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I
in
Α Ν
E S S A Y
UPON THE
Life, Writings, and Character,
OF
Dr. JONATHAN SWIFT,
*
AN
E S S AY
UPON THE
Life, Writings, and Character,
OF
Dr. JONATHAN SWIFT.
Interſperſed with ſome occaſional Animadverſions
upon the Remarks of a late critical Author,
and upon the Obſervations of an anonymous
Writer on thoſe Remarks.
Et etiam in magnis Heliconis montibus arbos,
Floris odore hominem tetro confueta necare.
Lucret. lib. 6.
By DEANE SWIFT, Efq;
Ž
To which is added,
That Sketch of Dr. Swift's Life, wricten by the
Doctor himſelf, which was lately preſented
by the Author of this Effay to the Univerſity
of Dublin.
Wys
LONDON,
Printed for CHARLES BATHURST, at the Croſs-Keysa
oppoſite St. Dunſtar's Church in Flæstfrut.
MDCCLV.
:
Innb.dey
3b2
ฯs.
Bus
Lout L.L. Huttard
- 26-1924
AN
E S S AY
UP Ο Ν Τ Η Ε
Life, WRITINGS, and CHARACTER
OF
Dr. JONATHAN SWIFT.
CH A P. I.
T
HERE being a ſort of curioſity
implanted in the nature of man,
which makes him deſire to be ac-
quainted with the lives and cha-
racters of ſuch exalted perſons, as have ap-
peared with luſtre on the ſtage of this world ;
and, above all other, ſuch as have employed
their talents to the benefit of the human race
in general, and eſpecially to the advantage of
their own country in particular ; I fancy there
will be no occaſion, that I ſhould labour
any kind of apology, for preſuming to gra-
tify the curioſity of the publick, with a
short and curſory eſſay upon the life, wri-
tings, and character, of DR. JONATHAN
Swift. Nevertheleſs, before I ſhall adven-
B
venture
2
Effay on the Life and
venture upon fo bold an enterprize, I cannot
but acknowledge, that beſide the prodigious
veneration, which, among a thouſand others,
1 bear unto the memory of that intrepid vin-
dicator of his country's liberty, one of the
chief motives, which prevailed on me to en-
gage in a work of this kind, was a decent
refpect unto the memory of ſome diſintereſted
ſpirits ; whom thoſe of an higher quality and
ftation than has fallen to the lot of their poſ-
terity, might not have been aſhamed to have
acknowledged for their anceſtors. I declare,
for my own part, that after much confidera-
tion I am wholly at a loſs to conceive, what
invidious ſpirit, enemy to candor, friendſhip,
and benevolence, could have inſtigated one
of our modern criticks to aſperſe the re-
mains of an old, faithful, and loyal family
at ſo unmerciful a rate; not one of them,
to my knowledge, having in paſt or pre-
fent times given the leaſt umbrage either
to this writer in particular, or indeed to any
of his name; the author of the Examiner,
N°
17,
and of that celebrated Meditation on
a Broomſtick only excepted. Whether indeed
the grandfather of Dr. Swift might in the
days of CROMWELL have infinuated any
accounts to the CAVALIERS, not much to
the honor (as the courſe of politicks then ran)
of a certain commander, who for the ſpace
of eleven years fought under the banner of
the USURPER, I cannot affirm. But, as
there
+
Character of Dr. Swift.
3
there appear no records to that purpoſe,
which carry the leaſt authority, (the Reve-
rend MR. THOMAS Swift's Letters to Sir
EDWARD HARLEY *, written during the
time of the uſurpation, having in all probil-
bility been either loft or miſlaid among the
ſeveral thouſands of manuſcripts in the HAR-
LEYAN library) I begin to imagine, this fair
and candid writer was only of opinion, that if
he had remarked upon the anceſtors of Dr.
Swift with any ſort of decorum, it would
have been exalting the Doctor ſomewhat too
far above the pretent generation of upſtarts ;
the pureſt blood of England having been al-
moſt all ſpilt in that helliſh, fanatical rebel-
lion, which overturned the whole conſtitu-
tion both of church and ſtate. Somewhat
nevertheleſs might, without caſting aſperſi-
ons, reflexions, and reproach, have been ea-
lily ſo contrived by this amazing critick,
(and perhaps without offending the grandeur
of the diſdainful and the proud) as to have
given a luſtre and variety to the apparatus of
his critique; which, for want of ſome little
decorations of that fort, is, in the general
opinion of the world, like a building in the
midſt of a deſert, without roads or avenues.
But further; it is, I think, univerſally
allowed, That to excel the far greater part
of the human ſpecies; and to be at leaſt equal
to the firſt in virtue, politicks, learning,
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. 12.
B 2
forti-
4 Eſſay on the Life and
fortitude and abilities, are in themſelves
more than ſufficient, whereſoever they ap-
pear, without
any further advantages from
birth title or fortune, to raiſe the poffef-
for into the higheſt rank of eminence. And
yet, how ſublime, how glorious foever theſe
qualifications may be deemed, they are ſtill,
in the eyes of the proud and the contemptu-
ous, rather to be endured in a perſon of I
know not what ſort of family, than perhaps
in a great exalted ſpirit; whoſe chief ambi-
tion, with all his vaſt abilities, was to emu-
late, and, if providence threw it in his way,
to ſurpaſs the virtues of his forefathers; and
to reject with deteſtation every colour of
action, that ſeemed to be unworthy of his
original. Such will appear to have been
the genius and ſpirit of that prodigious lumi-
of wit, politicks, and learning, which
Thone, like another APOLLO, for ſuch a num-
ber of years in this our northern hemi-
ſphere.
And here I cannot but låment; that after
all the merits of Dr. Swift, and all the ſuf-
ferings of his forefathers, it fhould unhappi-
ly fall to the province of any man that is
ſprung from the fame original, to vindicate
their labours, their virtues, and their deſerts ;
the envy, malice, and rancour of the ill-
natured part of the world being always ready
to affix the characteriſtick of partiality, and.
perhaps the imputation of falfhood on all
per-
4
formances,
nary
Character of Dr. Swift.
5
formances, wherein the writer is ſuppoſed to
have any the leaſt concern. But in this caſe
it happens ſomewhat unluckily for thoſe,
who are never to diabolically pleaſed, as when
they imagine they have an opportunity to
reproach and to calumniate, that envy, ma-
lice, and rancour can have nothing more to
do than to gnaſh with their teeth, and to
prey upon their own vitals; the chief mate-
rials of this rapid, this incorrect effay, being
extracted from authors and records of un-
doubted reputation.
NEVERTHELESS, being thoroughly ap-
prized of many and great difficulties, which
certainly muſt occur in the progreſs of theſe
papers, I ſhall not preſume to enter upon a
work of this nature without making ſome
ſort of an apology for thoſe innumerable de-
fects, which in point of judgment, although
not in point of veracity, will, I am afraid,
be objected againſt me. For, indeed, criti-
cal knowledge, further than to acquire ſoine
little taſte for authors, I never purſued ; nei-
ther was it ever in my thoughts to publiſh a
treatiſe of that kind; having really been
always of opinion, that a man of taſte and
learning, without any further proficiency in
the critical art, than what he collects from
his own general obſervations is ſufficient in
himſelf to admire and contemn, to reliſh
and to abhor, whatever pieces of writing
either in verſe or proſe ſhall happen to fall
B3
in
6
Effay on the Life and
in his way. And therefore I cannot but enter-
tain ſome diſtant hope, that every fair un-
prejudiced perſon, who ſhall reviſe my cri-
tique, will make all reaſonable and candid
allowances for the defects, and perhaps the
blunders, of a writer, whoſe ambition was
never exalted to ſuch a monſtrous degree, as
to pretend to emulate the pages of Aristo-
TLE, LONGINUS, or QUINCTILIAN; or
among his friends and acquaintance to be
called the ARISTARCHUS of the age.
BUT, fince our famous critick ſeems to
have exerted his whole abilities in that vain
effort, which he hath made, to pluck tear
and raviſh not only the civick, but alſo the
laurel crown, from the temples of Dr.
Swift; and, with equal generoſity candor
and humanity, to have racked even to the
laſt degree of torture all the faculties of his
brain, purely with a deſign to aſperſe and de-
grade his whole family, without any provoca-
tion given on their fide, as I obſerved before ;
I cannot but flatter myſelf with an opinion,
that I ſhall meet with ſome indulgence from
the friends of truth and of Dr. SWIFT, if I
Tould happen to be a little more particular
in the clearing up of theſe matters, than per-
haps would have been thought abſolutely re-
quiſite, ſuppoſing the reputation of his an-
ceſtors had never been aſſaulted with ſuch un-
common ſeverity. I am ſure, the many re-
proaches, which have been caſt undeſervedly
upon
Character of Dr. Swift.
7
upon the whole name and family, cry aloud
for an anſwer.
As DR. JONATHAN Swift*, Dean of St.
PATRICK's, Dublin, was deſcended from a
younger branch of the Swifts, an antient
family in Yorkſhire, I cannot ſuppoſe it will
be deemed altogether impertinent; if I di-
greſs for one moment juſt to give a fhort
account of the elder branch, and ſhew by
what accident the principal eſtate was loſt out
of the family for ever.
In the reign of J AMEs the Firſt, that
perſon who was of the elder branch, and
was in poffeffion of the eſtate of the family,
became ſo exceedingly remarkable for wit
and humour, and eſpecially for his abundant
gallantry, politeneſs, and accompliſhments,
that he paſſed univerſally under the name of
* As Dr. Swift was apprehenſive, that his life and cha-
racter would ſome time or other become the ſubject of a
treatiſe, he writ a very ſhort account of his own life him-
ſelf about fix or eight and twenty years ago, in the charac-
ter of a third perſon ; which in reality was merely de-
ſigned as a paper of inſtructions for any one, that ſhould
think it worth bis leiſure to employ himſelf in that kind of
writing. This little tract I have ordered the printer to add
in the way of an Appendix unto this volume. I have num-
bered the ſeveral ſections or paragraphs, becauſe I ſhall fre-
quently refer to them in the courſe of theſe
papers.
1
ſhould be glad, if the curious enquirer into theſe matters
would pleaſe to run it over without the notes before he pro-
ceeds any further, which, to avoid references, might ſave
him a good deal of trouble ; and afterwards, if he think ic
worth his while, to reviſe it with the notes when he is more
at leiſure,
B4
CA-
8 Effay on the Life and
CAVALIERO Swift * He was created an
Iriſh peer by king CHARLES the firſt, with
the title of viſcount of CARLINGFORD; but
never was in that kingdom. This lord died
without iſſue male, and his heireſs, whether
of the firſt or ſecond deſcent, was married
to ROBERT FIELDING, Eſq; commonly
called HANDSOME FIELDING. She brought
him a conſiderable eſtate in Yorkſhire, which
he ſquandered away, but had no children.
The earl of EGLINGTON married another
coheireſs of the ſame family. And thus we
find, that for want of heirs male the princi-
pal eſtate of the Swifts in Yorkſhire was
partly ſquandered away, and partly, I ſup-
poſe, tranſmitted into the EGLINGTON fa-
mily.
ANOTHER of the ſame houſe, but one of
the younger branches, was fir EDWARD
Swift I, well known for his attachment
to the conſtitution both of church and ſtate
in the times of the great rebellion and uſur-
pation. Whether he left heirs or not, I can-
not poſitively ſay; according to report, he
left either one or more daughters. I have been
told, that about fifteen or fixteen years ago
there was a cauſe depending in the courts of
Weſtminſter about ſome old eſtate belonging
* Vid. Appendix, So&t. I.
+ BARNAM Swift, Eſq; created Viſcount of CARLING,
FORD in the realm of Ireland, March zorn, 1627.
# Vid. Appendix, Sect. 2.
ta
Character of Dr. Swift.
9
to the deſcendants of Sir EDWARD SWIFT,
wherein two perſons of high rank and
qua.
lity in England were deeply concerned. Their
diſagreement, I think, was about the ad-
juſtment of their ſeveral moieties of that
eſtate. And this inclines me to believe they
are both deſcended from fir EDWARD SWIFT
by the female line.
HAVING diſpatched in a few words all
that is requiſite to be faid of the elder, and
one of the younger branches of the family
of the Swifss; I ſhall now proceed to an
account of that other younger branch, where-
of the greater part ſettled in Ireland.
The founder of this branch was the Re-
verend THOMAS Swift of Canterbury. How
early this THOMAS in the reign of ELIZA-
BETH appeared in the pulpit, I cannot af-
firm ; but in the year 1569, which was the
eleventh of that monarch, we find he was
collated to the pariſh of St. ANDREW in
the city of Canterbury; where he continued,
without foliciting any further preferment,
to rejoice in the affection of the inhabitants *
and
* It is affirmed of this Mr. Thomas Swift, “ that in
“ his declining age, he rejoiced not more in any worldly
bleſſing than in the love of his people, and that on his
“ death-bed, when it was queſtioned by his friends, where
“ his body ſhould be interred, he charged his executor in his
“ laſt will, in theſe very terms, That bis bones ſhould reſt in
" that church where his people fo intirely loved him." And
the ſame affection of the inhabitants was continued to his ſon
WILLIAM, on account of which he returns them his acknow-
ledgements
I
Effay on the Life and
and to acquire reputation to himſelf for the
ſpace of twenty-two years.
Upon the deceaſe of THOMAS, WILLIAM
SWIFT, at the age of five and twenty, ſuc-
ceeded his father in the pariſh of St. An-
DREW. WILLIAM ſeems to have inherited
all the virtues of his father, and perhaps to
have outſhone him in reputation; as indeed
the labours and virtues of WILLIAM ſeem to
have been wholly eclipſed by that ſuperior
greatneſs and generoſity of ſpirit, which ap-
pear to have animated his ſon THOMAS in
the reign of CHARLES the firſt, as the re-
cords of thoſe times do abundantly ma-
nifeft.
ABOUT the year 1594
WILLIAM SWIFT
married the heireſs of PHILPOT S, with whom
he got a very conſiderable eſtate. She was a ca-
pricious, ill-natured, paſſionate woman. This
couple lived together about thirty years ; then
WILLIAM died, to the inexpreſſible loſs and
almoſt the ruin of his fon; leaving his wife
in the full poſſeſſion of her own eſtate, beſide
a conſiderable ſhare by virtue of her ſettle-
ment out of her huſband's fortune.
THOMAS, the ſon of WILLIAM SWIFT,
who appears from every colour of his life
ledgments after he had been thirty years their pariſh mini-
fter. Vid. dedication of WILLIAM Swift's ſermon, which
is in the Bodleyan library.
of You will meet with theſe records in ſome of the notes
to the Appendix.
$Vid. Appendix, Sect. 4.
to
Character of Dr. Swift.
II
to have been born of an intrepid fpirit, and
perhaps ſuperior to every confideration of this
wretched world; ſoon after the deceaſe of his
father, deeming it unworthy of his nature
to bear any longer with the caprice, the fe-
verity, and the cruelty of an unnatural mo-
ther, purely on account of any future con-
tingencies that he might expect upon her
deceaſe, removed out of the dioceſe of Can-
terbury, having accepted an invitation from
his particular friend the biſhop of Hereford.
In a ſhort time his friend the biſhop preſented
him with ecclefiaftical benefices to the value
of about four hundred pounds a year, and
particularly made him vicar of Goodrich in
Herefordſhire, where he built a large ram-
bling houſe * upon his own eſtate, in purſu-
ance of a plan the moſt whimfical that was
ever conceived in the brain of an architect. He
married Mrs. ELIZABETH DRYDEN, who
derived her lineage from the Drydens of
Cheſterton, an antient patriot family t in the
county
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. 7.
+ The following account of their patriotiſm is in that poem,
which DRYDEN has addreſſed to his honoured kinſman
John DRYDEN of Cheſterton in the county of Hunting-
don, Eſq;
Patriots, in peace, aſſert the people's right;
With noble Aubbornneſs reſiſting might:
No lawleſs mandate from the court receive,
Nor lend by force ; but in a body give.
Such was your gen'rous grandfire; free to grant
In parliaments, that weigh'd their prince's want:
But
12
Eſſay on the Life and
county of Huntingdor, as you may read in
the works of her nephew John Dryden the
poet. MR. SWIFT was the father of ten ſons
and four daughters, all by this wife. The
turbulence of the times gave him an oppor-
tunity to exert all his virtues ll. He preach-
ed, he travelled about, he projected ftrata-
gems, he laboured in every capacity for his
king and country. In the courſe of that
horrid rebellion, which at laſt overturned the
whole conſtitution, his cattle and ſtock were
twelve times driven off his land, his houſe
was plundered two and fifty times, and five
times ſet on fire by the fanatical roundheads.
His wife was obliged to fly for ſhelter to a
garriſon that held for the king; his nume-
rous family were, under the providence of
God, ſupported by the care and diſcretion of
a truſty and faithful ſervant. Yet, in the midſt
of theſe calamities, MR. SWIFT mortgaged
his. eſtate to raiſe ſome little money for the
king; which, in a manner of whimfical
enough, and agreeable to the turn of his own
genius, he preſented to his majeſty at the
caſtle of Ragland in the year 1645, imme-
But fo tenacious of the common cauſe,
As not to lend the king againſt his laws.
And, in a loathſom dungeon doom'd to lie,
In bords retaind bis birthright liberty,
And ham'd oppreſſion, till it ſet him free.
Vol. 3. fol. Edition, p. 100,
| Vid. Apppendix, Sect. 8, 9, 10.
+ Vid. Appendix, Sect. 8.
diately
}
Character of Dr. Swift.
13
diately after that unfortunate battle of Naſeby,
where, according to my Lord CLARENDON,
both king and kingdom were loſt to all in-
tents and purpoſes. And afterwards *, in
the year 1646, that raſcally committee of
Hereford deprived him, according to Wal-
Rer's account, of both his church livings,
fequentered the profits of his eſtate, and likes
wiſe impriſoned him in the caſtle of Ragio
land, not only for fcandal and délinquenicy,
but for his being in actual fervice againſt the
parliament From which durance after
God in his providence hadi reſtored him to
his liberty, he preached and prayed, and per-
formed all the duties of his profeffion from
houſe to houfe, eſpecially throughout thoſe
pariſhes which in better times had been
committed to his care, without tythes. or
ſtipend; and beſides, had the honor to peras
ſevere until laſt hour, which was in the
year 1658, an implacable enemy to the U.
SURPER, and a faithful ſubject to his lawful
king I.
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. II,
# Vid. Appendix,
2
Sect. 13•
CHAP
14
Effay on the Life and
CHA P. II.
HA
(AVING in the former chapter ſhewn
by what variety of perſecutions and
calamities the Swifts in Herefordſhire were
reduced in their fortunes almoſt to the want
of neceſſaries, (a more ample account where-
of you may ſtill find in the Appendix) I
ſhall in this accompany their fortunes but a
little further, being reſolved to contract with-
in a ſhort compaſs their very long ſtory, in
order that I may bring the Doctor upon the
ſtage of action as ſoon as poſſible.
MR. THOMAS SWIFT above-mentioned,
having recovered his eſtate out of the hands
of the ſequeſtrators, immediately fold the
greater part of it to clear off a number of
debts contracted in the time of the rebellion,
and particularly that ſum, which he had mort-
gaged it for to raiſe a purſe for the king, when
his majeſty's affairs were in the moſt deſperate
condition. And after he had ſettled his Oecono-
my
within ſome reaſonable bounds, agreeable
to his contracted circumſtances in the time of
the USURPER, he lived for about fix or eight
years one of the greateſt examples of patience,
conſtancy, and ſpirit, that ever appeared in
England, and at laſt died about two years be-
fore the reſtoration of king Charles the ſe-
cond, leaving a widow behind him with about
twelve or fourteen children, depending for
their
Character of Dr. Swift.
15
their ſupport on the remainder of his ſmall
eſtate, and ſome lay tythes amounting in-va-
lue to about one hundred pounds a year,
which in thoſe days were in poffeſſion of the
family; his chapter leaſe in the dioceſe of
Canterbury, which was never renewed, hav-
ing expired ſome little time before his de-
ceale.
GODWIN, the eldeſt ſon of MR. THOMAS,
SWIFT, who was at that time about the age
of thirty-four, reſolving to beitir himſelf in
the reparation of his ſhattered circumſtances,
and to perform the part of a father unto his
younger brothers and ſiſters, generouſly re-
ſigned the profits of his tythes and little
eſtate into the hands of his mother, which
he made her a preſent of during her life to
fupport herſelf and thoſe remains of the fa-
mily which continued in Herefordſhire 5 and
afterwards went over to Ireland at the head
of his four brothers *
DRY-
DEN, JONATHAN, and ADAM, who were
all bred to the law. Godwin himtelf was a
barriſter of Gray's Inn, and his four brothers
were attornies, all of them men of abilities;
at leaſt equal, if not ſuperior to their profel-
fions. In thoſe days Ireland was very mode.
rately ſupplied with lawyers or attornies of
any tolerable reputation; the rebellion, which
had continued for many years before, and
was indeed but very lately ſuppreſſed, having
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. 16.
thrown
WILLIAM,
16 Effay on the Life and
thrown almoſt all eſtates of men into the
rank of ſoldiers; and therefore it was certainly
a very wiſe reſolution in Godwin and his four
brothers to attempt the reparation of their
fortunes in that kingdom. In ſhort, by their
general acquaintance, by their mutual re-
commendation of each other, and eſpecially
by their own merits, they all acquired (ex-
cept DRYDEN and JONATHAN, who died
young) very conſiderable eſtates, and at the
ſame time diſplayed an open generoſity in
their houſes, furniture, equipage, and every
colour of their expences. It is certain, that
Godwin's eſtate was greatly ſuperior to all
the acquiſitions of his brothers; for, in the
reign of CHARLES the ſecond he was in pof-
feffion at one time of three thouſand pounds
a year, which at preſent would be richly
worth twelve thouſand. But, unfortunate
for his poſterity, he was the greateſt dupe
under the fun with all his abilities. He was
the father of fourteen ſons and three daugh-
ters, nine or ten of whom lived to become
men and women; and after his fourth and
laſt wife *, who was in truth one of the finest
women, and one of the greateſt beauties in
the king's dominions, had brought him feven
* ELLINOR, the fifter of fir John MEADs, who was uni-
verſally allowed to have been one of the fineſt ſcholars, and
greateſt orators, that ever ſpoke at the bar. His character
you may read at large in the firſt volunie of Mrs. PILKING-
TON'S Memoirs.
fons ;
Character of Dr. Swift.
17
theſe accompliſhments, ne."
fons *; ſhe was ſtill in the flower of her
age, being then about twenty-ſeven years old,
and conſequently might in all probability
have brought him as many more. Every
body will, I am ſure, acknowledge, that ſo
numerous a family required an immenſe for-
tune to puſh them into the world with any
degree of ſplendor ; which I know was the
deſign of Godwin, and which above all
other confiderations he had the neareſt at
heart. For, as in the younger part of his
life he had experienced all the calamities, to
which his father and family had been expoſed
by the villainy and malice of thoſe curſed
fanatical roundheads; ſo the chief bent of his
deſire and reſolution was to leave his own
pofterity as independent of the world as he
poffibly could. But this I have reaſon to be-
lieve he carried to an exceſs. For not content
with all his great acquiſitions in the buſineſs
* THOMAS, a younger ſon of this marriage, was ſuppoſed
to have been one of the handſomeft men throughout all Eu-
rope. He had a good ſhare of underſtanding, which was
not quite uncultivated ; but the impetuoſity of his mind' was
not to be reſtrained within the bounds of moderation. · He
was, a man of great vigor and activity ; but on all occaſions
abundantly too fierce and impatient. He anderſtood Ma-
thematicks in general extreamly well; eſpecially thoſe par-
ticular branches requiſite in the time of war, to which he ap-
plied himſelf with great aſſiduity for ſome few months before
he went into the army; where, principally on account of
from being an enlign to a captain's poſt; which I think
he onjoyed but ſome few days before he was killed, a very
young man, at the battle of Almanza.
C
of
18 Eſſay on the Life and
of his profeſſion, he ran into a thouſand pro-
jects, and confequently became the dupe of
a thouſand villains. He purſued fifty kinds
of buſineſs in the city of Dublin, which he
himſelf was wholly a ſtranger to, but which
indeed were carried on by a parcel of knaves,
whoſe general view was to make a purſe for
themſelves, and afterwards to break and leave
their principal in the lurch. Theſe projects
from time to time coft Mr. Swift many
thouſands of pounds.
But that project,
which above all other brought his family al-
moſt to ruin, was a violent puſh that he
made towards raiſing a new fortune out of
an iron-work in the county of Cavan ; which
undoubtedly might have turned to very con-
fiderable account, if his other affairs would
have permitted him to attend perſonally upon
ſuch kind of buſineſs; in the fame manner
as it proved highly advantageous to three
others, that were concerned in partnerſhip
with MR, SWIFT, whoſe names are not
worth our remembrance. They were all fo
prodigiouſly enamoured of this project, that
by general agreement they twiſted and
blended all their own ſeveral names together,
and
gave
the title of Swanlingbar to this pe-
ruvian eſtate. His three partners minded
their affairs, and got abundance of wealth
by theſe hammers and forges. But SWIFT,
born to be the greateſt dupe that ever lived
upon earth, conſidered theſe matters in the
fame
Character of Dr. Swift. 16
fame light he had been always uſed to confi-
der every thing elſe. For notwithſtanding
theſe partners had neither money nor credit
to engage in a project fo various and exten-
five, they had the aſſurance to recommend
it to MR. SWIFT, and to perſuade him to
lay down the whole purchaſe money for
lands, leaſes, and woods contiguous to Swan-
lingbar. They alſo prevailed with him to
expend out of his own fortune all the coſts
and charges, requiſite to ſet theſe iron-works
on foot, and afterwards to carry them on ſuc-
ceſsfully. And what is more extraordinary,
they had the fineſſe and dexterity, after theſe
purchaſes were made, to get themſelves en-
rolled with Mr. Swift as equal ſharers in
the whole of the profits, he taking their no
ſecurities for the payment of their quotas.
A madneſs ſurely in SWIFT, that is ſcarce to
be parallelled throughout all hiſtory, unleſs
it be in the caſe of grand alliances among
the princes of this world, who are frequent-
ly impoſed upon juſt in the ſame manner.
However, theſe engagements with perfons of
little or no fortune, how wild and extrava-
gant foever they may be deemed, will ſtill
appear to have been wife and prudent in
compariſon of that wiſdom and foreſight,
which afterwards he exerted. For in the
multitude of his great experience being tho-
roughly convinced that care alone, without
any ſort of abilities, would be ſufficient for
C2
all
20
Eſſay on the Life and
all purpoſes relating to his concerns in the
county of Cavan ; away he ſends down his
own coachmanT OM with his wife the cook-
maid to manage all his affairs at this cele-
brated forge. The coachman he thought
was a good ſharp fellow, and therefore not
caſily to be over-reached by the managers of
other people. And really the fellow ap-
proved himſelf to be dexterous enough; for
by the confuſion and fuffling of accounts,
like other great miniſters, and particularly
by entering into cabals with the greatest
knave belonging to the whole confederacy,
he contrived it ſo, that he brought in his
maſter ten or twelve thouſand pounds in
debt, when money was at ten per cent; and
at the ſame time raiſed a fortune for himſelf
of about fifteen hundred pounds a year.
Such was the riſe of thoſe people, who live
down yonder in the country. This. I only
mention careleſly by the way, leſt hereafter
they might forget they were deſcended from
our menial ſervants. But without raking any
further into the aſhes of the dead, or ex-
poſing the character of a certain egregious
rogue to the abomination of men, I ſhall
haſten to conclude this part of my narrati-
on; and obſerve, that in the year 1693, im-
mediately after the deceaſe of counſellor
GODWIN Swift, his heirs were obliged to
fell for the payment of his debts fuch a
number of his eftates, that not above the
eighth
Character of Dr. Swift.
21
eighth part fell to the inheritance of his
children. All I ſhall ſay further is, that none
had ever any reaſon to complain of God-
WIN, except his own poſterity. But as
the whole of his intention was principally
directed to the furtherance of their welfare
in general, his heirs, after ſome little grum-
bling among themſelves, generouſly forgave
the miſconduct of their father, as I remem-
her to have learned among the immediate
fufferers.
CHA P. III.
HA
AVING, I think, ſufficiently re-
moved all the aſperſions and reproach-
ful infinuations, that have been raiſed againſt
the family of Dr. Swift, I ſhall immedi-
ately enter upon his life and character, with-
out inſiſting upon any further particulars.
But ſince the Doctor himſelf, as I told you be-
fore, hath written ſome accounts of his own
life, which you will find in the Appendix, I
Thall in the courſe of theſe remarks touch
upon thoſe points only in a ſummary way ;
and obſerve in this place, that Dr. Swift's
father, JONATHAN Swift, married, when
he was about the age of three and twenty,
Mrs. ABIGAIL Erick of Leiceſterſhire, de-
fcended from the moſt antient family of the
ERICKS, who derive their lineage from
ERICK
C 3
22 Effay on the Life and
ERICK * the Forefter, a great commander,
who raiſed an army to oppoſe WILLIAM
the CONQUEROR, by whom he was van-
quiſhed, and afterwards employed to com-
mand that prince's forces. This Mrs. ERICK
brought her huſband little or no fortunc ; and
Mr. Swift dying about two years after his
marriage, before he could make a ſufficient
eftabliſhment for his family, left his widow
in very narrow circumſtances.
But, her
huſband's eldeſt brother, counſellor GODWIN
Swift, received her into his family with
great affection; where, about ſeven months
after the deceaſe of her huſband, ſhe became
the mother of her ſecond child, the famous
DR. JONATHAN SWIFT, who was born up-
on the zoth day of November, 1667.
By all the accounts that I can hear of the
above-mentioned MRS. ERICK, the Doctor's
mother, ſhe was a woman greatly beloved
and eſteemed by all the family of the SwIFTS.
Her converſation was ſo extreamly polite,
chearful and agreeable even to the young
and ſprightly that ſome of the family, who
paid her a viſit near fifty years ago at Leiceſter,
ſpeak of her to this day with the greateſt
affection. I am told ſhe was of a generous
and hoſpitable nature, that ſhe was very ex-
act in all the duties of religion, and paid her
attendance at the publick worſhip generally
twice a day į that ſhe was a very early riſer,
• Vid. Appendix, Sect. 19.
and
Character of Dr. Swift.
23
and was always dreſſed for the whole day at
about fix o'clock in the morning in a man-
tua and petticoat, which according to the
faſhion of thoſe times the conſtantly wore ;
that her chief amuſements were needle-work
and reading, and that ſhe was equally fond of
both her children, notwithſtanding ſome diſa-
greements that ſubfifted between them. She
had a ſmall annuity of twenty pounds a year,
which her huſband had purchaſed for her in
England immediately after his marriage; and
which, I think, was her whole independent
fortune. But the many valuable preſents the
frequently received from her huſband's relati-
ons, and particularly from his nephews abroad
in the time of her old age, to whom ſhe was
pleaſed to acknowledge very great obligations,
ſufficiently made up for the ſcantineſs of her
circumſtances; inſomuch that ſhe declared in
her latter days (for indeed ſhe was a woman
of an eaſy contented ſpirit) that ſhe was rich
and happy, and abounded with every thing.
The reader cannot but have obſerved in
one of the foregoing ſections from what fa-
mily Mrs. Erick was deſcended; but our
ſublime Critick, whoſe polite reflexions on
the family of Dr. Swift are obvious to the
moſt careleſs peruſer of his Remarks, hath
wholly fupprefled the account of Mrs. E-
RICK's.gencaology; and really I think he is
to be commended for it in point of judg-
ment; becauſe it hath been long a received
opinion,
C4
24
Eſſay on the Life and
opinion, founded upon experience, that wif-
dom, fire, generoſity and ſpirit are as fre-
quently derived from the lineage of the mo-
ther, as from the lineage of the father,
The great Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE hath ad-
opted the very fame individual ſentiments,
as we find in that account, which he hath
given us of the old princeſs dowager of O-
RANGE in the firſt chapter of his Memoirs,
where he faith, " That The was a woman of
“ the moſt wit and good ſenſe in general, that
" he had ever known; and that ſhe had
thereby a great part in forming the race of
" the prince, (the late king WILLIAM) and
"the mighty improvement it received from
" three very extraordinary women, as well
" as three ſo great men in the laſt deſcents.”
But ſurely the leaſt advantage of that fort
was not to have been attributed to ſuch a
towering genius as D R. SWIFT; his own
perſonal abilities being in themſelves, without
any kind of luſtre from birth, ſtation, or
fortune, too bright and conſpicuous to be
conſidered without envy, rancour, and de-
traction. But if HORACE be right in his
obſervation, Fortes creantur fortibus & bonis ;
I believe the author of the Remarks will find
it no eaſy matter, with all his own natural
philoſophy, to account from what ſource,
unleſs it were from ſome particular advan-
tageous circumſtances attending his , birth,
Dr, Swift could poſſibly have derived that
exalted
Character of Dr. Swift.
25
exalted force of ſpirit, which raiſed him al-
moſt above the whole world, and encou-
raged him to entertain, although with great
politeneſs, one of the moſt ſublime families
in Europe with ſuch a freedom of converſa-
tion, as would not have been endured in
any
other mortal. You may remember what he
faith, talking of his own manners,
With princes kept a due decorum ;
But never ſtood in awe before 'em.
In his Dialogue between Richmond LODGE
and MARBLE - HILL, (a piece wherein you
may find ſome of the beſt and fineſt portraits
of Dr. Swift in three or four different atti-
tudes that ever were drawn) we are alſo told
in his own ludicrous way, that he generally
ſpunged a breakfaſt once a week from the
princeſs of Wales; and, I believe, we may
take his own word for it, that he frequently
uſed
To cry the bread was ſtale, and mutter
Complaints againſt the royal butter.
Such trifles, although whims and maggots in
the brain of Dr. Swift, could not have
been ſupported by any character but his own.
I cannot tell what is the meaning of it, but I
think I have digreffed unawares into critical
obſervations.
But to return more immediately to our
preſent deſign, Dr. Swift's voyage to
White-
26 Eſſay on the Life and
>
Wbitebaven * where he was carried by
his nurſe when he was about a year old,
and his return to Ireland about three years af-
ter, gave occaſion to many ludicrous whims
and extravagancies in the gaiety of his con-
verſation. Sometimes he would declare, that
he was not born in Ireland at all, and ſeem
to lament his condition, that he ſhould be
looked upon as a native of that country;
and would infift, that he was ſtolen from
England when a child, and brought over to
Ireland in a band-box. But ſure it is, what-
ever the motives were that prevailed on Dr.
Swift to ſpeak in this manner, they were
not borrowed from any ſort of contempt,
which he had ſecretly entertained againſt
Ireland conſidered merely as a nation, but
father proceeded from ſeveral other ſources,
which in the current of theſe papers we ſhall
have occaſion to remark. It is certain, that
his chief deſire throughout his whole life
was to recover a ſettlement in that coun-
try, from which his father and the greater
part of that generation had been driven by
the iniquity of thoſe hypocritical times which
preceded the reſtoration ; times ſo replete
with inſtances of bloodſhed and cruelty, as
even to draw upon the nation, although very
unjuſtly, the character of being bloody and
cruel from the pen of one of the fineſt au-
thors now living. However indeed MON-
STEBR VOLTAIRL, whoſe accounts of our
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. 21.
poli-
Character of Dr. Swift.
