of me for that of Cork, if the incumbent dies of the fever he is now under." The strength of Swift's case was to himself the misery of it also. The leader of the whigs who thought of him for a bishopric was at the time out of office, and especially hate- ful to the qtieen ; but when she had been so far won back to him as to admit that he at least had never deceived her, Dartmoath's and the same leader, with all the extreme whig party, had net. obtained for a time uncontrolled power, there is no evi- dence of a renewal to Swift of any tiling but promises. Through every disappointment he was still to have cour- age, till, as Halifax told him, his " worth would be placed in that light where it ought to shine." He was not to be raised too high by encouragement, or sunk too low by de- nial. He was to be left as he was found, " a man of hopes, a man of levees ;":[: the doubt was to remain whether the * This is one of tn-o interesting let- ters, dated respectively tlie 13tli of June and 13th of November, 1709, from Swift to Lord Halifax, existing among the MSS. of the British Mu- seum ; of which careful copies were taken for me several years ago by my friend Mr, John Kemble, then engaged on his volume of Hanover state-papers ; and which subsequently were printed fnot very correctly, and the first with the erroneous date of the ]3th of January) in Mr. Cun- ningham's edition'of Johnson's Lives nf the Poets. f Lord Halifax to Swift, London, flth October, 1709; also among the MSS. of the British Museum. YoL. I.— 15 X This expression is from one of his letters to Ambrose Philips not in the printed correspondence (some of the later, penes me, will now first be printed), which seem to me the per- fection, the decus et delicice, of easy, natural, unstudied letter -writing; where eveiy sentence, simple as it ap- pears, has some point of humor, or one of those unexpected turns of good- natured raillery that are the delight of witty conversation. Ambrose had been extremely impatient at not get- ting some piece of preferment, and, says Swift to him, "Your saying that you know nothing of your affair more than when you left us puts me in mind of a passage in Don Quixote, Letters to Philips. 226 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. lord president would renew wliat Lord Somers had set — '- — on foot ; and his own description was to lose nothing of its applicability. England." "i»i suspense I was all this year in 22d Jan., 1707-'S. "At Cran- fi>rd from 22d to 27th.' Probable origin of two famous tracts. It is nevertheless the date of not a few of the best of his minor writings, some account of which may delay for a while what remains of this part of his story. On the day he wrote to Walls of his punning with the Berkeleys, his note-books mention his having gone with that family to Cranford for five days;* and there will be nothing strained in supposing such kind of talk to have ensued with these old friends, upon the recent disappointment, and some suspected charge of irreverence or iniidelity in connection with it, as determined liim to write his Argu- ment to prove the Inconvenience of Abolishing Christian- ity, and his Project for the Advancement of Religion and the Reformation of Manners. They were published anon- ymously, but the authorship was not concealed from any to whom it concerned the writer to be known ; and in his published con-espondence there is a brief note of Lord Berkeley's, hitherto misdated,* in which, pressing Swift to come as much as possible to Cranford, he earnestly en- treats him, if he has not done it already, not to fail of hav- ing his book-seller "enable the Archbishop of York to where Sancho, npon his master's first adventure, comes and asks him for the island he had promised, and which he must certainly have won in tlKt terrible combat. To which the knight replied in these memorable words : ' Look ye, Sancho, all adventures are not adventures of islands, but many of them of dry blows, and hunger, and hard lodging; however, take courage, for one day or other, all of a sudden, before you know where you are, an island will fall into my hands as fit for you as a ring for the finger.' In the mean time your ad- ventures are likely to pass with less danger and with less hunger, so that you need less patience to stay till mid- wife Time will please to deliver this commission from the womb of Fate.'' Swift had great experience in apply- ing to himself those lessons of patience which he here recommends to Am- brose. * The date put to it is "Cranford, Friday night, 1705," an error for 1708. I found the original among the British Museum MSS. addressed " For Dr. Swift at his lodgings in the Haymarket," and indorsed by him- self " Old E. of Berkeley about 170G-'7." § 11.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 227 give a book to the queen,"* being entirely of opinion that 1707-1709. her reading of the Project for the increase of morality and ^' ~ " piety might be of very great use to that end. Swift on the iuconveD- ienceofabol- . . Hope to Assummg hmueuce it to be possible that the end might thereby be secured, t''^ "i"'^^''' morality and piety increased, religion advaneed, and man- ners reformed, the author, to whom indirectly such effects were attributable, could hardly continue to be kept out in the cold even by queens and archbishops. Both tracts are indeed admirable ; and, unwise or vis- ionary now as are many suggestions in the second, both inspire unhesitating; confidence in the absolute sincerity i^ingciii-is- r a J tiauity. of the writer. Irony does not always so recommend it- self ; but its effect in the Argument, is quite as impressive as the plain speaking in the Project, both having also that indefinable subtlety of style which conveys, not the writ- er's knowledge of the subject only, but his power and su- periority over it. The Argument begins by admitting that the general humor and disposition of the world ap- pear to be for abolishing Christianity, and by nevertheless declaring that even if the attorney-general were to come down upon him with an ex officio, he must still confess that he does not yet see the absolute necessity of extirpa- ting the Christian religion. But in the second paragraph a possible misapprehension is cleai'ed away. He is not Eeiiiti.iiomi- going to be so weak as to stand up in the defe;ise of real "" '^ '°'""' Christianity, such as used, in primitive times, to have pos- itive influence on men's actions as well as their beliefs. That, indeed, would be a wild project ; and he begged ev- ery candid reader to understand his argument, therefore, as no more than a defense of nominal Christianity ; the other having been, by general consent, for some time whol- ly laid aside, as quite inconsistent with existing schemes of wealth and power. The ground thus cleared, he sets forth * Scott puts a quite ivrong color on this by remavking of tlie tract tliat "it was very favorably received by the public, and appears to have been laid before Queen Anne by the Arch- bishop of York, the very prelate who had denounced to her private ear the author of the Tale of a Tub as a divine unworthy of church prefer- ment.'' 228 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. the many inconveniences tliat would attend the abolition, ^ ' and one or two of these may be given as examples of the the incou- rest. He allows, for instance, that it does seem a most ri- (iboiishing diculous custom f or a set of men to be suffered, much less Chnstiiiuity. laired, to bawl one day in seven against the lawfulness of such modes of pursuing greatness, riches, and pleasure, as are the constant practice of all men alive on the other six ; but he points out that more than half the pleasure of en- joyment to most people consists in the thing enjoyed be- ing a thing forbidden. He is not blind to the advantage of turning out of their pulpits as many as ten thousand parsons, and making them useful in the fleet and armies, because he sees that so great a number of able (bodied) divines would be a recrait worth having ; but might there not be some disadvantage in thus leaving tracts of coun- try "like what we call parishes" without a solitary soul in them able to read and write ? With some reason it had been urged that the revenues of those ten thousand par- sons would suffice to maintain, as ornaments to the court and town, at least a couple of hundred young gentlemen of wit, pleasure, and freethinking, enemies to priestcraft, narrow principles, pedantry, and prejudices ; but, after the present refined way of living, was it not to be feared that, upon even all the incomes of the clergy, not half the num- ber of young gentlemen could be accommodated ? A good deal was expected from making the churches themselves of more use by turning them into theatres and the like, but he would fain know how it could be pretended that they were already misappjjed? "Where were more ap- pointments of gallantry? Where more care to appear with greater advantage of dress? Where more meetings for business ? Where more bargains driven of all sorts 'i And where so many conveniences or incitements to sleep ? But supposing the churches to go, and the parsons, and that Christianity itself were got out entirely of the way, had it been considered what would become of the free- thinkers, the strong reasoners, the men of profound learn- ing? How would they ever be able to shine or distin- Clmrcbes v, theatres. § II.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 229. guish themselves on any other subject ? Who would ever 1707-1709. have suspected A for a wit, or B for a philosopher, or C ^' for a sage, but for their invectives and raillery against re- againTt " ligion ? For who on earth could have any doubt that a chrlSanfty. hundred such pens employed in her service would imme- diately have sunk into silence and oblivion? Nor is the exposition of unavoidable inconvenience more clear than the warning against expected good effects ; one quite cer- tain conviction at which he arrives being, that to abolish Christianity will be the very readiest way to bring in Popery. Eeserving to the last the greatly prized and hoped-for advantages to trade, he offers ground, on the other hand, for "very much" apprehending that, in six months after the passing of the act for the extirpation of the Gospel, Bank and East India stock, instead of rising, might fall at least one per cent. ; " and since that is fifty times more than ever the wisdom of our age thought fit to venture for the preservation of Christianity, there is no reason we should be at so great a loss merely for the sake of destroying it." The reader would be a very superficial person whom this light banter did not move to some con- sideration of the grave purpose underneath it, weighting the writer's wit with a message of the last importance, that it would, on the whole, be best for you, not only to retain, but to try and improve, your Christianity. K^ot inferior in design or spirit is \he Project for the project for Achiancement of Religion and the Reformation of Maiv- reiIgi'on''a"nd ners, which, though it proposed some remedies not very practicable, for those evils of the time of which it gives a striking picture, suggests others that have not long been effected, and some that still remain to be done. This was the treatise which Steele said every man in the town had Steele's read and none had disapproved; and the whole air of °p^°^™° ' which, as to its language, sentiments, and reasonings, gave the impression of being written by one who had seen the world enough to undervalue it with good-breeding, whose virtue sat easy about him, and to whom vice was thorough- ly contemptible. Some one had remarked of it in his com- reforming manners. 230 THE LIl-'E OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. Mt. 40-42. Swift's proj- ect for ad- vancing re- ligion and reforming manners. Unpunish- ed crimes against so- ciety. pany (Addison, there is little doubt) that the author wrote much like a gentleman, and went to heaven with a very good mien. Its principal suggestion, that religion and morality should be made a necessary condition to all appointments, and that the continued practice of both should be insured by reports of inspectors making annual circuits of the kingdom, may be dismissed with Swift's own remark upon it that " this might increase hypocrisy among us, and I readily believe it would ;" to which his only opposing set- off that " it is often with religion as it is with love, which by much dissembling at last grows real," must be rejected as inadequate. But his accompanying observation is still full of wise meaning, that characters of marked and noto- rious impiety in high life ought not to receive the counte- nance ordinarily extended to them ; that care should be taken as far as possible to exclude such from the magis- tracy; and that some check should be found for the in- difference with which, in the common callings of life, the practice of fraud was too much regarded. " The vintner who, by mixing poison with his wines, destroys more lives than any one disease in the bill of mortality ; the lawyer, who persuades you to a purchase which he knows is mort- gaged for more than the worth ; the banker who takes your fortune to dispose of when he has resolved to break the following day ; do surely deserve the gallows much better than the wretch who is carried thither for stealing a horse." In like manner he singles out the " fraud and cozenage of trading men anc^hop-keepers ;" adverts again and again to that insatiable gulf of injustice and oppres- sion, the law ;" condemns the " corrupt management of men in office," and the " detestable abuses " of parliament- ary elections ; denounces the open traffic for civil and mil- itary employments " without the least regard to merit or qualification ;" and, in defense of the general suggestions and reasoning of his project, offers the pregnant remark that of nine offices in ten that are ill executed, the defect is not in capacity or understanding, but in common lion- § II.] "WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 231 esty. As a correction to the immoralities of the stage, he 1707-1709. proposes a censorship to be exercised by " men of wit, — ' ~ learning, and virtue ;" whereby the theatre might become house and " a very innocent and useful diversion, instead of being a ^ufaijue'e. scandal and reproach." He ventures to say, even, that among other public regulations " it would be very conven- ient to prevent the excess of drinking ;" and he called at- tention to a scurvy custom, the parent of the former vice, which had grown up among "the lads" at the universi- ties, of taking tobacco in excess. In addition to his pub- lic-house bill, Swift has even his permissive bill, for, be- sides that, " all taverns and ale-houses should be obliged to dismiss their company by twelve at night," and that wom- en should be altogether excluded from them, he would have, upon the severest penalties, only a proportioned quantity served to every company, so that the drunken or disorderly should not have more drink : but it is needless to add that he had small success with either suggestion. "What is said of his own calling is full of character ; the Advice to purport of it being that the clergy, instead of using all '^^^''sy™^"- honest arts to make themselves acceptable to the laity, shut themselves up in special clubs and coffee-houses, con- sorted only with their own class, accepted the level at which they were put, nor ever cared to rise above it by appearing in all companies as other gentlemen, and taking that agreeable part in the conversation of the world for which a learned education gave them great advantage, if they would but improve and apply it. "Is'o man values the best medicine if administered by a physician whose person he hates or despises." The same reasoning led him to doubt if the gown and cassock should be held on all occasions indispensable, and if the clergy should be "the only set of men among us who constantly wear a distinct habit from others. In my opinion," Swift con- tinues, " it were infinitely better if all the clergy, except the bishops, were permitted to appear like other men of the graver sort, unless at those seasons when they are do- ing the business of their function." His final recommen- 232 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. iEi. 40-42. Swift's proj- ect for ad- vancing re- ligion and reforming manners. Spiritual destitutioti. Inscription to Lady- Berkeley. Meditation on a Broom- stick. dation was, that churcL. accommodation should be provided in a somewhat fairer proportion to the numbers of the people ; regarding the want of it as a shame to the coun- try and a scandal to Christianity. In many large towns of the kingdom, and particularly in London, so prodigious had been the increase of houses and inhabitants, and so little care taken for the building of churches, he pointed out that there were five parts in six of the people with no means of attending divine service; and there were cases of a single minister, with one or two sorry curates, liaving the care "sometimes of above twenty thousand souls." As he penned this passage. Swift must have had strange thoughts of his own Irish congregation of half a score ; nor was the subject overlooked by him in his days of pow- er. Fifty new churches were built in London during the last ministry of Anne. The Project was inscribed to Lady Berkeley in -nliat Scott justly calls an elegant yet manly and independent style of eulogy, which simply desires the good opinion of a person of her " piety, truth, good sense, and good nature, affability, and charity," and has nothing in it more high- flown than a mention of her "two incomparable daugh- ters." She had no quality more agreeable to Swift than her liking for lively talk; while her very enjoyment of this, on the other hand, and of his occasional jesting even at her own expense, led her to airs of gravity about the books she might be reading, which made it easy to im- pose on her in that respect with any thing sufliciently sol- emn and decorous. He would sometimes read aloud to her ; and she would ask him to select, not trivial things, but a thoroughly good book like the Honorable Mr. Boyle's Meditations, which accordingly he would do ; until one day, quite tired of its commonplaces, he substituted for one of its pages a meditation of his own, taking a broom- stick for his subject, and, reading it out to her with steady gravity, obtained for it her highest commendation. He traced the stick from its flourishing state in the forest, through a gradation of diversities of fortune so resem- §11.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 233 1707-1700. ^T. 40-42. bling Imman accidents, that at last lie exclaims, " Surely Man is a Broomstick !" lie shows him strong and lusty, wearing on his head the branches proper to a reasoning vegetable, until the axe of intemperance lops them off, whereupon he flies to art, valuing himself on an unnatural bundle of hairs covered with powder that never grew on him, and drawing down on himself contempt and ridicule for his vanity. " Partial judges that we are of our own excellence and other men's defaults !" The Broomstick had a great run among the wits, though Swift more than once refused to assist in its circulation. " Though you won't send me your Broomstick," wrote Anthony Hen- ley, " I'll send you as good a reflection on death as even Adrian's himseK, though the fellow was but an old farmer of mine that made it."* Henley was a man of fortune, son of Sir ,!Robert, at Heniey of whose house of the Grange in Hampshire, famous also in our own day for hospitable association with letters and the wits, the wits in those old days used to meet. Indeed, he had himself some rank with the fraternity. He wrote humorous papers for Steele, stood. by the whigs iti extremis, and received from Garth the dedication of the Dispensary. " I han't the honor to know Colonel Hunter," he wrote to Swift from the Grange in the autumn of this year, " but I never saw his name in so good company as you have put him in, Lord Halifax, Mr; Addison, Mr. Congreve, and the Gazetteer." Hunter, for whom Swift had a special re- gard, deserved this company. He was among the most scholarly and entertaining of his correspondents ; some of Swift's own best letters Avere written to this friend; and the Grange. Colonel Hunter. * Swift afterward used it in his Thoughts on Various Subjects, Moral and Diverting. The old farmer, dying of asthma, replied to the inquiries of those about him, " Well, if I could but get tills same breath out of my body, I'd take care, by , how I let it come in again !" This, Henley adds, "if it were put in iine Latin, I fancy would make as good a sermo as any The old dy- I have met with." Steele put it into "'£ farmer, the Tatler, but did not improve it by making the poor man's disorder "a. colic." Nor has Scott, with the other editors of Swift, improved Henley's remark by printing "sound" instead of "sermo." 234 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. Swift to Hunter. ^0''-i™f- the judgment lie had formed of him may be taken from — '■ '- the fact that, when all the world Avere giving to himself the authorsliip of Shaftesbury's (anonymously printed) Zette?- on Enthusiasm,^' Swift believed Hunter to have written it. When Addison introduced them, Hunter was designed for, and had accepted, the governorship of "Vir- ginia under Lord Orkney; but ultimately that of New York and New Jersey was substituted for it, and he went out later to Jamaica as captain -general. "Sometimes," wrote Swift to him at the close of 1708, " Mr. Addison and I steal to a pint of bad wine, and wish for no third person but you ; who, if you were with us, would never be satisfied without three more." Perhaps the so-desired three might be Halifax, Congreve, and Steele. Certainly they were never oftener together than in the spring and summer of this year. Swift's note-book con- tains entries of dinners to or with them all, and of fre- quent coaches to the houses of Halifax in New Palace Yard or at Hampton Court. "We trace them dining at the " George," with Addison for host, at the " Fountain " with Steele, and at the " St. James's," where "Wortley Montagu entertains. Nor did they fail to see each oth- er frequently even in sach intervals of their not coming together as are mentioned by Swift to Ambrose Philips. " The triumvirate of Addison, Steele, and me, come to- gether as seldom as the sun, moon, and earth ; but I often Social gullieriiigs. * See Correspondence, 12th Janua- ly, 1708-'9. In a letter to Ambrose Philips, not in the Correspondence, bin now before me in liis MS., he says (14th September, 1708): "Here has been an Essay of JSnthiisiasm lately published, that has run mightily, and is very well writ. All my friends will have me to be the author, sed ego non credulus illis. By the free whiggish thinking I should rather take it to be yours ; but mine it is not, for though I am every day writing my specula- tions in my chamber, they are quite of another sort. " To give the Essay to Ambrose was only for a laugh at his ultra whiggery ; and to this, noti- l^cing the fact of his being still left out in the cold, Swift has another allu- sion: "Lady Betty Germaine is npon all occasions stirring up Lord Dorset to show you some mark of his favflr, which I hope may one day be of good effect, or he is good for nothing For my part, I think your best course is to try whether the Bishop of Dur- ham will give you a niece and a golden prebend, unless you are so high a whig that your principles, like your mistress, are at Geneva." §n.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 235 see eacli of them, and each of them me and each other." 1707-1709. Mt. 40^2. Just before March,* Swift had launched his joke against ATr BiclcBr— the astrological -almanac -makers; and all the town was staff's pie- now laughing over the relation of the accomplishment of ij^g""*' the first of Mr. Bickerstaff's predictions. These almanac- makers were then a wicked nuisance, as they have even been in days of so-called greater intelligence, and the pres- ent chief offender was John Partridge, bred originally a Astrologer cobbler. Author of various astrological treatises, and ed- itor of the yearly Merlinus Liberatus, he, with the rest of the villainous tribe, had come to exercise despotic sway over the vulgar in high as well as low life, not alone in matters of weather or seasons of blood-letting and physick- ing, but in all kinds of knavish devices to swindle money out of the hopes or fears of besotted ignorance. Writing in the character of a genuine astrologer as opposed to such charlatans in the divine science, and giving himself a name which his eye had caught over the sign of a lock-smith's shop,f Mr. Isaac Bickerstaff professed it to be his aim to Jote rescue a noble art from the illiterate impostors who set up to be artists, and who delivered from no greater a height than their own brains what they pretended to have come from the planets. With exquisite gravity he contrasted their ludicrous methods of observation and prediction, so loose as equally to suit any age or country or individuals in the world, with his own careful and precise procedure ; wherein the month and the day of the month were set down, the individuals named, and the great actions or events of tlie forthcoming months particularly related as they * "It was toward the conclusion of the year 1707, when an impudent pamphlet crept into the world en- titled Predictions, etc., by Isaac Bickerstaff," says " John Partridge," in the pamphlet called Squire Bicker- staff Detected ; but "Jolm Partridge" here meant William Congreve and Thomas Yalden, who made that con- tribution to carry on Swift's jest, of whicli it was an essential part to pre- tend that the Predictions had come out nearly at the same time witli the other almanacs for 1708. t A real Irish name, as it after- ward turned out, and borne m Gold- smith's time by a facile playwright who had a very wretched end. — See my Life of Goldsmith, ii., 136. 236 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFr. [Book IV. 1707-1709. ^T. 40-42. Seriousness of Swift's liiugli. Prophecies of Isaac. Deatli of Partridge predicted. were sure to come to pass. He went on to apologize for not being able to offer more than a specimen of what he intended for the future, having employed most part of the previous two years in adjusting and correcting the calcula- tions he had made for some years past ; but, by way of chal- lenging something of confidence for his results, he brought forward the testimony of private friends to establish* that in the preceding year he had predicted, in every article ex- cept one or two extremely minute, the miscarriage at Tou- lon and the loss of Admiral Shovel, and had foretold to the vei-y day and hour, with the loss on both sides and the con- sequences thereof, the Battle of Almanza. His present predictions, which were only a sample, he had forborne to publish until he could make himself master of the several almanacs for 1708 ; and having found them to be in the usual strain, he entreated the candid reader only to make comparison of himself and them. His own prophecies he had begun after the 25th of March, when the sun was en- tering into Aries, taking that to be properly the beginning of the natural year ; and for the present he had not gone farther in his calculations than that busy period when he was entering Libra, the 25th of September. He was rath- er ashamed of ushering in the more grave part of his un- dertaking -^ith an announcement of singularly small mo- ment ; but, as it came earliest in date, he could not help it. " My first prediction is but a trifle, yet I will mention it, to show how ignorant those sottish pretenders to astrology are in their o^\ti concerns. It relates to Partridge, the al- manac-maker. I have consulted the star of his nativity by my own rules, and find he will infallibly die upon the 29th of Mai'ch next, about eleven at night, of a raging fever. Therefore I advise him to consider of it, and settle his af- fairs in time." After which came, promptly on the dawn of the 30th, " a letter to a person of honor " from a writer who, having been employed in the revenue, had come to * "That is, I gave them papers senled up to open at such a time, after whicli they Mere at liberty to read them ; and there they found my predictions." § II.] WAITING AXD WORKING IN LONDON. 237 know something of Partridge, and who related the accom- 1707-1709. plishment, on the very night of the 29th, of the first of Mr. — - — ~"- Bickerstaff's predictions; detailing all the circumstances die's "ccmd- with irresistibly truthful particularity, but showing that '''='^" Mr. BickerstaflE had been mistaken in his calculation al- most four hours. "In the other circumstances he was exact enough. But whether he has been the cause of this poor man's death, as well as the predicter, may be very reasonably disputed. However, it must be con- fessed the matter is odd enough, whether we should en- deavor to account for it by chance or the effect of imagi- nation." Wliat, of course, Swift calculated on was that Partridge himself should take u?p the matter gravely, and he was not disappointed. Putting forth an almanac for 1Y09, the indignant philomath informed his loving countrymen that Squire BickerstafE was a sham name assumed by a bntwuinot lying, impudent fellow, and that, blessed be God, John ^e^ Partridge was still living, and in health, and all were knaves who reported otherwise. To this Mr. Bickerstaff lost no time in retorting with a " Yindication " more di- verting than either of its precursors, rebuking Mr. Par- tridge's scurrility as very indecent from one gentleman to another for differing from him on a point merely spec- ulative. This point was, as he went on to explain, wheth- er or not Mr. Partridge was alive ; and with all brevity, perspicuity, and calmness, he proceeded to the discussion. First he pointed out that about a thousand gentlemen, liaving bought Mr. Partridge's almanac for the year mere- Swift letoits ly to find what he said against Mr. Bickerstaff, had been *" p'"^^^' seen and heard lifting up their eyes, and crying out, at every line they read, " they were sure no man alive ever writ such damned stuff as this !" But the proof that no man alive wrote it appeared in his own very language of denial, that " he is not only now alive, but was also alive upon that very 29th of March which it was foretold he should die on;" whereby his opinion was plainly an- nounced that a man may he alive now who was not alive 238 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. tbe fact. 1707-1709. twelve months ago. And here lay, in truth, the whole — '■ sophistry of his argument. "He dares not assert he was alive ever since that 29th of March, but that ' he is now alive, and was so on that day.'' I grant the latter ; for he did not die till night, as appears by the printed account of his death, in a letter to a lord ; and whether he be since Evidence of revived, I leave the world to judge." The close of the " Vindication " is a remonstrance with the writer of a letter to a lord for having taxed him with a mistake of nearly four hours in his calculations, whereas he shows the mis- take to have been under half an hour : and, for a final word, he remarks it as no objection against Mr. Partridge's death* that he should continue to write almanacs, this be- ing a common thing, and no one feeling any surprise at Gadby, Poor Eobin, Wing, and Dove continuing their lu- cubrations yearly, although notoriously all of them were dead even before the Revolution. The jest had by this time diffused itself into so wide a popularity that all the wits became eager to take part in it. Eowe, Steele, Addison, and Prior contributed to it in divers amusing ways ; and Congreve described, under Par- tridge's name, the distresses and reproaches Squire Bicker- staff had* exposed him to, insomuch that he could not leave his door without somebody twitting him for sneaking about without paying his funeral expenses.f The poor astrologer himself, meanwhile, was continually advertising that he was not dead ; and he actually wrote to the Irish postmaster Manley, as unconscious still of his real torment- or as that Manley was Swift's intimate fi-iend, to prevent the people of Ireland also from being imposed upon by a All the wits take part. The nstrolo- ger at bay. * To an elegy Swift gave the dig- nify of verse, and showed, with as de- lightful humor, with how much light derived from his original trade Par- tridge could illuminate his favorite sci- ence ; "... that slow-pac'd sign Bootes, As 'tis miscall'd, we know not who 'tis ; Bnt Partridge ended all disputes : He knew his trade, and call'd It boots." t Addison's friend, Yalden, was said to have written this paper, but tliere seems to be little doubt that Congreve was joint author, and contributed the best hits. Yalden succeeded Attev- bury in 1713 as minister of Bridewell, and was under arrest ten years later on suspicion of being concerned in the Atterbury plot. §11.] WAITING AND "WORKING IN LONDON. 239 Goocl-iiat- nred Steele. pack of rogues headed by a fellow under a sham name, iro7-i709. whose real name was Pettie, and who was always in a eel- - ^^ lar, a garret, or a jail. There was at the same time such accompaniment of real gravity as heightened the comedy by its contrast. The company of stationers applied for an injunction against the continued publication of almanacs by Partridge, as if he were dead in earnest ; and Sir Paul Methuen wrote to Swift that the Portuguese Inquisition had condemned to the flames Mr. Bickerstaff's predictions. Steele spoke afterward with no exaggeration when he gave Swift the merit of having rendered Mr. BickerstafE's name famous through all parts of Europe, and of having raised it, by his inimitable spirit and humor, to as high a pitch of reputation as it could possibly arrive at. Yet Steele had then done much to carry it even higher. He started the Taller* while the jest was going on : gave to its lucu- brations the name which had become a synonym for mirth- ful gravity ; and closed those charming papers, as he be- gan them, by giving all the praise he could to Swift. He characterized him as a gentleman well known to possess a genius quite unapproachable in its power of surrounding with pleasing ideas occasions altogether barren to the com- mon run of invention ; and, with all the generosity of his frank and sweet nature, confessed his personal obligations. " I must acknowledge also that at my first entering upon this work, a certain uncommon way of thinking, and a turn in conversation peculiar to that agreeable gentleman, swift's rendered his company very advantageous to one whose c„n"ersa- imagination was to be continually employed upon obvi- "°°- ous and common subjects, though at the same time obliged to treat of them in a new and unbeaten method." One * On Tuesday, the 12th of April, Steele published, as the first of the lucubrations of Isaac Bickerstaflf, Es- quire, the first number of the Taller, which he continued to issue, unintor- mittedly, every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, until Tuesday, the 2d of January, 1710-'ll, when he brought tlie Tatler to a close ; and on Thursday, the 1st of March, 1710-'ll, he published the first num- ber of the Spectator, which, with reg- ular help from Addison, was contin- ued daily, without a single intermis- sion througli 555 numbers, tip to the 6th of December, 1712. 2i0 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. Mt. 40-42. Personal appearance. Picture by Jen'ae. Pope (Spence'a Anecdotes). Hester Vau- homrigh (1714). Gnesses nt JulinsCffisar. of the secrets of Swift's extraordinary social charm was thus very happily expressed. He had another advantage of which a word may be said. The portrait of him now painted by Jervas confirms the general statement at the time, that his personal appearance was Tery attractive. Features regular yet striking, fore- head high and temples broad and massive, heavy-lidded blue eyes, to which his dark complexion and bushy black eyebrows gave unusual capacity for sternness as well as brilliance, a nose slightly aquiline, mouth resolute with full-closed lips, a handsome dimpled double chin, and over all the face the kind of pride not grown of supercilious- ness or scorn, but of an easy, confident, calm superiority. Of the dullness which Pope saw sometimes* overshadow the countenance of his friend, of the insolence wliicli Young declares was habitual to it, of the harsh, unrelent- ing severity which it assumes in Bindon's picture at the deanery, there is no trace at present. By one who loved him he was said to have a look of uncommon archness in eyes quite azure as the heavens; .and he was himself told by one who did not love him less, that he had a look so awful it struck the gazer dumb ; but only the first is in Jervas' s picture, the years that are to bring the last being still to come. To the date when it was painted belongs also the amusing illustration whicli Young gave to Spence of his figure and person. Mentioning that Ambrose Phil- ips was a neat dresser and very vain (Pope laughed at him for wearing red stockings), he says that in a company where Philips, Congreve, Swift; and others were, the talk turned on Julius Cassar, an(i " What sort of a person," said Ambrose, " did they suppose him to be ?" To which some one replying that the coins gave the impression of a small, thin - faced man, " Yes," rejoined Philips, proceeding to give an exact likeness of himself, " for my part I should take him to have been of a lean make, pale complexion, * This was his remark to Spence, at the same time when he said that JeiTas's portrait was "very lilte.'' §n.] WAITING AND WORKING IN L0N150N. 241 extremely neat in his dress, and five feet seven inches 1707-1709. high." Swift made no sign till " he had quite done," and ~^ ' - then with the utmost gravity said, "And I, Mr. Philips, should take him to liave been a plump man, just five feet eight inches and a half high,* not very neatly dressed, in a black gown with pudding sleeves." To that professional costume in social intercourse we Ante.m. have seen that he strongly objected, but it is not difficult to imagine its giving even increased relish to the charm of his talk. Wonderful in his influence over women, to enumerate thus early his female friends would be to name the principal whig and some tory toasts of the time. The Berkeley and Ormond daughters were all their lives in Beauties correspondence with him ; and with Lady Betty Germaine's "" '""^ ^' great friend, Mrs. Biddy Floyd, who could thaw a bitter frost by looking out on it with both her eyes ;■[ with Mrs. Finch, who became afterward Lady Winchilsea ; and with Mrs. (soon to be Lady) "Worsley, whose daughter was to marry Lord Carteret, poems:]: written in the present year * Spence reports "just five feet five inches," but, not to lose the whole point of the story, I venture to think his memory was at fault, and I have substituted Swift's real stature. t "'Tis a loss you are not here to partake of three weeks' frost, and eat gingerbread in a booth by a fire upon the Thames. Mrs. Floyd looked out with both her eyes, and we had one day's thaw : but she drew in her head, and it now freezes as hard as ever." — Swift to Hunter, 12tA Jan., 1708-'9. I The poem to Mrs. Worsley I print for the first time, having found it among Sir Andrew Fouutaine's MSS. in Swift's handwriting. Some ladies, among whom were Mrs. Worsley and Mrs. Finch (herself the writer of pieces that have had high praise, and to whom is addressed, under the name of Ardelia, his celebrated poem in which he calls himself, wliat he says she despises. Vol. L— 16 "A whig and one who wears a gown"), appear to have written verses to him from May Fair, ofifering him such temptations as that fashionable local- ity supplied to detain him from the country and its pleasures ; and thus he replies : 1. "In pity to the emptying town Some god May Fair invented, When Nature would invite us down, To lie by Art preventer!. 2. "What a corrupted taste is ours When milkmaids in mock state, Instead of garlands made of flow'rs, , Adorn their pails with plate ! 3. " So are the joys which Nature yields Inverted in May Fair, In painted cloth we look for field.«, And step in booths for air. 4. "Here a dog dancing on his hams. And puppets mov'd by wire, Original poem by Swift (MS.). 242 THE LIFE OP JONATHAN SWIFl'. [Book IV. Best public intelli- gencers. 1707-1709. attest his friendly familiarity. Those decided whigs, Lady " '- '- Stanley (wife of Sir John), Lady Lucy Stanhope, her daughter Moll, and her sister Armstrong, were his sworn admirers. " Mrs. Long and I are fallen out," he wrote during the year to Hunter : " I shall not trouble you with the cause, but don't you think her altogether in the wrong ? Mrs. Barton is still in my good graces The best intel- ligence I get of public ailairs is from ladies, for the min- isters never tell me any thing ; and Mr. Addison is nine times more secret to me than he is to any body else, be- cause I have the happiness to be thought his friend. The company at St. James's coffee-house is as bad as ever, but it is not quite so good. The beauties you left are all gone off this frost, and we have got a new set for spring, of which Mrs. Chetwynd and Mrs. Worsley are the princi- pal I am now with Mrs. Addison, with whom I have fifty times drunk your health since you left us." Mrs. (or as we should say Miss) Barton, niece of Sir Isaac Newton, with whom she lived, and the admired of Lord Halifax, who left her a fortune at his death, was one of the famous whig beauties, and a special favorite. But, for Mrs. Long, sister of Sir James Long, of Draycott, and a well-known toast at the Kit-kat, he had even a more particular liking. " She was the most beautiful person of the age she lived in," he says in one of his note-books which I possess : " of great honor and virtue, infinite sweetness and generosity of temper, and true good sense." Her first advance to his fi'iendship, and the despotic condescension with which all such advances were mirthfuJly received, appear in a whim- sical decree drawn up in his handwriting under date of the present year, which for another reason also is rather mem- orable in his story. " When I lived in England," he told Bishop Hoadly's daughter in later days, " once every year I issued out an Mrs. Bavlon and Mrs. Long. Whimsical decree : Do far exceed your frisking lambs Or song of feather'd quire. Si " Howo'er, such verse as yours, I grant, Wonia be but too inviting : Were fair Ardelia not my annt, Or were it Worsley's writing." Some playful allusion is in that last stanza, not now decipherable. §11.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 243 edict, commanding that all ladies of wit, sense, merit, and i707-t709. quality, who had an ambition to be acquainted with me — ^ ' should make the first advances at their peril." At pretty nearly the same date (1730) he told the Duchess of Queens- berry and Lady Suffolk that it had been "a known and established rule above twenty years in England that the first advances have been constantly made me by all ladies requiring who aspired to my acquaintance, and the greater the qual- mak?flrst ity, the greater were their advances." From the decree in '''ii'a°<=«s: the case of Mrs. Long,* however, it would seem that while humbly acknowledging the general right of Doctor Swift to such advances, she yet claimed exception for herself as a lady of the Toast ; and hence had arisen, to the female friend and her family at whose house the meeting was proposed, the necessity of resolving this delicate question, which, being referred to the eldest son, after weighty con- sideration had gone against Mrs. Long, who within two resisted by hours, without essoin or demur, had to make the advances '^^' °°^' required. The decree has the signature of Ginckel Yan- liomrigh, whose mother and eldest sister, " Mrs. Yanhom- righ and her fair daughtei-, Hessy," are by one of its clauses strictly forbidden " to aid, abet, comfort, or encourage her, the said Mrs. Long, in her disobedience for the future." Bartholomew Vanhomrigh, a Dublin merchant of Dutch The van- extraetion, to whom King William had given profitable employments in Ireland, had left his wife, at his death in 1703, the life - income of a fortune of nearly twenty thousand pounds, with which she and her two sons and two daughters came ultimately to England ; and she had been some time living in London in fashionable style, vis- ited by the best company, when, early in the present year. Sir Andrew Fountaine introduced Swift. At the time when Hester Yanhomrigh, a girl seventeen homrighs. * Thjs decree was first published at pp. 147-150 of a little volume (1719- '20) containing the Art of Punning and Letters found in the Cabinet of that celebrated Toast, Mrs. Anne Long, since her decease. It has an admirable engraving by Vertue from Jervas's portrait of Swift, bat not a line of his writing except the decree, though the "Punning" pages have been most improperly included in his collected works. 244: THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. 45t. 40-42. Esther Johnson in London. With Swift in Green- wicli Pailj. years of age, thus first saw Swift, Esther Johnson also was in London, on the last visit she ever made there ; but Swift had not named to her these new acquaintances. She was ignorant of them, and of their mode of life or the company they kept, when Swift mentioned them to her nearly three years later. She had come over witli Mrs. Dingley shortly after Swift left Dublin, and she went back at the end of April ; but in his present letters there are only two allusions to her. She had brought her little dog, whom he reports to Dean Sterne in April as very well, and liking London wonderfully, " but Greenwich bet- ter, where we could hardly keep him from hunting down the deer ;" and a few weeks earlier he had told Walls that "the ladies of St. Mary's are 'well, and talk of going to Ireland in the spring. But Mrs. Johnson can not make a pun, if she might have the weight of it in gold. They desired me to give you their service when I writ." tipsnnd downs of the war. The same letter shows that further observation had brought him doubts of the popularity of the war. "As for politics, I know little worth writing. The parliament this year is prodigiously slow.; and the preparations for war much slower. So that -we expect but a moderate campaign, and people begin to be heartily weary of the war." Three weeks after that was written, however, pol- itics again became exciting enough; and it took only about as many more months, and the victory of Oude- narde, to make the war as popular as ever. Swift's inter- est had been strongly re-a-npkened by the turn which the close of the previous campaign had given to some politic- al questions at home. The disaster of Almanza brought into sudden and unexpected prominence the recall of Lord Peterborough in the preceding year, and the whigs found it hard to justify their treatment of that eccentric but tri- umphant general. " It's a perfect jest," Swift had Vrit- ten in one of his letters to Archbishop King soon after his arrival, " to see my Lord Peterborough, reputed as great a whig as any in England, abhoiTed by his own party and §11.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 245 Peterbor- ough and the turies. caressed by the tories." Nor was the letter at any pains 1707-170». to conceal that opinions on all sides had been rather rough- "^' *''"*^- ly shaken. It was well, he said, that he did not himself feel disposed to make reflections on tlie facts he detailed ; for if he were, he could not tell what to make, so oddly were people subdivided. Seven days later he wrote again to tell of the dismissal of Harley, at the break-down of the 5th Feb., first Masham intrigue ; and of his having just heard from ^Aateiim' a friend of Mr. St. John that he also intended to " lay down ^^ ®°""- in a few days." This last letter otherwise was curious for its remark on Harley's scheme. The attempt to bring together the moderate men of both parties, he calls the " greatest piece of court - skill that has been acted these : many years;" and this immediately follows an observa- tion that " you sometimes see the extremes of whig and tory driving on the same thing." Entering on a part of Swift's life which was the turn- ing-point of his political career, which led to his approach- ing connection with Harley and St. John, and to which there has not been even an attempt by his biographers to do any kind of justice, I here interpose what his own opin- ions really were at this time. They are taken from a tract now written by him, entitled Sentiments of a Churchrof- sentiments England Mcmi with Eespect to Religion and Oovernment, of.En^iana"^ and they will best explain what remains to be given from ^'"'• the letter last quoted. Johnson says of the tract that it is written with great coolness, moderation, ease, and perspicuity ; and the pres- ence of such qualities when party heats were so intense may well be noted as a marked singularity. Pie had in- deed put f orwai'd this piece of writing to declare' the dan- ger of such heats to both sides.* He thought it just as foolish in the whigs to charge the tories with hankerings * Swift does not decry party, though he deprecates its heats and passions. It must always exist, as he well knew. Reading a history, or sitting at a play, wo can not help taking sides ; and no wonder we should do so in public affairs ''where the most inconsidera- ble have some real share, and, by the wonderful importance which every man is of to himself, a very great imaginary one." 246 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. ^T. 40-42. SentinientB of a Chiuch- of-Eugland Mau. Swift quali- fied as a moderator. Advice to Whigs. Warning to turles. . after .Rome and arbitrary power, as in the tories to charge the whigs with designs to bring in presbytery and a com- monwealth. Eoth might with profit have gathered from this what it was meant to convey. To such party antago- nism it was incident on either side that the greatest power should expose its possessors to the greatest danger, because of the temptation to use it ; and if the whigs had taken the advice now given, and let the church alone, they might have escaped the disasters of the five following years. Swift stated fairly his qualifications as a moderator : " I believe I am no bigot in religion, and I am sure I am none in government. I converse in full freedom with many considerable men of both parties; and if not in equal number, it is purely accidental and personal, as happening to be near the court, and to have made acquaintance there more under one ministry than another." What he had to say, then, as the friend to both, was, that the whigs should not think the Church of England so narrow as not to be able to fall in with any regular kind of government, and that the tories should not hamper them- selves with the belief that any one kind of government was more than another acceptable to God. He warned the whigs of what was meant by an Establishment in re- ligion : that, while sects should have full liberty of con- science, they should not have such political authority as might be used to overtlirow the church ; and that the gov- ernment which desired to retain their allegiance could not give them too much ease, or trust them with too little pow- er. On the other hand, he warned the tories of the in- expressible folly of permitting any section of their party to set up distinctions between kings de facto and de jure. Every limited monarch, he told them, every sovereign sub- mitting to conditions, was a king de jure; and he was the only king who could claim to be so entitled, because he governed by the only authority sufficient to abolish all pre- cedent right, namely, the consent of the whole.* In this * One of its many remarks of a I "They are a commonwealth founded shrewd ivisdom is this upon the Dntch : | on a sudden, by a desperate attempt §n.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 247 part of the tract, all the questions of right divine, non-re- 1707-170!). sistance, and passive obedience, are handled with admirable — — — I^-' good-sense, and it is clearly shovi^n that none more than the of aohurch- tories themselves were interested in frankly accepting the ^afi!'"''""' doctrine, that, where security of person and property for all is insured by laws which none but the whole can re- peal, the great ends of government are thereby obtained, whether administration be in the hands of one or of many. " It is a remark of Hobbes that the youth of England are corrupted in their principles of government by reading the authors of Greece and Rome, who writ under common- wealths. But it might have been more fairly offered for the honor of liberty, that, while the rest of the known world was overrun with the arbitrary government of sin- gle persons, arts and sciences took their rise and flourished only in those few small territories where the people were free." If the truth of the case, then, and the wisdom of it, lay as he thus stated, it was not matter of surprise to him that the extremes of whig and tory should, as he had written to Extremes - the archbishop, drive on the same thing. " I have heard," i^th vSi., he went on to say in that letter, " the chief whigs blamed ^™^"'*- by their own party for want of moderation ; and I know a whig lord in good employment who voted with the high- est tories against the court and ministry with whom he is nearly allied." In short, it is clear enough that Swift, whose earlier misgivings in the same direction have before been indicated, had a dread of the extreme whigs getting Ante, 144, too much of their own way; though if, amidst unsettled ^*^' and disturbed opinions, he was secretly working in any one's interest at the time, it was certainly in that of Somers, who next to Sunderland had been Harley's most unsparing enemy, and whom in this very letter he says he is " going in a desperate condition, not formed or digested into a regular system by mature thought and reason, but hud- dled up under the pressure of sudden exigencies ; calculated for no long duration ; and hitherto subsisting by accident, in the midst of contending powers who can not yet agree about sharing it among them." 2iS THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFl'. [Book IV. 1707-1703. JEt. 40-42. Swift with Soiners. Ti)King: April, ITOS (MS.). Whig tri- Dmph. this morning to visit." But Somers Lad his difficulties still. "Writing to the Archbishop of Dublin in the mid- dle of April to assure him of Lord Pembroke's intended return to his post, " which we certainly conclude will be toward the end of summer, there being not the least talk of his removal," Swift adds : " I was told in confidence three weeks ago that the chief whig lords resolved to ap- ply in a body to the queen, for my Lord Somers to be made president : but t'other day, upon trial, the ministry would not join, and the queen was resolute, and so it has mis- carried."* Success, nevertheless, was at hand. At the end of Oc- tober, when Marlborough had strengthened his colleagues by another great victory, came the event some time ex- pected; and to the appointments rendered necessary by Prince George's death the queen found herself powerless to ofEer further resistance. Somers was made president of the council ; the viceroyalty of Ireland was given to Lord Wharton, Pembroke being restored to the admiralty ;-|- Uupnblished Swift letters. Pembrolje'8 flrst pun. * Swift to Aibp. King, 15th April, 1708. From the same letter (MS.) these allusions may be taken: "I most humbly thank your grace for your favorable thoughts in my own particular; and I can not but observe that you conclude them with a com- pliment in such a turn as betrays more skill in that part of eloquence than you will please to own, and such as we whose necessities put us upon practicing it all our lives can never arrive to Sir A. Fountaine presents his humble duties to your grace, and will get you the Talmud if you please. He is gone this morn- ing to Oxford for three or four days. Your bill shall be made up when the Talmudis in it." tl found in Swift's h.andwriting, among the MSS. at Sir Andrew Fountaine's seat in Norfolk, the draft of an address in which " The Doc- tor," as Pembroke always called Swift, congratulates the earl in the Castilian, or punning, language, and in the names of himself, Sir Andrew Fountaine, the Bishop of Clogher and his brothers, Dean Sterne, Doctor Howard, and the rest of the punning circle, on his appointment to the ad- miralty. The "Arundel" allusions are explained by the ex-viceroy hav- ing just taken the Lady Arundel for his second wife. It is so characteris- l^c of Swift to show him thus amidst the grayer matters pressing upon him at the time, that I shall perhaps be par- doned for giving the dignity of print to these rather laborious and not very successful jokes. "The Address of the Doctor and the Gentlemen of Ire- land, Humbly Sheiveth, That since your lordship is new De.clct for the sea, your petitioners have been ex- cluded as ig -navi or cast-aways; whereof they can not fathom the cause. For your lordship is the Doc- §11.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 249 and Addison was made Irish secretary in place of Coding- ton. "A new world !" Swift called it, writing immediate- ly after to the archbishop. " On my return from Kent, the night of the prince's death, I staid a few days in town before I went to Epsom: I then visited a certain great man, and we entered very freely into discourse upon the present juncture. He assured me there was no doubt now of the scheme holding about the admiralty, the govern- 1707-1709. Mt. 40-43. A new world. tor's peculiar goveimor, since he that is admiral of the Jieet must be so of the Swift. Yoa were not used to look Stern upon your visitants, nor to lieep abaft while we were afore. Pray, my lord, have a car'-in-a new office not to disoblige your old friends. Eemember, h&fbre-castle puns, you never heard any in your life. We are content to be used as the second rate, as becomes men of our pitch. If Tom Ashe were here, he would never keep at land, but pump hard for a new sea -pun. I designed to have Mr. Keel-hawld to your lord- ship yesterday, but you saw no com- pany. Thus we are kept under hatches^ and can not compass our point. I have a Deal of stories to tell your lordship, and tho' you may have heard them before, I should be glad to Chat'em over again ; but I am now sick, tlio' I hope not near Grave's-end. But your lordship must give me leave to say that if we lose the sight of you in England as well as in Ireland, Fortune who is a Gray and not a Green-Witch, is much in our iJept-fort. But how can your friends of Ireland approach, while the seamen ^iincA us away, to get at you ? But, while yon canvas their affairs, can they not drink their can vas, to your health at home? and swallow Ph'lip at a sup? and when they see your lordship's Flag-on, toss up an- other of their own ? But your peti- tioners with humble submission can not see why you should be much pleased with your new office, consid- ering the mischiefs likely to happen under your administration. First, the seamen, in complaisance to my lady, will take a young Arundel into every ship, whom they begin to call by a diminutive name, A-rundelet. Then, upon your lordship's account, the merchant will turn gamester, and be ready to venture all upon any Main, without fearing a Cinque. Again, while your lordship is admiral, I doubt we shall lose all our sea-fear- ing Men, for, as you are likely to man- age it, every seaman that has any mer- it will soon be landed. What a con- fusion must this cause! and more still, when our boats must be all troubled with a Wherry-go-nimble, and our sliips new-trimmed must all dance Rigg-i Downs. We agree your lordship will certainly beat the French; but what honor is that? Alas, they are all Galli-Slaves al- ready. My lord : your petitioners beg one hour a week to attend, for which they shall ever pray ; That aft- er your lordship has- subdued the French and iSpaniard, and given us an honorable Peace, you may retire many years hence from tlie wet to the dry Downs; from the hoats-swains looking to their ship to the swains looking to their sheep, and, that my meaning may not be mistaken, from those Downs where Sails are hoist and rais'd to those of Sailsburg" (Wilton by Salisbury). Letter in Castilian on Pembroke's return to admiralty (MS.). 250 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. ^T. 40-42. Wish to be out of it. Would like to go as Bec- retary to Vieuua. Swifi'a party position. ment of Ireland, and presidency of the council, the dispo- sition whereof your grace knows as well as I ; and al- though I care not to mingle public affairs with the inter- est of so private a person as myself, yet, upon such a rev- olution, not knowing how far my friends may endeavor to engage me in the service of a new government, I would beg your grace to have favorable thoughts of me on such an occasion ; and to assure you that no prospect of making my fortune shall ever prevail on me to go against what becomes a man of conscience and truth, and an entire friend to the Established Church. This I say, in case such a thing should happen ; for my thoughts are turned an- other way, if the Earl of Berkeley's journey to Vienna holds, and the ministry will keep their promise of making me the queen's secretary, by which I shall be out of the way of parties, until it shall please God I have some place to retire to, a little above contempt : or, if all fail, until your grace and the Dean of St. Patrick's shall think fit to dispose of that poor town-living in my favor."* He closed by referring to the possibility of a peace : and this might certainly have been effected with many advantages that winter, if the opportunity had not been strangely missed. Swift's position at this critical time is thus clearly ex- plained. He did not think his own prospect improved by the fact of power without control having fallen to the whigs. He at once finds his ground to be unsafe. Al- Lettera to Walls (MS.). * In the letter to Walls (MS.)on the disappointment of the bishopric (ante,^ 224) he had put this postscript: "I wish you would desire Dr. Smith to speak to Dean Syng as from himself, to inquire whether Dr. Sterne designs really to give me the Parish that has the church, for I believe I told you that at parting he left me in doubt, by saying he would give me one of them. If he means that which has the church to build, I would not ac- cept it, nor come to Ireland to be de- ceived." So quietly was Swift then prepared to accommodate himself to his fortunes. A letter to the same friend (MS.), of the same date as that in the text to the archbishop, says : "If Mr. King dies, I have desired people to tell the archbishop that I will have the living ; for I like it, and ho told me I should have the first good one that fell ; and, you know. Great Men's promises never fail." Sterne's conduct in regard to the living here named was one of several grave charges afterward preferred by Swift against him. See letter of July, 1733. § ir.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 251 ready since the disappointment of the bishopric he had 1707-1709. turned his thoughts in anotlier direction, as to which, tliough he has " promises," as usual, he has yet nothing more certain ; and now, though tlie party to whom he had rendered special service is become stronger than ever, the very circumstance has brought with it a doubt if he can continue to be politically " engaged " for these whig friends without a sacrifice of opinions of vital moment to him. After a few days he wrote in the same vein to Dean Sterne, telling him that Lord Pembroke took all things mighty well, and they punned together as usual : but add- ing that the ex-viceroy either made the best use or the best appearance with his philosophy of any man he ever knew ; for it was " not believed he is pleased at heart on many accounts." His own position is taken up, with, if possible, greater explicitness, in a letter to "Walls of the Letter to same date, hitherto unprinted, and he is more than ever * ^ ' anxious that the promise of a secretaryship should be re- deemed. " My journey to Germany depends on accidents as well as upon the favor of the court. If they will make me queen's secretary when I am there, as they promise, I will go ; unless this new change we expect on the prince's death should alter my measures, for it is thought that most of those I have credit with will come into play. But yet, if they carry things too far, I shall go to Vienna, or even to Laracor, rather than fall in with them." A couple of months swept away this hope also, and his Ian- Failure of guage then to the archbishop is in many respects remark- project.""* able : " My Lord Berkeley begins to drop his thoughts of going to Vienna ; and indeed I freely gave my opinion against such a journey for one of his age and infirmities. And I shall hardly think of going secretary without him, although the emperor's ministers here think I will, and have writ to Vienna. I agree with your grace that such a design was a little too late at my years; but considering myself wholly useless in Ireland, and in a parish with an why swirt audience of half a score, and it being thought necessary retaryship!^' that the queen should have a secretary at that court, my 252 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. JEt. 40-42. Addison made Irish secretary. friends telling me it would not be difficult to compass it, I was a little tempted to pass some time abroad, until my friends would make me a little easier in my fortunes at home. Besides, I had hopes of being sent in time to some other court." One thing only in the new arrangements he dwelt upon with unalloyed pleasure, though it involved a contrast that might have given to it a not unpardonable touch of bitter- ness. " Mr. Addison," he told the archbishop, " goes over first secretary. He is a most excellent person ; and being my most intimate friend, I shall use all my credit to set him right in his notions of persons and things. I spoke to him with great plainness upon the subject of the Test ; and he says he is confident my Lord Wharton will not at- tempt it if he finds the bent of the nation against it. I will say nothing further of his character to your grace at present, because he has half persuaded me to have some thoughts of returning to Ireland." " Vous savez," he wrote to Hunter, "que Monsieur d' Addison, notre bon ami, est fait s(^crdtaire d'etat d'Irlande ; and unless you make haste over, and get me my Virginian bishopric,* he will persuade me to go with him, for the Vienna project is off ; which is a great disappointment to the design I had of displaying my politics at the emperor's court." The Addison and friends, nevertheless, did not leave London together ; but, oUier.° ^""^ though widely different fortunes were for the most part in future to divide them, a mutual admiration and affec- Playful allasions. * In a letter to Hunter of a few weeks' later date (22d March, 1708- '9), written while Addison was in the room with him, he returns to the project of a bishopric in Virginia, which his editors take gravely, and say that the design for it was drawn out with power to ordain priests and deacons for our colonies in America (Scott, i., 97). I have, however, fail- ed in finding any authority for it but these letters to Hunter, who may have started such a notion to him, but who, as I have shown, gave up Virginia, after all, "I shall go for Ireland some time in the summer, be- ing not able to make my fiiends in the ministry consider my meiits, or their promises, enough to keep me here ; so that all my hopes now ter- minate in my bishopric of Virginia.'' At the end of the letter he says of Addison: "I pray God too much business may not spoil le plus honnete homme dumonde; for itis certain which of a man's good talents he employs in business must be detracted from his conversation." § II.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 253 tion remained wliieli was only closed by death. What 1707-170!). Addison said of Swift as the greatest yen his of his age ^- i: we ha^e seen, and what Swift exclaimed of Addison two months before his Irish appointment is in a letter to Am- i4th Sept., brose Philips lying before me, That man has icorth enough to give reputation to an age. The world has no other in- stance of two intimate friends speaking thus with perfect truth of each other, and with something so like, yet so im- like, ill what with strange caprice was dealt out to them by destiny. Addison went to Ireland, where a deanery was awaiting Swift, and Swift remained in England, where a secretaryship of state awaited Addison ; yet never was what was shrewder remark than Sir James Mackintosh made, when might have he said that Addison as the dean and Swift as the secre- ''**"• tary of state would have been a stroke of fortune putting each into the place most fit for him. Incalculable the gain to themselves, though the world might have lost Captain GuUiver ! The First-fruits and the Test still kept Swift in Lon- don, and two letters written before the prince's death, here first printed, enable me to show his course on both sub- jects very clearly. The first was to the archbishop ; and Easiness the second had apparently been drawn up for Primate swm'uf* Marsh's information, with a desire that it should be sent i'"'"'""- on to King, in whose archives it was found. Writing to the latter on the 15th of xipril, he says that upon consult- ing with Southwell and other friends familiar with Ire- land, they were strongly agreed in recommending him to solicit the affair himself with Lord Godolphin himself. '' I told Lord Somers the case, and that by youi- grace's commands, and the desire of several bishops and some of the principal clergy, I undertook the matter ; that the queen and lord treasurer had already fallen into it these four years ; that it wanted nothing but solicitation ; that I knew his lordship was a great friend of Lord Sunder- land's, with whom I had been long acquainted, but, hear- ing he forbore common visits now he was in business, I had not attended him. Then I desired liis lordship to tell 254 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. Mr. 40-42. Conferences with Lord Somei's. Interview with Lord Treasurer. Godolphiu and the clergy. Lord Sunderland the whole matter, and prevail that I might attend with him upon my lord treasurer. Yester- day my Lord Somers came to see me, and told me very kindly he had performed my commission ; that Lord Sun- derland was very glad we should renew our acquaintance ; and that he would, whenever I pleased, go along with me to lord treasurer. I should in a day or two have been able to give your grace some further account, if it were not for an accident in one of my legs* which has for some time confined me to my chamber, and which I am forced to manage for fear of ill consequences. I hope your grace will approve of what I have hitherto done. I told Lord Somers the nicety of proceeding in a matter where the lord lieutenant was engaged, and design to tell it Lord Sunderland and lord treasurer, and shall be sure to avoid any false step in that point ; and your grace shall soon know the issue of this negotiation, or whether there be any hope from it." The story was continued in a letter to the archbishop of the 10th of June. He described the interview with Go- dolphin, who to all the pressure put upon him had but one reply ; that small good had been got by the remission to the English clergy, and he should not consent to it in the case of the Irish unless assured it " would be well received, with due acknowledgments." What, asked Swift, was to be understood by this? "Nothing under their hands," said Godolphin ; " but I will so far explain myself to tell you, I mean better acknowledgments than those of the clergy of England." Again Swift pressed to be advised what sort my lord would think fittest. "I can only sa,j again," replied the dry Godolphin, " such as they ought." Little, therefore, had come of the personal soliciting with the lord treasurer ; and all that was left to Swift was to * The accident is mentioned in a letter to Dean Sterne of the same date: "I -nonder whether, in the midst of your buildings, you ever consider that I have broke my shins, and have been n week confined this charming weatlier to my chamber, and can not go abroad to hear the nightingales, or pun with my Lord Pembroke. " §n.] WAITING AND WOEKING IN LONDON. 255 pursue the cold scent of asking his excellency the lord I70r-i709. JEt. 40-42. lieutenant once a month how the affair went on. Wearied of this kind of waiting, however, Primate Marsh appears to have written to Pembroke's secretary, Dodington, from whom in reply he had received such an account of no-progress made, as left hardly room for as- surance more encouraging than that any satisfactory issue could not now be expected " before a peace." This was communicated to Swift, and hence the second letter to ■ which reference has been made as found in the archives of the Armagh diocese. "I hope you will excuse" (the Pirst-fiuits date is 28th Augtist, 1708) "my want of ceremony oeca- tiori",A"ug., sioned by my desire to give a full answer to yours of the ■'^"^ '■^^'^' 12th. What hindered my writing was the want of confi- dence to trouble you when I had nothing of importance to say ; but if you give me leave to do it at other times, I shall obey you with great satisfaction, and I am heartily sorry for the occasion that hath prevented you, because it is a loss to the public as well as to -me. The person who sent you the letter about progress made in that matter, is one* who would not give three-pence to save all the Estab- lished clergy in both kingdoms from the gallows. And to talk of not encouraging you to hope for it before a peace, is literally dare verba, and nothing else. But, in Maxim of the small conversation I have had among great men, there *''^°"°''''' is one maxim I have found them constantly to observe, which is, that in any business before them, if you inquire how it proceeds, they only consider what is proper to an- swer, without one single thought whether it be agreeable to fact or no. For instance, here is lord treasurer assures me that what you ask is a trifle ; that the queen would easily consent to it, and he would do so too ; but then he adds some general conditions, as I told you before. Then comes lord lieutenant; assures me that the other has * Mr. Dodington, he means. To the same effect, on the prince's death, he wrote to King : " I spoke formei-ly all I knew of the " (first-fruits and) " twentieth parts; and whatever Mr. D has said about staying nntil a peace, I do assure your grace, is noth- ing but words." 256 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. How Not to do It. Progress without pro- gressing. 