27
political parties and ſtruggles in defence of
our conftitution are weak trifling and fu-
perficial, ought to have conſidered, how im-
poſſible it is, that cruelty and blood-thirſti-
neſs can be agreeable to the genius of a brave
and a free people. I would adviſe that gen-
tleman, before he pretends to throw out any
more ſuch invidious remarks upon the people
of England, to recollect the maſſacre at Pa-
ris with all its aggravating circumſtances,
wherein ten thouſand hugonots, and among
the reſt five hundred barons knights and
gentlemen (beſide thirty thouſand more in
other
parts of France) were all butchered on
the eve of the 24th of Auguſt, 1512*. A
ſcene of cruelty and treachery and murder
beyond all the barbarities, accumulated one
upon another, that England was ever guilty
of ſince the creation of the world. But to
return from this digreffion; DR. SWIFT
could neither ſay unto himſelf, I am de-
ſcended from that colony of Engliſh, which
in the days of old prevailed over the ABO-
RIGEN ES of Ireland, and forcibly took por-
feffion of their fields ; neither could he ſay,
I am defcended from that fanatical army of
roundheads, which, after they had glutted
their inhumanity their rage and their cru-
elty with the blood of ſome hundred thou-
land women and children, beſide a great
number of the aged, and other innocent
Vid. D'Avila's hiſtory, B. 5:
perſons
28 Eſſay on the Life and
perſons who had never reſiſted their arms,
obtained half the kingdom in debentures ;
and therefore I ſhould be content with the
lot of my inheritance. But on the contra-
ry, he muſt have faid, I am ſprung from
thoſe, who with all their might and vigor
oppoſed the rebellion of England, until at laſt
they were ſo oppreſſed beyond meaſure, that
in queſt of a maintenance their poſterity were
forced to abandon their native country. Is
it therefore any matter of wonder, that as
the hart panteth after the water brooks, ſo
the ſpirit of Dr. Swift ſhould have panted
after a ſettlernent in ENGLAND?
I will grant, moreover, that Dr. Swift
could never endure to be called an Iriſhman,
having really no fort of title to boaſt his ge-
nealogy (like the O BRIENS, O Neills,
O CONNORS, O ROURKES, O Dowds,
,
M'CARTYS, M'DONNELS, and ſeveral others)
from any of thoſe families which are ſprung
from the MILESIANS, or at leaſt from the
ABORIGINES *; fuch families alone having a
title, in the opinion of Dr. SWIFT, to be
ranked as of the blood of the Iriſh. And
ſurely, if there be no gentleman deſcended
from thoſe families, who would like to be
called an Engliſhman, ſuppoſing that his birth
had happened at Shrewſbury in his mother's
return from Bath; the ABORIGINES of Ire-
1
* I term all thoſe ABORIGINES, who were inhabitants of
icland before the reign of Henry the II.
land
Character of Dr. Swift.
29
land cannot be angry with their beloved Dr.
Swift for indulging the ſame prejudice in
favour of England.
But ſure it is, that Dr. Swift had re-
veral other inducements for deſiring a ſettle-
ment in England. All the vigorous part of
his life, from the age of twenty-one to forty-
ſeven, he had ſpent in England, ſome few
occaſional journies to Ireland only excepted.
In England he had contracted moſt of his
friendſhips. In England his politicks were ad-
mired, and his perſon was beloved : but in
Ireland, at leaſt for ſome years after the queen's
death, his politicks were deſpiſed, and his
perſon was deteſted. Beſides, he could not
imagine that Ireland was a place for exert-
ing thoſe innumerable talents, which God in
his mercy to theſe kingdoms had ſo abun-
dantly, enriched him with. But thank Hea-
ven, the Doctor was wholly diſappointed in
all his views. For in Ireland he was forced
to live in ſpight of his inclinations; and thoſe
HERCULEAN politicks, which nothing could
oppoſe, were the only means under God
which could have ſaved that unhappy king-
dom from deſtruction in the year 1724. But
hereafter we ſhall find a more convenient op-
portunity for enlarging upon that variety of
benefits, which from time to time he con-
ferred
upon Ireland.
But to return from theſe digreſſions to
the purſuit of our main deſign. Soon after
Dr. Swift had been ſtolen from England,
and
30 Effay on the Life and
and brought over to Ireland in a band-box,
he was ſent at fix years of age
to the ſchool
of Kilkenny, where having continued eight
years, he was admitted into the univerſity of
Dublin at the
age
of about fourteen. His
ge-
nius was by no means turned to the purſuit
of academick ftudies, but hiſtory and poetry
engroffed his whole inclinations; infomuch
that when the time came for his commenc-
ing batchelor of arts, he was ſtopped of his
degree for dulneſs and infufficiency*, and at
laſt hardly admitted in a manner little to his
credit, which is called in that univerſity fpe-
ciali gratiâ. I remember, that a good many
years ago I had ſome converfation with him
upon theſe matters. I told him, that he cer-
tainly muſt have been idle in thoſe days ;
but he aſſured me to the contrary, and de-
clared, that he could never underftand logick,
pbyſicks, metapbyficks, natural philoſophy, ma-
thematicks, or any thing of that fort. But
I will tell you, ſaid he, the beſt jeſt of it all
was, when I produced my Teftimonium at Ox-
ford in order to be admitted ad eundem, they
miſtook ſpeciali gratia for ſome particular
Atrain of compliment, which I had received
from the univerſity of Dublin on account of
my ſuperior merit ; and I leave you to gueſs,
whether it was my buſineſs to undeceive them.
And to this miſtake I think he attributed moſt
of the civilities he received at Oxford. He
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. 22.
3
entered
Character of Dr. Swift.
31
entered himſelf a member of Hart-Hall, now
Hartford-College, and took his maſter of arts
degree July 5, 1692.
What I am going to relate will, I believe,
aſtoniſh the world, as much as ever it aſto-
niſhed me or any body elſe, and yet I am
encouraged to proceed in my account by an
authority which is ſo far above all queſtion,
that I think I ſhould be guilty of injuſtice to
the memory of the Doctor if I wholly ſuppreſ-
fed it. MR. WARREN* , the chamber fellow
of Dr. Swift in the univerſity of Dublin,
and a gentleman of undoubted veracity,
(whoſe fifter had made ſome very conſidera-
ble impreſſions upon the Doctor's heart in the
days of his youth) aſſured a relation of mine,
whom he courted for a wife about eight ar
nine and forty years ago, that he ſaw The Tale
of a Tub in the hand-writing of Dr. Swift,
when the Doctor was but nineteen years old ;
but what corrections or improvements it
might have received before its publication in
the year 1697, he could by no means declare.
However, it is amazing that any creature of
that
age
ſhould have had learning and capa-
city enough to frame fo bold an allegory in
his own brain, and afterwards be able to
ſupport it with any degree of ſpirit throughout
a number of theets. I am indeed thoroughly
perſuaded from the conſideration of many
* WESSENDRA WARREN, eſq; a gentleman of fortune
in the neighbourhood of Belfaff in the north of Ireland.
paſſages
32 Eſſay on the Life and
paſſages in the work itſelf, that it muſt have
endured many ſharp corrections, and likewiſe
admitted a great number of improvements be-
fore the year 1697. But ſtill we muſt ac-
knowledge, in ſpight of all detraction, that
properly ſpeaking this great and mighty hul-
wark of our glorious reformation (which all
the batteries that ever can be raiſed againſt
it, whether from Rome or Geneva, muft af-
fault in vain) is only the corrected work of a
boy's imagination.
CHA P. IV.
BU
UT I ſuppoſe, according to the rules
of biography I ſhould in the former
chapter have mentioned the name of Sir
WILLIAM 'T'EMPLE, before I had contrived
to make Dr. Swift a maſter of arts in the
univerſity of Oxford. A digreffion however
in this place will appear on ſeveral accounts
to anſwer all material purpoſes whatſoever
equally as well
, the effects of that friendſhip
having ſupplied the enemies of the Doctor with
fuch a parcel of nonſenfical ribaldry Nander
and calumny, as might have coſt me a good
deal of pains, before I could have entirely diſ-
perſed it to the ſatisfaction of the world, if an
utter impoſſibility of its being truth had not
happily intervened. And yet, ſurpriſing to
conceive! That BENE PRÆPARATUM PEC-
TUS;
Character of Dr. Swift.
33
TUS;
That QUINTESSENCE OF HUMANITY;
the CRITICK GENERAL of the age ; with-
out any provocation received, and conſequent-
ly without any pretended right to begin fo
furious an affault, hath taken occaſion from
this infamous Nander (which even his own
pen hath ſufficiently refuted) to aſperſe Dr.
Swift, and his whole family, with ſuch an
amplification of bitterneſs invective and re-
proach, as I believe with all his rhetorick,
and all the flirts of his merry companion
the little dapper Meiosis * into the bar.
gain, he would find it no eaſy matter to juſtify
cither to the living or to the dead.
But, before we enter upon a diſcourſe of
thoſe favours, which DR. SWIFT in the
early part of his life received from Sir WIL-
LIAM TEMPLE, it will be requiſite to ob-
ſerve, that Sir John TEMPLE+, maſter of
the rolls in Ireland, became ſoon after the re-
ſtoration of king CHARLES the ſecond inti-
mately acquainted with counſellor Godwin
SWIFT, the uncle of the Doctor; and this in-,
timacy by degrees improved into a warm, ſin-
cere, diſintereſted friendſhip. Sir John was
elderly, a man of fortune and character, and
* M110sis or DIMINUTION; a little whiffling Gnome,
commonly called a figure in rhetorick; which, like a ſnake
in the graſs, ruas, and flies, and creeps, and hops, and di-
verts itſelf throughout all the pages of our modern criticks.
The food of this animal is the repuration of great men,
which ic greedily devours in a manner wonderful to con-
ceive.
+ Vid. Appendix, Sect. 23.
fixed
D
34
Eſſay on the Life and
fixed in his ſtation. Counſellor Swift was
in the vigor of his life, rifing in fortune, and
famous at the bar. I am ſure from the ac-
counts I have heard, nothing was left undone
by either of theſe men, that could have pro-
moted the intereſt, or the reputation of the
other. They ſpent much of their time to-
gether, and as they frequently dined and
paſſed the remainder of the day at each other's
houſes, the whole family of the SWIFTS
became intimately acquainted with that open,
generous, diſintereſted man. However in-
dced I am perſuaded, that as the fortune of
Sir John TEMPLE was conſpicuouſly great,
and far above all acceſſion of increaſe from
the intereſt of his cotemporaries, at the time
his friendſhip commenced with counſellor
Swift, the chief tribute that he could pofli-
bly receive for obligations conferred, eſpeci-
ally on the younger branches of that family,
was a return of grateful acknowledgments.
This friendſhip continued for many years
without interruption, even to the laſt hour of
Sir John's life. And after the deceaſe of
that great man, the family of the Swifts
were not wholly forgotten by his renowned
poſterity. It happened, perhaps not unfor-
tunately for Dr. Swift, that Sir John's eldeſt
fon, the famous Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE,
married a lady to whom the Doctor's mother
was related; and this conſideration, added to
the remembrance of old friendſhips between
the
Character of Dr. Swift.
35
the two families, might eaſily have induced
ſo great and generous a man as Sir Willi-
AM TEMPLE, to adviſe and direct a young
ſcholar of ſuch amazing abilities, but no for-
tune, that was juſt upon the brink of ſtep-
ping into the world, as Dr. SWIFT then
was, juſt about the time of the revolution.
But let the friendſhip of Sir WILLIAM
Temple to this riſing genius have been what
it would, our critick's account of it makes
ſuch a fuſs, and racket, and clatter, as plainly
demonſtrates the whole relation to have been
uſhered in purely for the ſake of that ele-
vated reſounding ſtroke at the cloſe of one
of his paragraphs, ſo much to the honor of
his friend Swift, and the reputation of his
family; which, after all, is only wit upon
crutches; and even that borrowed from the
vileſt and moſt nonſenſical dregs of idolatry.
Nevertheleſs I grant with pleaſure, that Dr.
SWIFT was obliged to Sir WILLIAM TEM-
But really ſuch a torrent of ſcandal,
and ſuch an accumulation of reproaches have
been thrown upon Dr. Swift meerly on
this account, that I believe a cloſer inſpection
into theſe matters will not be judged unne-
ceffary; and therefore I ſhall endeavour, as
far as that glimmering of light, which hap-
pens to glance upon theſe anecdotes, can di-
rect me in the purſuit, to trace out the nature
and the extent of thoſe ſeveral obligations.
PLE.
D 2
IT
36 Eſſay on the Life and
It is clear to a demonſtration, that before
Dr. Swift had in the year 1688 gone to
viſit his mother * at Leiceſter, where he
continued for ſome months before he
went to Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, he
had been a ſtudent for ſeven years to in
Trinity College, Dublin, a length of time
ſufficient to acquire all that ſort of know-
ledge, wherein univerſities do more eſpeci-
ally abound; and therefore it cannot be ſup-
poſed with any colour of reaſon, that he
went to Oxford with any other view than to
wipe off that aſperſion, contained in the
words ſpeciali gratia, which had been
thrown upon his character in Dublin, by
taking his maſter's degree in that other fa-
mous univerſity. Aye, but faith the author
of the Remarks," in the midſt of this diſtreſs-
« ful ſituation (meaning the loſs which Dr.
Swift had ſuſtained in the year 1688 by
that ſort of lethargy, which had rendered
his uncle and chief ſupport incapable of
being of the leaſt ſervice to his family and
friends] “ as if it was ordained that no in-
« cident ſhould bereave mankind of ſuch a
genius, Sir WILLIAM Temple (whoſe
lady was related to Dr. Swift's mother)
“ moſt generouſly ſtept in to his aſſiſtance,
" and avowedly ſupported his education at
“ the univerſity of Oxford." But in the
name of all, that is cither wife or learned
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. 23.
Vid. DR. Swift's letter to his uncle WILLIAM SWIFT
among
Character of Dr. Swift.
37
among human race, what further univerſity
education doth any mortal upon
earth require
after he hath ſtudied for ſeven years in Ox-
ford, Cambridge or Dublin? I have as great
a reſpect for univerſities, and particularly for
univerſity degrees, as any man can poſſibly
entertain without running into blindneſs and
pedantry. But ſurely when a man hath been
reſident for three years after taking his batche-
lor's degree, and is juſt prepared for com-
mencing a maſter of arts, the meer perform-
ance of the required exerciſes upon thoſe oc-
caſions cannot be deemed in the eye of coin-
mon ſenſe to be any thing more than a pro-
per, decent conformity to thoſe ceremonies,
which are with great wiſdom appointed by
the ſtatutes for exalting young men into an
higher rank among the profeſſors of learn-
ing? But ſtill methinks I hear it ſaid,
Notwithſtanding all this, Sir WILLIAM
TEMPLE avowedly ſupported his education
et Oxford; a point which, conſidering the
many reproaches lately thrown upon the
Doctor, requires to be cleared up as accu-
rately as poſſible, and therefore I ſhall pro-
ceed to enquire into this matter with the ut-
moſt caution, tracing the footſteps of DR.
Swift from the year 1688 until the death
of Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE in the year 1699.
DR. Swift in the year 1688 having ob-
ferved, that his fortunes began upon the infaa
nity of his uncle to be clouded with a me-
lancholy
D3
38 Effay on the Life and
lancholy aſpect, took a journey to Leiceſter **;
in order to conſult with his mother what
courſe of life he had better reſolve to purſue.
And accordingly having acquainted his mo-
ther (who by all accounts had a very clear
underſtanding) with the unhappy ſituation of
his affairs, the returned him an anſwer to
this effect : “ I really cannot tell in your pre-
“ fent circumſtances what advice to give
you, but ſuppoſe you would apply your-
o felf to Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, who is
« both a great and a wiſe man? I cannot
" but think he would at leaſt give you ſome
** directions, and perhaps, if he were ac-
"quainted with your uncomfortable ſituati-
on, recommend
you to ſome kind of em-
« ployment either in church or ſtate. His
lady you know is a relation of ours, and
u belides his father, Sir John TEMPLE, had
* a regard and friendſhip for your father
“ and for your uncles until his laſt hour.
“ Go your ways in the name of God to
" Sir William TEMPLE, and upon afk-
ing his advice you will immediately per-
“ ceive what encouragement or preferment
you are likely to expect from his friend
“ Thip.” This converſation alone might ea-
fily have prevailed on fo diſcerning a ſpirit
as Dr. Swift to pay his reſpects to ſo great
å man as Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, whoſe
virtues and abilities were highly and deferv-
Vid. Appendix, Sect. 23.
edly
Character of Dr. Swift.
39
cdly eſteemed as well by the king as by the
whole nation. And yet I cannot preſume to
ſay that Dr. Swift himſelf before he left
Ireland might not have encouraged fome de-
ſign of this ſort within his own breaft, as it
is in truth morally impoſſible but that he
muſt always have known he was related by
his mother to Sir WILLIANI's lady, and that
between the two families of Sir JOHN TEM
PLE and the Swifts there had been old
friendſhips, which ſeems to be hinted at
in the beginning of the 23d ſection of the
Appendix, although in a manner pot fo clear
as the preſent occahon requires. But what-
ever motive it was that prevailed on DR.
Swift to wait upon Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE,
whether it was the prior determination of
his owo breaft, or whether it was the
per-
fuafion of his mother, or whether it was the
invitation of Sir WILLIAM himſelf, ſure it
is that he was received with kindneſs and be.
nevolence by that great and generous mi-
nifter.
Dr. Swift having paid his reſpects to
Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE at the age of one
and twenty, it amounts to ſomewhat more
than a bare moral impoſſibility, that ſo great
and wife a ſtateſman thoroughly verſed in
all the windings and turnings of human na-
ture, as Sir WILLIAM undoubtedly was
from his great experience both at home and
abroad, ihould not immediately perceive,
what
D4
40
Eſſay on the Life and
what a treaſure was offered to his friendſhip
by this amazing and exalted young genius,
whoſe abilities had been employed for ſeven
years in all the nobleſt reſearches both of
Greek and Roman literature, whether among
poets, hiſtorians or philoſophers. And ac-
cordingly we find, that his talents were ſoon
remarked *, and his perfon highly eſteemed
by that fagacious miniſter. The firſt time
he went to Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, he con-
tinued with him for two years of ; during
which period it is unreaſonable to ſuppoſe,
that he had never acquainted Sir WILLIAM
in all their variety of converſation with that
indignity, which had been thrown upon his
character in the univerſity of Dublin. But
whatever might upon that occafion have
been the ſentiments of Sir WILLIAM TEM-
PLE, we do not find that Swift immedi-
ately took a journey to Oxford in order to
perform the requiſites for his maſter's degree ;
but on the contrary that he returned to Ire-
land for the recovery of his health : where
growing worſe, he ſoon went back to Sir
WILLIAM TEMPLE, with whom riſing into
ſome confidence he was often truſted with
matters of great importance. Thus far
we may learn from the 23d ſection of the
Appendix.
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. 23, 24.
+ Vid. Appendix,
Seft. 230
AND
Character of Dr. Swift.
41
And here in juſtice to the world (and per-
haps in juſtice to myſelf) I ſhall embrace an
opportunity of acquainting the curious en-
quirers into the ſeveral anecdotes relating to
Dr. Swift, that purſuant to an account I
received from England ſo very lately as the
month of December fifty-three, I have had
the pleaſure to eraſe two or three leaves in
this part of my eſſay, wherein it happened
that I was greatly miſtaken with regard to
the Doctor's reſidence at Oxford, and to the
æra of his taking his maſter's degree in that
univerſity, as indeed within theſe two years
I have corrected many opinions concerning
the Doctor which I had before entertained.
It certainly were to be wiſhed that Dr.
Swift in that piece of a treatiſe, which he
writ
upon the lubject of his own life, had
not been wholly ſilent concerning his matri-
culation at Oxford, and the preciſe length of
time which he ſpent in that famous acade-
my. But to ſpeak freely my own ſentiments,
I believe he was deſirous (meerly through in-
dignation againſt the univerſity of Dublin,
where he thought he had been ill treated)
that the world ſhould imagine he had been
reſident more years at Oxford, than
fact that he had refided months in that de-
lightful ſcene of retirement. He would
ſometimes drop a word of his going from
Oxford to Leiceſter upon a viſit to his mo-
ther; which it is not improbable he might
have
appears in
42
Effay on the Life and
have done once during the time he con-
tinued a member of that univerfity : He
would alſo at particular times drop a hint
of his going from Oxford to Moore-Park,
which I verily believe he did ; but at the
fame time, from the late accounts I received,
I as verily believe that he never returned from
Moore-Park to Oxford; and yet in former
days, when I thought he had taken his
maſter's degree in the year ninety-one, that
was not my opinion. But to avoid a long
deſcant upon theſe matters, we may take it
for granted, that upon his reſolving to go into
the church, he looked upon it as a proper
expedient for his advancement in the world
with a good grace, to enter himſelf a mem-
ber of the univerſity of Oxford, and take his
maſter's degree in that ſeat of the Muses.
However indeed we cannot preſume, as I
abferved before, that he went to Oxford with
any real deſign to purſue academick ftudies,
which in fact he neither reliſhed nor under-
tood * , but rather to perform the common
requiſites appointed by the ſtatutes of Ox-
ford as preparatory to his degree. And ac-
cordingly we find, that upon his exhibiting
at Oxford his teftimonium from the univerſity
* It is known to have been a common ſaying among
his old cotemporaries, after they had obſerved the g eat fi-
gure which the Doctor made in the learned world, • That
when he was a young man in the univerfity of Dublix,
« be never underſtood one word of STIERIUS or SMIGLESI-
But for cards and poetry.”
I
of
:
(US.
Character of Dr. Swift.
43
of Dublin, he was admitted ad eundem tha
14th of June 1692, and upon the 5th of
July in three weeks after he took his maſ-
ter's degree, as appears in the following cer-
tificate :
Dr. Swift's certificate of his degree taken
at Dublin, ſent to Oxford, and extracted
from the congregation book by the Reve-
rend MR. FRANCIS WISE, B. D. keeper
of the archives of the univerſity of Ox-
ford, and F. A. S. Communicated by Ri-
CHARD RAWLINSON, L. L. D. and F. R.
et Ant. S. V. P.
OMI
Mnibus quorum intereſt falutem. Nos
præpofitus ſociique ſeniores Collegii Sa-
cro-lanctæ & Individue Trinitatis juxta Dublin
teftamur JONATHAN Swift die decimo quin-
to Februarii 1685 gradum baccalaureatûs in ar-
tibus ſuſcepiffe, præſtito prius fidelitatis erga
regiam majeſtatem juramento ; Quod de præ-
dičto teſtimonium ſubſcriptis fingulorum no-
minibus et collegii ſigillo quo in hiſce utimur
confirmandum curavimus. Datum die tertio
Maii 1692.
.
Rob. Huntington Præpof. L. S
St. George Arhe,
Rich. Reader,
Geo. Brown,
Ben. Scroggs.
Quibus
44 Eſſay on the Life and
of
Quibus in venerabili congregatione magiſtro-
rum regentium 14 die Junii 1692 habitâ
publicatis JonATHAN SWIFT (gratiâ prius
petitâ et conceffâ) ad eundem gradum, fta-
tum, et dignitatem, admiſſus fuit apud Oxo-
nienſes, quibus infignitus erat apud ſuos Dub-
linienſes.
10 Nov 1753,
vera copia
Ric. RAWLINSON,
JONATHAN Swift, M. A.
Hart Hall, July 5, 1692.
THE curious I know will be ſomewhat
amazed to find no ſuch words in the above
teftimonium as ſpeciali gratia *. The omif-
fion of them was undoubtedly an act of fa-
vour in the univerſity of Dublin, as there
was by no means an abſolute neceſſity for
branding the reputation of a young man with
ſuch ignominious characters.' But how ſhall
I vindicate what I have ſaid in the latter part
fity of Oxford's miſtaking Speciali gratia for
ſome particular ſtrain of compliment to the
Doctor on account of his ſuperior merits ?
The ſhorteſt vindication is perhaps the beſt.
Why then, by all the regards I have for
truth, and by all the deſires I have to be
thought a man of veracity, 1 had the ſtory
* Vid." Appendix, Sect. 22.
from
Character of Dr. Swift.
45
!
from the Doctor's own mouth, delivered ex-
actly in the ſame ſenſe, and almoſt in the
fame words I have uſed upon that occaſion.
The only difficulty then remaining is to ac-
count from what variety of ſcattered anec-
dotes the Doctor, who was undoubtedly a
man of great veracity, ſhould frame ſuch an
odd kind of a ſtory in relation to his teſti-
monium. I am inclined to believe that Dr.
Swift's reſolution of taking his maſter's de-
gree was occaſioned by a ſudden impulſe of
the mind upon his firſt determination of
go-
ing into the church ; that he writ over to
Ireland, and deſired the anſwer to his letter
with his teſtimonium incloſed might be di-
rected to be left for him at the poſt-houſe
in Oxford; and that he ſet out upon his jour-
ney from Moore-Park juſt time enough as
he apprehended to meet the anſwer to his
letter, without making any allowances for
thoſe delays which are the uſual obſtructi-
ons to all ſorts of buſineſs. I will ſuppoſe
likewiſe, that he came to Oxford a fortnight
or three weeks before his teſtimonium arrived ;
and that being conſcious to himſelf that his
batchelor's degree had been obtained speciali
gratia, he had not (through inexperience of
the world) any the moſt diſtant idea of re-
ceiving a teſtimonium with the omiſſion of
thoſe words; and therefore as he daily ex
pected a letter from Ireland, he was reſolved
to appear generous by declaring beforehand
to
46 Effay on the Life and
to ſome acquaintance in Oxford, that his bat-
chelor's degree had been conferred on him
fpeciali gratiâ ; but finding the expreſſion was
not underſtood in that univerſity (where there
is no ſuch cuſtom) he concealed the reproach
which it conveyed in Dublin; and the ſtory
being told with an interpretation to his ad-
vantage, it proved rather an honour than a
diſcredit to him in that learned ſociety. Per-
haps ideas of this ſort floating and mixing
with variety of other notions begot at laft
this whimfical ſtory in the Doctor's imagina-
tion, which I am thoroughly perſuaded he
believed to be true, as the omiffion of the
words ſpeciali gratiâ in his teftimonium cer-
tainly eſcaped his memory. Neither can
there be aſſigned any poſſible reaſon, why the
Doctor ſhould in his latter days have invent-
ed ſuch a whimſical tale, and impoſed it for
truth
upon his acquaintance, had he ſuſpect-
ed the ſtory was wrought up with
any mixture
of fable. And yet, after all, this manner
of accounting for the failures in the Doctor's
memory, is offered to the publick only by
way of a conjecture of my own, which is
therefore intirely ſubmitted to their judgment
and candor.
BUT to return from theſe material digref-
fions ; let us try then (as in Oxford there is
no expence worth naming which attends the
taking of a maſter's degree, unleſs it be
in
Character of Dr. Swift.
47
in the caſe of a grand compounder * ) what
this uncommon munificence of Sir WILLIAM
TEMPLE amounts to. Suppoſe, for argu-
ment's fake, that Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE,
who was indeed perfectly well acquainted
with the narrowneſs of the circumſtances of
his young friend, ſhould have made him &
preſent of a ſmall purſe when he ſet out
from Moore. Park upon his journey to Oxford
(which however does by no means appear
from the acknowledgments of Dr. Swift)
is there any thing very amazing in ſuch an in-
ſtance of benevolence? I hope not. Surely
I
may venture to ſay, there are twenty thou.
ſand actions done every year in theſe king-
doms of at leaſt equal generoſity? But that
Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, allowing that he
had given the author of the Tale of a Tub t
ſome trifling preſent, ſhould avowedly ſupport
his education at Oxford, that is, blaze it to
all the world, and found a trumpet to his own
fame, is what I can never imagine to be at
all conſiſtent with the character of a groat
and generous ſpirit; and therefore I can ne-
* Whoever is in actual poffeffion of forty pounds a year,
or in lieu thercof, according to the beft of my rement-
brance, of a thouſand pounds in money, is obliged by the
ſtatutes of Oxford to take his ſeveral degrees as a grand
compounder, which in fees and other expences amounteth to a
pretty large purſe.
+ The Tale of a Tub was not publiſhed before the Doctor
went to Oxford, but I have reaſon to believe that Sir Wil-
LIAM TEMPLE ſaw it in manuſcript before that period. And
the reader I fancy will be of the ſame opinion before he con-
cludes this chapter.
ne.
48
Eflay on the Life and
ver ſuppoſe that fo accompliſhed and wife a
man as Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE could have
been guilty of ſuch paultry nonſenſical vani-
ty. Beſides we are to conſider, that let the
Doctor's revenue have been ſupplied from
what ſprings foever, his greatneſs and genero-
ſity of nature would not have ſeemed to make
a parade with money that he was beholden
for to others : and therefore it muſt be grant-
ed, that he was far from indulging any ex-
travagance at Oxford. And ſurely without
extravagance to ſome high degree his whole
expence at the univerſity for a ſhort time
could only have amounted to a trifle? Yet
after all that has been ſaid by the author of
the Remarks, and all the conjectures that I
have made, or indeed can make, in favour
of Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE's generoſity, we
do not find any acknowledgments of Dr.
Swift to Sir WILLIAM upon that ſcore, but
rather a ſilence, which implicth the contrary,
as we may obſerve in a letter of his publiſhed
in the eighth volume * of his works, which
I am heartily forry was ever thrown into that
wild collection of his poſthumous writings.
His words are theſe, addreſſing himſelf to
my
Lord PALMERSTON, “ I own my obli-
gation to Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE for re-
"commending me to the late king, al-
" though without ſucceſs, and for his choice
«' of me to take care of his pofthumous
# In the Sth of the Dublin, and the latt volume of the
Lindon cdition.
writings.
I
Character of Dr. Swift.
49
writings. But I hope you will not charge
my being in his family as an obligation ;
" for I was educated to little purpoſe if I
“ had choſen his houſe on any other mo-
" tives than the benefit of his converſation
" and advice, and the opportunity of pur-
ſuing my itudies. For being born to no for-
tune, I was at his death as much to ſeek
" it as ever : And perhaps you will allow
“ that I was of ſome uſe to him. This I
“ will venture to ſay, that in the time when
I had ſome little credit, I did fifty times
more for fifty people from whom I ne-
ver received the leaſt ſervice or aſſiſtance ;
yet I ſhould not be pleaſed to hear a re-
"lation of mine reproaching them with in-
gratitude, although many of them well
“ deſerve it. For, thanks to party, I have
met in both kingdoms with ingratitude
enough."
I FREELY acknowledge, that when I firſt
caſt my eye upon theſe words I was greatly
ſurpriſed, having in truth been always of
opinion, before I was acquainted with this
account, that among other obligations to Sir
WILLIAM TEMPLE, the Doctor had been
obliged to him for at leaſt part of his re-
venue in that early ſeaſon of his life. But
as the caſe ſtands I am inclined to believe,
that if not the whole, the greater part
of
that money which ſupplied all his occafi-
ons, whether at Oxford, Moore-Park, or
E
any
50 Effay on the Life and
any where elſe, from the year 1688 until
he was preſented by the Lord Capel to the
prebend of Kilpoot about the latter end of the
year 1694, were remittances that he received
from his uncle William Swift, and par-
ticularly from his couſin german WILLOUGH-
BY Swift *, who was in thoſe times a very
conſiderable merchant at Liſbon ; whoſe pa-
ternal kindneſs, liberality and affection to a
great number of his relations, and particu-
larly to Dr. Swift among the reſt, as well
as to all the numerous progeny of his fa-
ther, can never be ſufficiently praiſed or ac-
knowledged by the family.
Vivet extento proculeius ævo,
Notus in fratres animi paterni :
Illum aget pennâ meniente ſolvi
Fama ſuperftes.
Hor. lib. 2. Od. 2.
To this merchant Dr. Swift is pleaſed to
acknowledge great obligations in a letter to
his couſin Deane Swift, who was then at
Liſbon. For the ſatisfaction of the world I
Thall venture to publiſh this letter, meerly
becauſe it is a voucher under the Doctor's
own hand to prove what is here aſſerted, but
* W11. LOUGHBY Swift was the ſecond ſon of Godwin
Swit, Efq; by his firſt wife, who was a near relation of the
- old Marchione fs of ORMOND; but in the year 1'88, and for
ſome years before, he was the eldelt ſon that Godwin had
living.
not
Character of Dr. Swift.
51
not with a deſign to have it criticiſed upon as
a work of genius, although I cannot ſay, if
it be conſidered as an epiſtle from a young
man a little above fix and twenty years old
to an intimate friend and relation, who was
at that time but juſt turned of twenty, that
it will appear in a very mean or contemptible
light. His epiſtle runs thus:
Leiceſter, June 3d, 1694.
to
.
I received your kind Letter to day from
your Siſter, and am very glad to find you
will ſpare time from Buſineſs ſo far as
write a long Letter to one you have none at
all with but Friendſhip, which as the World
paſſes, is perhaps one of the idleft Things in it.
'Tis a pleaſure to me to ſee You fally out of
your Road, and take Notice of Curioſityes,
of which I am very glad to have Part, and
deſire You to ſet by ſome idle minutes for a
Commerce which ſhall ever be dear to Me,
and from ſo good an Obſerver as you may eaſi-
ly be, cannot fail of being uſeful. I am ſorry
to ſee ſo much Superſtition in a Country ſo
given to Trade; I half uſed to think thoſe
two to be incompatible. Not that I utter-
ly dillike your Proceſſions for Rain or fair
Weather, which as trifling as they are, yet
have good Effects to quiet common Heads,
and infuſe a gaping Devotion among the Rab-
ble. But
your burning the old Woman, una
leſs
E 2
92
Effay on the Lite and
leſs ſhe were a Duegna, I ſhall never be re-
conciled to; though it is eaſily obſerved that
Nations which have moſt Gallantry to the
Young, are ever the ſevereſt upon the Old.
I have not Leiſure to deſcant further upon
your pleaſing Letter, nor any thing to re-
turn You from ſo barren a Scene as this,
which I ſhall leave in four Days towards my
journey for Ireland. I had deſigned a Letter
to my Colin WILLOUGHBY, and the laſt
Favour He has done me requires a great deal
of Acknowledgment, but the Thoughts of
my ſending ſo many before, has made me
believe it better to truſt You with deliver-
ing my beſt thanks to Him, and that You
will endeavour to perſuade Him how ex-
tream ſenſible of his goodneſs and generoſity
I wiſh and ſhall pray, He may be
as happy as he deſerves, and He can not be
more. My Mother deſires her beſt Love to
Him and to You, with both our Services to
My Colin his Wife.
I FORGOT to tell You I left Sir WILLIAM
TEMPLE a month ago, juſt as I foretold it
to You, and every thing happened thereup-
on, exactly as I gueſt, He was extream an-
gry I left Him, and yet would not oblige
Himſelf any further than upon my good Be-
haviour, nor would promiſe any thing firm-
ly to Me at all; ſo that every Body judged
I did beſt to leave Him; I deſign to be or-
dained September next, and make what En-
deavours
I am.
Character of Dr. Swift.
53
j
deavours I can for ſomething in the Church
I wiſh it may ever lye in my Colin's way or
Yours to have Intereſt to bring me in Chaplain
of the Factory.
If any thing offers from Dublin that may
ſerve either to ſatisfy or divert You, I will
not fail of contributing, and giving You con-
Nant Intelligence from thence of whatever
lou ſhall deſire.
I am your affectionate Cofin
and Servant
J. Swift *
And beſide the acknowledgments of the
Doctor to his couſin WLLLOUGHBY Swift
in the above epiſtle, I have a letter from the
Doctor's mother to her nephew DE A NE
Swift, dated Aug. 10, 1703, wherein
the expreſſeth herſelf in the following terms;
Pray be pleaſed to preſent my beſt ſervice
to my good nephew Swift [WILLOUGH-
BY Swift) and tell him I always bear in
my heart a grateful remembrance of all
the kindneſs he was pleaſed to ſhew to my
“ ſon.” A proof in my opinion that her
ſon JONATHAN was chiefly ſupported after
the inſanity of his uncle by this merchant at
Liſton.