1707-1709. nothing at all to do with it, and that it is not to come be- fore him, but that he has made some progress in it ; and also hints to you, it seems, that it will be hardly done be- fore a peace. The progress he means must be something entirely between the queen and himself, for the two chief ministers assure me they never heard of the matter from him ; and, in God's name, what sort of progress can he mean ? In the mean time, I have not stirred a step fur- ther ; being unwilling to ruin myself in any man's favor, when I can do the public no good. And therefore I had too much art to desire lord treasurer not to say any thing to t'other of what I had spoke, unless I could get leave, which was refused me ; and therefore I omitted speaking again to Lord Sunderland. Which, however, I am resolved to do when he comes to town, in order to explain some- thing that I only conjectured. Upon the whole, I am of opinion that the ' progress ' yet made is just the same with that of making me general of the horse ; and the Duke of Omiond thinks so too ; and gave me some reasons of his own. Therefore I think the reason why this thing is not done can be only perfect neglect, or want of sufficient inclination ; or perhaps a better principle, I mean a dislike to the conditions, and unwillingness to act on them. I think Mr. Southwell and I agree in our interpretation of that oracular saying* which has perplexed you, and have fixed it upon the Test. Whether that be among the tri- fling or wicked meanings you thought of, I need not ask. Whatever methods you would please to have me take in this, or any other matter, ioi^ the service of the public or yourself, I shall readily obey. And if the matter does not stick at that mystical point before mentioned, I am sure, with common application, it might be done in a nionth.''f Secret of failure. Swift andthe gazetteer. * The ' ' as tliey ought " of Godol- phin : ut supra. t This letter (MS.) was written during the period of intense expecta- tion that preceded the taking of Lisle, and its closing sentences show not only Swift's interest, but the influence he exercifjed over the tlien gazetteer, Richard Steele. " We are now every day expecting news from abroad of the greatest importance. Nothing less than a battle, a siege, or Lisle taken Wagers run two to one for the last. In the last Gazette it §n.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 257 The matter was thus brought back to the point from 1707-170!). jEt. 40-42. which Swift had started at the first,* that attempt would be made in that way of bargain between the First-fruits bargaiuiug. and the Test, the one to be a bribe for the repeal of the other, to which he had declared a persistent hostility. But, before adverting to the course which this determined him to adopt on the more important question, the sequel to the present attempt to obtain remission of the first-fruits may be briefly told. When the arrangements involving Loi'd Pembroke's resignation were made on the prince's death, Swift wrote to the primate, that, upon putting Pem- broke in mind of "the first-fruits before he went out of office, Pembroke told him that the thing was done ; sent him word, as he afterward explained, " by Sir Andrew supposed Foimtaine, that the queen had granted the thing, and aft- las't?^^ "' erward took the compliment I made him upon it ;" but a sudden attack of his old disorder of giddiness disabled Swift, till toward the middle of January, from announcing this to King, whom he then told of it, with the addition that two great men in office, giving him joy of it, very frankly said that if he had not smoothed the 'way by giv- ing them and the rest of the ministry a good opinion of the justice of the thing, it would have met with opposi- tion.f Yet the thing had not been done, after all ! Upon closer inquiry. Swift learned from the ex-lieutenant that it was a matter purely between the queen and himself, and there was no doubt that my lord had received from her, who during the past year would hardly have denied him any thing, a promise for the remission. But know- oniy a promise. wag certainly affi lined that there would be a battle; but the copy coming to the office to be corrected, I prevailed with them to let me soft- en the phrase a little, so as to leave some room for possibilities ; and I do not find the soldiers here are so very positive. However, it is a period of the greatest expectation I ever re- member, and God in his mercy send YoL. I.— 17 a good issue. This is all I have to say at present. I will soon write again, if any other thing be worth sending. And tlien it shall be in more form." * See ante, 219. t "Upon which I only remarlied what I have always observed in courts, that wlien a favor is done there is no want of persons to challenge obliga- tions." 258 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. Mt. 40-42. Swift and LoriJ Whar- ton. "Test" trouble. Letter to Arlip. King (MS.). ing Godolphin's determination to exact conditions, and as- certaining tlirough Addison that no grant had passed the treasiuy, Swift went to Wharton himself, " which was the first attendance I ever paid." He was in a great crowd and much haste, and Swift had to be satisfied with the as- sm-ance that he was well disposed, but must have the usual application made to all lord lieutenants before he could do any thing. With which the matter ended, and is thus dis- missed by Swift : " It is wonderful a great minister should make no difference between a grant and the promise of a grant Had I the least suspected it ... I would have applied to Lord Wharton about two months ago . . . which might have prevented at least the present excuse Though others might, I suppose, have been found." Godolphin's " conditions " remained, however ; and, long before the appointment to the lord lieutenancy of the most eager advocate for a repeal of the Test, there had come foreshadowings of trouble from that question which some other occurrences gave prominence to. The Irish Presbyterians, taking advantage of an alarm of invasion in the spring of 1708,* obtained the lead in addresses of loyalty to the queen while the church party still were si- lent ; and it was supposed that this might recommend on the English side their claim to be relieved from the Test. At the same time there came over to England the speaker of the Irish house, who held also the office of chief-justice, with the declared object of agitating for the repeal by the English parliament on the ground that the Irish would not give way. " We have b^en already surprised enough," Swift wrote to the archbishop on the 15th of April, " with two addresses from the dissenters of England; but this from Dublin will, I fear, be very pernicious ; and there is * See tlie letter to Dean Sterne of the Ifitli April abont the good use made in England, by the dissenters, of the fright in Ireland upon the in- tended invasion. Observe, too, what he wiites to King, on the 10th of June, of the endeavor he is nhvnys making "to take off that scandal the clergy of Ireland lie under of being the reverse of what they really are, with respect to the revolution, loyal- ty to the queen, and settlement of the crown ; which is here the construc- tion of the word tort/." §11.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 259 1707-1709. Mt. 40-42. no other remedy but by another address from the un cor- rupted part of the city, which has been usual in England from several counties, as in the case of the Tack ; and I should hope, from a person of your grace's vigilaijce, that counter-addresses might be sent both from the clergy and the conforming gentry of Ireland, to set the queen right in this matter. I assure your grace all persons I converse with are entirely of this opinion, and I hope it will be done.* Some days ago my Lord Somers entered with me somers into discourse about the Test clause, and desired my opin- ion upon it, which I gave him truly, though with all the gentleness I could ; because as I am inclined and obliged to value the friendship he professes for me, so he is a per- son whose favor I would engage in the affair of the first- fruits If it became me to give ill names to ill things Brodrkk, and persons, I should be at a loss to find bad enough for LovOMid- the villainy and baseness of a certain lawyer of Ireland, who is in a station the least of all others excusable for such proceedings, and yet has been going about most in- dustriously to all his acquaintance in both houses toward the end of the session to show the necessity of taking off the Test clause in Ireland by an act here, wherein you may be sure he had his brother's assistance. If such a project should be resumed next session, and I in England, imless your grace send me your absolute commands to the contrary, which I should be sorry to receive, I could hard- ly forbear publishing some paper in opposition to it, or leaving one behind me, if there should be occasion." The occasion arose with greater urgency on the success of the extreme whigs a few months later ; and, under the double apprehension of an attempt by the new viceroy in dletoD. *.Tlie subject, I ought to add, was resumed at the close of August by an- other urgent recommendation that the proposed addresses should be strength- ened, by making the utmost possible use of the fact that the university had expelled one of its members (Foibes) for disrespect to William the Tliird's memory. The desii'e to connect, in every possible way, respect for the doctrines of the revolution with eager- ness to support the church, is Swift's marked peculiarity. He is, and in principle was to the close of his life, as his verse to Mrs. Finch declared, "A whig, and cue who wears a gowu." 260 THE LIFE OE JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. I'lO^-iTOO. Ireland, aud, supposing it defeated, of its almost certain — ' '^ resumption with success in England, Swift wrote his Letter pamphlet. He called it A Letter from a Member of the peal of Test. House of Oommons in Ireland to a Member of the House of Commons in England concerning the Sacram.ental Test, and dated it as from Dublin in December, 1Y08. Three things very noticeable peiTade its reasonings. There is a strong personal dislike of the Presbyterians, dating proba- bly from early associations. There is an obvious dread of the insecurity of the Establishment, as well from the small- ness of numbers in her pale, as from the greater energy of her assailants. There is, above all, a contempt for the Eoman Catholics as an inferior race, so fettei'ed by penal laws as to make their numbers a weakness to them. The last was of course Swift's grand mistake, from the point of view he had taken. His desire was to strengthen and extend Protestantism, and the only policy that could have united Protestants he rejected with scorn. Churchmen and dissenters were the only two parties he saw, and the church would have to fall to the strongest. He saw notli- oftheiia- ing outside. He believed the Catholic population, as a power in the country, to have been shattered at their last rally under James. They were become to him as " incon- siderable " as women and children. The lands were taken from their gentry. The fact of the priests being register- ed made it easy at any time, by refusing to renew the licenses, to diminish if not abolish them. And as for the common people, without leaders, without discipline or nat- ural courage,* being little better than hewers of wood and drawers of water, they were out of all capacity of doing mischief, if they were ever so well inclined. Having Of the Scotcii drawn this picture. Swift placed beside it that of the Scots in the northern parts of Ireland, as a brave, industrious people, extremely devoted to their religion, and full of an undisturbed affection toward each other. He portrayed * There are no better or braver soldiers than the Irish ; but Swift would call that trained courage. §ir.] WAITING AND WOEKING IN LONDON. 261 Presbyte- rians. numbers of that "noble" nation, invited by the fertility 1707-1T09. of the soil, as eager to exchange, by a voyage of three ~ — — :ii hours, their barren hills of Lochaber for the fruitful vales of Antrim and Down, " so productive of that grain which, at little trouble and less expense, finds diet and lodging for themselves and their cattle."* He depicted them virtues of growing speedily into wealth from the smallfest beginnings, by extreme parsimony, wonderful dexterity in dealing, and firm adherence to one another; showed them never rooted up where once fixed, but rather increasing daily ; and pointed it out as their invariable habit, on finding themselves the superior number in any tract of ground, not to prove patient of mixture, but speedily to remove such as they could not assimilate.f That there might be something in such qualities to suggest a better feeling than distrust never occurs to him. What he has to add imbit- ters all the good. This brave, industrious, frugal, clannish race had unhappily brought from Scotland a most formi- dable notion of episcopacy ; and if they thought it, as most surely they did, three degrees worse than popery, where A fault ont- weighing all virtues. * Swift delights as much as John- son did in every opportunity for a laugh against the Scotch and their country, and when Ambrose Philips goes with Lord Mark Kerr to the North of England, he warns them that the ladies in even those regions will think them too Southern by three de- grees. " I am not so good an astron- omer to know whether Venus ever cuts the arctic circle, or comes with- in the vortex of Ursa Major ; nor can I conceive how love can ripen where gooseberries will not." Philips had been with Kerr to Copenhagen and written verses in a sledge there. "Your versifying in a sledge," wrote Swift (MS.), "seems somewhat paral- lel to singing a psalm npon a ladder ; and when you tell me that it was upon the ice, I suppose it might he a Pas- toral, and that you had got a calenture, which makes men think they behold green fields and groveson the ocean. . . . I suppose the subject was Love, and then came in naturally your burning in so much cold, and that the ice was hot iron in comparison of her dis- dain. Then there are frozen hearts and melting sighs, or kisses, I forget which But I believe your poetic faith will never arrive at allowing that Venus was born on the Belts, or any part of the Northern Sea." Mr. Shandy would probably have ascribed Swift's inveteracy against the Scots to the fact of his having perversely come into the world on St. Andrew's Day. t "I have done all in my power on some land of my own to preserve two or three English fellows in their neigh- borhood, but found it impossible, though one of them thought he had sufficiently made his court by turning Presbyterian. '' To Ambrose Philips 262 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. Irish lover to tinglieh mistress. 1707-1709. was the common enemy for churchmen to join against? — : — Naturalists might agree that a lion was a bigger, stronger, more dangerous enemy than a cat ; but bind the lion fast, draw his teeth, and pare his claws to the quick, and deter- mine whether you'd have him in that condition at your throat, or " an angry cat in full liberty." It was a mistake the shrewdest man might make, but not pardonable in a wise one. Upon other points in the tract which perhaps more than its leading argument gave it a singular run and popularity in Ireland, it would be beside the present purpose to dwell ; but powei-ful use was made of the fact that it was from English, not from Irish, ministers the proposal for the re- peal came, and that the country it was to benefit was not Ireland, but England. On one side of the channel was Cowley's abject lover, and on the other his despot mis- tress.* The life of the one was to be a ready sacrifice if the little finger of the other did but ache ; but should the Irish give what was thus exacted and fain be content, it was surely too much to expect them to be grateful. " If there be a fire at some distance, and I immediately blow up my house before there be occasion, because you are a man of quality and apprehend some danger to a corner of your stable, yet why should you require me to attend next morning at your levee with my humble thanks for the fa- vor you have done me ?" Great was the relish and enjoy- ment of this in Ireland ; and of the light thrown on Non- conformity by contrasting its wail for conscience when it was low, with its shout for persecution when it got upon its feet ; and then again by comparing its acquiescent hu- milities, as Swift remembered them in his childhood, Avith the noisiness of its demands since the revolution, not one of which had been made but as a step to enforce another. Here was Cowley's lover reversed. The Puritan swain * On a former pnge (77) reference is made to Cowley's couplet as an il- lustration of later date ; but the slip may be pardoned, for the argument in the text was one of Swift's favorite weapons in the war he waged against the government of Walpole. § II.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 263 was ever complaining of cruelty while any thing was de- i707-i7ou. nied him, but when the lady ceased to be cruel she was to -^ ~ be at his mercy ; and so, as it seemed, every thing was to down8"of be called persecution that would not leave the power to ^^'it™' persecute others. Very clear admission was at the same time made, in this portion of the tract, of the growing strength of Dissent in the press ; and though he refers to De Foe as "the fellow that was pilloried — I forget his name," and, the better to laugh at him, couples him with Tutchin,* he also desciibes such writings as the Heview De Foe's and the Oiservator as having grown a necessary part in wl-uing. coffee-house furniture, says that they seem to be leveled to the understandings of great numbers of people, and be- lieves them to be read at some time or other by customers of all ranks. When Morphew reprinted this tract in 1711, a few lines of Swift's evident dictation were prefixed to the effect that it had " ruined " the author with the then ministry, and that a page " purely personal and of no use to the subject " had been removed. This page can not now be found ; but a letter to the archbishop of the 8th of January shows its object to have been to conceal the authorship, which even swift's from King himself, who is eulogized in it. Swift half af- coS ws fects to withhold. " The author has gone out of his way """""'ship, to reflect on me as a person likely to write for repealing the Test, which I am sure is very unfair treatment. This is all I am likely to get by the company I keep. I am used like a sober man with a drunken face, have the scan- dal of the vice without the satisfaction." If the facts thus far have been correctly stated, as my authorities probably will be thought to establish, there could have been no " ruining " in the case : but the tract could hardly fail to strengthen against him that section of the ministry not friendly to his claims. In his Memoirs relating to the Change, he says that though he took all cai'e to be private, * Prom which Pope took his couplet — L "Earless on high stood unabashed De Foe, And Tutchin flagrant from the scourge below." 264 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. jet lie was guessed to be the author ; the suspicion reached Lord "Wharton, and he saw him no more till he went to Somers nud Wharton. Occupa- tions : and amuse- ments. Mnsicnl " uproars.' Ireland. "At my taking leave of Lord Somers he desired I would carry a letter from him to the Earl of "Wharton, which I absolutely refused ; yet he ordered it to be left at my lodgings." "Wljat came of it will be told. Swift lingered in London until March, but does not seem further to have troubled himself with public affairs. He was sifting to Jervas for his portrait, which was still imfinished when he left. He finished and received pay- ment from Tooke for the editing of the final portion of Sir "William Temple's liemains. He played piquet with Mrs. Long at Mrs. Vanhomrigh's, carefully recording his loss of sixpences. He passed some days with his whig friends, Sir Mathew Dudley and Frankland, the postmas- ter-general ; staid another week with the Berkeleys ; dined more than once with a great lover of Addison, and an "adorer" of Hunter, being himself "both a bel esprit and a woolen-di-aper," "Will Pate ;* and had been taken by Charles Ford to the operas, which were all the vogue in the winter of 1708-9. But Swift had small enjoyment in music, and wrote to Hunter that he meant to set up by next winter a party among the wits that should run down such entertainments. "We are nine times madder than ever, he said in a later letter, which also told his friend that the only book worth any thing the press had lately given them was a volume of poems by Prior. " The town is gone mad," he repeated to Philips in a letter not hith- erto printed, " after a new ojera. Poetry and good sense are dwindling like echo with repetition and voice. Critic Dennis vows to God that operas will be the ruin of the nation, and brings examples from antiquity to prove it. A good old lady five miles out of town askt me t'other day what these vproars were that her daughter was alwaj-s going to." Poor Philips, who was still, like himself, the * In the same letter which thus mentions Pate to Hunter, Swift adds : "The whigs carry all before them, and how far they will pursue their victories we under -rate whigs can hardlvtell." § II.] WAITIXG AXD WORKING IN LONDON. 265 man of levees, the man of hopes, to whom he had admin- 1 707-i709. istered comfort under the fable of Sanclio and his island, — '- had lately asked him for another fable to reconcile him to • < ■ fresh disappointments. " I can fit you," replied Swift, " with no fable at present, unless it should be of the man that rambled up and down to look for Fortune; and at length came home, and saw her lying at a man's feet who Favorites was fast asleep, and never stiiTed a step. This I reflected ° ""°°e- on t'other day, when my lord treasurer gave a young fel- low, a friend of mine, an employment sinecure of four hundred poimds a year, added to one of three hundred pounds he had before." There had since been another illustration ; though probably it did not occur to him, for he was the last man to have made it a reproach to the friend he loved. Addison's secretaryship of two thou- sand pounds a year had hardly been given him, when he received in addition a patent appointing him keeper for life of the Irish Hecords with a salary of nCar four hun- dred pounds a year. Swift was now going back, after more than fifteen swift's gain months of suspense in England, to his income of three ^^,l_ " hundred pounds a year and his congregation of half a score at Laracor; taking with him a small volume of Poesies CJiretiennes de Monsieur Jollivet which he had begged and brought away from Lord Halifax at taking leave of him, and on the fly-leaf of which he afterward wi'ote that he had desired my lord to remember it was the onlyfawor he ever received from him or his party. Whether or not he took any thing with him also of the moral of his own fable of Fortune, may be matter for conjecture. While he was not soliciting, was it possible she might be near, and, when he had ceased to look for her, be found lying at his feet ? Through the time of this weaiy waiting in London down to that of his re-appearance there on the downfall of the whigs. Swift suffered so much from the two teni- ble disorders that were more or less his life companions {ante, 62-3), that this will be the proper place for a record of some touching entries made in his note-books in regard 266 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book IV. 1707-1709. to such illiiesses. I li*ve also subjoined, from tlie same jET. 40-42. g^^-j^ books of account and memoranda which have al- ready supplied to my volume many important illustra- tions, a fac-simile of one of their pages. Upon it stands his outlay for December, 1708 ; and strangely yet sorrow- fully characteristic, here, as on almost every page, are its trivial items of expenditure, with a dark background of pains and fears thrusting itself upon them. rac-simile of page of account- 1300k, December, ITOS. § II.] WAITING AND WORKING IN LONDON. 267 1708. "Nov. From G''' to 16"' often giddy. G* help 1707-1700. me. So to 25"', less. W^ Brandy for giddiness, 2^ Bv^y ^'^■'^^^-- 3^. Dee' S"" Horrible sick. 12"' Much, better, thank God and MD's pray". 16"' Bad fitt at Mrs. Barton's. 2i"' Better ; but dread a fitt. Better still to the end." 1709. " Jan. 21^' An ill fitt ; but not to excess. 29'>' Out of or- der. 31=' ]S"ot well at times. Feb. 7. Small fitt abroad. Pretty well to the end. March. Headache frequent. April 2. Small giddy fitt and swimming in head. MD and God help me. August. Sick with giddiness much." 1710. " Jany giddy. March. Sadly for a day. 4"' Giddy from 4.th_ i4h Ygj.y ill. July. Terrible fitt. G'^ knows what may be the event. Better toward the end." BOOK FIFTH. WHIGS AND TOEIES. 1709-1710. ^T. 42-43. I. POVVEK CHANGING HanDS. II. Old Tkiends and New. III. Esther Johnson. IV. A LONG-DESIUED OBJECT GAINED. V. liOBEET HaRLET AND HeNKT St. JoIIN. POWER CHANGING HANDS. Last visit to liis motliei'. 1709-1710. ^T. 43-43. Swift had visited his mother in leaving Ireland, and I709-]7io, again went to see her in returning. Her now failing ^' — ' health might naturally suggest danger to his always watchful affection for hei', and his present visit was prob- ably somewhat prolonged by fears that it might be the last. He left London in April, but did not leave Leices- ter till the end of June ; though it appears from a letter of Addison's that his friend had expected him in Dublin before the close of the former month. For the later weeks of this delay, however, a local ailment which pre- vented his getting on horseback was partly the cause. Of what occupied him in the interval, beyond solicitude and care for his mother, there is no direct evidence ; but as a note made before he quitted London shows that a par- ticular piece,* to which circumstances had given personal * It occurs in a list on the back of a letter addressed to him at Lord Pembroke's in Leicester Fields, and Ijresiiniably written in the closing months of 1708, of Miscellaneous Short Pieces which he proposed as "subjects for a volume," compris- ing some of his earliest writings, and some in contemplation but not writ- ten. Among the latter was the "Apol- ogy," though he could never have meant to confess the authorship of the Tale by including the Apology for it in a volume known to be his ; and, besides a piece to be noted as lost, another on the "Present Taste of Heading," ' which was certainly written and sent to Fountaine, and Short pieces the piece entitled "Conjecture," are for a volume, not now discoverable. The contents were afterward submitted to Benja- min Tooke, to whom, when sending back to him the sheets of the Apol- ogy, he wrote at the close of June, 1710: "If you are in such haste, how came you to forget the Miscel- lanies ? I would not have you think of Steele for a publisher " (editor, we should say) : " he is too busy. I will, one of these days, send yon some hints, which I would have in a pref- ace, and you may get some friend to dress them up." Here are the sub- jects: "Discourse on Athens and 272 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1709-1710. importance, was in his mind, and some letters to his book- — ^ '- seller after returning to Ireland make it clear that he had sent him this piece completed some months before, there is a fair presumption that it formed the occupation of his leisure while now in Leicester. "Whatever the impression he might have brought away from London of the amount of zeal or of sincerity employed in pressing his claim to the bishopric, the ground taken for refusal of it remained ; and though this assumed what he had never avowed, it was not the less his duty to show that in itself it was false. He wrote the Apology to repel the avei-ment that the Tale of a Tiii had been written by an infidel or scora- er of religion ; and a remark to his book-seller shows some impatience that the publication of the edition in which it was to appear should have been delayed until the autumn of 1710. " I was in the country " (29th June, 1710) " when I received your letter with the Apology inclosed in it ; and I had neither health nor humor to finish that business. But the blame rests with you, that if you thought it time you did not print it when you had it." He was on the eve of starting for Ireland when, on the Apology for the Tale. Ante, 162. A proposed Miscellany. Rome. BiekevstafF's Predictions. El- egy on I'avtridge. Vanbrugh's House. The Salamander. Epigram on Mrs. Floyd. Letter to Bishop of K." (Kil- lala, not Killaloe, was the bishop ; and though Swift, in one of his Journals of 1710, says he had heard it much commended and would give a penny to have it in Tooke's volume, all trac^ of it has disappeared. ) ' ' Harris's Pe- tition. Baucis and Philemon. Rea- sons against abolishing Christianity. Essay on Conversation. Conjectures on the Thoughts of Posterity about Me. On the Present Taste of Read- ing. Apology for the Tale, etc. Med- itation on a Broomstick. Sentiments of a Church-of-England Man. Part of an Answer to Tindal. History of Van's House. Apollo Outwitted. To Ardelia. Project for Reformation of Manners. A Lady's Table-book. Trit- ical Ess.iy." Tooke defended his de- lays as to the Apology by saying that Swift had sent him word not to go on till he had altered some things in it ; and as to the proposed volume by say- ing that "when you went away you told me there were three or four things should be sent over out of Ireland." Swift had also reproached his publish- er v/ith delays in finishing " the cuts " for the new edition of the Tale, to which Tooke re])lies that "Sir An- drew Fountaine has had them from the time they were designed, with an in tent of altering them. But he is now gone into Norfolk. " The drawings are still at Narford, some of them not hav- ing been engraved ; and Mr. Fount- aine, at my request, kindly permitted photographs to be taken from them. §!•] POWER CHANGING HANDS. 273 1709-1710. iET. 42-43. Letter to Desire to live ill Eiiglaiid. ISth of June, lie wrote to Lord Halifax and to Lord Pem- broke. The first was a letter of compliment, written avowedly to beg some sliare in the memory of the person Loi-dHai- addressed, and the countenance of his protection. As his ''^^^" good offices had been promised,* they were challenged iu two particulars : the one that he should sometimes put the lord president in mind of the writer, and the other that he should himself duly, once every year, wish him removed to England. He does not afEect to conceal his " hate " of the place to which he is banished, or his belief that he might live to some more useful or entertaining purpose if he were permitted to reside in town ; or condemned to the highest punishment on papists of having to live anywhere within ten miles round it. But the postscript contains the real gist of the letter :f " Pray, my lord, desire Dr. South " (now on the verge of eighty) " to die about the fall of the leaf, for he has a prebend of "Westminster which will make me your neighbor, and a sinecure in the coun- try, both in the queen's gift, which my friends have often told me would fit me extremely. And forgive me one word, which I know not what extorts from me : that if my lord president would in such a juncture think me worth laying any weight of his credit on, you can not but think me persuaded that it would be a very easy matter to compass ; and I have some sort of pretense, since the late King promised me a grebend of Westminster, when I petitioned him in pursuance of a recommendation I had from Sir William Temple." There could hardly be a Modesty of more modest statement of pretensions than this ; and, if I preferment. * When Swift was afterward most angry with Halifax, he said, com- menting on Macky's character of him as a great encourager of learning and learned men, ' ' his encouragements were only good words and dinners," and in' the present letter the dinners are thus described: "Myself and about a dozen others have kept the best table in England, to which be- VoL. L— 18 cause we admitted your lordship in common with us, made you our man- ager, and sometimes allowed you to bring a friend, therefore ignorant peo- ple would needs take you to be the owner.'' t This is one of the letters before named as now to be first correctly printed from Mr. Kerable's colla- tion. 274 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFP. [Book V. Mr. 42-43. Reply of Ualifux. Reminder to Lord SomeiB. 1709-1710. read tlie words riglitly, the feeling is Tinmistakably cx- Mt 49-13 & J ' t> •! pressed in them that the faikire hitherto to serve him 'had arisen rather from the not using, than the not having, means at disposal. Halifax did not reply until October, explaining the delay by his belief that Swift was to re- turn to London with Addison ; but his letter had at -least plenty of " good woi'ds " in it. " I am quite ashamed for myself and friends, to see you left in a place so incapable of tasting you ;* and to see so much merit, and so great qualities, unrewarded by those who are sensible of them. Mr. Addison and I are entered into a new confederacy, never to give over the pursuit, nor to cease reminding those who can serve you, till your worth is placed in that light it ought to shine in. Dr. South holds out still, but he can not be immortal. The situation of his prebend would make me doubly concerned in serving yon ; and upon all occasions that shall offer, I will be your constant solicitor, your sincere admirer, and your unalterable friend." In the middle of the following month Swift thanked him for being pleased to remember a useless man at so great a distance, where it would be pardonable for idlest friends of his own level to forget him ; and added that if the gen- tle winter should not carry off Doctor South, or the rever- sion of his prebend was not to be compassed, perhaps Lord Halifax might so use his credit, that, as Lord Somers thought of him last year for the bishopric of "Waterford, so my lord president might now think of him for that of Cork, if the incumbent died of the fever he was under. There was no irony ; but a^entle hint was conveyed, that what might be easy to an ex-minister without power, a * Upon the back of the letter is written in Swift's hand, "I liept this as a true Originall of courtiers and court -promises.'' A characteristic Of Ireland. passage about Irehmd, from his ac- knowledgment of it, may be sub- joined: "I join with your lordship iu one compliment, because it is grounded on so true a knowledge' of the taste of this countrv, where I can assure you, and I call Mr. Addison for my witness, I pass as undistin- guished, in every point that is merit with your lordship, as any man in it. But then I do them impartial justice ; for, except tlie Bishop of Clogjjer and perhaps one or two more, my opinion is extremely uniform of the whole kingdom." §!•] POWKR CHANGING HANDS. 275 minister miffht iind more difficult who had the means to 1709-1710. iET. 42-t3. give effect to his recommendation. The letter to Lord Pembroke, which I found among the Narford MSS. with indorsement by Fountaine that the earl had sent it to him to read, began with punning allu- sions to his bodily ailment, into which he insinuates a re- gret that Ireland should now have another lord lieutenant.* He then says he has sent Sir Andrew Fountaine a very learned description that he hopes he has communicated to Doctor Sloane and Doctor Woodward, of an old Eoman Deshabie floor he has discovered in Leicester which was to be sold tiquUy. "a pennyworth;" but against buying which there were two objections: that it could not be taken up without breaking, and that it would be too heavy for carriage. He adds that Fountaine had fallen out with him because he could not prevail with a fellow in Leicester to part with three Saxon coins "which the owner values as I did my Alexander seal, and with equal judgment." The remark is followed by a pun ;f as excuse for another, he desires to be made captain of a man-of-war of fifty guns for a fort- night, until he gets to, Ireland; and the letter;]: closes with Bonfire of a sort of punning bonfire. " I beg your excellency will ^"'^*' * "I am inform'd you have been pleased to railly upon my misfort- unes ; because I have got an ailment incommodious for riding. But had your excellency been lieutenant of Ii'O- land,ifPelionhadbeen piled upon Ossa I would have been there before now. " t "There were some fellows here last year that could make medals faster than the Padua Brothers ; and they dealt altogether in modern ones, and usually struck them upon the high road : I desire to know whether they were not properly Pad -way Brothers. I beg your excellency will send me a commission to be captain of a man-of-war for a fortnight till I get to Ireland. But I can do with- out it. For if the coasting privateers dare accoast me, I will so rattle out your name, that it shall fright them Plays on as much as ever your ancestor's did ™™^ ■'"' i T. I T 1 ,11. Pembroke, at Boulogne. I always thought ships had rats enough of their own without being troubled with py-rats. Hence comes the old proverb : poison for rats and powder for pyrates. There is another proverb in your own calling which I suppose you know the orig- inal of : Ships when they are in dock are quiet, but at sea they sting all they come near. Hence came the saying, In Dock, out Nettle. I shall be at the sea-side in two days, and shall wish heartily for some of your snufiF against the bilch- water. " t Addressed, "For the Rt. Hon. the Earl of Pembroke, Lord High Admirall &c. at his House in St. James's Square, London." 276 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. Attentions of Addison, 1709-1710. order your fleets to beat the Frencli this suminer, that we — '—^ — - may have a peace about Michaelmas, and see your lord- ship in Ireland again by spring. For which a million of people in that kingdom would rejoice as much as myself. Mr. Ashe assures me that whenever you come over, the whole island will be so inflamed with joy and bonflres, that it will all turn to Ashes to receive you." The day after these letters were written Swift left Leicester. A letter from Addison awaited him at Chester, "longing to talk over all affairs" with him, anticipating his friend's wish to have a ship at his disposal, and inclos- ing a direction to " the captain of the WoK to accommo- date him with all in his power :" failing which, a place was to be reserved in a government yacht.* He appears to have preferred the yacht, for, after staying a fortnight at Chester, he did not cross until the end of June. " Set sail from Darpool for Ireland June 29"" 1709 at 3 a clock in the morning being Wednesday, lay that night in the bay of Dublin, and landed at Kingsend the next day at 7 Goes at once in the morning, and went strait to Laracor without seeing anybody, and returned to Dublin July 4 which was Mon- day following."f This agrees exactly with what is said in his Memoirs relating to the Change. "I stayed some months in Leicestershire, went to Ireland, and immediate- ly upon my landing retired to my country parish without seeing the lieutenant or any other person, resolving to send him Lord Somers's letter by post. But, being called up to town by the incessant entreaties of my friends, I went and delivered my let1»r and immediately withdrew. to Laracor. Ante, 264. * "The yacht will come over with the acts of parliament, and a convoy, about a week hence, which oppor- tunity yoH may lay hold of, if you do not like the Wolf. I will give orders accordingly." — Addison from Dublin Castle, 'loth June, 1709. t From the same curious record in his note-books I take the route of his journey from Leicester to Chester; June 14"" : Left Leicester June 14"' 1709. Journey to Chester. Dine' &c. at Bruton-on-the-Hill, 2' IC. Stone, 6'. Nantwich, 3» 9". Came to Chester 15"' on Wednesday. At Chester to 19"' 12' G"". Carriage 2 boxes, 14' C. 26"' Board W. Kinalton's 10". 27"" Boxes cva\^ to Parkgate 2'. 30"' Kingsend." § I.} POWER CHANGING HANDS. 277 During the greatest part of his government I lived in the 1700-1710. country, saw the lieutenant very seldom when I came to _-^"L_^ town, nor ever entered into the least degree of confidence meut." ' with him, or his friends, except his secretary, Mr. Addi- son, who had been my old and intimate acquaintance." He afterward reminded Esther Johnson that he had told her his intention so. to live; and "you know I kept it; and, except Mr. Addison, conversed with none but you and your club of deans and Stoytes." She had reproached him for going straight to Laracor without coming first to see her in Dublin ; and when next in London he remem- bered this, and promised her never to do it again. " I think it very hard," wrote Addison, disappointed in not seeing him at once, "I should be in the same kingdom with Doctor Swift, and not have the happiness of his com- pany once in three days." Every part of his own state- ment is thus borne out by independent testimony ; and to give countenance to party slander by reviving, even for raise the purpose of contradicting, any such averment as that seescoit, he had turned savagely against "Wharton only because '-'^"o^- Wharton treated with contempt intercessions made for him by Somers, is a grave injustice. Many imputations not ill founded are to be made against Swift, but that of having shown himself a sycophant or a slave is not one of them ; and if satisfactory proof to the contrary has not here been given, the duty undertaken by the present writer is ill discharged. That he was led thus to withdraw himself in a great objections measure from Dublin life by finding himself at odds with govei-mneut. the policy of Lord Wharton's government, there can be lit- tle doubt; and his friendship for Addison, as well as his personal engagements with other members of the ministry, made his course a difficult one. Opening the Dublin par- liament the month before his arrival. Lord Wharton had taken a decided tone upon " the necessity there was of cul- tivating and preserving a good understanding among all the Protestants of this kingdom," than which, perhaps, wiser counsel was never given ; but Swift knew very well what 278 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1709-1710. JEt. 42-43. Steele to Swiit. More of Eickerstaff expected. The new Irish Sec- retary. it pointed at, and was determined to continue his resist- ance to the repeal 6f tlie Test. He kept himself aloof, therefore, waiting his time. It did not arrive that session : but there was to he a hill next year, it was said ; and, immediately after Addi- son went back for the meeting of the English parliament, came the letter from Lord Halifax above quoted, and also a letter from Steele. " I assure you," wrote the good- hearted gazetteer, " no man could say more in praise of another than Mr. Secretary Addison did in your behalf at Lord Halifax's table on Wednesday last No oppor- tunity is omitted among powerful men to upbraid 'em for your stay in Ireland I have heard such things said of that same Bishop of Clogher with you, that I have often said he must be entered ad eundem in our House of Lords The town is in great expectation from Bicker- staff I have not seen Ben Tooke a great while, but long to usher you and yours into the world. Not that there can be any thing added by me to your fame, but to walk bareheaded before you." All which seems to make it clear enough that if Swift was uneasy in what Henley called the inhospitable island* on which he had been cast, the great people responsible for casting or for leaving him there were uneasy too. Steele's letter mentions other things. He had received lately some Tatlers from the Vicar of Laracor, and he had heard of the great intimacy struck up between the Bishop of Clogher and the Irish Secretary. Swift's note -books also tell us that he and Addison had passed several summer days at the bishop's houses in Clogher and Finglas ; and that, both there and at Laracor, " little MD " was with them. " People of all * Though six or seven years were to pass before De Foe's immortal masterpiece was written, there are whimsical foreshadowings of Crusoe in Henley's quaint letter: "You are now cast on an inliospitable island : no mathematical figures on the sand, no vestigia hominum to be seen ; perhaps at this very time reduced to one single barrel of damaged bis- cuit Eat — do I live to bid thee! — eat Addison ! ! and when you have eat every body else, eat my lord lieu- tenant (he's something lean, God help the while)!" §!■] POWER CHANGING HANDS. 279 sorts," Swift wrote afterward of Esther Johnson, " were i709-i7io. never more easy than in her company. Mr. Addison, ~^ when he was in Ireland, being introduced to her, immedi- and Esther ately found her out ; and if he had not soon after left the ''"''°^'"'- kingdom, assured me he would have used all endeavors to cultivate her friendship."* One habit in conversation she had in common with Addison. " Whether," says Swift, " from her easiness in general, or from her indifference to persons, or from her despair of mending theni, or from the same practice which she much liked in Mr. Addison, I can not determine ; but when she saw any of the company very warm in a wrong opinion, she' was more inclined to con- firm them in it than to oppose them. It prevented noise, she said, and saved time."-}- Nevertheless Swift hints that though she did this herself, and liked to see it done by Addison, he had known her very angry with some whom she much esteemed (doubtless himself) "for sometimes falling into that infirmity." Perhaps her great friend's touch was not so light as Addison's or her own. The principal incident after Addison's departure was Attack on the attack by Lady GifEard, who put 'forth a coarse adver- Tlmpie^s tisement in the Postman to the effect that in the last vol- ™'^''- ume of her brother Sir William Temple's Remains his Memoirs had been printed by Doctor Swift from an un- faithful copy. Swift's reply has been given, disposing thor- Ante., 112. oughly of the charge ; but he never forgave the wrong at- tempted to be done, and there is much significance in a re- mark which may here be added from his letter of the' 10th of ]Srovember:J "Several of my friends in Loudon sent * "All of us," he adds, " who had the happiness of her friendship agreed unanimously, that, in an afternoon's or evening's conversation, she never failed, before we parted, of delivering the best thing that was said in the company." t This is the passage from which Macaulay derived his remark on "one habit" in Addison which he hardly knew how to blame. "If his first attempts to set a presuming dunce right were ill -received, he changed his tone; 'assented with civil leer,' and hired the flattered coxcomb deep- er and deeper into absurdit}'. " X Wrongly dated "London" in the portion of it printed by Mr. Courte- nay. — Temple, ii., 243-0. 280 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1709-1710. ^T. 42-43. Temperate reply. Exciting news from England. Favorite dish of Swift and Addison. me that advertisement, but the packet coming to the sec- retary's office here, they were not conveyed to me till very lately. The writer of the Postmcm pleads for his excuse that the advertisement was taken in and printed without his knowledge, and that he refused to repeat it, tho' urged in your ladyship's name. He thought it too unchristian for him to defend. But all that shall not provoke me to do a disrespectful action to any of Sir William Temple's family, and therefore I have directed an answer wholly consistent with religion and good manners I do not expect your ladyship or family will ask my leave for what you are to say, but all people should ask leave of reason and religion rather than of resentment; and will your ladyship think, indeed, that it is agreeable to either to re- flect in print upon the veracity of an innocent man ? Or is it agreeable to prudence, or at least to caution, to do that which might break all measures with any man who is capable of retaliating?" Nor perhaps was this the only subject, as another brief month brought other news from England, that crossed his mind with uneasy sensation of a power to retaliate. Early in December the first move- ment was made for impeachment of Sacheverell, and, the" whigs having taken thus to the luxury of roasting a par- son, he must have felt that very soon would come the trial of his own repeated notes of warning. The impeachment began in February, sentence was given at the end of March, and Harley was not only ready with his part, but had forced his way behind the scenes. On the 11th of April, Addison announced Om' Walls. Manly 3 11 Jnly 22" Omb' Punch Jo. Warb ..012 Ang. 1"' Ombr. Walls 9 _ ia p.i for Ppt. Walls, Ombr. 1 1 — 23'' Omb. Walls, Stoit. 1709. WOH. £ I. d. Nov 71" Omb' Eay" &c 2 7 — S"- Omb' Percev' Barry 8 8 " Ombr. aud whlsh. Kaym'' Morgan 2 4 1700-10. Dec 26'" Tables Wesley 6 — 27"' Ombre, Kaym'' Morg" ..Oil Jan. 8" Ombr. D. Sterne 2 B Mnr. C"' Bassett, L"' &c 2 — 14'" Bass' PerC's 6 — 21"' Ombr. Rnym'' Ppt 4 4 — 22'' Ombr. M" Walls B 6 Apr. 0'" Ombr. Manley Walls*. ... 8 2 tfune 13'" Ombr. M" Tlg"« Bar?. ..006 1710. June 21"' Ombr. D. St« Walls 8 4 Jnly 27'" Omb' MnnlJ Ppt 411 Aug' B. Ombre, Walls, Ppt 1 4 § L] POWEE CHAXGIXG HAXDS. 2 So transmitting to him, with the old earnest assm^nces. a let- 1700-1710. ter from Steele, which he fancies ■' he had my Lord Hali- "^^' *-~*^- fax's authority for writing ;" wliieh has not itself sm-vived, but to which was doubtless applicable bis own descrip- tion of all the whig letters of the time. •• I was a sort of Drowning bough," he said, " for drowning men to lay hold of." The "^°' only other notice he took of it was a dry intimation to the secretary that he should take .some occasion to let my Lord Halifax know the sense he had " of the favor he intend'id me."' A few days after his letter, a threatened dissolution of parliament had recalled Addison suddenly to England to provide for his election at Malmesbury; and when Swift wrote to him, on the 22d of August, Godolphin had broken his staff, the treasurership was in commission, and the general whig overthrow was begun. During the snm- mer montlis, whUe these great changes went on, he had been keeping a stiict sdenee ; in which he persisted, even against Fountaine's wish, that if he didn't break it, might Ponntaine Parvisol break his snuff-box. Lis haK acre turn to a bog, ^^^'^^ his vrillows perish, and worms eat up his Plato 1 It was very hard, Sir Andrew added, that though there might be never a bishop in England with the wit of St. George Ashe, nor ever a secretary of state with a quarter of Ad- dison's good sense, therefore Swift could not write to those that loved him as well as any Clogher or Addison of them all.* The silence, nevertheless, was first broken to Addi son. " I believe you had the displeasure of much ill news," Swift wrote, ''almost as soon as you landed. Even the moderate tories here are in pain at these revolutions, be- ing what will certainly affect the Duke of Marlborough, and consequently the success of the war. ily lord lieu- tenant asked me yesterday when I intended for England. I said I had no business there now, since I suppose in a little time I should not have one friend left that had any credit ; and his excellency was of my opinion."' He then Donbta of asked Addison freely to advise whether it would be worth ' ^ <^^^s,«- * Addressed "At Mr. Cam's, over against the Bam in Capel Street, Dublin." 286 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. Uncertain of his own course. Collected Taller. 1709-1710. Ms while to go to England, or if there was any probabili- ~^-^^ — ^ ty that the lord president might continue ; and, comply- ing with his friend's wish to know what still was in his thoughts, mentioned Doctor South's prebend or sinecure, and the place of historiographer. " But if things go on in the train they are now, I shall only beg you, when there is an account to be depended on for a new government here, that you will give me early notice, to procure an ad- dition to my fortunes." Of his friend's own fortunes he added, with generous warmth, that every thing he might wish for would still remain to him after office was gone. " If you will come over again, when you are at leisure, we will raise an army and make you King of Ireland." The letter ends with a mention of books possessing still an in- terest for us. Bishop Clogher had shown him the small edition of the Taller, where there was a very handsome compliment to himself; but he could never pardon the printing the news of every Taller, and thought that Steele might as well have printed the advertisements. " I knew it was a book-seller's piece of craft to increase the bulk and price of what he was sure would sell ; but I utterly disapprove it." Then comes a delightful passage about the picture of Addison in Mrs. Manley's " noble Memoirs,-'' where the book is hit off with humorous precision in a sin- gle sentence. It seemed to him as if she had about two thousand epithets and fine words packed up in a bag ; that she pulled them out by handf uls, and strewed them on her paper; and that about once in five hundred times they turned up right. •' Swift was certainly still in doubt, when he wrote that letter, whether or not he should go to England, though for some weeks the thought had been in his mind that a sea- voyage might be helpful to him. It has been seen how much he had been troubled lately by his old enemies; and, under like suffering many years later, he is found writing to his friend Chetwode that a "hard journey" from England had driven away, just then, both ailments for a time. A like opportunity now unexpectedly arose. Mrs. Man- ley's Mem- oirs. § II.] OLD FRIENDS AND NEW. 287 Archbishop Kuig had been in London the previous year, 1709-1710. and at his return had recommended two Irish bishops whom he left behind him, Ossory and Killaloe, to keep commisBioD. watch over the subject of the first-fruits. But it liad since occurred, both to him and the primate, in the new condition of affairs, that Swift, who had formerly rendered good service in tlie matter, ought again to be employed in it ; and at their instance a proposal had been made to join him in a sort of formal commission with the two bishops in London. Such an ari-angement was not agreeable to him ; but, believing it to be merely a form, and that prac- tically the "soliciting" would be left to himself, he ac- cepted it ; not sorry, at least, of the excuse for his journey. It was all so hurriedly arranged that the commission bore swift joins date on the very day Swift left, only nine days after he ' ' ** "°' had written to Addison ; and a brief sentence to the arch- bishop nine days later, which was the next day but one after he reached London, would perhaps express with some exactness the thought in his mind when he quitted Dub- lin : "I will apply to Mr. Ilarley, who formerly made some advances toward me ; and, unless he be altered, will, I believe, think himself in the right to use me well." II. OLD FRIENDS AND NEW. 1710. Mt. 43. Swift's first three months in London in 1710, from the i7io. 10th of September to the 10th of December, prepared — ^" ^" all that came in the three following years. Before they were over, he had disembarrassed himself of his old party relations, though retaining many of his old party friends ; had cast in his fortunes with the ministry then supplant- ing Godolphin's ; and, tln-ough Ilarley, had obtained the queen's concession of the boon for the Irish clergy which he had so long desired, for which he so incessantly had la- 288 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. JEt. 43. First three months iu Londun, Bide to Chester. Consin Abigail. Busy days. bored, and which it was the first object of his present visit to crave. These three changeful months, the prelude to three dazzling years, at once closed some chapters of the past and foreshadowed the future that was opening. They are described in the earlier letters of the Journal to Stella : not correctly so called, as I have said ; because, at the time when the letters composing it were addressed to Esther Johnson and her companion, the name which eternally connects her with Swift had not been applied to her. Most certainly it was not used in any part of the letters themselves, nor had been previously in any known piece of writing concerning her. Joe Beaumont accompanied him to the ship in which, attended by his servant Patrick, he embarked for England, having for fellow-voyagers his friend Lord Mountjoy, and the lord lieutenant. He reached Parkgate on Friday, the 1st of September, after a fifteen hours' sail ; and in riding to Chester his horse fell with him. But the horse under- standing falls very well, and lying quietly till his rider got up, there was no hm-t. The first man he met in Chester, and introduced at his request to Lord Wharton, was his friend the Yicar of Trim, who with Mrs. Baymond had crossed on some law business ; and he was so pressed by Lord Mountjoy, that Satui'day afternoon, to begin the London journey at once, that, stealing time only to write a brief letter to Esther Johnson, with another to the Bishop of Clogher, and to pay a short visit to his coz Abigail, whom he found grown prodigiously old, they started next morning. Never, he told^er, had he come to England in all his life with so little desire ; and he had a perfect res- olution to return as soon as he should have finished his commission, whether successful or not. On Thursday, the 7th of September, after five days' travel (weary the first, almost dead the second, tolerable the third, and well enough the rest). Swift arrived in Lon- don. The fatigue had served for exercise, yet had not quenched the appetite for more exercise. Before Satur- day was over he had conferred with some leading mem- § II.] OLD FRIENDS AND NEW. 289 bers of the whig ministry, among them the ex-lord-treas- i7io. urer himself ; had seen the Duke of Omiond, reported — ^'__?:- likely to be the new lord lieutenant, and conveyed to him messages from the new provost of the college ; had visited Steele, whom he found expecting to lose his place of gaz- etteer for attacking the toiies ; had seen his publisher, Ben Tooke ; had dined with his physician, Doctor Cockburn ; had passed Saturday afternoon with Sir Mat Dudley and the son of the English postmaster-general, "Will Frankland ; had met sundry other whig friends or associates at the coffee-house that evening, among them Jemmy Leigh and the painter Jervas ; and on reaching home at night so act- ively continued to employ himself, that by ten o'clock he had written to Archbishop King and sent ofE his second letter to Esther Johnson, and before going to bed had be- Begins his gun his Journals. Briefly I may add what that second letter contained. Very cordial had been his reception from all private Eeception friends. So much fatter and better was he looking, that ^ Jervas had made him promise to sit for a retouching of his picture, and already he is under engagement to Will Frankland to christen the baby his wife is near bringing to bed. The two days have not sufficed to carry him round half his circle ; but thus far all is as formerly, ex- cept that he may have lost a friend, and has certainly got an enemy, at court — Lady Wharton having taken to laugh at the royal circle, and old Lady Giffard having been much received there. Jack Temple and his wife had passed by him in their coach ; but he took no notice, and is glad to think, he had wholly shaken ofC the family. It is because he will not see Lady G-ifEard that he has not yet seen Es- ther's mother; but he promises to contrive to see her in the absence of the objectionable person. The whigs gen- erally were ravished to see him, but as with the eagerness of drowning men ;. for every thing was turning upside down, and as every whig in great office would, to a man, be infallibly put out, they were lavish of clumsy apologies to their old champion in the matter of his preferment. Vol. I.— 19 290 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. ^T. 43. Exception to the greetings. Premature resolve. Treason Against old frleuds. Eiiglifh and Irish rabble. There was nevertheless one exception : the dry Godolphin having shown him so much coldness that he was almost vowing revenge. Perhaps it would again be as it had been. Every body asked him how he came to be so long in Ireland, as naturally as if London were his being, yet no soul ofEered to make it so ; and he protested he should return to the canal at Laracor with more satisfaction than he ever did in his life. Let them prepare, then. She and Dingley are peaceably in his lodgings by this time, but he resolves to turn them out by Christmas; when he will either have done his business, or found it not to be done. And so, with a message to the provost, and his service to the dean and Mrs. Walls and her archdeacon, he winds up his brief dispatch just to tell her he is safe in London. For " it is near ten," and he " hates to send by the bellman." On the same night when that letter went, he began his Journals, and their first entry recorded his intercession with the English postmaster for a friend of Esther's, the Irish postmaster Manley, whose office was greedily sought in that shaking season for places, against whom there was some charge of opening letters, and for whom there was but little chance since Frankland himself was in danger. Lord Somers was still lord president, though waiting only the elections, a dissolution being now resolved, though the time was not fixed ; but Swift, the day before he went to him, fell in at " the club " with a discontented whig. Lord Radnor, with whom for an hour and a half he talked trea- son heartily against the whigs, their baseness and ingrati- tude. He came home a:j(erward rolling resentments in his mind and framing schemes of revenge ; in f uMllment of which he wrote some hints on that and on the follow- ing night, when he was discussing party changes even with his servant, Patrick. That worthy had taken occasion to observe that the rabble in England were much more in- quisitive in politics than the rabble in Ireland; and this was his master's experience also, for he protests he never saw so great a ferment among all sorts of people ; and as for Lord Wharton, who expected every day to be out, he §n.] OLD FRIENDS AND NEW. 291 1710. JEt. 43. was working " like a horse " for elections. JSFext day, after introducing Charles Ford to the Duke of Ormond, Swift visited Lord Somers; from whose uneasy questioning, withsomers. which he appears to have thought but a part of the same electioneering as "Wharton's, he turned off and asked coun- sel as to the first-fruits. " I put him always off when he began of Lord Wharton in relation to me, till he urged it : then I said he knew I never expected any thing from Lord "Wharton, and that Lord "Wharton knew I understood it so." Upon this, Somers remarked that he had written twice about Swift to "Wharton, who both times said noth- ing at all to that part of his letter ;* and, for himself, ex- pecting every day for these two months to be out, his ad- vice as to the first-fruits was that it would be much best not to meddle with it till the existing hurry was over. The interview was on the 12th, and it left Swift some- thing depressed : " I protest upon my life I am heartily weary of this town, and wish I had never stirred." Two nights before, Sunday, the 10th, he had been at the with Adm- St. James's with Addison and Steele until ten o'clock (aft- gtee"^ er dining with Lord Mountjoy in Kensington, where he found his old mistress, Ophy Butler's wife, grown a little charmless) ; and had advised Steele strongly not to " en- gage in parties." Next day he sat four hours to Jervas, sitting to who gave his picture quite another turn ; so that now the Am^m. painter himself approved it entirely, and only waited to have the approbation of the town. "If I were rich enough," says Swift, " I would get a copy of it and bring it over."f That day he dined alone with Addison at his lodgings, and sat with him in the evening. Tour days later, Addison, Colonel Freind, and himself, went to see * Exactly confirmatory of what is said, ante, 291. t Tliat masterly artist, Vertne, en- graved very finely tliis portrait, as well as Pope's by the same hand, Jervas himself superintending the work. "I intend this day," writes Jervas to Tope, "to call at Vertue's, to see Swift's brought n little more like, and see what is doing to one Pope.'' — Supplepient to Roscoe's Pop&, 13, in which a note attributes to Kneller the Swift portrait spoken of! But a worse-edited book than Kos- coe's hardly exists in literature. 292 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book "V. 1710. Mt. 43. Lottery nt Guildhall. No. 230. Old class- fellow, Stratford. Whig dinner. Ante, 242. Ante, 8T. the million lottery drawn at Guildhall; laughed at the jackanapes of Bluecoat boys giving themselves absurd airs in pulling out the tickets ; afterward dined together at a country house near Chelsea " wliere Mr. Addison often re- tires ;" and closed the night at the St. James's. Again, three days later, he dined alone wfth Addison at his Chel- sea retreat ; and getting home early, began, by way of help to Steele, a letter for the Tatler about the con-uptions of style and writing, which he wonders if Eishop Clogher will " smoke " for his. He had taken with him to that last dinner, Mr. Stratford, the Hamburg merchant, his old school-fellow and college chum, whose name has been read immediately above his own on the university roll ; be- lieved to be at present worth a plum, certainly now lend- ing the government forty thousand pounds, and a man of varied acquaintance. Swift had dined with him at a city merchant's four days before, when he first tasted Tokay, finding it admirable, but not to the degree he expected ; and on the lYth they dined together at the country house of Will Pate, the learned woolen-di-aper. " Six miles here are nothing : we left Pate after sunset, and were here before it was dark." Yet the dinner cost him a venison pasty, to which on his return he found an invitation for that very day; and fancying it by the handwriting to be. a letter from Mrs. Johnson, this proved a double disap- pointment. He has not been unmindful meanwhile of his lady friends. Bull, the haberdasher on Ludgate-hill, a relative of the bishop who died no^any days later, and a decided whig, had a hospitable home at Hampstead, and there at dinner, besides Ben Hoadly, afterward bishop, and a great deal of ill (whig) company, he was delighted to find Lady Lucy and " Moll " Stanhope, and grieved to hear bad news of Mrs. Long's having broken up house and all being a ruin with her. The news was confii-med a few days later, on his dining with a cousin, a printer, at whose house lodged Patty Eolt, another cousin, who had called on him at his arrival. Then came, on the 19th, a pressing letter § II.] OLD FRIENDS AND NEW. 293 from Lady Berkeley, begging him for charity to go and i7io. comfort her ailing lord at Berkeley Gastle; and that was — ^-'- the memorable day when, without further waiting for the teisdepused. elections, the lord president, lord steward, and secretary of state, Lord Somers, the Duke of Devonshire, and Mr. Boyle, were turned out ; to be shortly replaced by Lord Rochester, the Duke of Buckingham, and Mr. Henry St. John. Never had Swift remembered such bold steps taken by a court. He was almost shocked at it, though he did not care if they were all hanged. Strange wiU it be, he thinks, in the coming winter, to watch the struggles of a cunning, provoked, discarded party, and the triumphs of one in power ; but thus far he means to be an indifferent spectator of both, and to return peaceably to Ireland when he has finished, successfully or not, his part in the affair he is intrusted with. One thing — the delay in dissolving Dissolution parliament — ^had surprised him ; but the day after remark- ment^ '*" ing this, on the 21st, amidst great news from Spain, with Pampeluna taken by Staremberg, and King Charles and Stanhope at Madrid, the dissolution was announced, and Swift sent word of it to Esther Johnson from the St. James's coffee-house, where he had just received her first letter. There are still a few vivid personal touches which be- long to that week of party vicissitudes. Wonderful had been his own composure amidst the whig agitation. Lord Wharton, eagerly busy with elections in Bucks, had been sent for in violent haste by the Duke of Devonshire, but their projects were too late. Each day the coffee-house is shaken by fresh rumors, but Swift, not caring for them, comes " early home." One day the chancellor (Cowper) Law out, and Sir Simon Harcourt to succeed him ; next day Sir Simon to be lord keeper ; and two days later the great seal really in commission, and Sir Simon the new attorney- general. " Yesterday " the whig comptroller of the house- hold. Sir John Holland, sent urgently to see Swift, which the latter had a mind to refuse, " but he is a man of worth and learning ;" and following day (" po.x on these deelin- 294 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. ing courtiers !") came a desire for his acquaintance from - — ^ — '— Brydges, paymaster - general ; whom the queen herself, of chaudos. however, by message to the Duke of Shrewsbury, snatched out of the " declining " list. Swift was glad of this, be- cause Brydges had promised him help in the first-fruits affair ; and it was more than ever likely to be needed, for on the 18th there had been lost to him suddenly a great ally in the vice - treasurer of Ireland, Lord Anglesca, his leading tory friend. " I could hardly have a loss that could grieve me more." Bishop Bull, of St. David's, died A lodging the same day. Three days later he went into lodgings in vnnhom- Bury Street, next door to Mrs. Vanhomrigh's, and the in- ngh's. cidents that followed, up to the first memorable meeting with Harley, occupy his fourth and part of his fifth letter. On the 21st he was one of a dinner-party at the coffee- house with Will Pate, "Will Frankland, the Florence envoy Molesworth, Stratford, Steele, and Addison, when a din- ner for the same party, at Pate's country house, was ap- pointed for the Sunday following. There are also din- ners at Hampstead, with the Dean of Canterbury and Lady Lucy and Moll Stanhope; and with Frankland and his " Fortune," whom he finds not very handsome ; and then At Will another country dinner at Pate's, six miles away, from which he reaches home late, and is both weary and lazy, the day being hot as midsummer. Succeeding day, too, At Mrs. he continued so lazy that he went only next door to dine,* coming back at six to write letters. He dined with Sir John Holland, the comptroller, on the 26th, sitting with him till eight ; and this was followed, on the first i-ainy day since he came, by a dinner at Frankland's, to " all our company," of the Will Pate set, " with Steele and Addison too." He dined next, " alone at her lodgings," where her uncle. Sir Isaac Newton, also lived, with his old friend, Mrs. At Mrs. Barton; who gave him a bit of scandal about a lady of whose recent marriage Esther had questioned him, telling * Mrs. Vanhomrigh's, though, apparently by mere accident, the name is omitted. Van' Barton's. § II.] OLD FRIENDS AND NEW. 295 liim " for certain " that the lady was with child when last i7io. in England, and pretended a tympany, and saw every body ; — ^'^ "'- then disappeared for three weeks, when, her tympany gone, she looked like a ghost ! And no wonder she married, is his closing remark, when she was so ill at containing. On Michaelmas-day he dined with Addison at his Chel- Dining and sea retreat, painter Jervas being asked to meet him ; and ""P"""'"^- on the morrow dined with Stratford at a tavern, where Erasmus Lewis, just put in for one of the Cornish bor- oughs, Dartmouth's under-secretary and a great favorite of Mr. Harley's, was to have been, but was suddenly called away to his chief at Hampton Court. Some hints had already been dropped by Swift for carrying out schemes of revenge suggested by his visit to Godolphin, and he was not left in doubt as to the eagerness of the new min- . isters to enlist him in a service to which he is already more than half inclined. Coming home after that din- ner with Addison, he puts fresh touches to a lampoon against the ex- whig chief ; which he had also worked at after dining with Holland, another stanch whig, remark- ing then that it went on "very slow." A tory squib began to take additional relish from a whig dinner. Lady Berkeley had invited him to Berkeley Castle, and Lady Betty Germaine to Di-ayton in Northamptonshire; but he would go to neither. " Let me alone," he adds ; " I must finish my pamphlet." Ominous even is his re- mark on the weather as "a season of sudden changes." Six days ago he was dying with heat, and to-day is a bit- terly hard winter cold; but it is not of any suddenness from heat to cold he has now to accuse the whigs. " It is good to see what a lamentable confession they all make me of my ill-usage, but I mind them not." The character ciiamcter given of him to Harley, he has heard, is that of a discon- f^Hadey.™ tented person, used ill for not being whig enough ; and from him he hopes for good usage. But the tories now besetting Swift did not scruple to go farther. They dryly told him he might make his fortune if he pleased ; but he did not understand them, " or, rather, he does understand 296 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFr. [Book V. 1710. iKT. 43. Uiiusaal eensatiou for Swift. A rival pnuster. Sights at Hampton Court. Dining with Halifax. them." In other words, he listens in silence : " laughing," with a whimsical consciousness of former revolutionarj hahits, to see himself so " disengaged in these revolutions." Not in the social sense, however, as the reader observing his dinings-out will have guessed. It had cost him up to the 1st of October but three shillings in meat and drink since his arrival on the 7th of September, as thin as the town was ; and now he has more dinners than ever, and more invitations than he can accept for his many pre-en- gagements. It is the foretaste of his new friends, with attentions doubled and redoubled from the old. Lord Halifax had not been remiss in such courtesy. On that 1st of the month. Swift dined with the Florence en- voy, Molesworth ; leaving him early to go and sit with his friend, Darteneuf , " the greatest punner of this town next myseK ;" and, earlier the same day, he had arranged to accompany the Portugal envoy to dine on the morrow with Halifax, who occupied lodgings at Hampton Court during repairs of his house there. On the 2d, accord- ingly, he finds himself at Hampton Court, " in a cruel hard frost with ice ;" and, the queen being there, he went to the drawing-room before dinner, expecting to see no- body; but met acquaintance enough. He walked in the gardens; saw the cartoons of Eaffaelle; and closed the day by dining at Halifax's with Methuen, Delaval, and the ex- whig attorney -general ; having great difficulty to get away, and resisting all my lord's importunities to wait till next morning, when he wished to show his house and park and improvements new the village. At the dinner Halifax began a health to Swift — " The Eesurrection of the Whigs." But Swift refused it, unless he would add their " Eef oi*mation " too ; and took that occasion to tell him he was the only whig in England* he loved, or had any good opinion of. While he was speaking one of his oldest whig friends may have been passing away, for it was the day * Politician, or great minister, he I in Ireland," and so Swift would have means. Addison still was a " whig | called him. § II.] OLD riUENDS AND NEW. 297 of Lord Berkeley's death, of dropsy, at Berkeley Castle. i7io. ""We left Hampton Court at sunset, and got here in a '^' '"- chariot and two horses time enough by starlight. That's something charms me mightily about London : that you go dine a dozen miles ofi in October, stay all day, and return so quickly. You can not do any thing like this in Dublin." The great whig lord made one effort more. Swift had HhHivix dined the day after with Lord Mountjoy at Kensington, "^^''S'""- had walked into town in the evening "like an emperor," and, having written his journal, had put out his candle, when his landlady came into his room with a servant of Lord Halifax's to desire he would go dine with him next day at his own house near Hampton Court ; but Swift sent him word that he had business of great importance which hindered him. The important business was the introduc- tion to Harley. On that morning he was taken privately Private visit to the minister, who received him with the greatest kind- ^° ""^ ^^' ness and respect imaginable, and appointed him an hour on the following Saturday, when he was to " open his bus- iness" to him. Before the day closed, having in the in- terval dined with Delaval, the Portugal envoy, to meet Nic Eowe, the poet, and other friends, he had given to his printer the " lampoon " he had been busy with, and drop- ped some promise of " other mischief " in his heart ; for if this particular piece hits, and he can find hints, he thinks he shall go round with them all. But as a set-off he was going in charity to send another Toiler to Steele, "who has been very low of late." Delaval called for him next morning to carry him to Sir Godfrey Kneller, who wanted to paint his portrait ; but Sir Godfrey was out of town, and on their way back they came across a Westminster mob, the elections being Westminster now at their height, and the rabble crowded about their coach, crying, "A Colt ! A Stanhope !" both being whig favorites, and they themselves crying as readily for either. "We were afraid of a dead cat, or our glasses broken, and so were always of their side." But the voters (who went to church, and had to pay for the war) were on the other 298 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. Ml. 43. Arrival of Sir Audrew Fountaiue. Tlie elec- tions. Writing for Steele. side, and Cross and Medlieott had a thumping majority. Again, that day. Swift dined at Delaval's ; and in the even- ing, at the coffee-house, heard of the arrival in town of Sir Andrew Fountaine, who presented himself so early next morning in Bury Street as to catch Swift writing in bed. They went into the city together ; dined at a chop-house with the learned woolen-draper ; sauntered at china-shops and book-stalls ; drank two pints of white wine at a tav- ern, and did not part till ten at night ; when Swift, never- theless, set to work in his lodgings to copy papers for his interview with Harley next morning. But he was think- ing all the time of what every one told him about the elections, wafe wondering if the whigs still kept in their employments were meant to be a check on too large a majority of tories, and, none the brighter for his saunter- ing day, and the pint of white wine that had fallen to his share, blundered and blotted and tumbled asleep. Then came the interview with the minister, to be pres- ently spoken of, at which other things besides the first- fruits were brought up for discussion; and Swift was doubtless made thoroughly conscious that his old whig connection would not only be no disservice to him with Harley, but might be a help to those new friends. Prior had been won over, and Kowe, and there was a strong wish to be civil to Steele. During the week that followed his friendly compact with the tory leader, his intercourse with whigs rather increased than lessened. On the 10th of October he was writing for Steele '^The Shower in Zon- don," a masterpiece in its #vay ; and he took two whig friends, Fountaine and Lord Mountjoy, to dine at an Irish whig friend's, Lord Mountrath, where he "sat till elev- en like a fool," looking over Fountaine as he won eight guineas from Mr. Coote* at half-crown running ombre. * This was the Mr. Coote afterward introduced by Swift to Pope in these teritis : ''Dear Pope, Though tliis lit- tle fellow be a justice of peace and a member of our Irish House of Com- mons, yet he may not be altogether unworthy of your acquaintance. J. S." — From the Relation of Mr. Jones, of Welwyn, to Sjience (^Anecdotes, 26G). § II.] OLD FRIENDS AND NEW. 299 Next morning " T/ie Shower " was finished " all but the i7io. beginning ;'' and to another paper in hand for Steele he — — — '— made some addition ; dining afterward by Temple Bar with Docjtor Garth, to meet Addison, when their talk sug- gested, doubtless,, the reflection which he adds, that one dull subject then swallowed up every thing (" your town is certainly much more sociable "), for the only inquiry ev- ery day was after the new elections. The tories were car- rying it six to one. Addison's election, to be sure, had one excep- passed easy and undisturbed; and if he had a mind to be whi'grout! chosen king. Swift believed he'd hardly be refused: but generally the whig party had been routed. They had been sure of the four members for London, yet had lost three out of the four. Onslow had lost Surrey, and they were overthrown in most counties. For his own part, he has done with them, and he hopes they have done with the kingdom "for our time." She would ask how he stood with the new people? Ten times better than he Toryovevt- did Avith the old, forty times more caressed. Everywhere oozes out the confidence the new men were placing in him. At Garth's dinner they had been talking of the lord - lieutenancy, and Addison thought it would be in commission; but on the last day of that week what he had before told Esther Johnson came true. Wharton and Addison were out, and the Duke of Ormond was viceroy. "A silly thing" he did next day, which yet had some attendant circumstances giving it claim to mention and re- membrance. He had been all about St. Paul's and up at up to the top the top, like a fool, with Sir Andrew Fountaine and two more, who afterward led him to spend seven shillings for his dinner. That was the second time; but he should never do it again, though all mankind (" unconsidering puppies !") should persuade him. One of the party was a youth they were all fond of, about a year or two come fi-om the university — one Harrison ; a little, " pretty " fel- low, with a great deal of wit, good sense, and good-nature ; who was author of some "mighty pretty" things ("that in your sixth Miscellanea about the ' Sprig of an Orange ' 300 THE LIFE 03? JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. Ml. 43. Men of fash- ion with men of wit. A protegS of Swift and Addison. Steele nnd )iis appoint- IDCUtB. is his ") ; who had nothing to live on but being governor to one of the Duke Queensbeny's sons for forty pounds a year ; and yet the fashionable f ellovfs were always invit- ing him to taverns, and making him pay his club. With liimself , Swift adds, it was not much better ; but he would see them rot before they should continue to serve him so. There was Lord Halifax always teasing him to go down to his country house, at a cost to him of a guinea to the servants and twelve shillings coach-hire; and he should be hanged first. There was Anthony Henley, of the Grange, making himself one of little Hai-rison's great cro- nies, carrying him often to their six or seven shillings' tavern-reckonings, and always making the poor lad pay his full share. It vexed Swift to the heart ; for he loved the young fellow, was resolved to stir up people to do something for him, and hoped, as he was a whig, to put him on some of his own " cast " whigs. The sequel will show how sincere this was, and how genuine the liking- professed. Addison had been Harrison's first patron, prais- ing his verse and getting the tutorship for him ; and, from the first hour they met, Swift's kindliest consideration was never wanting to the young man, for whom he was care- ful to practice what he so wisely preached. "A colonel and a lord were at him and me to-night. I absolutely re- fused, made Harrison lag behind, and persuaded him not to go to them. I tell you this, because 1 find all rich fel- lows have that humor of using all people without any con- sideration of their fortunes." When next we see hinl, t]»e morning after that day, a more important whig tlian little Harrison, and more difii- eult to win over to the opposite ranks, is the object of his solicitude. He has been two hours at the secretary of state's office with Erasmus Lewis, talking politics, and dis- cussing (perhaps a little prematurely) the chances of re- taining Steele in the office of stamped paper still held by him. He had lost his gazetteership of three hundred pounds a year by a paper which Anthony Henley had written against Harley, who gave him the place, raising it § ir.] OLD FRIENDS AND NEW. 301 from sixty to three hundred pounds. That was " devilish i7io. ungrateful," says Swift; but he hardly at the moment — - — - saw the whol'e case. He had received a hint implying more than seems at once to have been rightly understood. He was told that he might save his old friend in the other appointment, or, in other words, leave was given him to "clear matters with Steele." Harley doubtless would Hariey's have been glad to get Steele back, or any part of him tain st^eiJ. back, on any terms ; but Swift, though at the time likely himself largely to profit by this weak (or strong) side of the minister's character, missed the explanation it afforded in Steele's case of Harley's not unselfish interest in the success of the "hint" he had given, and treated it too ex- clusively as for Steele's benefit alone. Dining next day with another whig. Sir Mat Dudley, ofE he went to Addi- son after dinner, to oifer the matter to him at distance as the " discreeter person ;" but party so possessed him (Swift How Addu could think of no other explanation) that he " suspected swiffs in- me," and would fall in with nothing. Was it not vexa- *«'*'''''"=«• tious, and when should he grow wise ? He endeavored to act in the most exact points of honor and conscience ; and his nearest friends, such as Addison and Steele, would not understand it so. "What must a man expect from his en- emies ? Next day he dined with the Florence envoy. Moles- worth, went thence to the coffee-house, where he punished himself by behaving coldly to Addison, and so came home to scribble. All he will do to keep up the coldness is. but the measure of what he will do to end it. He and Addi- Tmnbies of son were to dine together to-morrow and next day ; but he should not alter his behavior till Addison begged his par- don. They should grow bare acquaintance else. He had become weary of friends; all but MD's were monsters. Then came Mat Dudley's dinner on the morrow, when he was again talking with Addison ; but he left at six to go to Harley, whom he found ill and gone to bed, " unless the porter lied." Next day's dinner was with Addison's sis- Addison's ter, "a sort of wit, very like him," though not such a fa- friendship. sister. 302 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Booic V. 1710. Ml. 43. Visit to Congreve. vorite witli Swift, married to a prebend of Westminster, a Frencliman named Sartre, whose house and garden in the cloisters he thought delicious, but savoring of the monas- tic too much for him, and wanting the freshness of Lara- cor. Here were both Steele and Addison ; and the friends seem to have been much as of old, not quite " monsters " yet. Swift had heard that morning of the death of one of the Moor Park circle, " Mrs. Temple the widow," much to the " outward grief and inward joy " of the family ; and the following day he found himself in a iiest of cousins that reminded him perhaps more forcibly of those early days. But first he had gone to see a very old friend and fa- vorite, the author of the Old bachelor and Way of the World. Congreve was now almost blind, had two cata- racts growing on his eyes, and was never rid of gout ; yet Swift found him looking young and fresh, and as cheerful as ever, though Congreve gave his visitor a pain in the great toe by merely mentioning the gout. " I find such suspicions frequently, but they go ofE again." Swift was older than his school-fellow by three years or niore, but felt as if he were twenty years younger ; and his dinners and wines have not yet the danger for him he was soon to feel. He had yet no misgiving in dining at Stratford's in the city, with Burgundy and Tokay ; coming " back afoot like a scoundrel ;" then going to Addison ; and aftei-ward making himself sick all night by supping with Lord Mount- joy. Not the less was he ready next day for a dinner with an Irish friend of Ppisie, Mr. Enoch Sterne, collector of Wicklow and clerk to the House of Lords, from which he was driven away early by a " prince of puppies, Col. Edgeworth ;" then on the morrow he would dine again with Stratford at a young city merchant's, with Hermit- age and Tokay ; and the following day, the 19th, when his letter was to go, he had dined in the city with Addison, scthoctober. Nor sliould another city entertainment be forgotten, when, in what he called plaguy twelvepenny weather (had cost him ten shillings in coach and chair hire that last week), City Tensts. § ir.] OLD FRIENDS AND NEW. 303 he went to dine with his cousin, Patty Rolt ; who lodged i7io. at Leach's, printer of the tory Postman, also his cousin with a pox ! It is a theme of which his sarcasm never tires, this prolific race of Swifts ; all the sons of Godwin, not to speak of numerous others, having been fertile of offspring, and supplying him with an ever-springing mush- room growth of kinsfolk. Oh oh ! And Leach was his Anu, 37. cousin, God knows how ; and had married another of his cousins; and now condescendingly offered to bring him acquainted with the author of the Postman, a very ingen- ious man and great scholar who had been beyond sea ; but Swift was modest, and said maybe the gentleman was shy, and so put it off. "And I wish you could hear me repeat- swift among ing all I have said of this, in its proper tone just as I am writing it, all with the same cadence, with oh hoo, or as when little girls say, I have got an apple, miss, and won't give you some." But the talk of this family party in the city had turned much on bank stock and its extraordinary profits, and through all his jeers at his cousins one sees (as will hereafter appear) that he has been bitten by their talk. There were but a very few days before the post would claim" his letter, and whig engagements were in every one. Wic Eowe, the poet, had stood so well with the whigs at the wiih nic time of Addison's Irish appointment, that he succeeded to the place of under-secretary which Addison "had in En- gland ;" but as he was content to remain under the new dispensation, Harley was only too glad to keep him, and Swift called on him " at his office " on the 27th. There he met Prior, who joined them afterward at dinner with the under-secretary, and the whole three went later to " a blind tavern," where they found Oongreve, Sir Richard Temple, Dick Eastcourt, the player (of whom Steele writes so charmingly), and Charles Maine, over a bowl of bad punch. Swift refused it ; on which Temple sent for six flasks of his own wine for him, and they sat till twelve. Pemembering the gouty twinge at Oongreve's, however, he was for that day abstemious. He was, nevertheless, at „,. ^ „ , a hedge tavern next day with Garth and Addison (difncult audAddison. 304 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. iSi. 43. Hitting Pembroke with a pun. An alarm. to drop these whig friends, however short of one's expec- tation they may fall), going afterward to Harley, who was " denied or out ;" then visiting Lord Pembroke just come to town, where they wei'e very merry talking of old things, and Swift hit him with one pun ; and, finally, weary of the coffee-house, closing the day at the lodging of his next neighbor, Ford (as near to him in Bury Street on the one side as Mrs. Vanhomrigh on the other), where he sat chat- tering " like a fool " till twelve. One discovers that some doubts of Harley in regard to finance had at this time oc- curred to him, and it was clear the whigs were counting on the new minister's inability to carry through his under- taking. " God knows what will become of it. I should be terribly vexed to see things come round again : it will ruin the church and clergy forever : but I hope for better." Something was in this remark more than the friend to whom it was written could yet entirely comprehend. He had just spoken to her of a quasi-kinsman of his, an old whig partisan who had lately enlisted in the service of the tories ;* but she had thus far received no direct intima- tion that he was himself to take such a turn, and to her these continued whig engagements might seem to make it hardly lilcely. Bat, though they filled the rest of this letter, it was not to close without revealing the change in himself that began to render such whig engagements wearisome. One day he is dining with Addison, and on the next with Doctor Cockburn, coming home at seven, and Ford sitting with him till eleven^ JSText day again he dines at * This was Doctor Charles Dave- nant, son of the celebrated Sir Wil- liam, and uncle to the "little parson- cousin" (see ante, 156), who, to court the tories, had lately written a piece not inaptly named Tom Double, and who a few nights back had teased Swift at the St. James's to look over some writings of his ; but Swift had avoided him and gone off with the comptroller to Sir Mat Dudley's for very good reasons: "The rogue is so fond of his own productions that I hear he will not part with a syllable ;" to which he adds a veiy valuable hint of his own style : " The puppy uses so many words that I was afraid of his company." When Harley afterward would tease Swift, he attributed to Doctor Davenant, or the parson-cons- in, what he knew that Swift had writ- ten. § II.] OLD FRIENDS AND NEW. 305 Kensington with Addison and Steele, staying till nine, i7io. and going to the coffee-house plaguy weary, for " Col. Proud" was ill company, and he drank punch, and was "f"oiici!" made hot. Then he dines at Sir Eichard Temple's with ""*^' ^''^■ General Farrington, Congreve, and Vanbrugh, the latter swift and and himself being only " civil and cold." Ppt would re- member what he told her of his long quaiTel about the verses on his house, Marlborough's wife having teased him about them, though a good-natured fellow. Yet again, the following day, he dines with Vanbrugh and Addison at the Portugal envoy's; Admiral Wager, Sir Richard Temple, and Mr. Methuen being of the party ; and himself stealing away at five, rather weary. And following this there is a supper at Addison's with Garth, Steele, and an Irish friend of Ppt's, Mr. Dopping, just come over. But the most whiggish and least agreeable entertainment of the whole was on that very 10th of October, at Lady Lucy Stanhope's, when they all ran down Swift's " Shower," and uuexpectea told Prior, whom they mistook for the author, that " Sid Plamet " was the silliest poem they ever read ! Will Ppt wonder, after this, that he didn't dine there before; or that he don't like women so well as he did ? " MD, you must know, are not women." What MD was to him, supplying, if not woman, the place of all women, must now have illustration ; and, be- fore the graver issues of this memorable London visit come to be related, the picture of Swift among old and new friends during its first three months must have by its side, for a companion picture, his confidences to Esther John- son. YoL. L— 20 306 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. III. ESTHER JOHNSON. 1710. ^T. 43. 1710. Presenting tlms, indeed, from his own letters, Swift's — - — :_ daily life at a momentous time, their disclosures would be incomplete, and her story for whom they were written would remain untold, if those portions of them more es- pecially and exclusively meant for her, with their playful, pure, and winning tenderness, were left out of the record. What Swift's Many were the grounds for pride in receiving them, but pued? '"' l^ere must have been the most valued. Such letters from such a man were no ordinaiy tribute; but far beyond the magnitude or interest of the incidents related was the personal spell exerted over herself. To the girl who from her childhood had known the writer for playfellow, teach- er, friend, and companion, their thousand innocent, half- childish, fantastic, fascinating touches of personal attach- ment may well have come to represent for her the charm and the sufEciency of life. Her own content- ment that this should be so, there appears to be no rea- son to doubt. Ante, 217, Of the " little language " used in their intercourse some- thing must now be said. I^on a previous page has been expressed the desire Swift had for a " life by stealth " be- tween himself and her, or, in other words, for confidences the world was not to share ; and there is nothing strained in the belief that there may in this be some remote shadow or fancy of the first intention with which they began to talk to each other in phrases special to themselves. Such Ante, 122. was the " little," or childish, language to which allusion has been made as perhaps dating from her girlhood at Sir "William Temple's ; which, when he spoke, he describes him- § III.] ESTHER JOHNSON. 307 self "making up his mouth" for, as grown people do l7io. when they imitate children ; and of which I have never ' — '-. found the slightest trace except in his intercourse with her. Extravagant as were his later interchanges of other kinds The"iittie of nonsense with Sheridan and his circle, there is no ex- ° '° " ample of any thing resembling this ; and as it does not admit of doubt that he and Esther Johnson really talked, as well as wrote, such particular silliness, it can not be ex- cluded from any picture of the life they lived together. But how make it out in any detail ? It existed nowhere but in the letters to her and Mrs. Dingley used in the pre- ceding section, and forming what is called the " Journal to Stella ;" and those letters had been so printed that a dozen childish words or so, dropped here and there, were all that the editors had suffered to remain of what was once the accompaniment of every entry in them of daily sayings or doings. Any careful reader of the diaries, though he may never have heard of the little language, eees at once that the text must have been strangely meddled with. In the Fiisi forty first forty letters Swift calls himself Presto, and Esther Johnson, Stella ; though he never called Esther by that name until long after all the letters were written, and never at any time called himself by the other name, wliich first appears in the twenty - seventh letter as the inven- tion of the Duchess of Shrewsbury, who had forgotten the English word and substituted her native Italian. In this form were printed nearly two-thirds of the whole. But Last twenty- in the last twenty-five letters both Presto and Stella dis- "'''^ '^"^'*" appear ; what Swift really had written, Pdfr for himself and Ppt for his friend, take their place ; and at beginnings and endings, mornings and nights, of the journals of al- most every day, traces unmistakably appear, not indeed of the little language, but of a disjointed speech with wliich some one has replaced it. Misgivings, -unknown to the editor of the first forty, had beset the editor of the last twenty-five letters, though in actual publication the last preceded the first ; but both alike fail to express what the language or the use of it was, and it seemed essential, 308 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710.^ properly to illustrate Swift's life, that attempt should be '—"'- made to obtain access to any originals of these famous let- terg that might still be in existence. The success which attended this effort appears on a later page, and from the section of restored passages entitled Post, 425. " Swift's Unprinted and Misprinted Journals," the reader Vv'ill learn much. He will see that in the earlier letters, on all occasions, silent substitution is to be made of Pdfr and Ppt for the " Presto " and " Stella " with which the first editors unwarrantably replaced them ; that Swift is liim- self throughout Pdfr, sometimes Podefar and FE, or other fragments of what may be assumed to be Poor Dear Fool- ish Rogue ; that besides Ppt, which presumably is Poppet, or Poor Pretty Thing, it is also Mrs. Johnson, who is for the most part designated by MD, My Dear, though this occasionally comprises Mrs. Dingley as well ; and that for the latter lady exclusively D or DD, Dingley or Dear Dingley, stands always ; ME, or Madam Elderly, being only now and then applied to her. Other words or combi- nations of letters are explained in their place, and some may not be perfectly deciphered ; but in the restorations given in my sixth book the little language first becomes accessible in a form that makes any approach to being complete or continuous. " Do you know what," says Swift to her, " when I am writing in our language I make up' my mouth just as if I were speaking it. I caught my- self at it just now." All may now catch him at it, ob- serving the passages recovered from the letters to Esther Johnson. , Ever since he left Dublin his thoughts have turned to her. From Chester, in his first letter, he had prayed God Almighty bless her, "bless poodeerichar MD," and she was for God's sake to be merry, and "get oo health." Every body else was to write to him under cover to Steele, to save postage ; but for hers he would pay at the coffee- house, to get them sooner, till he should have tried the other arrangement. At present they occupy his lodgings § III.] ESTHER JOHNSON. 309 in Dublin ; and if Mrs. Curry* makes any difficulty, he mo. will quit them, and pay her from July. Ppt is, above all, ^' ^' to hold her resolution of going to Trim, and riding there i„ swtft'r as much as she can ; and again, at the close, he prays God '°''s™g- to bless her and her friend. His solicitudes are renewed in his letter of the 9th, when Esthei'e he is anxious to hear of her being at Trim by the time she joLusod." gets it, riding a little horse called Johnson after herself, "who must now be in good case." He then tells her his what the intention to write something every day to MD, and make wereTo be. it a sort of journal, and send it when full whether MD writes or not ; and so " that will be pretty," and he shall always be in conversation with MD and MD with Pdfr. He thinks of her as dining at home, that Sunday when he writes, and "there was the little half-pint of wine," and they are to be good girls and all will be well. Next was his shaving-day (including often, in those times of peri- wigs, head as well as beard), and so, at seven in the morn- ing, she was not to keep him, for he could not stay, being also in a hurry to get to Jervas to sit, and pray let them dine with the dean, but not lose their money. In a few days he is speculating on the great deal of china he means to take them over, and, naming his own health as pretty well, prays God Ppt may give him a good account of hers. Then, on the very day when he changes his Pall Mall Her first lodging for one in Bury Street, her first letter comes, and '^"''''' he thanks God for all being well. Hastening at once to seal up his o-nm third, which he has brought to the St. James's cofEee-house for the purpose, he stops just to send a message to his agent, Parvisol, about an offer for Ppt's horse. " Sell it with a pox !" he exclaims. " Pray let him know that he shall sell his soul as soon. What ! Sell any thing that Ppt loves, and may sometimes ride ? Little John- Let him sell my gray, and be hanged, but little Johnson be'soid!'" is hers, and let her do as she pleases." * Swift addresses this letter to her, I Fountaine/'Mrs. Curry's over against as we have seen himself addressed by I the Earn in Capel Street." 310 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. Of course his fourth letter answers her first ; but it an- '- — ^ swers also her second, which amved five days later (the 26th) ; and what had been the contents of both we are at no loss to find from the hints, allusions, ejaculations, lov- ing reiterations, boyish playfulness, manly tenderness, that come crowding upon us, overflowing and making them- selves part of every most indifferent topic he talks* about. For all his fears that there might be weariness at the plaguy deal he writes, it was clear that saucy MD " much thought " his paper was too small, and grudged his miss- ing even space for a line. Saucebox ! he calls her. That He must tell she must, f orsooth, know every day and each day where diue's^euny. he dines ! Such a stir and bustle with this little MD of ours ! He was to write " constantly," forsooth. Every night, then, he must be writing.- He can not put out his candle till he has bid them good-night. O Lord ! O Lord ! Ppt makes excuse for her handwriting, but he protests she writes like an emperor, only he is afraid it hurts her eyes— ^" take care of that, pray, pray, Mrs. Ppt." As to his own writing, she is to smoke how he widens the mar- gin by lying in bed when he writes ;* but he mustn't say His letters good-night SO as to lose a line, oh no, or MD will scold ; wajsfaii ^^^ to -^^'^ "good-night, sirrahs," he has sometimes to add " no, no, not night," because he is writing in the morning. But morning and night he is wholly MD's; and after wishing her a merry Michaelmas, he couples with it the last at Laracor and the next that is to come at his little goose's lodgings ; and he calls her a brave boy, and a Mrs. Owl, and a little MD, and a Mjptress Ppt. One thing he finds to be wrong. They have not gone to Trim, and he does not like their reasons for not going ; but they are in Pdfr's lodgings, and there is some project of the Bishop of Clogher's wife to take them for a visit t6 Ballygall, which he delightedly thinks will be a pure good place for air. They want him in some business of * "My bed lies on the wrong side for me, so that" (now) "I am forced often to write when I am np." § III.] ESTHER JOHNSON. 311 Joe Beaumont's to get an order from the queen, which he i7io. laughs at for a jest : " such a combustion liere that even in ^— ' - an affair concerning the clergy of a whole kingdom he is and Joe! advised not yet to meddle, and will any body trouble the queen about Joe ?" To their inquiries about his servant, Patrick, who had been discharged and taken back at their entreaty,* he reports him drunk about three times a week, and that he bears it, and Pat had got the better of him ; but one of these days, when none of them are by to inter- cede, he will have positively to turn him off to the wide world. Many questions they have asked about Ppt's Esther's mother, whom he has been doing his best to contrive to "'° see without seeing Lady GifEard ; and the subject is re- sumed in her second letter, which reaches him before the reply to her first is gone, and which he begins to answer the night he gets it, as he lies in bed. " Here's a clutter ! I've not seen your mother yet: my penny-post letter I suppose miscarried." So he wrote another, which brought a special visit to him next day from Ppt's sister (soon to Esfter's change her name to Filby), " and she looked very well, and seemed a good modest sort of girl." Already he is preparing a box to go to Dublin: with chocolate for Ppt's health, and for Dingley " the finest piece of Bi'azil tobacco that ever was bom." She wants him to consult some See my physician about his ears, but he does not think any lady's iv., a. ' advice about his ears signifies twopence ; and PadcliflEe he knows not, and Bernard he never saw ; however, in com- pliance to her he'll ask Doctor Cockburn. He promises he injunctions will eat no grapes : indeed, he eat about six the other day at Sir John Holland's, and would not give sixpence for a thousand, they are so bad this year. Nor will he drink any aile, by which he supposes her to mean ale, for he has good wine every day of five and six shillings a bottle. The ladies had got into some way of saving shillings, which he does not like (he connects it with their not go- * I quote from his note-book of the present j-ear: "Patrick came to me the 2d time Feb. 9, 1709-'10." for diet. 312 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. JEt. 43. Ppt'8 pumiing. Her second letter. His new lodging. Debauch with Foiuit- aine. ing to Trim) ; and it vexes him' that Ppt should be a cow- ard in a coach. As for the alleged robbery of "Walls, he says the archdeacon will certainly be stingier for sev- en years upon pretense of it. Ppt had been punning. " AVhy, it is well enough," he says : but he will not second it, though he could make a dozen : he had never thought of a pun since he left Ireland. Yes, 'faith ! he eagerly re- plies to a wish expressed by Esther and her friend in this second letter, he does hope in God that Pdfr and MD will be together this time twelvemonth ! (And, O Lord ! he exclaims when he gets so far, how much Ppt writes ! Young women should not carry that too far, but be tem- perate to hold out.) Mr. Harley he is not to see for some days yet. For Manley, on whose behalf they are again strongly interceding, he will do his best. That he would himself have small hopes from the Duke of Ormond, they seem to have greatly feared. But why ? he says to that. "He loves me very well, I believe, and would in my tmn give me something to make me easy But I do not think of any thing farther than the business I am upon." Tie closes by satisfying her curiosity about the lodging in Bury Street to which he removed a week ago. He has the first floor, a dining-room and bed-chamber, at eight shil- lings a week : " plaguy deep," he adds, but he spends noth- ing for eating, never goes to a tavern, and very seldom in a coach : yet, after all, " it will be expensive." It was now the first week of October, and he tells her at its close of a Sunday dinner, " as a spunger," with frieiids known to her " that board hereabout " (Pord, Fountaine, and Sir Charles Levinge) ; and in the evening Fountaine would needs make Swift go with Ford and himself to sup at a tavern, where they had a neck of mutton d la Mainte- non that a dog could not eat, and for two bottles of Por- tugal and Florence, among the three, had to pay each six- teen shillings ; but if ever Fountaine catched him so again, he protested he would spend as many pounds ! And so he came straight home ; not fond at all of the St. James's coffee-house, as he used to be, and hoping it might mend § III.] ESTHER JOHNSON. 313 in winter, every body now being out of town at elections, i7io. or not come from their country houses. He was Bot at — - — — all easy that night, the " ugly nasty filthy wine " titming sour on his stomach ; but he was not so ill as to be pre- vented from dining next day with Sir John Stanley, Lady Lady Stanley being one of his favorites. The day following, """^''' his fifth letter was to be posted, but he shall keep it till he can throw in a word about a dinner to which Harley, at their first interview, had invited him ; and some addi- tion from it may meanwhile be made to the more intimate privacies of the time it covers. Was he not bringing him- self into a fine prcemunire, he had said at its opening, to begin writing letters in whole sheets ? And now he dares not leave it off. lie can not tell if she likes these journal Does she letters, he believes they would be dull to him to read them journals? over ; but perhaps little MD is pleased to know how Pdf r passes his time in her absence. He always begins his lat- est on the day its predecessor ends. All her commissions, to the most minute, he executes ; describes what he means to do for Postmaster Manley, and how Southwell and Mr. Addison will see that Joe Beaumont's affairs are not lost sight of ; and tells her even bits of indifferent gossip. " Smoke Pdfr writing news to MD." Bethinking him of Does he some reproach of hers, well, he says, but he ought to write ^'"'^ '' "'" ' plainer when he considers Ppt can not read, and DD is not skillful at his ugly hand. " Do not lose your money at Manley's to-night, sirrahs," is his good-night as he puts out his candle. Another night he turns to read a pam- phlet to amuse himself, and so prays God preserve their dear healths. Often he gets into difiiculty with unconscious repetitions, m- repent He will be far enough, is his exclamation, but he says the ™^^ ' same thing over two or three times, just as he does when talking to little MD ! But what cares he ? They can read it, as easily as he can write it. (He thinks he has brought those lines pretty straight again ; but he fears it will be long before he finishes two sides at this rate!) "An in- sipid sort of day," he closes one of his journals with. 314 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. JEt. 43. Ante, 213. "Fresh aud fastiDg." His life in his iaaihals. Sends off fifth letter. " nothing to remark upon worth threepence." Hopes MD had a better, with the dean, or the bishop, or Mrs. Walls. Is sure he had seen her, the night before, playing ombre at Manley's (roguishly altered to " last night but one " on tidings from Manley, before post-time, that she had then been so engaged) ; for he sat looking over her hand, and he tells her the mistakes she made. Busy next night for Harley, he could only heartily wish himself with them ; and that he would be, as soon as he either failed in or compassed his iirst-fruits business. And so let them go to their cards, and their claret and orange at the dean's, and he will go write. He must, nevertheless, take up his diary again at day-break to wish them good-morrow ; and very pretty he thinks it that he must be writing to young women in a morning, fresh and fasting, 'faith ! But it is a foolish' trick he has got. He must say something to MD whenever he wakes, even though it should only be "get you gone, you rogues," when he is busy. Yes, it would vex him to the blood if any of these long letters should miscarry : if they did, he should shrink to half sheets again, and half the journal would go too : " Ten days of Pdfr's life lost, and that would be a sad thing, 'faith and troth." Yet it sets him thinking, too, what scurvy company he'd be to MD when he went back. Why, they knew every tiling of him already, and he should have nothing to say ! Positively he'd tell them no more, or he should have noth- ing left, no story to tell, nor any kind of thing ! He real- ly thought, still, he should «oon go back to her. But by this time Harley's djnner is over; he has hur- ried home to put the linishing-stroke before his journals go ; and so " puddled up " among papers was poor MD's letter, he means poor Pdfr's letter, he could not find it. Yes, here it is ; and its last words are that he has dined with Harley, and hopes some things would be done, but must say no more, because the letter must be sent to the post-house, and not by the bellman. Again next Sunday, and he trusts to some good issue, he is to dine at Harley's. Then, by way of close, they are to imagine him, as soon as § III.] ESTHER JOHNSON. 315 ever he is in bed, beginning his sixth to MD as gravely i7io. as if he had not wi'itten a word that month ; fine doings, -^" " 'faith ! Why, methinks he doesn't write as he should, =^s'"*^'^* because he is 7iot in bed : just see the ugly wide scrawl. God Almighty ever bless them ! Taking a last look at the letter as he folds it up — 'faith, 'tis a whole treatise. He will go reckon the lines on the other sides. He has reckoned them Seventy - three lines in folio, small hand, on one side ! And so goes his fifth letter. Half an hour after its departure he had begun his sixth Dinner at with mention of his introduction, at that first dinner at *'®^*- Harley's on the 10th of October, " with much compliment on all sides," to Sir Simon Harcourt, the attorney-general, and their discussion of the memorial to the queen, with results to be presently related. He might at last believe, indeed, that it needed nothing more to gain Fortune over, 13 Fortune since of no less a person than the first minister he could ''•^^"''^'• add, " I am told by all hands he has a mind to gain ')ne over ;" and though he lingered still among the whigs, and helped the wits of the party, the whig ties will soon be seen daily loosening, and his own resolve to have done with them will not much longer be withheld. Meanwhile he has to tell of the safe arrival of another letter from her to which the journals he is now writing are to carry back the answer. He had dined in Addison's company with their old Irish secretary, ISTed Southwell, and walked afterward with Ad- dison in the park, when, upon closing the day at the St. James's, he had brought away a letter fi-om the Bishop of Clogher, and a packet under that gazetteer envelope which she still sends hers by. This will inclose one, he is sure. He opens the bishop's at once ; but puts up Steele's en- velope, visits a lady friend just come to town, and on get- ting home and into bed dandles and toys with the packet that is to yield him so much pleasure, and prays God send he may find MD well and happy and merry, and that they love Pdfr " as they do fires." Oh, he will not open it yet : yes, he will ! No, he will not I " I am going ; I can not 316 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. Mt. 43. Playful joy on arrival of letters. Disappoint- mcuts. She ask3 for more. TransformeS "little lan- guage." stay till I turn over ; what shall I do ? My fingers itch ! And now I have it in my left hand ; and now I will open it this very moment !" He breaks the seal, and others appear before that which he most desires. What is this ? Only some letter from a bishop perhaps, and of course too late. Nobody's credit but his own should be employed in that first - fruits matter now. Pshaw ! It's from Sir Andrew Fountaine. What ! another ? what Mrs. Barton promised, he supposes? But no, she writes a better hand (and he hopes Ppt will inquire for hers at Dawson's ofiice at the castle) : this, by the scrawl, must be Patty Holt's — ah no ! it is from poor Lady Berkeley, writ before my lord's death, to invite him to Berkeley Castle that winter ; and how it grieved his heart ! for she says, poor lady, she hopes my lord is in a fair way of recovery. And then at last came MD's, her number three, dated the 26th of Sep- tember, though a letter from Manley of the 3d of October reached five days ago. They had all lain a fortnight in Steele's ofiice, and forgot ! Well, Steele was turned out, and she was in future to direct to him under cover to Addison. And now he had settled himself to read her letter, what was it? Why, it madei him mad — "flidikins!" he had been the best boy in Christendom, and there she came complaining with her two eggs a penny ! But, after all, he thinks there was a chasm between his second and third ; yet, 'faith, he would not promise to write to her every week ; only every night he would write, and send it al- ways when full, which would J[)e once in ten days. Then lovingly he turns the tables a little. If Ppt begins to take up the way of writing to Pdfr just because it is Tuesday, 'egad, it will grow a task o' Monday ! " But write when you have a mind jSTo, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Agad, agad, agad, agad, agad, agad, no poo poo stellakins!'' He is going to sleep, but must tell her first of what hap- pened the night before her letter.* " Lord ! I dreamed of * At the close of my preceding I the "little language" is left by ruth- page a sliglit mutilated fragment of I less editors, who have closed it with § III.] ESTHER JOHNSON. 317 Ppt SO confusedly last night, and that we saw Dean Bol- i7io. ton and Sterne go into a shop ; and she bid me call them — ^■— "-' to her ; and they proved to be two parsons I knew not ; '^'"' ' and I walked about till she was shif tin'g ; and such stuff, mixed with much melancholy and uneasiness, and things not as they should be, and I know not how :" waking to an ugly, gloomy morning. She had asked him what he was writing. Only three things had he printed since he came, but they had fixed on him fifty things. He tells her all about " The Shower," hinting at others he " dare not " send her ; and he had a Tatler in hand which she and Dingley would " smoke," as he had before referred to it. Of the three printed things, the " Sid Hamet " lampoon was what he cried up to the skies, though nobody at first (except Fount- pabusuiug. aine) suspected him ; at least, they said nothing. Hadn't he told them of a great man receiving him very coldly ? " that was he, but say nothing, it was only a little re- venge I am not guessed at all in town to be the au- thor; yet so it is: but that. is a secret, only to you. Ten to one whether you see them in Ireland ; yet here they run prodigiously." As a piece of writing, however, it was not so good as " The Shower," which the people here called his best thing, and so he thought it. Yes. Tooke was go- ing on with his Miscellany, and he'd give a penny to in- clude the Bishop of Killala's letter. Couldn't they con- Anu^m. trive to say to him that they wished the book-seller who was putting " my things " together had that letter among the rest? But they were not to say any thing of it as from him. He forgot whether it was good or no, but hav- ing heard it much commended, perhaps it might deserve it. To continued inquiries after his footman, Patrick, for Patrick's whom the ladies were frequent intercessors, he has no fa- vorable answer. In three weeks he had been drunk ten times. A few nights before he had himself come home excessively late, and before going to bed had t6 pick off a word, "Stellakins," which Swift | it was " Shittakin,'' which he uses could not liave written. No doubt I for little slut. 318 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. the coals the extravagant whelp had just heaped on his tire. Only the night before he was home at nine, but the dog was abroad drinking, and he could not get his night- gown. No wonder, he adds, that he had a inind to turn the puppy away : but for yet a while this was not to be. Then he talks of the " little wooden box " that is to take the promised chocolate and tobacco ; and winds up his let- ter with " pretty prattle for saucy little MD." She had been afraid these revolutions might hinder his business, ppt'sqnes- and was it certain the new people liked him, and couldn't he write a little plainer, and would it not be best that she should write on special days to him, and she had been sad- ly troubled by that weakness in her eyes. Eevolutions a hinderance to him ! Why, if it were not for revolutions one could do nothing, " though one is certain of nothing ;" yet had he not said enough of how much better he stands Haiiey'6 with the ncw people than with the old ; and as for Mr. oThimf"' Harleyj if he continued as he had begun, no man has been ever better treated by another. For her letters, she would find it best not to fix a particular day for writing; she was to write when she could, but, above all, she was not to hurt her eyes. And all that he writ she was not implicit- ly to believe ; for his own letters (he wisely reminds her) Matters would be " a sort of journal where matters open by de- de'Ss"^ ^ grees ;" and the event that must settle them was to come later. . . . Why, was that tobacco at the top of the paper, or what ? He did not remember he slobbered. Yes, he would try to write plainer, for she must not spoil her eyes. He was afraid his letters were too long; so they must suppose one to be two, and read them at twice. And this she was not to read, the little rogue, with her own little eyes, but was to give it to Dingley, pray now, and he would after write as plain as the skies. (He must have his rhyme.) And let DD write and Ppt dictate — the saucy, little, pretty, dear rogues ! His seventh letter he began as usual on the day of the departure of his sixth, and it opened with an allusion which might have seemed to ovei-pass the limits he strictly § III.] ESTHER JOHNSON. 319 observed in such matters, but that doubtless it was only i7io. to be talcen as a merry turn of speech. Oli, 'faith, he's un- done ! He has taken a larger paper than he wrote upon last. "And yet I am condemned to a sheet: but since a sheet or it is MD, I did not value though I were condemned to a eheete? pair." From which he passes to his daily diary of din- ners : not that it can be wit or diversion for her ; but he fancies he shall some time or other like to know how he passed his life absent from MD.* After meeting Harley at Erasmus Lewis's on the 19th First men- of October, he dined with Mrs. Yanhomrigh (the first di- v™s! rect mention of her in these letters), and went afterward to see the Duke of Ormond's daughters, the youngest of whom was to be married " to-morrow " to the best match in England, Lord Ashburnham, twelve thousand a year and abundance of money ; very sorrowful in the sequel, notwithstanding. Old friends and new still strongly con- tend for him. That evening he passed with Addison and Wortley Montagu over a bottle of Lish wine. Questions from her had shown him that his hankerings for such old associates, Steele among them, are not ungi-ateful to her ; but though a doubt springs up now and then if the new ministers will hold, he takes good care that she shall hear of his continued eager welcome from them. Did any body what ab6nt else in Ireland really know of his greatness among the to- ed piecesl^' ries ? Every body in London reproached him of it, but he heeded them not. And how did the things he named to her pass with Irish acquaintance ? How was " The Show- er " liked in Dublin ? Here he never knew any thing pass better. Kowe and Prior praised it beyond any thing writ- " ten of the kind : never such a shower since Danae's ! But, for their life, they were to say nothing of " Sid Hamet." Hai'dly any body suspected him for those lines, only it is he sns- was thought that nobody but Prior or he cmild write ''^"^ them. There was also a punning ballad on the Westmin- * This came to be tnie ; and when I Change and his Last Four Years he he was writing his Memoirs of the 1 consulted these diaries. 320 TI-IE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. ^T. 43. Guessing wrong. Steele nnd his wife. Unacknowl- edged pieces. Mrs. Van and Mrs. Long. ster election (a secret to all but MD), which cost him but half an hour, and " ran " though good for nothing. There is never really any pride in the " things." It is the sense of power reflected from them, the influence or personal consideration attending them. "If you have them not, I will bring them over." She had herself been guessing, and making wrong guesses. She had been making him responsible for what he has not written. He has not helped Steele to the extent" she supposed. The Tatlers had been scurvy of late. One or two hints he might still send him ; but never any more. lie did not deserve it. He was governed by his wife most abominably. It was as bad a case as Marlborough's. "I never saw her since I came, nor has he ever made me an invitation. Either he dares not, or he is such a thoughtless Tisdall fellow that he never minds it. So what care I for his wit ? for he is the worst company ii) the world till he has a bottle of wine in his head." Keverting to her fancy that the Taller of Ithuriel's Spear might be his, he calls it a puzzle between her and her judgment. In general she might be sure enough as to things, when they were what he had fre- quently spoken of; but mere guessing was moonshine. " I defy mankind if I please. Why, I writ a pamphlet when I was last in London that you and a thousand have seen and never guessed it to be mine . . . and I have writ- ten several other things that I hear commended, and no- body suspects me for them." Her interest in Addison, evidently much expressed in her letters, he satisfles by repeated and reiterated mention. As he sits down to answer her fourth letter, he tells her of Addison and himself dining with Lord Mountjoy, and going afterward to prolong their talk at the coffee-house, where it had been a full night. Next day he dined at Mrs. Van's (so for the most part he calls her), and after writing there a letter to " poor Mrs. Long," who had writ- ten to them, but was God knew where, and would not tell any body, he came home early and wrote till very late. On the next, which closed October with a fine day, Addi- § III.] ESTHER JOHNSON. 321 son, Dick Stuart, brother to Lord Mountjoj', and himself i7io. dined upon Addison's "ti'eat;" and they were lialf-fud- — ——^^ died, but not he, for he mixed water witli his wine, and escaped between nine and ten, because that was tlie night wlien "little MD's letter was to go off by the bellman." And as it was to carry with it, besides the matters related, his answer to her fourth, some hints of what she had writ- ten about may be added. What then, in substance, were the points of her letter, to contents which he replied ? She had addressed him, " London, En- from Pp^ gland," becaiise he addressed her " Dublin, Ireland." In- solent sluts that tliey were ! such was Ppt's malice. " She had been suffering greatly from her eyes and head." What should he do to cui-e them, poor dear life ! her disorders were a pull-back for her good qualities. " She had given him a narrative, from Tisdall, of Convocation disputes." Convocation, quotha ! he thinks his own news better worth sending than that ! "And when would he be with them again ?" Be patient ; in a month or two. " The Bishop of Killala had not had his letter." He never writ to the a good bishop, wliicli he supposes was the reason the bishop had '^''^°°' not his letter. " Dean Sterne was so kind to them, and so fond of Swift's letters." Fond as he was, he had not him- self written ; biit he was kind where he knew it would please most, and might make up, that way, his other usage. "And has there been snow in England' as with us here? And he won't forget to send over a copy of Jervas's pict- ure. And Poor John was gone. And Mrs. Perceval had been in town, and Tighe was going to cross. And was china really very dear : for they should like some salad pei?ouai dishes, and plates, but nothing extravagant." (Dingley w'miL!"'^ here had thrast in a list of their wants.) To all of which he replied with becoming gravity. No, they only had snow for an hour one morning, but rather heavy. About the picture, he would contri\'e to get a copy from Jervas ; for he would make Sir Andrew Fountaine buy one as for himself, and would pay him again, and take it ; provided only lie had money to spare on leaving London. Poor YoL. I.— 21 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. A fancy to '*go ma(l" for china. DD's post- script. Tender anxieties. A fine ob- Bervtttlon. John ! "Was he gone ? Ilumm ! And Madam Perceval had been in town, had she ? Ilumm ! And Tighe was to cross and be a trouble to him. /ndeed. But Tighe should have little notice from him ; and if they had not fallen out, it would have been the same. Let them go and be far enough, the negligent baggages, not to tell the peo- ple who were daily writing to him that he had no credit to do what was desired. Dingley's errand about the dishes should be done. He once had a fancy himself to resolve to go mad for china, but now it was off. Yes, yes. Ding- ley should have the dishes. He supposed they had named as much as would cost five pounds. There was also a postscript from Dingley about his writing plainer-; about Ppt not being well with her eyes, which had prevented her writing as she wished ; and about her own belief, as to himself, that if he took two or three " nut-galls " they would do him good. To which latter suggestion his reply is not complimentary, hinting that perhaps two or three " gut galls " might do as well for DD : but for Ppt he is full of concern. And her eyes and head are ill, poor dear life ! He was almost crazed that she should vex herself for not writing. Couldn't she dictate, and not strain her little dear eyes ? It was the grief of his soul to think she was out of order. If she must write, let her shut her eyes, and write just a line, and no more — thus, How do you do, Mrs. Ppt ? That was written with his eyes shut. 'Faith, he thought it better than when they were open. And Dingley might stand by, and tell when she was too high or too low. To which he acj^s that they are to remember and inclose their letter to Addison, and (with a touch of remorse to his more elderly friend) as for DD's nut-galls — " what a clutter !" The letter thus answered, he puts it up in the partition in his cabinet, as he always does every letter as soon as he answers it. " Method is good in all things. Order gov- erns the world. The devil is the author of confusion. A general of an army, a minister of state — to descend lower, a gardener, a weaver — That may make a fine observa- § III.] ESTHER JOHNSON. 323 tion if you think it worth finishing ; but I have not time." i7io. It vexed him to send by the bellman, but he could put off ' — - little MD no longer — "And you lose all your money at cards, sirrah Ppt? I found you out — " He was only staying till that ugly D was dry before he could fold up — " don't you see it ? Oh Lord, I am loath to leave you, 'faith, but it must be so till next time — Pox take that D ! I will blot it—" There was reason for the blotting, not revealed until his next letter : which began as usual on the day its predeces- sor went, and told them, what with his tender care he con- cealed from the close of his last when it might have led to much unrelieved anxiety, that he had, sitting in bed that morning, a fit of giddiness ; but he hoped in God he should Kt of gid- uot have more of it. He attributed it to late sitting and writing on the previous night. He had taken brandy ; he never, now, eats fruit or drinks ale; and he has better wine than they. The fit had troubled him sorely, he is at no pains to conceal ; and next night, without going to the coffee-house, he came home at six, and writ not above for- ty lines (" some, inventions of my own ; and some, hints"), and read not a bit, and all for fear little MD might be angry ; and he took four pills, which lay in his throat an hour ; and he supposed he could swallow four affronts as easily. Next day, and day after, he had no giddiness. Of politics, strictly speaking, out of all that was prepar- ing and seething unseen, not much rises to the surface in these earlier letters. He wishes her a merry new year on the 1st of November (" you know this is the first day of oia styles it with us "), when he dined at Lord Mountjoy's with Ad- " ^ ^^"' dison, and went at five to Harley, who could not see him, but bid him to dinner on Friday, the 3d ; when, accord- ingly, he went, dined, and was bidden again for the 5th. Bishop Clogher had written to him, complaining of no let- ter, though long letters were written weekly to MD ; why did they tell him that? After the Sunday dinner he and his host had sat together till seven, Harley saying all the kind things in the world; and Swift believed he would 324 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. ^T. 43. Gossip of Irish whigs. Answers Ppt's fifth letter. Ante, 21S. Swift at court. serve Mm, if it were possible for liiin to stay in London. He affects still to think, however, that this will not be feasible; since he reckons that in time Ormond will be sure to give him some addition to Laracor. The whigs in Ireland had been saying to Ppt, forsooth, that he had come to England to leave them. But why should they think so ? The dean knew he did not wish to come, and that he did all he could not to come. But who the devil cared what they thought— rot them for ungrateful dogs ! he'd make them repent their usage before he left that place. " They say here the same thing of my leaving the whigs ; but they own they can not blame me, considering the treatment I have had." She had asked him about St. John, and he tells her of a proposed dinner with him. It was to come off in a few days, to be at the secretary's own house, and Erasmus Lewis had told him that he'd like the company. But, before the dinner came for descrip- tion, another letter, her fifth, arrived from Ppt, and he reproaches himself for having lost a little time in reply- ing to it. He had been playfully telling his " little monkeys mine " before it came that he thought his writing was on the mend : " but methinks when I write plain, I do not know how, but we are not alone, all the world can see us. A bad scrawl is so snug, it looks like a PMD." It was a bit of the life by stealth he so much preferred. Hers arrived on the 3d, but he was then busy with other writing, and had not begun to answer it even on the 6th, when he was looking after Patty Btlt in the city, and taking a walk to exercise himself on his only disengaged day. For he has to tell her that dinners now were ten times more plentiful with him than in Dublin, or ever even in Lon- don. Next day was a thanksgiving-day, and, instead of answer, he treated her to a pure bite. He went to court, and saw the queen ("and I have seen her without one tory !") passing with all tories or ex-whigs about her, not one real whig; Buckingham, Rochester, Leeds, Shrews- bury, Berkeley of Stratton, Ilarcourt (now lord keeper), § III.] ESTHER JOHNSON. 325 1710. ^T. 43. A bite. in bed. Harley, Pembroke ; arid she " made me a courtesy, and said in a sort of familiar way to Pdf r, How does MD ? I considered she was a queen, and excused her." He does not miss the whigs, he adds, but has as many acquaintances at court as formerly. At last, on the 8th, when he has managed to steal away at five from the Portugal envoy's dinner, and has come home like a good boy, and has stud- ied till ten, and has had a fire, oh ho ! and now, finding him- seK snug in bed (" I have no fire-place in my bed-chamber, but it is very warm weather when one is in bed "), he has set himself to answer MD. The picture has another touch. He is wearing a " fine cap " made for him by Dingley, and it proves to be too little and too hot. She had lined it with writing fur, and he wishes it far enough, for his old velvet cap is good for nothing, and he doubts if this has velvet under- neath the fur. " I was feeling, but can not find." He'll have the fur taken off if there is velvet. And thus hav- ing settled his cap, he begins with a fervent thanks that the dear rogue's eyes were mending, and by an echo to what she had begun with. " Yes, 'faith, a long letter in a morning from a dear friend is a dear thing. I smoke a compliment, little mischievous girls, I do so." Of sundry things affecting himself she had written, not always spelling correctly. Who were those wiggs that thought he was turned tory? Did she mean whigs? Which wiggs, and what did she mean ? They expect he will tell them about their Vicar of Trim, Mr. Raymond. Why, he knows nothing of Eaymond : only heard once of him since leaving Chester. Paymond, truly, was like to have much influence over him in London, and to share much of his conversation ! ~So doubt he should introduce him to Harley, and the lord keeper," and the secretary of state.* If Mrs. Raymond was with child, he was sorry for it, and so, he believed, would her husband be. What Conn try vis. itor coming. * Just as he closed he adds: "I had a letter just now from Eaymond, who is at Bristol, and says he will he at London in a fortnight, and leave his wife hehind him ; and desires any lodging in the house where I am: but that must not be. I shall not know what to do with him in town." 326 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. JEt. 43. Uses of a sink. Tnrn to preach. "Goody Blander." did Ppt mean by " that boards near me, that I dine with now and then?" He knew no such person; he did not dine with boarders.* What the pox ! They knew whom he had dined with every day since he left them, better than he did. They thought his lodgings dear? Impu- dence ! if they vexed him, he would give ten shillings a week for a new lodging ; and very likely he might have to do it, for already he was almost stunk out of Bury Street with the sink, which had helped him to verses in his " Show- er."f Dingley was thinking of the (tory) world to come, and wanted the "Westminster ballad ; but it Avas not good for much, and she was to be patient till he went back. And the verger had been to her to say it was his turn to preach? Had he, indeed? "Lord bless me! my turn at Christ Church . . . and why to you ? would he have you preach for me?" She had been urging him again as to her mother's affairs. "Well, her mother had promised to see him on her return to town. Did Ppt think he could be so u^nkind not to see her, that she desired him in a stylo so melancholy? Then he told her more of his wish to obtain some investments for her in baiik stock ; and that though he could not make time to write to the Bishop of Killala, he'd take care of his as well as of Dingley's spec- tacles. But what did Madam Dinglibus mean by his fourth ! Had not Ppt said. Goody Blunder, that his iifth was arrived? She frightened him till he looked back. He was writing then on "Wednesday, the 8th, and meant * He had forgotten. See ante, 31% Ford, Fountaine, and Levinge were the boarders, and not, as tlie editors supposed, the Vanhomrighs. t "While rain depends, the pensive cat gives o'er Her frolics, aud pursnes her tail no more. Returning home at night, you'll flud the sink Strike your offended sense with double stink, etc." It is difficult to resist the tempta- tion of quoting from the most mas- terly description of its class in all the language ; but I must give a couplet of humorous observation of tliis actu- al October, 1710, when tlie sliower it- self comes rattling down, clearing the streets; and the fugitives, by various fortunes led, " Commence acquaintance underneath a shed: Triumphant tories and desponding WhigB Forget their fends, and Join to save their wigs." § III.] ESTHEK JOHXSOX. 327 to keep liis letter till Saturday, thougli he should write i7io. no more ; and if any thing came meanwhile from — - — — MD, he would onjy say, " Madam, I have received your sixth letter. Your- most humble servant to command, Pdfr." ^Nevertheless, he did write more ; and as he began next morning, with his mouth full of water, he was going to spit it out, because " how could he write when Ms mouth was full ?" . . . had she not done things like that, reasoned Eeasouing wrong at first thinking ? iTuch that was significant of un- fli°"think- usual work in hand he hinted in his few following lines : '"=■ about not staying beyond seven at the coffee-house, but coming home to his fire ("the maidenhead of my second haK-bushel ") full of business and writing, making a great deal of himseK, now that MD was not there to take care of him, and, in short, as he mysteriously adds, incessant- ly engaged from noon till night because of many kinds of things. Then came what closed the diary of every day close of each before ruthless editors laid hands upon them — the never- ^"y'^^'*''^- failing " Xight, good-night," forever hemmed in and round with his little language of endearment, to be read once more only in the clusters of recovered passages of later date at the end of my Sixth Book. " O Lord ! if this Post, iu. should miscarry, what a deal would be lost ! I forgot to leave a gap in the last line but one for the seal, Kke a puppy ; but when I am taking leave I can not leave a bit, 'faith." His editors had less scruple, and cut him off re- r morselessly at his " Paaast twelvwe o'clock, and so good- night, etc." Xext morning by candle-light the letter went ; and (for its final bit of news) she must know he was in his night-gown every morning betwixt six and seven, and Pat- rick was forced to ply him fifty times before he could get the night-gown on. And so now, for that while, he would Morning take his leave of his own dear MD. God Almighty bless ^^^'^' and protect dearest MD. Farewell, etc. (The reader must always supply what his editors always omit.) " This let- ter's as long as a sermon, 'faith !" Next day saw the beginning of Swift's friendship with 328 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710. Henry St. John. He then first dined with him, and soon -iEx. 43 . '- — '— after had his help for an object long desired, and which the chief of the new ministry had at last placed within his reach. IV. A LONG-DESIRED OBJECT GAINED. 1710-1711. ^T. 43^4. 1710-1711. At the brief interview of "Wednesday, the 4th of Octo- ^^43-44. ^gj,^ Harley had appointed Swift to go to him the fol- lowing Saturday on the business for which he was joined in commission with other higher dignitaries of the Irish church, for the desired remission of first-fruits and tenths. Four in the afternoon having at last been fixed, he had to put off going with Doctor Garth, to dine near the Tower with one who had an employment there, a friend of his AMfficenas own and of the Bishop of Clogher, Charles Maine, Dick of the wits. jjagi-gQ^j-^'s patron, an honest, good-natured fellow, might- ily beloved by all the wits, " and his mistress never above a cook-maid." Sorry to disappoint him, but unable that day to dine with any friend. Swift went instead to dine with Ben Tooke, and give him the ballad on the Westmin- ster election, which already has been described as full of. puns, but lost to us. Not finding him, however, off he went to a neighboring " blind chop-house ;" dined for tenpence upon gill-ale, bad broth, and t^p-ee mutton-chops; and then, sconndrei it being his fate to be the same day a scoundrel and a and prince. ^^-^^^^^ ^^^^ u Peking " to the first minister of state. As he neared the door, he was thinking of that func- tionary of wliom Jack Howe had said to Harley that if there were in hell a lower place than another, it must be reserved for his porter. He told lies so gravely, and with so civil a manner, that Swift was prepared to suspect every word. But the fellow told him no lie. He said his mas- ter had gone to dinner with much company, and would § IV.] A LONG-DESIRED OBJECT GAINED. 329 he return in an hour? Which S^vift did, certain of then i7io-i7ii. hearing he had left; but dinner was just done, and as -^ - he stood in the hall out came Harley himself, took him into the dining-room, and presented him to the guests. Among them were Will Penn, the Quaker ; Harley's son, and his son-in-law, " Lord Doblane, or some such name " (the name was Dupplin) ; and they sat two hours drink- ing as good wine as MD herself does. But the two hours following were more important. During these they were Hariey ana alone, and the whole history of the first-fruits negotia- tions was related by Swift ; the steps that had been made in it during the last three years ; and all the difficulties that had arisen from lords lieutenants and their secretaries, who would not suffer others to solicit, yet neglected it themselves. The minister, hearing with patient attention the Yicar of Laracor thus tell his business, entered with all kindness into it ; asked for his powers, and read them ; re^ also a memorial which Swift had drawn up, putting it in his pocket to show the queen ; told him the measures he should take, and, in short, said every thing Swift could wish, and more than he could have ventured to hope. There should be no interference from bishops or lords lieutenants : the act should be the queen's ; and the credit given to where alone it was 'deserved. He should bring Swift and the secretary of state, Mr. St. John, acquaint- ed; he called him by his Christian name, Jonathan; and The minister he spoke so many things of personal- kindness and esteem, ar jonatimn! that the other -was half inclined to believe what some friends had told him, that the ministers were ready and eager to do any thing to bring him over. One of.IIarley's remarks h^ thought a great piece of refinement. Being charged to call often, Swift spoke of being " loath " to give trouble in so much business as he had, and desired leave to attend the minister's levee; but Harley immediately refused, saying, " that was not a place for friends to come to." So. closed the memorable interview. "He has desired to dine with me (what a comical mistake was that!) I 330 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. Thinks of the Tale of a Tab. ^Jr^^^Vii' ^^^^^ ^^ ^^s desired me to dine witli liim on Tuesday ; and, after four hours being with him, set me down at St. James's coffee-house in a liaclmey-coach. All this is odd and comical, if you consider him and me. He knew my Christian name very well." And as, on reaching home that night, he could not help writing all about it to Ppt, even at the risk of being tedious, so neither could he for- bear to think of that which, though published anonymous- ly six years ago, people connected with his name, and had used to obstruct his advancement in the church. " They may talk of the You hnow what, but, 'gad, if it had not been for that I should never have been able to get the access I have had; and if that helps me to succeed, then that same thing will be serviceable. But how far we must depend upon new friends I have learnt by long practice, though I think among great ministers they are just as good' as old ones." His wish to think them even better had thus early received strong confir- mation. Of the Tuesday dinner, his first at Harley's, brief men- tion has been made. Sir Simon Harcourt was with them, and as to the memorial, he was able at once to tell Ppt that every thing was to be, not through their new lord lieutenant, the duke, but as 'a popular thing, conceded to himself. Doctor Swift., Nor were the arts of the consum- mate master of conciliation and compromise less success- fully played off at the next dinner he gave to his new ally. Just before had come out a Grub-street in verse on what for some time had been the^own-talk against the ex-lord treasurer, of his having, in spleen at Harley's victory, un- graciously broken his staff, instead of having, as was cus- tomary, sent it back to the queen. It was not known un- til long afterward that Godolphin had done this at the queen's express desire. First dinner with Harley, Second. ' No hobby-horse, with gorgeoas top, The dearest in Charles Mather's shop, Or glittering tinsel of May Fair, Could with the rod of Sid compare. § IV.] A LONG-DESIRED OBJECT GAINED. 331 Dear Sid, then why wert thou so mad 1710-1711. To break thy rod like naughty lad ? .