HAVING lately converſed with M R s.
SWANTON, the eldeſt daughter of MR.
* N. B. This letter is printed exactly from an authentick
copy taken from the original.
WIL-
E 3
54
Eſſay on the Life and
WILLOUGHBY SWIFT, upon the ſubject of
the above letter from Dr. SWIFT, which I
had found ſome two or three days before a-
mong my father's papers, ſhe told me a whim-
fical ſtory which ihe had heard many years
ago
from the Doctor himſelf. It happened
when he was at the univerſity of Dublin,
that one day as he was looking out of his
window penſive and melancholy, his pockets
being then at the loweſt ebb, having ſpied a
maſter of a ſhip gazing about in the college
courts, LORD thought he, if that perſon
ſhould now be enquiring and ſtaring about
for my chamber, in order to bring me ſome
prelent from couſin WILLOUGHBY SWIFT,
what a happy creature ſhould I be? He had
ſcarce amuſed himſelf with this pleaſing ima-
gination, when behold the maſter of the
fhip having come into his chamber, aſked
him if his name was JONATHAN Swift ?
He told him it was. Why then, ſaid the
maſter, I have ſomething for you that was
ſent to you by Mr. WILLOUGHBY SWITT;
whereupon he drew out of his pocket a large
greafy leather bag, and poured him out all
the money that it contained on the table. .
As the fom which he had now received was
much greater than ever in his life he had been
maſter of before at any one time, he puſhed
over without reckoning them a good rum-
ber of the ſilver cobs (for it was all in that
ſpecie) to the honeſt ſailor, and deſired he
would
Character of Dr. Swift.
55
would accept of them for his trouble. But
the failor would not touch a farthing. No,
no, maſter, ſaid he, lze take nothing for my
trouble, I would do more than that comes
to for MR. WILLOUGHBY SWIFT. Where-
upon JONATHAN gathered up the money as
fast as he could, and thruſt it into his pocket ;
for by the lord HARRY, ſaid he, I was a-
fraid if the inoney had lain much longer
upon the table he might have repented his
generoſity and taken a good part of it. But
from that time forward he declared that he
became a better ceconomiſt, and never was
without ſome little money in his pocket.
In the following letter to his uncle WIL-
LIAM Swift you will find the Doctor ex-
preſſeth himſelf with abundance of gratitude
for the many obligations and favours he had
received at his hands. The letter itſelf
ap-
pears from the turbulent diſpoſition of the
words in the firſt fentence to have been writ-
ten quite extempore, and therefore only merits
our regard ſo far as it helps to clear up fome
paſſages in the Doctor's life, eſpecially thoſe
we have been ſo long inlifting upon in this
chapter. This letter, although very imper-
fect, ſufficiently points out all that we can
deſire to collect from it upon this oc-
cafion.
E 4
Sir
56 Eſſay on the Life and
write to you.
re-
Moore-Park, Nov. 29, 1692.
Sir,
My ſiſter told me you was pleaſed (when
ſhe was here) to wonder I did fo feldom
I been ſo kind to im-
pute it neither to ill mann
ſpect. I always
thought that
fufficient from one who has always been but
too troubleſome to you : beſides I know
your averſion to impertinence, and God
knows ſo very private a life as mine can fur-
niſh a letter with little elſe, for I often am
two or three months without ſeeing any body
beſides the family, and now my ſiſter is
gone I am likely to be more folitary than be-
fore. I am ſtill to thank you for your care
in my teſtimonium, and it was to very good
purpoſe, for I never was more fatisfied than
in the behaviour of the univerſity of Oxford
I had all the civilities I could wiſh
for, and ſo many
favours, that I am
aſhamed to have been more obliged in a few
weeks to ſtrangers, than ever I was in ſeven
years to Dublin college. I am not to take
orders * till the king gives me a prebendary ;
and Sir WillIAM TEMPLE, tho' he promiſes
me the certainty of it, yet is leſs forward
- to me.
You may obſerve from this paſſage, that he does not
ſpeak of going into the church as a point of news to his
uncle
than
Character of Dr. Swift.
57
than I could wiſh, * becauſe I ſuppoſe he be-
lieves I ſhall leave himf, and upon ſome
accounts I, he thinks me a little neceffary to
him
If I were
entertainment, or doing you any ſatisfaction
by my letters, I ſhould be very glad to per-
form it that way, as I am bound to do it by
all others. I am ſorry my fortune ſhould
fling ine fo far from the beſt of my relations,
but hope that I ſhall have the happineſs to
ſee you ſome time or other. Pray my hum-
ble ſervice to my good aunt and the rest of
my relations, if you pleaſe.
I CANNOT tell whether it be conſiſtent
with reaſon to form a critique upon the ſtile
and abilities of an author from any ſuch
trifling and careleſs performance as the above
extemporaneous epiftle, which was never in-
tended to have been ſeen by the publick.
Neither can I preſume to aſſert whether or
no the genius of the Doctor were then ar-
rived to any degree of ripeneſs. However
this I am ſure of, that his faculties were em-
ployed at that very period of time in reviſing
the works of Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, in
correcting the Tale of a Tub, and writing the
* Here are the grounds of a quarrel which happened be-
tiseen him and Sir WILLIAM Temple in the year 1694.
+ Which at laſt was the cauſe of a good deal of anger in
Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE.
Becauſe at that time he was employed in the reviſal of
Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE's works.
bittereſt
58
Eſſay on the Life and
bittereſt fatyre * that ever was conceived
in the brain of an author againſt all the
generations of criticks, from ZoïLUS of
and TIGELLIUS I, who begat ETCÆ-
TER A the elder, even to PERRAULTS
and
TubSect. 3.
+ Zoilus, a grammarian of Amphipolis, called HOMERO.
MASTIX, or Homer's SCOURGE, becauſe he writ againſt
HOMER. When he applied to the court of PTOLEMY PHI-
I ADELPHIUs for an encouragement amongſt the men of learn-
ing his petition was rejected. When he diſperſed his ob-
fervations on HOMER he was never anſwered by the men of
learning, but in general with thoſe opprobrious names of
Thracian flove and rhetorical dog. His remarks are perifhed
as things that men were aſhamed to preſerve, the juſt deſert
of whatever ariſes from the miſerable principles of ill-will or
envy. Vid. Pope's Ejay on Homer, Sect. 2.
| TIGELLIUs a fidler and a ſongſter, much regarded by
JULIUS CESAR, CLEOPATRA and AUGUSTUS for his taſte
and kill in muſick, but in all other reſpects univerſally
defpifed. He was the moſt impudent abandoned profligate
of his time. He decried the reputation of Horace, and
could not bear with his writings becauſe they were deficient
in grace and harmony.
PERRAULT a French critick in the days of Louis the
fourteenth. He writ a parallel between the Antients and
the Moderns, wherein he gives a preference to the latter.
He was the contempt of BoileAv for his ignorance and blun-
ders, as you may obſerve in the following epigram :
A monſieur PERRAULT, ſur les livres qu'il a faits contre
les anciens.
D'où vient que CICERON, PLATON, VIRGILE, HOMERE,
Et tous ces grands auteurs que l'univers revere,
Traduits dans vos écrits nous paroiſſent ſi ſots?
PERRAULT, c'eſt qu'en preſtant à ces eſprits ſublimes
Vos façons de parler, vos baſſeſſes, vos rimes,
Vous les faites tous des PERRAULTS.
And we are told by Dr. Swift in his Battle of the Books,
that HONER took PERRAULT by mighty force out of his
ſaddle,
Character of Dr. Swift.
59
and DENNIS, who begat ETCÆTERA
the younger.
HAVING conſidered this uncommon mu-
nificence of Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE to Dr.
Swif'r in all its ſeveral appearances, and as
far as lay in my power done equal juſtice to
the memory of both, I ſhall now proceed to
acquaint you in what reſpects the Doctor
was highly obliged to that great and learned
miniſter.
The obligations conferred by Sir Wills-
AM TEMPLE upon his young friend were in-
finitely ſuperior to any pecuniary preſents;
which however in the opinion of thoſe who
are untinctured with generoſity, are the only
forts of kindneſs that deſerve a return of
gra-
titude. The greateſt obligation that Swift
had to Sir WilLIAM TEMPLE, and which
ſaddle, then hurld him at FonTENELLE, with the ſame blow
daſhing out both their brains.
1 Dennis an officer of the Culion doufe. He writ, as
we are told, a book of Renurks againſt Mr. Addison's Tra-
gedy of Cito, another againſt Pope's Homer, and many
other forgotten pieces of the like fort. We are alſo told in
that jocofe narrative concerning the prange and deplorable
frenzy of Mr. John DENNIS, that on the 27th of March,
1712, MR. DENNIS finding on MR. Lintot's counter a book
called an Way on Criticiſm, jutt then publifhed, he read a
page or two with much frowning, till coming to thefe two
lines :
Same bave at firt for wits, then poets paft,
Turn'd criticks next, and prov'd plain fools at laſt.
He flung down the book in a terrible fury, and cried out,
By Geo be means me; which is allowed to have been the
beft remark he erer made in his life.
in
60 Effay on the Life and
in fact was the ſource of all the reſt, was the
honour of his being thought not unworthy
to be the domeſtick friend and companion of
ſo wiſe, ſo learned, and ſo accompliſhed a
ſtateſman. Sir WILLIAM quickly obſerved
that Swift's genius was ſtrong and piercing,
and that his talents were vaſtly improved by
great variety of literature, which was the
cauſe of raiſing him in a ſhort time into Sir
WILLIAM's confidence. The politicks of
our young aſpiring genius were enlarged day
after day by the wiſdom and converſation of
this old experienced counſellor, who was tho-
roughly verſed in all the windings and turn-
ings of party during the reigns of king
CHARLES and James the ſecond *. And
rcally ſo great was the maſter, that even the
fcholar was thought fit to be truſted with
matters of the laſt importance t at the age
of twenty-three. It was at Moore-Park that
Swift corrected the Tale of a Tub, and
writ his famous Digreſſions, every ſection of
which, one after another, he ſubmitted to
the judgment and correction of his learned
friend. And Sir WILLIAM in return to the
compliment recommended to Swift the care
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. 24.
+ Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE retired of his own accord from
all publick employments in the year 1680, but we cannot
from thence infer that ſo wiſe a man, who had laboured for
!wenty years in the ſervice of the crown, muft for that rea-
fon have been wholly careleſs during the remainder of his
life to enquire into the affairs of his country.
3
and
Character of Dr. Swift. 61
THE
and revifal of all his writings. In ſhort
that greatneſs of mind in Sir WILLIAM
TEMPLE, which refuſed to accept of a
peerage from his friend king WILLIAM,
vouchlafed to rejoice in a compliment from
his own pupil. THE GENERAL OF
ALLIES TO THE ANTIENTS in the Battle of
the Books, will for ever be a title of honor
that will command reſpect from the great,
the learned, and the wiſe throughout all ge-
nerations.
PERHAPS it may be ſomewhat amuſing,
before we proceed any further, to take a
ſhort, impartial and curfory view of that
friendſhip which ſubfifted between Sir Wil-
LIAM TEMPLE and Dr. Swift for about
eleven years, the accounts whereof in the
23d and 25th ſections of the Appendix are
ſhort, rapid and obſcure. Nevertheleſs there
is compriſed in thoſe ſections all that Dr.
SWIFI intended thould ever have been
known to poſterity with regard to theſe mat-
ters. However it happens there are a few
particular anecdotes of undoubted authority
which help us in a great meaſure to clear up
ſome very material paſſages in that early pe-
riod of the Doctor's life; and which the
pre-
ſent ſituation of his fame obligeth us to ani-
madvert upon in a critical manner. But to a-
void a multiplicity of words, Dr. SWIFT
having waited upon Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE
in the year 1688, continued with him in his
houſe
62 Effay on the Life and
houſe for about two years. What terms of
friendſhip they were upon during this pe-
riod is for want of authority only to be con-
jectured from that fimilarity of taſte which
feems to have animated the ſpirits of both
theſe great men in the purſuit of knowledge.
Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE was an excellent
fcholar, a man of wit and poetry, wiſe, phi-
bofophical, experienced, and ſtill in the vigor
of his genius, being at the time of the revo-
lution juſt fifty-eight. But in the latter part
of his life he was tortured with the gout, the
gravel, and the ſtone, even to the higheſt de-
gree that human nature is perhaps able to
endure; and therefore was inclined rather to
indulge himſelf in the pleaſures of eaſe and
tranquillity whenſoever he had a moment's
refpite from theſe agonizing torments, than
apply his faculties to the revifal and correcti-
on of his own writings. We find however,
that like all other men of genius, he was far
from being regardleſs of his fame. He cer-
cainly was deſirous to have his works appear
in their proper degree of luſtre; but his fre-
quent infirmities obliged him to have re-
courſe to an affiftant. And where could he
have found in the whole nation any young
man ſo thoroughly capable in all reſpects to
reviſe them under his own direction, as that
very perſon who was honoured with his
friendſhip, and reſident at his houſe at that
very time? However indeed we cannot ex-
actly
Character of Dr. Swift. 63
actly tell how early it was that Dr. SwIFT
was employed in the reviſal of the works of
that great man. But this we are ſure of,
that upon his return from Ireland, where he
had gone for the recovery of his health, he
grew up immediately into ſuch confidence
with Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, that he was
often truſted with matters of great impor-
tance *. Moreover it appears upon the face
of fome anecdotes, that after he had taken
his maſter's degree at Oxford, which he did
about a year after his return from Ireland,
Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE had no mind that
he ſhould engage himſelf in the buſineſs of
the church until the king ſhould pleaſe to
provide for him [Vid. particularly what be
faith in his letter to bis uncle WILLIAM
SWIFT). But here I am afraid Sir WILLIAM
TEMPLE rather acted the part of a refined
politician than that of a warm and fincere
friend, which however did by no means im-
poſe upon the Doctor's underſtanding. For
the Doctor faw plainly, that Sir WILLIAM
Temple was under ſome apprehenfions that
if he were once provided for in the church
he wouid leave his houſe, a point that Sir
WILLIAM beyond all other could not bear
to think of, becauſe (to uſe almaſt the Doc-
tor's own words) Sir WilLIAM thought
Swift a little neceſſary to him, that is in
plain terms, Swift was neceffary to him,
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. 23, 24.
becauſe
64 Effay on the Life and
becauſe he was engaged at that very time in
the reviſal of his works, which is neither more
nor leſs than what the Doctor hints at in his
letter to my Lord PALMERSTON in theſe
words, “ perhaps you will allow that I was
" of ſome ule to him.” And accordingly we
find, that in the year 1694 the Doctor having
remarked that Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE was
Rot ſo forward as : be. could wiſh in procuring
him ſome benefice in the church, he became
ſo thoroughly diſobliged, that he reſolved upon
going immediately into orders, and quitting
the houſe of Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, al-
though it ſhould even cauſe a rupture between
him and that great perſon. But let us hear
what the Doctor faith in his letter to his
couſin DEANE SWIFT, dated from Leiceſter
June 3, 1694, wherein he ſpeaks of this
matter without any ſort of diſguiſe in the
following words: “ I forgot to tell you I
" left Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE a month ago,
juſt as I foretold it to you” [how long be
kad foretold it before the date of this letter doth
not appear] “ and every thing happened
" thereupon exactly as I gueſſed; he was ex-
tream angry I left him, and yet would not
oblige himſelf any further than upon my
good behaviour,” (theſe words of Sir Wil-
LIAM TEMPLE are manifeſtly the words of
anger] “nor would promiſe any thing firmly
to me at all;" [Sir William, you ſee, was
thoroughly diſpleaſed ] « ſo that every body
judged
Character of Dr. Swift.
65
judged I did beſt to leave him ;” (the Doctor
you may obſerve keeps firm to his reſolution,
although in danger to break with his deareſt
friend] “ I deſign to be ordained September
next, and make what endeavours I can
“ for fomething in the church ; I wiſh it
may ever lie in my couſin's (WILLOUGH-
BY Swift's] way or yours to have inte-
“ reſt to bring me in chaplain of the factory.”
I think we may conclude from theſe laſt
words, that when he writ this letter he had
little or no dependance on the friendſhip of Sir
WILLIAM TEMPLE for getting him any pre-
ferment of conſequence in the church, which
I am perſuaded that he covertly teſtifies in the
beginning of the above-mentioned letter, where
he faith, That friendſhip as the world paſſes is
one of the idleſt things in it. However
ſuch was the fortune cf DR. SWIFT, that
in the year 1694 he was coldly recommend
ed (I will ſuppoſe by Sir William TEM-
Ple) to the Lord Capel, then lord deputy
of Ireland, who gave him a trifling prebend
in the northern province of that kingdom
worth about an hundred pounds a year ; of
which growing weary in a few months, he
returned to England, reſigned his living in
favour of a friend, and continued in Sir
WILLIAM TEMPLE's houſe until the death
of that great man * *. What ſhall we ſay to
theſe obſcurities ? or how can they be cleared
• Vid. Appendix, Sect. 25.
F
up
66
Effay on the Life and
up and reconciled with that greatneſs of mind
which is the ornament and the glory of the
Doctor's character? Will it not be thought
poor and mean-ſpirited, that becauſe Dr.
Swift had gotten ſuch a trifling benefice in
a remote part of Ireland he ſhould reſign his
living in a few months, and go back to Sir
WILLIAM TEMPLE, even to that very man,
with whom not long before he had quar-
reled almoſt to a degree that had put an end
to their friendſhip? Let us ſtop for a minute and
conſider whether appearances be not ſtrongly
againſt him.
But theſe obfcurities are all
cleared up by a particular anecdote, which
I have lately found in a letter from the Doc-
tor's ſiſter to her couſin DEANE SWIFT,
dated May 26, 1699, which proves to a de-
monſtration that Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE,
who had been uſed to the converſation of
Dr. Swift for ſo many years, could not in
the decline of his days live contented with-
out him; and therefore perſuaded him to
reſign his living. I ſhall give you the quo
tation from that letter exactly in her own
words; “ My poor brother has loſt his beſt
“ friend Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, who was
" ſo fond of him whilſt he lived, that he
“ made him give up his living in this count
try (Ireland] to ſtay with him at Moort-
• Park, and promiſed to get him one in
England; but death came in between, and
“ has left him unprovided both of friend
4
How-
« and living."
Character of Dr. Swift.
6.7
However this reſignation of his prebend
for the fake of returning to his old friend
was beyond every thing elſe fo obliging in
DR. SWIFT, that during the remainder of
Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE’s life, which I think
was about four years, the Doctor lived with
him in the greateſt harmony and friendſhip
imaginable. And, after this perfect recon-
ciliation between them, the Doctor writ that
famous Battle of the Books, which is wholly
dedicated to the honour of his great and
learned friend.
CHAP: V.
T
HE Works' and characters of the
greateſt men have certainly been time
out of mind the property, the quarry, and
the regalio of criticks; a ſort of gentry
whoſe writings I thank my ſtars I am but
little acquainted with. However indeed
their talents, their learning, and the account
of their inftitution are fo finely diſplayed
by the author of the Tale of a Tub, that no-
thing can be added to compleat their cha-
racter. This race of animals proceed in the
courſe of their obſervations upon the nobleft
writers (to which they are carried meerly by ina
ftimet, wisin rat to the beſt cheeſe, or a waſp to
the fairejt fruit * ) by ſeveral rules of art,
Vid. Tale of a Tub, Sect. 3.
F 2
which
68 Effay, on the Life and
which from age to age they have been
raking up one from another.
Had they
confined their qualifications, like FARNABY
and MINELLIUS, within
proper bounds, and
contented themſelves with nibbling at the
faults, the ſuperfluities, and the excreſcencies of
books *; they might in all probability have
eſcaped with impunity from the learned, and
perhaps have been ſometimes recommended, I
mean ſome of the beſt of them, to the peruſal
of young raw lads before they are ſent to the
univerſity. But when they venture beyond
their line, and preſume to attack the private
character of an author, they bring themſelves
deſervedly under the laſh of their betters;
and accordingly from time to time they have
been ſcourged very ſeverely, although never
corrected; the calloſity of their brains ren-
dering them quite inſenſible to every kind
of diſcipline. But let all ſuch inferior ſcrib-
lers reft fafe in obſcurity; their writings are
cold and languid, and therefore not worthy
of our attention. I am ſure the author of
the Remarks on Dr. Swift, whoſe genius
frequently riſes, or at leaſt endeavours to riſe,
into the marvellous and the fublime, would
ſcorn to acknowledge an acquaintance with
ſuch an ignorant tribe. However indeed
as thoſe impedimenta literarum originally col-
lected the beſt of their materials from the
* Theſe are according to Swift the proper employ-
ments of a critick. Vid. Dig, to the Tale of a Tub.
wiſe
Character of Dr. Swift. 69
wiſe and the learned, and eſpecially from
thoſe grammarians *, which ſurpaſſed the
reſt of the world in tropes, allegories, and
every ſpecies of the rhetorical and the ſub-
lime; I cannot but lament that ſo improved,
fo elegant a philologer, as the great rival of
QUINCTILIAN, ſhould encourage any little
fellows of that ſort to erect their future
lyſtem of critical obſervations, not only upon
the ruin of an author's private character,
(which properly ſpeaking is wholly beyond
the buſineſs of their nonſenſical trade) but
likewiſe on the diſparagement of his whole
acquaintance, both men and women; and
above all teach them in particular to adorn
the apparatus of their deſigns with ſome no-
ble rhetorical debaſement of an author's
whole family without any regard to candor,
humanity, or decency, provided that nothing
leſs can fink the reputation of his abilities,
in the opinion of his friends, his admirers,
and his countrymen. It muſt be granted, ,
nevertheleſs that the bulk of readers, like,
the bulk of criticks, are moſt exceffively dulli
they feldom or ever explore the myſtical ſenſe
of an author, but catch their obſervations
juſt as they happen to float on the ſuperficies
of his writings. And therefore I have been
* This term hath grown into contempt in thefe latter
ages, but in former times the greateſt proficients in that
fort of writing which is called the belles lettres, were ftiled
Grammarians.
fome.
E 3
--
70 Ellay on the Life and
fometimes afraid left the generality of the
world thould content themſelves with the
literal ſignification of the Remarks (an er-
ror which I am aſhamed to confels that
I had once imbibed as well as the reſt
of the unlearned) without making any fort
of allowance for that ſuperlative talent
and ſkill in raillery, which are the known
characteriſticks of this amazing author ;
and which, like another CERVANTES,
he hath kept up with uncommon force of
art from the beginning unto the end of his
admired panegyrick. Our great philologer
knew perfectly well that Swift's reputation
for wit, and humour, and politicks, and eve-
rý noble accompliſhment that can adorn the
human ſoul, was ſo univerſally eſtabliſhed,
that no ſort of colouring whatſoever could
defile his character, neither could any ſpecies
of attitudes make him appear ridiculous ;
and therefore it was, that he hath exhibited
that great and glorious PATRIOT in the
moft whimſical and burleſque portraits ima-
ginable: When you behold the Doctor in his
own writings, there indeed you find him in
ai thouſand different attitudes, agreeable to
the diverſity of his character ; but when you
behold him in the Remarks you ſee him (as
it were through a glaſs darkly, juſt as if you
were gazing at Phoebus in an eclipſe) in all
the variety of caricatura. In fhort the Æ-
YE AS of VIRGIL and the ÆNEAS of
CHARLES
Character of Dr. Swift.
71
CHARLES Cotton, bear exactly the ſame
reſemblance to each other as the Doctor in
his own writings, and the Doctor in theſe
whimſical Remarks; yet ſtill the character is
equally and finely ſupported both in heroicks
and burleſque. But to convince that un-
thinking part of the world, which are ſtill
of opinion that our philologer is perfectly ſe-
rious in all his remarks, I will appeal unto
their own judgment, and deſire they will
pleaſe to conſider, whether or no it he con-
ſiſtent with generoſity, candor, friendſhip, or
humanity, to let drive ſuch unmerciful aſper-
fions (if indeed the Remarks are to be under-
ſtood according to the natural import and
ſignification of the words) not only againſt
the Doctor himſelf, whoſe friend this great
philologer is upon all occaſions very ambiti-
ous to be thought, but againſt the whole
family of Dr. Swift without any the leaſt
demerit on their part to excite his revenge ?
Doubtleſs every man living, who hath any
regard to morals, will anſwer in the nega-
tive. And if that be the caſe, it follows
by a neceffary conſequence, that unleſs the
good-natured part of the world fhould on
the preſent occaſion be ſo exceffively fevere,
as to ſtrip this benè preparatum pe&tus of all
generoſity, candor, friendſhip and humanity,
they cannot but accord with me, that in
fact the whole body of the Remarks is only
a burleſque upon Swift's character, repre-
ſenting
F 4
72
Eſſay on the Life and
ſenting his life and writings in a thouſand
caricaturas. Moreover it is impoſſible not
to acquieſce and be confirmed in this opi-
nion, if with any ſort of candor and gene-
pofity, we do but carefully animadvert on one
particular ſeries of rhetorick, which riſes
per-
petually from one climax to another for about
twenty pages in the apparatus of this won-
derful performance; a ſtrain of panegyrick,
although deſignedly veiled under a cloud of
ſeeming vituperation and abuſe, ſo very pe-
culiar to that manner of applauſe for which
I do ſuppoſe this great philologer will for
ever be renowned, that I think for the time
to come it ſhould by way of eminence be
ſtiled
* Hiatus
*
*
*
*
Sic vos non vobis, &c.
But ſince we have now gotten a mo-
ment's leiſure to conſider of theſe matters, we
ſhall embrace the opportunity, and examine
theſe rhetorical flouriſhes one after another
in their proper ſeries, not according to their
burleſque and true ſignification, but accord-
ing to the natural import of the words and
phraſes; and particularly we ſhall endeavour
to riſe from climax to climax until we ar-
rive at the ne plus ultra of this critick's ſub-
limity.
In the firſt letter of theſe glorious Re-
marks, immediately after he hath
experienced
the
:7
Character of Dr. Swift.
73
]
the force of his abilitics in the character of
Dr. Swift, whom he acknowledgeth per
force to have been the patron of Ireland, he
proceeds in the following manner : “ Here
* it may not be improper to obſerve to you,
" that many of his friends imagined him a
“ native of England.” (Whether it would
have been more to the honor of Dr. SWIFT
to have been born in England, deſcended
from a family which could vary and turą
with every wind of politicks, and thereby
not only continue in the poſſeſſion of their
eſtates without moleſtation, but increaſe
their fortunes by the iniquity of the times; or
to have been born in Ireland, deſcended from a
race of Engliſh that ſcorned to renounce their
principles by abjuring their King and truck-
ling to the Usurper; and upon that ac-
count obliged to relinquiſh their native coun-
try; I appeal unto the judgment of every
diſcreet impartial true Engliſhman, that has
any regard for his honor, his liberty, his
conſtitution, or his prince.) And then he
begins to refine upon all that he had faid
before concerning Dr. SWIFT, with a de-
licacy peculiar to himſelf in the very next
words,” and many others, I know not
“ whether to call them friends or enemies,
(Mark that] “ were willing to ſuppoſe him
is the natural ſon of Sir WILLIAM TEM-
PLE;" (that is, in plain Engliſh, were
Now
74 Effay on the Life and
Now this you are to remember is only a lit-
tle preparative for what you are to expect in
the enſuing pages. But not to keep you in
ſuſpenſe any longer, preſently after this rhe-
torical flaſh of politeneſs, as if nothing had
been ſaid before to the aſperſion of the Doc-
tor, he gathers up himſelf, and proceeds in
the following manner : “ The rules of bio-
graphy make it neceſſary to give ſome ac-
count of his family. It ſhall be as ſhort
as poffible,” [Now obſerve the reafon why
the account should be as short as poſſible)
“ fince although his anceſtors were perſons
" of very decent and reputable characters,"
[Yes truly, and if I miſtake not, the ſame at
leaft might have been aſſerted in favour of
the anceſtors of Dr. Swift long before the
year 1588, which, by ſome accident or other,
I know not whether to call it a fortunate or
an unfortunate accident, happens to have been
a very remarkable epoch in the viciſſitudes of
this world, a very remarkable epocb I afure
you.] “ he himſelf hath been the herald to
“ blazon the dignity of their coat." But
whạt indeed this critick would inſinuate by
decent, reputable characters, which to coblers
and tinkers * might occaſionally have been
We find that JOHN the butler, in that poem called
PHYLLis or the Progreſs of Lour, written by Dr. Swift,
is altowed to have been deſcended from anceſtors of licent
and reputable characters.
Thank God, twas neither name nor fin,
For John was comte of Loneft kin:
applied
Character of Dr. Swift.
75
applied with equal decorum, I leave the
world to judge ; and for the latter part of
this rhetorical flouriſh, how terſe and florid
ſoever it may appear in the eyes of the cri-
tick, and thoſe of a like delicate guſto for
the belles lettres, I can by no means think it
worthy of an anſwer, having already pro-
duced in the firſt chapter of this treatife fufe
ficient authorities to prove, that let the for
tunes of the Doctor's father and brothers
have been never ſo deſperate when they
came over to Ireland, they wanted not the
merits of their poſterity to blazon the digni-
ty of their coat.
The next figure of this exalted climax
appears to be nothing more than a random
hap-hazard conjecture; or at beſt only the
two former affertions blended together. No
vertheleſs if
you
read the whole paragraph,
you will obſerve the concluſion is rounded
off with an eclat fo very brilk and reſound-
ing, that if you are not ſomewhat aware of
his peculiar turn of rhetorick, you will be apt
to miſtake it for ſomething marvelloully fub-
lime. His words are theſe, “ I am not quite
certain that Swift himſelf did not acqui-
“ eſce in the calumny,” (viz. that he was the
baſtard of Sir WilLIAM TEMPLE] “
per-
haps, like ALEXANDER, he thought the
“ natural ſon of JUPITER would appear
greater than the legitimate fon of Philip."
Is it poſſible, do you think, to conceive that
any
76
Effay on the Life and
any
human creature who is ambitious to
have a place among the friends of Dr.
Swift, and deſires to be ranked among the
candid and benevolent, thould expreſs the
fentiments of his heart (ſuppoſing that his
Remarks are not to be underſtood as a bur.
lefque upon Swift's life and character) in
ſo ſtrange a manner? It is impoſible to con-
ceive an idea fo abſurd and contradictory.
The critick is not quite certain that Swift:
bimſelf did not acquieſce in the calumny; nei-
ther am I quite certain, nor is any man elle
quite certain, that Swift himſelf was ever
apprized of that calumny, much leſs that
he ever acquieſced in it. The latter part of
the quotation, where Jupiter is made an
Engliſh baronet *
is only a bright and ſhin-
ing example of that elevated ſtyle wherein
* If any one be deſirous to form an accurate judgment
upon the excellency of thoſe letters, which are entitled
Remarks on the Life and Writings of DR. JONATHAN SWIFT,
the third and fourth fedions of LONGINUS de fublimitate,
and thoſe only are recommended to his peruſal, as indeed
the remainder of that fublime treatiſe would be of no uſe
to him upon this occaſion. However it happens, I know
pot by what caprice of that incomparable judge both of
books and men, that poor LEONTINUS GORGIAS is laughed
at very andefervedly in the former of thoſe ſections, for
alling Xerxes the JUPITER of the Perſians ; " X Ta To
Λιρντίνα Γοργία γελάται γράφοντος, « Ξέρξης και των Περσών
28:5. And yet XERXES every body knows was a great
and mighty prince, and conſequently in fome fort Jupi-
TER's repreſentative. But now I think of it, Sir WILLIAM
TEMPLE was a much greater man than Xerxes, for he
was not only king CHARLES's repreſentative, but his ple.
mpotentiary into the bargain at the congreſs of Nimeguer.
beyond
Character of Dr. Swift.
27
beyond all compariſon this criticke and phi-.
lologer hath excelled all writers of all ages
whether antient or modern, as might eafịly be
made to appear from ſome hundreds of paf-
lages in this extraordinary performance. But,
according to an old proverb, quoted by
LONGINUS upon a ſimilar occaſion, der Ena
pótepov udewwixi, Nothing is more dry than
a drophical perfon.
However to ſet this matter in its proper
light, I would only ask one ſingle queſtion.
Can it be ſuppoſed with any colour of rea-
ſon that a man of the Doctor's ſpirit and re-
ſolution was ever inſulted with an aſperſion
ſo infamouſly degrading, after he was one
and twenty and wore a ſword? I fancy not.
If indeed he could have borne ſuch an af-
front with patience, I ſhould more than ſuf-
pect him to have been a baſtard, but not the
baſtard of Sir WILIAM TEMPLE, becauſe
that was impoſſible, as the Doctor was born
upon the 30th of November, 1667; and Sir
WILLIAM TEMPLE was reſident abroad in
the character of a miniſter of ſtate from the
year 1665 to the year 1670*, neither was
the Doctor's mother ever once in her whole
life out of the Engliſh dominions. But al-
though it may be ſaid the Doctor was never
reproached with this infamous lander, as
there is no record in the annals of his life
• Vid, Sir William Temple's letters to the earl of
ARLINGTOX and the reſt of the miniſtry.
that
78 Eflay on the Life and
that he evet cut any man's throat for an in-
fult of that kind ; is it therefore impoſſible
that he ſhould have been acquainted with
ſuch a malicious report by the indirect means
of his enemies ? None can affert it to be a
thing impoſſible. Reproaches may be con-
veyed a thouſand ways beſide that coarſe me-
thod of packetting, as they call it, by the
poſt. But in that caſe would any man of
cornmon ſenſe run about clearing the reputa-
tion of his innocent and virtuous mother?
Would it not have been more diſcreet to
have let the calumny waſte itſelf in air, if he
could not fix upon the author of it; eſpeci-
ally as the ſtory itfelf upon the lighteſt ex-
amination carried the moſt evident marks of
abſurdity and contradiction? What time in
the Doctor's life this infamous calumny was
taifed and propagated to his diſhonour I pro-
teft I cannot poſitively fay; neither am I quite
certain that it ever reached his cars. But
ſurely there is a wide difference between
deſpiſing a calumny and acquieſcing in it.
The next figure is only a rhetorical parade
upon the ſubject of humility. The whole
is founded upon the old diſcarded principles
of the levellers, a ſort of people who had
no regard among other republican tenets to
any diſtinction of blood. If this writer be
of their opinion, I allow that his conclufionis
are juſtly drawn from their exploded pre-
iniffes. But if any reſpect ſhould be had to
the
Character of Dr. Swift.
79
79
the antiquity of families, and to the purity
of blood, his whole reaſoning is not worth
the ſhell of an acorn. Waving therefore all
inquiries of that fort, I appeal unto every
gentleman who is ſuppoſed to be deſcended
from any family at all, whether it be a de-
monſtration of pride and ambition, or whe-
ther it be a ſpecies of vanity that is blame
worthy, to keep clear from baſe and mean
alliances. I am ſure the admired PLUTARCH,
whoſe biographical writings will continue to
be read with pleaſure until the day of judg-
ment, would have thought it ſcandalous to
match into the bafer families; otherwiſe he
could not have blamed Cato the cenfor for
marrying the daughter of SALONIUS, an ob
ſcure ſervant, and bringing her into his
houſe, to the great diſpleaſure and regret of
fo eminent a man as MARCUS PORCIUS.
However indeed, fince Cato was reſolved to
play the fool in his old age, it was more re-
putable for this renowned cenſor to make
an obfcure perfon the miſtreſs of his houſe
under the character of a wife, although the
had been detected by his fon PORCIUS to
have been the concubine of his honoured fa-
ther ſome time before, than to have given
her the liberty to huff, and ſwagger, and
rule his family in the character of a ftrum-
pet.