^T. 43-44. You should have kiss'd it in your distress, "Sid Ha- And then returned it to your mistress." met." This was tlie " Sid Hamet " of whicli Ppt will very shortly deliver the opinion its author was so anxious to obtain from her. Hardly a better example could be given of Mrs. Johnson's keen yet kindly criticism. She thought it well enough, she said. It was the sort of piece an enemy Ppt's opin- would like, and a friend not ; and of which both opinions would be changed on learning the author's name. It was a shrewder verdict than any he was to hear at Harley's second dinner. The day was Sunday, the 15th ; Matthew Prior, whom St. John some time before had won over from the whigs, dined with them ; among the guests also were Dalrymple, president of the Scotch Court of Session, and Benson, a lord of the treasury ; and good news welcomed Swift as he entered. The queen had granted the whole prayer of his memorial for first-fruits and " twentieth " parts ; it would probably be declared in to-morrow's cabinet ; and he might hope to get even something of greater value. After din- ner came in another ex-whig, his old friend, Lord Peter- borough; "we renewed our acquaintance, and he grew mightily fond of me ;" and what is this " Sid Hamet " I hear of? asked the eccentric warrior. "Whereupon Harley re- peated some of the verses, and then, pulling them out of his pocket, gave them to one of his guests to read, though they all had read them often. Then Peterborough insisted scene at on reading them himself, and Harley bobbed Swift at ev- "' ^^ ^' ery line to take note of their beauties, and Prior rallied Peterborough with having written them, and Peterborough declared them for a certainty to be Prior's, and Prior next turned them on Swift, and Swift knew them for Prior's, and in short " Sid Hamet " supplied the whole mirth of the evening. At nine o'clock both poets left ; and sat at the Smyrna coffee-house until eleven, " receiving acquaint- ance ;" prolonging the enjoyment, no doubt, which they 332 THE LIFE OE JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. had received at Harley's; and sitting attentive to their -(Et. 43-44. , '' ' ° own appJause. state visit to Swif t had a touch of disappointment the day following. He went early to Harley's in a chair, " and Patrick before it," a sort of state visit, with another copy of the memorial having additions from himself complying with some sug- gestion of the previous day ; but the minister was " too full of business " to see him. He was going to the queen, and desired Swift to send up the paper, excusing himself upon his hurry. " I was a little balked, but they tell me it is nothing." He should judge by next visit ; and, tak- ing the precaution meanwhile to square matters " for a time at least " with a powerful personage, tipped Harley's porter with haK a crown. Three days later he went to Lewis at Lord Dartmouth's office to know when he might see Harley ; and by-and-by up came the minister himself, and engaged him to dine on the morrow. On the 21st, ac- cordingly, he had his third dinner with Harley, who pre- sented him to the Earl of Sterling, Lord Peterborough coming in the evening. Swift staid till nine before Har- ley would let him go, or tell liim any thing of his affairs. Handsome Then he announced that all was settled, and would be sig- Haiiey. ° nified to the bishops as done upon a personal memorial from Swift; and thougli an additional two thousand a year he had asked for could not yet be given, it might fol- low in time. Never was any thing compassed so soon, he averred with some truth ; and done, too, by his own per- sonal credit with Mr. Harley, who had been so extremely obliging that he " knew not jphat to make of it unless to show the rascals of the other party that they used a man unworthily who deserved better." In the second copy of the memorial before the queen, he told Esther Johnson he had spoken plainly of Wharton ; and now in a month or two all would be over, he should have nothing more to do, and his " insolent sluts " were to tell him impartially, when the thing became known, whether the Irish public gave any of the merit to him or not. " I have so much that I will never take it upon me !" § IV.] A LONG-DESIEED OBJECT GAINED. 333 A little exultation at such prompt success in a matter 1710-1711. so long in hand, and which had taxed to small effect sue- ^' '~ '- cessions of viceroys and secretaries, was not unnatural ; forth^Qrch- yet Swift, who had written to the archbishop as soon as ^'^'"'p- he found success to be likely, had hardly written a second letter announcing the success, imposing certain reserves until official intimation should be sent, but telling him the thing was done — that the bishops were to be a corporation for disposal of the first-fruits, that the twentieth parts were to be remitted, and that a letter from Secretary Dartmouth would very shortly put the primate and himself in posses- sion of all detaila^when a blow was struck at him from a umoobed- quite unexpected quarter. As soon as the news reached Dublin that the Duke of Ormond was to be the new lord lieutenant, the Irish bishops had met to discuss the advis- ability of continuing the first-fruits commission as consti- tuted ; a majority leaned strongly to the belief that Doc- tor Swift's belonging to such a commission, considering that he had been so long in supposed favor with the whigs, might prejudice any chance of success with the tories; and finally it was resolved to supersede the commission by a formal representation from the entire Irish episcopate, to be placed in the duke's hands, and by him submitted to the queen. Doctor Swift was at the same time gra- ciously requested not to discontinue his own solicitation. Ormond's secretary, jN'ed Southwell (son of the Southwell who was Temple's friend), told this to Swift, and showed him the papers, a few days after he had dispatched his sec- ond letter to the archbishop giving account of what he be- lieved to be the close of the affair. Almost at the same moment, too, King replied to his first letter, confirming sub- stantially all Southwell's statement ; and " so," he wrote Archbishop's to Mrs. Johnson, with pardonable indignation, " while their '" "°"'' letter was on the road to the Duke of Oi-mond and South- well, mine was going to them with an account of the thing being done. I writ a very warm answer to the archbish- op immediately, and showed my resentment, as I ought, against the bishops, only excepting himself, in good man- 334 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. ^T. 43-44. What Ned Southwell thought of it. " So goes the world.' "A parcel of nngrate- fnl rascals." ners. I wonder what they will say when they hear the thing is done." Contrasting his own promptitude with what would have followed in the other case, he repeated a remark of Southwell's that my lord duke had formerly had the matter three years in doing without any suc- cess, and that he " would doubtless only think of it some months hence when he should be going for Ire- land." However, Swift gave Esther Johnson free leave now to tell every one that the thing was really accomplished, and that Mr. Harley had prevailed on the queen to do it. For himself, as he hoped to live, he despised the credit of it, and desired she would not give him the less merit when she talked of it to any one. But though out of an excess of pride he said this, he was not the less eager to spite the bishops; and she was to be sure and have it spread widely abroad that all was due to Mr. Harley. " Never fear," he wrote afterward, as he began to measure the trouble he might have given her by the expression of his own, " I ain't vexed at this puppy business of the bishops, although I was a little at first." And then he laughingly tells her what his rewards will be. Harley will think Doc- tor Swift had received a favor, the duke that the Doctor had put upon him a neglect, and the Irish bishops that their vicar had done nothing at all. So went the world. But he had got above all that, with perhaps " better rea- son " than any of them knew ; and so she should hear no more of first-fruits, dukes, Haiieys, archbishops, and South- wells. • She was, nevertheless, to hear more before three days were past. Dining with Harley toward the close of No- vember, he told the minister what the bishops had done, and the difficulty he was under; on which Harley bid him never bother himself, for that he would tell Ormond aU about the business, and show him there was nothing to do. " So now I am easy, and they may hang themselves for a parcel of insolent, ungrateful rascals." The minister told him on the same occasion that the queen's letter was § IV.] A LONG-DESIRED OBJECT GAINED. 335 to ffo very shortly; and he was fain to tell his friend i7io-i7ii. * "^ ■' ^T. 43-44. thereon, replying to reiterated "home" inquiries, that he should then begin to think of returning; although "the baseness of those bishops" made him love Ireland less than formerly. Not yet, however, was the settlement to be. Other things intervened ; " mighty affairs, not your nasty first-fruits ;" and it was not until the continued de- lay had begun to compromise in Ireland the credit of the assurances he had so confidently given, that he saw an ab- solute necessity for at once pushing the business to its close. The end of December was now at hand, and in the Hariey-s few past weeks St. John had given him proofs of a confi- ^ "'^"' dence in some points more absolute even than Harley's own. He had no scruple, therefore, dining with the sec- retary, in taking him aside to complain of his chief hav- ing done nothing to forward the queen's letter for remis- sion of the first-fruits, promised six Weeks before ; and to point out that he was himself in danger thereby to lose reputation in Ireland. St. John, he adds, " took .the mat- ter right, desired me to be with him on Sunday morning, and promised me to finish the matter in four days." In four days they met accordingly, when St. John told Swift it was to be done, not, as at first proposed, by a queen's let- ter, but by patent ; and that Harley had desired assurance to be given to him that the warrant for such a patent was already drawn. It was to pass through several offices and take up some time, because, in things the queen herself gave, such " considerateness " was indispensable; but St. John assured him it was granted and done, that it was First-fraUs past all dispute, and he desired Swift. to be no longer in mlttea."^^' any pain at all. The promises were kept, and the patent was completed early in February. Yet if Swift's pain was at an end in that matter, thus brought at last to the issue long desired, there were others in which his troubles were only beginning. The second week of January had not passed before he was conscious of "mighty difficulties" in the path of the new adminis- tration, and that his own way between its two chiefs would 336 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. not be very easy walkine;. " I told them I had no hopes — '■ '- they could ever keep in," is a remark in the letter to Esther Johnson begun by him on the day after the first-fruits pat- ent was completed. ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 1710-1711. ^T. 43^4. 1710-1711. Swift's first two months in London had closed with his — ^ eighth letter to Mrs. Johnson, and he had then gone far to settle much that before was undetermined. Up to its date he was talking still (as upon provocation indeed he rarely ceased to do, even in more triumphant days) of an early re- turn to Laraeor, with perhaps some addition to it through the favor of the Duke of Ormond ; but afterward, though he repeated in sundiy forms a desire and intention to go back, there was little to show that he had really grave thoughts in his mind of any such limit or bar to higher expectations. The afternoon of the day when it had been dispatched was that of his first dinner with Henry St. John ; his new party ties were soon to be fixed irrevoca- bly ; and formidable interruptions were to begin to even the whig friendships it has been found so difficult to let go. To the tories Swift had only hitherto given his giant help now and then ; even yet there was no alliance form- swift getting ally ratified ; but after that^etter left his hands he became intoharneBs. ^ continual Worker on their behalf, and the reader has ev- idence before him in the preceding pages, until now not obtainable in a form so complete, by which to estimate the worth of the reproaches cast upon him for such advocacy. If he had turned from men with whom he had in all things cordially acted, to help men whom he had always as bitter- ly opposed, there would be little more to say ; but when he made his retort against the Irish bishops for the un- mannerly treatment of him in their first-fruits commis- § v.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 337 sion, he scornfully reminded them that on the Tcry ques- ino-i7ii. tion of the interests of the church, as to which they had ^' '^^~^^- withdrawn their confidence, he might at any time, if so omttingr minded, have " made his market " with the whigs. This should at least be remembered before he is charged with having had no resource but to make his market with the tories ; and what is now to be said of the present leaders of that party, of the position he was to take with them, and of the kind of service he rendered them, will further illustrate both his conduct and its motives. The passage of the Godolphin ministry between the ex- tremes of tory and whig has been seen at the various steps of Swift's career. He never felt it to be safe during the Ante, i4o. prevalence of either, and he foretold its dangers the year before it fell. As an avowed and decided whig adminis- tration it had not governed England for more than two years, and its most dangerous enemy, less hopeful of suc- cess than perhaps at any previous time, was at a distance from the scene of the long intrigue by which he had striven to supplant its leading members, when the prosecution of Sacheverell began. " The game is up," cried Harley, and Eesuit of hurried back to London. In the brief six months which ™rf "° "" were passed since then, a government believed to be pow- erful beyond precedent had been overthrown ; the intriguer was chancellor of the exchequer and chief minister ; and the young orator who had been his leading support in the House of Commons, and allied with him throughout his adventure, was principal secretary of state. It seems a strange destiny that for so long a time had linked togeth- er in the same enterprise men so different in character and intellect as Kobert Harley and Henry St. John. But each had need of the other, for success in a common desire ; and both largely profited by having the wit to see this, and the good sense to turn aside from designs that would have made them less mutually dependent. The object once achieved, however, of which the pursuit had kept them united, they could hardly less clearly have perceived that success would divide them. Swift too soon became conscious of it. YoL. I.— 22 338 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. ^>.43-44. Harley's career. Macaulay's judgment of tlie two statesmen is briefly summed up. He calls Ilarley a solemn trifler, and St. John a brilliant knave. All that may be said in bar of the latter judgment does not need to involve any direct contradiction of it, but to the former large modifications are required. It was more than solemn trifling which for a dozen years in the House of Commons had so swayed the balance between two extreme sections as to prevent either from making itself predominant, and by which the toryism of Nottingham and Kochester was as much kept in check as the whiggism of "Wharton and Sunderland. Of puritan and republican descent, Harley had a family right to object to crown expedients and proposals ; but, while every opposition party in its turn profited by his support, he was never identified with any single section of mal- contents. The speaker in those days was practically also leader of the House ; and when for the third time in suc- cession Harley was chosen speaker at the meeting of "Wil- liam's last parliament, the cleverest had joined the stupid- est in supporting him, and St. John seconded Avhat the tory squires began. He was not an orator, as Swift him- self admits ; but he had the tact which eloquent men oft- en want, of getting himself listened to on every occasion ; such talents as he possessed he had assiduously cultivated ; and his knowledge of parliamentary forms was unrivaled. That this was more than solemn trifling can be confident- ly said without affirming it to be eloquence, genius, or even statesmanship ; but whatever it was, it was a thing born of the Revolution, ^le man himself was one of its products ; its principles were strengthened even by what he did in a contrary sense ; his adroit management of par- ties at a critical time, secured the Act of Settlement against a time when his associates, if not himself, would fain have unsettled it ; and as far as any single man could represent the Revolution, Harley did. As it trimmed between two parties, so did he ; and in the two supports on which it mainly rested — ^parliament and the press — ^lie found the agencies to which he most trusted. Upon some one ob- Procliict of the Ecvo- latiou. § v.] KOBERT IIAKLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 339 jecting in his presence that the people of England would I7i0-i7ii. never bear a bill which he meant to pass, Pope heard him — ' — 1— ^ reply that none of them knew how far the good people of England would bear. In very varied attempts upon this problem, Avhich the Eevolution went a good way to solve, Harley had been engaged all his life ; and the experiment now in hand, the most difficult and dangerous of aE, was to make or to mar him finally. According to Macaulay, it did both. It made him an earl, a knight of the garter. At the lord treasurer, and master of the fate of Europe in a crit- ™"°" ' ical hour ; but it marred what had long been a high repu- tation by showing the possessor of it to be really a dull, puzzle-headed man. Yet, even if this were true, it is not those who win their way to the summit, and only stumble after reaching it, who are to be called unsure of foot. Of the men who accompanied him on the way, sharing his friendships and dislikes, and entering and quitting of- fice with him, the only two of conspicuous ability were St. st. johu aua John and Hareourt, and the name of Bolingbroke still re- '"™"' ' mains to us almost as famous in the literature as in the history of England. With Harley's third election as speak- er, St. John's allegiance began, and up to the present time it continued steady and unwavering. He owed his place of secretary of war perhaps more to Marlborough than to Harley ; but the great soldier, when a question arose be- tween the two, though he did not then doubt St. John's loyalty to him, acted as if the Harley influence miist nec- essarily be the stronger. " By gaining Harley you will govern the others," was his counsel to Godolphin when beset with tory troubles ; and he would have been jnore pnadent for himself, if, as he watched the influence grow into a danger, he had opposed it less directly. Harley had this much justification for the work now lying before him, that it was the duke who had peremptorily turned him out of oflice three years before ; but it is certainly to be said of St. John that he had no justification whatever. He st. John's had never, during any period of his life thus far, received Maiibor- any thing but kindness and confidence from Marlborough ; °^^^' 340 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711, ^T. 43-44, Duke's coiifi- deDceinhim. during all the years in tlie House of Commons when he did the talking for Ilarley, he never committed himself to any expression of disbelief or distrust of the duke ; and it was probably to avoid the necessity of taking public part against him, on Harley's dismissal at the opening of 1708, which led him to retire altogether from the House in re- signing the war-office to Walpole. Nearly two years ear- lier, Marlborough wrote to Godolphin that he was " very confident " St. John would " never deceive " them ; and more than once in the two years while the duke had Som- ers, Sunderland, Halifax, and Wharton for his colleagues, St. John wrote hearty congratulations to him on his vic- tories.* With a felicitous choice of phrase, he said, many years later, in his famous letter to Sii' William Windham, that in the first essays he made in public affairs he " acted the part of a tory ;" and he may perhaps have found some excuse for the tone he took at this time, in the belief that Actingparts. the great general was only " acting the part " of a whig. But on both sides the acting is about to assume unusual earnestness, and the pei-formers will have to face some sharp realities. Swift's letters will from time to time reveal such of them as affected him personally, contributing to the story of his life ; and these will be better understood by help of a brief general statement of the question which the po- litical changes threw into greatest prominence, and around which the party passions on either side were to rage with the greatest fury. At first it did not seem asiif any possible question could arise between stopping and continuing the war. Distaste- ful in its origin and progress as it was to the tories, by its Peaceorwar. * " I am very much obliged to you," Marlborough wrote to St. John on the 14th October, 1709, "for your con- gratulations and kind expressions on the late victory, the importance of which will, I hope, appear by its con- sequences, and that we shall enjoy the advantages of it. In the mean time I am very glad if that, or any thing else I can do, may prove the means of adding to your satisfaction, and particularly that you begin again to entertain more favorable thoughts of the world, in which you are quali- fied to do so much good." This was after Malplaquet. § v.] ROBERT HAELEY AND HENEY ST. JOHN. 341 conduct and successes opposition had been overcome, and 17io-i7ii. its results had so exalted and strengthened Marlborough as ^' 1 to render him apparently independent of either party. He might have been so in reality if he had been less eager to get parliament to make him so, and if his wife had been less overbearing in support of such extravagant claims. His eraspina: wish to be made captain-general for life sup- The duke's -,.?.,. 1 T ■ ii • tj. gi-eat failing. plied the heaviest weapon employed against him. it seems doubtful if at first there was any intention to deprive him of his commands. Harley personally disliked him, but his hatreds were never very active ; and if St. John on coming into power had any thought of his old chief, it was to in- duce him to resume his cast-oif opinions, and prevail on him to lead the confederacy as tory captain-general. He afterward very candidly declared, in his letter to Sir Wil- Prank con- liam Windham, that when he and Harley came to court ministerial they had just the same disposition as all parties before ^°^^'^^- them had shown. The principal spring of their actions, he said, was to have the government of the state in their own hands ; and their principal views were, the preserva- tion of their power, great employments to themselves, and great opportunities as well of rewarding those who had helped to raise them as of hurting those who stood in op- position to them ; though it was not the less true that with such considerations of private and party interest were intermingled others having for their object the public good of the nation, " at least what we took to be such." That the public good was secondary, is no unfair inference from these words ; which the facts so far confirm that it was only when danger arose to " private and party " interests that the purpose began to be seriously entertained of strik- ing down Marlborough and manoeuvring for a peace. At the outset, not suflSciently conscious of danger, the Maribor- duke played into his enemies' hands by not only interf er- take. ing to delay the resignation of Godolphin and other lead- ing whigs, but by retaining his own command after even Godolphin's dismissal. If he had at once resigned, the new ministry could hardly have gone on without a com- 342 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. ^T. 43-44. St. John Btai'ts the Examiner. Swift tnlies itnp. promise; but the interval had enabled Harley to put a check on the extravagance of his followers during the ar- rangements necessary for complete transfer of the offices ; and when Marlborough saw things more clearly, the resist- ance he offered came too late. The view Swift took from the beginning of the changes was, that the new men could not stand without a peace ; and immediately after his first visit to Plarley he wrote to this feffect to the archbishop. "What also he wrote of the first-fruits, we need not doubt, was the least important business transacted at that inter- view. A month before Swift reached London, St. John had started a weekly political broadsheet the same size as the Tatler, with the name of the Examiner, to which Prior, Atterbury, Doctor Freind, and Doctor King (who took quasi - editorial charge of it), had since contributed, and against which Addison had brought into the field his Whig Examiner with such damaging effect that the min- istry were in ill case if better advocacy for them could not be found.* It is easy to understand, therefore, what Hai-- ley meant at the visit, when, with his fears that the minis- terial majority in the Commons was too large, he coupled what he described as the exact parallel between his own case and his visitor's, that neither had been able to go all lengths with his party, and that for this reason " both had been ill-treated by the former ministry." The remedy he had himself found was open to his friend, and before a fortnight was past Swift had taken up the Examiner. Addison had laid down hisf three weeks before. The * It is, however, quite a mistalse to say tliat St. John's attack on the war, and on Marlborough and his wife, to which the ex- chancellor, Cowper, re- plied (both letter and answer are in Somers's Tracts, xiii., 71, 85), was printed, as writers copying each the other have averred, as tlie tenth num- ber of the Examiner. The pamphlets were published independently, the one as a letter to the Examiner, comment- ing on the reasonings of that paper, the other as a letter to Isaac Bicker- stafF, Esq. (the Tatler), replying to the comment. t The Whig Examiner was suc- ceeded by the Medley, edited by Old- mixon, to which Mainwaring, Antho- ny Henley, Steele, Kennet, and other well-known ultra-whigs, contributed ; which waged unceasing war against Swift's Examiner during the whole of his connection with it, and several months beyond ; and which, having §v.] EGBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 343 friends never met m political conflict, as Johnson hastily i7io-i7ii. supposed. ■ It is not too much to say that no intelligible position had been taken for the ministry in regard to a peace, ei- ther by themselves or their friends, until Swift thus en- tered the scene. The writers of previous Examiners had only floundered about a meaning or a policy. Eager at flrst to conciliate Marlborough, in one they wrote to prove that his actions would be " guided by a nobler principle than the little interests of any party ;" in another, they de- nounced the intermeddlers, who strove to make the great general uneasy in his commands, and persuade him to lay down his commission ; in a third, they did their best to its previous make the Dutch unpopular, and inculcate the necessity of taking a good peace as soon as it was to be had; in a fourth, the ex-ministry were assailed for not having had " twenty thousand rnore Englishmen in Spain ;" in a fifth, sundry reasons were given for " pushing on the war " with the greatest possible energy, " in order to end it by a safe and speedy peace ;"* and all these veerings and varieties of opinion were interlarded with indiscreet assaults on revolution doctrines, which culminated in the last paper before Swift took the pen (that of the 26th of October, dropped from the series when reprinted) by an elaborate argument to prove that the doctrine of non-resistance was entirely consistent with the liberty of a free people. Nor had the famous letter which St. John himself addressed st. John's to the writers, with all its spirit and vivacity, succeeded in Examiner, putting the question in any more acceptable form. It was begun on the 5th of October, 1710, closed witli itsforty-fifthnumberon the Gth August, 1711. Swift's first Ex- aminer bore date the 2d of November, 1710, thirteen numbers having pre- viously been published, and his last was the forty-sixth number, issued on the 14th June, 1 711. Six numbers by inferior hands (Mrs. Manley taking charge of the publication) closed the volume on tlie 26th July, 1711 ; and Examiners with a second volume, which began audMedleys. on the 6th of December, 1711, and closed with its forty-seventh number on the 23d of October, 1712, the Ex- aminers ceased for that generation. * Those five Examiners are dated respectively the 3d, 10th, 24:th, and 31st of August, and the 5th of Octo- ber, 1710. 344 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. ^T. 43-44. Swift's first coutribu- Reasons for a peace. chiefly remarkable for its rash avowal of a belief that En- gland had only a secondary interest in the war, and should never have engaged in it with the sacrifices and outlay of a principal ; and by attacks still more inconsiderate, be- cause calculated to strengthen France in any future ne- gotiations, on the fellow-members of the confederacy of allies. Forgetting the congratulations he had himself poured out on Marlborough for his victories even so late as Oudenarde and Malplaquet (won at such cost of blood), the purpose of St. John's letter was in effect to declare that peace should have been made before Harley and him- seK left office in 1Y06 ; and its reasonings could have no practical result but to throw power into the hands of France. What all this wanted of a statesman-like quality Swift supplied. His first Examiner was a masterpiece. There was nothing violent about the war. A belief was ex- pressed in the justness of its origin, Avhile the admitted evils of its long duration were illustrated by the respect- ive conditions into which the monkeyed and the landed in- terests had been brought by it. The country gentleman was compared to a young heir out of whose estate a scrive- ner received half the rents for interest, having a mortgage on the whole ; and it was shown that a few more years of war would reduce him to the condition of " a farmer at a rack-rent to the army and the public funds." There is no attack on the allies, and no playing into the enemy's hands : but the implication running all through the argument is a rooted belief that the main olBjects which justified the war had been obtained; and that to continue it for nothing but to drive the French king's grandson from the Spanish throne was, in effect, to begin a fresh war under new and difficult conditions. If danger was possible on the side of France, it was more than probable on that of Austria ; and the opinion which Swift certainly had held in favor of set- tlement on the terms proposed after the successes of 1T09, pervaded this first Examiner. Its closing sentence eni- bodied at once his opinion and his advice. He would have § v.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 345 parliament assist her majesty with the "utmost vigor" i7io-i7ii. till her enemies "again'''' should be brought to sue for '^"^^ ^' peace, and until they " again " might offer such terms as would make peace honorable and lasting. " Only with this difference, that the ministry perhaps will not again refuse them." The italics are his own. In that spirit he had put on his armor for liarley and St. John. What weapons he afterward employed, and for what other objects, in the conflict of which he became the principal champion, the event will show ; but this much is at once to be said, that even in that age of infinitely varied controversy there had been no such handling of matters strictly political. With the statesman-like instinct of 're- garding questions not singly, but in their dependence or incidence to others, which attracts one in Bolingbroke's writing, there were qualities not in his or any one else's pamphleteering. As marked an absence of all that might weaken his argument as of every thing evasive in stating it, unshrinking confidence that went at once against the strongest positions of his adversary, humor that took its highest relish from an imperturbable gravity, homely words that struck like blows, short telling sentences, va- ried and always suitable illustration, a style of sense and wit in equal proportions of vigorous reasonings and laugh- able surprises. Swift's political writing had still for its swift's poiit- prominent characteristic a simplicity of manner perfectly "^'' """"^• straightforward, with no pretenses whatever. It might be of the date of yesterday, so modern are the turns and phrases, if such authorship yet existed among us. ISTo one deserved less to have it said that he had hardly left his old whig company before the most terrible of his invectives against those former associates were heard. Swift was not so clumsy at his own craft. Whether he deserted his party or his party deserted him, it is certain that, with one marked exception, he did not begin his work for Harley by reviling the individual members of it. That was to come later, in the heat of hard blows on both sides. For the present Ilarley's tone is his ; and, saving the vigor and 346 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. His early Kxamiuei'B. 1710-1711. vivacity, he writes like a moderate whig. He expounds ■- the art of political lying, to show that it^ practice for twenty years had rendered friends and enemies no longer distinguishable ; and incidentally he states that the invent- or of lies, the devil, had been quite outstripped by the im- provements of an eminent whig (Wharton) in this branch of the practice. In his succeeding paper he expressed a behef that no reasonably honest man of either side who looked into the disputes of religion and government that both parties were daily bufEeting each other about, would find one point really material in difference between them ; and in the same Examiner he put two significant ques- tions, how certain great men of the late ministry (Marl- borough and Godolphin) came to be whigs, and by what figure of speech certain others put lately into great em- ployments (Shrewsbury and Somerset) were to be called tories ? "When, in another, he justiiies the queen, as he would the owner of a mismanaged estate and establish- ment, for turning off the servants that had mismanaged both, he is careful not to bring opinions into debate, and the sharpness of touch is within the limit of party wai-- fare.* John the coachman (Marlborough), the steward Oldfox (Godolphin), and the clerks Charles and Harry (Sunderland and Boyle), are only charged with having run their mistress over head and ears in debt, though her tenants were punctual in paying rent, and she never spent half her income. He is for unsparing prosecution of the war till a safe and honorable peace can be had ; and even Ent'iiBhcom- his famous comparison of fhe English commander's re- Personal' ities. Soman gen- wards to those of a victorious Eoman general, the hun- ^™'- dred-thousand-pounds post-office grant to the eight-pounds sacrificial bull, and the two hundred thousand pounds for Blenheim to the twopence for a Crown of Laurel, involved no personal attack on Marlborough. It was a bill of Ro- ♦Even tlie "Bill Bigamy,'' by which he designated the ex-chancel- lor, Cowper, was not move of a scan- dal or libel in the common talk of that day than the "Cupid " applied to a statesman of ours : and it obtained a niche in Voltaire's Philosophical Dictionary, so widely was it known. §V.] EGBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 347 man gratitude put beside a bill of British «?tgratitude in I7i0-i7ii. reply to loud complaints of the tory treatment of the En- — ^-l glish hero. Five days after that Examiner appeared, Swift dined once more with Halifax ; crossing him in all his whig talk, and making him come over to the other side. " I know he makes court to the new men, although he affects to talk like a whig." His first dinner with St. John had At dinner been a fortnight before, when the only other guests were johu. Erasmus Lewis and Doctor Freind (for whom St. John, who had been his fellow - student at Christ Church, had great regard) "that writ Lord Peterborough's actions in Spain." Harley was there before dinner, but could not dine, and after dinner Prior came : when the secretary, who had used Swift with all the kindness in the world, took occasion to tell the rival poet that the best thing he had read lately was not his, but Swift's, on Vanbrugh ("which I do not reckon so very good neither"). This damped Prior's spirits a little, till Swift stuffed him with two or three compliments; and as he sat there himself, flattered and flattering, his thoughts went back to Moor Thinking Park, and to the veneration he used to have for Sir Wil- " ^"^ ^' liam Temple because he might have been secretary of state at fifty, whereas here was a young fellow hardly thirty in that employment : the father still a man of pleasure walk- ing the Mall,* frequenting the St. James's and the choco- * St. John came of what Clarendon calls a "mutinous family," but his im- mediate descent was from the young- er and less mutinous branch, the St. Jolins of Battersea and Wandsworth. Of the elder, the first who had the title of Bolingbroke, created an earl by James, and the second, who took the title of St. John of Bletsoe, created a baron by Charles, were both violent parliamentarians ; and on disappear- ing from the scene, left the family name to Oliver St. John. -He bore it only under the bar sinister, but carried it to its highest fame ; and from the marriage of his daughter, when he was Cromwell's chief-justice, thus uniting the rebellious and the royalist St. Johns as one family at Battersea, sprung the father of the famous Henry St. John. The grandfather. Sir Wal- ter, did not die till 1708, when he was eighty-seven ; and his son. Sir Harry, lived till he was ninety. lie passed all his life as he was passing it in Swift's time. He was a lounger in the cof- fee-houses of the second Charles and James, when he killed u baronet in a night brawl. While his son rose to the highest position in the state, and as 348 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. Matthew Prior. 1710-1711. late houses, and the son principal secretary of state ! Was — '- — 1—1 not there something very odd in that ? Though this was their first day of friendly intercourse, St. John already rivaled Harley in confidences; which he handsomely ac- counted for by repeating to Swift a compliment of Plar- ley's, that from a man who had " the way so much of get^ ting into you" there was no keeping any thing. "A re- finement," Swift adds ; " and so I told him, and it was so ; indeed, it is hard to see these great men use me like one who is their better, and the puppies with you in Ireland hardly regarding me : but there are some reasons for all this which I will tell you when we meet." He was now more regularly working for them. To their other ex-whig poet and workman he took very kindly, finding his foibles to be no indifferent help to his companionable qualities. They dined together next day at an eating-house with Erasmus Lewis for host, who sent his own wine and left early, the two poets sitting on until late, complimenting one another upon their mutual wit and poetry. • Again they dined, three days later, with St. John at Harley's; and at the secretary's the day follow- ing, meeting among the guests Lord Orrery and the other principal secretary. Lord Dartmouth, who was a plain, un- pretending, trustworthy man, whom nobody treated as of much account, and whose ignorance of French (which even Harley spoke clumsily) tended still more to throw all im- portant affairs into St. John's hands. Harley could not dine ; and, says Swift, " would have had me away while I was at dinner ; but I did ncf like the company he was to have." The next evening, still with Prior, and joined by Lewis and Doctor Freind, he supped with " the rambling- est lying rogue on earth," as with a not unloving familiar- ity he calls Lord Peterborough. Afterward came another Lord Dart- month. Lord Peter- borongh. snddenly fell from it, he continued to be a man of pleasure about town. That same son was under attainder when Walpole, to reward Sir Han-y's easy whiggery, made him Viscount St. John with the barony of Battersea; and before he died, in 1742, he had been able to carry the indolent, careless, li- centious life which he had lived through five reigns very far into a.sixth. §V.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 349 dinner with St. John, at which the party, consisting of i7io-i7ii. Lord Anglesea, Sir Thomas Ilanmer, Freind, Prior, and — — ■ — - himself, sat till nine ; when he closed the night by supper at his brother poet's lodgings, making a debauch off Prior's cold pie; "and I hate the thoughts of it, and I am full, and I do not like it." The same letter which tells all this to Ppt relates also an incident highly charactei'istic of his own ready sense and self-possession. Coming home from the tavern dinner with Lewis and Prior, a gentleman un- known stopped him in the Pall Mall; politely informed him that the queen owed him two hundred thousand pounds, and that he had two hundred thousand men ready to serve her in the war ; and asked Swift's opinion, having been repulsed from seeing her by her people in waiting, whether it would be best for him to make another attempt that evening or to wait till to-morrow. Of course a madman a madman, Swift at once saw, and with prompt sagacity got rid of him. " I begged him of all love to wait on her immediately ; for that, to my knowledge, the queen would admit him; that this was an affair of great importance, and required dispatch; and I instructed him to let me know the success of his business, and come to the Smyrna coffee-house, where I would wait for him till midnight." Off he went, and so ended the adventure ;* a coffee-house a coffee- appointment more real and jovial being kept the night teniny "^' following at the St. James's, when he christened the child of the "keeper of the house, Elliott, and " the rogue " gave a " most noble supper " in honor of the occasion, and Swift and Steele sat " late over a bowl of punch among some scurvy company." The week or two that followed the meeting of the new parliament were important and busy ones. He began his tenth letter on the dayf of the election to the speaker's * Swift good-naturedly adds: "I would fain have given the man half a crown ; but was afraid to offer it him, lest he should be offended ; for, besides his money, he said he had a thousand pounds a year." t Two days later, when he had gone to meet Harley in the Court of Be- quests, he saw "Jack Temple," and exchanged a few careless woids with him. 350 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. chair of the high -church member for Oxford, Bromley, when the footmen were to put up for their speaker Colonel Queen's speech. Bromley aud Hill's black Pompej, for whom Swift was engaged to use Pompey. j^jg interest and get Patrick to collect v£)tes. He had gone with Charles Ford to see the Houses meet ; but only see- ing a crowd, they betook themselves to Westminster Ab- bey, where he sauntered so long among the tombs, he was forced to go to an eating-house for his dinner. The queen's speech that day was the first public appeal from the new ministers ; and Swift emphatically referred in his next .£a^ aminer to the several pledges it contained on their behalf to bring forward needful measures of finance, to support and encourage the church, to preserve the union, to main- tain the indulgence to scrupulous consciences, to make allegiance to the Hanoverian succession the condition of employments, and to carry on the war with the utmost vigor in order to obtain a safe and honorable peace, as the confirmation in every point of what he had thus far put forth in his Examiners. The same letter to Ppt contains words of much significance. She had questioned him as to some assurances which Patrick had sent over to Ding- ley. "What! O Lord !" is his reply. " Did Patrick write of his master not coming till spring." Insolent Pat ! He know his master's secrets ? No, as my lord mayor said, " if I thought my shirt knew," etc. 'Faith, the master would " come " as soon as it was in any way proper for him to " come ;" but, to say the truth, he was at present a little involved with the ministry in some certain things (this he told them as a secrel^; but as soon as ever he could clear his hands, he would stay no longer. The present men had a difficult task, and wanted him. Perhaps they might be just as grateful as others ; but, according to the best judgment he had, they were pursuing the true inter- est of the public, and therefore he was glad to contribute what was in his power.* " For God's sake, not a word of Private con- fession. * Something to the same effect was in a following letter, his correspond- ent having remarked that some people went to England who could never tell when to come hack. Did she mean thnt, he asked, as a reflection upon §V.] EGBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 351 1710-1711. Mt. 43-44. this to any alive." Under his own hand there is also a statement of what had passed between himself and Ilaiiey a few weeks back, before his engagements, only silently miderstood till then, were formally undertaken. "When he supposed the first-fruits business to be finally settled, he told the minister that he would very shortly be " in- tending " for Ireland ; on which Harley frankly told him Expiana- that his friends and himself knew very well how usefully uariey.' he had written against measures proposed by the late min- istry to which on principle he had been opposed, and this had convinced them that he would not feel bound to con- tinue to favor their cause simply because of his " personal esteem for several amonsr them." There was now entire- ly a new scene ; but the difficulty to those who directed it was the " want of some good pen " to keep up the spir- it raised in the people, '• to assert the principles and justi- fy the proceedings of the new ministers." He then " fell into some personal civilities which it will not become me to repeat ;" and closed by saying that it should be his par- ticular care to "establish me" in England, and to "repre- sent me to the queen " as a person they could not be with- out. "I promised to do my endeavors in that way for some few months. To which he replied that he expected no more, and that he had other and greater occasions for me."* One thing the first minister had not said, but Swift knew it very well, and St. John afterward charac- teristically confessed it to him. "We were determined to have you," he said. " You were the only one we were afraid of." Describing a dinner at Harley's a Aveek or two later, when Prior was present, but St. John did not come, though he had promised, and had chidden Swift for not seeing him oftener, the principal talk was .about a " damned libel- Promises eschnDged. Libelous pamphlet. Pdfr? Saucebox! He would go back as soon as he could, and, he hoped, with some advantage ; unless all ministries were alike, as perhaps they might be. * Jly account is taken from Mem- oirs relating to the Change, etc., in which every statement that it is pos- sible to test by other contemporary evidence has been found to be singu- larly accurate. 352 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. ^T. 43-44. Thomas, Lord Whar- tou. Swift's " Short Character.' Oils pamphlet " against Lord Wharton, which had been sent out by dozens to gentlemen's lodgings, nobody know- ing author or printer. One or two had come to himself, and he described it to Ppt as giving the character first and then telling some of his actions, " the character very well, but the facts indifferent." It was his own ; and bad as the libel was, the justification might be pleaded that what it libeled was worse. Even Macaulay adopts the terse and terrible description of Wliarton which fell from Swift in later years, " He was the most universal villain that ever I knew ;" and other illustration may be spared. But though Wharton's fame was unapproached, even in that day, for lying, raking, and profanity, the whigs had few abler men among them ; none steadier to their principles, and none that did so much to bear them up iu desperate extremi- ties. What had been saved to them in the last elections had been almost singly his work ; and to weaken his influ- ence, for however short a time, was to damage their strong- est bulwark. Affect him otherwise no man could. No personal abuse ever moved him in the least. In the fourth Examiner, under cover of a pleading of Cicero against Verres, Swift had assailed without mercy his Irish gov- ernment; and the only remark Wharton made upon it, that it was "a damnable mawling," is repeated in the " Short Character," with the addition that the writer had entered on his delineation with the more cheerfulness be- cause it was no longer possible either to make angry the subject of it, or in any way to hurt his reputation. He admitted his " good natural* understanding, great fluency in speaking, and no ill taste of wit," but declared him to be without the sense of shame or glory, as some men are without the sense of smell. It was not a humor to serve a turn or keep a countenance, when Wharton showed in- difference to applause or insensibility of reproach ; it had no grandeur of mind in it, or consciousness of innocence ; it was the mere unaffected bent of his own nature. " Whoever," Swift adds, " for the sake of others, were to describe the nature of a serpent, a wolf, a crocodile, or a §V.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. asa 1710-1711. ^T. 43-44. A libel died as Swift's under Es- ther's win- dows. fox, must be understood to do it without any personal love or hatred for the animals themselves."* He was, nevertheless, a little disturbed when Mrs. John- son, anticipating the description he had sent her, wrote to tell him of a " scandalous " attack on their late lord lieu- tenant, which the newsmen had been crying as his under their windows. "As for the pamphlet you speak of, and call scandalous, and that one Mr. Pdfr is said to write it, hear my answer. Fie child! you must not mind what every idle body tells you. I believe you lie; and that the dogs were not crying it when .you said so ! Come, tell truth !" The Bishop of Clogher had before this taken the thing itself to her. "And so the bishop showed you a pamphlet. Well, but you must not give your mind to believe those things: people will say any thing. The Character is here reckoned admirable, but most of the facts are trifles. It was first printed privately here ; and then some bold cur ventured to- do it publicly, and sold two thousand in two days. Wlio the author is must re- main uncertain. Do you pretend to know? impudence, how durst you think so ?" His eleventh letter took over his journals from the 9th to the 23d of December, and on the 12th he men- tions having been at the secretary's ofiiee with Lewis wheii Lord Elvers came in, whispered Lewis, and then went Lord River?. up to Swift to desire his acquaintance, on which they * The reader can compare this with Macaulay's famous character of Whar- ton (Hist. , vii. , 80-'4). A sentence or two may he given. "To the end of his long life the wives and daughters of his dearest friends were not safe from Ills licentious plots. The ribald- 17 of liis conversation moved astonish- ment even in that age. To the relig- ion of his country he offered, in the mere wantonness of impiety, insults too foul to be described. His men- dacity and his cflFrontery passed into proverbs. Of all the liars of his time he was the most deliberate, the most Vol. I.— 23 inventive, and the most circumstan- tial. What shame meant he did not seem to understand Great satir- ists, animated by a deadly personal aversion, exhausted all their strength in attacks upon him. Tliey assailed him with keen invective : they as- sailed him with yet keener irony ; but they found that neither invective nor irony could move him to any thing but an tmforced smile and a good- humored curse; and they at length threw down the lash, acknowledging that it was impossible to make him feel." Macaulay's aeconut of Wharton. 354 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWlFr. [Book V. 1710-1711. At. 43-44. "Havoc" with Duke'B oflicei'S. Swift to preach be- fore the qiieeu. bowed and complimented a while, and parted. Kivers was not without distinction both in William's and Marl- borough's wars ; but Harley, who tempted him from the duke's side, had now made him constable of the Tower, and this was the beginning of some intimacy with Swift, which never improved into a real liking.* He probably had some hand in the decisive step which Swift mentions, the day after this meeting, as " the havoc making in the army ;" when three of Marlborough's favorite general of- ficers, Meredith, Macartney, and Honeywood, serving in Flanders at the time, were dismissed from their com- mands (" obliged to sell them at haK value ") for drinking destruction to the ministry, and offering indignities to 'a stick dressed up Avith a hat upon it, to caricature Harley. Even the duke's special friend, Cadogan, m-Iio led the van at Oudenarde, received what Swift calls a " little paring ;" but he had not committed himself so deeply as his friends, and was only recalled from his civil employment. " His mother told me yesterday he had lost the place of envoy, but I hope they will go no farther with him." A subject of stronger personal interest to Swift appears in his journal of the 13th. Dining that day with St. John, he asked him what Lord Rivers meant by telling him a couple of days ago he should be present " Sunday fortnight" to hear him preach before the queen ; on which the secretary told him that, as a " pure bite," Harley and himself had imposed upon his father, Sir Harry St. John, and Elvers a belief that there was to be such a sermon next Sunday at St. James' s^ but that the preaching before the queen was no bite at all, for the ministers were resolved it must be. " The secretary has told me he will give me three weeks' warning, but I desired to be excused ; and 'You shall not be excused,' said Mr. St. John. However, I hope they will forget i for if it should happen, all the * Rivers, the reader need hardly be reminded, was the father of Savage, the poet. There is frequent mention of him in the journals, and a note of Swift's to Machj's Memoirs calls him "an arrant knave in common deal- ings, and very prostitute. " §V.] KOBERT HAKLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 355 puppies hereabouts will thi'ong to hear me, and expect i7io-i7ii. something wonderful, and be plaguily balked, for I shall — '- — ^-^ preach plain honest stufE."* When the Sunday appointed for the " devilish bite " came. Swift, after church, repair- ed to court (an ordinary custom with him) to "pick up" a dinner ; but the queen not being at church for her gout, there was thin attendance, so he was fain to be content with Sir Thomas Frankland and his eldest son, whom he accompanied to dine at his son William's, in Hatton Gar- den. "Abundance " of people had meanwhile gone in the cuiiosity to morning to St. James's church to hear Swift preach, the puipit!'' " among them Lord Radnor, who never is abroad till three in the afternoon ;" while the object of all this interest had passed a quiet day, had walked all the way home from Ilatton Garden at six on a "delicate" moonlight night, had been denied to Yicar Kaymond at nine in the midst of some writing, and between eleven and twelve reported himself to MD as in bed, dropping off to sleep, and in- tending to dream of his own dear roguish, impudent, pret- ty Ppt. Isext day he was hunting to dine with Harley, and next day but one was again unsuccessful at the Court of Re- quests (the lobby of the House of Lords, a fashionable re- sort as well as a place for dining), and again the subse- quent day; so he set off the following morning to the minister's levee to vex him by saying he had no other way of seeing him, whereupon Harley asked what had he * Characteristic little incidents are mentioned, two days after, touching on his connection with Ireland. In the tory excitements of Dublin there had been an outrage on the statue of the Deliverer, and Harley gave Swift a paper about the college lads who ' ' defaced " the statue, wishing, as Swift also did, one part of tlie sen- tence, that of "standing before the statue," to be reprieved. That same day Swift dined with his opposite neighbor Darteneuf, and, coming home, told Ppt he had been soliciting Care for an to get the Bishop of Clogher made o'^ trieni. vice-chancellor of the college ; but they were all, and especially the Duke of Ormond, set against him. In a later journal he adds, however, "I have got Mr. Harley to promise that what- ever changes are made in the Coun- cil, the Bishop of Clogher shall not be removed I will let the bishop know so much in a post or two. This is a secret; but. ..he has enemies, and they shall not be gratified. " Ante, 204. 356 THE LIFE OF. JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. Mt. 43-44. First family dinner witli Harley. Addison's trap for Swift. to do there, and bid him come and dine on a family din- ner, which he did, and it was the first time he saw Ilar- ley's wife and daughter. At five the lord keeper came in, on which Swift desired to be presented to my lord keeper, having only the honor to know Sir Simon Har- court, " and so they laughed." But nothing more for the present was said of that personal matter in regard to the queen which St. John so determinedly had told him " the ministers were resolved should be." Such occasional notices from journals as will carry my narrative very nearly to the close of February (ITlO-'ll) may sufiiciently complete the picture proposed to be given of these opening relations of Swift with the two leading ministers. As intimacy with them grows more and more, he has always a manifest apprehension of its gi'owing less and less with Addison. The evening of his dinner with the secretary on the 14th of December had ended with a little adventure. lie left at eight, meaning to go on M'ith his letter ; but Patrick asked to go out, and by-and-by up came the girl to tell him a gentleman was below in a coach who had a bill to pay him, so (caught in that ingenious trap) he let him come up, and " who should it be but Mr. Ad- dison and Sam Dopping from Dublin, to haul me out to supper, where I have staid till twelve ;" though he might have escaped with help of Patrick, whom he had made as expert in denying as Ilarley's porter himself. lie talks of other things, but still goes back to his old friend. " Mr. Addison and I are different as black and white, and I be- lieve our friendship will go #ff by this damned business of party ; he can not bear seeing me fall in so with this min- istiy ; but I love him still as well as ever, though we sel- dom meet." Less agreeably the subject recurred next day, when he dined with Lewis and Charles Ford, whom he had brought acquainted, and Lewis told him " a pure thing." The former "hankering" with Ilarley to save Steele his other employment being known to Lewis, he had himself taken occasion to say to his chief how grate- fully Swift would take any kindness to the ex-gazetteer; § v.] BOBEKT HABLEY AXD HEXRY ST. JOHS. 357 and the minister, not Trnmindful of some riossible service i7io-irii. ... ^T 43—44 to himself aho. had thereupon appointed an interview, — '- - which Steele 'accepted, hut nevertheless neither came nor for steeie. sent excuse. " Whether it was blundering, sullenness. in- dolence, or rancor of party, I can not tell ; but I shall trou- ble myseK no more about him. I believe Addison hin- dered him out of mere spite, being grated to the soul to think he should ever want my help to save his friend ; yet now he is soliciting me to make another of his friends queen"s secretary at Geneva, and I will do it if I can. It is poor pastoral Philips." The extent to which he is •' fall- ing in "' with the new men has further illustration at the opening of another letter, when he tells her "not to ex- pect much from him that night : guess for why :"" because he was going to mind things, and mighty affairs, not her nasty first-fruits. Those might stand aside for the pres- ent. Wliat he was then to mind were other things of Bosmessof irreater moment ; which she should know one day, when •• the ducks had eaten up all the dirt."' So she was just to sit still by him a little time while he was studying, and not to say a word, he charged her ; and when he was go- ing to bed he would take both of them along, and talk with them a little while. So there, sit there ! Christmas-eve was now come, and Swift hoped it would be a men-ier in Dublin than theirs in London, for it had brought them bad news from Spain. Swift called at Bad news court on his way to church, and, the ill tidings having ™™ '""°" come before he returned after sei-vice, " it was odd to see the whole countenances of the court changed so in two hours." As Sir Edmund Bacon was relating it to him, he supposed the game in Spain to be played out ; but it proved to be not so bad, for the battle (that of Villa Viciosa) was not absolutely lost, though neither Staremberg nor Yen- dome could be said to have won. It was remarkable. Swift told Xrs. Johnson the day following, that Lord Pe- peterbor- terborough should have foretold the loss of that battle ^clfonr^ two months ago, one night at Harley's when Swift was there, bidding them count upon it that Stanhope would 358 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1 710-1711. lose Spain before Christmas; and, though Harley argued — to the contrary, still holding to his opinion, giving them reasons, and offering to venture his head upon it. Swift ■was telling this to Lord Anglesea at court on Christmas- day, when a gentleman near them said he had heard Pe- terborough say the same thing. To which Swift preg- nantly adds that he had heard wise folks say an ill tongue might do much, and it was an old saying (freshly invent- ed) : " Once I guessed right. And I got credit by't. Thrice I guessed wi'ong. And I kept my credit on." Boxing-aay. The next was Boxing-day, when, dining with printer Barber in the city, and caught in the rain within twelve- penny length of home, he went to Harley's, who was away, dropped his half-crown with the porter, and drove to the St. James's, where the rain kept him till nine. By the lord HaiTy, he exclaims at night, he shall be done with Christmas-boxes! The rogues at the cofEee-house had raised their tax, every one giving a crown, and he gave his for shame, besides a great many half-crowns to great men's porters. There is a trouble with Convocation at this time, which he is busy settling ; and a couple of days later he dined with Sir Thomas TIanmer to meet "the famous Dr. Smallridge," when they sat till six. The day following, St. John gave a dinner to Harley, Lord Peter- borough, and himself. Lord Kivers joining them at night. Lord Peterborough was to go to Vienna in a day or two, and had made Swift promise to write to him ; Harley left St. John's at six ; and what subsequently passed, when Swift ana SL the secretary and Swift ware alone, shows that already he johnaioue. ^jjQ^g|^|. ^|jg dijef minister less of a business man even than the younger minister. He complained to St. John of Harley's dilatoriness, and obtained help to set matters straight. " So I shall know in a little time what I have to trust to." The talk that followed had much interest. Arrival of The Duke of Marlborough was in England. In the few Mai-mor- ^^^g since he landed from Flanders, he had not only been received by the queen, but visits of respect had been paid to him by all the principal ministers, excepting only Har- § v.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 359 ley, and what ensued between him and the secretary had 1 710-1 71 1. taken a tone of special confidence. St. John told Swift — ~ — - — ^ that the great soldier " lamented " to him his former wrong steps in joining with the whigs, and said he was worn out with age, fatigue, and misfortunes. " I swear it pitied me ; st. John's ve- and I really think they will not do well in too much mor- ^'" ° ""' tifying that man, although indeed it is his own fault. He is covetous as hell, and ambitious as the prince of it. He would fain have been general for life, and has broken all endeavors for peace to keep his greatness and get money. He told the queen he was neither covetous nor ambitious. She said, if she could have conveniently turned about she would have laughed, and could hardly forbear it in his face. He fell in with all the abominable measures of the swift's late ministry, because they gratified him for their own ""'sivmgs. designs. Yet he has been a successful general, and I hope he wiU continue his command." That day he dined with Harley, where there was much company ; but, those thoughts still hanging about him, he was not meiTy at all, and he came away at six. Harley made him read a paper Prior and of verses by Prior, and he read them plain, without any fine manner ; and Prior swore he should never read any of his again, but he would be revenged, and read some of Swift's as badly. " I excused myself, and said I was fa- mous for reading verses the worst in the world, and that every body snatched them from me when I offered to be- gin. So we laughed." Peterborough was now preparing for his mission to Vi- enna, to which the professed design was to bring the Em- peror and the Duke of Savoy to a better understanding, the real object doubtless being to give a too restless spirit something to occupy it. Swift was walking to St. John's on the 2d of January, having engagement to dine there, when, as he passed a barber's shop, Peterborough called Politics at out to him from it, made him come in, and, after talking " ^^'^''®'''^- " deep politics " there, asked him to dine next day at the Globe in the Strand, when he would show him so clearly how to get Spain that it would not be possible to doubt it. 360 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. Examiuers andTutlers. 1710-1711. To the Globe accordingly he went, and found Peterbor- — '- ough among half a dozen lawyers and attorneys and hang- dogs, signing deeds and stuff before his journey, for he was to start on the morrow. Among this scurvy compa^ ny Swift sat till after four, but heard nothing of Spain ; only he discovered, by what previously had passed, that Peterborough feared he should do no good in his present entei-prise. So they parted, and were to be mighty con- stant correspondents. But in midst of his public talk he breaks out, " O Lord, smoke the pohtics to MD." Well, but if she liked them, he would scatter a little now and then; and his were all fresh, from the chief hands. Indeed, he has been wonder- ing he did not write more politics to her, for he could make her " the profoundest politician in all the lane." She was to get the Examiners and read them. The last nine or ten were full of the reasons for the late change, and of the abuses of the last ministry ; and the great men assured him they were all true. "They are written by their encouragement and direction." He had not been writing much else, and she was mistaken in her guesses about Tatters. He did not write that on Noses, nor that on E,eligion, nor had he sent Steele of late any hints at all, for he had been asked by the ministers to give him no more such help. But, by way of a final bit of politics in that letter, he tells them that some inquiries would very soon be made into the corruptions of the late ministry; and, indeed, the present men must do it, to justify their turning the others out. « Reading his journals from the 4th to the 16th of Janu- ary, his correspondent would soon become conscious that ministerial dilBculties had not been lessening in those twelve days. The nonsense of Convocation was making troublesome the more important work in hand. He be- gan by telling her that after dining with people she never heard of, and it was not worth her while to know, " an authoress and a printer," he had walked home for exercise, and was abed by eleven ; all the while he was undressing Steele ill disfavor. Awkward necessity. § v.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 361 "speaking monkey things in the air, just as if MD had i7io-i7ii. been by," and not recollecting himself till he got into bed. — ^^ But even there his work pursued him. He had not fin- £0^31! John, ished his morning sleep when there came from the sec- retary a summons so early and sudden he was forced to go without shaving, which put him quite out of method ; however, he called at Ford's and borrowed " a shaving," and so made shift to get into order again. While with St. John, he spoke to him of a newspaper having reported Ppt's friend, Manley, as turned out, to which the secreta- ry's reply ("Tfo : only that newswriter is a plaguy tory") Tonespingu- showed that the ministerial troubles were by no means ™^.^y^" from whigs exclusively. A result of the conference was to send him next day to visit Dean Atterbury, the prolo- cutor of Convocation; and with this, by way of a "bite" for Ppt, he passes a pleasant jest on their friend Dean Sterne, lately chosen to the like ofBce in Dublin. He had been, he said, to visit the dean — " or the prolocutor I think a conpie of you call him, do not you? Why shoiild not I go to the prolocutors, dean's as well as you ? A little black man of pretty near fifty ? Ay, the same. A good pleasant man ? Ay, the same. Cunning enough ? Yes. One that understands his own interest ? As well as any body. How comes it MD and I do not meet there sometimes? But do you know his lady a very good face and abundance of wit." "O Lord! whom do you mean?" "^I mean Dr. Atter- bury, Dean of Carlisle, and prolocutor." " Pshaw, Pdf r, you are a fool ; I thought you had meant our Dean of St. Patrick's." " Silly, silly, silly, you are silly, both are silly, every kind of thing is silly." Next day he had again to go to the city after a " Grab " thing he was writing, and it was Twelfth-day, and very Tweifih-aay. silly he thought the clusters of boys and wenches buzzing about the cake -shops like flies, and still sillier the fools , that had let out their shops two yards farther into the streets all spread with great cakes frothed with sugar, and stuck with streamers of tinsel. After laying out eight- and-forty shillings in books at Bateman's, buying three lit- 362 THE LIFE OF JONATPIAN SWIFT. [Book. V. 1710-1711. iET. 43-44. Reward for a pamphlet- St. John in trouble. Ministerial inisadveot- nres. tie volumes of Lucian " in Frencli for our Ppt, and so, and so," he dined at the post-office with Sir Thomas Frank- land, finished his Grub thing, and came home. With a touch of bitterness, he tells her next morning that their new Irish chancellor, whom he* had never seen, was just setting out for Ireland with a chaplain whom neither had he ever seen, one Trapp, a parson, a sort of pretender to wit, " a second-rate pampldeteer for the cause, whom they pay by sending him to Ireland." That a first-rate pam- phleteer would have to be satisfied with like payment was probably not then in his mind. It was an anxious day that followed; but the evening brought some tender thoughts to relieve it all, and, coming home, he resolves to write them to her ; and then says he, " 1^0, no, indeed MD must wait ;" and thereupon he was laying his haK-written letter aside, but could not for his heart, though he was A-ery busy, till he first asked her how she did since morning. "By-and-by we shall talk more, so let me lay you softly down, little paper, till then. So there — now to business. There, I say, get you gone : no, I will not push you neither, but hand you on one side — so. Xow I am got into bed, I will talk with you." And then what weighs upon his mind comes out. Again that morn- ing, in all haste, the secretary had sent for him, but he would not lose his shaving for fear of missing church, to which he could not go «nshaved ; and so they met after- ward at court, and he had since dined with young Man- ley at Mat Dudley's, and so full is he of politics, so beset by misgivings which have l»en with him sil the day, and which he can write easier to Ppt than to any body, that he pours them all out upon her. He protested he was afraid they should all be embroiled with parties. The wliigs, now they were fallen, were the most malicious toads in the world; and since the Villa Yiciosa battle, the tories had had a second misfortune in the loss of several "Virginia ships ; so that he feared peo- ple would begin to think nothing thrived under this min- istry ; nor could he doubt that if the new ministers should § v.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 363 once be rendered odious to the people, the parliament i7io-i7ii. might be chosen whig or tory, as the queen pleased. Then — — ^— ^ he thought his present friends pressed a little too hard on the duke, the Duke of Marlborough. The country members were violent to have past faults inquired into, and they had rea- son ; but he did not observe the official men to be very fond of it. In his opinion they had nothing to save them but a peace ; and as he felt sure they could not have such a one as they were hoping, this of course would set the whigs bawling what ihey could have done had they con- tinued in power. He had told the ministry as much of all this as he thought safe, and he meant to venture on say- ing a little more to them, especially about the Duke of Marlborough. The whigs were at present giving out that swift's he intended to lay down his command : " and I question ""^sivmgs. whether ever any wise state laid aside a general who had been successful nine years together, whom the enemy so much dreaded, and his own soldiers can not but believe must always conquer ; and you know that in war opinion is nine parts in ten." Then came what constituted always his greatest dread : " The ministry hear me always with appearance of regard, and much kindness; but I doubt they let personal quarrels mingle too much with theii* Personal proceedings." Meantime, Harley and St. John seemed to *"'"™'^- value as mere nothing, on their own accounts, what gave him so much trouble. They were as easy and merry as if they had nothing in their hearts or on their shoulders. They were like physicians who endeavored to cure, but felt no grief at whatever the patient suffered. Pshaw! he interrupts himself, " what is all this ?" And then he The danger would try to persuade himself that what he had written swik ^ was not the clear and piercing discrimination, which it too truly was, of the principal dangers that hemmed ITarley and St. John round. The rock on which they were to split at last had already become very visible to him. Eut he swears his head is full, wishes he were at Laracor with his dear charming Ppt, and so settles himself to sleep : his first thought as he wakes being about the state affairs he 364 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-17]!. Mt. 43-44. had been writing overnight to MD. How did they relish it ? Why, any thing that came from Pdf r was welcome, though really, to confess the truth, if they had their choice, not to disguise the matter, they had rather — ■ "Now, Pdfr, I must tell you, you grow silly," says Ppt. " That is but one body's opinion, madam." Once more he had promised to be again with St. John early that morning, but he was lazy and would not go, though he should be chidden ; but what cared he, for only yesterday he had engaged to dine with Mr. Secretary, and he knew a brief delay could matter little for all the urgen- Adventureat cy of affairs on hand. "Lord," he exclaims at night, "I have been with the secretary from dinner till eight, and, though I drink wine -and -water, I am so hot!" Lady Stanley had come in to visit the secretary's wife,* and, , while he and St. John were together, " sent up " for Swift to make up a quarrel with Mrs. St. John, whom he had not yet seen ; and, would she think, that devil of a secretary would not let him go, but kept him by main force, though he told him he was in love with his lady, and it was a shame to keep back a lover. But all would not do. So at last he was forced to break away, when it was too late to go up ; and " here I am, and have a great deal to do to- night, though it be nme o'clock :" but one must say some- thing to these naughty MDs, else there will be no quiet. Once more with the early morning he was to see St. John, and failed ; but the morning following he was with him, and also the next but one after, when he was made to Mrs. St. John. St. John's first wife. * St. John's first wife was tlie daugiitei' and co-heiress of Sir Henry Winehescomb, of a Berkshire family lineally descended from the famous Jack of Newbuiy, hero of so many ballads ; and in her right St. John enjoyed the estate of Bucklershury, which on her death in 1718 passed to her sister. It was not a happy mar- riage, nor, with the habits that contin- ued to be St. John's during the eight- een years of its duration, from liis twenty -second to his fortieth year, was it possible that it should be. But she did not leave his house until the autumn of 1713 ; she returned to him when he fell from power; she made strenuous exertions to get back his estates for him ; and there are letters from her to Swift as late as 171G, not only doing her best to defend his honor, but speaking of him tender- ly. Swift's liking for her is well jus- tified. § v.