BUT
80 Eſſay on the Life and
60
BUT Surely STELLA, the lovely STELLA,
exactly anſwered the deſcription of PENE-
LOPE;
A woman lovelieſt of the lovely kind,
In body perfect and compleat in mind.
IT is all true. With regard to her manners,
her virtues, her mind, and her perfon, ſhe
was not undeſerving (although ſhe was to-
tally unacquainted with muſick, which the
critick however in the multitude of his
ge-
neroſity hath made her a preſent of) to have
been married to the greateſt prince in Europe ;
but her deſcent was from a ſervant of Sir
WILLIAM TEMPLE, and therefore ſhe was
by no means worthy to have been the ac-
knowledged wife of Dr. SWIFT.
In treating of theſe maters perhaps it will
not be unneceſſary to remark, before we pro-
ceed any further, the high opinion which
DR. Swift had conceived of this improved
and lovely woman. He aſſures us, « that
« STELLA had the moſt and fineſt accom-
" pliſhments of any perſon he had ever
« known of either ſex; and further de-
" clares, it was obſerved by all her acquain-
u tance that ſhe never failed in company to
" ſay the beſt thing that was ſaid whoever
was by; although her companions were
« uſually perſons of the beſt underſtanding
" in the kingdom.” * The character of
* Vid. Bons Mots de Seva, vol. the laſt.
STELLA
Character of Dr. Swift. 81
STELLA you may learn from Dr.SWIFT'S
poem to her on her birth-day March
13,
1726-7, and eſpecially from the ſubſequent
poem addreſſed to STELLA, upon her viſit-
ing Dr. Swift in his fickneſs; a poem
which contains ſuch a variety of noble and
exalted ſentiments, that every young perſon
of either ſex ought to be enjoined to get it
by heart. Her failings you may read in thoſe
verſes which are inſcribed to STELLA by Dr.
Swift upon her collecting and tranſcribing
his poems. The delicacy of her taſte we
may conjecture from the following copy of
verſes, the only remaining performance of
hers that I know of in the poetick ſtrain,
which was given by Dr. Swift to a lady
of his acquaintance, who had a great eſteem
for the virtues and accompliſhments of
STELLA, although ſhe never had the leaſt
intimacy with her, and which the Doctor
aſſured this lady was a piece intirely genuine
from the hands of STELLA, without any
fort of correction whatſoever,
.
to Dr. Swift on his birth-day, Novem-
ber 30, 1721.
ST. PATRICK's dean, your country's pride,
My early and my only guide,
Let me among the reſt attend,
Your pupil and your humble friend,
G
То
82
Effay on the Life and
ܪ
.
To celebrate in female ſtrains
The day that paid your mother's pains ;
Deſcend to take that tribute due
In gratitude alone to you.
When men began to call me fair,
You interpos'd your timely care ;
You early taught me to deſpiſe
The ogling of a coxcomb's eyes ;
Shew'd where my judgment was miſplac'd ;
Refind my fancy and my taſte.
Behold that beauty juſt decay'd,
Invoking art to nature's aid;
Forſook by her admiring train
She ſpreads her tatter'd nets in vain;
Short was her part upon the ſtage ;
Went ſmoothly on for half a page;
Her bloom was gone, ſhe wanted art,
As the ſcene chang'd, to change her part :
She, whom no lover could reſift,
Before the ſecond act was hiſs'd.
Such is the fate of female race
With no endowments but a face;
Before the thirti'th year of life
A maid forlorn, or hated wife.
STELLA to you, her tutor, owes
That ſhe has ne'er reſembled thoſe;
Nor was a burthen to mankind
With half her courſe of
years
behind.
You taught how I might youth prolong
By knowing what was right and wrong ;.
How from my heart to bring ſupplies
Of luftre to my fading eyes;
How
Character of Dr. Swift.
83
>
:
Hlow ſoon a beauteous mind repairs.
The loſs of chang'd or falling hairs ;
How wit and virtue from within
Send out a ſmoðihneſs o'er the ſkin :
Your lectures cou'd my fancy fix,
And I can pleaſe at thirty-ſix.
The light of CHLOE at fifteen
Coquetting, gives not me the ſpleen;
The idol now of every fool
'Till time ſhall make their paſſions cool;
Then tumbling down time's ſteepy hill,
While STELLA holds her ſtation ſtill.
Oh! turn your precepts into laws,
Redeem the women's ruin'd cauſe,
Retrieve loft empire to our ſex,
That men may bow their rebel necks.
Long be the day that gave you birth
Sacred to friendſhip, wit, and mirth;
Late dying may you caſt a ſhred
Of your rich mantle o'er my head;
To bear with dignity my ſorrow,
One day alone, then die to-170rrow.
It is not without ſome regret that I am
forced by the preſent occaſion to ſpeak out
my ſentiments freely, not with regard to the
lovely and accompliſhed STELLA, but with re-
gard to Mrs. JOHNSON. If Dr. Swift had
acknowledged his marriage even with this im-
proved, this adorable creature, he would in
{pight of his genius, and all the reputation he
had acquired in the days of king WILLIAM
and
G 2
84
Eſſay on the Life and
and queen Anne have immediately funk in the
eftecin of the world. For among the reſt of
his enemies, (and we all know that in both
kingdoms he had a great number) there
were, to my knowledge, ſome few that
were not unacquainted with the ſtory of Mrs.
JOHNSON's birth and education, who on ac-
count of ſome particular diſobligations they
had received from the Doctor, would have
been glad of an opportunity of expoſing him
to contempt and ridicule for the meanneſs of
his ſpirit ; and as in that caſe they would
have had it full in their power, as well as
ſtrong in their inclination, they would have
publiſhed and confirmed the obſcurity of
Mrs. Johnson's birth and education among
all their acquaintance. They would have
declared among other particulars, that Mrs.
JOHNSON. when ſhe was about ten or eleven
years old was appointed to wait upon the
Doctor's ſiſter in the character of her little
fervant, during the ſummer that ſhe ſpent at
Moore-Park in the year 1692. Neither can
we fuppoſe that even the Doctor's fif-
ter, with whom he had quarrelled to ſuch
a degree as never to ſee her face, on ac-
count of a match he thought greatly beneath
her acceptance, would have ſtifled her in-
dignation; or with any patience have for-
born to retaliate the ſeverities of her bro-
ther upon his own back, when he himſelf
had married and acknowledged a wife fo
very
Character of Dr. Swiſt. 85
very meanly extracted, and particularly that
individual perſon whom the deſpiſed and
hated beyond all the inhabitants on earth.
In one word, if Dr. Swift, whoſe ambi-
tion was not to be gratified without ſome
uncommon degree of adıniration, had ac-
knowledged Mrs. Johnson for a wile, he
would on all ſides have been ſo perſecuted
with contempt and deriſion (as half man-
kind were in the year 1716 his profeſſed
enemies) that unable to ſupport himſelf
under the burthen of his affliction, he would
have loſt his ſpirits, broken his heart, and
died in a twelvemonth. And accordingly
we find he had more wiſdom than to ac-
knowledge this beautiful, this accompliſhed
woman for his wife.
HOWEVER this matter requires ſome fur-
ther conſideration. In the year 1699, when
Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE died, and left Mrs.
JOH Nson a thouſand pounds as an acknow-
ledgment of her father's juſt and faithful
ſervices; this promiſing fine girl was in the
bloom of her age, being at that time, ac-
cording to the beſt computation, exactly
eighteen, and the Doctor, who had left
Moore-Park and gone up to London upon
the death of Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE, was
in his thirty-third year.
year. The beauty and
gracefulneſs of Mrs. Johnson's perſon had
been remarked by the Doctor about two
years before this period, but never we may
be
G 3
86 Eſſay on the Life and
be ſure had he made her the leaſt advances.
I am inclined however to an opinion, that
Dr. Swift having obſerved her to be a de-
lightful girl, and of a genius quick and
fively, had given her ſome inſtructions for
the improvement of her mind in thoſe hap-
py years of ductility, when the ſoul is apt
to receive all the fineſt impreſſions; which
like ſeed thrown upon a rich and fertile ſoil,
might have prejudiced her inclinations to
have a tenderneſs for SWIFT. But not to
infift upon the wildneſs of a conjecture, ,
thus much is certain, that about two years
after the death of Sir WILLIAM, Mrs.
JOHNSON, accompanied by a lady fifteen
years elder than herſelf, a relation of the
TEMPLE family, whoſe whole fortune, as I
have been told, was an annuity of twenty-ſever
pounds a year, went over to Ireland upon
che invitation of Dr. SWIFT. The
The pretext
aſſigned for their going over to that king-
dom was the dearneſs of money, which in
Ireland was at ten per cent. and the ex-
ceſſive cheapneſs of proviſions in thoſe times ;
but in reality MRS. JOHNSON's intent was to
captivate the heart of Dr. Swift. This
deſign, how privately ſoever it might have
been laid between Mrs. JOHNSON and her
friend, tranſpired in the neighbourhood of
Moore-Park, where it is not unlikely they
might have been lefs upon their guard.
For in a letter dated from Puttenbani in
Surry,
'
Character of Dr. Swift.
87
.
(
Surry, February 59 1706, which now lies
before me, there is an inquiry made after the
Doctor by the reverend MR.THOMAS SWIFT,
who deſires to know, “ whether Jona-
“ THAN be married? or whether he has
“ been able to reſiſt the charms of both
" thoſe gentlewomen that marched quite
« from Moore-Park to Dublin (as they
“ would have marched to the north or any
“ where elſe) with full reſolution to engage
him?! But let this matter have been as
it would, the Doctor inade no addreſſes to
this charming fair upon her firſt arrival in
Ireland, when ſhe was in the prime of her
life, and ſplendor of her beauty. However
the gracefulneſs of her perſon, and the po-
liteneſs of her converſation, were not to be
reſiſted by a gentleman of wit and learning,
who was an intimate friend of the Doc-
tor, and with whom ſhe had frequently con-
verſed. This gentleman declared his paflion
and made her propoſals of marriage. Now
whether it was an artifice in Mrs. JOHNSON
to rouze affections in the adamantine hcart
of her admired object; or whether it was
reach of policy in Dr. SWIFT to acquaint
Mrs. JOHNSON by ſuch indirect means that
he had no intention of engaging himſelf in a
married life ; or whether in truth there was
any
kind of artifice uſed on either ſide, I
proteft I am an utter ftranger, and wholly at
#lofs; but ſure it is, that MRS. JOHNSON re-
ceived
G4
88 Eſſay on the Life and
ceived the addreſſes of this gentleman, and
gave himn all proper encouragements that are
uſual upon thoſe occaſions. And it is e-
qually true, that Dr. Swift had ſo little
thought of marriage at this time, or rather
as I may ſay in this dangerous conjuncture,
that he went to the court of England during
the intercourſe of theſe addreſſes, and writ
conſtantly to this gentleman, as to a perſon
ſo intimately acquainted with Mrs. JOHN-
Son, that he frequently conveyed to her the
political news of England through his hands.
Some of theſe letters I have juſt feen, and
heard read, but could not, I ſuppoſe, had I
preſſed for ſuch a favour, have obtained co-
pies of them ; neither indeed would it have
been reaſonable in me to have expected ſuch
a gratification, as the original letters are re-
poſited in the cabinet of that perſon who
has the only right to be poſſeſſed of ſuch pri-
vate anecdotes. Nevertheleſs I think I may
venture to ſay without any breach of honor,
that one of thoſe letters from Dr. Swift,
wherein he gives an account of the buſtle,
the hurry, and the tumult that was in Lon-
don, while the bill to prevent occaſional con-
formity was debating in parliament, is one of
the moit lively pieces of wit and humour
that perhaps he ever writ th his whole life.
But not to ramble too far in the midſt of
a digreſſion, this matter was brought to a
criſis. Mrs. JOHNSON diſcovered - nó repug.
nancy
Character of Dr. Swift.
89
nancy to the match, but ſtill ſhe would be
adviſed by Dr: Swift. The Doctor per-
haps loth to be ſeparated from ſo delightful
a companion, threw an obſtacle in the way
that was not to be ſurmounted. This gen-
tleman had a benefice in the church of a
conſiderable value about an hundred miles
from Dublin, which required his attendance.
Dr. Swift in order to bring matters to a
final iſſue, made him an overture, that he
ſhould ſettle upon his wife an hundred
pounds a year for pin-money. The lover
indeed, although extreamly captivated with
the charms of his miſtreſs, was by no means
delighted with this propofal; he deſired
however that he might have a night's time to
conſider of it. And the next morning, conu
trary to expectation, he agreed to the terms.
Swift, never at a loſs for ſome uncommon
flight of imagination, inſiſted further, that
he ſhould live in Dublin, and keep a coach
for his wife. The gentleman had more
honor than to promiſe what he could not
perform ; the match accordingly was broken
off; in a ſhort time after the Doctor's friend
married a woman of family, and there was
an end of the affair.
I never could hear that Mrs. Johnson,
with all her wit and beauty had any propo
fal of marriage after the year 1704. Dr.
SWIFT was univerſally imagined to have
been her Præpdium, her friends and her ad-
mirer.
go Eſſay on the Life and
a
mirer. Before the Doctor had gotten the
deanery of St. Patrick's, his place of re-
fidence was at Lorácor, about twenty miles
from Dublin in the Neighbourhood of Trim.
The general rule, I think, between him and
Mrs. Johnson was this; when the Doctor
was abſent from home ſhe lived at his houſe;
but when he was at home ſhe lodged either,
fomewhere at Trim, or was reſident at the
houſe of Dr. RAYMOND, the vicar of
Trim, a gentleman of great hoſpitality, a
friend of Dr. Swift, a man of learning and
fine addreſs, with the advantage of a tall
handſome and graceful perſon.
In the year 1705 Mrs. Johnson returned
to England, where ſhe ſpent five or fix
months, and then came back to Ireland, as
to the place of her reſidence; but never croſs-
ed the channel afterwards to the end of
her days, although Dr. Swift in the reign of
Queen ANNE ſpent moſt of his time at Lon-
don.
This courſe of life, ſo very ſingular in a
fine woman, abſtracted Mrs. Johnson in
a great meaſure from the converſe of her
own fex : and to make her evening retire-
ments ſtill leſs comfortable, her Engliſh friend,
who was eternally buckled to her girdle, was
by all accounts a very inſipid companion.
She lived, I cannot abſolutely ſay by her own
choice, wholly in the circle of books and
men: a life fo unnatural to the ſweetneſs and
delicacy
Character of Dr. Swift.
91
ment.
delicacy of a tender female conſtitution that
I cannot ſuppoſe it with all its glittering ada
vantages in the way of ſcience, to have been
near ſo eligible to the lovely Mrs. JOHNSON;
as that open free converſe with the world,
which is totally unacquainted with every
colour and fpecies of involuntary confine-
However that greatneſs of mind,
which infpires, like the Demon of SockATES,
courage and reſolution into the ſouls of the ini
nocent, comforted and fupported the religious
and virtuous Mrs. Johnson, under all the
bitterneſs and preſſures of her reſtraint:
But as ſoon as Dr. SWIFT, upon the
demiſe of the Queen, had come to ſettle at
his deanery of ST. PATRICK's, and Mrs.
Johnson had removed from the country to
the larger ſcene of Dublin; her políteneſs
and her wit ſo engaged the attention of the
learned, that ſhe became univerſally admired
by all thoſe among the Doctor's 'acquaintance
who had 'any pretenſions to either.
Ir may not be unneceſſary to remark in
this place, that as Dk. Swift kept 'two
publick days every week for the entertaini
ment of his friends in large circles, the eles
gance and decorum that were uſed upon
thoſe occaſions were known to have been
directed under the guidance of Mrs. JOHN
SON, while ſhe herſelf appeared without any
character diſtinct from the reſt of the com-
pany. And accordingly, as the was known
92
Eſſay on the Life and
to have been the conductreſs of theſe enter-
tainments, ſhe was frequently invited by
thoſe, who could eſteem her manners, her
delicacy, and her wit, to parties of pleaſure,
where Dr. SWIFT was to be one of the
gueſts; but not ſo conſtantly, nor yet indeed
by fo great a number of families of the firſt
rank as if ſhe had been really his wife. Her
friendſhips however, and all degrees of her
intimacy were ſtill confined to the men,
She viſited none of her own ſex: neither was
ſhe viſited by any; ſome two or three per-
haps only excepted. She was I believe
acquainted with ſome few more, as far as
politeneſs and good-breeding have their eſta-
bliſhed forms in the world; but ſtill her
acquaintance with them, and theirs with her
was barely local.
In this manner the lovely Mrs. JOHN-
son ſpent her whole life, with her friend Mrs.
DINGLEY in all parties, and at all hours,
perpetually, by her ſide, as well before, as
after the fanction of her marriage. For that
ſhe was married to Dr. Swift in or about
the year 1716. I am thoroughly perſuaded,
although it is certain they continued to live
in ſeparate houſes, in the fame manner they
had uſually done before ; only with this dif-
ference, that while the Doctor's violent fits
of giddineſs, and the effects of them laſted,
which would ſometimes be for three weeks
of a month together, Mrs. JOHNSON, ftill
accompanied
Character of Dr. Swift.
os
accompanied by her friend Mrs. DINGLEY,
would lie at the deanery; but as ſoon as the
Doctor was thoroughly recovered, ſhe con-
ftantly went back to her own lodgings. If
any one ſhould aſk why this renunciation
of marriage rites ? I ſhall anſwer that queſtion
by aſking another. Why did not SWIFT
marry this adorable creature in or about the
year 1702 ? was he not exactly at that Æra
thirty five, juſt riſing into the meridian of
his abilities; and Mrs. JOHNSON twenty one,
in the full ſplendor of the moſt attractive
beauty, ſurrounded with every grace, and
bleffed with every virtue, that could allure
the affections, and captivate the foul of the
moſt ſtubborn philofopher? And without
diſpute, if the meanneſs of her birth, like
an evil genius, had not ſtood in the way to
oppoſe her felicity, not all the Dr. Swifts
upon earth could have refifted the force of
her inchantments. It may be aſſerted how-
ever with great truth, DR. SWIFT never
had any ſerious thoughts of marriage after he
was one and twenty.
Some time indeed
before, while he was a ſtripling in the uni-
verſity of Dublin, he had a paſſion for Miſs
WARREN, the ſiſter of his chamber-fellow.
But whatever attachments he had to that
lady ; upon his going to live in England,
where he applyed himſelf cloſe to politicks
and learning at Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE'S;
his paſſions quickly ſubfided, and he forgot
his
94 Eflay on the Life and
his amour: neither do I believe, further
than common forms, that he ever pay'd his
court, throughout his whole life, to any
woman beſides, in the character of a profeſſed
lover
But to return from his juyenile amour
to the affair of his marriage. What could
have provoked Dr. Swift (whoſe ſpirit,
wiſdom, and genius, had bravely withſtood
the whole artillery of Mrs. Johnson's wit
and beauty for ſuch a length of time as four-
teen years) to think of marriage in the year
1716, when he himſelf was juſt ſtepping
upon the threſhold of old age, and his ad-
mired fair one ſome years, I will not ſay
how many, on the wrong ſide of her beauty?
I will endeavour to give an anſwer to that
queſtion, according to the beſt conjecture I
can form upon ſuch matters.
As the prime
intention of Mrs. Johnson's going over to
Ireland was to captivate the affections of
Dr. Swift, in all probability ſhe ſecretly
hoped, from time to time, to compleat her
conqueſt. But finding upon the Queen's
demiſe, when all the Doctor's hopes to
gratify his ambition were totally at an end,
that although her Platonick lover had quitted
the noiſe and tumult of a political world,
and had retired like a ſober honeſt clergy-
man within the precincts of his deanery, he
thought no more upon the ſubject of wedlock
than he had done for the preceding fourteen
years ;
Character of Dr. Swift.
95
or
years ; her ſpirits might have become dejected,
by her frequent revolving in her mind the od
neſs of her ſituation. If we ſuppoſe this to
have been the caſe, it is not unreaſonable to
imagine that Swift, thoroughly and ſincere-
ly her friend, and almoſt her lover, was un-
able to endure the leaſt abatement in her
chearfulneſs and vivacity and therefore to
raiſe her ſpirits, and to ſecure the fame of her
innocence from all poſſibility of reproach,
reſolved to gratify her with the conſciouſneſs
of being his legal wife. And this indeed,
ſomewhat
very
like it, how ſtrange foever
and chimerical it may found in the ears of the
world, was certainly the reaſon that he ever
married her at all.
But to return from theſe many digreſſi-
ons to the Ne-plus-ultra of our critick's ſub-
limity.
The laſt, the nobleſt, and the moſt ſur-
prizing figure of that exalted climax before
mentioned is in appearance neither more
nor leſs than a ſheer recommendation of
inceft. But let the words anſwer for them-
ſelves, becauſe it is not impoſſible that I may
chance to be miſtaken. « A conduct (faith
the author of the remarks) “ ſo extraor-
dinary in itſelf (meaning that after marriage
Dr. Swift and Mrs. JOHNSON continued to
live, as they had done before, in ſeparate houſes]
always gives room for various comments
« and reflections : but however unaccount
4
be
« able
96 Eſſay on the Life and
CC
" able this renunciation of marriage rites
might appear to the world, it certainly
“ aroſe not from any conſciouſneſs of too
near a confanguinity between him and
“ Mrs. JOHNSON, although the general
“ voice of fame was willing to make them
“ both the natural children of Sir WILL I AM
“ TEMPLE. I am perſuaded that Dr. Swift
was not of that opinion ; [of what opinion?
why that too near a conſanguinity ſubfilted be-
tween him and Mrs. JOHNSON ; viz that fort
of conſanguinity, which ſubfifts between two
baſtards begotten by the ſame father. Very
well; he faith, that Dr. Swift was not of
that opinion. But ſuppoſing that Dr. SWIFT
had been of that opinion; I ſhould be glad to
know, whether he would have acknowledged his
baſtard fifter Mrs. Johnson for a wife? Yes,
undoubtedly]“ becauſe the ſame falſe pride that
« induced him to deny the legitimate daugh-
“ ter of an obſcure ſervant, might have
“ prompted him to own the natural daughter
[i. e. the baſtard wench]
6c of ſo eminent a
man as Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE.” If
any
one ſhall aſſert that I have tortured the na-
tural ſenſe and meaning of the words, which
I declare to have been far from my intention,
I will appeal in juſtification of my ſelf to
every ſcholar in Europe; and at the ſame
time frankly acknowledge, if in the abun-
dance of their wiſdom they ſhall pronounce
judgment againſt me, that I am ſtill unac-
quainted
Character of Dr. Swift.
97
quainted with thoſe rules of grammar which
direct us in the conſtruction of the antece-
dent and the relative.
But ſuppoſing it to be a ſecondary mean-
ing reſulting from this heroick flaſh of
po-
liteneſs, that Dr. Swift was not of opinion
that Mrs. JOHNSON was the baſtard wench
of Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE ; it remains to be
conſidered how much honour the Doctor
might have acquired by marrying the natu-
ral daughter of ſo eminent a perſon. And
becauſe
I have the anſwer juſt at my elbow,
I will acknowledge it to be the very fame
degree of honor as a CLUMGLUM of Lilliput
would acquire, ſuppoſing that he married
the baſtard wench of a NARDAC. The pro-
portion of honor is without diſpute exactly
upon a par, becauſe Sir William TEMPLE
was entitled to a rank ſuperior
rank ſuperior to Dr.
Swift juſt in the fame degree as a NAR-
DAC is entitled to a rank ſuperior to a Clum-
With regard to any further pre-
eminence that Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE en-
joyed beyond Dr. SWIFT, his fortune only
excepted, I do profeſs that I can ſee none.
With reſpect to the abilities of each I ſhall
not preſume to form any compariſon, but
for the ſake of argument I will ſuppoſe
them to be equal. And as to the point of
birth, I declare upon my veracity, and with
high reſpect to the name of TEMPLE, which
I greatly honor, that I cannot tell whether
H
Sir
GLUM.
98 Eſſay on the Life and
Sir WillIAM TEMPLE had the advantage or
not. Every body can ſee what havock is
made in families by a courſe of ages, parti-
.cularly in thoſe which ſeem to have been
actuated by an open generous diſintereſted
ſpirit * ; and we are all apprized what num-
ber of families are perpetually raiſed one
above another in titles, fortune, &c. by
ten thouſand accidents ; ſometimes by the
force of their virtues, which I am perſuaded
was the caſe of the TEMPLE family; and
ſometimes by the force of their iniquities, *
which on the perufal of hiſtory appears no-
toriouſly to have been the caſe of many
others. But to ſuppoſe that ſo great and
wiſe a man as Dr. Swift in all other re-
fpects, could in this particular have been
ſuch an aſs, ſuch a blockhead, and a drivel-
ler, as to imagine that he could have ac-
quired any the leaſt degree of honor by mar-
rying the natural daughter of Sir WILLIAM
TEMPLE, or indeed the natural daughter of
any perſon that ever lived upon earth, is a
conception too groſs and abſurd to merit
any kind of an anſwer.
* Vid. Gul. Voy. to Laputa, chap. 8.
+ Vid. Gul, Voy. to Lapula, chap. 8.
CHAP
Character of Dr. Swift.
99
CH A P. VI.
H
AVING in the fourth chapter left
Dr. Swift in his ſtudy at Moore-
Park, writing thoſe famous digreſſions which
are added to the Tale of a Tub, and reviſing
the works of Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE t, we
ſhall now proceed with as much regularity
from that period of his life as the nature
and variety of our deſign can poſſibly ad-
mit.
But ſince our famous critick hath pleaſed
to remark upon Swift's manner of travel-
ling, although in my opinion he hath car-
ried his obſervations ſomewhat too far, I
cannot but allow, that when Swift was a
young man he was prodigiouſly fond of
rambling, even before his pocket could afford
the common expences of a journey; and
therefore we cannot but applaud his manner
of travelling, ſince travel about he certainly
muſt, or elſe die of the ſpleen. Oxford,
Dublin, London, Moore-Park, and Leiceſter,
were at various times the places of his abode,
but Leiceſter in particular, during his mo-
ther's life, he commonly viſited once a year
let his general reſidence have been where it
+ It is ſcarce worth while to obſerve, that among other
lit:le obliging offices to that great man, SWIFT tranſlated
for him his letters out of the originál French into Engliſh.
H2
would.
100
Eſſay on the Life and
would. In ſhort, upon his own feet he ran
like a buck from one place to another.
Gates, ſtyles, and quickſets, he no more va-
lued than if they had been ſo many
ſtraws.
His conſtitution was ſtrong, and his limbs
were active. I ſuppoſe if at any time he
{prung into a waggon, it muſt have been
either occaſionally to avoid rain, or for the
fake of drollery. His company in thoſe
flights were, I believe, all ſorts of people
which he met in towns and villages where
he chanced to refreſh himſelf; ſome chat
for an hour, and again to the fields. His
imagination was always alive, and perhaps
beyond all others he had a power to conci-
liate his ideas to the ſeveral capacitics of all
human race, and at the ſame time catch en-
tertainment to himſelf from every ſpecies of
underſtanding, agreeable to what is ſaid in
that panegyrick on the DEAN written in
the perſon of a lady * in the north of Ire-
land:
Whene'er you joke, 'tis all a caſe,
Whether with DERMOT, or HIS GRACE ;
With TEAGUE O MURPHY, or an earl;
A ducheſs or a kitchen girl.
With ſuch dexterity you fit
Their ſev’ral talents to your wit,
That MOLL the chamber-maid can ſmoak,
And GAGHAGAN take ev'ry joke.
* Lady ACHESON.
But
Character of Dr. Swift. IOI
But the account of his “ uſing to lie in
<< houſes where he found written over the
“ door lodgings for a penny; and his gene-
rally chooſing to dine with waggoners,
boftlers, and perſons of that rank,” are only
to be conſidered like many other ſparks of
rhetorick ſcattered here and there in the fem
veral pages of the Remarks, to give a luftre
and a brilliancy to the caricatura of Dr.
SWIFT.
However indeed the Doctor hath often
told his friends, that whatever money he
ſaved by this manner of travelling he con-
ſtantly threw it away, as ſoon as he went to
London, upon a fine waiſtcoat, or ſome ade
ditional gaiety upon a ſuit of cloaths.
It is further remarked by this very ſaga-
cious critick, that about the time when Dr.
Swift was chaplain to my Lord BERKELEY
he was not to be reconciled to his only fifter,
who was married to a man in trade, which
he is pleaſed to inſiſt upon as a very parti-
cular inſtance of his pride. But what de-
gree of pride may fairly upon this account
be imputed to the Doctor I really cannot af-
firm. Let others paſs their cenfures accord-
ing to their ſeveral opinions if it be worth
their while to conſider little family piques.
However indeed, upon a clear ſtate of the
caſe the matter will appear in the follow-
ing light. The Doctor's ſiſter was of a mid-
dle fize, finely ſhaped, and rather beyond
what
H3
102 Eſſay on the Life and
what is called the agreeable throughout her
whole perſon. She was polite and well-
bred, with at leaſt a good ſhare of under-
ſtanding. She was at that time worth 300 1.*
which I preſume was in thoſe days a much
better fortune in Ireland than a thouſand
pounds would be at preſent.
Added to
theſe advantages, the Doctor had a promiſe
from my Lady BETTY BERKELEY, before
he had ſet out from London, that his fifter
ſhould upon all occaſions be well received
at the caſtle of Dublin, and frequently meet
with ſome diſtinguiſhing marks of friend-
ſhip. Moreover that great figure which
her brother already made in the learned
world, threw an additional luſtre upon all
her pretenſions. Yet in the midſt of theſe
pleaſing circumſtances the vouchſafed to ac-
cept a propoſal of marriage, by the advice
of her uncles, from a tradelman that was re-
puted to be worth five thouſand pounds.
Which having communicated to her bro-
ther, as ſoon as ſhe found that he was ut-
* If it ſhould be queſtioned, how came the Doctor's fifter
to be worth 300 l. when the Doctor himſelf was not worth
a groat until after the death of Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE?
(Vid. App. Sect. 25.) I anſwer, the fame generous benefac-
tors, the family of the Swifts, who had ſupported and
educated her brother until he was ſeven and twenty, made
up this little fortune among them to push her into the world.
as they had been equally beneficent to her from the days of
her infancy. And perhaps this might have been the reaſon
that the hearkened to the advice of her uncles in oppoſition
to the remonftrances of her brother.
terly
Character of Dr. Swift.
IO3
terly averſe from entertaining the moſt dif-
tant thoughts of it, ſhe began to remon-
ſtrate to him in the way of reaſon, (for the
match was by no means very deſirable in her
own breaſt) that ſhe could not ſupport her-
ſelf on her 300l. Upon hearing thele words
her brother aſſured her, that he would ne-.
ver ſee her want the neceſſaries or the con-
veniencies of life, and as a further proof
to convince her that his regards for her were
truly affectionate and ſincere, he promiſed to
ſettle upon her
her 500 l. being all he was then
pofſeffed of in the world, the very hour
that he ſhould get ſome benefice in the
church, which he daily expected, provided
me would reject this overture of marriage
with a proper diſdain. But unfortunately
ſhe ſuffered herſelf to be guided by the ad-
vice of her uncles, and concluded the match,
perhaps it may be ſaid in deſpight of her
brother. Whereupon it cannot be denied
(to uſe the words of the critick) that he
grew outrageous at the thoughts of being bro-
ther in law to a tradeſman. Neither can I
blame the Doctor for his behaviour in this
particular, becauſe how reputable foever
trade is beginning to be in Ireland at this time,
it is certain that fifty or fixty years ago it
was in the utmoſt contempt. And with-
out diſpute opinions of all forts, whether
founded upon reaſon or built on prejudice,
no matter which, are the reigning empreſſes
of
н H 4
104 Effay on the Life and
of this world and all the faſhions thereof.
But to ſpeak freely my own ſentiments up-
on affairs of this nature, I think all fifters
have a right, provided they have fortunes
independent of their brothers, to marry
whom they pleaſe; and at the ſame time I
think all brothers have an equal right either
to cultivate ſome degree of friendſhip with
their ſiſters huſbands, or if ſuch be their
will and pleaſure, wholly to abſtain from
their acquaintance; the latter of which hath
I verily believe been the reſolution and
practice of many thouſand others beſide Dr.
Swift. However this glorious prudential
match of the Doctor's ſiſter proved in the
end to be unfortunate enough. The huf-
band was an old tyrannical vicious rake, and
with regard to his 5000 l. he was ſcarce
worth half ſo much on the day he was mar-
ried. Yet he continued long enough in the
world to beget ſome two or three children,
then broke and died, leaving his family in
very deplorable circumſtances. The Doctor
upon this event acquainted his fifter by mef-
fage (for he would never be ſo far reconciled
as to ſee her face) that he would allow her
201. a year during her life provided the
would live in England, but not otherwiſe.
And accordingly ſhe went, I think it was to
London, where the conſtantly received her
annuity until the time of her deceaſe. I
have deſignedly forborn to mention the part
which
Character of Dr. Swift. 105
which the Doctor's mother was either
pleaſed or perſuaded to act upon this oc-
cafion, becauſe I am unwilling to form
any ſort of deſcant upon the meaſures of
obedience. However in this, among a thou-
fand other caſes, I fancy we may apply that
ſentiment of HORACE :
Sunt certi denique fines,
Quos ultra citraque nequit confiftere rectum.
But as theſe are liccle family quarrels
that happened fifty or fixty years ago, they
are, at leaſt in my opinion, as much below
the conſideration of the publick, as indeed
they are unworthy of any critical obſerva-
tion.
But to return more immediately to our
purpoſe. The Doctor while he continued
in the houſe of Sir WilLIAM TEMPLE
having begun to reflect that it was full time
for him to reſolve upon ſome profeſſion
whereby to maintain himſelf independent,
was inclined to run his fortune under the
banner of the church. But as at that time
his circumſtances were extreamly confined,
he had ſome ſcruple of entering into that
ſacred profeſſion meerly for a ſupport. How-
ever it came to paſs that while he pondered
upon theſe matters Sir JOHN TEMPLE,
who was at that time maſter of the rolls in
Ireland, offered him an employment of about
* Vid. Appendix, Sett. 25.
120
106
Eſſay on the Life and
1201. a year in that office; whereupon the
Doctor ſaid, that ſince he had now an
opportunity of living without being driven
into the church for a maintenance, he was
reſolved to go to Ireland and take holy or-
ders. The Doctor having in this manner
declared his reſolution, Sir WILLIAM re-
commended him to the Lord CAPEL, then
lord deputy, who gave him a prebend in the
north worth about jool. a year, of which
growing weary in a few months he returned
to-England, reſigned his living in favour of
a friend, and continued in Sir WILLIAM
TEMPLE's houſe until the death of that
great man, who beſides a legacy left him the
care and truſt and advantage of publiſhing
his poſthumous writings.
Dr. Swift upon this event removed to
London*, and applied by memorial to king
WILLIAM, upon the claim of a promiſe his
MAJESTY had made to Sir William Tem-
PLE, that he would give the Doctor a pre-
bend of Canterbury or Weſtminſter as ſoon as
there was a vacancy in either of thoſe ca-
thedrals. And as a further inducement to
the king not to forget his memorial, he de-
dicated unto HIM the works of his old friend
Sir. WILLIAM TEMPLE. But all his en-
deavours to obtain ſome church preferment
in England proved ineffectual
. He relied
upon the word of his MAJESTY, and paid
* Vid. Appendix, Sect. 26.
his
Character of Dr. Swift. 107
pay their
his reſpects at the court of that prince, un-
til he found by experience that he was to-
tally unacquainted with the heart of that
po-
litical monarch. This attendance of Dr.
Swift at the court of his ſovereign is ſtiled
by the famous critick ſo often mentioned
a ſtate of feruility and contempt. But whe-
ther all the nobility and gentry who have an
eye to preferment, and therefore
attendance at their prince's court, live in
a ſtate of ſervility and contempt, is a point
of delicateſſe beyond my knowledge of the
world, as I never threw myſelf into the road
of expecting favours either from kings, their
deputies, or their miniſters: If indeed ſuch
be the caſe of all thoſe who paſs under the
general name of courtiers; Iallow the Doc-
tor to have been a ſlave in the midſt of a
great deal of good company. But if the caſe
be otherwiſe, I cannot conceive why fervi-
lity and contempt ſhould have been the por-
tion of Dr. Swift more than of any one
elſe, were it for no other reaſon, than be
cauſe the greatneſs of his own ſpirit (which
upon every occaſion is called pride or ambi-
tion throughout the whole body of the Re-
marks) made him forſake the court of king
WILLIAM, and apply himſelf unto thote
who had a clearer ſenſe of his abilities. I
know it is ſaid by this admired critick, and
perhaps with great judgment, " That the
premiſes of kings are often a kind of chaff
“ which
108 Effay on the Life and
* which the breath of a miniſter bloweth and
“ ſcattereth away from the face of a court.”
But whether or no king WILLIAM, that
prince of great ſincerity, where he thought
his honor was concerned among his pro-
teftant allies of Europe, was obliged to per-
form his promiſe to his old friend Sir WIL-
LIAM TEMPLE, is a point of caſuiſtry whol-
ly beyond my reach in politicks, and there-
fore I leave it to be controverted by the
dabblers in that ſcience. However indeed
I am afraid that Dr. Swift in the beginning
of his life, before he had met with this un-
gracious, unmerited diſappointment, was not
thoroughly convinced that a monarch fo re-
nowned for the glory of his arms againſt
the proweſs of Louis the XIVth, had a
right upon the death of Sir WILLIAM
TEMPLE to forget his old companion, that
uſed to ramble about with him in the fields
and gardens at Sheen (Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE
by reaſon of the gout being unable to at-
tend his MAJESTY upon thoſe occaſions)
where in their evening converſations among
other bagatelles, the king, as I have heard
from the Doctor's own mouth, offered to
inake him a captain of horſe, and gave him
inſtructions, fo great was the freedom of their
converſation, how to cut aſparagus (a vege-
table which His MAJESTY was extreamly
fond of) in the Dutch manner. Perhaps it
was owing to the king's very diſtant behavi-
our
Character of Dr. Swift. 109
our towards him after the death of Sir
WILLIAM TEMPLE, and eſpecially to that
ungracious neglect of his memorial, that
during the remainder of his life
Swift follow'd David's leffon juſt,
In princes never put his truſt. *
A maxim which cannot be called in queſti-
on without great impiety, as the pſalms of
David were written by inſpiration from on
high, and are frequently quoted in that light
by the apoſtles of our BLESSED REDEEMER.
Our young adventurer in politicks and di-
vinity having intirely forſaken the court of
king WILLIAM, complied with an invitati-
on 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. He attended his lordſhip, who
landed near Waterford, and the Doctor acted
as ſecretary the whole journey to Dublin.
But another perſon had ſo far infinuated
himſelf into the earl's favour, by telling him
that the poſt of ſecretary was not proper for
a clergyman, nor would be of any advan-
tage to one whoſe aim was directed only at
church preferment, that his lordſhip after a
poor apology gave that office to the other.
Swift fired with indignation at this injuri-
ous treatment, writ the following fatyrical
* l'id. Gal. Voy. to Lilliput, chap. 8.
copy
110 Efſay on the Life and
copy
of verſes, entitled The Diſcovery ;
which, although privately ſhewn to ſome
particular friends, was never, I think, printed
in any collection of his works until the year
1751.
The DISCOVERY.
.
When wife Lord BERKELEY firſt came here,
Stateſmen and mob expected wonders,
Nor thought to find ſo great a peer,
E're a week paſs'd committing blunders.
Till on a day cut out by fate
When folks came thick to make their court,
Out flipt a myſtery of ſtate,
To give the town and country ſport.
Now enters Bush * with new ſtate airs,
His lordſhip's premier miniſter ;
And who in all profound affairs,
Is held as needful as his c«ter. +
With bead reclining on his ſhoulder,
He deals and hears myſterious chat,
While ev'ry ignorant beholder
Afks of his neighbour, who is that?
With this he puts up to my lord,
The courtiers kept their diſtance due,
He twitch'd his ſleeve, and ſtole a word;
Then to a corner both withdrew.
* My lord's wife Secretary.
* Always taken before my lord went to council.
Imagine
Character of Dr. Swift.
INI
Imagine now my lord and BUSH
Whiſpring in junto moſt profound,
Like good king Phyz*, and good king Ush,
While all the reſt ſtood gaping round.
At length a ſpark, not too well bred,
Of forward face, and ear acute,
Advanc'd on tiptoe, lean'd his head,
To over-hear the grand diſpute.
To learn what northern kings deſign,
Or from Whitehall ſome new expreſs,
Papiſts diſarm'd, or fall of coin,
For ſure (thought he) it can't be leſs.
My lord, ſaid Bush, a friend and I.
Diſguis'd in two old thread-bare coats,
E're morning's dawn ſtole out to ſpy
How markets went for hay and oats :
With that he draws two handfuls out,
The one was oats, the other hay;
Puts this to's excellency's ſnout,
And begs he wou'd the other weigh.
My lord ſeems pleas'd, but ſtill directs
By all means to bring down the rates;
Then with a congee circumflex,
Bush, ſmiling round on all, retreats.
Our liſt'ner ſtood a while confus'd,
But gath’ring ſpirits wifdly ran for't,
Enrag'd to ſee the world abus'd
By two ſuch whiſp'ring kings of Brentford
This poem as well as the fubſequent in
BATHURST's edition, which is entitled the
* Vid the Rehearſal.
Problem,
II2 Eſſay on the Life and
Problem, and which indeed is far from be-
ing the moſt delicate of all his performances,
were both written in the year 1699.
I CANNOT tell whether it be worth record-
ing among the anecdotes of his life; but in
the year 1699 Swift had like to have burnt
the caſtle of Dublin, and the lord BERKE-
LEY in the midſt of it.
For the Doctor,
whoſe bed-chamber was the next room to his
excellency's, having grown drowſy over his
book while he was reading in bed, dropt
aſleep without extinguiſhing his candle; which
happening to fall upon his quilt ſet it on
fire and burnt it's paſſage quite through the
bedcloaths until it reached his thigh. SWIFT
rowſed by the pain leaped out of bed, and
extinguiſhed the fire, which by this time
had burnt part of the curtains. He took
care to have the damages repaired; and by
throwing away ſome guineas in huih-money,
the accident was never made known in the
caſtle.
* HOWEVER, it happened that in a few
months after the Earls of. BERKELEY and
GALWAY had been ſettle the government,
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 DR. SWIFT
in
* This paragraph is taken almost word for word from the
Appendir $ 27
was
e
Character of Dr. Swift. 113
was put off with ſome other church livings
not worth above a third part of that rich
deanery, and at preſent not a fixth. The
Reaſon pretended was his being too young,
although he were then above two and thirty
years old.
I HAVE been told, that upon the ſecre-
tary's being offered a thouſand pounds for
the deanery of Derry he would not con-
clude the bargain, but kept it in reſerve,
until he had acquainted the Doctor with the
propoſal he had received; which after he
had done, he made Swift the offer of the
deanery for the like ſum : but Swift told
him plainly, that he thought he had nothing
to do with ecclefiaftical preferments, and re-
jected his overture with all imaginable diſ-
dain. There is likewiſe a report, that upon
the earl of BERKELEY's deſigning to pro-
mote SWIFT to the deanery abovementioned,
Dr. King, then biſhop of that dioceſe, and
afterwards tranſlated to the archiepiſcopal fec
of Dublin, interpoſed with a good deal of
warmth againſt the preferment of Swift
unto that deanery ; ſignifying to the earl,
that Swift was a man too young and vo-
latile for the air of that dioceſe; neither was
it reaſonable to expect, that a man fo pro-
digiouſly fond of rambling from one kingdom
to another, would be content to refide in
the north of Ireland, or expend any degree
of labour in aſſiſting his biſhop to reconcile
I
preſby-
114 Efſay on the Life and
preſbyterians, and other puritanical ſectariſts,
unto the eſtabliſhed church. Theſe repre-
fentations might have furniſhed the earl
with ſome kind of apology for gratifying his
ſecretary. But whether or no DR. KING,
who was at that time very deſervedly in high
reputation, although defcended from the
meaneſt of the people, was afraid of be-
ing eclipſed by the ſuperior luſtre of this
young aſpiring genius, who was in all ref-
pects, notwithſtanding that he agreed with the
biſhop in affairs ecclefiaftical, a man of a
quite different caft and manner of thinking,
I ſhall not prefume to determine. However it
is by no means improbable, that Swift's
prodigious talents, which appear throughout
his whole life to have been dreaded by all his
cotemporaries, not excepting even thoſe mi-
niſters, who were deſirous to have the ho-
nour of being ranked among his beſt friends
(which is a point that I ſhall enlarge upon
with more freedom in ſome other place) had
a greater fhare in obftructing his promotion
to the deanery of Derry, than perhaps any
filly, trifling objections againſt his youth and
ſprightlineſs. GRANVILLE, ST. JOHN, TEM-
PLE, were at the age of thirty, or thereabouts,
employed by their ſeveral courts in the ma-
nagement of thoſe affairs, which required
all the nobleſt and the moſt extenfive abilities,
He was the fon of a miller.
2
that
Character of Dr. Swift. 115
that can be ſuppoſed to exiſt in the moſt
confummate ſtates-men: and yet we do not
find, that it was ever imagined their youth
and ſprightlineſs would be the cauſe of their
miſcarriage in the moſt difficult of their ne-
gotiations. And ſurely if thirty, or thirty
two, be an age for exerting all the powers
of a great miniſter, the ſame will be thought
ſufficient for the exerciſe of thoſe talents,
which are required in the governor of any
remote cathedral?
However, thoſe livings, which at that
time were given to the Doctor in lieu of the
above deanery were Laracor a and Rathbeg-
gan in the dioceſe of Meatb, the former
worth about 200, and the latter about ſixty
pounds a year.
As ſoon as the earls of BERKELEY and
GALWAY had been ſucceeded in the govern-
ment by the primate and the earl of Drog-
HEDA, which happened, I think, fome-
what about a year after his being preſented
to theſe livings, poor SWIFT, half in deſpair
of further preferment, gallops down to
Laracor ; where ſolitude, retirement, the fan-
ning of leaves, and the warbling of birds,
threw him into ſome kind of reveries, more
fuitable, if any ſtreſs can be laid on the
any further
* The rectory of Agher and the vicarage of Laracor make
but one benefice. They are adjacent pariſhes, united by the
biſhop. As the church is at Laracor, the benefice generally
paffes under that denomination.
I 2
general
116
Efray on the Life and
general opinions of the world, to the gravity
and fedateneſs of an older divine, than to that
abundant ſprightlineſs and fire, which ani-
mated the ſoul of this young, vigorous, un-
common, heteroclite genius. Perhaps it may
be thought exceedingly ſtrange by thoſe who
admire Swift only for his wit and politicks,
that immediately after he had gone to refide
in the country, he ſhould begin to reflect,
that he was entruſted with the cure of ſouls.
But Swift was really a man of high religion,
without grunting, groaning, canting, hypo-
criſy, or making wry faces; and ſure it is,
that in proportion to thoſe talents, which he
is allowed to have poſſeſſed in the moſt
eminent degree, he beat all his cotempora-
ries many thouſand of leagues in the race of
chriſtianity: but of this hereafter. In ſhort;
he
gave his pariſhioners a publick invitation to
attend the ſervice of God upon every wedneſ-
day and friday. And accordingly the beli
was rung on the wedneſday following ; but
not a ſoul appeared in the church except the
rector and his clerk ROGER; which the
Doctor finding to be the caſe, after he had
waited for ſome reaſonable time, he began
with great compoſure of countenance, but
with a certain droll mixture of gravity and
humour; " dearly beloved Roger, the ſcrip-
“ ture moveth you and me in fundry places ;'
and afterwards with great regularity pro-
ceeded throughout the whole ſervice. What
a glorious
2
Character of Dr. Swift. 117
:
a glorious prieſt would he have been, to re-
form the young and ſprightly from the ex-
travagance of their ways ? but alas ! that
amazing capacity, ſo continually rolling over
with torrents of wit and humour, was by no
means adapted to the ſolemnity of a country
pariſh, or to the confolation of old women.
DURING the reign of king WILLIAM
little or nothing happened extraordinary in
the Doctor's life, more than what we have
touched upon already in a curſory way.
However, The tale of a tub, The battle of the
books, and The diſcourſe concerning the mechani-
cal operation of the ſpirit, were all publiſhed
in thoſe times. It is reported with regard
to other compoſitions, that he writ in the
early part of his life ſeveral poems in that
irregular kind of metre, which I think with
great impropriety of ſpeech is called the Pin-
darick; whereby it is certain, that he acquired
no ſort of reputation. I have been told, that his
couſin JOHN DRYDEN expreffed a good
deal of contempt for a pretty large collection
of theſe poems, which had been ſhewn to
him in manuſcript by his bookfeller ; for
which treatment Í verily believe it was, that
in return to his compliment the Doctor hath
on all occaſions been ſo unmercifully ſevere
upon that famous writer. But this kind of
uſage among the ſticklers for reputation, is
JOHN DRYDEN was couſin german to the Doctor's
fanctified
a
father,
I 3
118 Effay on the Life and
fanctified by immemorial preſcription. To the
beſt of my remembrance, DRYDEN himſelf
hath declared,
Poets ſhou'd ne'er be drones, mean harm-
leſs things;
But guard, like bees, their labours by
their ſtings.
THERE are indeed but three ſpecimens
of the Doctor's that I know of in the
pindarick meaſure, the firſt An ode to Sir
WILLIAM TEMPLE, written in the
year
1689; the ſecond An ode to king William,
written when his MAJESTY was in Ireland;
and the laſt An ode to the Athenian fociety,
written in the year 1691. The firſt and
the laſt of thefe odes are in BATHURST's
edition of Dr. Swift's miſcellanies, but the
ſecond is, I believe, only to be met with in
the Athenian oracle. The reſt of his poems
in that ſtyle, thanks to his own better judg-
ment, and the opinion of John DRYDEN,
were all burnt.
We find however that when the earl of
Berkeley was one of the lords juſtices of
Ireland, SWIFT's true poetical vein (pinda-
rick flights being intirely out of the road of
his talents) began to diſcover itſelf in ſome
occafional pieces which he writ in thoſe
times, particularly in the Ballad on the
game
ef
.
Character of Dr. Swift.
119
3
of traffick, in The ballad to the tune of the
cut-purſe, and in
The humble petition of Mrs. FRANCIS
HARRIS
Who muſt ſtarve, and die a maid if it mif-
carries. *
By caſting our eyes over the Ballad on the
game of traffick, we may obſerve in what
manner the earl and counteſs of Berke-
LEY, and their little group at the caſtle of
Dublin, ſpent their evenings in private when
they were totally diſengaged from the noiſe,
the buſtle, and the plague of buſineſs and
ceremony. The ſeveral characters which
make
up this little group are the earl and
counteſs of BERKELEY, Mrs. B IDDY
FLOYD, Mrs. HERKES, Mrs. WESTON,
and Dr. Swift. This ballad appears to
have been deſigned as a piece of raillery upon
the whole ſet, and written purely for their do-
meſtic entertainment: This poem, as far as it
runs, for it is only a fragment, it is full of
mirth and humour, the ſecond ſtanza in
particular is wonderfully ſtriking :
But then his Honour cry'd, godzooks!
And ſeem'd to knit his brow
For on a knave he never looks
But h' thinks upon Jack How.
*. Theſe poems are all wrong dated in the ſeveral editions
of his works. It appears to a demonſtration they were all
written in the year 1699.
The
;
14
I 20 Eſſay on the Life and
The ſurprize of my lord BERKELEY, and
the bringing Jack How to remembrance
upon the fight of a knave, for no other rea-
fon than becauſe he was a famous anti-cour-
tier in thoſe times, perpetually oppoſing and
thwarting the meaſures of king WILLIAM
in the houſe of commons, is a whimſical
piece of drollery in the poetick ſtrain, eſpe-
cially when addreſſed to a court lord in one
of the higheſt employments. We are at a
lofs to know whether any more characters
were deſigned to have been introduced into
this ballad, but we may reaſonably ſuppoſe
there were, becauſe in reality it ſeemeth to
have been broken off in the very midſt of
its career. However indeed the politeneſs
of Dr, Swift would not fuffer him to en-
large or correct it after my lady Betty
BERKELEY had in a manner given it the fi-
niſhing ſtroke; on occaſion of which he writ
the ſubſequent Ballad to the tune of the cut-
furſe, which hath abundance of life, hu-
mour, pleaſantry, and politeneſs.
The petition of Mrs. FRANCES HARRIS,
although it may be ranked in that claſs of
poetry which is called low humour, is full
of mirth and raillery. · The Doctor himſelf
and Mrs. FRANCES HARRIS are the two
principal characters, againſt whom the ridi-
cule is immediately pointed. However
there is one beautiful ſtroke of nature in
this poem worthy to be remarked, which
in
Character of Dr. Swift. 121
in the way of characteriſing can never be ex-
celled by any effort of genius. Do but ob-
ſerve the anſwer of the old deaf houfe
keeper in the following lines :
Then my dame WADGAR came, and ſhe you
know is thick of hearing ;
Dame, ſaid I, as loud as I could bawl, do
you know what a loſs I have had ?
Nay, ſaid me, my lord CoLWAY'S * folks are
all very ſad ;
lord DROMEDARY * comes a Tueſday
without fail;
Pugh, ſaid I, but that is not the buſineſs
that I ail.
For any
3
In one word, whoever can read this
pe-
tition of Mrs. FRANCES HARRIS without
feeling ſome extraordinary pleaſure, hath,
in my opinion, neither wit, humour, judg-
ment, nor any taſte for poetry in his whole
compoſition.
However it happened juſt about the
cloſe of the reign of king WILLIAM that
DR. SWIFT, immediately after the publica-
tion of that piece entitled A diſcourſe of the
conteſts and difenſions between the Nobles and
COMMONS in Athens and Rome, returned from
England to Ireland, where having met with
old biſhop SHERIDAN at his uncle WILLIAM
Swift's in Dublin, the biſhop after ſome
GALWAY's,
+ DROGHIDA.
little
:
the author of
122 Eflay on the Life and
little converſation with him about the affairs
of England, aſked him if he had read the Dif-
courſe of the conteſts and diſenhons between the
Nobles and COMMONs in Athens and Rome,
and what reputation it carried at London.
The Doctor told him with a good deal of
modeſty, that he had read it, and that as
far as he had obſerved it was very well liked
at London. Very well liked, ſaid the bi-
ſhop, with ſome degree of emotion? Yes,
fir, it is one of the fineſt tracts that ever
was written. Well, ſurely biſhop Burnet
is one of the beſt writers in the whole
world! Biſhop BURNET, my lord, ſaid the
Doctor? Why, my lord, biſhop BURNET
was not the author of that diſcourſe. Not
there is never a man in England except the
biſhop capable of writing it. I can aſſure
your lordſhip, replied the Doctor, biſhop
BURNET was not the author of it. Not the
author of it, ſaid the biſhop? Pray fir give
me your reaſon, your reaſon Mr. Swift
for thinking ſo. Becauſe, my lord, that diſ-
courſe is not written in the biſhop's ſtyle.
Not in the biſhop's ſtyle, replied old She-
RIDAN with ſome degree of contempt? No,
my lord, the ſtyle of that pamphlet is I think
wholly different from the ſtyle of the bi-
ſhop. Oh, Mr. Swift, replied SHERI-
DAN, I have had a long acquaintance with
your uncles, and an old friendſhip for all
you!
Character of Dr. Swift.
12g
gard for
your family, and really I have a great re-
you in particular. But let me ad-
viſe you, let me adviſe you MR. Swift,
for you are ſtill a very young man, I know
you have a good ſhare of abilities, and are a
good ſcholar; however let me aſſure you not-
withſtanding, that you are ftill a great deal
too young to pronounce your judgment on
the ſtyle of authors. I am greatly obliged
to your lordſhip, replied Swift, for the
good opinion you are pleaſed to entertain of
me, but ſtill I am to aſſure your lordſhip
that biſhop BURNET was not the author of
that diſcourſe. Well, ſir, if biſhop BURNET
was not the author of it, pray fir let me
know who it was that did write it? Why,
really, my lord, I writ it myſelf. And this
was the firſt time that ever he acknowledged
himſelf to be the author of that famous
tract.
But before I have done with this chap-
ter, I cannot but obſerve that it is remark-
ed by the famous critick ſo often menti-
oned, That in point of ſtyle and learning this
tract is equal if not ſuperior. to any of bis
political works
. In point of learning, if in-
deed by learning the critick meaneth an ac-
quaintance with Greek and Latin authors,
and with thoſe only (which by the way to
imagine how ineſtimable foever the writings
of the Greeks and Romans, is only a rag of
pedantry that more or leſs we have all
brought
124 Efſay on the Life and
as an
brought from ſchool) I am ready to accord
with his remark, if it were only for this
ceafon, becauſe the whole is nothing elſe
but the ſubſtance of Greek and Latin hifto-
fy, applied in favour of the cauſe which
he intended to ſerve) with infinite jndgment
and fagacity to the conteſts and diſſenſions
between the NOBLES and COMMONG of Eng-
land in thoſe times. But in point of ſtyle
I cannot think it equal to The publick ſpirit
of the Whigs, much leſs to that glorious po-
ſitical tract which is entitled A preface to
the biſhop of SA'RUM's introduction.
ALL I ſhall ſay further with regard to this
famous Diſcourſe concerning the conteſts and
diſenhows, &c. is, that I ſhould have been
more pleaſed to have ſeen the political ta-
lents of Dr. SWIFT exerted on the other
fide of the queſtion. We are not to con-
ſider this pamphlet as a defence, but rather
am willing to preſume that he acted for
the beſt, but to look into futurity is a pe-
culiar bleffing granted only to prophets.
1
CHAP
Character of Dr. Swift.
125
W
held in utter contempt all kinds of medita-
CHA P. VIL
E ſhall now proceed to accompany
the Doctor from the beginning of
this century, or rather from the death of
king WILLIAM until he became acquainted
with the earl of OXFORD in the year 1710.
But ſince there are few or none of his friends
now living, who were in thoſe times
among
the number of his acquaintance, we ſhall
endeavour to ſupply our want of anecdotes
by obſerving in what manner he employed
his leiſure during that period, fo-far as may
be gathered from his own writings.
That celebrated Meditation upon a Broom-
flick, ſo univerſally admired by all perfons of
taſte and learning, was written by the Doc-
tor in the year 1703 in deriſion of the ſtyle
and cant of an author, whoſe meditations
were I ſuppoſe in the hands of twenty or
thirty old women, and perhaps ſome other
hypocondriacal people in thoſe times. When
Swift diverted himſelf in this manner. he
was about the age of five or fix and thirty,
riſing into the high noon of life, judgment,
and abilities, and conſequently muſt have
tions, whether written by that perſon whom
he derides, or by the greateſt genius in Eng-
land; that ſort of fcribbling above all other
being
126 Eſſay on the Life and
being in truth the moſt impertinently ridi-
culous. However, it is a caſe worthy of our
deepeſt lamentation, that ſo good a man as
the author of the meditations, ſhould have
received ſuch an unmerciful ſtroke from the
hands of Dr. SWIFT. Nevertheleſs, it cannot
be aſſerted from this jocoſe, ſarcaſtick medita-
tion, that Dr. Swift fell indiſcriminately upon
friends and foes; were it for no other reaſon,
than becauſe it is impoſſible to prove, that
ever that perſon, whoſe writings have been
treated with ſuch infinite ridicule, had the
honour to be at all acquainted with Dr.
SWIFT, much leſs that he could ever boaſt
to have had a ſhare in his friendſhip.
SUBSEQUENT to the Meditation upon a
Broomſtick ought immediately to be ranked
in form and order, The Tritical Elay upon
the Faculties of the Mind, which was written
about the ſame time with the former, viz.
in the year 1703 ; a piece wherein the ſpirit
of ridicule is very highly diſplayed. The
author gravely pretends that his ſubject is
of mighty importance ; that his ſentiments
are intirely new; that his quotations are un-
touched by others; and above all, that he
has treated his ſubject with much order,
fulneſs, and perſpicuity; on which account
he hath propoſed it as a pattern for young
writers to imitate ; and defires it may be
conſidered as the utmoſt effort of his genius.
Whereas in fact the ſubject is of little impor-
tance;
Character of Dr. Swift.
127
tance; the ſentiments are old and ſtale, the
quotations are thread-bare ; and to compleat
his ridicule, he has treated his ſubject in a
light, careleſs
, rambling, ſuperficial manner,
without order, fulneſs, meaning, or perſpi-
cuity : And therefore it is only to be conſi-
dered, like the The Meditation on a Broom-
ſtick, in a farcical, fatyrick light, deſigned
purely to expoſe the folly and temerity of
thoſe brainleſs, illiterate fcriblers, who are
eternally plaguing their cotemporaries with
a parcel of wild, incoherent, nonſenſical
traſh.
From the year 1703 until the latter end
of the year 1706, we can trace Dr. SWIFT
only by a few copies of verſes, particularly
his ridicule on coquettes and petit-maitres,
ſuppoſed to have been written in a lady's ivo-
ry
table-book ; his
poem On the Union, which
I think was never publiſhed until after his
deceaſe; and that exceſſive bitter Deſcription
of a ſalcmander, occafioned by the duke of
MARLBOROUGH's giving that appellation to
my lord Cutts, after he had come off victo-
rious and without a wound from an engage-
ment with part of the French army, whoſe
fire was ſo extreamly briſk, and ſo inceffant-
ly poured in upon the Engliſh forces, that it
was ſuppoſed nothing but a ſalamander could
have lived in the midſt of it.
But e'er fince men invented guns,
A diff'rent way their fancy runs ;
То
128 Effay on the Life and
To paint an hero, we enquire
For ſomething that will conquer FIRE.
Wou'd you deſcribe TURENNE or TRUMP,
Think of a bucket, or a pump,
Are theſe too low ?-then find out grander
Call my lord Cutts a ſalamander.
Neither do we find that in the year 1707
there was any thing of his printed except two
copies of verſes, the firſt is the
the firſt is the poem On
Mrs. Biddy FLOYD, or, The Receipt to form
Beauty, which is allowed by all perſons of
taſte and judgment, to be ſuch a maſter-
piece in it's kind, that it muſt abide the teſt
of all future ages.
THE other piece which he writ in this
year,
is a very courtly, poetick addreſs, To the
Hon. Mrs. Finch under the name of ARDE-
LIA; wherein, after APOLLO is introduced
with abundance of gallantry, he commands
that lady (if I do not greatly miſunderſtand
the author's meaning) to publiſh her verſes;
and by the perſuaſion of Dr. Swirt, to accept
renown for the grace and delicacy of her poe-
tical works;
Then full of rage APOLLO ſpoke,
Deceitful nymph! I ſee thy art :
And though I can't my gift revoke,
I'll diſappoint it's nobler part.
Let ſtubborn pride poſſeſs thee long,
And be thou negligent of fame
With ev'ry muſe to grace thy ſong,
May'ſt thou depiſe a poet's name.
Of
:
i
Character of Dr. Swift.
129
Of modeſt poets be thou firſt,
To ſilent ſhades repeat thy verſe,
Till FAME and Echo almoſt burſt,
Yet hardly dare one line rehearſe.
And laſt, my vengeance to compleat;
May you deſcend to take renown,
Prevail'd on by the thing you hate,
A whig, and one that wears a gown.
To underſtand what the Doctor meaneth
by a Whig in the above paffage, you may
conſult his letter from a Member of the
Houſe of COMMONS in Ireland to a Mem-
ber of the Houſe of COMMONS in England.
" Whoever bears a true veneration for the
glorious memory of King William, as
our great deliverer from popery and ſavery;
whoever is firmly loyal to our preſent
queen, with an utter abhorrence and de-
teſtation of the pretender ; whoever ap-
proves the ſucceſſion to the crown in the
“ houſe of Hanover, and is for preſerving
" the doctrine and diſcipline of the church
"
of England, with an indulgence for ſcru-
pulous conſciences; ſuch a man we think
" acts upon right principles, and may be
juſtly allowed a WHig; and I believe
" there are not fix members in our houſe of
commons who may not fairly come un-
“ der this deſcription. So that the parties
among us are made up on one ſide of mo-
“ derate whigs, and on the other of preſbyte-
K
of rians
139
Eſſay on the Life and
“ rians and their abetters; by which laſt I mean,
“ ſuch who can equally go to a church or a
« conventicle; or ſuch who are indifferent to
" all religion in general ; or, laſtly, ſuch
« who affect to bear a perſonal rancor towards
" the clergy. Theſe laſt are a ſet of men
not of our own growth; their principles
at leaſt have been imported of late years ;
yet this whole party put together will
not, I am confident, amount to above
fifty men in parliament, which can hard-
ly be worked up into a majority of three
“ hundred."
Such were the political principles of Dr.
SWIFT, from which I am perfuaded that
he never once ſwerved throughout his whole
life. As for the meer appellation of whig
or tory, as theſe words have no determined
ſignification, a man certainly may call him-
ſelf either, in compliance with the faſhion
of the times, without ever changing his prin-
ciples, ſuppoſing that he is neither a jacobite
on the one ſide, nor a fanatick on the other;
which, according to the beſt intelligence that
I have received, whether from books or con-
verfation, hath been the uſual practice of all
the wife and prudent, ſince the time of the
revolution. This I could eaſily prove, were
it a point worth inſiſting upon, from innu-
merable examples. But the violent of each
party (who are, generally ſpeaking, the moſt
illiterate egregious dunces of the whole
pack,)
Character of Dr. Swift.
131
pack,) will never ſuffer, if they can help it,
a thoughtful wiſe man, who endeavours by
all the means in his power to preſerve intire
the whole conſtitution both of church and
Jiate as by law eſtabliſhed, to continue
right in his ſenſes: I ſay, to continue right in
bis Jenſes; becauſe, whoever runs into the
extream of the whig principle, is ready upon
the first occaſion that offers to ſubvert the
church; and whoever runs into the extream
of the tory principle, is equally ready to fub-
vert the ſtate ; or in other words, to ſubvert
the liberties of the weal-publick. And there-
fore to avoid both the one and the other, as
poiſons equally deſtructive of the beſt conſti-
tution that ever was moulded into form fince
the creation of the world, is without con-
troverſy the duty of all wiſe and good men,
who have any regard and veneration for their
church, their king, their conftitution, or their
country.
But to return from this digreffion; we
may obſerve the genius of Dr. Swift to
break forth upon us in the year 1708 with
ſuch an aſtoniſhing blaze of humour, poli-
ticks, religion, patriotiſm, wit and poetry ;
that if the world had been totally unacquaint-
ed with all his former reputation, the pro-
ductions of that one year would have been
highly ſufficient to have eſtabliſhed his fame
unto all eternity
K 2
SWIFT
132 Eſſay on the Life and
SWIFT commences the year 1708 with a
courſe of papers relating to PARTRIGE the
almanack maker, wherein thoſe who have a
taſte for mirth and humour will find abun-
dance of entertainment. They are deſigned
as a ridicule upon all that fooliſh tribe, who
fet
up for aſtrologers; and without one rag
of learning are great pretenders to ſcience.
The Elegy on PARTRIGE can never be ſuffi-
ciently reliſhed by thoſe who are unacquaint-
ed with theſe whimſical tracts. However,
it is a point worth obſerving, that upon all
occaſions DR. SWIFT remembers the fana-
tical party; neither would be allow a poor
cobler, ſtar-monger and quack to go out of
the world, until upon his death-bed he had de-
clared himſelf a nonconformiſt
, and had a fa-
natick preacher to be his ſpiritual guide
.
Moreover, it ſhould not be forgotten, that
the inquiſition in Portugal was pleaſed, in
their great wiſdom, to burn the predictions of
ISAAC BICKERSTAFF, Eſq; and to con-
demn the author and readers of them, as
Dr. Swift was aſſured by Sir PAUL ME-
THUEN (a name always proncunced with plea-
Jire by the whole family of the Swifts, in
remenibrance of their old friendſhips with Sir
Paul and bis father] then ambaffador to
that crown.
PERHAPS it is not unworthy of our re-
mark, that from one of the pamphlets of
this year, entitled, A Letter from a Mem-
ber
Character of Dr. Swift. 133
ber of the Houſe of Commons in Ireland to a
Member of the Houſe of COMMONS in England,
concerning the Sacramental Teſt, Dr. Swift
appears to have been the patron of Ireland fo
early as the year 1708; and beſides that, to
have aſſerted, although in a curſory way,
the liberties of his country, upon the ſame
noble and generous principles, ſo directly op-
poſite to ſavery and arbitrary power, which
he purſued in a courſe of reaſoning abundant-
ly more diffuſive in the year 1724, as the
iniquity and corrupton of thoſe days more
immediately and expreſsly required to be
laſhed with an unbounded ſeverity. The
author of the Remarks would, I ſuppoſe, if
he had conſidered the whole merits of this
pamphlet, have corrected that miſtake at
the latter end of Swift's character in his firſt
letter ; where he aſſerts, that when the Dostor
found himſelf entirely diſappointed (whether
of obtaining a ſettlement ir England, or of
gratifying his ambition with the enjoyment
of power ; both which I very ſincerely agree
with him were eternally in the Doctor's
view, provided be could have obtained them
with honor] he turned his thoughts to oppoſa-
tion, and became the patron of Ireland, in
which country he was born : I believe indeed,
the
many diſappointments he had experienced
from all parties, which perhaps were more
than ſufficient to have ſharpened the edge of
a more gentle ſpirit, added gall and nitre
K3
to
134 Eſſay on the Life and
to his ink; eſpecially after all his hopes
were intirely blaſted in the year 1714. But
fill I am convinced, that let the Doctor's
fate have happened where it would, either
in England or Ireland, he would have eter-
nally fought under the banner of LIBERTY;
and with a noble diſintereſted zeal have
been a patron to his country, as I think
appears to a demonſtration from all his
writings, whether intended for the ſupport
of an adminiſtration, or deſigned to cruſh
in pieces the jaw-bone of the oppreſſor.
I ſhall wave any particular remarks on the
above treatiſe, ſo far as it relates to the ſacra-
mental teſt, until we arrive at that period of
his life, when he attacks the whole body of
fanaticks, and all their glorious partiſans, in
the
year 1733
THAT piece, entitled The Sentiments of
a Church of England Man with reſpect to Re-
ligion and Government, ſeemeth to have been
one of his projects for uniting of parties *,
and written with a deſign to check that rage
and violence, which ſubfifted in thoſe times
between the contending factions of whig and
tory; and perhaps, to recommend in the
place of that abominable rancor and malice,
which had broken all the laws of charity
and hoſpitality among human kind, thoſe
* Vid. Let. to Colonel HUNTER, BATHURST's Edition
V. 14. p. 116.
candid
Character of Dr. Swift. 135
candid falutary principles, with reſpect to
religion and government, which if rightly
comprehended, and vigorouſly purſued, might
certainly preſerve the whole conſtitution, both
of chlirch and ſtate, for ten thouſand
genera-
tions. The ſtyle of the whole pamphlet is
remarked by the critick upon Swift's life
and writings to be nervous, and, except in
ſome few places, impartial. What he means
by an impartial Ayle, I proteſt I am at a lofs
to conceive. But-hang trifles; they are
not worth our attention. However indeed,
if he means that Dr. Swift is partial in ſome
of his accounts relating to whig and tory; I
preſume it would have been right to have
quoted thoſe particular paſſages. For my
own part, let what I am going to ſay pleaſe
or difpleaſe whom it will, I cannot obſerve
any
the leaſt partiality throughout the whole
pamphlet, as I believe hiſtorical proofs might
caſily be accumulated from the moſt authen-
tick writers, to confirm all the aſſertions of
the Doctor on either ſide of the queſtion.