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 365 promise to dine with liim ; which otherwise he must have i7io-i7ii. done with Harley, whom he had not been with for ten — '- — ^— ^ days. " I can not but thinlc they have mighty difficulties upon them: yet I always find them as easy and disen- gaged as school-boys on a holiday." There was the chan- "Schooi- ceEor of the exchequer (Harley) with a deficiency of five huMay." or six millions, and stocks falling because the whigs would not lend a groat, having taken up the policy of Quakers and fanatics, that would only deal among themselves, while all others dealt indifferently with them. There was the Doicfai secretary (St. John) under cross-fire of both Marlboroughs : p""'P°'='^- the duchess offering, if kept in her employments, never to come into the queen's presence ; and the duke, according to the whigs, declaring he would serve no more. " But I hope and think otherwise," says Swift, wishing to Heaven he were that minute with MD in Dublin, thinking the business he had undertaken to unravel might only perplex him more, already . weary to very death of politics that gave him such melancholy prospects, and of which the womes and anxieties culminated that harassing night in an " ugly giddy fit " which suddenly assailed him. ITot many days after, weary still, he uses, in writing of the same subject, words claiming to be remembered. Bid- ding her adieu at the close of one of his letters, he gives her earnest injunction to love poor poor Pdfr, who had not had one happy day since they parted, as hope saved. " It is the last sally I will ever make, but I hope it will Personal turn to some account. I have done more for these, and '^^^"^^'• I think they are more honest, than the last;" he means tlie ministers. "However, I will not be disappointed. I would make MD and ME easy; and I never desired more." And he describes himself at the opening of his next letter as working every night from six to bed-time, in full favor with all the men in power, and having as little present enjoyment and pleasure in life as any body in the world. But, as he so often and truly says, it is not in his nature thus far to cherish spleen or sadness, and even the morn- 366 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. iET. 43-44. Gross language. Manners of the age. Ministers in the midst of trouble. ing after his giddy fit finds him in quite other mood. He is so far recovered that he can tell her his own enjoyment of a " copy of verses " on St. John, indecent as the worst of "Wycherley or Aphara Behn, and can count on her en- joyment of them too ! He had been asking the secretary about his and Harley's quitting oflice three years before, on which St. John said that, meaning then to retire from public life, a friend to whom he was expressing that in- tention, and his wish to have some lines to place over his summer-house, shortly after gave him an inscription : " From business and the noisy world retired, ' Not vex'd by love nor by ambition fired, Gently I wait the call of Charon's boat, Still—" His drinking and raking being expressed in the last line with a profligate plainness to which decent print can not lend itself, and for which it is only a poor excuse to say that even delicate women could then listen unabashed to the most intolerable grossness, that many of the worst pas- sages in Swift's printed correspondence are in the letters of high-bred, fashionable beauties, and that the teaching of Addison and Steele on such points was but slowly mak- ing its way. Swift adds that St. John swore to him he could hardly bear the jest ; for he did pretend to retire like a philosopher,- though he was but twenty-eight years old. "And I believe the thing was true ; for he had been a thorough rake. I think the three grave lines do intro- duce the last well enough. Od so ! but I will go sleep." His next letter carried hilt to the close of January with- out any amendment yet perceptible in public affairs. The fiddling and the burning went on together, and no one could see the end. The morning of its second day was passed in a pressing engagement with the secretaiy, and they were to dine alono at Harley's on business of weight. From St. John's ofiice, accordingly, they repaired to Har- ley's, " and thought to have been very wise ;" but deuce a bit ! two or three gentlemen were there, this company staid, and more came ; and though Harley left his own ta- § v.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 367 ble at seven, the secretary and Swift staid with the rest of 1710-1711. the company, drinking and talking and doing notliing, till —Ii — ^^ eleven. Swift would then have had St. John leave, but he Avas in for it ; and though he swore he would come away " at that flask," there Swift left him. " I wonder at the civility of these people : when he saw that I would drink no more, he would alwaj^s pass the bottle by me, and yet I could not keep the toad from drinking himself, nor he woi^ld not let me go neither, nor Masham, who was with us." On reaching home, Swift found a pamphlet which had been sent to him, written entirely against himself, "not by name," but as the writer of something he had • published very lately; yet as it was pretty civil, and af- fected to be so, he thought he would take no notice of it ; and indeed he knew not what to say, nor did he care. He had not been so late in bed these two months as that night, for he now went earlier to bed than formerly ; but the secretary was in a desperate diinking humor, and at their st. John in next meeting he had to sit later still. He went to him on humor. °° the morning of the 2ith about. some urgent business, and, to his surprise, found a great whig with him. This turned out to be, as described by St. John, a creature of the Duke df Marlborough's, who had come to open matters as a go- between to try and make peace between the duke and the ministry ; wherein his chances of success would be small. St. John came out of his closet to speak to Swift, and made him promise to come back and dine with him and Erasmus Lewis at three. ■ But Lewis did not come till six, dinner being delayed thereby, and there they then sat talk- ing and drinking, and the time slipped so, that at last, when Swift was " positive to go," it was past two o'clock At revei tm in the morning ! So he came home and went straight to bed. St. John would never let him look at his watch, and he could not imagine it to be above twelve when they broke up. Not till morning, therefore, could he bid her good-night, or tell her how he had passed that, day ; and though it was then near ten, he was still in bed. Happily, before getting up on the morning of the visit two iu the morning 368 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. iET. 43-44. Lord Somers. Report aa to St. John and Swift. to St. John preceding the last, he had answered the greater part of her letter point by point. " So now, my dearly be- loved, let us proceed to the next ;" and he notices addition- al subjects of which she had written. He was vexed they did not go into the country with the Bishop of Clogher, for, 'faith, it would have done them good, Ppt riding and DD going in the coach. As for his old friends she asked about, if she meant the whigs, they had not met lately, as she might find by his journals, except Lord Halifax, and him very seldom ; Lord Somers never since the first visit, when he had done his best to involve him in a dispute as to Wharton ; for he had been " a false deceitful rascal." This was a strong way of expressing resentments, which yet were not without some personal justification ; for, though the charge implies no dishonor to .the name stand- ing justly highest in English constitutional history, it is to be said of the services rendered and received between Somers and Swift, as an individual account merely, that the balance is largely, in Swift's favor. As for his new friends, he adds, they were very kind, and he had promises enough, but he did not count upon them ; and, besides, his pretenses were very " young " to them. However, " we will see what may be done;" and if nothing at all, he should not be disappointed, although perhaps MD might, and then he should be sorrier for their sakes than his own. What sort of Christmas had he, she asked ? Why, he had not had a Christmas at all. Had it really been Christmas of late ? he never once thought of it. However, two or three letters ago he wished^ merry Christmas to them, and sauce for the goose was sauce for the gander. (Did she see that he had been mending in his writing ? but, 'faith, when Ppt's eyes were well he hoped to write as bad as ever.) Good lack for Ppt's news that Mr. St. John was going to Holland ! Mr. St. John had no such thoughts to quit the great station he was in, nor, if he had, could " Doc- tor Swift " be spared to go with him. So much for poli- tic Madam Ppt with her two eggs a penny ! Then he tells her, forgetting he had told it before, what he has done § v.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 369 about tile box of tilings he had sent ; but he is fretted, 17101711. and " tosticated," and impatient, and vexed with other peo- - '-' 1 pie's carelessness, so that he makes an allusion which MD might think indelicate, but " I mean decently, don't be rogues." The whig company he finds so irrepressible turns up "irvepressi- again in his next letter, when he has to tell her of another ^ ^ '^'' far from agreeable dinner at the once agreeable house in Hampstead, with Lady Lucy Stanhope and her sister, where he had not been this long time, as Ppt knew, and also knew why. She would remember the attack they had made on Ante,i05. liimself and Prior. They were, in truth, plaguy whigs, es- pecially the sister, Armstrong ; who was really the most insupportable of aU women, pretending to wit, without any taste. There was the last JExaminer, "the prettiest" he had ever read, with a character of the present ministry, and she was running it down ! He left them at five, and came home. A little later in the same letter he, neverthe- less, makes admission that the Examiners were thought Examiners objectionable by many besides Mrs. Armstrong. He men- tions Prior as like to be insulted in the streets for being supposed the author, and that the last paper had cleared him. Nobody, he adds, really knew who the writer was but the few in the secret : he supposed the ministry and the printer. All this had made it plain enough, as well to the minis- Promises ters as to himself, that it was a service not without danger "°' ^^'"' in which he was embarked on their behalf ; yet nothing had again been hinted of the presentation to the queen promised by Harley, and the preaching before her settled by St. John, which were to give their champion a position among them to which at least he was entitled. It is pos- sible that some uneasy consciousness of this, and a blun- dering wish to set it right in another way, may account for a mistake now committed by Harley which Swift strongly resented. The opening of his next letter showed that something was out of gear. Harley had sent to him on the 4th of Vol. I.— 24 370 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. with Hni'ley. 1710-1711. February to ask if he was alive, and if he would dine the —^ ■' following day ; which he did accordingly, Prior being of the company ; but what he tells Ppt at night reveals that all had not gone pleasantly as usual. They did not sit down till six, and he had to stay till eleven ; and hence- forth he would choose to visit Mr. Ilarley in the evening, and would dine with him no more if he could help it. ontofhumor "It breaks all my measures, and hurts my health; my head is disorderly, but not ill, and I hope it will mend." Something more is disclosed next day, when he says that he refused to dine with Harley because they fell out the day before, and he was resolved not to see the minister again till he -had made amends. Next day brought a let- ter from Ilarley to Lewis desiring to be reconciled ; but Swift was deaf to all entreaties, and requested Lewis to let Mr. Ilarley know he expected further satisfaction. " If we let these great ministers pretend too much, there will be no governing them." Thereupon Ilarley laid some stress on Swift's again seeing himself, when he promised that every thing should be made easy ; but Swift refused until satisfaction should actually have been given, and re- peated his threat to cast off the minister. "What had been done, in short, though intended as a favor, he had taken quite otherwise, both the thing and the manner having heartily vexed him ; " and all I have said is truth, though it looks like jest." Harley's offense was having thrust a fifty-pound bank-note into Swift's hand by way of ac- knowledgment of his Examiners, and the money had to Hni'ley's offense. be taken back with apolog^ for having offered it. Swift returned it through Erasmus Lewis, in a letter which Eras- mus laid before Ilarley. The same journals in which the incident is told describe Swift helping St. John in the impeachment on foot against " a certain great person ;"* and mention his interference * "Youv Grace has heard," Swift writes to ArehhishopKing at this time, "there was much talk lately of Sir Richard Levingo's design to impeach Lord Wharton ; several persons of great consideration in the house as- sured me they \Y0uld give him all en- couragement, and I have reason to §V.] ROBERT HARLEY AND HENRY ST. JOHN. 371 with the same minister to endeavor to prevent an inten- I7i0-i7ii. tion he had that would utterly ruin Grub Street. He '^' meant to tax all little printed penny papers a half -penny eveiy half sheet ; and in spite of Swift, as we shall see, he did it. Ppt did not hear, until the journals of his next following letter reached her, that Harley had been taken again into favor. On the 12th Swift was at the Court of The minister Requests at noon, and there encountering the chief min- ffvor.'" ister, whom he had been asked to meet that day at dinner at St. John's, he " sent Harley into the house " to let St. John know that Doctor Swift would dine with him if he dined late ; and dine together afterward they accordingly did. He was at a dinner at Lord Shelburne's next day, failing in an attempt to see Harley in the evening ; and it was not until after two days more he found the oppor- tunity he wanted. On the 16th he caught the minister at home after dinner, and they made up their quarrel. Swift not leaving until late, and then with an invitation for the following Saturday which had a special signiiicance. But " when was Pdfr likely to preach, and when was he obstmctiou to be presented to the queen?" The questions recurred pam"'* still in MD's letters ; and " they were fools," he replied. He was upon another foot. ISTobody doubted he could preach, and he put it off as much as he could. As for the qaeen, Mr. Harley of late had said nothing of presenting him. " I was overseen when I mentioned it to you." The minister had such a weight of affairs on him that ho could not mind all ; but he talked of it three or four times " long before I dropped it to you." Nor was it the weight of af- fairs only, or the factious proceedings of the whigs. There were troubles nearer home. He told her in this letter of the October club they were plagued with : a set of above octobei-ciab. a hundred parliament-men of the country who drank Oc- tober beer at home, and met nightly at a tavern near the houses to drive things to extremes. They wanted to call know it would be acceptable to the. court; but Sii' Richard is the most timorous man alive, and they all be- gin to look upon him in that char- acter, and to hope nothing from him." 372 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book V. 1710-1711. ^T. 43-44. The qneen not man- ageable. Swift aflmlt- ted to the cabinet dinner. the old ministers to account in tlie very way the new men most wished to avoid : " five or si.x heads " were what they wanted : and as to the means, they were utterly unscnipu- lous. The ministry were seeming not to regard them, yet one of them in confidence had hinted otherwise to Swift ; and something would have to be thought on to settle things better. Nor was even this all their danger. He would tell her, as a great secret, another grievous difiiculty. The queen was not manageable. Sensible how much she was gov- erned by the late ministry (their successors doubtless had made this very clear to her), she now ran a little into the other extreme, and on that point was become jealous even of those who got her out of the others' hands. So she stood between the ministry who were for gentler meas- ures, and other tories who were for more violent. At the dinner the other day. Lord Rivers, talking to Swift, cursed the Examiner for speaking civilly of the Duke of Marl- borough : and Swift happening to name this to the secre- tary, St. John blamed the warmth of that lord, and some others ; and swore that if their advice were followed, the ministry would be blown up in twenty-fotir hours. Swift adds that he had reason to think immediate endeavor would be made, through persons likely to have means of persuasion, to prevail on the queen to put her affairs more " into the hands of a ministry " than she did at present ; and there were, he believed, two men thought on, one of whom she had often met the name of in liis letters. " So much for politics." • The afternoon before he told her this, Saturday, the 17th of February, Swift had dined with Harley upon jfche special invitation received as soon as their quarrel was made up. It was his first appearance at a dinner where he was after- ward an invariable guest. " It is the day of the week that lord keeper and Secretary St. John dine with him private- ly ; and at last they have consented to let me among them on that day." The other secretary, Dartmouth, with Lord Eivers, joined them after Swift ; and, " by degrees," Lord § v.] EGBERT HAKLET ASD HENEY ST. JOHX. 373 Auglesea and the Dukes of Ormond, Shrewsburr, and i7io-i7ii. Argyle ; but the discussions became less important as the —^ - numbers increased. Besides the Satm-dav, there \ras aft- erward a Thursday for '• select company ;"' both had the character of ministerial meetings; and the day vhen Swift was fii-st admitted to them was practically that of his appointment as a minister without office. He signal- ized it by some plain speaking. Though he rejoiced to see them in such agreement, and that they loved one an- other so well, he told them he had " no hopes they could ever keep in;" and he adds these memorable words: " They call me nothing but Jonathan ; and I said I be- Future lieved they would leave me Jonathan as they found me, and that I never knew a ministry do any thing for those whom they make companions of their pleasures: and I believe you will find it so ; but I care not." BOOK SIXTH. BEING AN APPENDIX Or BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES PROM SWIFT'S LETTERS TO ESTHER JOHNSON, PASSAGES IN THE LATER LETTERS CORRECTED AND RESTORED PROM THE ORIGINAL MANUSCRIPT. I. Biographical Notes (November, 1710, to Februaet, 1711). II. PnsLiCATioN or the Letters containing the Journal to Stella. III. Unprinted and Misprinted Journals of Swift. BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES PROM SWIFT'S LETTERS TO ESTHER JOHNSON. 11th op Novembek, 1710 — 24th of Feeruart, 1710-11. In the Fifth Book of this Biography use is made of the Jour- nals of Swift contained in the first sixteen letters written from London to Esther Johnson, between the dates of the 9th of Sep- tember, 1710, and the 24th of February, 1710-'11. But the lat- ter half of the letters are employed for illustration of Swift's po- litical career only, and to show the part he is about to play in the government of Oxford and Bolingbroke. Such of these journals as exhibit his private affairs exclusively are untouched, and I pro- pose now to add, by means of a series of sketches each in its con- nection also as part of the continued story, what is contained in these last eight letters (from the ninth to the sixteenth both in- clusive) of continued intercourse with friends, unceasing confi- dences to Esther Johnson, amusing anecdotes, characteristic per- sonal ways and habits, wonderful pictures of the high and the low around him, and prodigious knowledge of humanity. Future ref- erence to these journals would be in any case unavoidable ; and to place the substance of them here will at once leave the main nar- rative undisturbed, and properly clear the ground for my second volume. OF MONET MATTERS; ESTHER'S, HER MOTHER'S, AND HIS OWN. Coming home from his first dinner with St. John, he finds that Lettek ix. at last Ppt's mother has written, and it was just as her daughter "^^ supposed. She could not leave Lady Giffard in a morning, and God knew when he should be at leisure in an afternoon. He wonders her mother should confine herself so much to " that old beast's humor." He can not in honor see Lady Giffard, and therefore could not go to her house ; but he has written to the mother, reminding her of the £400 due to her daughter, and 378 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letter IX. Nov.11-24. expressing his hope that Lady GifEard might consent to pay it over for investment in Bank stock. Of his own " mighty desire " to buy on the drop of thirty-four per cent. (" I was a little too late for the cheapest time, being hindered by business, for I was so wise to guess to a day when it would fall "), he tells her a few days later. As soon as he could, he went into the city, and his old school-fellow, Stratford, advanced him money to turn the op- portunity to account. He had in Ireland £300 ; and stock to this amount his generous friend, on his own mere word for payment as soon as he could get the money over, had at once bought for him ; though every body else had told him " money was so hard to be got here that no man would do it for me." The stock cost only thirty shillings over the three hundred pounds, and he could already get five pounds for his bargain. Then, in a few. days, came Ppt's mother to talk of the sum due to Ppt, which Lady GifEard professed her inability at that moment to invest ; and upon her telling him that milady had a mind " to see him," he told her what to say " with a vengeance," and the very thought of it made him " writhe like a tiger "* in his bed. Nov. 12. Ante, 242, 292. OF AN OLD FRIEND, AND A CHEISTENING WITH CROMWELL'S DAUGHTER FOR GODMOTHER. This was a lazy day with him, beginning with a letter that had given him discomfort from poor Mrs. Long, with account of her present life obscure in a remote country-house, and how easy she was under it, though it was as if Pdfr should be banished from MD and condemned to converse with Mrs. Eaymond. His dinner was with Ford and Sir Richard Levinge " at a place where they board hard by ;" but, lazy as he was, he left early to write, and there he was at home with a fire, spending his second half-bushel of coals (" I have my coals by half a busheWfet a time, I 'will assure you") ; for it had grown cold and frosty after a long fit of rain, and she must give poor little Pdfr leave to have a fire morning and evening too, and he will do as much for her. And so good-night. " Paaaaast twelvvve o'clock!" It was the 13th when he so closed his diary, and he had dined that day in the city, calling at " the great shop * All the editors print this word "write." We have seen Macaulay's comparison of him to a " tiger " (^ante, 100), but even that merciless critic would hardl/ describe him writing like one. §1-] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 379 at Ludgate " to order spectacles for Mrs. Dlngley and the Bishop Letter of Clogher, and going afterward to christen Will Frankland's child ; ^^ i i_2i Oliver Cromwell's daughter, Lady Falconbridge, "and extremely like him, by his picture I have seen," being one of the god- mothers.* OF THE NEW IRISH VICEKOT. Many things disturbed him during the second November week ; for it was then Ned Southwell told him of the Irish bishops hav- ing shown their want of confidence in him. That Duke Ormond Ante,333,33i. should even have accepted their memorial was something of an offense to him. The duke was not a puppy himself, he remarks, and it was a thousand pities he should have a natural affection for puppies ; but so it was, and he was going to take over with him for chancellor as arrant a puppy as ever ate bread (Sir Eichard Cox, whom he dubs Sir Chancellor Coxcomb, who had been chancellor from 1703 to 1707, but who did not live now to resume the s'eat).f Nevertheless, Swift went to a public dinner on the 1 5th, " with fifty other Irish gentlemen," which, at a cost of £300, the Londonderry society gave to Ormond as the new lieutenant, stealing away (" it was so cold, and so confounded a noise with the trumpets and hautboys ") before the second course. A PURCHASE USEFUL FOE LILLIPUT. Other notes in this letter contain allusions that may hereafter help to wind out raveled passages of his life: He was again at the great Ludgate shop on the 14th, sorely tempted to buy a micro- scope if that virtuoso Ppt should consent : " not the great bulky ones, nor the common little ones to impale a louse (saving your presence) upon a needle's point ; but of a more exact sort, and clearer to the sight, with all its equipage in a little trunk that you may carry in your pocket." He wound up the day, which he calls Nov. u. * The name was Falconberg. Her husband, who died at the opening of the century, had been raised to an earldom by William. She was Crom- well's third daughter, and died in her 76th year in 1712. t When he afterward mentioned the death, he did it (so strong and fre- quent the habit with him) in the lan- guage which his editors never repro- duce : but on this occasion Swift him- self erased it and rewrote the words : '"Faith I could hardly forbear our little language about a nasty dead chancellor, as you may see by the blot." 380 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFP. [Book VI. Tjf.ttek an " insipid " one, by dining with Mrs. Vanhomrigh, and, after just Nov ii-2-t visiting the coffee-house, coming gravely home to work. He was again in the city next day but one, dining with Manley, who en- tertained Addison, himself, and some other friends very hand- somely. " I returned with Mr. Addison, and loitered till nine in the coffee-house, where I am hardly known by going so seldom." Addison and himself, he adds, met a little seldomer than formerly, differing " a little " about party ; although they were still at bot- tom as good friends as ever. Once more in the city next day with Stratford and merchant friends, he dined and staid late, drinking claret and Burgundy, and was impatient for MD's letter on getting home. Another of the journals has a capital stroke of character on the part of the optician of whom he was tempted to buy the microscope. He had been there again to buy spectacles for Mrs. Dingley and the Bishop of Clogher, when, to his amazement, the optician wanted to give him the thirty -shilling microscope for nothing. " I thought the deuce was in the man, but he said I could do him more service than that was worth." And so, though the gift was refused, and the microscope was bought and paid for, Pdfr had in honor to recommend to every body's custom the dis- creet, courteous, and scientific tradesman of Ludgate, who already so cleverly had guessed the importance of a word from Doctor Swift. ARRIVAL OF ESTHER JOHNSON'S SIXTH LETTER. Nov. 22. Four days later it came. Calling at the St. James's after his dinner with St. John on the 22d, to examine the glass case for let- ters, he saw one to Addison which, looking like " a rogue's hand," he made the fellow give him, and he opened it before him, and saw three letters all for himself, and came home with them. " Well, and so you shall hear : well, and so I found one of them in DD's hand, and the other f!i Ppt's, and the third in Dom- ville's. Well, so you shall hear ; so, said I to myself, what now, two letters from MD together? But I thought there was some- thing in the wind ; so I opened one, and I opened the other ; and so you shall hear. One was from Walls. Well, but the other was from my own dear MD ; yes it was." And now his own must go, or there will be " odd doings at our house," 'faith. But he'd make " no other answer now ;" no, 'faith, catch him at that ! and " never saw the like." He does not tell her next day where he dined, but at night there is much tender playfulness. Of §!•] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 381 course the letter of Walls was to ask intercession for somebody, Letter and lie has above ten businesses of other people already on his ^^ 11-94. hands. His time, nevertheless, is hers. Would she like to have ' a short letter every week or a long one every fortnight ? A long one? Well, so it should be. Nothing but long ones did they want ; and now were they satisfied ? No, he had had no fit since the first. Soon after he closed this ninth letter, and its latest in- timation may be given. Ppt's mother was going to send her some plum-cakes and some wax-candles (a share of the cakes she had sent him also) ; and they were to tell his sister, Mrs. Fenton, that with the request she had sent him he would comply if pos- sible ; and his final entreaty, after hoping they had received two several ten pounds he had sent them, and before sealing and send- ing his letter, was that they were to be good housewives, and that Ppt was to walk for health whenever possible. " Have you the horse in town ? and do you ever ride him ? How often ? Con- Nov. 24. f ess. Ahhh, sirrah, have I caught you ?" VISIT TO LONDON OF DOCTOR RAYMOND, VICAR OP TRIM. {Ante, 199.) The Vicar of Trim's visit has been mentioned, and the story of Lettees it may be completed here. Finishing his letter just sent off, he n'ovT® ' told her that the doctor was come to town, but he had slipped ^^"^ ^*'- him off on some of his compatriots to show what was to be seen, and he lends him Patrick. The unconscionable vicar, nevertheless, desired to sit with him in the evenings, but Patrick has positive orders that he is " not within." The next mention is very early in his next letter, begun on the day he went with Ford to the opening of parliament, when he staid so long among the aisles and tombs of the abbey, and on coming home found himself with a cold which he can only describe in arhyme, He doen't know how, but got it he has, and is hoarse : he does not know whether it will grow, better or worse. But Ppt's' mother's cakes are good (one of them serves him for breakfast), and he'll go sleep like a good boy. That cruel cold kept him all next day in his night-gown, reading, writing, and denied to every body ; but at last Dr. Ray- mond called (and, for a reason* he had, was let up), who sat two * His reason was amusing enough, for he asked the vicar carelessly. How I'at denied his master, and whether he had the art of it? "So by this means he shall be used to have me de- nied to him, otherwise he would be a plaguy trouble and hinderance to me." 382 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. LuTTEKs^ liouvs, drank a pint of fivepenny ale, smoked his pipe, and wont Nov. 2.5^ ' ^'^^^J ^t eleven. And let thenf go to their gang of Deans, and Uec. 20. Stoytes, and Wallses, and lose their money. Go, sauceboxes ; and so, good-night, and be happy, dear rogues. Sunday following he saw the doctor again, for that day he went to court (Sundays then were the court-days), and who should he see among the beef -eaters, staying for sight of the queen, but Eaymond ? So he put him in a better place, made two or three dozen bows, left to go to church, and came back to pick up a dinner, which he did with Sir John Stanley, the two afterward visiting Lord Mountjoy and sitting with Dec 10. him till near eleven. The Sunday following he tells her more of their friend ; how he has seen him twice a week, while dressing in the morning ; how he has not been able to afford more time to him ; and how poor Eaymond had seemed to have no relish for London, and no wonder ! Some Templers were doing the civili- ties, and showing him about. Next day he talks to them again of Raymond, whom ho is " persuading ". to leave, though he has lately gone out of his way to introduce him to solicitor-general Raymond (a relative). Raymond's resolve to leave (" for fear his wife should be too far gone, and forced to be brought to bod here ") had been shaken by the wreck of an Irish packet-boat, and hence the need of Swift's " persuasion." Still, however, he staid on, calling (and being denied) on the llth, but again calling, and being let up, next day, when Swift, Charles Ford, and their Lish friend, Dopping, were drinking bad claret and eating oranges, and Raymond told them all he should certainly leave " next day." Nov- Dec. 20. crtheless, not next day, but the morning after, when Swift was up very early, and, having shaved by candle-light, was writing by the fireside, in came poor Raymond really to take his leave, being in truth summoned by high order from his wife, but pretending he had had enough of London, ^wift was a little melancholy to part with him, he had been so easy and manageable ; but he was gone, and would save some lies a week to Patrick, who had grown so admirable at it he'd make his fortune by lying. Not even yet, however, was the simply kindly Irish parson gone. "At night, Dr. Raymond came back, and goes to-morrow. I did not come home till eleven, and found him hero to take leave of me." IRISH OPINIONS OF HIS WRITINGS. (Ante, 319, 320.) In the second night's journal of his tenth letter he spoke of §!•] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 383 liaving heard from the Bishop of Clogher that they had bidden Letter X. him read the London Shaver, and that they botji swore it was -p"^' ^ ' Shaver, and not Shower. (" You all lie, and you are puppies, and can not read Pdfr's hand." Nevertheless, it was admired, forsooth. Why, the bishop said " he has seen something of mine of the same sort better than the Shower." I suppose he means the Morning* (verses also written for Steele) ; " but it is not half so good. I want your judgment of things, and not your country's. How does MD like it ? And do they taste it all ?" As for the bishop's con- jectures of his share in the Tatlers, they were " out " entirely. He had other things to mind, and of much greater importance ; else he had little to do to be acquainted with a new ministry who con- sidered him a little more than Irish bishops did. The subject was afterward resumed with a remark that he supposed they thought it a piece of affectation in him to wish their Irish folks would not like his Shower : but they were mistaken. If he could have the general applause there, indeed, as he had here {" though I say it ") he'd be glad : but as he had only that of one or two, he would rather have none at all, but let them all be in the wrong. " But I am so tosticated with supper and stuS that I can not express myself." Why did not Ppt and DD tell their old acquaintance Griffyth that they fancied there was something in Sid Hamet of their friend "the Doctor's" manner? first spurring up his com- mendation to the height, as they served his poor iTucle " about the sconce that I mended." (A lost anecdote of his favorite uncle William.) ANSWERS ESTHEE'S SIXTH LETTER. On the 29th he dined with Ford, coming early home ; where, however, Ford followed, and " debauched " him to his chamber again with a bottle of wine till twelve. So he could not that night answer the saucy good dear letter. But he did so the night Nov. so. following, after some writing he had long neglected ; dining with Mrs. Barton alone, sauntering at the coffee-house till past eight, and doing the other writing till eleven. * Moining had appeared in No. 9, and the Shower in No. 238, of the Tatler ; each introduced with one of Steele's happiest compliments to Swift, who, under the name of Humphrey WagstafF, is descvibed as "treating of every subject after a manner that no other author has done, and better than any other can do." 384 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letter X. Nov. 25, l)co. 9. Very ctarming then is his prittle- prattle over her letter, in- dulged before he goes to bed ; rallying her still for not taking exercise -enough, and reporting a late talk with her mother about it ; telling her that, but for what she had herself written, what had been said to him of her health by a visitor from Ireland (" Smyth, of the Blind Quay ") would have driven him distracted. He implored her not again to write until she was mighty, mighty, mighty well in her eyes, and mighty, mighty sure it wouldn't do her the least hurt. " Oh, come, I'll tell you what ; you. Mistress Ppt, shall write your share at five or six sittings, one sitting a day ; and then comes DD all together, and then Ppt a little crumb toward the end, to let us see she remembers Pdfr; andthon con- clude with something handsome and genteel, as ' your most hum- ble cum dumble, or etc' " She had told him of her winnings at cards ; but he doubts. " Mrs. Walls, does Ppt win as she pre- tends ?" " No, indeed. Doctor : she loses always, and will play so venturesomely how can she win ?" " See here, now, are you not an impudent, lying slut 2" But yet she was obedient, too. She had followed directions, and written with closed eyes. Yes, faith, Ppt wrote smartly with her eyes shut ; all was well but the w. See how Pdfr can do it. " Madam Ppt, your humble servant." Oh, but one may look whether one goes crooked or no, and so write on. He would tell her what she might do : she might write with her eyes half shut, just as when one is going to sleep. There ! he had done so for two or three lines now : it was but just seeing enough to go straight. Dingley's portion of the letter had vol- unteered regrets (which he calls " poligyes ") for their frequent gadding from home, at which he laughs, liking nothing better ; and Ppt had written something at which he threaten? to break that young woman's head in good earnest. It was a " nasty jest " about Mrs. Barton. Unlucky sluttikin ! But 'faith, he adds (re- verting to her jest), he was thinking the day before, when he was with Mrs. Barton, of what Ppt said, and whether " she could break them or no." It quite spoiled his imagination.* A sudden thought comes. Now should he tell them what ! He had seen fellows wearing crosses that day, and wondered what * The whole passage is obscure : the little language, that might have ren- dered it intelligible, having been struck out. But his correspondent was cer- tainly not free from a habit very com- mon then with ^vomen of birth and breeding. §!•] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 385 ■was tlie matter; but just this minute he recollected it was little Letter X. Nov. 25, Dec. 9. His birth- day; 30th. Pdfr's birthday. It was St. Andrew's Day. He had been resolv- ing these three days to remember it when it came, but could not. " Pray, drink my health to-day at dinner ; do, you rogues. , Well now at last I have done with your letter, and so I will lay me down to sleep, and about fair maids, and I hope merry maids all." He did sleep about them, and woke wishing that Smyth of the Blind Quay were hanged; for he had been dreaming the most melancholy things in the world of poor Ppt, and was grieving and crying all night. " Pshaw, it is foolish ; I will rise and divert myself ; so good-morrow, and God of his infinite mercy keep and protect you !" The bishop had said in his letter they thought of going with him to Clogher ; and he required them to go, Ppt on horseback and DD in a coach. " I have had no fit since my first, although sometimes my head is not quite in good order." ROGUE STEELE. Attention to a whig friend, Lord Shelbumo, who had come over with other Irish acquaintance, the Pratts, occupied him all the day on which he was writing ; for, calling to see them, they made him dine ; and then he staid till eight, looking over them at ombre like a booby. That morning he had to describe to them the " im- pudentest " thing in the world that " Steele the rogue " had done ; for out had come the Tatler with a letter which Swift had written and sent him, with intimation that Prior, as well as Howe, was a party to it, and of course not signed, laughing at something in a recent Tatler about the propriety, now the Union was settled, of say- ing Great Britain instead of England even in private conversation ; and the rogue had printed it with the signatures J. S., M. P., and N. E., which Congreve, with whom and Sir Charles Wager Swift dined that day at the Portugal envoy's, " smoked immediately."* * It appeared in the 258th Tatler, and represented the writers at a cof- fee-house, where they met Mr. South British and Mr. William North Brit- ain, and dined off North British col- lops, but were so much disturbed by children playing North British hop- pers in the paved court outside, that they paid their North Briton as soon as possible, and came off in a coach YoL. I.— 25 to North-Bvitain-Yard J hoping that by thus describing their friends, Mr. English and Mr. William Scott, their Scotch coUops, the children's Scotch hoppers, their own ("scot" or) share of the i-eckoning, and their abode near Scotland Yard, they would please Mr. Bickerstaff by the perfect accuracy of their new style. 386 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Lettek X. Nov. 25, AN EVENING AT HOME. Dec. 9. UecTz ^'^ camo back at eiglit to do work, but could not at once set about it because that dog, Patrick, was not at home, and the fire was not made, and he was not in his gear. So, instead of writing an Examiner, he writes more at his tenth letter ; looking over it and finding plaguy mistakes in words ; and then comes Patrick ; and at twelve he tells them he had been busy ever since, by a fire too, and now was got to bed. Well, and what had they to say to Pdf r, now he was abed ? Come, now, let him hear their speeches. No, it was a lie, he was not sleepy yet. Let them all sit up a lit- tle longer and talk. Well, where had they been to-day, that they were but just that minute come home in a coach? WTiat had they lost ? Pay the coachman, Ppt. No, faith, not I, says Ppt ; he will grumble. What new acquaintance had they got ? " Come, let us hear !" Pshaw, so it was ! He must be writing to those dear saucy brats every night, whether he would or no, let him have whatever business he will, or come home ever so late, or be ever so sleepy. So true was the old saying (that moment invented) : Be you lords, or be yqu earls, You must write to naughty girls. COFFEE-HOUSE ADVENTURES AND A TU QUOQUE. Going to the Court of Requests to pick up a dinner (they had had the devil and all of rain, by-the-bye), he describes Anthony Ilcnley laying hold of him and making him go dine at a tavern with him and one Colonel Brag, to meet Congreve, who didn't come. " Cost me money, 'faith !" They adjourned to the coffee- house, where Lord Salisbury, a high tory, came up mighty desir- ous to talk, and, while wriggling himself into Swift's favor, that dog, Henley, asked Swift aloud, to vex him, whether he would go to see Lord Somers as he had promised, " which was a lie." Two or three other such tricks Henley played the same evening, till there was nothing for it but to leave my lord and come home. And was it true, he asked Ppt when he got home, sharply reproving others for doing what he had done himself, that their recorder, and mayor, and fanatic aldermen had a month or two ago, at a solemn feast, drunk Mr. Harley's, Lord Eochester's, and other tory healths ? The scoundrels ! That he had himself not yet lost ground with the whigs for being supposed to have done the same thing, his §1.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 387 next entry tells her. Congreve and Delaval had at last prevailed Letter X. on Sir Godfrey Kneller to entreat Swift to let Sir Godfrey " draw p"^" |^' my picture for nothing ; but I know not yet when I shall sit." AEKIVAL OF ESTHER'S SEVENTH LETTER. He dined with Ford that afternoon, and came home to work. Dec. 6. "But have you lost to-day T' Three shillings? "Oh fie! oh fie !" Still, whatever is in hand, he must call up Ppt to his fancy ; he must talk to the saucy dear brat. And then, just as he is send- ing ofi his tenth, comes her seventh, quite pat ; but he won't answer it, only he has not been giddy, and he is heartily sorry they do not go to Clogher, and so God Almighty protect poor dear, dear, dear, dearest ilD. " Farewell till to-night. I will begin my eleventh to-night. So I am always writing to little MD !" His. tenth went that day, but he does not yet think of answering her seventh. Having to write " idle things and twittle-twattle," four days pass before he begins any regular reply, though he has pleasant words in the mean while. For if he can only say MD is a dear saucy rogue, what then ? Pdfr loves them the better for that. Or if he must go study, sirrahs, and call them rogues and sauceboxes when he has plaguy things to think about, that is all over when he gets to bed, for he can talk to them there, and think of nothing else. Xo, he will not answer her till he has leisure ; so let other things go on as they wiU, what cares he ? TMiat cares saucy Pdfr ? Yet still each night as it comes brings the question, when must he an- swer this letter of our MD's ? There it was, lying slipped beneath his paper, on the other side the leaf. "When? when? One of these odd-cum-shortlies he would consider. PATRICK LOCKS UP HIS MASTER'S WORK He dined on the 9th with an old whig friend, Lord Abercorn, whom he wishes to serve, but fears 'tis too late, " by his own fault and ill-fortune." He attends court next day ; sees again, without speaking to, the Duke of Richmond (" I believe we are fallen out ") ; dines with Sir Mathew Dudley ; and after " a pure walk in the park," is at home at six for work. But he can do nothing ; that scoundrel dog Patrick being out of the way, his work locked up, and himself forced to borrow coals, and not able to do any thing. So he takes up his Journal and talks to her instead. He tells her about Piaymond, and of a violent stonn last night ; of 388 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letter XL Dec. 9-23. tlie rumor of one of their packet-boats cast away, and in it Beau Swift (one of liis own cousins, son of William) ; and of a question between the Bishop of Clogher and himself about the Laracor church bells ("he shall not cheat me of one inch of my bell- metal "). By which time Patrick has come home, and his master gets to " study " with his own ink and papers, and a new pen. Next evening, after dining with Mrs. Van, he again comes home for work, and finds the puppy Patrick has again locked up his papers- and ink. However, it is not his intention to answer the saucy rogue's letter till he has leisure. But, after another word about Raymond, he tells her of his having had his stomach turned by a letter of Mrs. Long's from Lynn, containing no less than two " nasty jests with dashes to suppose them ;" and he thinks she has been corrupted with vile conversation in that country town. OLD WHIG CONNECTIONS. He dined on the 12th with the Irish chancellor of the ex- chequer, Phil Savage, and his Msli club ; he was with Sir Mat Dudley, too ; and his thoughts, as they rarely failed of doing after whig companionship, turned to him whom he ever regarded as its decus et tutamen. " Mr. Addison and I hardly meet now once a fortnight. His parliament and my different friendships keep us asunder." As worth preserving is what he heard that day of Dudley having turned away his butler yesterday morning, the poor fellow dying suddenly in the streets the same night. " Was it not an odd event ? But what care you ! But, then, I knew the butler." That has a touching pertinence. Next day was ap- pointed for him to go "trapesing'' and sight -seeing with a whig- family he had much liking for. It was a party for which Lady Sight-seeiiiR Kerry (a great favorite) and Mrs. Pratt had engaged him the pre- Shelbarnes. vious morning at tea; and at ten iti the morning, from Lord Shelburne's house in Piccadilly, it started in three hackney-coach- es : the first containing Lady Kerry, Mrs. Pratt, Mrs. Cadogan, and Swift ; the second, Lady Kerry's son, his governor, and two gen- tlemen ; and the third, misses and little master, the Shelburne children, with due supply of maids. They went first to the Tow- er, seeing all it had to show ; visited Bedlam next, for its more terrible " sights ;" dined at the chop-house behind the Exchange ; called at Gresham College ; and closed the night at the puppet- show, Swift depositing ladies and children home at eleven. " The § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 389 ladies were all in mobs — how do you call it ? undressed ; and it Lettkk was the rainiest day that ever dripped ; and I am weary, and it is jjg|, (,23. now past eleven." Four days later, disappointed at Barley's, lie dined with his honest old whig physician, Doctor Cockburn, and at night again saw Sam Dopping, being taken by Charles Ford " next door " to drink bad claret and eat oranges with him ; of which indifferent repast we have seen that they permitted Eaymond to partake. He was too late for the Duke of Buckingham next day, but he visited Mrs. Barton ; and the day following he refused Anthony Henley and every body in hope of Harley, so that at last, not knowing where to go, he dined at Jemmy Leigh's lodging on beefsteak, drank Ppt's health, and closed at a tavern with Ben Tooke and Duke Ormond's secretary, Pontlack ; drinking nasty white wine till eleven, and coming home sick and ashamed on't. The same ill-luck as to Harley pursuing him next day, and the weather being " lovely," he went by water into the city, dined at a merchant's house with Stratford, and walked back with an old whig acquaintance. Colonel Caulfield. He calls his dining disap- pointments " coming down proud stomach." ANSWERS ESTHER'S SEVENTH LETTER. He began his reply on that day of the sight-seeing with the Shelbume party, when, before starting, he could not help a little talk to his saucy jades, just '"a little snap and away." So let them hold their tongues, for he must get up ; not a word for their lives ! " How nowww ? So, very well : stay till I come home, and then, perhaps, you may hear further from me. And where will you go to-day ? for I can not be with you for those ladies. It is a rainy, ugly day. I would have you send for Walls, and go to the Dean's; but do not play small games when you lose." And then comes advice about her way of playing ombre, already quoted {ante, 213), all of it running over with delightful charac- ter ; and then his unexpected full stop — . " Oh, silly ! how I prate, and can not get away from this MD even of a morning. Go, get you gone, dear naughty girls, and let me rise." He would have said it all the night before, but that Patrick had locked up his ink again the third time last night. " The rogue gets the better of me." Then he goes for his sight-seeing ; and, weary as he is that night, before he rises next morning the tender trifling is resumed ; and the loving shape it gave to pretty pictures of his 390 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Lkttek fancy could hardly to himself be more vivid than it remains for Dec. 9-23. '^®' " ^'^^ ™^ ®^^- Come and appear, little letter. HerQ I am, "~ says he, and what say you to Mrs. Ppt this morning ; fresh and fasting?" His health is the first matter, and upon this he re-as- sures her. Ah then, she did keep Pdfr's little birthday ; would to God he had been with them ! " Rediculous to think they could have forgotten it." iJediculous, madam ! he supposed she meant ridiculous ; let him have no more of that : it was the author of the Atlantis's spelling. And could Ppt read that writing of his without hurting her dear eyes? Oh, 'faith he was afraid not. " Have a care of those eyes, pray, pray, pretty Ppt." What she observed of his writing was perhaps well enough, that it might not be so well if he writ better ; she was so used to his manner, she could turn the pot-hooks into letters and the letters into words. That sentence ends one side of the letter. The next begins, " Turn over. I had not room on the other side to say it, so I did it on this : I fancy that is a good Irish blunder.'' It was a grief to him they had not gone to Clogher. Ah, why did they not go, nautinautinauti-dear girls (he did not dare to say nauti without dear) ? O, 'faith, they governed him. Seriously, he was sorry they did not go, as far as he could judge at that distance. But had her horse indeed been stumbling ? He had been some time eager that she shoulcf have another horse ; he would make Parvisol get her one. He always doubted that horse of hers. She was to let Parvisol sell him, and the other would be a present from himself. His heart ' ached when he thought she rode him, and he should never be easy till he was out of her hands. 'Faith, he had dreamed of horses stumbling five or six times since her letter. The animal was to " run " that winter if not sold. Going through the subjects^he had touched upon, he evident- ly thinks she makes it too much a merit in the Dean to have preached for him at Christ Church. And did the Dean preach for him ? Very well. They could hardly have expected Pdfr to stand where he was and himself preach to them. No, the Taller of the shilling was not his, more than the hint and two or three general heads for it. He had much more important business on his hands ; and, besides, the ministry hated to think he should Hint to help help Steele, and had made reproaches on it, and he had frankly fon^l^r"° told them he would do it no more. " This is a secret, though, Madam Ppt." She win eight shillings? She win eight fiddle- § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 391 sticks ! She said nothing, 'faith, of what she lost. Yes, yes, he Letter was doing his best for Manley ; and Mrs. DD was an unreasonable jj^J, 923 baggage. He was always in bed by twelve, he meant his candle was out by twelve, and he took great care of himself. And so they and the Dean dined at Stoyte's, did they ? and Mrs. Stoyte was in raptures that he remembered her ? Why, then, he must do it but seldom, or the raptures would go off ! " But what now, Tou saucy sluts ! all this written in a morning !" I must rise and go abroad. At night, however, before he can sleep, again they are before him. Where did he leave ofE ? Let us see. So, now he has it. It was where somebody had been pleased to say that some people went to England who could never tell when to come back ! But his rebuke to the sauceboxes for this has been told {ante, 550.) Hussy Ppt! he knew that was a jest of hers about poor Congreve's eyes ; yes, she did jest, the hussy ! but he would bang her bones, 'faith. They had'been hearing unpleasant gossip about Steele. Yes, Steele was a little whUe in prison, or at least in a spunging-house, some time before he came over, not since. As for Convocation — a pox on their convocations ! Lord ! he ex- claims next morning, what a long day's writing was his yesterday's reply to them ! Ah, but he had forgotten — Why did they leave his picture behind them at the other lodgings ? Forgot it ? Well ; but let them pray remember it now, and not roll it up, did they hear? but hang it carefully in some part of their room where chairs, and candles, and mop-sticks would not spoil it, sirrahs ! No, truly, he would not be godfather to Goody Walls that bout. Ante, 200, and he really hoped she would have no more. There'd be no quiet nor cards for that child, and he wished it out of the world the day after the christening. And so there was an end of their letter. FOSTSCRIPT OF THINGS REMEMBERABLE. But no end to his tender playfulness morning and night, until the time for closing his journal. It had still seven days to run, and besides its pleasant daily greetings, of which something of the substance can be guessed, though the form is gone, there are a few more things to tell. What before he had mentioned of the Bishop of Clogher's ill chance for the desired vice-chancellorship (ante, 355), he confirmed on the 19th; when he told them of the appointment of the Archbishop of Tuam, and that their friend had 392 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letter XI. Dec. 9-23. Talk at the bedside. Ante, m. Dec. 22. Wiiger with Ppt. " enemies " about the viceroy. While writing that, he gave them a picture of Patrick folding up his scarf and doing up the fire (" for I keep a fire ; it costs me tvf elvepence a v?eek "), and desires them to be quiet till he is gone to bed, when they were to sit down by him a little, and they would talk a few words more. Well, now they were at his bedside, and now what should they say? " How does Mrs. Stoyte ? What had the Dean for supper ? How much did Mrs. Walls win ? Poor Lady Shelburne !" (he had heard of the dowager's death that day). Well, " go, get you to bed, sir- rahs 1" as he tells them he is just doing himself : but, with day-- break, he is talking to her again, and telling her about their Vicar of Trim. How now, then, sirrah Ppt ? he asks. Must he write so much in a morning to her impudence ? Stay till night, And then I'll write, In black and white, By candle-light, Of wax so bright, It helps the sight — A bite, a bite ! Marry come up, and what did Mrs. Boldface think of his meeting and walking a turn in the park with " that beast Ferris, Lord Berkeley's steward formerly," one of the personages in Mrs. Harris's petition, whom he calls a scoundrel dog, but re- ports as married to a wife with a considerable estate in land and houses about London, happy as an emperor, living at his ease at Hammersmith, and a specimen of what her " confounded sect " (sex) could do. Next night, after telling her this, he is very early to bed, meaning to " sleep for a wager ;" but he is first minded to wish her a merry Christmas and a happy new year, and pray God they might never keep them again asunder. The following " dark " mornmg Patrick tempts him by a good fire to leave his bed, and he wishes MD were by it or he by MD's. And then, at last, comes the 23d, when his letter must go ; and in the morning he wakes wondering if the frame over the fire-place at the coffee-house exhibited another letter from Ppt. He would send by -and -by, and let her know. And so and so. Patrick was gone on the errand. Wliat would she say ? Was there one from MD, or no ? No, says Pdfr. Done for sixpence, says Ppt. — He has won sixpence, he has won sixpence ! There is not a let- ter for Pdfr ! And so good-morrow ; for he and Stratford are to § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 393 dine with Lord Mountjoy, and as lie goes lie prays God Almighty Letter to preserve and bless them. And \yhen he comes back from din- ^ q_t,„ ner " to study," he tells her of some better news from Spain (" our ' news from Spain this post takes off some of our fears "), and that Bank stock is so risen he might get twelve pounds for his bargain ; but he is troubled by Patrick, the puppy, being abroad, and how shall he send his letter ? He fills it meanwhile to the brim, pressed down and running over, with tender words. " Good -night, little dears both, and be happy, and remember your poor Pdfr, that wants you sadly, as hope saved. Let me go study, naughty girls, and do not keep me at the bottom of the paper. 0, 'faith, if you knew what lies on my hands constantly, you would wonder to see how I could write such long letters ; but we will talk of that some other time. Good-night again, and God bless dear l^ID with his best blessing; yes, yes, and DD, and Ppt, and ME too." . . . And as he folds it up he has counted, besides postscript, one hun- dred and ninety -nine lines in it, which he had "a curiosity to reckon." There was a long letter— longer than a sermon, 'faith ! And yet there is another word to put into it, about a letter from his sister Fenton, which he will answer soon ; and so his humble service to Mrs. Walls and Mrs. Stoyte. ILLNESS OF SIR ANDREW FOUNTAINE. {Ante, 1.76.) His twelfth letter told her of increasing public as well as pri- LettkeXII. ^'ate engagements, but the politics and playfulness still went hand- ^^^f' in-hand, both attractive alike for her to whom both were addressed, and neither interfering with the other. This letter was also unu- sually rich in individual anecdote, and in illustrations of manner and character. Sir Andrew Fountaine had fallen ill, and so bad was he on the 29th, after nearly a week's suffering, that he had sent to Swift early that morning to have prayers, " which you know is the last thing." He found the doctors and every body in despair about him, and that he had settled all things ; and when he came out after reading prayers, the nurse asked him whether he thought it possible poor Sir Andrew could live, for the doc- tors thought not. " I said I believed he would live ; for I found the seeds of life in him, which I observe seldom fail (and I found them in poor dearest Ppt, when she was ill many years ago)." He was right in his prediction. He was with the patient again that night, finding him mightily recovered, and it was hoped he 394 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Lettek XII. Dec. 23, Jan. 4. Lettee xin. Jan. 4-16. Family monraers. Jau. 14. would do well, the doctor approving Swift's reasons : " but if lie should die, I should come o£E scurvily." Next morning he had continued good news ; and going later to read prayers again, he found Sir Andrew so far recovering as to desire to be at ease. He had given orders not to be disturbed. " I have lost a legacy by his living ; for he told me he had left me a picture and some books." On New-year's-eve, however, Fountaine was still suffer- ing, and Swift's first visit on New-year's-day was to inquire after him, when he was again better ; and the following day he was mending much. Yet thoughts of his friend confused his dreams that night. 'Faith, he fancied he was to be put in prison, he did not know why, and he was so afraid of a black dungeon, and all he had been asking about Fountaine's sickness he thought was of poor Ppt ; and the worst of such dreams was that one waked just in the humor they left one. Here was an impertinence ! he exclaimed, opening his thirteenth letter. Sir Andrew's mother and sister were come above a hundred miles from Worcester to see him be- fore he died, arriving but yesterday, when he must have been past hopes, or past fears, before they could reach him. Swift fell a-scolding when he heard they were coming, and the people about him wondered at this, and said what a mighty content it would be on both sides' that he should die when they were with him. But Swift, who believed him in a fair way to live, knew the mother for the greatest overdo on earth, and the sister, they said, was worse, and so felt sure he'd relapse again among them. There was also the scoundrel brother, an ignorant, worthless rake, always crying in the outer room, and the nurses comforting him, and desiring him not to take on so, till Sir Andrew had fallen really into danger ; and the dog remembered he should have all his estate if he died, and at last began to be consoled. Such was the condition of things at Fountaine's lodgings on the 4th. Then, three days later, came the housekeeper, Mrs. South, on her way to market, to whom Swift gave a New-year's gift of half a pistole, and who reported her master still in a fever, and might live or die, and the mother and sister actually arrived at the house, " so there is a lurry." It is a week all but a day before Swift tells more ; and then, saying it was spring with them already, and he ate asparagus the other day, and did she ever see such a frostless winter, he adds that Sir An- drew lay still extremely ill, and that it cost him, as it had done for three weeks past, ten guineas a day to doctors, surgeons, and apoth- § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 395 ecaries. On the day his letter was posted he visited the mother Leitek and sister, finding the patient on the mend, though slowly, and -p^g" 23 later letters may be anticipated for the sequel. On the 9th of Jan. 4. February he spoke of him as recovered, so that she might take back the sorrow she had just sent, and fling it to the dogs ; two days after, he was reading prayers to him in the afternoon ; on the 19th, when, having shipped oS his mother and sister back to the country, he had just begun to sally out. Swift dined with him at Mrs. Van's ; and again, a week later, they dined there together. LORD HERBERT AND ANTHONY HENLEY. I go back to the twelfth letter for a characteristic note on two Lettee xrr. whig friends. Yes, yes. Madam Dingley was not to trouble her- jait^' self ; he had got another velvet cap. Lord Herbert had bought it, and presented it to him. It was ten days ago, when he was at breakfast with him, where he was as merry and easy as ever he saw him, yet had received a challenge half an hour before, and half an hour after fought a duel. Herbert was a friend of An- thony Henley, of whom Ppt wished to hear something, but he had nothing to tell of that " puppy " who had gone to the country for Christmas, except that he had lately got into a habit of coming up without his wife and keeping no house, but tempting his friends to eating-houses and the coUee-house ; and Swift, growing tired of it, avoided him ; upon which Henley, not able anyhow to get hold of him, sent him a message by Lord Herbert that he was " a beast " forever after the order of Melchisedek. Did she ever read the Scripture ? It was only changing the word beast to priest. I will add the very attractive picture that closes this letter. When the day came for sending it, he would fain have more news to send. It was now thought Atterbury would be Dean of Christ- church, but the college would rather have Smallridge. But what was this to them ? What cared they for Atterburys or Small- ridges ? No, 'faith, they cared for nothing but Pdfr. So he would rise and bid them farewell — and yet he was loath, with a great bit of paper yet to talk upon. So he tells them a couple of puns Ante, 206, that he and Prior had made, and says it was really a shame that he did not remember to have heard one good one from the minis- try. Still he can not leave ofi ; he thinks he is bewitched to write so of a morning to little Ppt. " Let me go, will you ? and I will come again to-night in a fine clean sheet of paper ; but I can nor 396 THE LITE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Lettee will stay no longer now. No, I will not, for all your wheedling ! Dec' 23 -^°' ^° i 1°°^ off ) do not smile at me and say pray, pray, Pdfr, ■^^°- ^- write a little more. Ah, you are a wheedling slut ; you be so. Nay, but pray turn thee about, and let me go ! Do : it is a good girl ; and do." A very tender, sweet picture that ! And suddenly his morning candle dwindles, and he is on the wrong side of the curtain, and the dark comes upon him, and he can not see the paper he writes upon, as, with service to Mrs. Walls and Mrs. Stoyte, and once more God Almighty bless Ppt, he folds it up. NEW TATLER, WITH "LITTLE HARRISON" FOR EDITOR. LettkeXIIL He tells her of this enterprise in his thirteenth letter. In its predecessor's last journals he had told her of an evening at his neighbor Darteneuf's to drink punch with Addison and little Harrison, the young poet whose fortune he was bent on making {ante, 300) ; and, mentioning that Steele also was to have been there, but came not, " nor ever did twice since I knew him to any appointment," he went on to give a reason that might at least have excused his absence that day, and which has interest for us. Last number It was the day of the appearance of Steele's last Tatler. " You Tatiei\ ^ ^ ^^"^ ®^® ^^ before this comes to you, and how he takes leave of the world. He never so much as told Mr. Addison of it, who was surprised as much as I ; but, to say the truth, it was time, for he grew cruel dull and dry. To my knowledge he had several good hints to go upon, but he was so lazy and weak of the work, that he would not improve them." The notion was doubtless started that night, over Darteneuf's punch, of a new Tatler, with Harrison at the head of it, and she was soon to hear of it again. He told her on the 11th that some one had suggested a fresh Tatler, and he was doing his best to give little Harrison the chance. Something had been brought that evening for a first number to come out next Saturday, and Swift had sent for a printer (good-naturedly selecting one of his own irrepressible " cousins "), and settled the matter between him and Harrison. To follow Steele, however, was not easy ; he doubted this thing would not succeed, for what had been brought him was poor; " and the scheme, being Mr. Secretary St. John's and mine, would have done well enough in good hands.'' Harrison had just left him as he wrote'that, and he was tired with correcting his trash. Two days after it came out, and Swift could only say there was not § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 397 much in it, but he hoped it might mend. Ppt must understand Lettek that already on Steele's lca\ing oil there had two or three " scrub" jj,n 4_i6 Tatlers come out, and one of them held on still, being that day- advertised against Harrison's, so that there would be disputes which was genuine, " like the strops for razors." But he was afraid the " little toad " had not the true vein for it. This he repeats after another three days, when he had given hints for a second number. The " jackanapes " wanted a right taste, and he doubted he would not do. This was but too true a prediction, and, notwithstanding* Swift's help, the thing failed. How he yet does his best to prop it up appears frequently in the Journals. There is also a dispute with the printer he had specially recommended, and the incident and his manner of relating it are highly charac- teristic of him. Here came little Harrison yesterday, says he, to complain of the printer recommended for his Tatler, " and yet to see how things will happen," for that very printer was one Doctor Swift's cousin, his name Dryden Leach ; had she never heard of Dryden Leach, he that prints the Postman ? Oh, yes, he had told her {ante 303), but had forgotten. " He acted Oroonoko, he is in love with Miss Cross," and little Harrison had called him a coxcomb ; very clearly not an unpardonable offense to Cousin Swift, who, on Mr. Leach coming to him a day or two later with a heavy counter -complaint vowing vengeance, answered gravely, got rid of him, and ordered Patrick to deny him ever after. But though he throws ofi the printer, he still tolerates his young friend, for whom he has a genuine kindness. There is an intercession for him with poor Congreve, now nearly blind, and just getting out of a severe fit of the gout, to whom Swift goes to sit of an evening ; and he tells her that he got from his old school-fellow, by way of reward, a Tatler which, blind as he was, Congreve had congreve's written out as a help to Harrison, about a scoundrel grown rich, sood-nature who went and bought a coat of arms at the Heralds' and a set of ancestors at Fleet-ditch. Another night we find him home early, expecting his little friend to get help for his Tuesday's number, having given him liberty to come two evenings in the week ; but the jackanapes never comes ; and he, expecting the toad, falls a-reading, having left off other business. When finally there is no more hope in the way of a new Tatler, he makes earnest in- tercession with St. John for Harrison, with what effect we shall 398 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFI. [Book VI. Letters XII. AND INCIDENT ON CHRISTMAS-EVE. XIII. Bee. 23, He had already announced to her his intention to change liis — '- — '- — lodgings in Bury Street. They had in them, he said, " a thousand stinks ;" and this fact, which had enabled him to strengthen his verses on a London shower, had led to his being disturbed in more than one of his senses on Christmas-eve, for it brought the fear of fire. The little comedy will bear reproduction. He had come home early, and got into bed to go on with his letter to MD : for it was a maxim as old as the hills that you must always write to your MD's in bed : " The White and the Red, write to MD when abed-; The Black and the Brown, write to MD when you are down ; The Oak and the Willow, write to MD on your pillow. '' , On his pillow he had afterward turned to sleep, when — what rvas that! 'Faith, he must rise and look at his chimney in the next room, for the smell grew stronger and stronger. Stay ! Well, he had been up and in his room, and found all safe, only a mouse within the fender to warm himself, which he tried to catch, and could not. Certainly he smelt nothing there. But it is not gone. Again he smells it, this time beyond a doubt in his bedroom, and at last he discovers the secret. Writing in bed, he had singed the woolen curtains. " Pdf r's plaguy silly to-night, is not he ? Yes, and so he be. Ay, but if I should wake and see fire ? Well, I will venture — and so " — he sleeps at last. A couple of days later he is sauntering about for a new lodging, having missed one " over the way " which he had bespoken, but not given earnest for, as Patrick recommended him to do, and so " the dog " let it to another. But he found one next day in St. Alban Street, where he paid the same rent (eight shillings a week) for an apartment up two pair of stairs, but with use of the parlor to receive persons of quality. CHRISTMAS AND NEW TEAR. All this was in the Christmas-time, when he is never tired of wishing Ppt a Merry Christmas, and many and many a one with poor Pdfr at some pretty place. On Christmas-day itself he was at church by eight, and received the sacrament ; came home by ten, and at two went to court, where it was a collar-day (" that is. §1.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 399 when the Knights of the Garter wear their collars ") ; but the Letters queen staid so late at sacrament that he came back to dine with -j^^jj his neighbor Ford, " because all people dine at home on this Deo. 23, day." Which minds him of a pun he has made, that it was like- wise a collar-day all over England, in every house, at least, where there was brawn. " That is very well," he says, complacently ; and it encourages him to tell her of his pun about egoes, and to Ante, 206. twit the young women with pretending innocence that they may ask after " roguish " puns, and Latin ones too. But so open a winter as they had was very unlike Chi;istmas. They had not had two frosty days ; but it paid them oS in rain, for they had not had three fair days these six weeks. One peculiarity of the season he would fain have them explain. He had called that day (the 27th) at one or two neighbors', hoping to spend a Christmas evening ; but none were at home, they were all gone to be merry with others.* " I have often observed this, that in merry times every body is abroad : where the deuce are they ?" So he went to the coffee-house, and talked an hour with Addison, who at last remembered to give him two letters (one of which was her eighth), which he could not answer that night ; no, nor to-morrow neither, the yOung women might count upon that. He had other things to do than to answer naughty girls. An old saying and a true — " Letters from MD's must not be answered in ten days " — but a bad rhyme, he admitted. However, he has a better on New- year's-eve : " "Would you answer MD's letter, On New-year's-day you will do it better, For when the year with MD 'gins, It without MD never lins." — (He is comically careful here to explain that these proverbs have always old words in them ; lins is to leave ofi ) — " But if on New Year you write nones, MD then will bang your bones." * After two more days, when he dined with his quondam neighbor ITord, who always dined at home on opera-nights (do you know what quon- dam is, though?), he protested he should not reply till next year. O lord — bo— but that will be a Monday next. Cods so, is it ? and so it is : never saw the like. — "I made a pun the other day to Ben Pontlack about a pair of drawers." Not now men- tionable, though doubtless relished by her. "Pray, pray, DD, let me go seep : pray, pray Ppt, let me go sumber, and put out my wax candle." 400 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Lktters For New -year's -day accordingly he reserves tlie best of his Xixi rhymes, first wishing in prose his dearest pretty Ppt and DD a Dec. 23, happy New Year, and health, and mirth, and good stomachs, and — '- — 1 — FR's company ("faith, I did not know how to write FR. I wondered what was the matter; but now I remember I always write Pdfr ") ; and then breaking out into a good-morrow, good- morrow, for his mistresses all : " I wish you both a meny New Year, Koast beef, minced pies, and good strong beer. And me a sliare of your good cheer ! That I was there, ov you were here ! And Tou are a little saucy dear !" Again and yet again that New-year's-morning, he says good- morrow to his dear sirrahs, " one can not rise for your play ;" and when returned home at night, his own charming play begins. Now let us come and see what this saucy dear letter says : " Come out, letter, come out from between the sheets : here it is under- neath, and it will not come out. . . . Come out, again I say — so, then. Here it is. What says Pdfr to me, pray ? says it. Come, and let me answer for you to your ladies. Hold up your head, then, like a good letter. There !" And he proceeds to answer His birth- it, first thanking her for having kept little Pdfr's birthday. "^^ Would to God he had been at " the health," rather than where he was, where he had no manner of pleasure, nothing but eternal business bn his hands. He should grow wise in time — but no more of that ! Only he said Amen with his heart and vitals to the wish, that they might never be asunder again ten days to- gether while poor Pdfr lived ! The long line was put to put away sadness from what else he had to say. " I can not be merry so near any splenetic talk ; so I made that long line, and now all is well again." ECONOMIES AND DOMESTICITIES. It was to be taken as settled between them that when they were silent all was pretty well, because that was the way he would deal with them ; and, on the other hand, if there was any thing they ought to know " now,'' ho would write by the first post, although he had written but the day before. The young women were to remember this, and God Almighty preserve them both and make " us " happy together ; and they were to tell him § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 401 always how accounts stood " between us," so as never to want, but Letters to be paid long before it was due. " I will return no more money xill ^'"^ while I stay, so that you need not be in pain to be paid ; but let Dec. 23, me know at least a month before you can want." He was general — ' — '- — pay-master, and evidence will hereafter appear that he in some way contributed to Ppt's income, as he certainly did to DD's ; but that Mrs. Johnson was sensitive in this direction may be in- ferred from his present recurrence to what -he had said about buying her a horse : " Pray, let Parvisol sell the horse. ... I Menm and am glad you are rid of him, and was in pain while I thought you rode him; but if he would buy you another, or any body else, and that you could be often able to ride, why do not you do it ?"' Again he returns, before closing his letter, to money affairs, and the Lady Giffard debt, and something her mother has been blam- ing him about. " Now you are at it again, silly Ppt ! ^^^ly does your mother say my candles are scandalous ? They are good sixes in the pound, and she said I was extravagant enough to bum them by daylight. I never bum fewer at a time than one." There was another scandal about his fire. Well, well, he did keep a good fire. It cost him twelvepence a week, and he feared something more ; and if they vexed him, he'd have one in his bed-chamber too. In the next letter, too, there are a few more homely notes. Pat's bills for coals and candles came sometimes to three shUhngs a week, for he kept very good fires, though the weather be warm ; and Ireland would never be happy till they got some small coal, like the English : nothing so easy, so convenient, Small coal so cheap, so pretty, for lighting a fire. They were not to forget ireLnd."' to let him have accounts, that they might be paid their money betimes. There was four months for his lodging, that was to be thought on, too ; and she was to go and dine with Manley, the " extravagant sluttikin," and not to fret, though it would be just three weeks to-morrow since Pdfr had a letter from her. The old farewell to dearest beloved MD followed, of course, with in- junction to love poor, poor Pdfr, who has not had one happy day since he left them, and whose sole aim or care is to make MD and ME easy. THE MISSING BOX. {Ante, 311, 318.) Not long after his arrival in London, he had made up a little Better xii. wooden box for Dublin, in which he had sent sundry things to Jan. 4. ' Vol. I.— 26 402 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letter both Esther and her friend, including palsy-waters for Ppt's eyes, Dec 23 trusting it to their special friend, Enoch Sterne, and his troubles J""- i- at its not arriving duly are incessant. H(? is grated to the heart at its not reaching them, because he thinks he discovers through her " little words " that she imagined he had not taken the care he ought. " I will never rest till you have it, or till it is in a way for you to have it. Poor dear rogue, naughty to think it teases me. How could I. ever forgive myself for neglecting any thing that related to your health ? Sure I were a devil if I did." (And he puts a great many stars after the word, as if to stand submis- sively apart.) See how far he was forced to stand from Ppt, be- cause he was afraid she thought poor Pdfr had not been careful about her little things, when he was sure he bought them imme- diately according to order, and packed them up with his own hands, and sent them to Sterne, and was six times with him about sending them away. But she was little likely to join in such self- reproaches. All his life seems a care for her, and in every way he is eager to show it. A few days before he told her of an inci- dent at court : A " fellow in a red coat without a sword " came up to him, and surprised him by asking how the ladies did. " I asked what ladies. He said Mrs. Dinglcy and Mrs. Johnson. Very well, said I, when I heard from them last ; and pray when came you from thence, sir? He said, I never was in Ireland. And just at that word Lord "Winchilsea comes up to me, and the man went off. As I went out I saw him again and recollected him. It was Vedeau with a pox. I then went and made my apologies — that my head was full of something I had to say to Lord Winchilsea ; and I asked after his wife, and so all was well ; and he inquired after my lodging, because he had some favor to desire of me in Ireland, to recommend somebody to somebody, I know not what it is." It was a "shop-keeper" named Vedeau, who, excited by the great duke's victories, had made over his share in the shop to his brother and taken up the trade of war, whom Mrs. Johnson and Mrs. Dingley had known at Faruham, and whom Swift is therefore thus eager to show attention to, in- terposing afterward, for her sake, more substantially to serve him. CHARLES FORD AND ADDISON. Charles Ford, already named, makes many pleasant appearances in the journals. One day they set apart for going into the city to § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 403 bny books ; but it was not altogether successful, for as they only Letter had a scurvy dinner at the ale-house, Ford made him go afterward ^ ' og to the tavern and drink Florence (four -and -sixpence a flask, Jan. 4. ■' dimmed wine I"'), spending his money, which he seldom did, and passing an insipid* day. Yet he preferred dining at Ford's the next, which was one of his opera days, sending excuse to Lord Shelbume ; and four days later dined again at Foiji's, going later to the coffee-house, where he had not been a week, and talking coldly a while to Addison. All their friendship and deamess were off; they were civil acquaintance; they talked such words, of course, as where they should meet, and that was all ! He had not been at any house with Addison for six weeks. The other day they were to have dined together at the comptroller's, but Swift sent his excuses, being engaged to the secretary of state. ^Vas it not odd ? He knew well even then such strangeness could not last. " But I think he has used me iU, and I have used him too well, at least his friend Steele." PATRICK AND HIS LIXXET. (Ante, 3U , 317 .) In the middle of January he was in the city to buy a new peri- wig ; and telling her of it, and that it cost him three guineas, he cries out he is undone ! But though he affects to say he thought it would be cheaper because it was bought of a " Leicester lad, who manied Mr. Worrall's daughter where my mother lodged," Ppt would credit him with a kindlier motive, and think him all the richer for being so "undone." Another pleasant trait m.ay be added, and especially for the fact that his blundeiing, lying, drunken, careless, incorrigible, easy, good-natured Patrick figures in it more creditably than usual Going to the closet in his lodg- ings for some coals one night after Patrick was in bed, what should he discover but " a poor linnet," which Pat had consulted him about buying to carry over to Dingley ! It cost him sixpence, and was tame as a dormouse. "I believe he does not know he is a bird," says Swift ; does not know his advantage over human- ity. " AMiere you put him, there he stands, and seems to have neither hope nor fear ; I suppose in a week he will die of the spleen." Patrick ad\ised with his master upon the purchase, but could not be dissuaded from his generous design to Dingley. " I laid fairly before him the greatness of the sum and the rashness of the attempt ; showed him how impossible it was to carry him 404 THE LIFE or JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letter safe over the salt sea : but he would not take my counsel, and he XIII . . J ^ Jan. i-!6 ^'^ repent it." Though the bird occasions all sorts of trouble, Swift tolerates it. He had told thciu, he says in a subsequent journal, about Patrick's linnet for Dingley. It was very tame at first, and now was the wildest he ever saw. He kept it still in the closet, where it made a terrible litter. " But I say nothing : I am as tame as a clout." He reported the linnet still later as in full feather, the wildest ever seen, though bought for his tameness, and quite able to fly after them to Ireland : " if he be willing," adds Swift, to whom it is always matter of doubt if any thing or any body will ever willingly go over to Ireland. THE ARCHDEACON'S WIFE. {Ante, 203.) He can not close his letter without some good-humored jesting on Mrs. Walls, of whom he pretends to have heard surprising news when dining with Ophy Butler and his Avife, and declares himself also to be quite certain that Ppt is that moment supping with the dean, after losing two-and-twenty pence at cards, and talking of their poor Mrs. Walls brought to bed of a girl that died two days after it was christened — but, " betwixt you and me," she was not very soiTy ; she loved her ease and diversions too well to be troubled with children. And really has she, he asks later, a boy or a girl ? "A girl, hmm ; and died in a week, hmmm ; and was poor Ppt forced to stand for godmother ?" Then he affects anger to be left so long without news from them, and says woe betide them, 'faith, for he will go to the toyman's here just in Pall Mall, who sells " great hugeous battoons ;" yes, 'faith, and so he does ! He thinks also of another punishment. Yes, he shall send his own letter away before hers comes ; will send it two days sooner on purpose, out of spite, without its "third side ;" and then her letter will come, and it will be too late, and he will so laugh, never saw the like. Will she not grumble for want of the third side, pray now ? Yes, I warrant you ; yes, yes, and she shall have the third when she can catch it. So, keeping his word, he whips his letter into the post-office as he returns that evening. WAITING FOR A LETTER. LisTTEE XIV. Very impatient he had become to hear from her, and one morn- 10-31. jjj^^ immediately after breakfast, he starts off to the St. James's, § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 405 where the waiter comforted him by saying he had given Patrick Letter a letter for him. Then he hunts for Harley at the Court of Re- j 'ig_3i quests and the treasury, and, after some time spent in mutual reproaches, is carried off to dinner by the minister, whom he left at seven, to come home and read MD's letter. The dog Patrick was abroad ; but at last he returned, and Swift got his letter ; and it was all in French, and subscribed Bernage ; and, 'faith, he nearly flung it at Patrick's head. Yet it had a touch of Ppt in it, too. But for a glimpse of her name, indeed, he'd have put it in the fire. For Lieutenant Bernage was her friend, and had written to desire her recommendation to Doctor Swift to make him a captain, to which her cautious answer, " that he has as much power with Dr. Swift as she had," though it had brought upon him the present letter, seemed to him so notable, that, if she were here, he would present her to the ministry as a person of ability. However, for her sake, he'd speak to George Granville about him ; but Bernage was not again to bother him with letters when he is expecting them from MD. Next day, still no letter ; and so he fancies her, the saucy rogue, losing her money at Stoyte's. To let that bungler beat her — fie ! Ppt. Was not she ashamed ? Well, he forgave her that once ; but she was never to do so again — no, noooo ; kiss, and be friends ; and he bids them good-night in one long word, which in the morning he defies them to have read : " So good- night, myownlittledearsaucyinsolentrogues." Well, he repeats next day, when will this letter come from our MD ? To-mor- row, or the next day, without fail ? Yes, 'faith, and so it is " com- ing." Meanwhile, the summer weather was gone ; and that being an insipid, snowy day, no walking day, he dined gravely with Mrs. Van ; and came home, and was got to bed a little after ten. For what was old Culpepper's maxim ? " Would you have a settled head, I tell you, and I tell it again, You must early go to bed : You must be in bed at ten." A\Tiich made Mm all the fresher next morning in his new wig, " hoao," visiting Lady Worsley ; then walking in the park to find Ford, whom he had promised to meet ; and, as they come down the Mall, who should appear but Patrick, pulling five letters out of his pocket. Reading the superscription of the first, Pshoh ! said his master. Of the second, pshoh again ! Of the third, 406 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letter XIV. Jan. 16-31. Lktteti XV, Feb. 1-10. psliah, pshah, pshah ! Of the fourth, agad, agad, agad, he was in a rage ! Of the fifth and last, 0, hoooa ! Ay, marry, tliis was something, this was our MD ! " So truly wo opened it, I think immediately, and it began the most impudently in the world, thus. Dear Pdfr, we are even thus far.'" Now we are even, quoth Stephen, when he gave his wife six blows for one. Pretty even, indeed, that he should have their ninth four days after he had sent his thirteenth ! But he would reckon anon about that with the young women, whom he calls (after the manner of Ancient Pistol) " huzzies base." Their friend Bernage he keeps steadily in mind, though he affects to be at first a little careless. Next let- ter, he tells her that he has engaged to give St. John a memorial from himself to Duke of Argylc for her friend. " The duke is a man that distinguishes people of merit, and I will speak to him myself ; but the secretary backing it will be very effectual." He was very busy that night as he wrote, but don't let them guess at what — impudent, saucy, dear boxes. lie couldn't (at the end of a letter) say saucy boxes without putting dear between. " En't that right, now ? Farewell. This should be longer, but that I send it to-night.'' So, laughing at the italics she will use, in feminine fashion, to emphasize her letters, he calls her silly, silly loggerhead. Lettf.r XIV. Jan. 16-31. ENJOYMENT OF WHAT ESTHER WRITES. At the opening of his fourteenth letter, where he offers but poor account of the sum of his gains thus far from the " full favor " of the ministry, he had given her reasons why she should not fail in her letters. Pdfr ben't angry ; 'faith, no, not a bit ; only he would begin to be in pain next Irish post, except he sees MD's little handwriting in^he glass frame at the bar of St. James's coffee-house, where Pdfr would never go, but for that ! Pdfr is at home, God help him, every night from six till bedtime ; and has little enjoyment or pleasure in life at present. As hope saved, nothing gives him any sort of dream of happiness, but a letter now and then from his own dearest MD. lie loves the ex- pectation of it ; and when it does not come, he comforts himself that he has it yet to be happy with. Yes, 'faith ; and when he writes to her, he is happy, too. It is just as if methought she were here, and he prating to her, and telling her where he had been. Well, says she, Pdfr, come, where have you been to-day? § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL XOTES. 407 Come, let'? hear, now. And so then he answers: "Ford and I Letter were vi-iting "Sii: Lewis and Mr. Prior ; and Prior has given me j^^ ic-si a fine Plautus ; and then Ford would hare had me dine at his lodgings, and so I would not ; and so I dined with him at an eating-house, wliich I have not done five times since I came here ; and so I came home, after \'isiting Sir Andrew Fountaine's mother and sister ; and Sir Andrew Ls mending, though slowly." LAUGHS AT BES AXSV/ERS, AND DESCPJBES HIS OWN. In his fourteenth letter also he replies to her ninth, and wishes them both to think of the country for summer, and to tell him if the apples from Laracor were good for any thing. "What ! the AVallses at Donnybrook with them! ^Vhy, wasn't she brought to bed? They were to give his servics to Mrs. Stoyte and Catherine ; and let Catherine get the coffee ready against he went over, and not have " so much care on her countenance ;"' for all would go well. As for their " Mr. Bemage, Mr. Bemage, Mr. Fiddlenao'e," who sends him three letters successivelv, he has told Ppt what he shall do ; and she is to draw it up into a handsome speech, and repeat it to her friend. As to what she says about leaving a good deal of Pdfr's tenth unanswered — impudent slut ! "VMien did she ever " answer " hLs tenth, or his ninth, or any other number ? and who asks her to answer, provided only she writes ? He defied the deril to answer his letters, except a question now and then which he'd be glad she replied to ; but he afterward for- gets, and she never thinks of. He'd never love answering again, if lihe talked of answering. Answering, quotha ! pretty answerers, truly. And now he had done ; and his was an answer ! for he laid hers before him, and looked and wrote, and wrote and looked, and looked and wrote again. So, good-morrow to his madams both, and he would go rise. INVENTION OF OLD RHYMED PROVERBS. There is no channel through which Swift is so fond of suggest- ing or insinuating the advice he desires to impress as what he calls ancient proverbs, or sayings in rhyme, which he plentifully invents at the moment he may want them. He has to take Ppt to task for writing on thin paper. Why, didn't she know a common cau- tion that writing-masters gave their scholars ? she must have heard it a hundred times ! It was this (invented, of course, then and 408 THE LIFE or Jonathan swift. [Book vi. Lkttek there — they are at hand, and authors for them, in every consciv- XIV. 11 ^ Jan.iG-31. able emergency) : ■ "If paper be thin, ink will slip in; But if it be thick, you may write with a stick.'' Again, as he comes to the close of a letter, and is looking over it before going to bed, he finds it pretty near the bottom of the second folio page, and, replying to their wish to have it entirely filled, he thanks them for nothing, but he doesn't think he'll write on the other side. 'Faith, if he would use them to -sheets as broad as the room, they'd expect such from him always ! They took no heed of the old saying. Two sides in a sheet. And one in a street, though it was but a silly old saying, and ao he'd go to " seep, and do you so too." His rhymes may be the most incoherent in the vt'orld, but he must have them. " I did not get home till nine, and now I am in bed to break your head." He can not resist them, reason or no reason. He will tack them on to the most matter- of-fact remark, as in that just cited, or where he tells her that he writes " just to let her know how matters go, and so, and so, and so." One phrase in the little language he is fond of, and first in- troduces thus : " And so, good-morrow, little sirrahs, that is for the rhyme." But, as the reader observes, the rhyme has been spoiled by disappearance of the little language, or it would have run — "And so "Dood mollali Little Sollah!" SICKNESS AFTER ST. JOHN'S REVEL. {Ante, 35-1.) After the post-midnight revel at St. John's, there is a blank of four days (26th to 29th), the fimt in his journal, during which he had been so lazy and negligent he could not write. His head, since a previous attack a fortnight ago, was not in order ; not absolutely ill, but giddyish, and made him restless. He walked every day, and took Doctor Cockburn's drops, and was trying some bitter drink twice a-day, which Lady Kerry had sent him. He wished he were with MD. He longed for spring, and good weather, and then he would go over. His riding kept him well in Ireland. He was very temperate, and cat of the easiest meats, as he was directed, and hoped the malignity would go off ; but one fit shook him a long time. And then, as he seals up his letter on § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 409 tlie 30th, he gives them good-night, " My dears," with injunction Lettek to love Pdfr, and be health 3', and God Almighty bless them both, j^^^ ']g-31 here and ever, and poor Pdfr. Afterward, he re-opens the letter to ' put in two bills of exchange : six fishes for Ppt, and six fishes for DD, to be placed to the account of their humble servant, Pdfr. His opening of his next letter shows him in trouble still from his health and the weather. His head confounded every thing; often lie could not scribble even his morning lines to MD, and, with his occasional giddiness, ho found the late dining of the ministers a thing to be avoided. He began (on the 31st) by saying it was Ford's birthday, and he had refused the secretary to dine with Ford. For the time, they were in as smart a frost as he had seen, delicate walking weather, and " the canal and Eosamond's Pond full of the rabble, sliding, and with skates, if you know what those are." Patrick's bird's water freezes in the gallip9t, and his own , hands in bed. He was next morning with poor Lady Kerry, whom he found much worse in her head than himself. With his always shrewd wisdom, he adds that they were so fond of each other because their ailments were the same. Did not Madam Ppt know that ? Had he not seen her conning ailments with Joe Beau- mont's wife ? He was very busy that day, and having to go into the city, he walked, because of the walk, for Pdfr's health was to be taken care of for poor little MD's sake ; but he walked plaguy carefully, for fear of sliding against his will. WRITING IN BED. They had asked him not to write in bed at night. No, no, he Lettf.h xv. did not now read or write after going to bed. The last thing he did " up," was to write something to our MD, and then get into bed, and put out his candle, and so go sleep as fast as ever he could. But in the morning, as she knew, he did write in bed sometimes. An instance follows : " Morning. ' I have desired Apronia to be always careful, especially about the legs.' Pray, do you see any such great wit in that sentence ? I must freely own that I do not. But party carries every thing nowadays, and what a splutter have I heard about the wit of the saying, repeated with admiration about a hundred times in half an hour ! Pray, read it over again, and consider it. I think the word is advised, and not desired. I should not have remembered it, if I had not heard it so often. Why — ay — " On which the truth blurts out, that the 410 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Lktter words were part of a dream he had that moment waked with in XV Feb 1-10 ^'* mouth ; and happy as a child at play, and calling on his two rogues to admit the success of his " bite," he is very soon at his daily walk in the park, defying every thing but actual rain. Did they know what the weather had " gone and done ?" he a.sked that night on his return. They had a thaw for three days ; then a monstrous dirt' and sleet ; " and now it freezes, hke a pot-lid upon our snow." He had dined with Lady Betty Germaine ; and there, with other business enough to do, did he sit like a booby till eight, looking over her and another lady at piquet. LIVING WITS, AND A DEAD ONE. Lettek xvl In the middle of February, he had an evening with enjoyment ^ '■ in it he thinks memorable, when, after going into the city for a walk, and faihng to find the person he meant to have dined with, he came back, and called at Congreve's, and dined with him and Dick Eastcourt, and " laughed till six ;" the only drawback being that Congreve's nasty white wine gave him the heart-bum. He adds a note on the death of Doctor Duke, who had died suddenly, and whom, a few days later, Atterbury and Prior went to bury. " He was one of the wits when we were children, but turned par- son, and left it, and never writ further than a prologue or recom- mendatory copy of verses. He had a fine living given him by the Bishop of Winchester about three months ago. He got his living suddenly, and he got his dying so too." He was a friend of Ot- way's, and Johnson has given him two pages in his Lives. ANSWERS ESTHER'S TENTH LETTER. LetttbXV. On the coldest day (it was the 8th of February) he had felt ° ■ " ■ that year, Harley, meeting him in the Court of Requests, asked him how long he had learned the trick of writing to himself ? He had seen Ppt's letter through the glass case at the coffee-house, and would swear it was Swift's hand, and Ford was of the same mind. " I remember others have formerly said so too. I think I was little MD's writing-master?" Meanwhile, her letter has not been forgotten. " Come, where is MD's letter ? Come, Mrs. Let- ter, make your appearance. Here am I, says she, answer me to my face." And this he proceeds to do, first regretting she had his twelfth so soon, and fearing that at the moment he was replying to her tenth, she would have got his fourteenth ; for his wish was § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 411 always to have one letter from Pdfr reading, one traveling, and Lkttek one writing. As to tlie missing -box, lie has nothing to reply but J-JJ^" ^_^q that, oh, 'faith, they had too good an opinion of his care ; he was negligent enough of every thing but MD ; yet he should have one more tug for it. Yes, yes, yes, the plague was done with. (There had been a touch of plague at Newcastle, and Harley, at Swift's instance, had ordered certain medical sanitary measures.) So, twelve shillings was charged for mending his strong box ! for a farthing's worth of iron put on a hinge, and gilded ! Let her give the man six shillings, and he would pay it, and never employ him again. And her sight was still ailing ] Poor Ppt's eyes, God bless them, and send them better. She was to pray spare them, and write not above two lines a day in broad daylight. Poor dear Ppt, how durst she write those two lines by candle-light, bang her bones ! Madam DD was to be sure and tell him how Ppt looked. A handsome young woman still ? What ! was not Mrs. WaUs's business over yet? Would she never have done with it? ^Tiv, Ante, 2is. he had hoped she was up, and well, and the child dead, before this ! Then he talked of their accounts, and trusted they were good managers, and that, when he said so, Ppt would not think he intended she should grudge herself wine. But going to those expensive lodgings required some fund, or they might be drained "as poor as rats," and for some reasons he wished they had staid till he went over ; and the country might be necessary, too, for poor Ppt's health ; but they were to do as they liked, and not blame Pdfr. Then he restates, as to their letters, that he will write when he can, and so should JitD ; and upon occasions ex- traordinary he would wTite, though it were but a line ; and when either he or they had not the letters to the time, they were to as- sume aU was well ; and so that was settled forever, and they were to hold their tongues. " Well, you shall have your pins ; but for the candle-ends, I can not promise, because I bum them to the stumps." Then, 'faith, it occurred to him his letter should go off to-morrow. Answering theirs had filled it up so quick, and he did not design to use them to three pages in folio, no, nooooh I So much for one morning's work in bed. They wanted politics, but, 'faith, he could not think of any ; and so, come, they were to sit off the bed, and let him rise. Would they 3 412 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. liETTKKS XIV.-XVI. THE WINTER OF 1710-'ll. Jan. 16, ' • Feb. 24. It was a hard winter, and some notices from the three latest of the letters will show its trying changes during the first two months of 1711. On the 24th of January he tells them he had dined at Ford's because it was his opera day, and it snowed, and was so ter- ribly cold he did not care to stir farther. All night the storm went on, and in the morning it was " vengeance " cold. He began to write in bed, but could not write long ; his hands would freeze. " Is there a good fire, Patrick ? Yes, sir. Then I will rise : come, take away the candle. You must know I write on the dark side of my bed-chamber, and am forced to have a candle till I rise, for the bed stands between me and the window, and I keep the cur- tains shut this cold weathQj-. , So pray let me rise ; and, Patrick, here, take away the candle"'." He dined that day with Doctor Cockburn, v/hom he liked better than his company, who were mainly " a parcel of Scots ;" so he should not be in a hurrj; to dine there again. The storm went on. They were now in high frost and snow, and the largest fire could hardly keep them warm. It was very ugly walking. A baker's boy broke his thigh yesterday. He was careful himself to walk slow, make short steps, and never tread on his heel. Then he tags his proverb, declaring it to be a good one the Devonshire people had : " Walk fast in snow, In frost walk slow, And still as j'oii go Tread on your toe. When frost and snow are both together. Sit by the fire and spare shoe-leathei'." Starving, starving, uth, uth, uth, uth, uth ! is his morning saluta- tion. Did not they remembfl he used to go into their chamber An!c, 214,. of a cold morning and cry uth, uth, uth ? " Oh, 'faith, I must rise ; - my hand is so cold I can write no more." Very difficult walking he found it that day, when Doctor Stratford and he had to dine with_ merchant Stratford in the city, but he preferred to walk for exercise in the frost, not knowing that it had cfiven a little (" as you women call it ") and was become something slobbery. Before he returned he had absolutely gone and called at. Lady Giffard's house to see Ppt's motlier, and had got from her some more palsy- water to replace that sent by the unlucky box (suspected to be S I.] BIOGEAPHICAL NOTES. 413 lying at Chester, but all inquiry still unavailing) ; and lie \vould Letters have begun to answer some of her letter next morning in bed, j^^^ '^J, feeling it to be loss cold than yesterday, but in came a printer Feb. 24. about some business, and staid an hour, and then he got up ; and then came in Ben Tooke ; and then he shaved and scribbled ; and it was such a terrible day he could not stir out till one, and then he called at Mrs. Barton's, and they went together to Lady Wors- ley's, where they were to dine, and where they heard of the young Lord Berkeley going to marry the Duke of Eichmond's daughter Louisa. Still the bad weather enters largely into every journal. At the beginning of February, after telling her that Patrick had been out of favor these ten days, his master talking " dry and cross " to him, and calHns; him " friend " three or four times, he adds that he is "Friend" -' Patilck. going to see Prior, who was to dine with him at Harley's, so he couldn't stay " fiddling and talking " with dear little brats in a morning ; and it was still terribly cold. He wished his cold hand were in the warmest place about them, " young women ;" he would give ten guineas upon that account with all his heart, 'faith ! Oh, it starved his thigh: so he'd rise and bid them good-morrow. " Come, stand away ; let me rise. Patrick, take away the candle. Is there a good fire ? — So — up a dazy." The day following was the queen's birthday, and such a hurry with it, so much fine clothes, and the court so crowded that he did not go there. Then the frost suddenly disappeared. It thawed on Sunday and so contin- ued, though ice was still on the canal (not Laracor, but St. James's Park), and boys sliding on it. . . . But when was he to answer MD's tenth? — why, one of these odd-cum-shortlies. Next day when he and Ford dined with Lewis, they had a monstrous deal of snow again, and, besides walking till he was dirty, it cost him two shillings in chair and coach. And so, thaws notwithstanding, the trying cold continues, and through the greater part of his last February letter to beyond the middle of the month his entries repeat still the same story — that it had rained all day and was now ugly weather : rain, rain, mixed with little short frosts: terrible rain sometimes, followed by terri- ble snow, and then fine ; and so up to the 22d, ^vhen it snowed prodigiously, and was some inches thick in three or four liours. Then next day the snow was gone every bit, but remains '' of great balls made by boys ;" and it ended with fine sunshiny frost and 414 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letters cold. All which cost him shilllnars in coach hire (they were not XIV.-XVI . Jan. lu ^° °^11 them thirteens), and he had an accident in a chair. The ^'^t)- ^^- chairmen that were carrying him to dinner at Lewis's squeezed a great fellow against a wall, who wisely turned his back, and brolcc one of the side-glasses in a thousand pieces. "I fell a -scolding, pretended I was like to be cut in pieces, and made them set down the chair in the park while they picked out the bits of glasses : . and when I paid them I quarreled still, so they dared not grum- ble, and I came o£E for my fare : but I was plaguy afraid they would have said, ' God bless your honor, won't you give us some- thing for our glass ?' " CHANGE AT LAST. At last, however, there had come a real change, and Swift notes the days as being fine and long, and he tells them of his walking as much as he can for his little disorders toward giddiness (for he has no actual fits) ; and how Lady Kerry is the same, only far worse ; and how, on the first morning of Lent, Lord Shelburne, Lady Kerry, Mr. Pratt, and he went to Hyde Park instead of church, to which, till his head was settled, he thought it better not to go. It would be so silly and troublesome to go out sick. The following day, too, he walked purely about the park, and be- ing pressed to go with Leigh and Sterne, whom he met, went with them to dine ; but meeting a worthless Irish fellow, one H , waiting -to -form one of the party, he refused to stay; then tried Harley's (whom he had hunted for at the Court of Requests in the morning), but he was dining out; and finally dined at Sir John Germaine's, finding Lady Betty just recovered of a miscar- riage. Upon which he takes occasion to describe his writing an inscription for Lord Berkeley's tomb ; and reminds them of the YomigLord young rake, his son, the new earl, who married (as he has told aud his wife, them) the Duke of Richmond's daughter. They were coming to town, and he predicts they'll be parted in a year. " You ladies are brave, bold, venturesome folks ; and this chit is but 17, and is ill-natured, covetous, vicious, and proud in extremes. And so get you gone to Stoyte to-morrow." He whislaered something after- ward about a project he had (with Lewis) to get £500 without obligation to any body, which was to be a secret till he saw his dearest MD. His head was still a little disordered before dinner, but he walked stoutly and took pills. Then he began to look for § I.] BIOGBA.PHICAL NOTES. 415 letters from certain ladies that live at St. Mary's and are called in Letter a certain language our little MD : "no, stay ;" he won't expect for -p k' -.iq six more days ! that'll be three weeks ; " ain't I reasonable ?" But the weather vexes him still. The morrow proved to be such a terribly rainy day he could only dine with his neighbor Van, where Sir Andrew Foimtaine dined too ; for Sir Andrew, to whom he was so lately reading prayers, had now begun to sally out, having shipped ofi to the country his mother and sister. He still is doing his best for her friend Bernage. Colonel Masham and his wife's brother, Colonel Hill, were backing St. John in recom- mending Swift's suit to Duke of Argyle, and the duke was re- ported to have said that he only wished the favor asked by Doc- tor Swift ten times greater ! But, anxious as he is to help her, he won't have her tell him stories ; and when she attempts a par- allel from Dublin to his description of the London storms, he is amusingly incredulous and intolerant. She tells him in one of her letters of a tremendously high wind in Dublin that had blown down their chimney and carried it next door, and he protests it to be quite incredible. Hurricane, forsooth! she was a pretending slut. There had been nothing extraordinary that way in London, and he'd rather there were not. ... As for their chimney falling- down, the Lord preserve them. He supposed they only meant a brick or two. That must be a damned lie of their chimney being carried to the next house with the wind ; and they were not to put such things upon him, but keep a little to possibili- ties. (" My Lord Hei;tf ord would have been ashamed of such a stretch.") They should take care what company they conversed with, for when one got that faculty it was hard to break one's self of it. WALKING FOR HEALTH'S SAKE. The rain necessarily interfered with many of his ordinary en- Lf.tteeXVI. joyments, but he tells her specially of one fine evening, when, « • i -^ • after he and Fountaine had dined with the Vans, he walked with Prior in the park. Whenever, indeed, it was not raining, now the days -vfere long enough, he betook himself to walking in the park after dinner ; and he qalls it a remedy strange in its uses. For Prior, who generally had a cough " which he calls only a cold," walked to make himself fat, and Swift to make himself lean ; and so they walked the park together. And one of these evenings 416 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letter XVI. Feb. 10-24. Prior took him to the Smyrna coffee-house, where they saw four or five Irish parsons, very handsome, genteel fellows, having nothing to do in Ireland. But this is a busy time with him, as she will infer from his visits to ministers in much haste and at untimely hours, when he may not walk, but (as to my lord keeper's) must pay two shillings for coach-hire. A>'alk, however, he does whenever he can, for the sake of his head ; and he goes to dine with Lord Shelburne, that he and Lady Kerry may " con ailments " together, " which makes us very fond of each other." Lf.ttek XV. Feb. 1-10. Letteh XVI. Feb. 10-24. A COMFOET IN SICKNESS AND HEALTH. "While his head still troubles him, he tells her of a comfort he had received through Ford : two letters sent from the coffee- house, one from the Archbishop of Dublin, and the other from — who did she think the other was from ? — well, he would tell them both, because they were friends : why, then, it was, 'faith, it was, from his own dear little ilD, number ten. " Oh, but we'll not answer it now ! No, noooooh, we'll keep it between the two sheets. Here it is, just under : oh, I lifted up the sheets, and saw it there : lie still, you shall not be answered yet, little letter ; for I must go to bed, and take care of my head." He is continuing his care next morning, for he avoids going to church. But he felt so much the better for Lady Kerry's " bitter," that he went later, and dined with Addison at his lodgings. He had not seen him these three weeks ; they were grown quite common acquaintance ; yet what hadn't he done for his friend Steele ?, The last time he saw Harley, the minister had reproached him with having offered, for his pleasure, to be reconciled with Steele, who, nevertheless, never came to the appointment made. Harrison, whom Addison recom- mended to hifn, he had induced the secretary of state to promise to take care of ; and he had so represented Addison himself to the ministry, that they thought and talked in his favor, though before they hated him. "^Yell, he is now in my debt, and there is an end ; and I never had the least obligation to him, and there is another end." OLD SCENES AND FRIENDS RECALLED. As he is about to shut up this letter, he can not resist the quaint personal talk, the whimsies and fancies that crowd his pages with jokes and mystifications about their friends, w'ith touching remi- § I.] . BIOGEAPHICAL KOTES. 417 niscences of pleasant days past in Ireland, and with hopes of some Letteu still to come. Snow once more was falling, which he declares to -^^-^ io-'i be a great mistake, when he, is so terribly in need of good weather; but it clears, and he sees that he shall have his walk. So, being fine .again, they were to get them gone to poor Mrs. Walls, who had had a hard time of it, but was now pretty well again. He was sorry it should be a girl, and pitied the poor archdeacon for looking so miserable when they told him, and asked how much it had cost Ppt to be gossip ? They were to be sure and go, but not to stay out late, and catch cold, for he wanted to see them at night. At night, accordingly, he resumed, and told them how much he required good weather; and how plaguy busy he should be, he prettily says, if he were at Laracor now ; cutting down willows, planting others, scouring his canal, and every kind of thing. Then comes what has already been partly used {ante, 198), but this one repetition will perhaps be forgiven. If Eaymond goes over this summer, MD is to submit, and make them a visit, " that we may have another eel and trout fishing, and that Ppt may ride by and see Pdfr in his morning-gown in the garden, and so go up with Joe to the Hill of Bree, round by Scurlock's Town. Lord! how I remember names ! 'Faith, it gives me short sighs ; there- fore, no more of that, if you love me." Speculations on the arrival of her next letter /are then taken up; and if it should come on that 23d, he did not mean to answer it, but only to say, Madam, I received, etc., and so, and so. But whether it appears or not, he will certainly post his next evening, as sure as they're alive, and they'll be so ashamed ; for if he were to reckon like them, he'd say he was six letters before them — this being sixteen, and theirs ten ; but he reckons theirs sent as eleven, and his received as fourteen. And it's fine, cold, sunshiny weather ; and he wishes Ppt to walk in " your Stephen's Green " as he does in " our park." It's as _good as our park, "but not so large." And, 'faith, this summer they and he would take a coach together, for sixpence, to the Green Well, the two walks, and thence all the way to Stoyte's. His hearty service to Goody Stoyte ; and Catherine is to be sure and get the cofiee ready, and remember all his injunctions. He hopes Mrs. Walls had good time. " How inconsistent I am ! I can not imagine I was ever in love with her !" And so he prattles, and mystifies them. And, as his paper is closing, he doesn't care how or in what hand he writes. And the letter was just a fort- VoL. I.— 2T ilS THE LIFE OF JOXATH.\X SWIFT. [TBook VI. Letter night's journal. " Yes, and so it is, I am sure, says you, with your Feb. 10-24. ^^^ "^.-S* ^ penny. Lele, lele, lele. O Lord ! I am saying there, there to myself in all our little keys." (A broken-oflE moreel of the " little language.") And talking of keys, he told her that the dog Patrick had just broken the key-general of the chest of di-awei-s with six locks, and he had been " so plagued " to get a new one, besides his good two shillings 1 And still the tender talk interlaces itself all through Ms ordinary or extraordinary utterances. "What were they that moment doing ? Gaming and diinkinsj, he sup- posed ; fine young-lady divereions ! "Well, he wished for them Seville oranges from London, and for himself some Dublin wine ! In London were the finest oranges, twopence apiece; and the basest wine, six shillings a bottle. JBut it was not of that wine they'd have half a hogshead when he got back to Ireland ; and he'd treat !MD at his table in ■ an evening, oh hoa ! and laugh at great ministers of state I THE VAyHOMRIGHS. {Ante, 243.) LuTTKEsix. I close with such notices as these last eight letters contain of Nov. 25 to Swift's visiting at Mrs. Yanhomrigh's. Though the time is brief, Feb. 24. tjie visits are not infrequent, and will surprise the readers of Lord Campbell's Lives of the Ckantellors who may happen to remem- ber what is said in the memoir of Lord Cowper (v., 279) : " In pe- rusing the Journal to Stella, it is curious to observe that, in the minute and circimastantial accounts he gives of all his other visits, he studiously and systematically suppresses his visits to Mrs. Yan- homrigh, and his acquaintance with her daughter !" I was myself so surprised to read this, that I had the curiosity to count the num- ber of mentions made of such visits throughout the journals, and I found that, besides allusions to her in which she is not expressly mentioned, Mi-s.A"anhomrigh appears bj- name no less than seventy- three times. It can not be said that this was an error committed in haste, which the author had not the opportunity to correct ; for my quotation is taken from the latest of many editions of a still popular book. The first mention to bo recorded here, is where he says he had closed an insipid day (lith November) by dining with Mi-s. Yau, just visiting the coffee-house, and coming gravely home. The 3d of December marks also a day when he had " no adventure," simply dining with Jlrs. Yan, and studying. Four or five days § I.] BIOGRAPHICAL NOTES. 419 later he dined a^ain with her, having a request to prefer " to desire Letters them to buy me a scarf, and Lady Aberoorn is to buy me another, ^^^ ggV^ to see who does best; mine is all in rags.'' Again he dined with Feb. 24. her on the 11th, having to " study " in the evening. And on the 19th he thought to have dined with .one of the ministry, but he had to " come down, proud stomach," for it rained, and Mrs. Van's was nigh, and he took the opportunity of paying her for the scarf she bought him, and then dined with her. Twice he and Fount- aine dined with her in February, on Sir Andrew's recovery from his bad illness ; and when he discovers that by accident, after his post-midnight revel with St. John, he had dropped four dinners from his journals at the close. of January, before he closes his fourteenth letter he remembers these four dinners to be accounted for thus : " Yesterday, at Mr. Stone's, in the city ; on Sunday, at Vanhomrigh's ; Saturday, with Ford ; and Friday, I think, at Van- homrigh's." A more' important reference is in a following letter. Having printer's business on hand, he walked into the city with Feb. 2. Ford ; then to buy books at Bateman's, where he laid out twenty- five shillings on a Strabo and an Aristophanes, mentioning, inci- dentally, that he had now got books enough to make him another shelf, and meant to have more, " or it shall cost me a fall ;" and as they came back, they drank a flask of right French wine at Ben Tooke's chamber ; and when he got home, he had a message, at which the reader may pause and reflect a little. It was from Mrs. Yanhomrigh, who sent him word that her eldest daughter was taken suddenly very ill, and desired Swift would cojne and see her. He went, and found it was a silly trick of Mrs. Armstrong, Lady Lucy's sister, who, with Moll Stanhope, was visiting there. " However, I rattled ofE the daughter." Raillery would, perhaps, be the. polite phrase for rattling. There is also after this a special visit named to Mrs. Vanhomrigh's, on her daughter's birthday, the 14th of February, when he and Ford kept it by dining there, and spending the evening drinking punch, which was their way of beginning Lent. At last these frequent visitings begin to stir curiosity a little Over in Ireland, and in one of her letters Ppt re- marks about the Vanhomrighs (of whom neither she nor himself had known any thing while yet their home was in Dublin), that they were not people " of consequence," were they ? To this he makes no immediate reply ; though he mentions, upon his return at night, his having dined that day with his neighbor Van, it being 420 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letters IX.-XVL Nov. 26 to Feb. 24. sucli dismal -weather he could not stir farther. But his next let- ter answers the question : " You say they are of no consequence. Why, they keep as good female company as I do male. I see all the drabs of quality at this end of the town with them. I saw two Lady Bettys there this afternoon : the beauty of one, the good breeding and nature of the other, and the wit of either, would have made a fine woman." The one was Lady Betty Butler, and the other Lady Betty Germaine. ino-ni3. Ml. 43-46. Mrs. White- way and her BOQ-m-law. n. PUBLICATION OP THE LETTERS CONTAINING THE JOURNAL TO STELLA. 1710-1713. Mt. 43-46. The opening of the second section of my Fifth Book explains in what way inquiry into the times and circumstances of the pub- lication of the letters containing the Journal to Stella became a necessary part of the illustration of Swift's life, and I now state the results of the investigation given to it. The first public allusion to them was in Mr. Deane Swift's Essay (1755), where extracts are given from a collection of " thirty-eight " of the early letters (the actual number was forty), which had been lent him by his mother-in-law, Mrs. Whiteway, " who found them accidentally, about half a year ago, among a parcel of papers given to her by the Doctor in the year 1738. The rest of them, which are supposed to be about twice as many " (they were only twenty-five), " are in all probability in the hands of those who are in the possession of the Doctor's effects. But Mr. Swift" (the writer), "alttiough he had frequently solicited the favor within these last three years, never could get a sight of them ; notwithstanding that he himself was the person who saved them from being utterly destroyed in the year 1741." At Mrs. Johnson's death, the letters had gone back to- Swift, who used them for reference in his Four Years, his Memoirs relating to that Change which happened in Queen Annis Ministry in the year 1710, and other writings on the queen's reign ; and the later letters had probably been mislaid when the earlier were given to Mrs. White- wav. Mr. Deane Swift believed them to have passed into the § II.] PUBLICATION OF THE JOURNAL TO STELLA. 431 hands of the executors, with one of whom (Delany) he had a 1710-1713. ?Ft i^ it) personal feud ; but this did not prove to be so. Doctor Lyon, who had charge of Swift's person in his last illness, had either re- ^u'dMr. ^"" ceived them as a special gift, or found them among the mass of Wiikes. papers of which he took possession at the death ; and by him they were ultimately handed over to his friend, Mr. Thomas Wilkes, of Dublin. It was not until 1766, when eleven years had passed, that either collection was heard of again. Hawkesworth then published, in continuation of his edition of the works issued ten years before, three volumes of letters, "from lYOS to 1740," describing them as " a present from the late Doctor Swift to Doctor Lyon, a clergy- man of Ireland for whom he had a great regard," and as disposed of to the London book-sellers by Mr. Wilkes, who had obtained them from Doctor Lyon. Among them were the twenty -five The later letters comprising the close of the Journal to Esther Johnson ; ^^eaSet. of which Hawkesworth quite justly remarked, that " from them alone a better notion may be formed of Doctor Swift's manner and character than from all that has been written about him." He was conscious, at the same time, that to have printed them re- quired an apology, so very private was much contained in them, and the date still so recent. " It may, however, be presumed," he says, " that the publication of letters is not condemned by the general voice, since a numerous subscription has been lately obtained- for printing other parts of the Dean's epistolary cor- respondence by a relation, who professes the utmost veneration for his memory." In this, he referred to an issue by subscription in the previous year (1765), from the publishing-house of Mr. Johnston, of Ludgate Hill, of two volumes of miscellaneous prose pieces, poems, and letters " collected and revised by Deane Swift, Esq., of Goodrich, in Herefordshire." The fifty-one letters to Esther Johnson, completing the Journal, were, nevertheless, not part of that book ; but Mr. Wilkes's example was not lost upon its editor, who in the following year placed in Mr. Johnston's hands a new series of as many letters, " from 1710 to 1742," as Wilkes had transferred to Hawkesworth. These were similarly issued to subscribers, in three volumes, in 1768, Publication and the most interesting of them were those that contained "ettew.^*' '^' Swift's Journal, from its opening in 1710 to its entry of the 9th of February, I7ll-'12. Mr. Deane Swift had, however, treated 422 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. ^T. 43-46. Differences ■in the print- ing. Eclitorial " trouble." the text much less reverentially even than his predecessor ; though Nichols mistakenly supposed* that what in the Hawlcesworth book had been left in place of the " little language," which, though often ungainly, was better than entire suppression, indicated not alone negligent transcription, but an awkward eagerness to be " more polished " than the original. There can be no doubt, on the contrary, that of the two publications, Hawkesworth's had a far greater resemblance to the original, and was much less "polished," than Mr. Deane Swift's. There was in it no adop- tion of such words as Prestoor Stella, before either had been in- vented, and when neither could possibly have been used ; but the correct Pdfr and Ppt were uniformly given. There are terrible omissions and mistakes in it, and the desire to retain the meaning, in abolishing the form, of the " little language " fails altogether ; but though the folly of objecting to the language, because of its diffi- culty or uncouthness, was common to both editors, Hawkesworth really did attempt to deal with it, while Mr. Deane Swift shirked it altogether. Nor could Mr. Deane Swift, who had also before him the example of what Hawkesworth (or Wilkes) had done, even plead the excuse of its not having occurred to him that there might be a possible importance in retaining the most obscure allu- sions. A reference full of meaning, in the Journal of the 3d of November, 1710, illustrates Swift's fanciful liking for their very obscurity. " Methinks," .he says, when he writes plain, he doesn't know how, but he and she cease to be alone, and all the world can see them, whereas " a bad scrawl is so snug, it looks like a PMD ;" and this elicits the remark, by way of note, from Mr. Deane Swift, that " this cipher stands for Presto, Stella, and Dingley ; as much as to say, it looks like us three, quite retired from all the rest of the world."f One might imagine, after this, that there ought to be some meaning in what, with much complacency, is thrown out in another note, about the " infinite trouble " which " this ' little language ' that passed current between Swift and Stella has occa- sioned in the revisal of these papers. "J But, alas ! there is no * See Preface to second edition (1708), i., xlii. Or see first edition, ii., XXV. -vi. t See Mr. Deane Swift's Miscella- nies and Letters, iv., 78, published by Johnston, of Ludgate Hill. t See Mr. Deane Swift's Miscella- nies and Letters, iv., 113. As Charles Lamb said of tha wliitewasher of Shakspeare's bnst, " Methinks I see him at his work, the trouble- tomb !" § II.] PUBLICATION OF THE JOURNAL TO STELLA. 423 trace of trouble except in the way of omission, which, from com- 1710-1713. parison of his letters as printed with the originals of Hawkes- — '^ I — : worth's, he evidently on all occasions ruthlessly resorted to. For in this also the two editors contrast unfavorably, that any trace of Contrasts of Mr. Deane Swift's originals, excepting only the first letter, is now not discoverable ; whereas all the letters printed by Hawkesworth were deposited in the British Museum, and remain still accessible there. In the dedication of the letters to Lord Temple, Mr. Wilkes had stated that this course would be taken, and he kept his word. Discovery of the fact some years ago enabled the present writer to make careful collation of twenty -four of the last twenty -five letters, and of a twenty-fifth (forming, strangely enough, the first of the series, that which stands No. 54 having been unfortunately lost) ; and hence the means now afforded of restoring the part of Original text the Journal they comprise to the condition in which it was when stored."' it left Swift's hands. My first intention was to have used in this place only so much of the Corrected text as would exhibit the " little language ;" but, on reflection, it seemed desirable at once to print all the restored passages, reserving such comment as they suggest to the portion of the narrative into which they fall in point of date. Much will be thereby submitted to the reader in which he can not yet take interest, or find to be entirely intelligible ; but we are already in the thick of the incidents and interest of which the earlier letters tell the story, and to bring now upon the scene the Journal as it was actually written, though only in its later portions, will in the end increase not the interest only, but the intelligibility of every part of it. As it is, we have had great need to know what the " little language '' really was, and here it will be found. It is accessible only in the restorations I am about to make, in any form that makes distant approach to being complete or continuous. " Do you know what," says Swift to his corre- How Switt spondent, " when I am writing in our language, I make up my '?i°ttUi\an- mouth just as if I were speaking it. I caught myself at it just snage." now." All may now catch him at it, observing the recovered pas- sages from the letters to Esther Johnson. A word must be added to what has been said {ante, 307-8) on the fanciful substitutes for names. The two collections of letters were first brought together, and printed in proper sequence, under the title they have borne ever since, in Sheridan's edition of 1784 ; ^""^ "^ ■' . Journal fivst but the name then given, as already remarked, never occurs in the invented. 424 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. ^T. 43-46. Faucifttl snb- Gtitates for words and names. originals. Combinations of letters, frequently hard to decipher, and often bearing manifestly more than one meaning, are used both as proper names and as terms of endearment, of greeting, or farewell. As I have said, he is himself throughout Pdfr, some- times Podefar and FR, or other fragments of what may be as- sumed to be Poor Dear Foolish Rogue. She is Ppt, presumably Poppet, or Poor Pretty thing ; but MD, My Dear, is also for the most part her designation, though it occasionally comprises Mrs. Dingley, who has the further designation of ME, Madam Elderly ; D or DD, Dingley or Dear Dingley, standing only and always for her exclusively. The letters for Farewell, FW, are for Foolish Wenches as well ; and Lcle, which means often both " Truly " and " Lazy," is also still more frequently used as a mere " There, there," though it seems to have, in addition, other meanings not alway.s discoverable. Any absolute certainty of translation is, indeed, not possible with several of these whimsical combinations, and in re- gard to some, the attempt will be best made as they occur. The " little language '' strictly is much more definable ; being general- ly, as I have said, what a child might turn ordinary speech into, whether from imperfections of childish utterance or mere habit continued from childhood. Every restored passage is preceded by the passage as printed, taken from the latest of Scott's editions. Some of the mere errors in deciphering or printing the MS. will be thought minute ; but even the apparently most trifling of those retained, out of the very many it was not possible to in- clude,* have a certain importance ; and as far as possible all are italicised in my extracts from the printed version. In those ex- tracts, italics also indicate the perversions of the "little language" from the orignal text, and the substitutions for it of ordinary language. The altered words, and the sentences replacing the "little language," are thus always marked in the extracts from Scott, and in the corresponding extracts from Original MS. the entire sentences, as well as single words dropped altogether from the print, will as invariably be found. No italics are employed in the manuscript restorations; but in the Scott extracts note is made of some of the principal omissions afterward silently sup- plied. * I have not even attempted here I mere comma misplaced will often to correct tlie mispointing, though a I wholly alter the sense. § III.] UNPRINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 425 1710-1713. ^T. 43-46. III. UXPRESTTED AND mSPRESTTED JOURNALS. Chestee, Septemeek 2d, 1710. Scott, ii., 7. The first man I met in Chester was Dr: Raymond. He and Mrs. Raymond were here about levying a fine, in order to have power to sell their estate. I got a fall oif my horse. . . . Let all who write to me inclose to Richard Steele, Esq., at his oflace at the Cockpit, Many near "Whitehall. ,My Lord Mountjoy is now in the humor that we omissions, should begin our journey this afternoon, so that I have stolen here again to finish this letter. . . . You will send it her inclosed and sealed. God Almighty bless you; and, for God's sake, be merry, and get your health. ... If Mrs. Curry makes any difBculty about the lodgings, I will quit them. The post is just come from London, and just going out, so I have only time to pray to God to bless you, etc. Chestek, Saturday, Septejibee 2d, 1710. Original MS. " The first man I met in Chester was Dr. Kaymond. Lettee i. He and Mrs. Eaymond were come here about levying a Addressed . "To Mrs. fine, in order to hare power to sell their estate. They mngieyeu have found every thing answer very well. They both ^mwrna-^ desire to present their humble services to you. They do «f<"»'^***« -*- ^ J Ram in not think of Ireland till next year. I got a fall ofE my capei street, T • -1 -n- 1 T I>^blin, Ire- horse. . . . Let ail who write to me inclose to Kichard utid." Steele, Esq., at his oflice at the Cockpit, near Whitehall. sm°r^Ast^ But not MD. I wiU pay for their letters at St. James's ^f/sS't coffee-house, that I may have them sooner. My Lord —letters to . / .11 Irelandfrom Mountjoy is now m the humor that we should begin sept,mo, our journey this afternoon, so that I have stole here a/^rST' again to finish this letter You will send it her "^SZ- inclosed and sealed, and have it ready so, in ease she ^'f^yi'^ should send for it: otherwise keep it. I will say no more till I hear whether I go to-day or no : if I do, the letter is almost at an end. My coz Abigail is grown pro- digiously old. God Almighty bless po6 dee richar MD : and for God's sake be merry, and get oo health. ... If Mrs. Curry makes any difficulty about the lodgings, I will 426 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. quit them ; and pay lier from July 9 last, aud Mrs. Brent - '- must write to Parvisol with orders accordingly. The post is come from London, and just going out, so I hare only time to pray to God to bless poo richer* MD FW FW MD MD ME ME ME." Letter 41. Addressed to " Mrs. Johnson at her lodging over against St, Mary's Church, Dnblln, Ireland." Indorsed by her "EeC March 1," and by Swift " Letters from Pdfr. to MD." 9th FEEEnAET, 1711-12. Scott, ii., 494. . . . Kothing to dear cTiarming MD, you would wonder. ... I dined to-day with Sir Mathew Dudley. . . . We can get no packets from Holland. . . . Another cold, hit not very bad. Original MS. "... Nothing to deerichar MD, oo would wonder. . . . I dined to-day with Sir Mat Dudley. . . . We can yet get no packets. . . . Another cold, not very bad. !Xite, Kite, MD." IOtii FEBRnAEY, 1711-'12. Scott, ii., 495. I saw Prince Eugene at court to-day very plain. He is plaguy yellow, and literally ugly besides. The court was very full, and peo- ple had their birthday clothes. (Omission.) I was to have invited five; but I only invited two. Lord Anglesey and Lord Carteret. Pshaw, I told you tut yesterday. Original MS. " I saw Prince Eugene at court to-day very plain : he's plaguy yellow, and tolerably ugly besides. The court was very full, and people had their birthday clothes. I dined with the secretany to-day. I was to invite five ; but I only invited two, Lord Anglesey and Lord Carteret. Pshaw ! I told you this but yesterday. Nite dee MD." llTH Februakt, lijll-'12. Scott, ii., 496. ... It is so very late ; but I must always be, late or early, in)'s, etc. (Omission.) Original MS. "... 'Tis so very late ; but I must always be oors dee MD late' or early. Kite deelest sollahs, MD, Pdfr's MD." * In the "poo dee richar," "poo richar,' and such combinations, I can not find that the "ri" has any other meaning than to connect "poor dear charming, " the " poor charming, "and so on. Sometimes a " mi " takes the place of " ri," and may stand for "my channing," just as the editors thought "ri" added to "dee" might stand for " dearie." § III.] UNPRINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 427 12TII February, 1711-'12. Scott, ii., 49G. 1710-171.3. . . . three colds successively ; I hope I shall have the fourth. Three -^t. 43-46. messengers come from ... I shall know more. (Omission.) Letter 4i. Original MS, '• . . . three colds successively ; I hope I shall have the foui'th. Enge, euge, euge.* Three messengers came from ... I shall know more to-moUow. JSTite dee MD." 13th Feeeuaky, 1711-12. Scott, ii., 497. You Tiave not troubled me much. . . . Pray have you got your apron, Mrs. Ppt ? . . . Go to bed. . . . Night, dearest MD. Original MS. " You han't troubled me much. Pray have oo got oor aplon, Maram Ppt? ... Go to bed, Ppt. ISTite deelest MD." 14th-1Gth Feeeuaet, 1711-12. Scott, ii., 498. To-day I published the Fable of Midas. ... I know not how it will take; but it passed wonderfully at our society . . . here is a six days' journal, and no nearer the bottom. I fear these journals are very dull. Jfote my dullest lines. 15 FS. Busy till two in the after- noon. 16 Feb. Night, dearest MD. Original MS. "To-day I published the I^aile of Midas. ... I know not how it will sell. But it passed wonderfully at our Society . . . here is six days' Journal, and no nearer the bottom. I fear these journals are very dull. Kite my deelest lives. 15 J^ei. Busy till two afternoon. 16 I^eb. Nite dee loOTes." 17th Febru.vet, 1711-'12. Scott, ii., 500. Sir Andrew Fountaine and I went and dined with Mrs. Yanhom- righ. I came home at six, and have been very busy till this minute, antl it is past twelve, so I got into bed to write to MD. (Omissions.) We reckon the dauphin's death will set forward the peace a good deal. Original MS. " Sir Andrew Fountaine and I went and dined with Mrs. Yan. I came home at six, and have been very busy till this minute, and it is past twelve, so I got into bed to write to MD MD, for we must always write to MD MD, * Intended to express his cough. 428 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT [Book VI. ] 710-1713. MD awake or aseep. We reckon the dauphin's death will put forward the Peace a good deal. ... Go to bed. Help Letter 41. Many omis- sions here. pdfr. Rove pdfr. MD MD. Nite darling rogues.' 18th Febrcakt, 1711-12. Scott, ii., 501. Received a letter from the Bishop of Clogher. ... I am not near so keen about other people's a&irs as Ppt used to reproach me about. It was a judgment on me. Hearkee, idle dearees both, me- thinks I begin to want a letter from MD. Original MS. "Received a letter from Bishop Clogher. ... I am not now so keen about other people's affairs as saucy Ppt used to reproach me about: it was a judgment on me. Hearkee, idle dearees both, methinks I begin to want a Rattle from MD Kite deelest ilD." 19th Feeruakt, 1711-12. Scott, u., 501. I told him of four lines I writ extempore with my pencil, on a bit of paper in his house, while he lay wounded. . . . They were in- scribed to Mr. Harley's physician thus : " On Britain Europe's safety lies ; Britain is lost, if Uarley dies. Harley depends npon your elcill: Think what yon save, or what yon JdlL" He designs that the lords of the cabinet . . . should dine that day with him [the anniversary of Guiscard's attempt] : however, he has invited me to dine. I am not yet rid of my cold. . . . Original MS. "I told him of four lines I writ extempore with my pencil on a bit of paper in his house, while he lay wound- ed. .. . Shall I tell them you 'i They were inscribed to Mr. Harley's physicians. Thu*: On Europe Britain's safety lies ; Britain is lost if Harley dies.* Harley depends upon your skill : Think what you save, or what you kill Are not they well enough to be done off-hand, for that is the meaning of the word extempore ; which you did not know, did you i . . . He designs that the lords of the cabinet . . . should dine that day with him [the anniversary of Guis- * By an odd mischance Swift here made the mistake of transposing Brit- ain and Europe in his line, to the de- struction of his meaning. It will be ohserred that the lines run on in his MS. as if prose. § HI.] XJNPRINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 429 card's attempt: "him" is wi-itten "them" by mistake] 1710-1713. however, he has invited me too. I am not got rid of my cold JSTite, MD." letter 41. 20th February, 1711-'12. Scott, ii., 502. I have been terribly busy . . . and I wanted some very necessary papers, which the secretary was to give me, and the pamphlet must iwt le published without them. . . . Original MS. " I have been horribly busy . . . and I wanted some very necessary papers which the Secretai-y was to give me, and the pamphlet must now be published without them. . . . Xite DeeMD." 22d Febeuaet, 1711-'12. Scott, ii., 503. I assure ymi, it is very late now; but this goes to-morrow : and I must have time to converse with our little MD. Night, dea/r MD. Original MS. " I assure oo it im vely rate now : but zis goes to-mor- row, and I must have time to converse with own deerichar MD. Nite dee deer soUahs." 23d Febeuakt, ]711-'12. Scott, ii., 504. I am going out, and must carry this in my pocket to give it at some general post-house. I will talk farther with you at night. I sup- pose in my next I shall answer a letter from MD that will be sent me on Tuesday. On Tuesday it will be four weeks since I had your last. . . . Farewell, MD. (Omissions.) Original MS. " I am going out ; and must carry zis in my Pottick to give it at some general post-house. I will talk further with 00 at night. I suppose in my next I shall answer a letter from MD that will be sent me. On Tuesday it will be four weeks since I had your last. . . . Farewell, mine deelest rife deelest char Ppt, MD MD MD Ppt, FW, Lele MD, ME, ME, ME, ME aden, FW MD, Lazy ones, Lele, Lele, all a Lele." Letieb 42. 23d-24th February, 1711-'12. Scott, ii., 504. After having disposed my last letter in the post-office. . . . But what care you for all this ? . . . Night, dearest rogues. 34 Feb. I have writ u m*'^«!!^'* much for several days past : but I will amend. . . . Johnson at 430 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book: VI. 1710-1713. OHginal MS. ^^^\q^ iP "After having disponed my last letter in the post-of- ovei- against fice. . . . But what care oo for all this. . . . Nite dealest chiirch, near logues. 24 Feb. I have writ much for several days to- DuWin.'ire-' gether, hut I will amend." land." ' 24th Fjeekuakt, 1711-12. Scott, ii., 505. But pray let us 'know a little of your life and conversation. Do you play at ombre, or visit the dean, and Goody Walls and Stoytes and Manleys, as usual ? I must have a letter from you. . . . This is sad stuff to mrite; so night, MD. Original MS. " But pay, deerichar MD, ret us know a little of oor life and tonvelsasens. Do you play at Omhre, or visit the Dean, and Goody "Walls's and Stoyte's and Manley's, as usual? I must have a letter from oo. . . . This is sad stuft to rite : so Nite MD." 25Tn Febkuary, 1711-12. Scott, ii., 506. There was half a dozen ladies riding : . . . then I went to visit Perceval and his family, whom I had seen but once since they came to town. They are going to Bath next month. My thii-d cold . . . did I tell you, that I believe it is Lady Masham's hot rooms that give it me ? I never knew such a stove. . . . Mght dear MD. Original MS. " There were half a dozen ladies riding. . . . Then I went to visit Perceval and his family, whom I had seen hut twice since they came to town. They too are going to the Bath next month My third cold ... did I tell you that I helieve it is Lady ]!i4asham's hot room that gives it me ? I never knew such a stove. . . . Nite deelogues." 