The Argument againſt aboliſhing CHRI-
STIANITY, which is the production of the
ſame year, is according to the beſt of my
judgment the moſt delicate, refined, com-
pleat, unvaried piece of irony, from the
beginning to the end, that ever was written
ſince the creation of the world, and without
diſpute, if in the works of man there can be
fuppoſed any ſuch thing as real perfection,
K 4
we
136 Eſſay on the Life and
we muſt allow it to conſiſt in thoſe amazing
productions of wit and humour, which in
all probability can never be excelled by any
effort of genius, and beyond which it
impoſſible to frame any critical or diſtinct
idea of the human faculties.
human faculties. But to give
you ſome little ſpecimen of this ironical
tract. After the author has declared that
he writes only in defence of nominal chriſti-
anity (for as to real chriſtianity, ſuch as
uſed in primitive times, if we may believe
the authors of thoſe ages to have an influ-
ence upon men's belief and actions, he hopes
no reader will imagine him ſo weak to ſtand
up in defence of it) he proceeds to mention
ſome few inconveniencies that might happen
if the Gospel ſhould be repealed, which per-
haps the projectors might not have ſufficient-
ly conſidered ; and upon this occafion he
puſhes the following argument againſt them
with infinite humour, wit, and ridicule :
“ If CHRISTIANITY (faith he) were once
« aboliſhed, how could the free-thinkers,
" the ſtrong reaſoners, and the men of pro-
" found learning be able to find another
ſubject ſo calculated in all points where-
on to diſplay their abilities. What won-
“ derful productions of wit Thould we be
deprived of from thoſe whoſe genius by
" continual practice hath been wholly turn-
" ed upon raillery and invectives againſt re-
ligion, and would therefore never be able
60
(6 to
Character of Dr. Swift. 137
" to ſhine or diſtinguiſh themſelves upon any
“ other ſubject. We are daily complaining
" of the great decline of wit among us,
« and would we take away the greateſt,
perhaps the only topick we have left ?
“ Who would ever have ſuſpected AsGill
“ for a wit, or TOLAND for a philoſopher,
« if the inexhauſtible ſtock of chriſtianity
" had not been at hand to provide them
« with materials? What other ſubject through
sl all art or
nature could have produced
« TINDAL for a profound author, or fur-
so niſhed him with readers? It is the wife
“ choice of the ſubject that alone adorns
" and diſtinguiſhes the writer. For had an
“ hundred ſuch pens as theſe heen einploy-
“ ed on the ſide of religion, they would have
immediately ſunk into ſilence and oblivi-
" on."
IN the poetical way, beſides The elegy on
PARTRIGE there are three copies of verſes
written in the year 1708, two of them are
pieces of wit and raillery againſt Sir John
VANBRUG; and the third is The tale of
Baucis and PHILEMON, wherein there is
not only abundance of wit and pleaſantry,
but ſome peculiar happy ſtrokes, which al-
though but very rarely to be found in the
works of the fineſt authors, are the diftin-
guiſhing marks of an improved conſummate
genius. The reader of taſte and learning
cannot but obſerve how exactly the ſound
doth
Anglois, à Paris, that in the year 1708 he
198 Eflay on the Life and
doth echo to the ſenſe in the following
lines :
They ſcarce had ſpoke, when fair and ſoft,
The roof began to mount aloft ;
Aloft roſe ev'ry beam and rafter ;
The heavy wall climb'd ſlowly after.
AND yet if poſſible even theſe lines are
excelled by the following diftich :
The groaning chair was ſeen to crawl,
Like an huge ſnail half up the wall.
Were it of any conſequence to the world
I could produce many examples from Ho-
MER, PINDAR, VIRGIL, HORACE, SHAKE-
SPEARE, and MILTON, which for the fame
reaſon are univerſally admired above all o-
ther paſſages in thoſe fublime poets; but
half a word is fufficient upon theſe occa-
fions.
We find however in one of his letters
A monſieur monſieur Hunter*, gentilhomme
?
" amuſed himfelf ſometimes with writing
“ verſes to Mr. Finch” (none of which I
preſume were ever yet publiſhed] " and
« fometimes with projects for uniting of
parties, which he perfected over night
6 and burnt in the morning.”
• Colonel HUNTER, governor of Virginia, who had
been taken priſoner by the French. Vid. Bat. edit. vol. 14.
IN
P 16.
Character of Dr. Swift.
139
In the year 1709 we have but two pieces
of Dr. Swift's, one in verſe and the other
in proſe, that in verſe is entitled A famous
predi&tion of MERLIN, the Britiſh Wizard,
written above a thouſand years ago, and re-
lating to the year 1709. In his preface to
this poem he would inſinuate that what he
publiſhes to the world is a tranſlation of
Merlin's prophecy two hundred years
old.
The main deſign of the Doctor in this pre-
diction, if he was really in earneſt (which I
verily believe he was not, as I am perſuaded
that he only writ this prophecy in order to
vex the whigs, and to fret that ungrateful
miniſtry which had forgotten the obligations
he had conferred upon them, a circumſtance
in the Doctor's life which I ſhall have occa-
ſion to remark particularly in ſome other
place) was to encourage queen ANNE to a
ſecond marriage, in order that HER MA-
JESTY might repair if poſſible that infinite
lofs ſhe had ſuſtained by the death of the
duke of GLOUCESTER, who by all accounts
was one of the fineſt princes that ever was
born in England, and accordingly was uni-
verfally regretted by the whole nation, the
fanatical party and all their black adherents
only excepted. The following lines make
that point inconteſtable.
Ponge
140 Eſſay on the Life and
Ponge SYMNELE thall again miſcarry :
And Norway's prpd * again fhall marrp.
2nd from the tree where blofums fele,
Hipe fruit mall come, and all is wele.
AND without diſpute, as in England there
were many thouſands, who were deſirous to
ſee a prince deſcended from a queen whom
they loved with ſuch ardor and affection ;
ſo in the wildneſs of their imagination they
endeavoured to perſuade her MAJESTY at
the
age of about forty-five to marry a ſecond
time. But whether it was owing to that
exceſſive regard which ſhe bore unto the
memory of her beloved the prince of Den-
MARK; or whether it was becauſe ſhe ne-
ver had a child after the age of five or fix
and twenty; or whether it was for ſome
political reaſon or other, ſhe refuſed in this
reſpect to gratify the inclinations of her
ple; which however, as animoſities and fac-
tions were then riſing to an exceſſive height,
ſhe had cauſe to repent of before the time
of her deceaſe. For as the queen was driven
to ſuch inexpreſſible ſtreights by the fury and
machinations of the contending parties, that
with all her experience in government ſhe
knew not whom to truſt; if ſhe had married
peo-
* Queen Anne is called Norway's Pryd, becauſe the
had vouchſafed to marry the prince of Dinmark; and we
ail know that Norway is part of the dominion belonging to
that crowa.
fome
Character of Dr. Swift.
141
fome wiſe and thoughtful prince, intirely re-
mote from all pretenſions to the crown, (ſup-
poſing that ſuch a one could have been found
in Europe at that time) ſhe might have pasſed
the remainder of her life with more eaſe
and tranquillity. For as a prince in that fi-
tuation would have had nothing more to do,
than to have made the queen happy and
her reign glorious, he might have acted as
moderator between both parties, ſecured un-
to himſelf the eſteem of all the wife and
virtuous, and perhaps after the deceaſe of
the
queen might have been highly regarded
by her ſucceffor during the remainder of his
life. But alas ! party rage carried all before
it, and every ſcheme of accommodation was
equally rejected by whigs and tories.
In his Project for the advancement of reli-
gion, and the reformation of manners, Dr.
Swift appears in the character of a great
inſpired prophet. He crieth aloud, he ſpareth
not, be lifteth up his voice like a trumpet *;
he rebuketh all ranks of men for their de-
pravities and corruptions, their profaneneſs,
their blaſphemy and irreligion. His dif-
courſe he addreſleth unto his fovereign, and
beyond all contradiction proveth it to be an
important duty incumbent on all princes to
encourage and to enforce morals and religi-
on, by exerting their utmoſt authority. He
then applieth himſelf to the legiſlature, con-
* Ifai. riii. 1.
juring
142 Eſſay on the Life and
juring them to forward ſo noble a deſign,
and to provide remedies againſt that torrent
of iniquity, which if not vigorouſly oppoſed,
would certainly increaſe and never ſtop in
its career until it ſubverted the conſtitution.
And finally he declares in the prophetick
ſtyle and ſpirit, that a reformation of man-
ners, and turning unto God, are the beſt
natural as well as religious means to bring
the war to an happy concluſion.
There is one paragraph towards the cloſe
of this famous tract, which becauſe it a-
bounds with that life and ſpirit ſo remarka-
ble in the writings and converſation of Dr.
SWIFT, and eſpecially becauſe it is levelled
directly againſt that virulence of party which
prevailed in the year 1709, deſerves to be re-
corded in letters of gold. But let us obſerve
and keep in remembrance what we are told
by that fagacious inſpector into the lives and
characters of men. “ It muſt be confeſſed
" that as things now ſtand (faith the Doc-
tor) every man thinks he hath laid in a
“ fufficient ſtock of merit, and may pretend
to any employment, provided he hath
“ been loud and frequent in declaring him-
“ ſelf hearty for the government.
It is
true, he is a man of pleafure and a free-
" thinker; that is in other words, he is
profligate in his morals, and a deſpiſer of
religion ; but in point of party he is one to
“ be confided in, he is an aſſerter of liberty and
property,
Character of Dr. Swift.
143
(
property, he rattles it out” (Methinks I
both bear and ſee the Dostor ſpeaking this very
moment] againſt popery and arbitrary power,
“ and prieſtcraft, and high-church. It is e-
nough : He is a perſon fully qualified for
any employment in the court, or the navy,
“ the law, or the revenue, where he will
“ be ſure to leave no arts untried of bribe-
ry, fraud, injuſtice, oppreſſion, that he
“ can practiſe with any hope of impunity.
“ No wonder ſuch men are true to a go-
vernment where liberty runs high, where
property, however attained, is ſo well ſe-
“ cured, and where the adminiſtration is at
“ leaſt fo gentle : It is impoſſible they could
“ chuſe any other conftitution without chang-
ing to their loſs."
AND for the immortal honour of Dr.
Swift I ſhall beg leave to inſert that fa-
mous paragraph, which is known to have
given the firft' hint 10 certain biſhops, par-
ticularly to that moſt excellent prelate biſhop
ATTERBURY in the earl of OXFORD's mi-
niſtry, to procure a fund for building fifty new
churches in LONDON. His words are theſe:
I ſhall mention but one more particular,
“ which I think a parliament ought to take
" under conſideration : Whether it be not a
“ Marne to our country, and a ſcandal to
chriſtianity, that in many towns where
" there is a prodigious increaſe in the num-
“ber of houſes and inhabitants, fo little
Care
144 Effay on the Life and
«
care ſhould be taken for the building of
churches, that five parts in ſix of the
people are abſolutely hindered from hear-
“ ing divine ſervice ? Particularly here in
London, where a ſingle miniſter with one
or two forry curates has the care ſome-
“ times of above twenty thouſand fouls in-
“ cumbent on him. A neglect of religion
“ ſo ignominious in my opinion, that it can-
" not be equalled in any civilized age or
country.”
In the year 1710 before he had com-
menced an acquaintance with the earl of
OXFORD or any of the tory miniſtry, he
writ three Tatlers, all of them very curious
in their way, and adapted to the general
good of fociety; and beſide theſe
and beſide theſe papers he
writ that whimſical poem On the vicar's little
country houſe by the church-yard of Caſtle
knock, and The deſcription of the morning fo
univerſally admired by all perſons of taſte
and judgment, the firſt line of which and
the laſt diſtich are exquiſitely fine.
Having in this chapter endeavoured to
point out in what manner the Doctor em-
ployed his talents, whether to pleaſe or to in-
ſtruct the publick, from the death of king
WILLIAM until he became acquainted with
the earl of OXFORD in the year 1710, a
period very remarkable in the life of Dr.
SWIFT, I ſhall conclude this
part of my ac-
count, and try whether I can do him any
fort
Character of Dr. Swift.
145
and twentieth parts in behalf of the clergy of
fort of juſtice in his political capacity, which
I preſume will take
up the greater part of
the following chapters.
CH A P. VIII.
R. Swift's acquaintance with the earl
of OXFORD commenced upon an oc-
caſion greatly to his honour *
impowered by his grace the lord primate of
IRELAND-F, and by the archbiſhop of DuB-
LIN #, to follicit the affair of the firſt fruits
DR
He was
Ireland, which in the ſpace of five or fix
weeks he diſpatched with ſo much wiſdom
and addreſs, that every thing was concluded
to the intire ſatisfaction of the biſhops and
clergy. And yet (credite poſteri) many of
that individual race of clergy, for whoſe be-
nefit alone, without any imagination of in-
tereſt for himſelf, the Doctor had ſo effectu-
ally exerted his credit with the miniſtry, and
who upon that account ſhould, as the arch-
biſhop of Dublin very juſtly remarks, have
been bis faſteſt friends, were utterly averſe
ſo immediately after as the year 1716, from
acknowledging the ſervice he had done in
procuring for them the twentieth parts and
the firf fruits ;. neither could the Archbi-
SHOP himſelf eſcape the cenfure and the ob-
loquy of their evil tongues, becauſe he had
* Vid. the correſpondence Letween the archbiſhop of
DUBLIN and ER. Swift in the laſt volume of his works.
+ DR. NARCISSUS MARSH. I Dr. William KING.
exerted
L
146 Ellay on the Life and
« But ingrati-
exerted ſome degree of zeal in bearing teſti-
mony to the truth, and doing juſtice to the
Doctor in that particular.
" tude, faith his grace of Dublin, is war-
“ ranted by modern and antient cuſtom :
" and it is more honor for a man to have it
aſked, why he had not a ſuitable return to
« his merits, than why he was over-payed ?
Benefacere & malè audire is the lot of the
« beſt men.
However indeed there are ſome very
material points relative to the Doctor, and
which
upon
the face of things appear to have
been greatly to his honor, wherein I cannot
poffibly give the publick any tolerable ſatis-
faction. But ſince the Doctor is univerſally
allowed to have been a man of as great ve-
racity as ever lived upon earth, we may ven-
ture I believe to rely upon his own teſti-
mony, although it ſhould happen to de-
clare in favour of himſelf. His words are
theſe in his letter to the archbiſhop of DUB-
LIN: “ As ſoon as I received the pacquets
" from your grace I went to wait upon
" Mr. HARLEY. I had prepared him be-
“ fore by another hand where he was very
« intimate ; and got myſelf repreſented
(which I might juſtly do) as one extream-
“ ly ill uſed by the laſt miniſtry *, after
" fome obligations, becauſe I had refuſed to
go certain lengths they would have me.
We cannot but obſerve in this paſſage, that
* The ſame thoughts occur in the Examiner, No. 26.
DR.
Character of Dr. Swift. 147
Dr. Swift had conferred ſome obligations
upon the laſt miniſtry, that he had refuſed
to go certain lengths they would have him,
and upon that ſcore had met with extream ill
uſage at their hands. Now what obligati-
ons theſe were, what lengths that miniſtry
wanted to have him go, or what extream ill
uſage he had met with for his non-compli-
ance, doth by no means appear as far as I can
recollect from any part of his writings. I
have choſen rather to confeſs my ignorance
with regard to theſe, matters than to paſs
them over in ſilence, being in hopes that
upon throwing out theſe ſcattered hints I
ſhall have the pleaſure one time or other
to ſee them cleared up by ſome friend of Dr.
SWIFT, who is better acquainted than I am
with the anecdotes of his life at that particu-
lar period. Nevertheleſs I cannot but ob
ferve, that Aristides and PERICLES ought
to have been grateful to the author of that
Diſcourſe concerning the conteſts and diſſenfons,
&c. were it for no other reaſon than be
cauſe in that apology he had laboured with
ſuch an abundance of ſkill and learning to
abate that reſentment of the houſe of COM-
Mons and of the PEOPLE in general, which
began to break out ſo furiouſly againſt them
in the latter part of king WILLIAM's time.
Moreover I ſhall preſume that upon their
ounding the political principles of Dr.
WIFT, they found he was a man ſo firmly
attached
L 2
148 Eſſay on the Life and
attached to all and every of thoſe maxims
which alone can ſupport the vigor of the
conſtitution both in church and ſtate, that
he was not to be corrupted ſo far as to com-
ply with their purpoſes, whether to gratify
the inſatiable deſires of the Dutch, the un-
reaſonable expectations of the Emperor, of
indeed the avarice and ambition of any par-
ticular perſons; neither would he ſacrifice
the honor, the glory, and the wealth of
England meerly for the ſake of enriching a
parcel of ſharpers and ſtock-jobbers whether
at home or abroad. And accordingly we
find that from the year: 1701 to the year
1708 he writ no political tract whatſoever.
But in the year 1708, when the fanaticks
began to prick up their ears, and to muſter
up
all iheir forces, the Doctor began to write
vigorouſly in defence of the conſtitution.
And without diſpute The letter from a member
of the houſe of COMMONS in Ireland to a mem-
ber of the houſe of COMMONS in England con-
cerning the facramental teſt ; The ſentiments of
a church of England man, &c. and The ar-
gument againſt aboliſhing chriſtianity, were
covertly deſigned, although not directly
pointed againſt the ADMINISTRATION.
However in theſe papers there is, I think,
nothing immediately ſatyrick on the chief
among thoſe perſons who were entruſted
with affairs, nothing which appears to be
inconfiftent with friendfhip, notwithſtand-
ing
2
Character of Dr. Swift.
149
ing that in the courſe of his reaſoning he
hath given many a laſh to their abettors,
their under-ſtrappers, their flatterers, and
their mignons. For my part I am inclined
to believe that he ſmothered his Indignation,
and reſerved the power of his abilities until
better times, knowing that if a change
ſhould happen in the miniſtry he could at
once avenge both himſelf and his coun-
try upon the whole faction. And the world
ſuppoſe will acknowledge, that he has not
died much in their debt. For as ſoon as
the old miniſtry were diſcarded, to the fatis-
faction and the joy of all thoſe who had any
regard for the welfare of the publick, and
the conſtitution of England; the Doctor
embracing the opportunity, cloſed in imme-
diately with the tories;
Arid now "the publick int'reſt to ſupport
,
By Harley Swift invited comes to court.
In favour grows with miniſters of ſtate ;
Admitted private, when ſuperiors wait :
And HARLEY, not aſham'd his choice to
own,
Takes him to Windſor in his coach, alone,
At Windſor Swift no ſooner can appear,
But St. John comes, and whiſpers in his ear;
The waiters ſtand in ranks; the yeomen cry,
Make room; as if a duke were paſſing by.
Vid. Swift's verſes on himſelf written
in 1713
L 3
AND
130
Effay on the Life and
And accordingly, without loſing time, he
commenced their champion ſo early as the
month of November 1710 *, under the title
of The ... Examiner. Beſide which
he writ ſeveral other papers in defence of
the queen, the conſtitution, and the mini-
ſtry ; particularly Some advice to the members
of the October Club; The conduet of the al-
lies; Remarks on the barrier treaty; The
publick Spirit of the whigs ; (a treatiſe
wherein we may obſerve how well the Doc-
tor was acquainted with the ſeveral intereſts
and deſigns of all the princes in Europe)
The preface to the biſhop of SARUM's intro-
duktion; and that piece entitled Some free
thoughts upon the preſent ſtate of affairs ;
Theſe are a courſe of writings not to be con-
ſidered in the light of occaſional pamphlets
,
or little paultry journals thrown into the
world by ſome backney jade in the defence
of CORRUPTION, and to ſerve the iniquitous
deſigns of a party. No, theſe writings are
to be conſidered, and read over and over
again, as lectures of true unprejudiced con-
tutional politicks, calculated to expoſe the ene-
mies of the publick, and to maintain at once
For the uſe and benefit of thoſe who are not acquainted
with the courſe of the Doctor's politicks doring the latter
part of the queen's reign, I have mentioned the ſeveral
tracts in that order wherein, to the best of my judgment,
they ought to have been ranged in his works.
3
the
Character of Dr. Swift.
151
the honor of the Crown, and the liberties
of the People of England. I cannot but
think, whoever is totally unacquainted with
theſe political tracts, might be tempted to reviſe
them carefully, were it only for the ſake of
extracting ſome points of hiſtory, which to
many thouſands of the preſent age are ſome-
what more than paradoxes. I ſhould be
glad that any of thoſe gentlemen who de-
liver their opinions ſo freely, and ſo perem-
ptorily, upon all queſtions relating to the af-
fairs of England for theſe laſt hundred and
twenty years, would pleaſe to reſolve the fol-
lowing queries :
Query iſt, If the TORIES held the divine
right of kings, paſive obedience, and non-
reſiſtance, in the manner it was charged
upon them by the Whigs; [Vid. Exa-
aminer, No. 33.] who were thoſe, and
thoſe ONLY, who brought in, or could
have brought in king WILLIAM?
Query ad, Who were thoſe who were the
greateſt ſticklers againſt the exorbitant
power of king JAMES?
Query 3d, Who were thoſe who to gratify
their ambition and revenge did, by the
meaneſt compliances, encourage and ſpirit
up that unfortunate prince, who (as it was
ſaid contemptuouſly enough by one of the
cardinals at the court of St. Germains)
loſt his three kingdoms for a maſs, to fall
L 4
upon
152 Eſſay on the Life and
y 9th, If queen ANNE's old mipiſtry
upon ſuch meaſures as muft at laſt have
ended in the ruin of our LIBERTY and
RELIGION?
Query 4th, Who were thoſe who by their
numerous and fulſome addreſſes to king
JAMES approved of all his proceedings,
and took employments and commiſſions
under him, by virtue of the diſpenſing
power, againſt the direct laws of the
land ?
Query 5th, Who were thoſe that a year or
two after the revolution had their pardons
ſent them by king James, and had en-
tered upon meaſures to reſtore him, upon
account of ſome diſobligations they had
received from king WILLIAM ?
Query 6th, Who were thoſe who in the
reign of queen Anne tampered with the
PRETENDER?
Query 7th, In what manner were the Engliſh
treated by the allies?
Query 8th, WHETHER or no was it thought
a piece of inſolence in the Engliſh, to pur-
ſue their conqueſts in the Spaniſh West-
Indies?
a
.:
had continued in power, how long would
it have been before they would have
conſented to a peace? or what terms of
eace would they have inſiſted upon ?
Query roth, When the Engliſh became ma-
fters of a town in Flanders, how was it
diſpoſed
Character of Dr. Swift.
153
diſpoſed of? or what recompence had
they for all their blood and treaſure ?
Query 11th, Upon the acquiſition of a town
in Flanders, which coſt fix millions, what
advantage had the People of England be-
ſide the pleaſure of making bonfires ?
Query 12th, How many years longer might
ENGLAND have been able to carry on the
war, and to purſue her victories in Flan-
ders?
Query 13th, Who were the gainers by the
war, and who were at the expence of it?
Query 14th, WHETHER the HOLLANDERS
were made dupes by the English ; or
the ENGLISH by the HOLLANDERS?
Query 15th, Upon the demiſe of the empe-
ror Joseph, which of the powers in the
grand alliance firſt determined that the
Empire and Spain ſhould not be united ?
Query 16th, Which of the confederate
powers in the grand alliance threatened
firſt to enter into ſeparate meaſures of a
peace?
Query 17th, Who were thoſe that framed
The act of ſettlement ?
Query 18th, Who were the beſt friends and
ſupporters of The act of ſettlement ?
Query 19th, WHAT advances were made by
the QUEEN? what advances were made
by the TORY MINISTRY? or what ad-
vances were made by that PARLIAMENT
which expreſſed and manifeſted their
deſires
154 Efſay on the Life and
deſires of a peace to bring in the Pre-
TENDER?
Query 2oth, How many more than one in
five thouſand of the church of England,
throwing Non-JURORS out of the queſti-
on, were in the latter part of the queen's
reign in the intereſt of the PRETENDER?
Query 2 ift, Who were the anceſtors of thoſe
families which have grown up ſince the
revolution ?
Query 22d, Who were thoſe who affected to
diſcover a contempt for birth, families, and
antient nobility?
Query 23d, By what means and by what
inſtruments did CROMWEL riſe to be the
TYRANT of England under the ſpecious
title of PROTECTOR?
Query 24th, WHAT extent or degree of to-
leration was in the year 1710 allowed by
the HIGH-KIRK of Scotland to thoſe who
are called EPISCOPALS ?
But theſe and fifty other queries of the
like nature every man can ſolve without the
leaſt difficulty that is converfant in the po-
liticks of Dr. SWIFT. And therefore I
pre-
ſume it will be readily granted, that who-
ever pretends to write the hiſtory of the
queen's reign without reviſing diligently the
works of this great author, will produce no-
thing better than fome lame partial infigni-
ficant grub-ſtreet performance, like the reſt
of
Character of Dr. Swift.
155
of thoſe vile accounts which have already
in defiance of truth been impoſed upon the
world. I am ſure the preſent generation of
men, that is the preſent generation of landed
men, who are in fact the only proprietors of
the whole kingdom, feel it to their coſt, that
Swift's reaſonings are just, and that all his
accounts are true *.
But what reward, what recompence, or
what dignities were conferred upon this he-
roick champion of the miniſtry, this Her-
CULEAN defender of the conſtitution, for all
his labours ? Why to be ſure he was invited
to be of the cabinet-council
, he had ſome
part in the adminiſtration of affairs com-
mitted to his care, he was raiſed in the
church even to the higheſt pinnacle of honor
that he could poſſibly arrive at, without
having others knocked on the head to make
room for his preferment? Quite the contra-
ry, that very miniſtry whoſe battles he had
fought with ſo much vigor and ſucceſs, ne-
ver once exerted their intereſt to get him
* The ſeveral poems of Dr. Swift relative to theſe
times, and which in truth greatly illuſtrate his political
practs, ought to be read in the following order; The virtues
of Sid HAMET the magician's rod, The fable of Mid
DAS,-
-ATLAS, or the miniſter of late, HARACE
ep. 7: book 1. imitated and addreſſed to the earl of Ox.
FORD, more HORACE ſat. 6. book 1. part of it imitated,
The author on himſelf,
To the
karl of Oxford late lord treafurer. Sent to him when he was
in the terrier, before his trial.
any
-The Faggot,
156 Eſſay on the Life and
any ſort of promotion either in church or
ftate. Perhaps dreading thoſe amazing abi-
lities which had been their chief ſupport,
they were not deſirous that he ſhould be
raiſed to an Engliſh biſhoprick, which would
have entitled him to a feat in the houſe of
Lords, where it is not impoſſible that his
talents might have ſhone forth in a blaze of
politicks that would have rendered him as
much the idol of the publick as the wonder
of all his cotemporaries; and therefore in the
abundance of their fagacity they baniſhed
him into Ireland, and gave him the deanery
of ST. PATRICK, Dublin, which, as he
himſelf expreſſeth it, was the only ſmall fa-
your that he had ever received at their hands.
I know it hath been ſaid and thought by
many, that the earl of OXFORD and the lord
BOLINGBROKE were his patro1js. But, if I
know the meaning of the word;patron, as I
think I do, I cannot but aſſert as a truth be-
yond all queſtion, that Dr, Swift never
had any patrons at all, or at leaſt if he had,
that his obligations to them were inviſible.
Nay, I have heard the Doctor affirm, that he
never was obliged to any man" in his whole
life, meaning undoubtedly that he never had
gotten any preferment in the church by the
intereſt of his friends, which his own parti-
cular merit had not paid for over and over.
Nevertheleſs if the word patron muſt be
ulęd upon theſe occaſions, as I think it may, 1
will
Character of Dr. Swift.
157
will ſtake my reputation againſt the judgment
of any critick in Europe, or in other words, I
will hold fifty guineas to one, that Dr. Swift
was more a patron to the MINISTRY,
than any of the MINISTRY were patrons to
Dr. Swift; which is a point fo manifeſt
to all that are acquainted with his political
writings, that I think it would be needleſs
to inſiſt upon any particular proofs of it.
However indeed the acquaintance of
Dr. Swift with the earl of Oxford hath
occaſioned many various conjectures and ſpe-
culations. It was ſuppoſed in the reign of
queen ANNE, that he was engaged more
deeply in affairs of ſtate than perhaps there
ever was any reaſon to imagine, and accord-
ingly there were ſeveral ſpeeches made againſt
him both in the houſe of LORDS and COM-
MONS ;
NowFinch alarms the lords; he hears for
certain,
This dang’rous prieſt is got behind the cur-
tain :
Finch fam'd for tedious elocution, proves
That Swift oils many a ſpring that HAR.
LEY moves.
WALPOLE and AYSLABY, to clear the doubt,
Inform the commons, that the ſecret's out.
" A certain Doctor is obferv'd of late,
To haunt a certain miniſter of ſtate:
« From
158 Effay on the Life and
« From whence with half an eye we may
" diſcover,
" The peace is made, and PERKIN muft
.
Swift on himſelf in 1713.
come over.
OTHERS are willing to ſuppoſe that
Swift had little or no ſhare in the confi-
dence of the earl of OXFORD. And without
diſpute his imitation of the ſixth ſatire of Ho-
RACE, book 2d, ſeemeth to favour that opi-
nion, where he faith, talking of their private
converſation;
All that paſſes, inter nos,
Might be proclaim'd at Charing-Croſs.
And if I miſtake not, this whole piece,
to which I refer the curious, is an eaſy gentle
rebuke to the earl for his over and above
great reſerve unto his beſt friends, as well
as unto all others. This latter opinion I
have grounded upon the laſt three or four
diſtichs of that poem, where he faith in ef-
fect, (taking the former part of this account,
as well as the whole character of the earl of
OXFORD into confideration) that he would
rather amuſe himſelf with his books in his
own retirement than expend his time and la-
bour in ſupporting a miniſter ſo very dark
and reſerved. And now I think of it, the
poem called ATLAS,
called Atlas, or The miniſter of
Hate, which was written a year before, is a
candid
Character of Dr. Swift. 195
candid pretty remonftrance againſt that in-
communicative temper of the lord treaſurer ;
Suppoſe then ATLAS ne'er ſo wiſe,
Yet when the weight of kingdoms lies
Too long upon his ſingle ſhoulders,
Sink down he muſt or find upholders.
I HAVE been ſometimes in doubt whether
by Alcides in this poem the Doctor mean-
eth himſelf or my lord BOLINGBROKE. But
I think he muſt have been too polite to have
called ſo very great a ſtateſman as my lord
BOLINGBROKE a miniſter of ſecond rate, al-
though his compliment were immediately ad-
dreſſed to the earl of OXFORD. And there-
fore I conclude that none other but the Doc-
tor himſelf is meant by ALCIDES.
But to ſay what degree of political inti-
macy Dr. Swift had with ſo reſerved, ſo
myſterious a perſon as the lord treaſurer,
would certainly be to account for ſecrets
that never were divulged. The Doctor
himſelf, who diſcovers in all his writings an
utter contempt for deep intrigue, refinement
in politicks, and all the reſt of what is ge-
nerally called the arcana imperii, blameth
the earl with a good deal of freedom for this
defect in his behaviour towards the reſt of the
miniſtry, as well as towards all others who
had a part in his friendſhip *. I muſt there-
* Vid. pag 14th of chat tra 1.
fora
160 Eſſay on the Life and
way he is
he is ap-
fore (ſaith the Doctor in that piece which is
entitled Some free thoughts upon the preſent
ſtate of affairs) take the boldneſs to aflert,
“ that all theſe diſcontents, how ruinous ſo-
ever they may prove in their conte-
quences, have moſt neceffarily ariſen from
" the want of a due communication and con-
“cert. Every man muſt have a light ſuffi-
« cient for the length of the
pointed to go: There is a degree of con-
« fidence due to all ſtations, and a petty
“ conſtable will neither act chearfully or
wiſely without that ſhare of it which
properly belongs to him : Although the
main ſpring of a watch be out of ſight,
" there is an intermediate communication
" between it and the ſmalleſt wheel, OL
“ elſe no uſeful motion could be performed.
“ This reſerved myſterious way of acting
upon all points where there appeared not
so the leaſt occaſion for it, and towards per-
“ fons who at leaſt in right of their poſts
expected a more open treatment, was im-
puted to ſome hidden deſign which every
man conjectured to be the very thing he
was moſt afraid of.”
And again
“ The effects of this myſtical manner
“ of proceeding did not end here: For
" the late diffenſions between the great
court (which have been for
“ ſome time paſt the entertainment of eve-
ry coffee-houſe) are ſaid to have ariſen
" from
men at
Character of Dr. Swift. 161
cs from the ſame fountain ; while on one
“ ſide very great reſerve, and certainly very
great reſentment on the other, if we may
« believe general report (for I pretend to
“ know no farther) have enflamed animo-
“ fities to ſuch an heighth as to make all re-
" conciliation impracticable.” And there-
fore to ſay that Dr. Swift was employed
but not truſted by the earl of Oxford (throw-
ing aſide the indecorum of the expreſſion)
is really nothing more than to ſay that the
lord treaſurer would not communicate to
DR. Swift ſome two or three of his own
ſecret reſolutions (whatever thoſe were; for
as yet, I think, no man alive can make th
leaſt conjecture to what purpoſe they were
intended) any more than he would to the
reſt of thoſe great perfons employed by HER
MAJESTY. However it is not unlikely that
DR. SWIFT knew as much of the earl of
Oxford's mind as any man in England;
Next faithful ſilence hath a ſure reward :
Within our breaſt be ev'ry ſecret barr'd :
Saith the Doctor in his poem to the earl of
OXFORD, when his lordſhip was confined
I CANNOT but obſerve in the current of
theſe remarks, that I have frequently heard
the Doctor ſay with a good deal of warmth,
that a certain very ſublime perſon was more
obliged to the earl of OXFORD than to any
M
ten
in the tower.
162 Eſſay on the Life and
ten thouſand men in England: but further
I think he never explained himſelf. In
Short, reſerve and procraſtination, if indeed
the latter was not more affected than real,
were the notorious defects of that otherwiſe
highly accompliſhed perſon. And yet after
all that can be ſaid with regard to the earl
of Oxford's political friendſhip with Dr.
SWIFT, whoever is inclined to ſearch more
curiouſly into theſe anecdotes may certainly
collect more from his ſeveral tracts and
po-
cms addreſſed to the earl, than can eaſily
be reduced within the bounds of a criticiſm.
Every man therefore is at liberty to form his
own conjectures.