26Tn Febkuart, 1711-12. Scott, ii., 507. I was again busy with the secretary. (Omissions.) We read over some papers, and did a good deal of JDUsiness. I dined with him. Original MS. " I was again busy with the Secretary, giving help prom- ised, iss 00 Ppt, and we read over some papers, and did a good deal of business ; and I dined with him." § III.] UNPRINTKD AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 431 27th Fisbkuart, 1711-'12. SrMt, ii., 509. It is pretty late now, young women; so I bid you night, own dear, dear little rogues. Original MS. " 'Tis pretty late now, ung oomens, so I bid oo nite own dee dallers." 1710-1713. ^T. 43-4B. Letter 43. 28th February-Ist March, 1711-12. Scott, ii., 508. I have been packing up some books in a great box. . . . This is a beginning toward a removal. I have sent to Holland for a dozen shirts, and design to buy another new gown and hat. I will come over like a Zinkerman.* . . . 39iA Feb. The court may want a majority at a pinch. Night, dear little rogues. Love Pdfr. Isi March. I went into the city to inquire after poor Stratford, who has put himself a prisoner into the Queen's Bench, for which his friends blame him iiery much, because his creditors designed to be very easy with him. He grasped at too many things together. ... I gave him notice of a treaty of peace, while it was a secret, of which he might have made good use, but that helped to ruin him ; for he gave money, reckon- ing there would be actually a peace for this time, and consequently stocks rise high. Ford narrowly escaped losing £500 by him, and so did I too. Night, my two dearest lives MD. Original MS. " I have been packing up some books in a great box. . . . This is a beginning — towards a remoYal. I have sent to Holland for a dozen shirts, and design to buy another new gown and hat. I'll come over like a zinkerman. ... 29 Feb. And the Court, may want a majority upon a pinch. Nite deelest logues. Eove Pdfr. 1 March. I went into the city to inquire after poor Stratford, who has put him- self a prisoner into the Queen's Bench, for which his friends blame him much, because his creditors designed to be very easy with him. He graspt at too many things together. . . . I gave him notice of a Treaty of Peace, while it was a secret, of which he might have made good use, but that helpt to ruin him. For he gave money, reckoning there would be actually a Peace by this time, and consequently stocks rise high. Ford nari'owly 'scapt losing £500 by him, and so did I too. Nite my two deelest lives MD." * The editors supposed Zinkerman (which they printed in capitals) to mean some ontlandish or foreign dis- tinction; but it is the "little lan- guage" for "gentleman." 432 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. -^T. 43-46. letter ii. Society's dinners. 3d Makch, 1711-12. Scott, ii., 511. Pray tell Walls that I spoke to the Duke of Ormond . . . about his salary from the government for the tithes of the park, that lie in his parish, to be put upon the establishment. (Omissions.) I dined in the city with my printer, -with whom I had some small affair. I have no large work on my hands now. I was with lord treasurer this morning, and what care you for thatf You dined with the dean to- day. Monday is parson's holiday. And you lost your money at cards and dice ; the givefs device. So I'll go to bed. Night, my two dearest little rogues. Original MS. "Pray tell "Walls that I spoke to the Duke of Ormond . . . about his salary from the government for the tithes of the park that lie in his parish, to be put upon the establish- ment ; but 00 must not know zees sings, zey are secrets ; and we must keep them flom nauty dallars. I dined in the city . . . with my printer, with whom I had some small affair : but I have no large work on my hands now. I was with Lord-Treasurer this morning, and hat care oo for zat : 00 dined with the Dean to-day. Monday is Parson's holi- day, and 00 lost oo money at cards and dice, ze Givor's* device. So I'll go to bed. Nite my two dee litt logues." Gth Makch, 1711-12. Scott, ji., 514. Lord Orreiy is to be president next week ; and I will see whether it [dinner] can not be cheaper; or else we will leave the house. (Omission.) Lord Masham made me go home with him to-night to eat boiled oysters. Take oysters, wash them clean ; that is, wash their shells clean ; then put your oysters in an earthen pot, with their hollow sides down, then put this pot covered into a great kettle with water, and so let them boil. Your oysters are boiled in their own liquor, andf not mix water. Original MS. " Lord Orrery is to be pspsident next week ; and I'll see whether it [dinner] can not be cheaper; or else we will * The word in Swift's MS. is cer- tainly GivcJr, but I can not explain it other than by supposing it to mean that Evil One, who, as he elsewhere said, is more than usually busy on parsons' holidays. t This not being intelligible to the editors, they correct in a note, "and should be do ;" but Swift wrote quite intelligibly. I may add that in the entry of the 4th he mentions having nothing on his hands to write, and says it is a great comfort to him "now that" he can come home and read ; but commas* are thrust between the words so as really to alter their sense. Letter 42. § III.] UNPRINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 433 leave the house. Pidy pdfr, deelest sollahs. Lord Masham I7i0-i7i;i. made me go home with him to-night to eat boiled oysters. Take oysters ; wash them clean ; that is, wash their shells clean ; then put the oysters into an earthen pot, with their hollow sides down ; then piit this pot into a great kettle with water, and so let them boil. The oysters are boiled in their own liquor, and not mixt water." 8th Maech, 1711-12. Scott, ii., 515. Pray read the Eepresentation ; it is the finest that ever was writ. — Some of it is Pdfr's style ; but not very much. ... I must go this moment to see the secretary, about some iusiness; so I will seal up this, and put it in the post. (Omissions.) Farewell, dearest hearts and souls, MD. Original MS. "Pray read the Kepresentation. 'Tis the finest that ever was writ. Some of it is Pdfr's style; but not vely much. ... I must go this moment to see the Secretary about some businesses. So I will seal up this, and put it in the post my own self. Farewell, deelest hearts and souls MD. Farewell, MD MD MD, FW FW FW, ME ME, Lele Lele Lele, Sollahs, Lele." Sth-IOth March, 1711-'12. Scott, iii., 3-9. What Joe asks is entirely out of my way. ... I know not who is Letter 43. to give a patent; if the Duke of Ormond, I would speak to him ' — (omission), but good security is all. . . . Did I tell you of a race of "M^.^Juhii- rakes, called the Mohocks, that . . . slit people's noses, and Md them, sou at her etc. MgJit, sirrahs, and love Pdfr. Night, MD. 9 March. ... So I lodgings dined with Mrs. Ysmhomrigh. . . . Lord-treasurer is better. Night, gt^^ar"''"*' my own two dearest MD. 10 March. It is now six weeks since I had church, near your number 26. I can assure you I expect one before this goes, and Capel street, I will make shorter days' journals than usual, 'cause I hope to fill up ?'"'?^',"' ^™" a good deal of this side with my answer. . . . "We shall have rain imjorjed %ooTX,l suppose. Go to cards, sirrahs, and I to sleep. Night, MD. "October, ^ • ■ 7 i^a ifii- *i. Ungmal Mb. jlm-, 30." " What Joe asks is entirely out of my way. ... I know not who is to give a patent ; if the Duke of Ormond, I would speak to him ; and if it comes in my head I will mention it to ISTed Southwell. They have no Patent that I know of in such things here ; but good security is all. . . . Did I tell you of a race of rakes, called the Mohocks, that . . . slit people's noses, and beat them &c. Nite Sollahs, YoL. I.— 28 434 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. ^T. 43-4C. Letter 43. and rove Pdfr. Nite MD. 9 March. So I dined with Mrs. Yan. . . . Lord Treasurer is better. Nite, my own two delights, MD. 10 March. 'Tis now six weeks since I had number 26. I can assure oo I expect one before this goes; and I'll make shorter days journals than usual 'cause I hope to fill up a good deal of t'other side with my answer. . . . "We shall have rain soon, I dispose. Go to cards, soUahs, and I to seep. Nite MD." " Charmiug liinguage." 11TII-12TH March, 1711-12. Scott, iii., C. Lord treasurer has lent the long letter I writ . . . and I can't get Prior to return it. I want to have it printed, and to make up this Academy for the improvement of our language. 'Faith, we never shall improve it so much as FW has done ; ihall we ? No, 'faith, our richer Gengridge. So night, my two dear little MD. 13 March. Here is a young fellow has writ some Sea Eclogues, Poems of Mermen, re- sembling pastorals and shepherds. . . . Night, dearest MD. Original US. " Lord Treasurer has lent the long letter I writ . . . and I can't get Prior to return it ; and I want to have it print- ed, and to make up this academy for the improvement of our language. 'Faith, we never shall improve it so much as FW has done ; sail we ? No, 'f aitli, oor is char gan- gridge! So nite my two deelest nauty nown MD. 12 March. Here is a young fellow has writ some Sea Ec- logues, Poems of Mermen, resembling pastorals of shep- herds Nite dee litt MD." 13Tn-14TH March, 1711-12. Scott, iii., 9. The nights are now dark, and I came home before ten. Night, my dearest nrrahs. 14 March. He has argued with me so long upon the reasonableness of it, and Pam fully convinced it is very unrea- sonable. Original MS. " The nights are now dark, and I come home before ten. Nite, nown deelest sollahs. 14 March. lie has argued with me so long upon the reasonableness of it, that I am fully convinced it is very unreasonable." 15TH-16TH March, 1711-'12. Scott, iii., 10. I heard at dinner, that one of them [the Mohocks] was killed last night. We shall know more in a little time. I do not like them as § III.] UNPEINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 435 to men. (Omission.) 16 Marcli. Lord Winchilsea told me to-day 1710-1713. at court, that two of the Mohocks caught a maid of old Lady Win- Mt. 43-46. chilsea's, at the door of their house in the park, with a candle, and Letter 43. had just lighted out somebody. They cut all her face, and beat her without auy provocation. . . . How shall I have room to answer your letter when I get it, I ham gone so far already ? Night, dearest rogues. 18 March. Toung women, it is now seven weeks since I received your last ; but I expect one next packet ... so I wish you good luck at ombre with the dean. Night.* Original MS. " I heard at dinner that one of them [the Mohocks] was killed last night. We shall know more in a little time. I don't like them. But the more I lite MD. 16 March. Lord Winchilsea told me to-day at court, that two of the Mohocks caught a maid of old Lady Winchilsea's just at the door of their house in the park, where she was with a candle, and had just lighted out somebody. They all cut her face, and beat her without any provocation. . . . How sail I have room to answer oo Eattle hen I get it ? I am gone so far already. ]^ight, deelest logues MD. 18 March. TJng oomens, it is now seven weeks since I received oor last ; but I expect one next L"ish packet. ... So I wish uu good luck at ombre with the dean. JSTite nautyes nine." 19TII-20TH March, 1711-'12. Scott, iii., 13. ... it cost me above a crown. I don't like it, as my man said. . . . It is a great stir this, of getting a dukedom from the king of France. . . . Night, dearest little MD. 30 March. Some will do, and some will not do : thafs wise, mistresses. ... I made our society change their house, and we met together at the Star and Garter in the Pall Mall . . . when all have been presidents this turn. . . . Night, dea/rest. Original MS. "... it cost me above a crown. I don't like it, as the man said. . . . 'Tis a great air, this of getting a Dukedom from the King of France.f . . . Nite deelest michar MD. 20 March. Some will do, and some will not do. That's . I made our Society change their house. * In this entry there is mention of Mrs. Perceval's ''young" daughter liaving the small-pox, which is mis- pi'inted "youngest." t Lord Abercorn had asked Swift to " get him the dukedom of Chatelle- rnult from the King of France." — See a note by Scott, iii., 13-14. 436 IHE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. and we met to-day at the Star and Garter in the Pall Mall . . . when all have been presidents this time. . . . Letter 43. Nite, deelest, nite." 21sT March, 1711-12. Scoit, iii., 15. Now I will answer MD's letter, N. 27 ; you that are adding to your numbers and grumbling, bad made it 26, and then altered it to 27. . . . O, the sorry jades, with their excuses of a fortnight at Baligall, see- ing their friends, and landlord running away. what a trouble and a hustle ! Beg your pardon, mistress : I am glad you liL-e the apron : no harm, I hope. And so MD wonders she has not a letter all the day ; sh^ will have it soon. . . . The deuce he is ! . . . Ton may con- verse with those two nymphs if you please, but — take me if ever I do. Yes, 'faith, it is delightful to hear that Ppt is every way Ppt now. . . . The session, I doubt, will not be over till the end of April. ... I wish I were just now in my little garden at Laracor. . . . Hold your tongue, you ppt, about colds at Moor Park ! the case is quite different. . . . Oood morrow, little sirrahs. . . . Lady Masham's young son is very ill, and she is sici; with grief. Night, my own two dearest saucy dear ones. Original MS. " l^ow I will answer MD's Battle, Xo. 27. You that are adding to your number and grumbling, had made it 26, and then cobbled it to 27''-'. ... O, the sony zade, with her excuses of a fortnight at Baligall seeing their friends, and landlord running away. ... O Eold, hot a cruttle and a bustle ! . . . Bed ee paadon Maram ; I'm drad oo like se aplon ; no harm, I hope. And so maram MD wonders she has not a letter at the day ; ow'll have it soon, mum. . . . The D — he is. . . .f You may converse with those two nymphs if you please, but the d — • take me if ever I do. Iss, 'faith, it is delighttuU to hear that Ppt is every way Ppt now. ... I doubt the Session will not be over till towards the end of April. ... I wish I d-23d JIarch, 1711-12. Scott, iii., 18. I -will immediately seal up this, and keep it in mv pocket till even- ing, and then put it in the post. . . . Pray send (blank) that I may have time to write to (blank) about it. . . . Farewell, dearest dear MD, and love Pdfr dearly. Farewell 3ID 5ID MD &c. there, there, tltere, there, there, and there, and there again. ... So you know it is late now ^^iglit, my dearest ilD.* 23 March. The court serves me for a coffee-house ; once a. week I meet an acquaintance there, that I should not otherwise see in a quarter. . . . Can DD play at ombre vet. enough to hold the cards while Ppt steps into the next room ? Xight, dearest sirrahs. Original MS. '• I will immediately seal up this, and keep it in my pot- tick till evening, and zen put it in ze post. . . . Pray send Pdfr the ATE account that I may have time to write to Parvisol about it. . . . Farewell deelest deel MD, and rove Pdfr dearly dearly. FareweU MD MD FW FW FW ME ME ME Lele Lele Lele Lele Lele and Lele and Lele aden. '• So 00 know 'tis late now. . . . Xight, my own two deelest nautyes MD. %Z March. The court serves. me for a coffee-house : once a week I meet acquaintance there, that I should not otherwise see in a quarter. . . . Can DD play at ombre yet ? Enough to hode the cards while Ppt steps into next room \ ^ight, deelest soUahs." 2GTn-27Tn March, 1712. Scott, iii., 21. Our Mohocks . . . cut peoples faces every night, 'but they shan't cut mine. ... 27 Marcli. Society day, you hnoio ; that's I suppose. Dr. Arbuthnott was president. .. . It is late, sirrahs. I am not drunk. Night, MD. Original MS. '• Our Mohocks . . . cut people's faces every night. 'Faith, they shan't cut mine. . . . Xite MD. 27 March. Society * These words follow a passage I stead of "them," but not necessary to turned into nonsense by "liim" in- 1 be given. 438 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. LlETTEB 44. Afldressea " To Mia. Rebecca Dingley, at her lodgings over against St. Mary's Day, president, You know that, I suppose 'Tis rate, soUahs ; Dr. Arthbumott* was lan'tdlunk NiteMD." 28th Maecu-Sth Apkil, 1712. Scott, iii., 22. . . . Routing among my papers. . . . (Omission.) Domville is going to Ireland. ... 39 March. I'll try to go to sleep. . . . I'll write no more now, but go to sleep, and see wheihev flannel and sleep will cure my shoulder. Mght dearest MD. 30 March. I was not able to go to church or court to day (omission). ... It makes me think of poor Ppt's bladebone. ... It has rained terribly hard all day. ... 31 March to 8 April. (Illness.) The spots increased every day, and red Church, near little pimples. Capel Street, Dublin, Ire- land." In- dorsed by Mrs. John- son, "44. Apiil 14." I have been in no danger of life, but miserable L2TTEB 45. torture. (Omission.) So adieu, dearest MD, FW, &c. There, I can say there yet, you see. Faith, I don't conceal a bit, as hope saved. . . . Are you not surprised to see a letter want half a side ? Original MS. "... Eouting among my papers. I liave a pain these two days exactly upon the top of my left shoulder. I fear it is something rheumatick. It winches now and then. Shall I put Flannel to it ? . . . Domville is going to Ire- land Nite MD. 29 Ilarch. I'll try to go seep. I'll rike no more now, but go to sleep, and see whether sleep or flannel will cure my shoulder. Nite deelest MD. 30 March. I was not able to go to church or court to-day, for my shoulder. ... It makes me think of poo Ppt's blade- bone. ... It has rained terribly all day. . . . Nite deelest. 31 March to 8 April. (Illness.) The spots increased every day, and bred little pimples I have been in no danger of life, but miserable torture. I must not write too much. So adieu, deelest MD MD MD FW FW ME ME ME ! Lele — I can say Lele yet (J») see — 'Faith, I don't conceal a bit, as hope saved. . . . An't oo surprised to see a letter want half a side ?"t 24th April, 1712. Scott, iii., 25. 'Tis this day just a month since I felt the pain. ... I advised the doctor to use it like a blister . . . went out a day or two, but confined * So Swift first spells the name of one of his dearest friends. t The last words are ailded in tlie folding of the third page of the letter. The entry preceding is in a very weak and tremulous hand. § III.] UNPRINTED AND MISPlilNTED JOURNALS. 439 myself two days ago. I -went to a neighbor to dine, but yesterday 1710-1713. again kept at home. To-day I will venture abroad, and hope to be JEt. 43-46. well in a week. (Omissions.) Farewell, MD &c. Letter 45. Original MS. " 'Tis this day just a month since I felt a small pain. . . . I advised the doctor to raise it like a blister . . . went out a day or two ; but coniined myself again. Two days ago, I went to a neighbor to dine ; but yesterday again kept at home. To-day I will venture abi'oad a little, and hope to be well in a week. . ME FW FW ME, ME."* Farewell, MD MD MD ME ME 10th Mat, 1712. Scott, iii., 26. No, simplet07i : it is not a sign of health ... she [his sister] has been Lettkk 4C. once sinc& I recovered. . . . This is a long letter for a skh body. . . . He tells me Elwick has. . . . Ppt does not say one word of her own little health. I am angry almost ; but I won't, ieeause she is a good girl in other things. Yes, and so is DD too. God bless MD, and FW; and ME, and Pdfr too. Farewell MD, MD, MD, Lele. I can say Lele yet, young women ; yes I can, well as you. Original MS. " 1^0, sinkerton, 'tis not a sign of health. . . . She [his sister] has been once here since I recovered. . . . This is a long letter for a hick body. . . . He tells me one Elwick has . . . Ppt does not say one word of her own -little health. I'm angry almost ; but I won't : 'sause see im a dood dallar in odle sings. Iss, and so im DD too. God bless MD and FW and ME, ay and Pdfr too. Farewell MD MD MD FW FW FW ME ME ME. " Lele. I can say Lele — It, ung oomens, iss I tan, well as oo."t * This letter 4.'j is very brief; so altered in the writing by illness as hardly to be recognizable for his ; and is addressed, in another hand, "To Mrs. Johnson, at her lodgings over against St. Mary's Chnrch, nearCapel Street,Dublin, Ireland." Ithas indorse- ment by Mrs. Johnson, "45, May 1." t This letter 4G, though longer than the last, is as languidly and tremulously written ; but is ad- dressed by Swift " To Mrs. Ding- ley, at her lodgings," etc. Mrs. Johnson's indorsement is "46, May 15." 440 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. Mt. 43-46. Letter 47. Addressed to "Mrs. Dingley," with Mrs. JohDSOU'8 indorse- ment: "47, June S."" 31sT May, 1712. Scott, iii., 29. I never wished as much as now, that I had staid in Ireland ; but the die is cast, and is now a spinning, and till it settles, I can not tell whether it be an ace or a size. (Omission.) The moment I aui used ill, I will leave them . . . but I will take MD in my way, and not go to Laracor like an unmannerly spreenekiah fellow. ... I will give you a note for it on Parvisol, and teg your pardon I have not done it be- fore ... so I hear. . . . I'll say no more to you to-night, mTahs, lecauae I must send away the letter, not by the bell, but early ; and besides, I liave not much more to say at thu present writing. Does MD never read at all now, pray? But you walk prodigiously, I suppose — Tou make nothing of walking to, to, to, ay, to Donnybrook. I walk as much as I can. ... I suppose I shall have no apples this year neither. So I dined the other day with Lord Rivers, who is sick at his country house, and he showed me all his cherries blasted. . . . Night, dearest sirrahs ; farewell, dearest lives, love poor pdfr. Farewell, dearest little MD, MD, MD, FW, FW, FW, ME, ME, Lele, ME, Lelc, Lelc, little MD. Original MS. " I never wished as much as now tliat I liad staid in Ireland ; but the die is cast, and is now a spinning, and till it settles, I can not tell whether it be an ace or a sise. I am confident by what you know yourselves, that you will justify me in all this. The moment I am used ill, I wiU leave them . . . but I will take MD in my way, and not go to Laracor* like an unmannerly spreemikichf far- row." ... I will give you a note for it on Parvisol, and bed a paadon I have not done it before. ... So I heeear. . . . I'll say no more to oo tonite, sollahs, 'sause I must send away the lettei", not by bell, but early : and besides, I have not much more to say at zis plesent liting. Does MD never read at all now, pee ? But oo Avalk plodigiousry, I dispose — 00 make nothing of walking to, to, to, ay, to Don- nybrook. I walk too as nmich as I can. ... I suppose I shall have no apples this year neither. For I dined t'other day with Lord Rivers, who is sick at his country house, and he showed me all his cherries blasted. . . . JSTight, deelest sollahs ; farewell deelest rives ; rove poo poo Pdfr. Farewell deelest michar MD MD MD,FW FW FW FW FW. ME ME. Lele ME, Lele lele michar MD." * As she formerly reproached him for having done, t Spreemikich is for splenetic; — "spreenckish," in the print, does not represent it at nil. § III.] UNPRINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 441 17TII June, 1712. Scott, iii., 33. I feel [still in the shoulder] violent pain. ... I dined with the Duchess of Ormond at her Lodge near Sheen, and thought to get a ioat as usual. I walked by the ban/c to Kew, but no boat, then to Mortlake, but no boat, and it was nine o'clock. At last a little sculler called, full of nasty people. Original MS. " I feel [-still in the shoulder] constant pain. ... I dined with the Duchess of Ormond at lier lodge near Sheen, and thought to get a boat back as usual. I walked by the banks to Cue,* but no boat ; then to Mortlack,* but no boat; and it was nine o'clock. At last a little sculler called, full of nasty people." 1710-1713. JEt. 43-40. Lettee 48. Addressed to "Mrs. Eebecca Diiigley," with indorse- ment by Mrs. Johnson, "48. June 23." 17th June, 1712. Scott, iii., 33. And first. I did not relapse, but I came out before I ought. . . . The first coming abroad, tJie first going abroad, made people think I was quite recovered. . . . Well, but John Bull is not wrote by the person you imagine. (Omission.) It is too good for another to own. Had it been Grub Street, I would have let people think as they please ; and I think that's right : is not it now ? so flap your hand, and make wry mouths yourself, saucy doxy. Now comes DD. Why sirrahs, I did write in a fortnight. ... I need not tell you why. . . . So Ppt designs for Templeoag (what a name is that !). Whereabouts is that place ? I hope not very far from (blank). Higgius is here. . . . I can not he the least bit in love with Mrs. Walls — I suppose the cares of the husband increase with the.fruitfulness of the wife. I am glad at Tieart to hear of Ppt's good health : please to let her finish by drink- ing waters.' I hope DD had her bill, and has her money. Eemem- ber to write a due time before the money is wanted, and be good girls, good dallars, I mean, and no crying dallars. ... So, now your letter. . . . You see I can answer. . . . Well, but now for the peace : why we expect it daily ; but the French have the stuff in their own hands. ... I think Ppt should walk to DD; as DD reads to Ppt, for Ppt you must know is a good walker ; but not so good as Pdfr. . . . Farewell, dearest MD, FW, ME, &c. (Omissions.) Original MS. " And first, I did not relapse, but found I came out be- fore I ought. . . . The first coming abroad made people think I was quite recovered. . . . Well, but John Bull is not writt by the person you imagine, as hope It is too good for another to own. Had it been Grub Street, I would have let people think as they please ; and I think saved." "As hope" for "as I hope to be ' So spelled by Swift. 442 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT.' [Book VI. 1710-1713. JjJT. 43 -46. Letter 4S. Letter 49. Afldiessed to Mi-8. Dingley. Indorsed by Mis. JohnBOE, "49. JnlyS.' that's right ; is not it now ? So flap ee hand, and make wry moilth ooself , saucy doxy. . . . ISTow comes DD. Why soUah, I did write in a fortnight. ... I need not tell ee why. ... So Ppt designs for Templeoag (what a name is that !)— whereabouts is that place ? I hope not very far from Dublin. Iliggins is here. ... I am not the least bit in love with Mrs. Walls. I suppose the cares of the husband increase with the fruitfulness of the wife. I am grad at halt to hear of Ppt's good health : pray let her finish it by drinking waters. I hope DD had her bill, and has her money. Kemember to write a due time before ME money is wanted, and be good galls, dood dallars I mean, and no crying dallars. . . . So, now oor letter. . . . You see I can answer you. . . . Well, but now for the Peace. Why, we expect it daily; but the French have the staff in their own hands. ... I think Ppt should walk for DD, as DD reads to Ppt. For Ppt, oo must know, is a good walker ; but not so good as Pdfr. . . . Farewell, deelest lole, dealest MD MD MD— MD MD— FW FW FW — ME ME Lele me Lele me Lele me Lele Lele Lele me." 1st Jolt, 1712. Scott, iii., 3G. I never was in a worse station for writing letters than this [Ken- sington], (omission) for I go to town early. Mrs. Bradley's youngest son is to marry somebody worth nothing. . . . ilr. Secretary will not take the title of Bolingbroke. . . . Original MS. " I never was in a worse station for writing letters than this [Kensington], especially for writing to MD, since I left off my journals. For I go to town early. Mrs. Brad- ley's youngest son is married to somebody worth noth- ing. . . . Mr. Secretary will not take the title of Bullen- brook. . . ." 1st Jdly, 1712. Scott, iii., 40. Go, get you gone, and drink yo%ir waters, if this rain has not spoiled them, saucy doxy. I have no more to say to you at present : but love Pdfr, and MD, and ME. And Pdfr will love Pdfr, and MD, and ME. § III.] UNPRIXTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 443 I wish you had taken an account when I sent money to Mrs. Brent. 1710-1713. I believe I have not done it a great while. (Omission.) Farewell, Mr. iS-iii. dearest MD, FW, ME, &c. Letter*)! Original MS. '■ Go, get ee gone and drink u waters, if this rain has not spoiled them, sauey doxy. I have no more to say to oo at present, but rove Pdfr, and MD, and ME ; and Podafer will rove Pdfr, and MD, and ME. I wish you had taken any account when I sent money to Mrs. Brent. I believe I ha'nt done it a great while ; and pray send me notice when !ME wants me to send. She ought to have it when it is due. Farewell, dearest MD FW FW FW ME ME ME." 17th July, 1712. Scott, iii., 41. Poor Master Ashe has a iad redness in his face . . . his face all LetteeSO. swelled, and will h-eai: out in his cheek, but no danger. . . . Pdfr ^ji^j^sed has writ five or six Grub Street papers this last week. Have you to Mrs. seen Toland's Invitation to Dismal, or Hue and Cry after Dismal, or Diugley. Ballad on D'unhirh, or Agreement that Dunkirh is not in our Hands ? il^^^'y^h ^^ Poh! you have seen nothing. . . . Parvisol . . . tells me there will son "50 be a septennial visitation in August. I must send Raymond another July 23." proxy. So now I will answer your letter. . . '. Yes, Mrs. DD, but you would not be content with letters from Pdfr of six lines, or twelve either, 'faith ... (I am now sitting with nothing but my bed-govfn, for heat). Ppt shall have a great Bible (omission), and DD shall be repaid her other book ; but patience ; all in good time : you are so hasty, a dog, would, &c. So Ppt has neither won nor lost. Why, mun, I play sometimes too at picket; that is picqueH, I mean. . . . TVTiy, pray, madam philosopher, how did the rain hinder the thun- der from doing any harm ? I suppose it squenelied it. . . . Original MS. " Poor Master Ashe has a sad redness in his face ... his face all swelled, and will break in his cheek, but no dan- ger — Pdfr has writ five or six Grub Street papers this last week. Have you seen Toland's Invitation to Dismal, or Hue and Cry after Dismal, or a Ballad on Dunkirk, or an Argument that Dunkirk is not in our Hands ? Poh ! you haVe seen nothing. . . . Parvisol . . . tells me there will be a triennial visitation in August. I must send Raymond another proxy. So now I will answer oo Rattle. . . . Yes, maram DD, but oo would not be content with letters from Pdfr of six lines, or twelve either, faith ... (I am now sitting with nothing but my night gown, for heat). Ppt 4:4:4: . THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. shall have a great Bible. I have put it down in ray mem- -— '- landums, just novr. And DD shall be repaid her t'other book. But patience ; all in good time : you are so hasty, a dog would, &c. So Ppt has neither won nor lost. Why, mum, I play sometimes too at picket ; that is, picquet I mean. . . . Why pray, madam philosopher, how did the rain hinder the thunder from doing any harm ? I suppose it Ssquenched it. . . ." 17TII JcLT, 1712. Scott, iii., 42. So here comes Ppt again with her little watery postscript. Ton told druTiken slut you ! drink Pdfr's health ten times in a morning ! you are a whetter, faith. I sup MD's fifteen times every morning in milk porridge. There's for you now — and there^a for your letter, and every kind of thing — and now I must say something else. You hear Secretary St. John is made Viscount BolinglrroTce. Original MS. " So here comes Ppt aden with her little watery post- script. O Bold, dlunken srut, di-ink Pdfr's health ten times in a morning ! You are a whetter. 'Faith, I sup MD's fifteen times evly molning in milk porridge. Lele's f ol 00 now, and lele's f ol u Battle, and evly kind of sing ; and now I must say something else. You hear Secretary St. John is made Viscount BuUinbrook."* 19th July, 1712. Scott, iii., 43. I could not send this letter last post, being called away before I could finish it. . . . I am now in bed, very lazy and sleepy at nine. . . . It is late, and I must rise. Don't play at ombre in your waters, sir- rah. Farewell, dearest MD. (Omission.) Ori^nal MS. " I could not send this letter last post, being called away before I could fold or finish it. . . . I am now in bed very easy and sleepy, at nine. . . . 'Tis late, and I must rise. Don't play at ombre in the waters, soUah. Farewell, deol- est MD MD MD ME FW FW ME ME ME Lele Lele Lele." * It is not (ill he hns written the linbroke, Biilingbrook, BuUinbrook, word five times he gets it right at bring him at last to Bolingbroke. last. Biillenbrook, Biillinbrook, Bui- § UI.] UNPEINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 445 7TII* August, 1712. Scott, iii., 44. ^^^~,V]l' ' ' ' ^T. 43-40. I receked your No. 33 at Windsor ; I just read it, and immediately lettee 51. sealed it up again, and shall read it no more this twelve month at — least. The reason of my resentment is, because you talk as glibly of Mi-s^Dni"- ° a thing as if it were done, which, for aught I know, is farther from ley, and iu- being done than ever. ... I believe you fancied I would Tiot affect do'sed by to tell it you, but let you learn it from newspapers and reports. Re- M''^- J"J"i- member only there was something in your letter about ME's money, Aug. 14." and that shall be taken care of. (Omission.) Have you seen the red stamp the papers are marked with ? Methinks the stamping it is wortli a halfpenny. . . . Dilly is just as he used to be, and puns as plentifully and as bad. The two brothers see one another ; and I think not the two sisters. . . . Won't you see pom- Laracor? . . . Pray observe the cherry-trees in the river walk; but you are too lazy to take such a journey. (Omissions.) Poor Lord Wincbilsea is dead. Farewell, dearest MD, FW ME, Lele, rogues loth; hvepoor Pdfr. Original MS. " I had your No. 32 at Windsor ; I just read it, and im- mediately sealed it up again, and shall read it no more this twelvemonth at least. The reason of my resentment at it is, because you talk as glibly of a Thing as if it were done, which for aught I know is farther from being done than ever. ... I believe you fancied I would affect not to tell it you, but let you learn it from newspapers and reports. I remember only there was something in your letter about ME's money ; and that shall be taken care of on the other side. . . . Have you seen the red stamp the papers are marked with? Methinks it is worth a halfpenny the stamping it. Dilly is just as he used to be, and puns as plentifully and as bad. The two brothers see one another, but I think not the two sisters. . . . Won't oo see pool Laratol ? . . . Pray observe the cherry-trees on the river walk ; but oo are too lazy to take such a journey. . . . And pray send me again the state of ME'sf money ; for I will not look into your letter for it. Poor Lord Win- cbilsea is dead. . . . Farewell, deelest MD MD MD FW * Had written 17th, and writes above his correction of it, "Podefar was mis'-ken.'' t Had written MD's- changes to ME's. -which he 446 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. FW FW ME ME ME ME ME, Lele loffues both, Kove iET.43-4G. ,j, ,,.„ ' " poo pair."* Lettek 52. Addressed to Mi's. Ding- ley, and in- dorsed by Mrs. Johu- Bon, "62. Oct. 1, at Portranne." loTii Septejibkr, 1712. Scott, iii., 47. Nothing at all is, nor I don't know when any thing will, or whether any at all, so slow are people at doing favors. . . . The dean never answered my letter, and I have clearly .forgot whether I sent a bill for ME in any of my last letters. I think I did I wait here but to see what they will do for me ; and whenever preferments are given from me, as * * * said, I will come over. Original MS. " Nothing at all is, nor I don't know when any thing will, or whether ever at all, so slow are people at doing favors. The Dean never answered my letter, though. I have clearly forgot whether I sent a bill for ME in any of my last letters. I think I did. ... I wait here but to see what they will do for me ; and whenever pref eiments are given from me, as hope savedf I will come over." 18th Septembek, 1712. Scott, iii., 49. The doctor tells me I must go into a course of steel, though I have not the spleen ; for that they can never give me, though I have as much provocation to it as any man alive. . . . My Lord Shrewsbury is ... to be Governor of Ireland. . . . The Irish Whig leaders promise great things to themselves from this government; but great care shall be talceU) if possible, to prevent them. . . . She [his sister] is retired to 3Irs. Povey's Parvisol kceps'me at charges for horses that I never ride : yours is large, and will never be good for anything. . . . Pray God preserve MD's health, and Pdfr's, and that I may live free from the envy and discontent that attends those who are thought to have more favor at court than they really possess. Love Pdfr, who loves MD above all things. Farewell, dearest, ten thousand times dearest, MD, FW, ME, Lele. • Original MS. " This doctor tells me I must go into a course of steel, though I have not the splccdi ; for that they can never give me, tliough I have as much provocation to it as any man * The printed letter has many other errors not grave enough for notice (a rcmarlv to be made of almost nil). "Believe I" and "believe I" twice omitted; down "in," for "of;" "in this time in dinners" for " at ;" wish "I was," for "wore;" "looks" for "look't;" what was .for what "is;" "Mr." instead of " Mrs." Stoyte, etc. t Swift's common phrase, as already noted, for "as I hope to be saved." § III.] UNPRINTED AND MISl^RINTED JOURNALS. 447 alive. . . . My Lord Shrewsbury is ... to be Governor of 1710-1713. Ireland. . . . The Irish Whig leaders promise great things to themselves from his government : but care shall be taken, if possible, to prevent them. . . . She [his sister] is returned to Mrs. Povey's. . . . Parvisol keeps me at charges for horses that I can never ride : your's is lame, and "will never be good for any thing. . . . Pray God preserve MD's health, and Pdfr's : and that I may live far from the envy and discontent that attends those who are thought to have more favor at courts than they really possess. Love Pdf r, who loves MD above all things. Fare- well, deelest, ten thousand times deelest MD MD MD FW FW ME ME ME ME Lele Lele Lele Lele." Sin October, 1712. Scott, iii., 54. I loved the man [Earl Rivers], lut detest his memory. ... I had Lettee53. poor MD's letter. No. 33, at Windsor ; but I could not answer it then; j^^g^^^^ to Pdfr was 'oery sick then: besides, it veas a very inconvenient place to Mrs. Ding- tiyrUe letters from. Tou thought to come home the same day. . . . ley, aDdin- I am now told Lord GodolpWn was buried last night. — O poor ^f^^?^^ Ppt * * * (Omissions.) ... I hoped Ppt would have clone with her gon "53. illness : but I think we both have the faculty never to part with a Oct. is, at disorder for ever; we are very constant. I have had my giddiness Poi-traune." twenty-three years by fits. Original MS. " I loved the man [Earl Rivers] and detest his memory. . . I had poo MD's letter, 'So. 3 ,* at "Windsor ; but I could not answer it there. Poo pdfr wem vely hick then : and besides, it was a very inconvenient place to send letters from. Oo thought to come, home the same day. ... I am now told Lord Godolphin was buried last night. — pooppt, lay down 00 head aden — 'faith I ho dove u — I always reckon if 00 are ill I shall hear it; and therefore hen 00 are silent I reckon all is well. ... I hoped Ppt would have done with her illness, but I think we both y have that faculty never to part with a disorder for ever. "We are very constant.' I have had my giddiness twenty- three years by fits." * A blank after 3 : exact number forgotten. It was 32. 44:8 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. ■"■P^TFI?" llTii October, 1712. Scott, iii., 55 Ji,^. 4.3-46. ' ' ' Letter 53. How the deuce came I to be so exact in your money ? Just seven- teen shillings and eightpence more than due. I believe you cheat me. (Omissions.) Ppt makes a petition -with many apologies. . . . It is my delight to do good offices for people who want and deserve it, and a tenfold delight to do it to a relation of Ppt, whose affairs Pdfr has so at heart. Original MS* " IIow the deuce came I to be so inexact in ME money ? Just seventeen shillings aTid eightpence more than due : I believe you cheat me. If liawkshaw doesn't pay the in- terest, I will have the principal. Pray speak to Parvisol, and have his advice what I should do about it. Service to Mrs. Stoyte and Catherine and Mrs. "Walls. Ppt makes a petition with many apolozyes. ... It is my delight to do good offices for people who want and deserve, and a ten- fold delight to do it to a relation of Ppt's, whose affairs slie has so at heart." llTii OcTOBEK, 1712. Scott, iii., 56. Tliat is enough to say when I can do no more; and I beg your pardon a thousand times, that I can not do better. . . . O, 'faith, young women, I must be iae, yes, 'faith, must I ; else we shall cheat Pdfr. Are you good housewives and readers ? Are you walkers ? I know you are gamesters. Are you drinkers? Are you — hold, I must go no farther, for fear of abusing fine ladies. . . . Parvisol has not sent I am just going out, and can only bid you farewell. Farewell, dearest little MD, &c. (Omissions.) Original MS. " Zats enough to say when I can do no more ; and I beg u pardon a sousand times, that I can not do better O, 'faith, nng oomens, I must be ise ; iss, 'faith, must I ; else ME will cheat Pdfr. ^re you good housewives and readers? Are you walkers? I know you are gamesters. Are you drinkers ? Are you O Eold, I must go no farther, for fear of aboosing fine Kadyes. Parvisol has never sent. ... I am just going out, and can only bid oo farewell. Farewell, dearest ickle MD MD MD MD FW FW FW FW ME ME ME ME Lele deer me Lele lele lele Sollahs bose." * Prefixed to 11th October are the words "Ppt FW," the only instance before a date. 8 HI.] UNPllINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 449 15x11 NovEMKisR, 1712. Scott, iii., 62.* 1710-1713. The dog Mohun was killed on the spot ; and, while the Duket was -^t. 43-40. over him, Mohun shortened his sword, stabbed him in at the shoulder Lktteu 55? to the heart. The Duke was helped toward the cake-house by the , ,.■; — , ring in Hyde Park. . . . You have heard the story of my escape in Mrs. Di„g. opening the band-box sent to the lord-treasurer . . . but so it pleased ley, and iu- God, and I saved myself and him; for there was a lullet-piece. . . . J?!™??^ Night, dearest, sirrahs, I'll go to sleep. ... 16 Nov. . . . The coroner's g^^' .ijsfov inquest on the duke's body is to be to-morrow. And I shall know 26. Just more. But what care yoM for all this ? Tea, MD is sorry for Pdfr's come from friends. ... 17 Nov. ... I had been with Lady Orkney, and charged I""''''^""^-" her to be kind to her sister in affliction. ... 18 Nov. The Duchess is mightily indisposed . . . else I shall not have time; lord -treasurer usually Tceeps me so late . . . the exactness I used to write to MD. (Omissions.) Farewell, dearest little MD, &c. Smoke the folding of my letters of late. Original MS. " The dog Moliun was killed on tlie spot ; and wMle the duke was over him, Mohun shortening his sword stabbed him in at the shoulder to the heart. The duke was helped toward the cake-house by the ring in Hyde Park. . . . You "Cheese- have heard the story of my escape, in opening the band- box sent to Lord Treasurer . . . but so it pleased God, and I saved myself and him ; for there was a bullet apiece. . . . Nite dee SoUahs. I'll go seep. 16 Wav. The crowner's inquest on the duke's body is to be to-morrow ; and I shall know more. But what care oo for all this ? Iss, poo MD im sorry for poo Pdfr's friends. ... 17 Nov. ... I had been with Lady Orkney, and charged her to be kind to her sister in her affliction Nite nite deelest MD. 18 Ifov. The duchess is mightily out of order . . . else I shall not have time ; Lord Treasurer usually keeping me too late . . . the exactness I used to write to MD with. Farewell deelogues, deelest MD MD MD, Eove Pdfr, MD MD ME ME FW FW FW ME ME ME Lele me, me. Smoke the folding of my letters late." * Letter 54, from 28th to 30th October, and addressed to Mrs. John- son, is not among the originals in the British Museum; but it is a specimen of the careless printing of all the edi- tions ( " continue " for ' ' contrive, " and many other errors), as will be seen from my collation of it. Letter 55 YoL. L— 2 J describes the fatal duel of the Duke of Hamilton, a familiar friend of Swift's, with Lord Mohun. t The duke had just been proposed for embassador to France, and wanted Swift to go with him as secretary — of course he could not be spared. 450 THE LIFE OE JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. Ml. 43-46. Letter 56. Addressed to JIis. Ding- ley. In- dorsed by 3Irs. John- son, "SO. Dec. 18." 12th December, 1712. Scott, 'in., 68. Here is now a strange thing ; a letter from MD unanswered. . . . Why could it not be 'Sent before, pray now ? . . . I will renew my journal method next time. ... O ! Ppt I remember your repri- manding me for meddling in other people's affairs: I have enough of it now, with a vengeance. God be thanked that Ppt is better of her disorders. God keep her so. . . . Sir Richard Levinge, stuff, and Pratt, more stuff. . . . Abel Eoper tells me you have had floods in Dublin ; no, have you ? Oh ho ! Swanton seized Portraine, now I understand you. Ay, ay, now I see Portraine at the top of your letter. . . . Heigh!. do you write Ity candlelight! naughty, naughty, na-ughty dallah, a hundred times for doing so. . . . My brother Or- mond sent me some chocolate to-day. I wish you had share of it, they say it is good for me, and I design to drink some in the morn- ing. ... I have given away ten shillings to-day to servants. (Omission.) What a stir is here about your company and visits ! Clianning company, no doubt : now I keep no company, nor have I any desire to keep any . . . my only debauch is sitting late when I dine. . . . Well, then, you are now returned to ombre and the dean, and Christmas ; I wish you a very merry one ; and pray don't lose your mmiey, nor play upon Watt Welch's game. Night, sirrahs, it is late, ril go to sleep; I don't sleep well, and therefore never dare to drink coffee or tea after dinner : but I am very sleepy in a morning. This is the effect of wine and years. Night, dearest MD. Original MS. "Here is now a stlange ting: a Eattle from MD un- answered. . . . Wliy could it not be sent before, pay now ? . . . I will resume my journal method next time. . . . O ! Ppt, I remember your reprimanding me for meddling in other people's affairs : I have enough of it now, with a wannion. . . . God be thanked that Ppt im bottle of her disoddles : pray God keep her so. . . . Sir Richard Lev- inge, stuff, stuff ; and Pratt, more stuff. . . . Abel Eoper tells us you have had floods in Dublin ; ho, brave you ! Oh ho ! Swanton seize^ Portraine ; now I understand 00. . . . Ay, ay, now I see Portraune* at the top of your letter. Heigh ! do oo aite by sandle light, nauti-nauti- nauti dallar a bundled times fol doing so ! . . . , My broth- er Ormond sent me some chocolate to-day. I wish you had share of it. But tljey say 'tis good for me, and I design to drink some in a morning. ... I have given * It will have been observed that she so spells the word in her indoise- ments of her letters, and doubtless she so dated her own. He is al- ways glad to have a hit at her mis- spelling. Letter 56. § III.] UNPKINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 4-51 t . . away ten shillings to-day to servants : 'tan't be help if one 1710-1713. should ciy one's eyes out. Hot a stir is here about your ^' ' company and visits ! . . . Charming company, no doubt. I keep no company at all, nor have I any desire to keep any. My only debauching is sitting late where I dine. Well zen, oo are now returned to ombre and the dean, and Christmas; I wish oo a very meny one; and pray don't lose oo moneys, nor play upon "Watt Welch's game. Nite SoUahs, 'tis rate. I'll go to seep. I don't seep well, and therefore never dare to drink coffee or tea after din- ner : but I am very seepy in a morning. This is the ef- fect of time and years. Nite deelest MD." 13th Decejieee, 1712. Scott, iii., 73. I am so very sleepy in the mornijig that my man wakens me above ten times ; and now I can tell you no news of this day. (Here is a restless dog, crying cabbages. ... I wish his largest cabbage were ■ sticking in his throat.) I lodge over against the house in Little Rider Street, where DD lodged. Bon^t you remember, mistress? . . . We .shall have a peace veiy soon; the Dutch are almost entirely agreed, and if they stop we shall make it without them ; that has ieen resolved. . . . One Squire Jones, a scoundrel in my parish, has writ to me to desire I would engage Joe Beamont to give him his interest for parliament man for him : pray tell Joe this ; and if he designed to vote for him already, then he may tell Jones that, I re- ceived his letter, and that I writ to Joe to do it. If Joq,be engaged for any other, then he may do what he will : and Parvisol may say he spoke to Joe, and Joe is engaged. ... It is ten o'clock . . . and I must be abroad at eleven. Abb6 Gautier sends me word I can not see him to-night ; p — talce him ! . . . I am glad to hear you walked so much in the country. Does DD ever read to you, young woman ? O, 'faith ! I shall find strange doings wTien I come home ! . . . Fare- well, dearest MD, FW, ME, Lele. (Omissions.) Original MS. "I am so very seepy in the mornings that my man wakens me above ten times; and now I can tell oo no news of this day. (Here is a restless dog crying cab- bages. ... I wish his largest cabbage were sticking in his throat.) I lodge over against the house in Little Rider Street, where DD lodged, don't oo lememble maram ? . . . We shall have a Peace very soon. The Dutch are almost entirely agreed ; and if they stop, we shall make it with- out them. That has been long resolved. One Squire 452 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. Letter 56. 1710-1713. Jones, a scoundrel in my parisli, has writ to me to desire I would engage Joe Beamont to give him his interest for parliament-man for Trim ; pray tell Joe this ; and if he designed to vote for him already, then he may tell Jones that I received his letter, and that I writ to Joe to do it. If Joe be engaged for any other, then he may do what he will : and Parvisol may say he spoke to Joe, but Joe's en- gaged. ... It im ten o'clock . . . and I must be abroad at eleven. . . . Abb^ Gautier sends me word I can't see him to-night ; pots cake him ! . . . I am glad to hear oo walked so much in the country. Does DD ever read to you, ung ooman? O, faith! I shall find strange doings hen I tum ole! . . . Farewell, deelest MD MD MD ME ME ME FW FW FW Lele." Lettee 6T. Addressed to Mrs. Ding- ley, and in- dorsed by Mrs. John- son, "ST. Jan. 13." 18th and 19th December, 1712. Scott, iii., 76. It cost me nineteen shillings to-day for my cliA dinner;* I don't like it. . . . 19 December. How agreeable it is in a morning for Pdfr to write journals again ! It is as natural as mother's milk. Original MS. " It cost me nineteen shillings to-day for my club at dinner; I don't like it, sirs. . . . Nite, dee sollahs. 19 Deo. Ay, mally, zis is sumsing nite for Pdfr to write journals again ! 'Tis as natural as mother's milk." 23d Decembek, 1712. Scott, iii., 80. This morning I presented one Diaper, a poet [author of Sea Mc- hgues] to Lord Bolingbroke. ... I have contrived to make a parson of him, for he is Ml/one already, being in deacon's orders, and serves a small cure in the country ; but has a sword at his tail here in town. It is a poor, little, short wretcK but will do best in a gown, and we will make lord-keeper give him a living. . . . Don't you see how curi'ously he [Tom Leigh] continues to vex me ; for the dog knows, that with half a word I could do more than all of them together. . . . Night, dearest sirrahs ! I will go to sleep. * ' ' Club dinner " and " club at din- ner " are two veiy distinct things. In the same letter he says he " proposed " their society meetings to be "only once" a fortnight: of which "only" is dropped out of the print, and " pro- pose " put for the right word. In the entries to the 23d the mistakes in the print are unusually numerous, but rot very important. The " little language " of farewell, closing each day, is inva- riably omitted, with the oo and oors for you and yours, and the " dee" be- fore MD. Letter 57. § IZI.] UNPRINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 453 Original MS. 1710-1713. ™ . . T JEt. 43-46. " This morning I presented one Diaper, a poet [author of Sea Eclogues\ to Lord Bolingbroke. ... I have con- trived to make a parson of him, for he is half a one already, being in deacon's orders, and serves a small cure in the country ; but has a sword at his [word not printable] here in town. . . . 'Tis a poor, little, short wretch, but will do best in a gown ; and we will make Lord-keeper give him a living. . . . Don't you see how curiously he [Tom Leigh] contrives to vex me ; for the dog knows that with half a word 1 could do more than all of them together. . . . Nite, dee Sollahs, I'll go seep a dozey." 25th December, 1712. Scott, iii., 82. (Omissions.) I carried Parnell to dine at Lord Bolingbroke's. . . . Night, dear rogues. Original MS. "All melly happy Tismasses — ^melly Tismasses — I said it first — I did — I wish it a sousand times, zoth with halt and sole! I carried Parnell to dine at Lord Eoling- broke's. . . . JSTite dee logues." 26th Deoejiekr, 171 2. Scott, iii., 82. I dined with lord-treasurer, who chid me for being absent three days. Mighty kind, with a p — ; less of civility, and more of inter- est ! We hear Macartney [second in Hamilton duel, and £700 offered for his capture] is gone over to Ireland. Was it not comical for a gentleman to be set upon by highwaymen, and to tell them he was Macartney. Upon which they brought him to a justice of peace, in hopes of a reward,* and the rogues were sent to gaol. Was it not great presence of mind ? But may be you heard of this already ; for there was a Grub-street of it. Original MS. " I dined with Lord-Treasurer, who chid me for being absent three days. Mighty kind, with a p — ; less of ci- vility, and more of his interest ! "We hear Macartney [sec- ond in Hamilton duel and £700 offered for his capture] is gone over to Ireland. Was it not comical for a gentle- man to be set upon by highwaymen, and to tell them he * The a for the in this passage, the reader will not fail to observe, makes all the difference. 45i THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. was Macartney ; upon which they brought him to a justice of peace, in hopes of the reward, and the rogues were sent Letter B7. to gaoL "Was it not great presence of mind ? But maybe you heard this ah-eady ; for there was a Grub-street* of it." 27th-30th December, 1712. Scott, iii., 84. Well, go to cards, sirrah Ppt, and dress the wine and orange, iirrali, Me, and I'll go Aeeip. It is late. Night, MD. 29 Dec. ... I dined in the city upon the broiled leg of a goose and a bit of hacon, with my printer. . . . Night, dear rogues. 30 Dee. I suppose this will be full by Saturday. (Omission.) Original MS. ""Well, go to cards, soUah Ppt, and dress the wine and olange, soUah Me, and I'll go seep. ' 'Tis rate. Nite MD. 29 Dec. ... I dined in the city upon the broiled leg of a goose and a bit of brawn, with my printer. . . . Nite two dee litt logues. 30 Dec. I suppose this will be full by Saturday : iss it sail go." 1st-2d January, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 85-87. A great many new years to dearest MB. Pray God Almighty bless you, and send you ever happy. . . . But burn politics, and send me from courts and ministers ! Night, dearest little MD. 3 Jan. Go and be merry, little sirrahs. Original MS. "A sousand melly melly new years to deelest michar MD. Pay God Almighty bless oo, and send oo ever hap- py. . . . But burn politics, and send me from courts and ministers ! Nite deelest own michar MD. ... 2 Jan. Go and be melly, oo little Sollahs." 3d January, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 88. I came back just by nigliDfell, cruel cold weather. (Omission.) I'll take my leave. I forgot how MD's accounts are. . . . Go, play at cards. Love Pdfr. Night, MD, FW, ME, Lele. The six odd shillings, tell Mrs. Brent, are for her new year's gift. (Omissions.) Original MS. " I came back just by nightfall, cruel cold weather. I have no smell. yet, but my cold's something better. Nite *A flying- sheet or pamphlet Al- ways called 11 Grub-street by Swift. In the print of the two following entries, some words are omitted. "terrible dry" made "terribly diy," with other misfalces not necessary to the sense. § III.] UNPllINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 455 dee soUahs, I'll take my reeve. I forget liow MD's ac- 1710-1713. counts are. . . . Go, play cards and be melly, deelest -^ — I— ^ logues, and Eove Pdfr. Nite niichar MD FW oo roves Pdfr.— FW, Lele lele, ME ME, MD MD MD MD MD MD MD FW FW FW ME ME FW FW FW FW FW ME ME ME. The six odd shillings, tell Mrs. B , are for her new year's gift. Lele, lele, lele and lele." 4x11 AND 7tii jANnAKT, 1712-'13. Scott, iii., 89. Lady Mountjoy told me tliat Macartney was got safe. . . . Others Letter 5S. say the same thing. (Omission.) After church to-day, I showed Addressed to the Bishop of Clogher, at court, who was who. Night, my two dear Mrs. Ding- rogites. ... 7 Jan. Played at ombre with Mrs. Ywahomrigh. ... I '^y. ""^ >"- have got weak ink, and it is very white. . . . I'll go to sleep. Mi? John- Orininal MS. «""- "^^■ ■' Feb. 4. Of " Lady Mountioy told me that Macartney was got safe Lord Petef- 1 1 . inr in 11 111 bOTOVV'S le- Others say the same thing, 'iis hard such a dog should tarn." escape. . . . After church to-day, I showed the Bishop of Clogher at court who was who. ISTite my two dee logues and lastalls. ... T Jan. Played at ombre with Mrs. Yan. . . . I have got new ink, and 'tis very white. . . . I'll go to seep. Nite MD." 12th-14th January, 1712-'13. 'Scott, iii., 95-97. I bought Plutarch, two volumes, for thirty shillings, &c. Well, I'll tell you no more ; you don't understand Greek. ... So niglit, own dear dallars. 13 Jan. ... sat with Lady Orkney till twelve. (Omission.) The parliament was. ... 14 Jan. ... so we laughed, &c. Night, my own dearest little rogueSjMT). Original MS. " I bought Plutarch, two volumes, for thirty shillings, &e. Well, I'll tell oo no more; oo don't understand Greek ... so nite nown dee dallars. 13 Jan Sat with Lady Orkney till twelve : from whence you may conclude it is late, Sollahs. The parliament was Nite dea MD. 14 Jan. So we laughed, &c. ISTite my own deelest richar logues MD." 15x11 AND 16xH Jancart, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 97, 98. "... people seeing me speak to L. T' causes a great deal of teasing. I tell you what comes into my head, that I never knew whether you were Whigs or Tories, and I value'our conversation the more that it 456 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. JEt. 43-46. Letter 5S. never turned on that subject. I have a fancy that Ppt is a Tory, and a rigid one. I don't know why ; but methinks she looks like one, and DD a sort of a trimmer. 16 Jan because I have much busi- ness. So my journals shall be short, and Ppt must have patience. Original MS. "... people seeing me speak to L. T"^ causes me a great deal of teasing. — I tell you what comes into my head, that I never knew whether MD were Whigs or Tories, and I value our conversation the more that it never turned on that subject. I have a fancy that Ppt is a Tory, and a violent one ;* I don't know why ; but methinks she looks like one : and DD a sort of a trimmer. 16 Ja?i. . . . 'cause I have much business. So my journals shall be short, and MD must have patience. So nite dee Sollahs." 18TH-21ST January, 1712-'13. Scott, iii., 99-101. Go to cards, dearest MD. 19 Jan. A poor fellow called at the door where I lodge, with a parcel of oranges for a present for me. I bid my man learn what his name was, and whence it came . . . and not to let him leave his oranges. . . . Let them keep their poison for their rats. I don't love it. (Omission.) That blot is a blunder. Night, dear MD. 20 Jan. Tom Leigh must go back, which is one good thing to the town. 21 Jan. This letter slicUl not go till Satm-- day ... so you must know I expect a letter very soon, and that MD is i'ej-y wdl; and so night, dear MD. Original JifS. / " Go to cards, Sollahs, and nite MD. 19 Jan. A poor fellow called at the door where I lodge, with a parcel of oranges for a present for me. I bid my man know what his name was, and whence he came . . . and not to let him leave his oranges. . . . Let them keep then- poison for their rats. I don't love it. Kite dear MD — drowsy, drowsy, dear — [here comes a blot Ifcrawling in a line across page] —That blot is a blunder. Nite dea MD. 20 Jan. Tom Leigh must go back, which is one good thing for the town. Nite MD. 21 Ja>} . This letter sail not go till Saturday . . . so 00 must know I expect a Eattle vely soon ; and that MD is vely werr ; and so nite dee MD." * This was banter. She had no violent predilections ; but such as they were, they were whig, and derived f.om himself. He has another al- lusion later, with less tone of banter ; but evidently replying to some gentle intimation from herself. " 'Faith, I never knew SID's politics before.'" § III.] UXPRINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 457 23d and 24tu Januaet, 1712-'13. Scott, iii., 101, 102. 1710-1713. Dr. Pratt and I sat this evening -with the Bishop of Clogher, and '- '- played at ombre for threepence. That I suppose is but low with you. ^''™'"' ^'' I found, at coming home, a letter from MD, No. 37. I shall not answer Addressed to it thk bout, but will the next. I am sorry for poor Ppt. Pray walk Mrs. Ding- if you can (Omission.) Night, MD. 24 Ja«. Ihave just time J^^^;^™*^'"" to send this without giving it to the bellman. (Omission.) My sec- jirs. John- ond cold is better now. Night, dearest little MD, FW, MB, Lele. son, "59. Feb. 26. Original MS. Death of SGcrcttirv '' Dr. Pratt and I sat this evening with Bishop of Clogher, Han-ison." and played at ombre for threepences. That I suppose is but low with you. I found at coining home a letter from MD, ]S"o. 37. I shall not answer it zig bout, but will the next. I am sorry for poo poo Ppt. Pray walk hen oo can. . . . Pay, can oo walk of tener — of tener still ? . . . l^ite dear !MD. 2i Jem. I have just time to send this without going to the bellman. ISTite deelest richar MD. Sawcy deelest MD MD MD, FW PW PW, ME ME, Poo Pdfr, Lele lele lele. My second cold is better now Lele lele lele lele." 25th and 26th January, 1712-'13. Scott, iii., 103. My little pamphlet is out : 'tis not politics. If it takes, I say again you «AaBhearof it. (Omission.) 26 Jare. This morning I felt a little touch of giddiness, which has disordered and weakened me with its ugly remains all this day. Original MS. " My little pamphlet is out : 'tis not politics. If it takes, I say again you sail hear of it. Nite deelogues. 26 Jan. This morning I felt a little touch of giddiness, which has disordered and weakened me with its ugly remains all this day. Pity Pdfr." 27TH-30Tn Januakt, 1712-'13. Sfott, iii., 104, 105. I know not what to judge. Night, my own dearest MD. 28 Jan. I was to-day at Court, where the Ambassador talked to me as if he did not suspect any design in burning d'Aumont's house : but Abb6 Gautier said . . . d'Aumont had a letter the very same day, to let him know his house should be burnt, aiid tells several other circumstances. 29 Jan. . . . Well, but I must answer your letter, young women : not yet ; it is late now, and I can^t Jind it. 30 Jan. . . . He [little Harrison] must be three or four hundred pounds in debt at least. Poor brat ! Let me go to ied, sirrahs. Night, dear MD. Letter 59. 458 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1711. Onginal MS. iET. 43-44. ,, ^ , , . 1 Tv-r. 1 "i know not what to judge. JNite my own dearest MD, rove pdfr. 28 Jem. I was to-day at court, where the Spanish ambassador talked to me as if he did not suspect any design in burning d'Aumont's house : but the Abb(5 Gautier said . . . that d'Aumont had a letter the veiy same day to let him know his house should be burnt. And they tell several other circumstances. . . . Nite dear MD. 29 Jan. . . . Well, but I must answer oo Eattle, ung oomens : not yet : 'tis rate now, and I can't tind it. 30 Jan. . . . Pie [little Harrison] must be three or four hundred pounds in debt at least, the brat ! Let me go to ed Sollahs. Nite deerichar MD." 1st Febeuabt, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 107. Here is a week gone, and one side of this letter not finislied. O, but I will write now but once in three weeks. Yes, 'faith, this shall go sooner I spoke to the Duke of Ormond ... of Irish affairs . . . will speak to lord-treasurer to-morrow that we three may settle some way or other. (Omission.) Original MS. " 'Faith, here's a week gone, and one side of this letter not finished. O, but I write now but once in three weeks. — Iss, 'faith, this shall go sooner. ... I spoke to Duke Or- mond ... of Irish affairs . . . will speak to Lord Treasurer to-morrow that we three may settle them some way or other. Nite, sollahs both, rove Pdfr." 3d and 4Tn February. 1712-13. Scott, iii., 108, 109. Sat till twelve with the Provost and Bishop of Clogher. (Omis- sion.) 4 Feb. My head is still in no good order. I am heartily sorry for Ppt. I am sure her lif ad is good for (blank). I'll answer more to-morrow. Night, dearest MD. Original MS. " Sat till twelve with the Provost and Bishop of Clogher at the Provost's. Nite MD. 4: Feb. My head is still in no good order. I am heartily sorry for poo ppt I am sure : her head is good for something. I'll answer more tomoUow. Nite two dee Sollahs. Nite MD." Lettei- 59. § III.] UNPUINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 459 5th Febkuaky, 1712-'13. &o«, iii., 109. 1710-]713. iET. 43-46. I must go on with your letter. I dined to-day with Sir Andrew Fountaine and the provost, and played at ombre with him all the afternoon. I won, yet Sir Andrew is an admirable player. Lord Pembroke came in, and I gave him three or four scurvy Dilly puns, that begin with an if. Well, but your letter, well, let me see. — No, I believe I shall write no more this good while, nor publish what I have done. (Omission.) I did not suspect you would tell Filby. Tou are so (blank) Turns and visitations — what are these? I'll preach and visit as much for Mr. Walls. Pray God mend peopys health ; mine is but very indifferent. I have left off Spa water ; it makes my legs swell. Mght, dearest MD. Original MS. " I must go on witli oo letter. I dined to-day with Sir Andrew Fountaine and provost, and I played at ombre with him all the afternoon. I won, yet Sir Andrew is an admirable player. Lord Pembroke came in, and I gave him three or four scurvy Dilly puns, that begin with an if. "Well, but oor letter, well, ret me see. — No. I believe I shall write no more this good while, nor publish what I have done, l^auty Ppt, oo are vely tempegant.* I did not suspect oo would tell Filby. Oo are so recise ; not to oor health. Turns and visitations — what are those? I'll preach and visit as much for Mr. Walls. Pray God mend poo Ppt's health ; mine is but very indifferent. I have left Spa water; it makes my leg swell. Nite deelest MD." 6th-8th Fkeruart, 1712-'13.- Scott, iii., 111. This is the queen's birthday, and I never saw it celebrated with so much hurry and fine clothes. ... I passed the evening at Mrs. Vanhomrigh's, and came home pretty early, to answer yoitr letter again. . . . Tou did well to let Parvisol make up his accompts. All things grow dear in Ireland, but corn to the parsons. . . . Mght, dearest rogues, MD. 7 Feb. Colds ! we have been all dying with colds ; but now they are a little off, and my second is almost off. . . . So now I have answered your letter . . . and I'll say no more but bid you night, dear MD. 8 JPeb. I was to see Lady Worsley to-day. . . . She lodges in the very house in King Street, between St. James's Street and St. James's Square, where JDD''s brother bought the sweet- bread, when I lodged there, and BD came to see me. Short (blank) Night, MD. * Teimngnnt. 460 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. JSt. 43-46. Lettei' 69. Original MS. " This is the queen's birthday, and I never saw it cele- brated with so much luxury and fine clothes. ... I passt the evening at Mrs. Vanhomrigh's and came home pretty early, to answer oo Rattle again. ... Oo did well to let Parvisol make up his accounts. All things grow dear in Ireland, but corn to the parsons. . . . Nite deelogues. 7 J^eb. Cold ! why we have been all dying with colds ; but now they are a little over, and my second is almost off. . . . So now I have answered oo Kattle, . . . and I'll say no more, but bid oo Nite oo deelogues MD. 8 I^eh. I was to see Lady Worsley to-day. . . . She lodges in the very house in King Street, between St. James's Street and St. James's Square, where MD's brother brought the sweet- bread, when I lodged there, and MD came to see me. Short sighs. Nite MD. Poo pdfr." Lettek CO. Addressed ti Mrs. Ding- ley, and in- dorsed by Mrs. John- son, "60. Mar. T." 13th and 14th Febkuakt, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 113, 114. I sent to see how poor Harrison did, and he is extremely ill : and I am very much afflicted for him, as he is my own creature. ... I am much eoneemed for this poor lad. . . . Night, dear MD. 14 F^. No loss [little Harrison's] ever grieved me so much ; poor creature ! Pray God Almighty bless poor MD. Original MS. " I went to see how poor Han-ison did, and he is ex- tremely ill, and I very much afflicted for him, for he is my own creature. ... I am in much concern for this poor lad. . . . Nite Ppt, nite deelogues, ISTite. 14 Feb. No loss [httle Harrison's] ever grieved me so much: poor creature ! Pray God Almighty bless poor ppt, poo MD." ISth-IOth February, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 115-117. 15 Feb. I am come home very melancholy, and will go to bed. Night, dearest MD. 16 Feb. I have been reading a booh for amuse- ment. 17 Feb. Lord Bolingbroke is sending his brother to succeed Mr. Harrison. ... I lost my money at ombre sadly ; I make a thou- sand blunders at ... . I play but threepenny ombre ; but it is what you call running ombre. 18 Feb. I believe she [Harrison's mother] is an old devil, and her daughter a (blank). 19 Feb. ... so night, dear MD. Original MS. " I am come home very melancholy, and will go to bed. § III,] UNPRINTED AND MISl^EINTED JOURNALS. 461 ^T. 43-40. Letter 60. jSTite MD, my own deelest MD Ppt. 16 Feb. I have been "J,°^"J^- reading a foolish book for amusement. 17 Feb. Lord Bol- ingbroke is sending his brother to succeed poor Harri- son. ... I lose my money at ombre sadly; I make a thousand blunders. I play putt [s^c] threepenny ombre; but it is what you call running ombre. 18 Feb. I believe she [Harrison's mother] is an old devil, and her daugh- ter no better. . . . Mte MD. 19 Feb. ... so nite, dee SoUahs, nite." 20th and 21st T'i!:EKpART,'l712-'13. Scott, iii., 117. Good lack ! ■when I came home, I warrant, I found a letter &om MD, No. 38 ; and you write so small nowadays. I hope your poor eyes are better. ... I will speak to Mr. Griffin to-morrow, about Ppt's brother Filby, and desire, whether he deserves or no, that his ■ employment may be mended, that is to say, if I see Griffin ; other- wise not ; and I'll answer MD^s letter when I Pdfr think fit. Night, MD. 31 Feb. Methinks I writ a little saucy last night. I mean the last (blank)* I saw Griffin at Court. ... If I knew where to write to Filby, I would. ... I dined with lord treasurer and seven lords to-day. You know Saturday is his great day. I sat with them till eight. Original MS. " Good luck ! when I came home, I warrant I found a letter from MD, ISTo. 38 ; and oo write so small now-oo- days, I hope oor poor eyes are better. I will speak to Mr. Griifin to-morrow, about Ppt's brother Filby, and desire, whether he deserves or no, that his employment may be mended. That is to say, if I can see GrifSn ; otherwise not; and I'll answer oor Pattle hen I Pdfr think fit. Nite dee MD. 21 Feb. Methinks I writt a little saucy last night. 1 mean the last word, God 'give me. I saw Griffin at Court. ... If I knew how to write to Filby, I would. ... I dined with Lord Treasurer and seven lords to-day. You know Satm'day is his great day: but I sat with them alone till eight." 24th Fbbbuaet, in2-'13. Scott, iii,, 120. But I'll go to-morrow ; for Lady Catherine Hyde and Lady Boling- * He meant, of course, the " when 1 1 that a blank should be left in place of think fit ;" and it is incomprehensible | the "last word," written quite plainly. 462 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. broke are to be there by appointment, and 1 lifted up my periwig, Af.i. 43-46. and all, to make a figure. Well, who can help it? Not I, vow to Letter 60. Heaven ! Night, MD. Original MS. " But I'll go to-morrow ; for Lady Catherine Hyde and Lady Bolingbroke are to be there by appointment. And I listed up my periwig and all, to make a figure. "Well, who can help it ? Not I, vow to Nite MD." 27th and 28th Febeuart, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 122, 123. Sir Thomas Hanmer has my papers now. (Omission.) You are now at ombre with the dean, always on Friday night with Mrs. Walls. . . . Night, dear MD. 28 Feb. . . . And now I must bid ymi farewell, dearest rogues. God bless dear MD ; and love Pdfr. Fare- well MD, FW, ME, Lele. Original MS. " Sir. Thomas Hanmer has my papers now — And hat is MD doing now ? Oh, at ombre with the dean, always on ' Friday night with Mrs.Walls. . . . Nite own dee litt MD. 28 J^eh. And now I must bid oo farewell, deelest richar Ppt. God bless oo ever, and rove Pdfr. Farewell MD MD MD, FW FW FW FW, ME ME ME, Lele lele." 3D-5rH March, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 124, 125. Letter 61. I walk when I can, but am grown very idle ; and, not finishing my Addressed to ^'^i'^Si ■'■ »'«™^^^ abroad and play at ombre. 4 March. Night, dear Mrs. Ding- MD. 5 March. Night, MD. lev, and in- ^ ■ . i urcf dorsed by Original MS. ^^"61""' "-"■ ■^^Ik when I can, but am grown very idle; and not Mar. 2T." finishing my thing, I gamble* abroad and play at ombre. 4 March. Kite poodeerichar MD. 6 March. Nite SoUahs." 6th March, 17f2-'13. Scott, iii., 126. I was to-day at an auction of pictures with Pratt, and laid out tioo pounds five shillings for a picture of Titian, and if it were a Titian it would be worth twice as many pounds. ... I was at lord-treasurer's levee with the provost, to ask a book for the college. — I never go to his levee, unless it Tje to present somebody. (Omissions.) Original MS. " I was to-day at an auction of pictures with Pratt, and laid out forty-four shillings for a picture of Titian, and if it * " Gambol " he means. He spells it " gamble " for a pun. § III.] UNPEINTED AND MISPEINTED JOURNALS. 463 were a Titian it would be worth twice as many pounds. . . . 