HOWEVER indeed there are ſome little
gratifications in the commerce of friendſhip,
which appear to be as ftrong, if not ſtronger
indications of our love and eſteem for par-
ticular perſons, than what is called meaning
adlı ansing them in the grand monde, whether to ho-
nours or preferment. Of this nature I take
ſome preſents to have been which were made
by the earl to the Doctor, particularly his
own picture enamelled by Zinck, the ſeal
of Julius CÆSAR, and eſpecially the ſeal
of the young HERCULES, which were both
given to the earl by his royal miſtreſs, and af-
terwards by the earl preſented to the Doctor ;
alluding perhaps in the preſent of the young
HERCULES to the character of Alcides in
the poem called Atlas, the earl being con-
ſcious
Character of Dr. Swift. 163
ſcious to himſelf how much the Doctor had
ſupported the conſtitution, the queen, and
the miniſtry. But what I think ſhewed
more kindneſs and affection than any of the
former, was the preſent of that penknife
wherewith the earl himſelf had been ſtab-
bed by GUISCARD. I have ſeen the pen-
knife ſeveral times: it was a common ordi-
nary penknife with a tortoiſe-ſhell handle;
and when it was ſhut was juſt about the
length of a man's little finger. But as the
blade was broken within half an inch of the
handle by the violence of the blow againſt
one of the ribs of the earl, the Doctor had
a hole drilled through that part of the blade
which was broken off, and another hole
through that piece which remained in the
handle, and by that contrivance they were
both held together by a little ſilver chain.
HAVING mentioned fomewhere in this
chapter the procraſtination of the earl of
OXFORD, it puts me in mind of an acci-
dent which happened in thoſe times. Com
lonel Hill (a gentleman of worth, who had
commanded with great bravery in the battle
of Almanza) ſoon after his promotion to a
regiment having made Dr. Swift a pre-
ſent of a beautiful tortoiſe-ſhell ſnuff-box,
richly lined with gold, with the proſpect of
the rialto of Venice, ſeveral gondalos plying
.on the canals, and other figures to the num-
ber of I believe a hundred and fifty, repre-
ſenting
M2
164 Eſſay on the Life and
ſenting the pleaſures of a carnival painted on
the inſide of the lid ; the Doctor Thewed it
to the earl at their next meeting. The earl
having admired the painting and the work-
manſhip, ſpied at laſt a figure ftudded on
the outſide of the bottom of the box, fome-
what reſembling a gooſe: whereupon turn-
ing to the Doctor, JONATHAN, ſaid he, the
colonel, I think, has made a gooſe of you. Yes,
my lord, replied the Doctor, but if you will
look farther, you will ſee I am driving a ſnail
before me : (which really happened to be
exactly the device) That is ſevere enough,
JONATHAN, ſaid the earl, but I deſerve it.
Such was the freedom of the Doctor's con-
verſation with the greateſt perſonages in the
whole kingdom.
But to avoid being accuſed of paffing over
tracts that deſerve our attention, we muſt not
forget to obſerve that Dr. Swift in the
beginning of the year 1712 writ à propoſal
for correcting, improving, and aſcertaining
the Engliſh Tongue, in a letter to the earl of
OXFORD. In this epiſtle the Doctor com-
plains to his lordſhip as firſt miniſter, in the
name of all the learned and polite perſons
of the nation, that our language is extream-
ly imperfect, that its daily improvements
are by no means equal to its daily corrupti-
ons, that the pretenders to poliſh and refine
it have chiefly multiplied abuſes and abſur-
dities, and that in many inſtances it offends
againſt
Character of Dr. Swift.
165
againſt every part
of
grammar. He proves
with irreſiſtible force of reaſon, that our
language ought to be refined to a certain
ſtandard, and then fixed for ever: he re-
marks the ſeveral inconveniencies which
ariſe perpetually from our ſtupid inattention to
theſe matters. He doth not however pre-
ſcribe
any methods for aſcertaining the lan-
guage, but throws out ſome general obſer-
vations, leaving the reſt to the inſpection of
that fociety, which he hoped would have
been ſpeedily inſtituted by the lord trea-
furer. But this ſcheme fell to the ground,
partly by the diſſenſions among the great
men at court, and chiefly by the lament-
ed death of queen Anne, that ever-glori-
ous princeſs.
But ſince the author of the Remarks on
Dr. Swift hath been ſomewhat copious
in his obſervations upon this letter, we ſhall
examine the merits of his critique on this ar-
ticle, becauſe it is ſuppoſed to contain ſome-
what extreamly curious, and out of the com-
inon road.
It is the opinion of this great philologer
that Dr. SWIFT's letter to the earl of Ox-
FORD might have been a uſeful performance
if it had been longer, and leſs eclypſed by com-
pliments to the noble perſon to whom it is ad-
dreſſed. Now this letter to the earl of Ox-
FORD contains twenty pages in octavo cloſe-
printed, and ſufficiently anſwers the whole
purpoſe
M 3
166 Eſſay on the Life and
purpoſe for which it ſeems to have been in-
tended. If praiſes in abundance be ad-
dreſſed to the earl in this epiftle, it is certain
that ſuch kind of incenſe could never have
been offered at a more ſeaſonable juncture,
as the chief intent of thoſe compliments was
to ſtimulate the earl (a man very deſirous
of true glory) to expedite a ſcheme which
in its conſequences might have given his
reputation ſome chance for immortality.
But in what manner the propoſal for cor-
recting the Engliſh tongue is eclipſed by the
Doctor's compliments to the lord treaſurer it
is not eaſy to obſerve, as the neceſſity which
appears for aſcertaining our language and
fixing it for ever is clear and manifeſt;
whether or no we divorce the compliments
from the propoſal, or ſuffer the propoſal and
the compliments, without interrupting their
repoſe, to jog on together as affectionately
as they have done for theſe laſt forty years.
This letter ſeems (continueth the author of
the Remarks) to bave been intended as a pre-
face to ſome more enlarged defign. Unfortu-
nately I cannot agree with him in this parti-
cular, becauſe a præface, a prologue, or a
proæmium, call it which you pleaſe, was
never yet written by any man of common
fenfe, nor perhaps by any one elſe, to a
book which even in the brain of an author
had no kind of exiſtence. And then im-
mediately he ſubjoins in the very next words,
et
Character of Dr. Swift. 167
?
at the head of which ſuch an introduction muſ
bave appeared with great propriety. The
Doctor's letter in the preceding line was
transformed into a preface, and by a giuoco
ai mano as ſuddenly in the next metamor-
phofed into an introduction.
He cannot
ſurely imagine that a preface and an intro-
duction are ſynonymous terms? I am ſure
if he does the voice of literature will be
entirely againſt him.
For a præface, or
proæmium to a book, is univerſally under-
ſtood to be a præliminary diſcourſe, wholly
detached from the book itſelf: but an in-
troduction, like the two or three firſt pages
in the Remarks, to go no further, is an ap-
paratus to the main deſign of an author,
and is in fact the commencing ceremonious
part of the book itſelf, which is appointed,
like a gentleman uſher, to bring the author
and his reader acquainted. However the
Doctor's letter cannot be called an introduc-
tion, becauſe it introduces to nothing. But
ſuppoſe we ſhould call it a dedication, as
we find in that epiſtle a great variety of
compliments and praiſes addreſſed to the
earl of OXFORD ? No, that I am afraid will
not do either, becauſe there is nothing de-
dicated, although abundance recommended
to the lord treaſurer. And beſides it would
be ſomewhat injurious to the character of
that great and publick-ſpirited miniſter, that
faithful ſteward of the finances, who endea
M
4
voured
168 Effay on the Life and
voured to retrieve his country from the de-
ſperate condition wherein he found it by the
utmoſt frugality, to call it a dedication ;
becauſe that would oblige us to conceive all
the compliments and praiſes addreſſed to
the earl to be nothing elſe but an accumula-
tion of flattery, the very incenſe of a llave;
and if not to be read backwards, like moſt
other wretched daubings in thoſe paid-for
neglected panegyricks, to be of no more value
than a bundle of waſte paper conſigned to the
paſtry cook's. But if this propoſal for correct-
ing and aſcertaining the Engliſh tongue muſt
relinquiſh its old title, and from henceforth
never be called a letter from Dr. SWIFT
to the earl of OXFORD; and if it cannot
be' ſtyled with any ſort of propriety either a
prefáce, an introduction, or a dedication, it
will be requiſite to give it fome other diftin-
guiſhing appellation from the reſt of his
work's. Perhaps if it were called the pharos
or the beacon of the Engliſh tongue, ſuch an
appellation might be received and approved
as, bearing at leaſt ſome analogy to the in-
tention of the writer, ſince it appears that
he has hung out a number of lights, as it
were, from the top of the monument, to
guide and direct us on our voyage to•im-
mortality.
***But further, we bewilder ourſelves, ſayth the
author of the Remarks, [which certainly is our
own fault if we do) in various orthography
(i.c.
Character of Dr. Swift. 169
(i. e. by interpretation in the various ſcience
of writing correctly) we write, and we ſpeak
at random. But what claſs or claſſes of au-
thors thoſe are who bewilder themſelves in
what he calls various orthography, is a point
ſomewhat difficult to reſolve. If in truth
he mean the whole flight of Engliſh authors
both in verſe and proſe, I fancy there are
great numbers in England, which is a na-
tion abounding with learned men, who
would humbly deſire to be excepted from
the multitude of thoſe who adventure to
ſpell at random without any ſort of autho-
rity. However it cannot be denied that
particular perſons are extreamly unfortunate
in the buſineſs of orthography; neither is it
reaſonable to expect that it ſhould ever be o-
therwiſe until ſuch time as authors will pleaſe
to confine their ideas within the proper li-
mits of their reſpective acquirements. And
to go no further, the author of the Remarks
is undoubtedly a flaming example into what
wretched ſcoliography men are frequently
betrayed, when they venture upon languages
invità Minerva, which on the revifal of
their productions they do not ſeem to have
the leaſt conception of, nothing being more
eaſy than to obſerve, that in the uſe of Greek
words he diſcovereth himſelf on many occa-
ſions to have been greatly embarraſſed.
Thoſe unlucky perplexing diphthongs, which
are far beyond the reach of the moſt ſub-
tile
170
Eſſay on the Life and
tile conjecture (not to mention "Tbinòv, [u]
that finger-burning vowel of the Greeks *
frequently bewilder him in his orthography,
and like an ignis fatuus lead him altray, I
know not how far, out of the paths of ety-
mology. A few examples which are obvi-
ous to the moſt careleſs obſerver, who is at
all acquainted with the Grecian poets and
philoſophers, will confirm what I have af-
ſerted beyond a thouſand arguments in the
way of criticiſm. For inſtance, to omit fe-
veral others, MEGARA, TYSIPHONE,
CHOLCOS, SYSIPHUS, PERITHOUS,
DISTIC, SYNONIMOUS, SYBILS,
ODYSSY, EXCENTRIC, SOLECISM,
METEMPSICHOSIS. But what allow-
ances ought in reaſon to be made for ſuch
random orthography in the works of an
Engliſh critick, is a point wholly ſubmitted
to the judgment and candor of the learned.
The church of England are alſo accuſed
by this great philologer of repeating the
Lord's Prayer in an ungrammatical manner,
becauſe they ſay,
" Our Father which art,
« &c. and not “ Our Father who art, &c.
The point is a trifle : however thus much in
of argumentation may be urged in
the way
It is a moot point, take up what author you will,
the firſt claſs of writers only excepted, whether you do not
meet the word prate as often as pirate : and yet the word
is fo eaſy that a fchool-boy would deſerve to be whipped for
a miltake in the orthography,
3
favour
Character of Dr. Swift.
171
favour of which; that our Engliſh tranſla-
tors had no regard to ſex, they referred
meerly to the ideal antecedent, to the ro ochov,
or, as Tacitus calls the God of the 'fews,
Summum illud æternum neque mutabile,
neque interiturum, even to the Creator and
Father of all exiſtences, which tó meñor, pro-
perly ſpeaking, is neither of the maſculine
nor of the fæminine gender, and conſequently
muft in Engliſh be tranſlated by ſome word
æquipollent to a neuter, and of courſe which
and not who will in that caſe be the proper
relative to agree with it's antecedent. In
like manner we do not ſay, that heroick ar-
my
who beat the French at the battle of
Creſſie ; but that heroick army which beat
the French at the battle of Creſie. Neither
do we ſay, that ghoſt or phantom who, ap-
peared to an officer of the wardrobe at ind-
jor caſtle t; but that ghoſt or phantom
which appeared, &c. And what is very re-
markable, xopaorov a virgin, and ſcortum a
bona roba, the one a Greek and the other a
Latin word, are both of them neuters: and
VIRGIL had ſomewhat a like idea, when he
writ varium & mutabile femper fæmina. So
that even the word which in the LORD's
Prayer may be defended by rules at leaſt tru-
ly grammatical.
+ Vid. lord CLARENDON, vol. 1. book 1. P. 42. octave
cdition.
WE
172 Eſſay on the Life and
ܪ
We are alſo told in this part of the Re-
marks, that Rome by her. conqueſts made ber
dialect univerſal. The Roman legions, to be
ſure, wherever they went, ſpoke in their
own dialect, and by conſequence the ſeveral
nations among whom they reſided picked
up
ſeveral of their words and phraſes ; but
ſtill the Roman language, although it prevail-
·ed in the weſt, and became almoſt the vul-
gar dialect in Spain and Gaul, never obtain-
ed in Greece, in Afia, or Africa. Some few
retired people of fortune in thoſe regions
might have ſtudied the Roman tongue out of
meer curioſity, or perhaps to qualify them-
felves for employments, which was the cauſe
of bringing a great number of foreign pre-
tenders to Rome : The Greek tongue indeed
was univerſal throughout the whole empire,
not excepting even the weſtern parts (where
it muſt be confefled that it never flouriſhed
equal to what it did in Apa and Africa)
and was preſerved entire for many ages after
the Greeks themſelves became colonies to
Rome, until they were totally over-run by
the barbarous nations upon the fall af that
empire *. But if the Roman dialect was
univerſal, how came it to paſs that among
the Higb Prieſts and Phariſees, who were
undoubtedly the moſt learned of all the in-
habitants of the eaſt, there could not be
* Vid. S. !rt's propoſal for aſcertaining the Engliff
tongee.
found
Character of Dr. Swift.
173
found one ſingle man the day after the cru-
cifixion * to addreſs himſelf in the name of
that learned body unto Pontius PILATE
in the Roman tongue, eſpecially as the go-
vernor himſelf was far from being expert in
the Attick dialect? Perhaps it may be ſaid,
that we are not very ſure in what language
the Jews addreſſed themſelves unto PILATE,
whether in Hebrew, Greek, Lutin, or Syria
ack; and that St. Matthew has only re-
corded the ſenſe, not the words of their
converſation. But that ſuppoſition will not
hold; for Pontius PILATE; # becauſe he
was addreſſed to by the Jews in the Athe
nian tongue, was obliged, in order to make
himſelf underſtood by the High Prieſts and
Phariſees, to return them an anſwer as well
as he could vin exceffive bad Greek, "EYOTE
x86wdiav, &c. of which it is impoſſible ſhould
ever have crept into the original text, if they
had not been the words of the Prætor. For
Exste Quaarimov I (Vous avez la garde] not
* *Exete xxowdía ! Vous avez la warchl was
the common dialect of the Greeks for ex-
preſſing that idea ; neither would any man
upon earth that was capable of writing
Greek have expreſſed himſelf otherwiſe. But
* Vid. Matt. xxvii. 62. ad finem.
+ Matt. xxvii. 65.
| By tranſlating theſe words into French, and the follow.
ing into French and Engliſh, we have endeavoured to give
an idea of the barbariſm to thoſe who are unacquainted
with the Greek tongue
as
174 Eſlay on the Life and
as "Exete xxrudiar were the words of the
governor, they are recorded by St. Mat-
THEW; and for that ſingle reaſon xxowdice
will in the ſtead of punaka be to the end
of the world a ſort of a Greek term for a
guard or a watch, as Πραιτώριον in the ftead
of Bκλευτήριον, or rather of Δικασήριον, will
for ſomewhat a like reafon continue to be
Greek for a judgment-ball
. But what I think
will ſet this matter in a proper light beyond
all poffibility of difpute is, that for the ſpace
of a hundred and fourſcore years after the
birth of our Saviour, how zealous and
pure foever the church of Rome was in thoſe
early times, there never was written in the
Latin tongue one ſingle treatiſe in favour of
the Chriftian religion. In the last twenty
years of the ſecond century we find APOL-
LONIUS, VICTOR, and the great TERTUL-
LIAN, who are allowed by ST. JEROME to
have been the three firſt Latin writers in
the Chriſtian church. Neither can I recol-
lect at preſent that there ever was from the
birth of ROMULUS until the reign of Com-
MODUS, a period of nine hundred and fifty
years, any one Latin author whatſoever that
was born and educated either in Greece, in
Aha, or in Africa, TERENCE the poet, who
by an accident was brought over a Nave
from Carthage to Rome, only excepted. And
yet perhaps there might have been ſome
others: I only ſay that if by accident there
were
*
Character of Dr. Swift.
175
were any fuch, I cannot recollect their names
at preſent, not that I believe there ever
were any.
In looking over this part of the critique
on the above letter from Dr. SWIFT to the
carl of OXFORD, one would imagine at firft
fight that ARISTOTLE was introduced with
a good deal of humour, ſpeaking in the ſtyle
of one of his own commentators. For,
faith the author of the Remarks, I entirely
agree with ARISTOTLE, where he fays in the
words of bis fcholiaſt, Eum præclara et magna
vix poſſe exequi et præftare, cui facultates de
funt : quoniam per amicos et civilem potentiam
veluti per inſtrumenta neceffe eft pleraque cffici,
But unfortunately thoſe are not the words of
any ſcholiaft (or commentator) that ever whit
upon
the works of ARISTOTLE. If the-crt-
tick had faid, I entirely agree with JUVENAL,
where be fays in the words of bis fcholiaji,
Eum præclara, &c. there might have been
ſome humour in fuch an oblique quotation
from the Stagirite, for really the fcholiaft
on JUVENAL ſpeaks directly in theſe very
terms (Vid. Delph. edition fat. 3. ver. 164.]
But in fact theſe words Eum præclara, ecc.
are as much the words of ARISTOTLE him-
felf, and not the words of his ſcholiaft, as
that ſaying, Is it lawful for you to fcourge x
man thár is a Roman, and uncondemned
are the words of St. Paul, and not the
# Acts xxii. 25.
words
176
Effay on the Life and
words of his ſcholiaſt; the former quotation
from the Stagirite, and the latter from the
Apoſtle, being as much their own words as
the words of a metaphraſt or tranſlator, (but
not the words of a ſcholiaſt or commentator)
can with any propriety be called the words
of an author There is a lameneſs however
in the above quotation from Aristotle,
which perhaps the author of the Remarks
was not ſufficiently aware of. The paſſage
in the original, which is introduced by an
aſſertion, That before we can be ſaid to have
compleated our felicity we muſt enjoy the pol-
Jeffion of what are generally called the external
good things of this world, runs in the follow-
ing ternus; αδυνάτον γαρ, ή ε ράδιον, τα καλα
πράττειν, αχορήγηον ένα πολλά μεν γαρ στράτ-
τείαι, καθάπερ δι' οργάνων, και δια φίλων, και
Wśrou, xy wouloxeñs durcérews*. i. e. for it is
impoſſible, or at leaſt no eaſy matter, for any
man who bas no fortune, to perform great and
Splendid actions ; becauſe indeed they are al-
mofi, all performed by the intereſt of friends,
by the means of riches, and by the concurrence
of the civil power, as by the inſiruinents
whereby we are enabled to accompliſh our de-
figns. - But the Latin tranſlation, as above
exhibited to us by the author of the Re-
marks, as well as by the ſcholiaſt on Juve-
NAL, is by the careleſſneſs of the amanuenſis
(not by the ignorance of the metaphraft, be-
ARISTOT, ethic. lib. 1. cap. 9.
cauſe
Character of Dr. Swift.
177
cauſe it is impoflible that any tranſlator could
have been guilty of ſuch a blunder) ſo im-
perfect in the inain article upon which the
whole reaſoning turns, that I am afraid a fa-
gacious reader will ſcarce allow it to be iter-
ling good ſenſe for want of the words per
divitias immediately after per amicos. And
yet after all what has this quotation to do,
fuppoſing it were compleat, with the efforts
of genius?
I have little further to object againſt the
remainder of his critique, only that I ſhall
for ever deſpair, although I entirely agrec
with JUVENAL, Satur eſt, cum dicit HORA-
Tius, Euhoë ! * to ſee the Engliſh tongue re-
fined to any certain approved ſtandard, by
the means of an hoſpital for the reception of
half-witted poets, and other ſuch miſerable
pretenders to wit and learning, as I am afraid
would be the firſt aſpiring candidates to get
a morſel of bread in the Muses Charter-
houſe.
• Sat. 7. $.62.
N
снАР.
178
Eſſay on the Life and
CH A P. IX.
A patriot is a dang’rous poſt
When wanted by his country moſt;
Perverſely comes in evil times,
Where virtues are imputed crimes.
Traulus, part 1.
D
R. Swift having immediately after the
queen's death come to reſide in Ire-
land, quickly found that by the ſharpneſs of
his writings he had made himſelf obnoxious
unto all the new men who had been raiſed
to employments, as well as unto all others,
who by their clamour and execration of the
queen and her laſt miniſtry, had either va-
nity or folly enough to imagine they had
laid in a ſufficient ſtock of merit to quali-
fy themſelves for all places, to which
their birth and figure had given them any
ſort of pretenſions; although it be certain
that not above twenty or thirty individuals
out of fifty thouſand expectants, could rea-
fonably hope to have been gratified with any
preferment in Ireland worth above a hun-
dred pounds a year : and perhaps there might
have been twenty or thirty employments
ſomewhat above that value thrown out
amongſt them in thoſe times, juſt to ſave ap-
pearances, and to keep up that noiſe and
bellowing
Character of Dr. Swift.
179
bellowing which the leaders of the party on
the other ſide of the water encouraged to the
uttermoſt. Among other delicate ſtrokes of
fattery to the goiernoursand ſub-governours of
the kingdom of Ireland, an abhorrence from
Dr. Swift, his writings and his principles
was none of the leaſt. The Doctor had been
a friend to the queen's Tory miniſtry, had
written againſt the Whigs, had been an en-
courager of the peace, a defender of the con-
ſtitution, and loved the memory
of
queen
Anne. Ergo, he was an enemy to the re-
volution, an aboininator of King WillIAM,
a friend to Louis the XIVth, 2 jacobite and a
papiſt. Such was the reaſoning, and ſuch
were the politicks of all thoſe ſupple gentry
of Ireland, which had reſigned their under-
ſtandings to be moulded by their dictators in
England. However ſome few, eſpecially
among thoſe of a liberal education, whoſe
taſte for wit and learning had inſpired them
with clear ideas of the Doctor's genius and
merit, having in themſelves more greatneſs
of mind than to hurry away precipitately
down the current of the times, were neither
afraid nor aſhamed to careſs him in the face
of the world; and as far as lay in their power,
attach themſelves to his acquaintance. But
the number of theſe diſintereſted perſons,
eren among the learned, was to the beſt of
my information very inconſiderable. For it
is certain that many rejoiced over his works
N 2
in
180 Effay on the Life and
in ſecret, whoſe prudence would not facri-
fice all hopes of their preferment whether in
church or ſtate to any ſhare in his friend-
ſhip. And conſequently the circle of Swift's
acquaintance, in compariſon of what it other-
wiſe might have been, was extreamly nar-
row and confined. Nevertheleſs, by one
means or other that group of acquaintance,
which in the year 1720 frequented the dean-
ery, ſometimes in larger and ſometimes in
ſmaller parties, at leaſt twice in the week
up-
on his publick days, were even to my re-
membrance the moſt learned and polite that
were to be met with at any one place in the
kingdom of Ireland : inſomuch that if I mif-
take not, there were at leaſt eight or ten of
his intimates, who would have acquired re-
ſpect unto themſelves for the variety and
the excellence of their learning, their wit
and their accompliſhments at any court in
Europe * And beſide theſe, many others
of great worth and reputation, although per-
haps not equal to thoſe of the prime claſs for
wit and learning, had a place in his friendſhip.
Moreover his character and ſtation as a divine;
Perhaps it may be queſtioned how any man that is but
Eight forty Seven years old at this time could form a judgment on
anſwer, that I knew many of their perſons as well as their ge-
neral characters in thoſe times; that I was afterwards acquaint-
ed more or leſs with ſeveral of them; and that as many
that choice group as remain alive unto this day, are perſons
ofas high reputation as any in the whole kingdom.
of
the
Character of Dr. Swift. 181
the frequent buſineſs of his cathedral; the com-
mon affairs of the world; added to that general
civility which is due from the greateſt per-
ſonages unto all ranks of men in their ſeveral
capacities and degrees ; threw him under
ſome kind of neceffity (which I preſume
would have been the caſe of any the greateſt
wit that ever lived upon earth) to be ac-
quainted in ſome meaſure with variety of
other people, not eaſily to be diſtinguiſhed
on account of their ſuperior merits from the
reſt of the world. And accordingly he gene-
rally ſpent his time from noon till he went to
bed, which I think was uſually about eleven of
clock, in the pleaſures of converſation among
a ſet of companions either ſelect or mixt: a
courſe of life in which he continued for
about thirteen years after the change of times
until the deceaſe of Mrs. Johnson in the
year 1727. But when he loſt that compa-
nion, whoſe genius he himſelf had been im-
proving and cultivating for at leaſt five and
twenty years, he could no longer endure
thoſe pleaſures and amuſements which on his
publick days were conducted under the eyes
and direction of his beloved STELLA with the
greateſt elegance and decorum. And accord-
ingly having ſacrificed to her Manes theſe
polite and rational entertainments, he re-
nounced his publick days, and lived during
the whole remainder of his life abundantly
more retired.
How-
N 3
182
Eſſay on the Life and
:
:
.
7
1
:
:
However, Dr.Swift although grieving
to be ſeparated from his Engliſh friends, the
greater part of whom had been either dif-
graced or baniſhed (a fate which in all revo-
lutions of parties conſtantly attends the brave,
the wiſe, the active and the faithful) could
not endure to live retired upon his deanery in
Ireland without indulging his ideas in the
progreſs of learning and politicks; and ac-
cordingly in the year 1715 he writ an Ac-
count of the four laſt Years of Queen Anne,
the materials of which he had been gather-
ing up during the reign of that moſt ex-
cellent princeſs *; a tract of hiſtory which
although confined within a very ſhort com-
pafs of time, will I preſume give entire fa-
tisfaction whenſoever it is publiſhed to all un-
prejudiced minds : and immediately after-
wards he writ his famous GULLIVER, which
alone might be thought ſufficient to make
his reputation immortal. But as the merits
of that work deſerve a particular enquiry, I
ihall wave the examination of that per-
formarce until another opportunity ; and
proceed to acquaint you in what manner he
behaved himſelf in that community into
which he had been ingrafted fore againſt his
inclinations.
Upon his arrival in Ireland that ſpirit
which had been raiſed againſt him by the
* I have ſeen what was originally deſigned for the intro-
duction to that hiſtory, dated October 1714.
WHIGS
Character of Dr. Swift. 183
Whigs in England, infatuated likewiſe the
whole populace of the city of Dublin,
infomuch that when he walked through
the town he was frequently pointed at
and abuſed by ſeveral of the meaner ſhop-
keepers, mechanicks and other baſe fellows
without name or occupation. Theſe abomi-
nable wretches like their brethren the Ya-
H00s, would oftentimes ſcrape the kennels
with their naſty claws to throw dirt and filth
at him as he paſſed through the city; all
which he bore for two or three years, until
the brutes became tired of their ſcurrility,
not ſo much with a reſigned philoſophical
patience (which I believe no body will affert
to be in the number of his characteriſticks)
as indeed with that ſuperior contempt for all
unworthy demeanour, which is only to be
conceived by the moſt improved and exalted
minds. But theſe animofities having fubſided
for two or three years, inſtead of rejoicing
over the miſeries of that people which had
without cauſe borne a tyrannous hate againſt
him, he began to look down with pity on
their diſtreſſed condition : he regretted the
calamities of his country and the abſurdity of
their politicks; he deplored their want of
commerce, and lamented all their grievances.
At laſt in the year 1720 he reſolved as far as
lay in his power to correct the errors and the
blunders of his deluded countrymen: and with
that view he writ ſhort and lively propoſals
for
N 4
184 Eſſay on the Life and
for the univerſal uſe of Iriſh manufakture, in
cloaths and furniture of houſes, &c. utterly
rejecting and renouncing every thing wear-
able that comes from England ; on account of
which a profecution was ſet on foot againſt
WATERS the printer of that pamphlet,
which was carried on with ſo much violence,
that one WILLIAM WHITSHED, then chief
juſtice, thought proper in a manner the moſt
extraordinary to keep the jury eleven hours,
and to ſend them back nine times out of
court until he had wearied them into a ſpecial
verdict. But WHITSHED, a man of low birth
and narrow education, whoſe whole pittance
of learning was confined within the magick
circle of the laws, the doctrine of precedents
and practice of the courts, was by no
means aware by what unmerciful ſtrokes a
patriot and genius like Dr. Swift could
avenge upon him the cauſe both of himſelf
WHitSHED, armed with
power and ſure to be ſupported in the virulent
days of party againſt all thoſe which adhered
unto their Tory principles *, firſt gave
the
alarm to battle by an attack upon WATERS
the printer, Swift, armed with genius and
and country
* The Tones in Ireland are more hated by the whole ſet
of zealous W#IGS, than the very Papists themſelves; and
in effect as much unqualified for the ſmalleſt ofice: although
both theſe parties allert themſelves to be of the fame seligion
in all it's branches of doctrine and diſcipline; and profeſs the
fame loyalty to the fathe proteftant king and lis heirs. Vid.
Priliyi. Plia of Merit, written in the year 1732.
fired
Character of Dr. Swift. 185
fired with a zeal for Liberty and Publick Inte-
reft, flew directly to the charge. But find-
ing he had to deal with an adverſary unequal
to the combat, he contented himſelf for the
preſent with giving him three or four laſhes,
and making him thoroughly contemptible in
the eyes of the world *. But ſoon after Swift
had further occaſion for exerting all his powers
againſt the unfortunate WHITSHED, as will
appear in the current of theſe miſcellaneous
obſervations.
Dr. Swift having retired from the politi-
cal world, and amuſed himſelf for three or
four years with poetry, converſation and tri-
fles, (which is perhaps the ſureſt teſt of a
thorough conſummate genius that is above all
particular ſyſtems and hypocritical pretences
to philoſophy) being alarmed in the year
1724 with freſh matter of indignation to re-
ſume his pen, boldly withſtood the whole
force of an infamous projector encouraged
and ſupported in his villainy by thoſe who
were underſtood to be the chief directors in
all publick affairs. The project of this im-
pudent fellow was by virtue of a patent which
he had fraudulently obtained by the intereſt
of the then favourite CHRYSEIS, to coin
* Vid. An Excellent New Song on a ſeditious Pamphlet.
Vid. Swift's Letter to Mr. Pope, dated January 10.
1721. wherein his true political ſentiments are occaſio-
nally revealed to his intimate friend without the leaſt diſ-
guiſe.
half-
186
Eſſay on the Life and
half-pence for Ireland at about eleven parts
in twelve under the real value, and force
their currency in that kingdom ; which not-
withſtanding his patent, ſuppoſing that he
had made his half-pence ever ſo good, no
man living was obliged, or by virtue of the
prerogative of the crown could be obliged to
receive in any payment whatſoever ; nothing
being in truth the current coin of England or
Ireland, beſide gold and ſilver of the right
ſterling and ſtandard ; the baſer metals being
only accepted for the conveniency of change,
which every man that pleaſes may reject when-
ever he thinks proper, without being afraid to
incur any penalty from the law. This whole
matter the Doctor laid open in a ſhort treatiſe
with this remarkable and humorous title, A
Letter to the Skop-keepers, Tradeſmen, Farm-
ers, and Common People of IRELAND, concerne
ing the Braſs Half-pence Coined by one Wil-
LIAM Wood Hard-ware Man, with a Deſign
to have them paſs in this Kingdom ; By M. B
Drapier. A letter, wherein the judicious
reader cannot but obſerve that he hath adapt-
ed his ſtyle, his phraſes, his humour and his
addreſs in a very wonderful manner to the
taſte and apprehenſion of the populace: nei-
ther indeed is the title page wholly void of
that captivating rhetorick which is admired
by the common people ; for it concludes like
that of the Whole Duty of Man, Very Proper
to be kept in every Family.
SHORT.
.
2
Character of Dr. Swift. 187
SHORTLY after he writ a ſecond and a
third letter, which were followed by ſeveral
others without confining his ſtyle and phraſes
to the taſte of the multitude. But to criticiſe
particularly on the ſeveral merits of theſe
po-
litical tracts would be to fight the battle over
again ; and beſides, would oblige me to reca-
pitulate the hiſtory of thoſe times which is
blended ſufficiently in the body of the work
itſelf. I ſhall therefore only obſerve upon
the whole, that although he talks of Li-
BERTY in a ſtrain highly becoming a warm
and zealous defender of the rights of his
country, which he maintains with great force
of law, reaſon, juſtice and eloquence, he ne-
ver once deviates in the whole courſe of his
arguments from the diſtinguiſhing characte-
riſticks of the moſt loyal ſubject, whatever
might to the contrary have been ſuppoſed by
a few degenerate Naves and fycophants in
thoſe days, even by that ſort of people who,
as the wiſe lord Bacon expreſſes it, would ſet
houſe on fire for the convenience of roaſting
their own eggs at the flame.
HOWEVER indeed, ſuch was the iniquity
of the times, that a reward of three hundred
pounds was offered for the author of the
fourth letter, chiefly becauſe he had main-
tained therein the liberty of his country, and
declared in very high terms worthy of a
brave and reſolute mind, that he would
continue firm and faithful to his ſovereign
lord
188
Eſſay on the Life and
lord the king whatever turn in the viciſſitudes
of this world his MAJESTY's affairs might
poſſibly take in other parts of his dominions.
I SHALL only remark upon this doctrine,
the contrary of which would I think have
been high treaſon and againſt his oath of al-
legiance, that how much ſoever it was con-
demned in the year 1724 by ſlaves and flat-
terers; it was in the year 1745 fo univerſally
eſtabliſhed in the minds of men ; that if there
had been occaſion for the people of Ireland to
have drawn the ſword in defence of their fo-
vereign (which beſide their loyalty and affec-
tion to His MAJESTY, they have many
reaſons to thank God for that there was not)
king George the Second would undoubtedly
have been ſupported in his right to the
Imperial Kingdom of IRELAND, let his MA-
JESTY's affairs in other parts of his dominions
have taken what turn they might, by three
hundred thouſand as brave militia as any to
be found throughout all Europe; even by the
grand-children of thoſe men fo renowned for
their valorous atchievements in the days of
WILLIAM the Third.
But to return from this digreſſion; as the
author of that fourth letter could not be dif-
covered, HARDING the printer was indicted
in the uſual forms, and brought to the King's
bench to be tried before that WILLIAM
WHITSHED abovementioned. But the no-
ble Jury, friends to their country and to
the
2
Character of Dr. Swift. 189
the publick intereſt would not find the bill.
Whereupon the Chief Juſtice in a rage dif-
ſolved the jury; on account of which he de-
ſerved to have been impeached by the House
of COMMONS. Becauſe the diſſolving of a
GRAND-JURY by any judge before the end
of the term, aſſizes, or ſeſſions, while matters
are under their conſideration, and not preſent-
ed, is arbitrary, illegal, deſtructive to publick
juſtice, a manifeſt violation of his oath, and
is a means to ſubvert the fundamental laws of
the realm * But as the House of COMMONS,
for what reaſons God alone can tell, forbore
to execute their vengeance upon the Chief
Juſtice : Swift ſeized upon him as a prey,
laſhed him and worried him out of all his
patience by many farcaſtick epigrams, ſquibs,
and other ſevere reflexions upon his unwor-
thy demeanour of, until at laſt he became
odious and ridiculous to the whole kingdom;
neither could his death, which happened
ſoon after, appeaſe the vengeance of the in-
cenſed patriot.