1710t1713. I was at Lord Treasurer's levee with the provost, to ask a book for the college. I never go to his levee, unless to present somebody. For all oor raillying, saucy Ppt, as hope saved I expected they would have decided about me important ^ IT n ,-1 . omissions long ago ; and as nope saved, as soon as ever things are restored, given away, and I not provided for, I will be gone with the very first opportunity, and put up bag and baggage. But people are slower than can be thought. Nite MD." 7tii M.4.RCI-I, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 127. I knew MD's politics before, and I think it pretty extraordinary, and a great compliment to you, and I believe never three people con- versed so much with so little politics O yes, things are very dear. DD must come in at last with her two eggs a penny. There the provost was well applied. ... I was not at court to-day, a wonder ! Night, dear MD. Love Pdfr. Original MS. " 'Faith, I never knew MD's politics before, and I think it pretty extraordinary, and a great compliment to you ; and I believe never three people conversed so much with so little politics. ... O yes, things very dear. DD must come in at last with her two eggs a penny. There the proverb was well applied. ... I was not at court to-day. A wonder ! ISTite SoUahs. Kove poo Pdfr." 9in Makcii, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 128. Lord-keeper is suddenly taken ill of a quinsy, and some lords are commissioned, I think lord treasurer, to prorogue the parliament in his stead. You never saw a town so full of ferment and expectation. Mr. Pope has published a fine poem, called Windsor Forest. Read First men- it. Mght, MD. tion of Pope in Swift's Original MS. letters. " Lord Keeper is suddenly taken ill of a quinsy ; and some lords are commission, I think Lord Trevor, to pro- rogue the parliament in his stead. You never saw a town so full of fdl'ment and expectation. Mr. Pope has pub- lished a line poem called Windsor Forest. Kead it. Nite, MD." 464 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1 710-171.S. ^T. 43-46. Letter 61. lOm AND llTH March, 1712-13. Scoit, iii., 128. I went to look on a library I am going to buy, if we can agi'ee. I have offered a hundred and twenty pounds, and will give ten pounds more. Lord Bolingbroke will lend me the money. I was two hours poring oBer the books. (Omission.) Night, MD. 11 March. Sir An- drew Fountaine invited the provost and me to dine with him, and play at ombre, when I fairly lost fourteen shillings. It won't do Went out four matadores and a trump in black, and yet was beasted. Very sad, 'faith ! Night, my dear rogues, MB. Original MS. " I went to look over a library I am going to buy, if we can agree. I have ofEered a hundred and twenty pounds, and will give ten more. Lord Bolingbroke will lend me the money. I was two hours poring on the books. How do 00 do, Sollahs? Kove Pdfr, poopdfr. ISTite MD MD MD. 11 March. Sir Andrew Fountaine invited the prov- ost and me to dine with him, and play at ombre, when I fairly lost fourteen shillings. 'Faith, it won't do. "Went out four matadores and a trump in black, and was beasted. Vely bad, 'faith, of Pdfr. Mte deelest logues. Nite MD." Important restoration. 12th-18th March, 1712-13. Scott, iii., 129-133. I had much discourse with the Duke of Ormond this morning, and am driving some points to secure (blank). I left the society at seven Mght, dear MD. 13 March. . . . This letter shall not go to-morrow. Nohaste,yow7igrM!omera; nothing that presses — Night, dear MD. 14 March. I doubt I shall not buy the library ; for a roguish book-seller has offered sixty pounds more than I designed to give . . . and so good night. Love Pdfr and MD. 15 March.' Ppt may under- stand me. . . . Brevets are commissions. Ask soldiers, dear sirrahs. Night, MD 16 JfarcA. Night, MD. 17 Jfa)rA. Night, MD. 18 March. Night, MD. (Omissidl.) Original MS. " I had much discourse with the Duke of Oi-mond this morning, and am driving some points to secure us all in the case of accidents, Ppt. I left the Society at seven Nite, own dee MD. 13 March. This letter shall not go to- morrow. No haste, ung oomens ; nothing that presses. . . . Night, logues. 14 March. I doubt I shall not buy the library ; for a roguey book-seller has offered sixty pounds Letter 61. §111.] UNPRINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 465 more than I designed to give. . . . And so dood nite, 1710-1713. sollahs all. Eove Pdfr. Nite MD. 15 March. Yes, ppt, ^''- ^'^"**'- 00 may understand me. . . . Brevets are commissions. Ask soldiers, dull sollahs.* Nite MD. 16 March. Nite, dee MD. 17 March. Nite deelest sollahs, 'tis rate. Nite MD. 18 March. Nite my own dee sollahs. Pdfr roves MD." 19Tn-21sT March, 1712-'13. Scott, iii., 133-135. The Bishop of Clogher has made an if pun, that he is mighty proud of, and designs to send it over to his brother Tom. But Sir Andrew Fountaine has wrote to Tom Ashe last post, and told him the pun, and desired him to send it over to the bishop as his own ; and, if it succeeds, it will be a pure bite. The bishop will tell it us as a won- der, that he and his brother should jump so exactly. I'll tell you the pun : — if there was a hackney coach at Mr. Poohy's door, what town in Egypt would it be ? Why, it would be Hecatompolis ; Hack at Tom Pooley's. Silly, says Ppt . . . what care you ? Night, MD. 31 March. I'll keep the letter in my pocTcet, and give it into the post my- self. . . . Farewell, dearest MD, FW, ME, Lele. Original MS. " Bishop Clogher has made an If pun, that he is mighty proud of, and designs to send it over to his brother Tom. But Sir Andrew Fountaine has wrote to Tom Ashe last post, and told him the pun, and desii'ed him to send it over to the bishop as his own ; and if it succeeds, 'twill be a pure bite. The bishop will tell it us as a wonder, that he and his brother should jump so exactly. I'll tell you the pun. If there was a hackney coach at Mr. Policy's door, what town in Egypt would it be? Why, it would be Hecatompolis ; IlacJc at Tom Polley's. Silly, says Ppt . . . hat care oo ? Nite, darling dea MD. 21 March. I'll keep the letter in my pottick, and give it into the post myself Farewell, deelest MD MD MD, FW FW FW, Ppt, ME ME ME, Lele — Lele logues." * He calls them " dull," because he does not fancy they will understand a joke he tells them of Duke Disney, an old battered' rake (" not an old man, but an old rake"), who said of Vol. I.— 30 a mnid of honor ^ass«e, that since she could not get a husband, the queen should give her a bi'evet to act as a married woman. 466 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. ^]}^~im- 21ST-25TH Makch, 1712-'13. Scott, iii., 135-138. Mr. 48-46. ' ' I wish I could have done better, and hope that you will take what ETTEB 63. pj^jj i^g done in good part, and that PpPs brother -will not dislike it. Addressed to Mght, dearest MD. 23 JfarcA. Pray remember Eltee. You know the Mrs. Ding- reason. L. T. and Eltee are pronounced the same way. Stay, it is dorsedljy"" '"'"' ^^'^ weeks since I had a letter from MD. I allow you six. You Mrs. John- see why I can not come over the beginning of April ; but as hope son, "02. saved, it is not Pdfr's fault (misplaced). Whoever has to do with this Apr. 13." ministry can fix no time ; but as hope saved, it is not Pdfr's fiiult. (Omission.) 33 March. I endeavor to keep a firm friendship between the Duke of Ormond and Eltee. You know who Eltee is (or have you forgot already ?) . . . I'll go sleep. Wight, dearest MD. 25 March. . . . the weather is so bad. Is it so with you ? Night, dear MD. Original MS. " I wish I could have done better, and hope oo will take what can be done in good part, and that oor brother will not dislike it. — Nite, own dear MD, Ppt. 22 March. Pray remember Eltee. You know the reason. L. T. and Eltee pronounced the same way. Stay, 'tis five weeks since I had a letter from MD. I allow oo six. You see why I can not come over the beginning of April. Whoever has to do with this ministry can fix no time. But as hope saved, it is not Pdfr's fault. Pay don't blame poo Pdfr. Isite, deelest logues MD. 23 March. I endeavor to keep a finn friend- ship between Duke Ormond and Eltee. (Oo know who . Eltee is, or have oo fordot already?). . . . I'll go seep. Nite, deelest MD. 25 March. . . . The weather is so bad. Is it so with 00, soUahs ? Nite, nite, own MD." 27th Makch, 1713. Scott, iii., 139. All Essay on Parnell's poem is mightily esteemed ; but poetry sells ill. I am the Different plagued with that (blank) poor Harrison's mother. . ^ . I went after- styies of ward to see a famous moving picture, and I never saw any thing so scribed to ' pi'etty. You see a sea ten inches wide, a town at tJie other hand, and LordBoling- ships sailing in the sea, and discharging their cannon. You see a brolce. great sky, with moon and stars, <&c. I am a fool. Mght, dear MD. " Published this day by Original MS. BenToolie." -r-. in • ■ t -i London " Pamells poem is mightily esteemed ; but poetry sells ^isuslth ' ill. I am plagued with that devil's brood, poor Harrison's ^„T''^]'' mother. ... I went afterwards to see a famous moving niz-io. *^ picture, and I never saw any thing so pretty. You see a sea ten miles wide, a town on t'other end, and ships sailing § III.] UNPRINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 467 in the sea, and discharging their cannon. You see a great I7i0-i7i3. sky with moon and stars &c. I'm a fool. Nite, dee — - — ^-^ MD.' Letter C3. 29iH AND 30tii March, 1713. Scott, iii., 141. . . . The altar [at Chelsea Hospital] put me in mind of Tisdall's outlandish mould at your hospital for the soldiers Have you such weather ? Night, MD. 30 March. ... I paid the hundred pounds tliis evening, and it was a great surprise to the receiver. Night, MD. Original MS. "... The altar [at Chelsea Hospital] put me in mind of Tisdall's outlandish would* at your hospital for the sol- diers. . . . Have 00 such weather? Nite dee dee MD. 30 March. ... I paid the hundred pounds this evening, and it was an agreeable surprise to the receiver. ]Srite, dee MD." 31sT Marcii-5tii Apeil, 1713. &o«, iii., 142-147. ' Sir Andrew Fountaine invited the Bishop of Clogher and me, and some others, to dine where he did. . . . This evening Lady Masham, Dr. Arbuthnot, and I, were contriving a lie for to-morrow,t that Mr. Noble, who was hanged last Saturday, was recovered by his fiiends. . . . Night, MD. 1 April. Addison is to haw a play on Friday in Easter week : 'tis a tragedy, called Cato ; I §aw it unfln- First night ished some years ago. . . . Night, dear MD. 2 April. I never saw "f Cato: such a long run of ill weather in my life. Night, dear MD. ... 4 April. This Passion-week, people are so demure, especially this last day, that I told Dilly, who called here, that I would dine with him. Tuesday, 14th April. * So Swift writes in his MS. : prob- ably so spelling accidentally the word in his mind — wood. The gift men- tioned in the next entry had been intrusted to Swift for a, "very de- serving," but "poor and sickly," per- son, who was quite unknown to the giver, but whose position Swift had described. t Among the papers at Narford, strange to say, I found in Swift's handwriting the very "lie" thus pre- pared to turn into April-fools the friends who might be credulous enough to believe it. A curious interest is imparted to it by the fact that in the famous scene of Marriage a la Mode, where the seducer is es- caping through the bed-chamber win- dow after murdering the husband, Hogarth had in his mind this very Noble, whoso profession was the law, and who was hanged for committing murder in precisely those circum- stances. Swift's MS. runs thus : "Do you know that Mr. Noble was but half-hang'd, and was brought to life by his friends, but was since seiz'd again, and is now in a messenger's hands at the Black Swan, in Hol- born ? This was talked all over the Court last night." Swift had, of course, given this copy to Fount- aine. April jest (MS.). 468 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. and so I did, 'faith ; and had a small shoulder of mutton of my own JEt. 43-46. bespeaking. ... 5 April. Lord Abingdon had like to have snapped Letter 62. ™6 for dinner, and I believe will fall out for refusing him ; but I hate dining with /iim, and I dined with a private friend. Night, MD. Original MS. " Sir Andrew Fountaine invited Bishop Cloglier and me, and some others, to dine where he did. . . . This evening Lady Masham, Dr. Arbuthnot, and I, were contriving a lie for to-morrow, that Mr. Noble, who was hanged last Satur- day, was recovered by his friends. . . . Mte dee MD. 1 April. Addison is to have a play of his acted on Friday in Easter week : 'tis a tragedy called Catoj I saw it unfin-''" ished some years ago. . . Nite, dee MD. 2 April. I never saw such long run of ill weather in my life. Nite dee logues &c. &c. 4 April. This Passion -week, people are so demure, especially this last day, that I told Dilly who called here, that I would dine with him, and so I did, 'faith ; and had a small shoulder of mutton of my own bespeak- ing. Nite dee MD. 5 April. Lord Abingdon was like to have snapped me for dinner, and I believe will fall out for refusing him ; but I hate dining with them, and so I dined with a private friend. Nite, dee MD." Cm AND Tin April, 1713. Scott, iii., 148-149. It is rainy weather again ; neoer saw the like. This letter shall go to-morrow ; remember, young women, it is seven weeks since your last, and I allow you but five weeks ; but you have been galloping in the country to Swanton's. Pray tell Swanton I had his letter: night, dear MD. 7 April. I have not been abroad, you may be sure ; so I can say nothing to-day, but that I love MD better than ever, if pos- sible. . . . Don't this perplex m>u? What care I? But love Pdfr. Farewell, dearest MD, FW, ME; Lele. . . . Night, dearest little MD. (Omission.) Original MS. " It is rainy weather again ; nevle saw ze rike. This letter shall go to-morrow; remember, ung oomens, it is seven weeks since oor last, and I allow oo but five weeks ; but 00 have been galloping in the country to Swanton's. Oh, pray tell Swanton I had his letter. . . . Nite, doelest MD. 7 April. I have not been abroad, oo may be sure ; so I can say nothing to-day, but that I rove MD Ppt bettle § III.] UNPKINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 469 zan ever if possibere. . . . Does this perplex you ? Hat 1710-1713. care I? But rove Pdfr, sawey Pdfr. Farewell, deelest — — ^— ^ MD MD MD FW FW FW ME ME ME Lele. . . . Nite, ^""' "'• dee SoUahs. Late. Kove Pdfr." Stu-IOth Apeil, 1713. Scott, iii., 149-151. Lord Cholmondeley is this day removed. ... I dined with lord- Lettee 63. treasurer, and did the business I liad for him to his satisfaction. I Aadresaed tc -won't tell you what it was. (Omissions.) 9 April. . . . [The Duchess] Mrs. Ding- told him stories, which the weak man believed, and was converted, ley, aud in- 10 April. I had a great deal of business to-night, which gave me a ^'^"j ^ temptation to be idle, and I lost a dozen shillings at ombre, with Dr. boii,'"C3. Pratt and another. (Omission.) Night, MD. May 4." Original MS. " Lord Chomley (the right name is Cholmondeley) is this day removed. ... I dined with Lord Treasurer, and did the business I had for him to his satisfaction. I won't tell 00 what it was. So much for zat. 9 April. . . . [The Duchess] told him stories, which the weals man believed, and was perverted. Nite MD. 10 April. I had a great deal of business to-night, which gave me a temptation to be idle. I lost a dozen shillings at ombre, with Dr. Pratt and another. I have been to see t'other day the Bishop Clogher and Lady, but did not see Miss. Nite, dee MD." 13TII-22D Apkil, 1713. Scott, iii., 153-157. I bid Mr. Lewis tell my lord-treasurer, that I taie nothing ill of him, but his not giving me timely notice, as he promised to do, if he found the queen would do nothing for me. . . stay I will not; and so believe for all our (blank) you may see me in Dublin before April ends What care I ? Night, dearest rogues, MD. 14 Api-il. . . . And so he will say for a hundred nights. 15 April. Lord Bolingbroke made me dine with him to-day. I was as good company as ever: and told me the queen would determine something for me to-night. . . Night, dear MD. 16 April. Out came lord-treasurer, and said . . . that I must be Prebendary of Windsor. . . . Night, dear MD. 19 April. After dinner Mr. Lewis sent me word, that the queen staid till she knew whether the Duke of Ormond approved of Sterne for a bishop Night, MD. 20 J.^5rJZ. I can't tell. Night, own dear WD. 23 April. I hate this suspense Night, dear MD. Original MS. " I bid Mr. Lewis tell my Lord Treasurer, that I took nothing ill of him but his not giving me timely notice, as Letter 03. 470 THE LIFE or JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. lie promised to do, if he found the Queen would do nothing ^' ^~^^' for me. . . . Stay I will not ; and so I believe for all oo sawcy ppt can say, oo may see me in Dublin before April ends. . . . Hat care I ? Nite, deelest rogues. Nite MD. 14 April. . . . and so he will for a hundred nights. Nite, dee MD. 15 April. Lord Bolingbroke made me dine with him to-day (I was as good company as ever), and told me the Queen would determine something for me to-night Nite, deelest MD. 16 April. Out came Lord Treasurer, and said . . . that I must be Prebend of Windsor Nite, own dee MD. 19 April. After dinner Mr. Lewis sent me a note, that Qaeen staid till she knew whether the Duke Ormond approved of Sterne for bishop. . . . ISTite deelest MD. 20 April. I can't tell. Nite, dear de Rogues. Nite MD. 22 April. I hate this suspense. Nite, dee logues. Poo pdfr." 23d April, 1713. Scott, iii., 157. I must finisli the book I am writing, before I can go over ; and they expect I shall pass next winter here, and then I will drive them to give me a sum of money. However, I hope to pass four or five months with MD wJiatever comes of it. (Omission.) I received yours to-night ; just ten weeks since I had your last. I shall write next post to Bishop Sterne. Never man had so many enemies in Ireland as he. . . . The Archbishop of York, my mortal enemy, has sent, by a third hand, that he would be glad to see me. Shall I see him, or not ? I hope to be over in a month, and that MD, with their raillery, will be mistaken, that I shall make it three years. I will answer yow?- letter soon ; but no more journals. I shall be very busy. Short let- ters from henceforward. I shall not part with Laracor. That is all I have to live on, except the deanery be worth more than four hun- dred pounds a year. Is it ? If it be, overplus shall be divided (blank) beside usual (blank). Pray i^tc to me a good-humored letter im- mediately, let it be ever so short. This affair was carried with great difficulty, which vexes me. But they say here, it is much to my rep- utation, that I have made a bishop, in spite of all the world, to get the best deanery in Ireland. Night, dear MD. Original MS. " I must finish the book I am writing, before I can come over; and they expect I shall pass next winter here, and then I will drive them to give me a sum of money. How- ever, I hope to pass four or five months with MD, and whatever comes on it MD's allowance must be increased, § III.] UXPRIXTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 471 and shall be too, 'faitli ! iss trulj-. I received oor dee Eattle 1710-1713. Xo. 39 to-niffht ; lust ten weeks since I had your last. I — '- - Letter 03. shall write next post to Bishop Steme. ISTever man had important so many enemies of* Ireland as he. . . . The Archbishop l^^^^"^' of York, my mortal enemy, has sent by a third hand that he would be glad to see me. Shall I see him or not ? I hope to be over in a month, and that MD with their rail- lery will be mistaken, that I shall make it three years. I will answer oor Eattle soon ; but no more journals. I sliall be very busy. Short letters from henceforward. I shall not part with Laracor. That is all I have to live on, ex- cept the deanery be worth more than four hundred pounds a year. Is it ? If it be, overplus shall be divided between luteresting MD and FW, beside usual allowance of MD dee rogues. pHeV ^"^ Pray write to me a good-humored letter immediately, let it be ever so short. This affair was carried with great difficulty, which vexes me : but they say here 'tis much to my reputation, that I have made a bishop in spite of all the world, to get the best deanery in Ireland. Xite, dee dee SoUahs." 2JtTH-27TH Apkil, 1713. Scott, iii., 158-lGO. I forgot to tell you, I had Sterne's letter yesterday, in answer to mine. (Omissions.) I made mistakes the three last days. ... 25 April I know not whether my warrant be got ready from the Duke of Ormond. I suppose it will by to-night. I am going abroad, and will keep this unsealed, till I know whether all be finished (blank). I had this letter all day in my pocket waiting till I heard the war- rants were gone over. ... I think to take a hundred pounds a year out of the deaneiy, and divide between (blank) but will talk of that when I come over. Night, dear MD. Love Pdfr. 26 April. Yester- day I dined with lord-treasurer . . . and was so bedeaned ! The Arch- bishop of York says, he will never more speak against me. ... I have given Tooke DD's note, to prove she is alive. (Omissions.) 27 April. Farewell, MD, FW, ME, Lele. (Omissions.) Original MS. " I forgot to tell you, I had Sterne's letter yesterday in answer to mine. Oo performed oor Commission well, dood dallars both. I made mistakes the three last days. * He means Irish enemies ; enemies belonging to Ireland. 472 THE LIFE OF JONATHAN SWIFT. [Book VI. 1710-1713. JE-r. 43-46. Letter 03. Important pjissage re- stored. 25 April. I know Bot whether my wan-ant be yet ready from the Duke Ormond. I suppose it will by to-night. I am going abroad, and will keep this unsealed, till I know whether all be finished. — MornS' dee Sollahs. — I had this letter all day in my pocket, waiting till I heard the war- rants were gone over I think to take a hundred pound a year out of the deanery, and divide it between -M. and Pr. and so be one year longer paying the debt ;* but we'll talk of zis hen I come over. So Nite, deere Sollahs. Lo Pdfr. 26 April. Yesterday I dined with Lord Treasurer, and was so bedeaned ! Archbishop York says he will nev- er more speak against me I have given Tooke DCs note, to prove she is alive. I'll answer oor Eattle and addle soon. 27 April. Farewell, deelest deelest. Nite MD MD FW FW FW ME ME ME Lele lele." Lettek G4. Addressed Mrs. Diiig- ley, and iiv dorsed by Mrs, John- son, "C4 May 2." to 16th Mat, 1713. Scott, iii., 160. I ■will write to Parvisol . . . and a blank for Tvliatever/«HoM the last dean employed. . . . Tell Raymond I can not succeed to get him the living of Moimed Take no lodging for me. "What ? at your old tricks again ? I can lie somewhere after I land, and care not where, nor how. I will buy your eggs and bacon (blank) your caps and Bible ; and pray think immediately, and give me some commissions, and I will perform them. (Omission.) The letter I sent before'this was to have gone a post before; but an accident hindered it: and, I assure you, I am -eery angry MD did not write to Pdfr, and I think you might have had a dean under your girdle for the superscrip- tion Farewell, dearest MD, FW, ME, Lele. (Omission.) Original MS. " I will write to Parvisol . . . and a blank for whatever fellow it is whom the last dean employed. . . . Tell Ray- mond I can not succeed for him to get that living of Moimed. . . . Take no lodging for me. "What ? at your old tricks again ? I can lie somewhere after I land, and I care not where, nor how. I will buy your eggs and bacon, DD, and, dee deelest Ppt, your caps and Bible. And pray * " The debt" is explained by what he had written in his Journ.nl of 23d of April: "I thought I was to pay but six hundred pounds for the house ; but Bishop Clogher says eight hun- dred pounds. First-fruits a hundred and lifty pounds, and so with patent a thousand pounds in all. So that I shall not be the better for this dean- eiy these three years." Letter 64. § III.] UNPRINTED AND MISPRINTED JOURNALS. 473 think immediately, and give me some commissions, and I I7i0-i7i3. will perform them, as far as a poo Pdfr can. The letter I sent before this was to have gone a post before ; but an accident hindered it : and, I assure oo I wam vely akree MD did not write to Dean Pdfr, and I think oo might have had a Dean under your girdle for the superscrip- tion Farewell, deelest MD MD, MD FW FW FW MD MD MD Lele." Chestee, 6tii June, 1713. Scott, iii., 162. I resolve on Monday to set out for Holyhead, as weary as I am . . . Lf,tteh 65. 'tis good for my health, man. When I came here, I found MD's let- AJHi-easeclto ter of tlie 36th of May, sent down to me. Had you writtere a post jirs. Diug- sooner, I might have brought some pins : but you were lazy, and ley, and in- couldL not write your orders immediately, as I desired you. I will ^ff^**? ^ come, when God pleases; perhaps I may be with you in a waek. I bod "65. will be three days going to Holyhead ; I can not ride faster, say what Chester let- you will. I am upon Stay-behind's mare I will lodge as I can ; '^'^•' therefore take no lodgings for me, to pay in my absence. The poor dean can't afford it. . . . Farewell, MD, FW, ME, Lele, &c. (Omis- sions.) Original MS. (Chester.) "... I resolve on Monday to set out for Holyhead, as weary as I am. 'Tis good for my health, mar'm. When I came here, I found MD's letter of the 26th of May, sent down to me. Had you writt a post sooner, I might have brought some pins : but you were lazy, and would not write your orders immediately as I desired you. I will come, when God pleases ; perhaps I may be with you in a week. I will be three days going to Holyhead. I can not ride faster, say hat oo will. I am upon Stay-behind's mare. ... I will lodge as I can ; therefore take no lodg- Hestora- ings for me, to pay in my absence. The poor Dean can't afford it Farewell,' MD MD MD FW FW FW ME ME ME ME Lele lele lele Logues and Lads bote fair and slender. " I mightily approve Ppt's project of hanging the blind parson. When I read that passage upon Chester walls, as I was coming into town, and just received the letter, I said aloud Agreeable Witch." INDEX. A. Abeecoen (Lord), 387 ; ambition to obtain dukedom of Chatellerault, 435 (note). Abercovn (Lady), 419. Abingdon (Lord), 468. Acheson (Sir Archibald), 5. Addison (Joseph), 233, 268, 274 ; Macau- lay's paper on, 84 (note), 278, 279 (note) ; exalted opinion of Swift, 144, 253 ; under- secretaiy of state, 146 ; fao-simile of band- writing of, 173 ; his marriage i-eferred to, 176 (note) ; Baucis and Philemon altered at request of, 177 ; his sister's garden at Westminster, 197, 301, 302 ; intimacy with Swift, 172, 242, 252, 276, 277, 284, 319, 356, 388, and see 403, 416 ; at St. James's coffee-house, 174, 291, 292, 380; opinion of Swift's Project, 229 ; dinners with Swift, 234, 292, 302, 303, 304, 315, 416; part taken by, in Bickerstaff jest, 238 ; Irish sec- retary, 249, 252, and see 265, 277, 279 ; keeper of the Irish records, 265 ; what Swift and he said of each other, and Mack- intosh of both, 253 ; letters from, 271, 284 ; Swift's letters to, 282, 285 ; recalled to En- gland, 285 ; out of ofBce, 299 ; popularity of, 299 ; Esther Johnson's interest in, 279, 320 ; salutary teaching of, 366 ; rehearsal of Cato, 467, 468. Admiralty, whig and toiy attacks on the, 220, 221. Agher, rectory of, nnited with Laracor, 125 ; receipts from, during 1703, 132 (note). Almanza, the disaster of, 244, and see 236. Ancients and Modems controversy, 104-110. Anglesea (Lord), 294, 349, 358, 426 ; admit- ted to the Saturday dinner, 372. Anne (Queen), 169, 223 ; character of, 145 ; difficult to tories as well as whigs, 146, 147; her favorite "Mrs. Freeman," and rise of Mrs. Masham, 147 and note ; not manageable, 372. Antony (Shakspeare's), a resemblance to, in Tale of a Tuh, 111 (note). Arbuthnot (Dr.), beginning of his intimacy with Swift, 438, and see 171; concerned in an April-day jest, 468. Argument to prove the Inconvenience of Abol- ishing Christianity, 226-230. Argyle (Duke of), at the Saturday dinner, 373; Swift's memorial to, for Bernage, 404. Armstrong (Mrs.), a whig friend of Swift's, 369 ; a silly trick, 419. Arundel (Lady), 248 (note). Ashburnham (Lord), 193, 319. Ashe (Dillon), vicar of Einglas, 203 (note), 203, 207, 249 (note) ; puns by, 209, 210, and see 207, 459 ; dinner with, 467, 468 ; marriage of, 436 (n'ote). Ashe (St. George), Swift's tutor, 41, 54, 204, 285. See Cloghek, Bishop of. Ashe (Tom), 203, 204 (note) ; Nichols's de- scription of, 198 (note) ; inveterate pun- ster, 207, 208, 210, 249 (note), 465; his "Dying Speech," 210 (note), and see 276. Athenian Society (Dunton's), 77. Atterbury (Francis), 410 ; part taken by, in the Ancients and Moderns controversy, 104 ; on the Tale of a Tub, 161 ; succeed- ed by Yalden as .minister of Bridewell, 238 (note) ; Swift describes, 361 ; contrib- utes to the Examiner, 342 ; rumored pro- motion, 395. B. Babbeb (printer), dinner with, 358. Barrett (Dr.), essay by, on the Earlier Part of the Life of Swift, 42, 46-50, 64, 56. Barry (Mr.), 283, 284 (note). Barton (Mrs.), a favorite with Swift, 242 ; fortune bequeathed to, by Lord Halifax, ibid. ; Swift's fit of giddiness at house of, 267 ; correspondence with, 282 ; dinners with, 294, 383 ; " nasty jest " about, 884 ; visits to, 389, 413. Bateman's bookshop, 419. Bathurst (Mr.), Deane Swift's Essay pub- lished by, 17. Battle of the Boolcs, 66 ; described, 104- 108 ; transcript of, made for Temple, 155. Baucis and Philemon, Goldsmith's favorite, 171-180 ; altered at Addison's request, 177; discovery of MS. of first version. 476 INDEX. 176, 177; original and alteration com- pared, 180-187. Beaumont (Joe), 199 (note), 282, 288, 417, 451,452; Swift's interest in, 199, 313, 433 ; the queen to be solicited for, 311 ; his wife, 409 ; his death, 199. Bedford (Duke of), copy at Woburn of Swift's poems transcribed by Stella, 6. Bedlam, proposed utilization of, 168, 169; visit to, 388. Behn (Afra), 108, 366. Benson (afterward Chancellor of Exchequer), 331. Bentley (Richard), 104, 106. Berkeley (Earl of), one of Irish Lords Jus- tices ; ■ Swift appointed chaplain, 30, and see 123-138; recall of, 138; Swift famil- iar in his house, 211 ; contemplated jour- ney to Vienna, 250, 251 ; death of, 297 ; inscription for tomb of, 414 ; marriage of his son, 413, 414. Berkeley (Countess of), 125; Swift's Project inscribed to, and Meditation on Broom- stick written for, 232 ; invitation from, to Swift, 292, 295, and see 316. Berkeley (Lady Betty^, 126 ; doggerel verse by, ibid. See Germaine. Berkeley (Lady Mary), 125. Berkeley (Lady Penelope), Swift's liking for, and early death, 126. Berkeley's (Monck) Literary Relics, Malone's copy of, 91 (note). Bernage (Lieutenant), Swift's interest in, 405^407. Bernard (Dr.), 311. Berwick (Rev. Edward), 6 ; the author's obli- gations to his son, 7. Bickerstaff (Isaac), predictions of, 235-239, 272 (note), and see 278 ; u, real name, 236 (note); adopted by Steele, 240, 342 (note). Bindon's portrait of Swift, 240. Birch (Dr.), 44. Blackmore (Sir Richard), 107; attacks Swift, 161. Blenheim, results of the victory, 146, 15-^ Blenheim Palace, Vanbrugh chosen to btmd, 176 (note). Bluecoat boys and lottery tickets, 292. Bollngbroke (Viscount). See St. John, Henry. Bolingbroke (first Lady). See St. John, Mrs. Bolton (Duke of), one of the Lords Justices of Ireland, 30. Bolton (Dr.), 131, 317; gets Derry deanery and resigns living of Laracor, 125, and see 131. Bowyer (Mr.), 44. Boxing-day, a trouble to Swift, 358. Boyle (Charles), part taken by, in Ancients and Moderns controversy, 104. See Or- KBKY. Boyle, Henry (Lord Carleton), tmned out of office, 293, and see 346. Brent (Mrs.), imposed on, 67 (note) ; Swift's housekeeper, 426, 443, 454. Brodrick (Alan C. J., afterward Lord Mid- dleton),.259, 281. Bromley (Speaker), 349, 350. Brown (Dr.), appointed to Cork, 282 (note). Brydges ("paymaster - general), helping in first-fruits business, 294. Buckingham (Duke of), 293. Bull (Mr.), Ludgate-hill haberdasher, dinner with, at Hampstead, 292. Bull (Bishop), death of, 294. Buraet (Bishop), ^viiKs Dissensions ascribed to, 141, 142, and see 149. Bury Street, Swift's lodgings in, 398. Butler (Lady Betty), 420. Butler, Lady Mary (Lady Ashburnham), 193. Butler (Ophy), dinner with, 404 ; wife of, 291. Button's, 171. C. Cadogan (Earl of), forfeits his civil employ- ment, 354. Cadogan (Mrs.), 354, 388. Campbell's (Lord) strange misstatement,4 1 8. Capel (Lord), gives Kilroot to Swift, 29, and see 86 (note), 90, 93. Card-playing, 384, 389, 404, 430, 432, 437, 454, 455, 457 ; with lord treasurer, 100 with Esther Johnson, 207 (note), 212, 283 284 (note) ; at Manley's, 213, 313, 314 with Sir A. Fountaine, 283 (note), 459, 464 ; with Dean Sterne, 283 (note), 462 with Dr. Pratt, 457, 469 ; entries showing Swift's gains and losses, 283, 284 (note). Carlvle (Thomas), allusion to, 158 (note). Carteret (Lord), 207, 241, 426. Castilian language, specimens of, 207-210, 248, 249 (note), 275 (note). Castleknock, a, Lilliputian rectory, 202 (note). Cato, first night of, 467, 468. Caudre (Mrs. de), 214. Caulfield (Colonel), 389. Chandler (Rev. Dr.), 54. Cheese-cake House, Hyde Park, 449. Chelsea Hospital, altar at, 467. Chetwode (Knightley), Swift's friend, 7, 62, 286. Chetwode (Mr. Edward Wilmot), 7. Chetwynd (Mrs.), 242. China, Esther Johnson's liking for old, 216, 309. Cholmondeley (Lord), removal of, from of- fice, 469. INDEX. 477 Christmas-boxes, a nuisance to Swift, 358. Churches v. theatres, 228. Cliurchill (Admiral), 220. Clergymen, Svvift's advice to, 57, 231. Clogher (Bishop of), 203, 274 (note), 278, 368 ; punning propensities, 204, 208, 248 (note) ; at Drury Lane Theatre, 204 ; Swift's esteem for, 204, 355 (note) ; inti- macy with Addison, 278 ; Swift's losses at cards with, 283 (note); letters to and from, 282, 288, 315, 323, 428 ; the col- lected Tatler, 286, and see 292, 383 ; his wife, 310, 4G9 ; shows a libelous pamphlet to Esther Johnson, 353 ; spectacles for, 379, 380 ; his opinion of Swift's Shower and Morning, 383 ; dispute about Laracor bells, 388 ; ill chance for the vice-chancel- lorship, 391 : at court, 455 ; dinner with, 467; visit to, 469; on "the debt," 472 (note). See Ashe, St. Geokge. Cobbe (Dr. Charles), additions to a Swift MS., 18. Cobbett (William), 170 (note). Cockburn (Dr.), 311, 408; dinners with, 289, 304, 389, 412. Collier (Jeremy), Swift's sympathy with his assault on the indecency of the stage, 114. Combat des Livres (Coutray's), 105, ibid. (note). Congreve CWilliam), 234, 240 ; a school-fel- low of Swift, 40 ; at the Rose in Covent Garden, 81, 82; Swift's poem to, and fond- ness foi", 82, 83 ; opinion of the Tale of a Tub, 160 ; at Will's coffee-house, 167, 172 ; contributes to the Bickerstaff jest, 238 ; blindness of, 302, 391, 397 ; dinners with, 305, 385, 410 ; at a " blind tavern," 303 ; good nature of, 397. Contests and Dissensions of the Nobles and Commons in Athens and Rome, 138, 139 ; described, 141, 142 ; ascribed to Burnet, 141 ; Swift avows authorship of, 142. Convocation, 358, 361, 391. Coote (Mr.), letter to Pope concerning, 298 (note). Courtenay (Mr.), Temple's biographer, 113 (note), and see 279 (note). Cowley (Abraham), Pindar and, 108 ; love- verses of, 57, and see 262. Cowpev (Lord Chancellor), 146. Cox (Sir Eichard), 379. Cranford, Swift at, 226. Cromwell (Oliver), daughter of, at a christen- ing, 379, and note. Curll's scurrilous Key, 156. Curry (Mrs.), 309, 425. D. Dalrtmple (James), 331. Darien Colony, the, 221. Darteneuf (Charles), Swift's neighbor, 396 ; rival punster, 296 ; dinner with, 355 (note). Dartmouth (Lord), 348 ; at the Saturday dinner, 372. Davenant (Sir William), 25, 36. Davenant(Dr. Charles), 156, 161'; piece writ- ten by, 304 (note). Deane (Admiral), the Regicide, 24, 36, 44. De Foe (Daniel), 163 ; Swift characterized by, 161 ; Swift characterizes, 263 ; I'ope's couplet, 263 (note). Delany (Dr.), Observations of, cited, 43, 56, 172, 177 (note), 180, 205. Delaval, the Portugal envoy, 296-298, 305, 325, 885-387. Dennis (John), 264. Derry, affair of the deanery, 30, 123-125. Devonshire (Duke of), turned out, 293. Diaper (Mr.),' Swift's interest in, 452. Dingley (Mrs.), Esther Johnson's friend and companion, 98, 99, 139, 147, 197, 201, 213-217, 308 ; at Farnham, 121, 139 ; in Ireland, 139, 140 ; in London, 145, 244, 281, 288, 290; tobacco for, 311, 322; caps made for Swift, 217, 325, and see 395 ; 'her spectacles, 379, 380. Disney (Duke), 465 (note). Dobbs (Mr.), 93, 97 (note). Dodington, George (Irish Secretary), 205, 255 ; succeeded by Addison, 249. Donegal (Lady), 92. Don Quixote quoted by Swift, 225 (note), and see 265. Dopping (Sam), 305, 356, 382, 389. Drogheda (Lord Justice), 128. Dryden (Sir Erasmus and Elizabeth), 36, and note. Drvden (John), 25, 107 ; harsh judgment of Cousin Swift, 81. . Dryden (Jonathan), profits of Goodrich living received by, 23, 36. Dublin Ladies' Club,membersof,201 ; broken up, ibid. ; puns for, 211. Dudley (Sir Mathew), visits to, 264, 289, 304 (note) ; dinners with, 301', 362, 387, 426 ; death of his butler, 388. Duhigg's History of the King^s Inns, Dublin, 34 (note). Duke, wit and poet, 410. Dunciad, a great prose, 165. Dunlavin, Swift's prebend of, 130 (note), 138 ; value of, 130 (note). Dunton, the book-seller, 77. Dupplin (Lord), 329. E. Eastcourt (Dick), dinner with, 410. Edgeworth (Colonel), 302. " Eliza," Swift's letters to, 97 (note). 418 INDEX. Erick, Abigail (Swift's mother), 25 ; annui- ty settled upon at mavnage, 33 (note) ; branches of her family, 25 (note). See Swift, Auigail. Eugene (Prince), at court, 426. Evening Post, the, 171 (note). Examiner, started by St. John, 342 ; its career, 343 (note) ; wntevs connected with, 342 ; Mrs. Manley takes charge of, 343 (note) ; St. John's, famous letter to, 343, 344; Swift's first contribution to, 344, 345, and see 3.50, 352, 360, 369 ; Swift's quar- rel with Harley, 370. Fable of Midas, 427. Fac-similes: Examination -roll at Trinity College, 52 ; Kesolations when I come to be old, 117; Addison's inscription to Swift, 173 ; a page from Swift's account-book, 266. Falconberg (Lady), godmother to Will Frank- land's child, 379, and note. Farnham, Esther Johnson at, 121, 139 ; Cob- bett a native of, 170 (note); old. Froude, the Squire of, 173 (note). Fenton (Elijah), 81. Fenton (Mr.), marries Swift's sister, 132, and see 881, 393 ; small worth in him, 133. Ferns (Lord Berkeley's steward), 128, 392. Fielding (Beau), 18, 35. Filby (Mrs.), Stella's sister, 311, and see 461. Finch, Mrs. (afterward Lady Winchilsea), 241, 283 (note) ; poem addressed by Swift to, 241 (note), 259 (note). Finglas, Dillon Ashe, vicar of, 203 (note) ; Swift at, 278. First-fruits, Swift's exertions to obtain re- mission of, 188, 219, 221, 253, 255, 256, 257, 259, 287, 291, 294, 314, 329, 351 ; finally remitted, 331, 335 ; Swift's rewaa-d, 333, and see 336. Floyd (Mrs. Biddy), 241, and note ; Swift's lines to, 126 ; epigram on, 272 (note). Forbes (Mr.), expelled from Dublin tJnittr- sity, 259 (note). • Ford (Charles), 77, 304, 389 ; his copy of Gulliver, 6; great opera -goer, 264; in- troduced to the Duke of Ormond, 291 ; Swift's next neighbor, 304 ; dinners with, 312, 350, 356, 383, 387, 399 (note), 403, 407, 409, 412, 419; Swift borrows a "shaving" of, 361; at the opening of Parliament, 381 ; at Erasmus Lewis's, 413 ; at Mrs. Van's, 419 ; escapes a loss, 431. Fountaine (Mr. Andrew), author's obliga- tions to, 6, 176, 272 (note). Fountaine (Sir Andrew), 224, 257, 465; Eoubiliac's busts of, 176 (note) ; portrait of, at Holland House, ibid. ; Swift's first knowledge of, 203; at Dublin Castle, 207-210; leaves Dublin, 218; MSS. of, at Narford, 241 (note), 2^8 (note), 272 (note), 275 ; introduces Swift to the Van- homrighs, 243 ; congratulates Pembroke on his appointment to the admiralty, 248 (note) ; letters between him and Swift, 282, 283, 285 ; arrival in London, 298 ; dinners with, 298, 299, 459, 464, 467; Swift's debauch, 312 ; illness of, 393, 394, 407, 419 ; family mourners at house of, 394 ; his mother and sister, 407 ; at Mrs. Vanhomrigh's, 415, 419, 427. Fox (Charies), 212. Frankland (Sir Thomas), 290, 355 ; visit to, 264 ; dinner with, 362. Frankland (Will), 289, 294 ; Swift christens his baby, 289, 379 ; dinners with, 294, 355. Freind (Dr.), 342, 348 ; St. John's regard for, 347. Froud (Colonel), 172, and see 305. Galway (Earl of), one of the Lords Justices of Ireland, 30, and see 128. Garth (Dr.), dinners with, 299, 328 ; at a hedge tavern, 303 ; at Addison's, with Steele and Mr. Dopping, 305. Gautier (Abbe), 451. George (Prince) and Occasional Conformity Bill, 150 ; changes consequent on death of, 248, 251, 255 (note), 257. Germaine (Lady Betty), 193, 234 (note), 241, 420 ; invites Swift to Drayton, in North- amptonshire, 295 ; dinner with, 410, and sec 414. Giffard (Lady), 83; romantic stoiy of, 98 (note) ; Sw'ift's disputes with, 72, 90, 102, 112, 115, 377, 378 ; her waiting-maid, 75, 76, 98, 121, 377, 378 ; attacks Swift, 279 (for Swift's reply, see 112) ; letters between her and Swift, 283 ; much receivfed at court, 289 ; her debt to Esther Johnson, 401 (note), and see 73 (note). Gladstone (Mr.), references to Laracor, 137. Globe Tavern, Swift with Lord Peterborough, 359, 360. Godolphin (Lord), joined by Hariey, 146; Occasional Conformity Bill forced upon, 149; profits by experience, 222; Swift's interview concerning first-fruits, 254, 255, and see 257 ; resignation of, 285 ; cold re- ception of Swift, 290 ; a Grub Street in verse on, 330, 331 ; Marlborough's counsel to, 339 ; dinners with, 409, 470, 471, 472 ; death, 447. God's Revenge against Punning, Swift's, 207 (note). INDEX. i79 Granville (George, Lord Lansdowne), 405. Greenwich Park, Swift and Esther Johnson in, 2-14. Griffyth (Mr.), 383. H. Halifax (Charles, Lord), 143, 223, 233, 285 ; supposed comparison to Pericles, 142 ; sworn of the council, 146, and see 187 ; Swift's visits to, 234, 368 ; letters to Swift, 225 (note), 278, 283; legacy to Mrs. Barton, 242 ; Swift's letters to, 273, 283 ; Swift's only favor from, 2G5 ; dinners with, 296, 297, 347. Hallam (Henry), on Z'aZe of a Tub, 170 note). Hamilton (Duke of), duel with Lord Mohun, 449. Hampton Court, Swift at, 296, 297. Hanmer (Sir Thomas), 462 ; dinners with, 349, 358. Harcom-t (Sir Simon), 216 (note), 330, 339 ; attorney -general, 293; Swift inti-oduced to, 315 ; lord keeper, 356. Harley (Robert), 76, 124, 223, 287; dismissal of, 245, and see 146 ; Swift's introduction to, 297; Swift doubts his finance, 304; dinners with, 314, 315, 323, 332, 834, 348, 351, 355, 358, 366, 369, 370, 372, 405, 413 ; treatment of Swift, 318, 329 ; his hall-porter, 328, 332, 356, 358 ; alone with Swift, 329 ; state visit to, 332 ; delays in first - fruits business, 335 ; Macaulay's judgment of, 338 ; his career, 338, 339 ; explanations with, 351 ; dilatoriness of, 358 ; Swift's quarrel with, 370, 371 ; lines to his physician, 428. Hai-ris (Mrs. Francis), the Petition of, 126, 128! HaiTison ("Little"), a protege of Swift and Addison, 299, 300, 416 ; edits new Tatler, 396, 397 ; money troubles, 457 ; death of, 460 ; successor to, 461 ; his mother, ibid., 466 ; his sister, 461. Hart Hall, Swift at, 74, 93. llawkesworth (Jlr.), Life of Swift by, cited; 45, 56, 85 (note) ; Malone's copy of, 5, and see 91 (note) ; Swift letters published by, 421 ; originals in British Museum, 423. Hazlitt (William), on Tale of a Tub, 170 (note). Henley (Anthony), great ally of "Little" Harrison, 300; paper against Harley, 300 ; Garth's Dispensary dedicated to, 233 ; quaint letter of, 278 (note) ; bad habit of, 395. Herbert (Lord), cap presented to Swift by, 395. Hen-ieks of Beaumanor, and Heyricks of Thurmaston, 23 (note), 68. . Hoadly (Bishop), 293, and see 242. Hoey's Court, Dublin, Swift's birthplace, 38. Hogarth's Marriage a la Mode, 467 (note). Holland (Sir John), 293 ; dinner with, 294, and see 311. Homer, Swift's opinion of, 107 (note), 167, 168. Horace, Swift's earlv paraphrase of, 74. Howard (Dr.), 207-209, 248 (note). Hunter (Colonel), Swift's regard for, 233, 234 ; Captain-general of Jamaica, 234 ; Swift's letters to, 242, 232 (note, about Virginian bishopric), 264 (note). I. Ireland, tenants and landlords in, in 1706, 195 ; party in, 196. J. Jeffkey (Feancis), Swift characterized by, 3. Jervas (Charles), 289, 295 ; paints Jacky Walls, 202; his portrait of Swift, 240, 243 (note), 264, 289, 291, 309, 321. Job, Swift's readings of the Book of, 34, 35. Johnson (Mrs. Bridget), friend and com- panion to Lady Giffard, 76, 99, 121, 152, 289, 311, 377, 378, 401, 412; first husband, 99; second husband, 103 ; visit from, 378; present of cakes from, 381. See Mose. Johnson (Esther), 147, 201 ; with Lady Gif- fard, 76, 77, 98 ; her sister, 76, 99, 311 ; Swift's letters to, 100, 135, 175 (note), 197, 282, 288, 289, 293, 309, 310; her horse, 114, 309 ; Sir William Temple's bequest to, 99, 121, 139 ; described by Swift, 98, 99, 151, 152 ; in lodgings at Farnham, 121, 139 ; relations of Swift with, 121, 130 (note), 141, 147, 152-154, 211-218, 306- 328 ; the "little language," 122, 307, 308, 316, 317, 423 ; endows chaplaincy to Ste- . ven's Hospital, 137 (note) ; Swift's visit to, at Farnh^m, 139 ; in Ireland, 139, 140 ; -in London with Swift, 145, 244; no suf- ficient evidence of marriage to, 153 ; Tis- dall's suit to, 150-154 ; future association with Swift, 153 ; Journal written for, 212, and see 288, 289 ; her habits and ways, 212 ; card-playing, 207 (note), 212, 284 (note); "handsome young woman," 213, 411 ; her maid Margaret, 215 ; a town walk, 214; country ride, 215; fondness for china, 216 ; the "life by stealth," 218, 306, 324 ; her little dog, 244 ; Addison's friendship for, 279 ; puns bv, 312, and see 244 ; weak eyes, 318, 322", 325 ; money owing by Lady Giffard to, 378 ; palsy- waters for, 402, 412 ; Swift her writing- master, 411 ; allowance from Swift, 470. d-80 INDEX. Jolinson (Dr.), 45 ; humorous description of Sheridan, ibid, (note) ; Siiyings of, 56, 63, 68 (note), 110 (note) ; his" Life of Swift, 105, 142 (note), 151 (note), 169-171, 245, and see 3 ; as to .luthorehip of Tale of a Tub, 169 ; dislilce of the Scotch, shared with Swift, 261 (note); in error, 343. Jones (Inigo), Ben Jonson's satire in his Tale of a 2m6, 163 (note). Jones (Betty), 69. Jones (Squire), 200, 451, 452. Jones (Mr.), of Welwyn, 298 (note). Jones, a fellow-student of Swift, 47, 49, 55. Jonson (Ben), comedy of Tale of a Tub, 163 (note). Journal to Stella, 288, 307 ; fanciful substi- tutes for names in, 307, 308, 424, 426 (note) ; publication of the letters contain- ing the, 420-424. K. Kemble (Mr. John), collation of some of Swift's letters, 225 (note), 273 (note). Kendall (Mr.), a characteristic letter, 78, 79. Kerry (Lady), a great favorite with Swift, 388 ; conning ailments with, 408, 414, 41G. Killala (Bishop of). Swift's letter to, 272 (note), 317, and see 321, 320. Killaloe (Bishop of), 287. Kilroot, described, 90 ; Swift at, 90-92 ; real story of the surrender of, 93-96, and see 4 ; Swift's successor at, 95 ; directions as to papers left at, 96 (note). King (Archbishop), 62, 90, 124 (note), 287 ; Swift's letters to, 147 (note), 188, 224, 244, 248, 249, 258 (note), 26.S, 287, 289, 333, 342, 370 (note); unpublished letters to, 219, 220, 248 (note), 249, 253, 258 ; letters from, 333, 416 ; opinions and char- . acter, 194. King (Dr. William, the civilian) attacks the . Tale of a Tub, 161 ; a contributor to the Examiner, 342. King (Dr. William, the Oxford divine). Anec- dotes by, 169 (note). • King's Inns (Dublin), Swift's father elected steward of, 32 ; bench debts, 33, 34 (note). Kneller (Sir Godfrey^ Jervas's portrait at- tributed to, 291 (note) ; wish to paint Swift, 297, 387. Lamb (Charles), startling aspiration of, 206 (note), and see 422 (note). Lambert (Dr.), chaplain to Lord Wharton, 194. Langford (Sir Arthur), 200. Laracor, fishing at, 41, 198, 417; Swift's garden, 102, 130 (note), 135, 197 ; Swift appointed vicar, 124 ; receipts from, dur- ing 1703, 131 (note); Swift's walk to, 133; "dearly beloved Roger," 134; in Swift's time, 135 (note) ; improvements, 135, 136, 137, 197; present state of, 130 (note) ; Mr. Gladstone's reference to, 137; canal at, 135, 197, 413, 417 ; smallness of congregation, 138, 200, 232, 251, 265; Swift at, 276, 281 ; liking for, 363, 445 ; resolution not to part with, 470, 471. Lawyers, fixed fare for, 169. Leach (Dryden), Swift's cousin, 37 (note), 303, 397 ; marriage of, 37 (note). Leicester Fields, Swift at Tountaine's, in, 220. Leicester, Swift's mother's home, 67, 86, 139, 141,' 145, 218, 219, 271, 283 (note); old Koman floor discovered in, 275. Leigh (Jemmy), 207 (note), 289, 414; dinner with, 389. Leigh (Tom), 207 (note), 453, 456. Letter on Enthusiasm (Shaftesbury's), 234. Letters (unpublished) from Swift : to Rev. Mr. Winder, 93-97 ; to Lady Giffard, 112; to Archdeacon Walls, 201, 210, 223, 250 (note), 251 ; to Ambrose Philips, 225 (note), 234 (note), 261 (note), 264 ; to John Temple, 195 ; to Archbishop King, 218, 219, 248 (note), 253, 258. and see as to autobiography, ] 8 ; and unprinted and mispriuted journals, . 419-473 ; Levinge (Sir Charies), 312, 326 (note). Levinge (Sir Richard), 450 ; design to im- peach Lord Wharton, 370 (note). Lewis (Erasmus), Dartmouth's under-secre- tarv, 295, 300, 319, 332, 348, 353, 407, 409 ; at St. John's with Swift, 101, 347, 367; dinners with, 348, 3.56, 413; mediator between Harley and Swift, 370 ; bis proj- ect to raise money, 414. Lilliput, a purchase useful for, 379, 380. Lisbon, pi-iestly displays in streets of, 87. Lisle, siege of, 256 (note). Lloyd (Bishop) of Killala, 203. Locke (John), 205. London, few churches in Swift's time, 232. Long (Mrs.), 242, 243; Swift's liking for, 242 ; whimsical decree, 242 ; at Mrs. Vanhomrigh's with Swift, 264, 283 (note); card-playing with, 264, 283 (note) ; ruin of, 292, 320, 378, and see 388. "Loory," a pet of Lady Giffard's, 103. Lowndes (Mr.), 59 (note). Lvon (Dr. John), committee of Swift's per- "son, 18, 421. INDEX. 481 M. Macartney (General), dismissed with Gen- erals Honeyvvood and Meredith, 354 ; sec- ond in Hamilton duel, 453-455. Maeaulay (Lord), inaccuracies of, 78, 75, 7G, 84 (note), 99, 102 ; Swift described by, 80, 88 ; on a habit of Addison's, 279 (note) ; judgment of Harley, 338. M'Kay (Rev. C. E.), on the present condi- tion of Laraeor, 136 (note). Mackintosh's (Sir Jas.) shrewd remark, 253. Machj's Memoirs, sketch of Lord Peter- borough, 188 ; Lords Halifax and Rivers described in Swift's notes to, 273 (note), 354 (note). Maine (Charles), 303, 328. Malone (Edmond), Roll of Trinity College, Dublin, sent to, by the Bishop of Ossory, 49 ; unpubHshed notes, 54, 91 and note. Malplaquet (battle of), 344. Manley (Mr.), Dublin postmaster, a member of the Dublin ladies' club, 201 ; his wife, ibid. ; Partridge, the astrologer, writes to, 238 ; card-playing with and wife, 284 (note) ; intercession of Swift for, 290, 312, 313, 391 ; at Esther Johnson's, 314, 401, 430 ; reported dismissal of, 361 ; dinner with, in London lodging, 380. Manley (Mrs.), Swift's criticism of her JH/em- oirs o/theNewAtalantis,28li; takes charge of the Examiner, 343 (note). Mansell (Sir Thomas), 203 (note). Margaret (Mrs.), Esther Johnson's maid, 215 (note). Marlborough (Duke of), influence of his vic- tories, 146, 248 ; speech in defense of the Admiralty, 220; at the whig overthrow, 285 ; opinion as to Harley, 339 ; kindness to St. John, ibid. ; his great failing, 341 ; disliked by Harley, ibid. ; mistaken policy, ibid. ; attacked by St. John, 342 (note) ; Swift's comparison with a victorious Ro- man general, 346 ; arrival in England, 358 ; St. John's report, ibid. ; Swift's opin- ion, 363 ; difficulties, 365, 372. Marlborough (Duchess of), influence over Queen Anne, 146, 147, and see 365 ; Van- brugh teased by, 175 (note). Marsh (Narcissus, ai-chbishop, afterward pri- mate), requires certificate from Swift, 89 ; prebend of Dunlavin given to Swift, 138 ; Swift's relations with, 194 ; -wearied with first-fruits negotiations, 255. Martin us Scriblerus, origin of, 168. Masham (Lord), 367, 433. Masham (Mrs., afterward Lady), 430, 467; Harley's intrigue to remove lord treas- urer, 147 (note), and see 245 ; illness of her son, 437. Mason (Mr. Monck), 5, 29 (note). Vol. I.— 31 Meath (Bishop of), and Swift's house at Laraeor, 136 (note). Meditation on a Broomstick, Swift's, 232, 233, 272 (note). Medley, edited by Oldmixon, 342 (note) ; contributors to, ibid. Melthrop (Mrs.), of Laraeor, 200. Memoirs relating to the Change, 263, 276. Mercurius Rusticus, 21 (note). Methuen (Sir Paul), 239, 296, 305. Milles (Dr. Thomas), Bishop of Waterford, 223, 224. Mohock outrages, 433-435, 437. Molesworth (Florence envov), dinners with, 294, 296, 301. Molyneux (Dr.), 207-210. Monsey (Dr.), 210 (note). Montagu (Wortley), at St. James's coft'ee- house, 234 ; with Addison and Swift, 319. Moor Park, Swift's first residence at, 67-86, and see 27 ; his second residence, 98-117 Swift's love of, 102, 122, 135, 196, 347 one vear's reading at, 113. More (Sir Thomas), 163 (note). Mose (Mr.), Mrs. Bridget Johnson's second husband, 103, 121 (note). Mose (Mrs.), 121 (note); death of Swift's sister at lodging of, 133. See Johnson, Mrs. Bridget. Mountjoy (Lord), 282, 298, 302, 382 ; fel- low-voyager with Swift, 288, and see 425 ; dinners with, 291, 297, 320, 323, 393. Mountrath (Lord), 298. N. Narford, Swift manuscripts at, 6, 176-188, 207-210, 241 (note), 248, 271 (note), 275, 467 (note). Newcastle, plague at, 411. Newton (Sir Isaac), 242, 294. New-year's-day rhymes, 399, 400. Nichols (Mr.), 44, 45 ; the copy of Monet Berkeley's Literary Relics given to Ma- lone by, 91 (note) ; Life of Swift by, 105, 422. Noble (Mr.), April jest concerning, 467. O. Observator, De Poe's, 263. Occasional Conformity bill, 149. October club, the, 371. Oldmixon, John, the Medley edited by, 342 (note). Operas, Swift taken to them by Charles Ford, 264 ; critic Dennis's opinion of, ibid. Orkney (Lady), 449, 455. Ormond (Duke of), 256, 289, 466, 469-471 ; family of, 193, 319 ; Charles Ford intro- 482 INDEX. duced by Swift, 291 ; appointed viceroy of Ireland, 299 ; Swift's relations with, 312, 333, 336, 458, 464 ; admitted to the Sat- urday dinner, 373 ; entertained by the Londonderry Society, 879. Ormond (Duchess of), dinner at her lodge near Sheen, 441. Orrery (Charles, Lord), 348, 432. See Boyle. Orrery (John, Lord), 104 ; Remarks of, cited, 43, 55, 73, 124 (note), 132, 134. Oudenarde, battle of, 244, 344. Oxford (Lord Treasurer), 23, 24. Oxford (second Lord), 39, 62, 157 (note). Oysters, recipe for boiling, 433. P. Pall Mall, Swift's adventure with a mad- man, 349. Palmerston (the first Lord), Swift's letter to, 73, and see 103. Parnell (Thomas), succeeds Dillon Ashe as Vicar of Finglas, 203 (note) ; taken by Swift to dine with Bolingbroke, 453 ; his Essay on the Different Styles of Poetry, 466. Partridge (John), the astrologer. Swift's joke against, 235-239, and see 271 (note). Parvisol (Isaiah), Swift's steward at Laracor, 131 (note), 199, 282, 28.5, 309, 390, 401, 440, 443, 446-448, 451, 4,59, 472. Pate (Will), dinners with, 264, 292, 294, 298. Patrick (Swift's servant), 290, 327, 332, 350, 392, 401, 405 ; discharged and taken back, 311 ; drunken habits, 317, 318, 403-405 ; accomplished in lying, 856, 381, 382, 397 ; carelessness of, 387, 389, 418 ; out of fa- vor, 413; a linnet bought for Mrs. Ding- ley, 311, 317, 408, 404, 409. Pembroke (Earl of), 193, 203, 221, 224, 251 ; Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, 204 ; honors conferred on, 205 ; liking for puns, 206, 207-209, 248 (note), 254 (note), 275 (note), 276, 304, 459 ; recalled to England, 218, and see 248, 257 ; restored to the AiBhi- ralty, 248 ; Swift's punning letters to, 248 (note), 275, 276. Penn (William), 160 (note). Perceval (Sir John), 196 (note). Perceval (Mr.), 196, 200, 282, 430; losses and gains at cards with, 283, 284 (note). Perceval (Mrs.), 200, 321, 322. Perry (Mr.), a son-in-law of Adam Swift, 59 (note). Peter the Great's visit, to England, 108. Peterborough (Lord), and the Occasional Conformity bill, 149 ; shetch of, in Macky's Memoirs, 188 ; Swift's poem to, ibid. ; mission to Vienna, 358 ; treatment of, by the whigs, 244; at Ilarley's, 331, 382; Swift's liking for, 348 ; prediction of the Villa Viciosa failure, 357 ; at a barber's shop, 350 ; at the Globe, ibid. Philips (Ambrose), 173, 175, 357 ; letters to, 171 (note), 178, 234, 282 ; uncollected let- ters from Swift to, 225 (note), 234 (note), 261 (note), 264; laughed at for vanit\', 240. Pilgrim's Progress (Bunyan's), Swift's admi- ration of, 57. Plague at Newcastle; sanitaiy measures ordered by Harley, 411. Poems, now printed for the first time : on Vanbrugh, 176, 177 ; original Baucis and Philemon, 180-187 ; to Mrs. Worsley, 241 (note). Poesies ChrUiennes de Monsieur Jollivet, 26.5. Pontlack (Mr.), Duke of Ormohd's secretarv, 889, and see 899 (note). Pope (Alexander), 165 ; letters to, 114, 145 ; Addison as to Rape of the Lock, 180 ; description of Swiff, 240 ; couplet on De Foe, 263 (note); Jervas's portrait, 291 (note) ; Eoscoe's edition, ibid. ; first men- tion of, in Swift's letters, 463. Person (Professor), curious discovery in ref- erence to Gulliver, 167 (note). Portland (Earl of), 142 ; sent by King Wil- liam to Moor Park, 27, 28, 80, 81 ; alleged likeness to Phoclon, 142. Postman (the), 37 (note), 280, 397, and see 303. Pratt (Dr.), 414, 450 ; card- playing with, 457, 469 ; at an auction with Swift, 462. Presbyterians4 Irish, disliked by Swift, 260 ; described, 261. Prior (Matthew), 101, 114, 172, 216, 238, 298, 305, 819, 831, 347-349, 351, 385, 434 ; atrocious puns, 207, 395 ; at a "blind tavern," 803; Lady Lucy Stan- hope's attack, 305, 869 ; a contributor to Examiner, 842 ; Swift's debauch off his cold pie, 349 ; at Harley's with Swift, 359, 413; gives Swift a Plautus, 407; after- dinner walks in the park, 415. Project for the Advancement of Religion, Swift's, 226, 229-232, 271 (note); Lord Berkeley on, 226; Steele and Addison's opinion of, 229, 230. Public-house reform, Swift's suggestion for, 231. Puns, why lightly esteemed, 206 ; Swift's, 206, 210, 211, 216 (note), 399. Queen's Bench, Stratford prisoner in, 431. Queensberry (Duchess of), 243. INDEX. 483 R. Iiahklais, Swift placed above, by Voltaire, 161 (note), 104. Radcliffe (Dr.), 311. liadnor (Lord), 290, 353. Kagland Castle, Thomas Swift a piisoner in, 23, 36. Rape of the Lock, Pope's happiest change not approved by Addison, 180. liathbeggan added to Laracor, VI'>. Rawdon (Lady Charlotte), Scott's letter to, 6. Raymond (Sir Robert), 199, 382. Raymond (Dr.), Vicar of Trim, 355, 443; Esther Johnson and Mrs. Dingley frequent guests, 140, 198, 417; improvidence, 199 (note); introduced to kinsman, ibid., and see 382 ; his children, 202 (note) ; his visit to London, 199, 325 (note), 355, 381, 382, 392 ; at Chester, 288, 425 ; introduced to Lord Wbarton, 288 ; a solicitor to Swift, 472. Raymond (Mrs.), 202, 288 ; Swift's humorous objection to, 202, 325, 382; at Chester, 288, 425. Reeves (Rev. Mr.), original letters of Swift discovered by, 218 (note). Richardson (Samuel), unfounded statements as to Swift, 46, 54, 72. Richmond (Duke of), 387 ; marriage of his daughter, 413, 414. Rivers (Lord), 358, 372 ; made constable of the Tower, 354 ; desires Swift's acquaint- ance, ibid. ; Swift's opinion of, ibid, (note), and see 447; admitted to the Saturday dinner, 372 ; dinner at his country house, 440. Robinson Crusoe, hint of, 278 (note). Rochester (Lord), replaces Lord Somers, 293. Rolt, Patty (afterward Mrs. Lancelot), Swift's cousin, 37 (note), and see 292, 303, 324. Romney (Lord), false friend to Swift, 29, 123. Rose coffee-house, Drvden in the chair, 81, 82. Rowe (Nicholas), the poet, 385 ; helps the Partridge joke, 238; at Delaval's, 297; succeeds Addison as whig under- secre- tary, 303 ; won over by Harley, 298. Russell (Admiral), alleged likeness to The- mistocles, 142. Ryder (Mr.), Swift's school-master, 40, 41. S. Sacheverell (Dr.), ICl ; impeachment of, 280, .337. St. Alban Street, Swift's lodgings in, 398. St. .Tames's coffee-house. Swift at, 172-175, 234, 242, 291, 293, 309, 312, 315, 330, 383; christening of coffee-man's child, 349 ; Christmas-boxes at, 358 ; Ppt's let- ters at, 380, 399, 405, 406, 410. St. John (Viscount), career and character, 347 (note). St. John (Henry), characterized by Swift, 80 (note) ; rumored journey to Holland, 84, 308; dinners with, 101, 324, 336, 347, 349, 354, 358, 364, 365, 367, 370, 371, 377, 453, 469 ; joins Godolphin, 146 ; al- leged statement by, as to Queen Anne's feeling to Swift, 169 (note); Swift's inti- macy with, 245, 335, 348, 356, 358, 366, 367 ; secretary of state, 293 ; Macaulay's character of, 338 ; allegiance of, to Harley, 339 ; Marlborough's confidence in, ibid. ; starts the Examiner, 342 ; his ancestors, 347, 348 (note) ; his report of Marlborough, 359 ; Swift at work for, 361, 370 ; dangers threatening, 362, 303, 366 ; his first wife, 364 (note) ; verses on his first retreat from politics, 366 ; Swift's revel with, 367, 408, and see 419 ; sends his brother to succeed Harrison, 461 ; created Viscount Boling- bvoke, 444. St. Patrick's (Dr. Sterne, dean of), 250, 281, 290. See Sterne. St. Paul's Cathedral, Swift at the top of, 299. Bancroft (Archbishop), Swift's Ode to, 77, 82. Sartre (Prebendary), Addison's sister mar- ried tn, 302. Savage (Phil), dinner with, 388. Scott (Sir Walter), Life of Swift hv, cited, 56, 105, 126, 130 (note), 134, 136 (note), 162, 227 (note), 232, 424, and see 3, 4 ; hasty editorship, 20 (note), 29 (note), 39 (note), 90, 134, 160 (note), 173 (note), 227 (note), 233 (note), 245, 252 (note), 277. Sentiments of a C hurch-of -England Man, 245-247, 272 (note) ; Dr. Johnson's opin- ion of, 245. Shaftesbury's (Lord), Essay on Enthusiasm, 234, and see note. Sliarp (Archbishop), 169. Shelburne (Lord), 385 ; his family sight-see- ing with Swift, 388, and see 414, 371, 410. Sheridan (Bishop), of Kilmore, 141. Sheridan (Rev. Thomas), 62 ; Swift's trifling interchanges with, 307, and see 5. Sheridan (Thomas), undue importance given to his Life of Swift, 45, and see 171 and • note, 173 ; his edition of 1 784, 423. Shower in London (Swift's), 299, and see 317; Whig attack upon, 305, 369; its reception generally, 319 ; couplets from, 326 (note) ; misnamed, 383. Shrewsbury (Duke of), 340, 440, 447 ; ad- mitted to the Saturday dinner, 373. Shrewsbury (Duchess of). Swift's name of "Presto " invented by, 307. 484 INDEX. " Sid Haiiiet" lampoon, 317, 319, 330, 331 ; unexpected attack, 305, 369 ; Mi'S. John- son's and Hailey's opinion of it, 331. Smallridge (Dr.), 104, 358, 395; on the Tale of a ?u6, 161. Smith (Jonatlian), living of Bridstow con- ferred on, 23. Smith ("Rug"), ICl. Smithers (the Faruham carrier), 123. Smyrna coffee-house, 349 ; Swift and Prior at, 331, 416. Smyth (of the Blind Quay), 384, 385. Somers (Lord), 187, 218-222 ; alleged com- parison to Aristides, 142, 143; "nncon- versahle," 145 ; the Occasional Conformity Bill, 150; dedication of the Tale of a Tub, 166 ; endeavors to obtain the bishopric of Watei-ford for Swift, 223-226, 274 ; Swift's conferences with, 247, 253, 254, 259, 291 ; appointed president of the council, 248, and see 146 ; letter for Swift to Lord Wharton, 264, 276, 291, and see 368 ; turned out of office, 293 ; balance of obli- gation between him and Swift, 368. Somerset (Duke of), 346. Somerset (Duchess of), 169. South (Dr.), 25, 273, 274, 286. Southwell (Sir Robert), 70, 253, 256; Sir William Temple's letter to, on behalf of Swift, 70, 71. Southwell (Ned), 313, 315, 333, 334, 379, 433. Spain, bad news from, 357. Specialis gratia, what this degree meant, nothing unusual in it, 44, 55. Spectator, first number published, 239 (note). Spence (Joseph), sketch of Swift, 38 (note). Spence's Anecdotes, amusing incident, 240 and note. Stage profligacy. Swift's proposed censorship, 231, and see 114, 167. Stamford (Earl of), treatment of Thomas Swift, 21,22. Stanhope (Lady Lucy and "Moll"), 242, 292, 305, 419 ; dinners with, 294, 369. Stanley (Sir John and Lady), 242, 313, 364, 382. • Steele (Sir Richard), 172, 175, 271 (note), 280, 286, 298 ; opinion of Swift's Project, 229 ; at the Eountain tavern, 234 ; part taken in the Partridge jest, 238 ; Swift described by, 239, 240; Swift's influence with, 256 (note) ; letters to Swift, 278, 285 ; at the St. James's coffee-house, 291, 349 ; Swift writing for, 299 ; and inter- ceding for, but not seeing the whole case, 301 ; loses gazetteership, 300, and see 289 ; diimer with, 305 ; his wife, 320 ; in disfavor with ministers, 360, 390 ; happy compliment paid to Swift, 383 (note); " the rogue," 385 ; his last Tatter, 396. Stella. See Johnson, Estiiek. Sterne (Dean), 244, 248 (note), 317, 321, 414 ; a member of the Dublin ladies' club, 201 ; Swift's liking for, 203, but see 250 (note); Swift's letters to, 251, 254 (note), 258 (note), 283 (note) ; a pleasant jest on, 361 ; bishop, 471, and see 201, 469. See also St. Patkick's, Dean of. Steine (Enoch), dinner with, 302 ; box in- trusted to, 311, 318, 402, 411, 412; his wife, 436 (note). Storm of 1703, the great, 223. Stoyte (Alderman), and his family, membera of the Dublin ladies' club, 201, and see 277, 391, 430; card-playing with, 284 (note), 405. Stoyte (Mrs.), 391, 407, 417, 448. Stoyte (Catherine), 407, 417, 448. Stratford (Dr.), 412. Stratford (Mr.), Swift's school-fellow, 40, 41 (note), 52, 292, 294, 295, 380, 392 ; din- ners ^^ ith, 302, 389, 412 ; money advanced to Swift by, 378 ; difficulties of, 431. Suffolk (Lady), 61, 243. Sunderiand (Eari of), 97, 143, 219-221, 223, 247, 253, 254, 25S, 346; notices of, in Temple's Memoirs, 112, 113; his fall in- volves Swift, 97; his son, 146; secretary of state, 219 (note) ; removal from office, 284. Swanton (Mrs.), 59 (note). Swift (Jonathan), 25, 26 ; elected steward of Eng's Inns, Dublin, 32 ; marriage and early death of, 25, 33. Swift (Abigail), 25, 38-40 ; her troubles and petitions, 33, 34, 37 ; home in Leicester, . 27, 67, 86, 139, 141, 145, 218, 219, 283 (note); visits her son in Ireland, 67 (note) ; quiet independence, 68 (note) ; failing health of, 271 ; her son's last visit, ibid. ; death of, 282 ; letters to and from her son Jonathan, ibid. See Eeick, Abigail. SwrFT, Jonathan. anecdotes of his family and himself, 17-31. birth, 26, 38 ; anniversaries of, 34. fits of giddiness, 31, 61, 62, 257, 267, 323, 414, 457. innumerable cousins, 37 (not^). enjoyment of fishing, 41, 198. enters college, 42 ; compared with other students, 52-54 ; leaves college, 63. earliest writers on, 43-47. first residence at Moor Park, 67-86 ; sec- ond residence, 98-117. declines clerkship in Irish Rolls, 86. in orders, and at Kilroot, 86-98. theVarina incident, 90-96, 128-132. relations with Esther Johnson, 98, 121, 122,140,141,306-328. passion for walking, 115. chaplain at Dublin Castle, 1 21-138. INDEX. 485 Swift, Jonathan., Vicar of Lavacor, 124. London life, 138-154, 218-267. first political tract, 141. Tale of a Tub planned and partly written, 109-111; published, 155; described, 155-171. Baucis and Philemon as first written and as printed, 177-189. description of the journal written for Esther Johnson, 211, 306, 308. the "little language," 122, 214 (note), 306-308, and see 420-473. life in Laracor and Dublin, 193-218. exertions to obtain remission of first- fruits, 188-219 ; successful, 335. named for a bishopric, 223, and see 170, 250 (note), 274. pieces written at London in the year of " suspense," 226, 229, 232, 235, 245. personal appearance, 240. Jervas's portrait of, 240, 243 (note), 264, 289, 291, 309, 321 ; engraved by Vertue, 243 (note), 291 (note). Bindon's portrait, 240. his female friends, 241, 242. original poems by. See I'oems, Unpub- lished. original. letters by. See Letters, Un- PtTELISHED. dislike to the Scotch Presbyterians, 261 (note), 412. gains and losses at cards, 283, 284 (note), between old and new friends, 287-305. alliance with Harley and St. John, 336- 373. tlie only writer they were afraid of, 351. admitted to cabinet secrets and Saturday dinners, 372. unprinted and misprinted journals, 425- 473, and see 308. Swift (Cousin Abigail), 288, 425. Swift (Uncle Adam), 25, 37, 58, 96 ; his daughters, 59 (note), 129. Swift (Cousin Beau), 388. Swift (Cavaliero), 18, 35. Swift (Deane, the elder). Swift's letters to, 60 (note), 87 (note), 88 (note). Swift's (Deane) Essay, 17, 18, 44, 125 (note), 420; family flourishes, 38 (note), 59-61, 114, 131 (note), 132, 140 (note), but see 125 (note), 157 (note). Swift (Uncle Dryden), 23 (note), 25, 37. Swift (Sir Edward), 19. Swift (Uncle Godwin), 36, 58, 69, 193 ; his four wives, 24, 36; attorney- general for the palatinate of Tipperary, 24, 37 ; fam- ily of, 24, 37, 303 ; scant kindness to Jon- athan, 38, 40, 42. Swift (Sister Jane), marriage of, 132 ; kind- ness of Swift to, 133 ; death of, ihid. See Fenton. Swift (Nanny), 59 (note). Swift (Rev. Thomas), Jonathan's favorite ancestor, 35; lovalty and sufferings of, 20-23, 35 ; odd house built by, 20 (note) ; family of, 22 (note), 24 ; portrait of, 58 ; ai-ms of, ibid, (note) ; death of, 24. Swift (Uncle Thomas), 25. Swift (Cousin Thomas), 40 ; Dublin college career, 47-51 ; at Balliol College, 74 ; his great cousin's contempt for. 111, 140 (note), 156, and see 304 (note) ; resident chaplain at Moor Park, 111 ; pretenses to have had part in Tale of a Tub, 156 ; Harley teases the great with the little ' ' parson cousin, " 304 (note). Swift (Uncle William), 25, 33, 34, 37, 74 ; kindness of, 58 ; a lost anecdote, 383. Swift (William), Prebendary of Canterbury, 19, but see note ; alters the family arms, 20 ; his portrait, ibid., and note. Swift (Cousin Willoughby), timely service rendered to Jonathan by, 60, 87 (note). Swifte (Edmund Lenthal), 5. Syng (Dean), 250 (note), and see 31. T. Taine (M.), a dangerous guide in English literature, 55 (note), 178. Tale of a Tub, 98, 104, 109 ; not credible story concerning, 61, 98 ; delay in print- ing, 111, 155 ; published, 154 ; ascribed by Wotton to Thomas Swift, 156 ; Faulk- ner's edition of, 157 (note) ; its success, 160, 161 ; a, Quaker's admiration of, 160 (note); described, 157-171 ; authorship as- cribed to various great people, 161 (note) ; early comedy of Ben Jonson with same name, 163 (note) ; Dr. Johnson's opinion of, 169, 170; Cobbett's tribute to, 170 (note) ; attacked for infidelity, 162, 163, 272; Swift's "Apology" for, 271 (note); proposed new edition, 272 (note), 284 ; Swift's own opinion of the Tale, 330. Tatler (Steele's), 239 ; Swift's contributions to, 292, 297, 317, 320, 360, 383, 390 ; col- lected edition of, 286. Tatler (Harrison's), first number of, 396 ; disputes with printer, 397; Congreve's contribution to, 397 ; failure of, ibid. Temple (Sir John), Master of the Rolls, .37. Temple (John), 72, 73 (note), 76 ; unpub- lished letter to, 195, and see 289, 349 (note). Temple (Sir Richard), 175 (note); Swift with, 303, 305. Temple (Sir William), 27, 57; Swift's appli- cation to, 69 ; bequest of his writings to Swift, 72, 102, 112, 115, 264, 279, 280; 486 INDEX. his advice sought by William III., 27, 74, 97, 273 ; changes Sheen for Moor Park, 75 ; Swift's misunderstanding with, 85, 89, 90 ; and alleged ' ' penitential " letter, 90 ; part taken in Swift's surrender of Kilroot, 95 ; Swift's second residence with, 98-117; Macaulay's misstatements with respect to, 99, 100; Swift's relations with, 101-103; Swift's gratitude to, 103; his advocacy of the ancients, 104, and see 106 ; Courtenay's Life of, 112 (note) ; money legacy to Swift, 115; his legacy to Esther Johnson, 121; Tale of a Tub ascribed to, 161 (note) ; Swift's veneration for, 347; death of, 115. Temple (Lady), 69, 77, 83. Tenison (Archbishop), 194 (note), 223. Tennent (Sir James Emerson), 4, 218 (note). Test Act, Irish discontent with, 221, 252, 253, 266-259, 278-281 (note) ; Swift's let- ter against repeal of, 260 (reprinted, with omissions, by Morphew, 263). Thoughts on Various Subjects (Swift's), 233 (note), and see 271 (note). Tisdall (Rev. William), Swift's correspond- ence with, 147-149 ; addresses to Esther Johnson, 150; letters from Swift, 150, 151, 204 ; Swift's dislike to, 152, 153. Tisdall (Jack), 96. Todd (Rev. Dr.), 6, 97 (note). Tompson (Swift's cousin), 37 (note). Tooke (Benjamin), the publisher, 264, 278, 289, 317, 389, 413, 419, 471, 472 ; letters from Swift to, 153, 156, 271, 272 (note), 282, 284 ; dinner with, 328. Trapp (Parson) and his reward, 362. Travels in Italy (Addison's), presentation copy of, 173. Trevor (Lord), 463. Trim, Swift's liking and dislike, 197, 198. Trimnel (Bishop of Norwich), 122. Trinity College (Dublin) roll, discovery of, 50; Swift's position in college fixed bv, 50-54, 56 ; fac-simile of, 52. Tubbe (Attorney), 163 (note). Twelfth-day in London, 361. Vanebugh (John), at Will's coffee-house, 167, 172 ; Swift's poem on his house in Whitehall, 17.5, 176, 272 (note), and see 172, 305 ; unprinted poem on, 176, 177. Vanhomrigh (Bartholomew), 243. Vanhomrigh (Mrs.), 264, 282, 459, 460 ; her fortune, 243 ; Swift next door to, 294 ; dinners with, 294, 320, 380, 388, 395, 405, 41.5, 419, 427, 434; first mention of in Swift's letters, 319; Swift's visits, 418; card-playing, 4,55. Vanhomrigh (Hester), 240, 243, 282, 284,419. Vanhomrigh (Ginckel), 248. Varina (Miss Waring), 90-93, 128-132. Vedeau (" Shop-keeper "), 402. Vertue (George), Jervas's portrait of Swift, 243 (note), 291 (note). Villa Viciosa, Battle of, Lord Peterborough's prediction, 357. Voltaire, opinion of Swift, 161 (note). W. Wager (Sir Ciiakles), 305, .385. Walkington (Bishop), 93. Walls (Archdeacon), 226, 290, 380, 432; un- published 'letters from Swift to, 199 (note), 201, 210, 224, 250 (note), 251, 252; inti- macy with Swift, 202 ; humorous descrip- tion of his rectory, ibid. ; his visit to Lon- don, 203; card- playing with, 283,284 (note) ; alleged robbery of, 312. Walls (Mrs.), 201, 290, 384, 392, 430, 448, 462 ; Swift's humorous objections to, 202, 404, 407, 411, 417, 441, 442 ; her son ' ' Jacky " painted by Jervas, 202 ; her maiden name, 211 (note). Warburton (Mr.), Swift's curate at Laraeor, 200, 283 (note). Waiing (Mr.), fellow-student of Swift, 61 and note, 90, 98 ; Swift's addiesscs to his sister "Varina," 91-96, 128-132. Warwick (Lady), 176 (note). Waterford, Swift's appointment to bishopric of, urged by Lord Somers, 223-226, 274. Wesley (Mr. and Mrs. Garret), Swift's friend- ship for, 200 (note); card-playing with, 284 (note). Westminster election, scene at, 297 ; Swift's ballad on, 319, 328. Wharton (Lord), 218, 293, 332, 346 ; selects his own chaplain for Ireland, 193 ; ap- pointed viceroy, 248 ; views on the Test question, 252, 281 ; Swift's interview con- cerning first-fruits, 258 ; Lord Somers's letter concerning Swift, 264, 276, 291; Mr. Raymond introduced by Swift, 288 ; ■working for elections, 293 ; out of office, 299 ; libelous pamphlet against, 351, o.'i2 ; Swift's terrible description of, 352 ; Ma- canlay's account of, 353 (note) ; services to the whigs, 352. Wharton (Lady), 289. Whately (Archbishop), edits a discourse by Archbishop King, 194 (note). Whig Examiner (Addison's), 342 ; succeed- ed by the Medley, 342 (note). Whigs and tories, Swift's advice and warn- ing to, 246-248, and see 271-373; over- throw of whigs, 285. Whiteway (Mrs.), Swift's nurse and last com- panion, 17 (note), 35, 59 (note) ; Swift's autobiographical sketch, see 43; Swift's INDEX. 487 paper of Resolutions, IIG; copy of the Tale given by Swift, 157 (note), and see 171 ; discovers tlie letters containing Journal, 420. "Wilkes (Thomas), 44, 421. William III., Sir William Temple familiar with, 27, 74, 97, 273 ; Swift's interviews with, 80, 81, 141 ; a member of Dublin University expelled for disrespect to his memory, 259 (note). Will's coffee-house, 82, 83 (note), 167, 172, 175. Winchilsea (Lord), 402 ; death of, 445. Winchilsea (Lady) and the Mohock outrage, 435. Winder (Mr.), Swift's correspondence with, 93, 94, 96. Windham (Sir William), St. John's famous letter, 340. Woodward (Dr.), 275. Wovrall (Mr.), 67 (note), 69, 403. Woisley (Mrs., afterward Lady), 242, 405; original poem to, 241 (note) ; dinner with, 413 ; lodgings in King Street, 460. Wotton (William), 104-106, 156 ; attack on Tale of a Tub, 161, 162. Yalden (Thomas), 235 (note), 238 (note). York (Archbishop of), 226, 227 (note), 470- 472. Young (Mr.), of Blackheath, autograph col- lections of, 70 (note), 97 (note). ^ END OF VOLUME I.