For Swift reſolving to
make him an example to all future ages,
purſued him into the regions of the dead,
and coupled him with Awgtus the accuſer
of SocRATES S. Such indeed was at laſt the
facrifice
:
www.o.*
1
* Vid. Reſolutions of the House of Commons in Eng-
land, November 13th 1680.
+ Vid. A Tranſlation of Whitshed's motto to his coach,
and ſome epigrams in Swift's poems,
Vid. Å Short View of the State of Ireland. Vid. particu-
larly
190 Eſlay on the Life and
facrifice that poor unfortunate WHITSHED
became unto the reſentments of DR. SWIFT.
While this proclamation was in force
againſt the Doctor, there was but one perſon
(for his intimates are not to be thought on
upon ſuch an occafion) that could have in-
formed againſt him, which was his own but-
ler who had tranſcribed the paper. It hap-
pened that on the day of the proclamation
this man went abroad in the afternoon with-
out leave from his maſter ; ſtayed abroad the
whole night and the greater part of the next
day; which greatly alarmed ſome friends of
the Doctor, as they could not but imagine that
he had gone abroad on purpoſe to receive the
reward of his perfidy. However, the man
came home; and contrary to the advice of
his friends, the Doctor fell upon him with
outragious ſeverity, ordered him to ſtrip off
his livery and get out of the houſe directly:
You villain, ſaid the Doctor, I know I am
in your power, and for that ſingle reaſon I
will the leſs bear with your inſolence or your
neglect: I ſuppoſe by this time you are re-
warded, or at leaſt in a fair way of being
rewarded for your treachery. The ſervant,
although he confeſſed that he had been
drinking all night, proteſted and ſwore to his
innocency, and begged to be confined a pri-
ſoner in the houſe fo long as the proclamation
larly An Anſwer to a Memorial, vol. 4. p. 259. Vid. alſo
The Life and Character of Dr. Swift.
could
Character of Dr. Swift.
igi
could entitle him to any reward for betraying
his maſter, left poverty or ſome other temp-
tation might force him to an action which his
foul abhorred. But all this had no weight
with his maſter; neither could the moſt
earneſt intreaties of the Doctor's friends
per-
ſuade him to give one thilling towards the
ſupport of his ſervant, or even to his face un-
til the danger was over. But when the time
limited in the proclamation had expired the
butler returned to his maſter, and lived with
him for ſome time in his former ſtation, until
one morning the Doctor ſuddenly command-
ed him to ſtrip off his livery and put on his
own cloaths. The butler ſtared with ſur-
prize, wondering for what crime he had de-
ſerved to be turned out of his place ; which
his maſter obſerving, aſked him if he had no
cloaths of his own to put on? he told him
he had. Then go your ways, ſaid the Doc-
tor, and as ſoon as you have thrown off
your livery and dreſſed yourſelf, come back
to me again. The butler having obeyed,
and returned to his maſter, the Doctor called
up ſome other of his fervants, and ordered
them to take notice that ROBERT was no
longer his ſervant, that he was now Mr.
BLAKELY the verger of St. PATRICK's ca-
thedral, [a place worth about 30 l. a year]
which he had given him as a reward of his
fidelity. Robert however would not quit
his maſter, but lived with him for ſome years
after in the ſtation of butler.
How-
192 Eſſay on the Life and
ģ
HOWEVER, it happens that towards the
concluſion of one of theſe Drapier's Letters
Dr. Swift has paid fo lively and delicate
a compliment to his friend MR. LINDSAY
afterwards one of the judges of the Common
Pleas in Ireland ; a gentleman ſo remarkable
for his learning, tafte, wit and genius, that
in all probability he was one of the fineſt fpi-
rits the Doctor was ever acquainted with in his
whole life ; and at the ſame time he has drawn
up
with abundance of wit and humour ſuch
an apt compariſon between Wood and Go-
LIAH, that I cannot forbear to inſert the quo-
tation at full length, eſpecially for the enter-
tainment of thoſe who are unacquainted with
theſe matters.
“ I AM very ſenſible, that ſuch a work as I
" have undertaken, (faith Dr. Swift in
" the character of M. B. Drapier) might
" have worthily employed a much better
pen.
But when a houſe is attempted to
« be robbed it often happens that the weak-
" eſt in the family runs firſt to ſtop the door.
* All the affiftance I had were ſome informa-
« tions from an eminent perſon; whereof I
am afraid I have ſpoiled a few by endea-
vouring to make them of a piece with my
own productions, and the reſt I was not
" able to manage : I was in the caſe of DA-
* This gentleman, from a patriot ſpirit, ſupplied Dr.
Swift with all materials relating to the laws of the land,
which were neceſſary on this occaſion.
VID
!
Character of Dr. Swift. 193
VID,
who could not move in the armour of
" SAUL *; and therefore I rather choſe to
" attack this uncircumciſed Philiſtine (Wood
I mean) with a ſing and a ſtone. And I
may ſay for Wood's honour as well as my
own, that he reſembles GOLIAH in many
« circumſtances very applicable to the pre-
" ſent purpoſe. For Goliah had a helmet
of braſs upon his head, and he was armed
" with a coat of mail, and the weight of the
coat was five thouſand ſhekels of braſs, and
" he had greaves of braſs upon his legs, and a
target of braſs between his ſhoulders. In
“ ſhort he was like Mr. Wood, all over
braſs ; and he defied the armies of the living
" God. GOLIAH's conditions of combat
were likewiſe the ſame with thoſe of
“ Wood: If he prevail againſt us then ſhall
we be his ſervants. But if it happens that
" I prevail over him I renounce the other
part of the condition, he ſhall never be a
fervant of mine ; for I do not think him
" "fit to be truſted in any honeſt man's ſhop.”
HAVING mentioned the name of Mr.
LINDSAY in one of the preceding paragraphs,
I ſhall venture to publiſh fome few lines
written by that improved genius, although
he was neither born in England, nor yet a
profeſſed poet. They are indeed a ſpecimen
of that ſort of praiſe; or to ſpeak in the lan-
guage of the critic; of that fort of flattery,
* Alluding to the inſtructions he had received from Mr.
O
with
LINDSAY,
194 Ellay on the Life and
with which Dr. SWIFT was daily fed in
Ireland.
A Dialogue between an eminent Lawyer
and Dr. SWIFT Dean of St. PATRICK'S,
being an alluſion to the firſt Satire of the fe-
cond book of HORAC.
Sunt quibus in fatyra, &c.
Written in the year 1729.
Since there are perſons who complain
There's too much fatire in my vein,
That I am often found exceeding
The rules of raillery and breeding,
With too much freedom treat my betters,
Not ſparing even men of letters,
You, who are ſkill'd in lawyer's lore,
What's
your
advice ? ſhall I give o're,
Nor ever fools or knaves expoſe
Either in verſe or hum'rous proſe,
And, to avoid all future ill,
In my 'ſcritore lock up my quill ?
SINCE you are pleas’d to condeſcend
To aſk the judgment of a friend,
Your caſe conſider'd, I muſt think
You ſhou'd withdraw from pen and ink,
Forbear your poetry and jokes,
And live like other chriſtian fokes;
Or, if the Muses muſt inſpire
Your fáncy with their pleaſing fire,
Takefubjects fafer for
Than thoſe on which you lately writ,
Com-
your wit
Character of Dr. Swift.
195
Commend the times, your thoughts correct
And follow the prevailing ſect,
Affert that Hyde in writing Itory
Shews all the malice of a Tory,
While Burner in his deathleſs page
Diſcovers freedoin without rage ;
To WOOLSTON recommend our youth
For learning, probity and truth,
That noble genius, who unbinds
The chains which fetter free-born minds,
Redeems us from the flaviſh fears
Which laſted near two thouſand years,
He can alone the prieſthood humble,
Make gilded ſpires and altars tumble.
Must I commend againſt my conſcience
Such ſtupid blaſphemy and nonſenſe?
To ſuch a ſubject tune my lyre
And ſing like one of Milton's choir,
Where Devils to a vale retreat
And call the laws of wiſdom fate,
Lament upon their hapleſs fall
That force free virtue Thou'd enthrall ?
Or, ſhall the charms of wealth and power
Make me pollute the Muses' bower
As from the tripod of APOLLO
Hear from my deſk the words that follow;
Some by philoſophers mifled,
Muſt honour you alive and dead,
And ſuch as know what Greece has writ
Muſt taſte your irony and wit,
While moſt that are or would be great,
Muſt dread your pen, your perſon hate,
02
And
196 Eſſay on the Life and
And you on DRAPIER's Hill* muſt lye,
And there without a mitre dye.
At the cloſe of theſe DRAPIER's Letters,
which are all very ſerious and political, we
meet unexpectedly with a piece of humour
and ridicule which occafioned a great deal
of mirth and laughter in thoſe times. The
title of this whimſical tract is, A full and true
Account of the folemn Proceſſion to the GAL-
Lows, at the Execution of WILLIAM WOOD,
Eſquire and Hard-ware-man.
And beſide theſe papers he writ ſeveral
copies of verſes to expoſe that vile impoſtor
Wood and his accomplices to the contempt
of his countrymen.
Vid. PROMETHEUS,
vol. 2. p. 197. A Simile on our Want of Sil
ver, id. p. 209. On Wood the Iron-monger,
id. p. 210. WooD an Infeet, id. p. 212.
An Epigram on Wood's Braſs Money, vol
.
8. p. 317. WILL Wood's Petition to the
People of Ireland, vol. 8. p. 315.
These political tracts, like many other
writings of Dr. Swift, may, for any thing I
know to the contrary, be thought local and
temporary; and perhaps for that reaſon may
chance to be neglected by ſucceeding genera-
tions; which happens to be the fate of almoſt
all other points of hiſtory, excepting thoſe
* In the county of Ardmah, where Dr. Swift in the
1729 had ſome thoughts of building. Vid. his
DRAFlor's Hill
only
year
called
poem
1
Character of Dr. Swift.
197
only which are ſtiffly ſupported by the cla-
mour and virulence of contending parties ac-
cording to their ſeveral views and intereſts in
the commonwealth. But as the writings of
Dr. Swift, and particularly theſe Drapier's
Letters are founded on the ſecure baſis of the
laws of his country, and ſupported through-
out the whole with the warmeft zeal for Li-
BERTY, they will for ever command the ve-
neration of thoſe, who are not unworthy to
cnjoy the bleſſings of our conſtitution. For
although it be a truth ſcarce ever regarded,
the ſubject matter which happens to give riſe
to any political treatiſe whatſoever is but of
little conſequence ; that ſpirit which is con-
veyed in the writings of a patriot, who is
equally faithful to his king and country, be-
ing that alone which improveth our faculties,
and therefore hath a claim to all the deepeſt
of our attention let what age or nation ſoever
boaſt of the honour of his genius. But if
the inhabitants of theſe nations, and particu-
larly the people of Ireland will continue to
be like the deaf adder, which refuſeth to hear
the voice of the charmer charm he never ſo
wiſely; the time may come when for want
of a patriot inſpired like Dr. Swift to ap-
prize them of their danger, they may be
doomed to chains and Davery by the con-
trivance of ſome wicked impoſtor that may
lye in wait for their deſtruction. Conſider
ſons of Ireland, what hardſhips
had
therefore, ye
O 3
198 Effay on the Life and
had like to have been inflicted upon your
wiſe, your couragious patriot; conſider what
perfecutions were ſet on foot againſt him by
Ilaves and wretches for no other crime but
that of defending your liberties ; or rather
indeed for maintaining the very exiſtence of
your country ; againſt one vile inſignificant
mechanick. Think not becauſe that evil day
is paſt, that in the womb of time there can-
not be any further projects to undermine
your liberties. Have ye not ſeen pretended
patriots of late years, which have proſtituted
their impious pens to ſerve the vileft purpoſes ?
But thanks be to God! their writings have
periſhed, and their names are univerſally pro-
nounced with abhorrence, contempt and
execration. Read therefore and imbibe the
political principles of Dr. Swift ; engrave
them on the tablet of your hearts; teach them
unto your children's children; and above all
things remember to fix an indelible mark of
infamy upon thoſe men who by their words,
their actions, and other wicked inſinuating
artifices endeavour to fap the vitals of your
liberty. For be aſſured that in the day of
trial they will approve themſelves to their
maſters to be corrupted flaves and traitors to
their country.
The next piece in the fourth volume is
entitled A Stort View of the State of Ire-
land, written in the year 1727. But before
I ſhall proceed to enquire into the merits of
this
Character of Dr. Swift.
199
i
this treatiſe I cannot but declare, myſelf
heartily forry, that I am forced to diſagree
with the author of the Remarks on Dr.
Swift with regard to his critique upon this
article. For ſurely among all the pleaſures
and delights which have any reſpect unto this
habitable world, there can be none more ge-
nerous, more intellectual, and more divine,
than to rejoice in the proſperity of our coun-
try. But alas ! the miſeries of Ireland be-
ing the effects of a thouſand cauſes are, I am
afraid, incurable. At leaſt all remedies but
one (which is aboliſhing the uſe of gold and
ſilver out of the whole community; a ſcheme
too philoſophical, and perhaps too chimæri-
cal for ſo corrupted an age to reduce into
practice) appear to be ſo exceedingly deſpe-
rate, that I verily believe it would require a
legiſlator equal to the conductor of the Is-
RAELITES out of the land of Ægypt to make
them a rich and flouriſhing people, notwith-
ſtanding the fertility of their foil and the tem-
perature of their climate.
HOWEVER indeed the author of the Re-
marks is of opinion, " That little notice
Thould be taken of this tract ſince the pre-
" ſent ſtate of Ireland is in general as flouriſh-
ing as poſſible.” I ain forry that any man
whoſe whole fortune, ſome trifling Demeſie
with a houſe upon it only excepted, is re-
ported to be in Ireland, Tould be ſo great a
ſtranger to the groans and miſeries of that un-
fortunate
O4
200 Eſſay on the Life and
fortunate kingdom. But what I chiefly won-
der at is, that any man ſo ambitious to receive
the applauſe of the world for his great and
ſuperlative humanity; which if I miſtake
not is a complex idea that includes bowels of
compaſſion, beneficence and charity (by which
laſt I underſtand the univerſal agape * of the
Chriſtians) could poſſibly reſide for the great-
er part of eighteen years in Ireland without
remarking to his infinite regret that no peo-
ple in the Chriſtian world are ſo deſtitute of
raiment, food and all the conveniencies of
life, as the inhabitants of that wretched king-
dom ; notwithſtanding that by God and
Nature it is perhaps the moſt favoured of
any country upon earth. Optima Natio ;
Peffima Gens; was I remember Dr. Swift's
periphraſis for Ireland whenever his patriot
indignation was raiſed againſt the abiurdity
of their conduct and politicks. But the au-
thor of the Remarks having too refined, too
ſublime, too marvellous a guſto, for the de-
licatezza of converſation to receive any joyous
entertainment from the oi mano, values him-
his retirement from the world, upon
his converſe with the dead, and upon his
having as little connexion as poſſible with the
living; the majeſty and darkneſs of his retreat
guarding him at the ſame time, like walls
and ramparts, and the reſt of his own forti-
felf upon
* Vid. Cor. xii. 8.
fications,
Character of Dr. Swift.
201
fications *, from all approaches and cries of
the poor and deſtitute. And therefore it is
no great wonder that he ſhould be a ſtranger
to their cold, their hunger, their nakedneſs,
What a lively imitator of that Great, IN-
EFFABLE Person who converſed with pube
licans and finners, and went about doing
good!
BUT to return from theſe vanities to the
political remarks of Dr. Swift. In that
pamphlet, which is now under conſideration,
the Doctor enumerates fourteen cauſes of any
country's flouriſhing and growing rich; and
then examines what effects ariſe from theſe
cauſes in the kingdom of IrelandI am well
convinced that ſome few alterations have
taken place ſince the year 1727. But whe-
ther in fact theſe alterations have at all con-
tributed to the intereſt of the weal-publick;
or whether it appears they have had the leaſt
effect towards baniſhing complaining from
our ſtreets ; is at preſent one of the points to
be conſidered : and the other is, how far the
remarks of Dr. SWIFT are equally true at
this day as they were in the year 1727. But
to write a particular deſcant upon theſe mat-
ters would require the genius of an hiſtorian
as well as the patience of a ſtoick; and would
* Vid. The encloſure of queen ANNE within the whiggiſh
fortreſſes; the retirement of Dr. Swif's within his own
fortification at Dublin ; and many other proluſions of this ac-
compliſhed Ingenieur,
beſides
202 Eſſay on the Life and
beſides take up at leaſt the compaſs of a good
moderate volume before they could be ex-
plained to the ſatisfaction of the publick. I
Thall therefore, to avoid amultiplicity of words,
only deſire the curious enquirer into affairs of
this nature, to peruſe the ſeveral cauſes of a
nation's flouriſhing and growing rich in the
ſame order they are inſerted by Dr. SWIFT,
and carefully obſerve the remarks of their old
patriot. What exceptions I have at preſent
to any of theſe particulars, written ſo many
years ago, I ſhall faithfully obſerve in the
progreſs of this examination.
But to cut theſe matters ſhort, I cannot
but inſiſt upon it, that Ireland with regard
to twelve articles out of the fourteen is juſt in
the ſame condition, and labours under the
ſame diſadvantages this preſent year of our
LORD 1754 as it did in the year 1727.
With reſpect to the ſeventh article which
concerns the improvement of land and the
encouragement of agriculture, Ireland is by
far in a worſe ſituation at preſent than it was
in the year 1727, notwithſtanding many ap-
pearances to the contrary. For although it
be certain that great improvements, and
par-
ticularly the fineſt roads perhaps in the world
have been made ſince that epoch, flocks and
herds have been only thereby multiplied,
And although it be aſſerted by the author of
the Remarks that agriculture is cultivated (1.6.
that the culture of land is cultivated) in Ire-
land;
-4
Character of Dr. Swift. 203
land; the greater part of the huíbandmen,
the labourers and the poor have, meerly for
the ſake of thoſe curſed cattle which are the
bane of Ireland, been driven out of their
wretched habitations and baniſhed the coun-
try helpleſs, naked and forlorn; to rot, ſtarve
and perilh in deſolate places to the great di-
minution of the inhabitants.
AND as to the fourteenth article, the
peo-
ple of Ireland by their folly, their madneſs,
their luxury and diſregard to all publick inte-
reſt are by many degrees in a more wretched
condition than they were in the year 1727;
the moſt common neceſſaries, even their corn,
their ale and their potatoes being, to the ſhame
and confuſion of their politicks, imported
from abroad as well as their tea, their claret
and their ſpices.
As to the remainder of that critique which
is written by the author of the Remarks from
the words - Ireland in relation of England" '
to the end of the paragraph ; it is ſo much
this; and ſo much that; and ſo much I know
not what; that I ſhall leave it puris naturali-
bus to the enjoyment of thoſe who are at lei-
ſure to underſtand it.
SUBSEQUENT to the Short View of the State
of Ireland is a piece entitled An Anſwer to a
Paper called a Memorial of the poor inhabi-
tants, tradeſmen and labourers of the kingdom
of Ireland ; written in the year 1728; which
as far as it relates to agriculture and grazing,
confirms
204 Eſſay on the Life and
confirms what I have ſaid in this chapter with
regard to Ireland.
The next pamphlet is A Modeſt Propoſal
for preventing the Children of poor People in
Ireland from being a burden to their parents
or Country; and for making them beneficial to
the Publick; written in the year 1729. This
humorous treatiſe, equally the product of de-
ſpair and benevolence, ſeemeth to have been
written in the bitterneſs of his ſoul, and prin-
cipally addreſſed to the conſideration of thoſe
mercileſs tyrants which ſtarve and oppreſs
their fellow-creatures even to the ſhame and
deſtruction of their country. His propoſal
is to fatten up the children of beggars, cot-
tagers and farmers as they do lambs and pigs
for the markets, and ſell their carcaſſes to the
rich; a food which declares to be very proper
for landlords; who as they have already de-
voured moſt of the parents, ſeem to have
the beſt title to their children.
In the year 1730 he writ A Vindication of
his Excellencey John Lord CARTERET
from the Charge of favouring none but Tories,
High-Church-men and Jacobites ; a piece
wherein the failings of that accompliſhed
perfon ariſing from the prejudices of great
talents and a learned education, are finely
diſplayed with infinite wit and humour.
However indeed, there is couched in this
pamphlet abundance of ſatire. PISTORIDES,
* Now earl of GRANVILLE.
that
Character of Dr. Swift.
205
that poor, angry, buſtling mortal, he treats
with all imaginable contempt: but in his
fatire againſt TRAULUS he ſpares not to
draw blood at every ſtroke; the former
part of which is bitterly ſarcaſtick, and
the latter as bitterly ironical. His account
of Agesilaus being caught by the parſon of
the pariſh riding on a hobby-horſe with his
children, and ſome other touches of the like
ſort are truly diverting.
The ſtory of the INJURED LADY in A
Letter to her Friend, with his Anſwer; which
ſetms to have been written about ſeven or
eight and forty years ago; are ſo expreſs,
clear and ſignificant, that no critique is want-
ed to give them a further illuſtration.
Having in this chapter occaſionally re-
marked
upon all the political papers of Dr.
Swift relating to Ireland, thoſe only ex-
cepted wherein the rights of the clergy and
the cauſe of chriſtianity are exprelly and im-
mediately concerned; I ſhall, to avaid en-
tering into a large field of reaſoning and de-
bate, only obſerve in general that Swift
being a thorough maſter of politicke, and
far beyond all the wiſeſt of his cotemporaries
deeply verſed in the hiſtory of parties, could
diſcover at a ſurprizing diſtance the natural
conſequences of thoſe efforts which had been
frequently made during the time he flourish-
ed, to ſúbvert our happy conftitution both
of church and ſtate; infomuch that he ap-
pears
206 Eſſay on the Life and
pears from a great variety of his tracts to
have been one of the moſt fagacious watch-
men that ever was known in the church of
CHRIST.
CH A P. X.
H
HA
AVING in the two or three former
chapters ſufficiently remarked on the
political behaviour of Dr. Swift, I ſhall
now proceed to make ſome critical obſerva-
tions
upon
his travels. But ſince the Doctor's
writings are always ſo clear and ſignificant,
that few or no remarks are required to make
them intelligible to all capacities; I ſhall on-
ly obſerve in the general that his famous Gul-
LIVER is a direct, plain and bitter ſatire
againſt the innumerable follies and corrup-
tions in law, politicks, learning, morals and
- religion. And without diſpute theſe mani-
-fold corruptions have in a courſe of ages, by
-the refinements and gloſſes of iniquitous men,
arrived at laſt to ſuch ſtrength and effrontery
as: to render it impoſſible for all the wit and
genius thàt ever warmed the imagination of
* fatiriſt to laſh them with any degree of
ſeverity proportioned to that exceſs of per-
turbation and miſchief which they ſeverally
- occafion in the great circle of ſociety. All
therefore which can be done by a wiſe man
(ſeeing that by nature he is appointed to act
for
4
Character of Dr. Swift.
207
for the ſpace of thirty, fifty, or ſeventy years
ſome ridiculous, filly part in this fantaſtick
theatre of miſery, vice and corruption) is ei-
ther to lament with HERACLITUS the ini-
quities of the world; or which is the more
chearful, and therefore I do preſume the
more cligible courſe, to laugh with Demo-
Critus at all the knaves and fools upon
earth. And accordingly we find that Dr.
Swift has in theſe Travels exerted a force
of ridicule and fatire, pointed ſo directly
againſt the depravities of humankind, and
ſupported with ſuch an abundance of wit and
pleaſantry as indeed more than perſuade us
to believe that his intention was either to
laugh vice and immorality if it were poſſible
quite out of the world; or at leaſt to avenge
the cauſe of virtue on all the patrons and
abettors of iniquity.
GULLIVER's voyage to Lilliput as well as
the voyage to Brobdingnag, the machinery
and ſome particular ſallies of nature, wit and
humour only excepted, is intirely political.
His meaning throughout the whole, eſpe-
cially where he glances at the hiſtory of his
own times, the wars of Europe and the fac-
tions of Whig and Tory, is to be found ſo
very near the ſurface, that it would almoſt be
an affront to the common reaſon of thoſe who
are at all verſed in the affairs of the world to
offer at any further explication.
How-
208 Eſſay on the Life and
However, we find it aſſerted by that
very fagacious critick ſo often mentioned,
that Dr. Swift in his account of Lilliput
“ darcs even to exert his vein of humour ſo
liberally as to place the reſurrection (one
“ of the moſt encouraging principles of the
“ chriſtian religion) in a ridiculous and con-
temptible light.” What grounds there
are for ſuch an accuſation we ſhall ſee pre-
fently. That paſſage in GULLIVER which
ſeems to be referred to runs in the following
manner ; They bury their dead with their
• heads directly downwards ; becauſe they
" hold an opinion that in eleven thouſand
" moons they are all to riſe again; in which
“ period the earth (which they conceive to
« be flat) will turn upſide down, and by this
means they ſhall at their reſurrection be
" found ready ſtanding on their feet. The
“ learned among them confeſs the abſurdity
« of this doctrine ; but the practice ſtill con-
“ tinues in compliance to the vulgar.” A
paragraph which, if it were examined with
judgment and candor, would incline us to
believe, that an opinion of a life to come is
connected ſo iminediately with all our rea-
ſoning faculties, that ſuppoſing we had never
been bleſſed with any revelation from God
we ſhould believe the reſurrection to life eter-
nal. But the Lilliputians believe that after
eleven thouſand moons the earth will be
turned upade down; and
upon
that account
they
Character of Dr. Swift.
181
they are buried with their heads directly
downwards, in order to be found ſtanding
upon their feet at the day of reſurrection :
an opinion, which I confeſs with the learned
among themſelves to be whimſical and ridi-
culous enough. But follies and abſurdities are
always mixed with idolatry and ſuperſtition.
Perhaps it will be objected, that in peruſing
GULLIVER we are always to underſtand
Lilliput to be ſome nation of Chriſtendom,
and conſequently their religious opinions to
be the chriſtian faith. But, this I will venture
to ſay, that whoever reads the voyage to
Lilliput in that light, will find himſelf to be
grolly miſtaken. For the Lilliputians (al-
though we are not expreſsly told ſo by Dr.
Swift) were ſo far from being Chriſtians
of any denomination, that in fact they were
rank idolaters ; otherwiſe it is impoſſible,
that a people ſecluded from all the reſt of
the world, except the iſland of Blefuſcu, ſhould
imagine GULLIVER's watch to be the god
that he worſhipped. And therefore I can-
not but infer, that inſtead of placing the
reſurrection in a ridiculous, Intemptible
light, GULLIVÉR hath fairly manifeſted the
opinion of a ſtate hereafter, (although con-
nected with ſome vanities and abſurdities,
which are the effects of ſuperſtition) to be
the ground-work of all religion, founded upon
the clear and ſtrong dictates both of nature
and reaſon,
P
WE
210 Eſſay on the Life and
We are alſo told by this incomparable
judge of excellencies and defects in the pro-
ductions of the learned, " That the ſeventh
chapter of the voyage to Brobdingnag
a contains ſuch farcafins on the ſtructure
“ of the human body, as too plainly ſhew
us, that the author was unwilling to loſe any
“ opportunity of debafing and ridiculing his
own ſpecies.” But whereabouts in the ſe-
venth chapter of the voyage to Brobdingnag
the author of GULLIVER hath endeavoured
to ridicule his own ſpecies I proteſt I cannot
conceive. Perhaps the critick imagines the
ſtructure of the human body is ridiculed, be-
cauſe a man of fix foot high cannot read a
folio of twenty foot high with the help of a
ladder. But, ſuch a repreſentation of Gul-
LIVER in the character of GRILDRIG is ſo
far from being a defect in the author's judg-
ment, or indeed a fatyre upon the human
ſpecies, that on the contrary, it is an incident
manifeſtly deſigned to keep up the proba-
bility; neither without ſome contrivance of
that kind was it poflible that he could have
been acquainted with their learning; and
conſequently muſt have been totally ſilent
with regard to that point. I am inclined
therefore to believe the critick's indignation
was raiſed againſt Dr. SWIFT, becauſe in
this chapter he introduces the king of Brob-
dingnag as treating GULLIVER with ſome
fort of contempt. But whether Dr. SWIFT
cant
Character of Dr. Swift.
2 II
can deſerve our cenſure upon this account,
Ihall be the ſubject of our next enquiry.
In the former part of this chapter we are
told by GULLIVER, that as a ſmall tribute of
acknowledgment, in return for ſo many marks
of royal favour and protection, which he had
received from the prince of Brobdingnag, he
diſcovered to him the force of powder and
the uſe of artillery; and beſides, made him
an offer to inſtruct his ſervants in the com-
poſition of gun-powder, and direct his work-
men how to make cannons and demicul-
verins of a ſize proportionable to all other
things in his majeſty's kingdom. Where-
upon the king of Brobdingnag, a prince
whom he declares to be poſſeſſed of every
quality which procures veneration, love, and
eſteem; of ſtrong parts, great wiſdom, and
profound learning ; endued with admira-
ble talents for government, and almoſt adored
by his ſubjects ; was ſtruck with horror at
the deſcription he had given of thoſe terrible
engines, and the propoſal he had made.
" He was amazed (faith GULLIVER) how
"fo impotent and grovelling an inſect as I
(theſe were his expreſſions) could enter-
"tain ſuch inhuman ideas, and in ſo familiar
a manner as to appear wholly unmoved
at all the ſcenes of blood and deſolation,
" which I had painted as the common
" effects of thoſe deſtructive machines
whereof he ſaid, fome evil genius, enemy
3
P 2
to
184 Effay on the Life and
" to mankind, muſt have been the firſt con-
« triver. As for himſelf, he proteſted, that
although few things delighted him ſo
« much as new diſcoveries in art or in na-
ture ; yet he would rather loſe half his
kingdom, than be privy to ſuch a ſecret ;
" which he commanded, as I valued my life,
never to mention any more."
IN the above quotation we find the king
of Brobdingnag, perfectly enraged to think,
to diminutive a creature as GULLIVER in re-
fpect to the inhabitants of that empire could
entertain ſuch inhuman ideas, and appear
wholly uninoved at all the ſcenes of blood
and deſolation, which he had painted as the
common effects of thoſe deſtructive ma-
chines ; calls him in diſdain a grovelling in-
ſeet; an expreffion highly proper on that oc-
caſion from a patriot king, fo great, fo vene-
rable, and ſo beneficent to his people. But
if this be degrading the human ſpecies, I am
at a loſs to conceive in what manner we
can defend that uncourtly addreſs of JOHN
the BAPTIST to his own countrymen,
Ye
generation of vipers, &c. *" than which,
nothing can be more fareaſtick, it being the
received opinion of thoſe times, that vipers
were of a nature fo cruel and fanguinary,
to force their paſſage into the world by
gnawing their way thorough the bowels
that bred and nouriſhed them, leaving their
* MATTHEW, iii. 7.
16
as
G
dam
Character of Dr. Swift.
177
dam a lifeleſs carcaſs * upon the earth. But,
if the human ſpecies be neither ridiculed
by a man of fix foot high mounting a lad-
der for the conveniency of reading a gi-
gantick folio ; nor by the prince of Brob-
dingnag's calling the diminutive GULLIVER
on a particular occafion, a little grovelling
infect; I declare the remarks of the critick
are totally beyond my comprehenſion. How-
ever indeed, there is a paragraph in the
ſeventh chapter of the voyage to Brobdingnag,
which it is impofſible to read without call-
ing to mind that wicked Meditation on a
Broomſtick, which is every day riſing more
and more in the eſtimation of the world.
The deſign of GULLIVER in his voyage
to Laputa is to ridicule the vain preten-
fions of chymiſts, mathematicians, projectors,
and the reſt of that ſpeculative tribe, who
ſpend their time in aerial ſtudies, by no
means calculated to improve the faculties
of the mind, or to enlarge the number of
ideas ; mathematicians (I mean thoſe only,
and I deſire my words may not be sacked,
who are entirely devoted to their circles,
their teleſcopes and their laboratory) being a
Tace of men, ſo very abſtracted from all ſub-
lunary affairs, that ſcarce one in twenty of
.
* Tertia die intra uterum catulos excludit : deinde fingu-
Jos fingulis diebus parit, viginti ferè numero. Itaque ce-
tere farditatis impatientes, perrumpunt latera, occisâ pa-
rente. PLIN. Nac. Hift. lib. 10. cap. 82.
them
P 3
214 Eſſay on the Life and
them can give you a rational anſwer. How-
ever indeed, a certain degree of mathemati-
cal knowledge is, without diſpute, extream-
ly neceſſary in the purſuit of the Æſculapian
ſcience, architecture, and other ſpecies of me-
chanicks. But, when the ſoul rambles after
a thouſand chimæras, and the brain is wholly
abſorbed in the conſideration of the ſeveral
powers of attraction, repulſion, and the circu-
lation of the heavenly bodies; or, when a pro-
jector with ſooty hands and face is employed
in his laboratory in producing a conſiderable
degree of cold, in order to refrigerate the
air, and qualify the raging of the dog-ſtar ;
which exactly anſwers to the project of ex.
tracting ſun-beams out of cucumbers ; ſuch
follies and extravagancies are certainly the
objects of deriſion. And accordingly Dr.
Swift has laughed egregiouſly in the voyage
to Laputa, and exerted a vein of humour,
not againſt the whole tribe of chymiſts, pro-
jectors, and mathematicians in general ; but
againſt thoſe, and thoſe only, who de-
ſpiſe the uſeful branches of ſcience, and waſte
their lives in the purſuit of aerial vanities
and extravagancies.
GULLIVER'S account of his entertainment
at Glubdubdrib, or the iſland of ſorcerers, is
ſtrangely and whimſically diverting. ALEX-
ANDER the GREAT, at the head of his army
juſt after the battle of Arbela, aſſured GUL-
Lives upon bis bonor, that he was not poyſon-
ed,
Character of Dr. Swift.
215
ed, but died of a fever by exceſſive drinking.
And afterwards HANNIBAL paſſing the Alps,
declared to bim, that he had not a drop of vine-
gar
in bis camp. How ridiculous, how con-
temptible, are theſe plagues of the world ;
theſe deitroyers of the human race; when
ſtripped of their royalty and command, as
well as their ability to perpetrate any further
miſchief.
Mors fola fatetur
Quantula fint hominum corpuſcula.
Juv. Sat. 10.
HOWEVER indeed the famous remarker on
the works of Dr. SWIFT is pleafed to cen-
fure GULLIVER's taſte in the choice of his
SEXTUMVIRATE; and the more ſo, becauſe
he declares it to be a SEXTUMVIRATE, to
abich all the ages of the world cannot add a ſe-
venth. But to juſtify the taſte of GULLIVER
with regard to his choice of patriots, would be
to enter much deeper into the lives and cha-
racters of theſe immortal heroes, than appears
to be requiſite upon fo tranfient an occaſion.
Beſide FAME and HISTORY are ſo loud and
frequent in their praiſe, that every body is ac-
quainted with their ſuperior merits. I ſhall
therefore only obſerve, how the critick from a
lapſe cf his own memory has happily caughtan
opportunity to fall upon the reputation of Dr.
Swift with great ſeverity. But, as Cato the
younger, not CATo the cenfor, is ranked by
the
PA
180 Effay on the Life and
the Doctor in this groupe of heroes; the cri-
tick, without any offence to GULLIVER,
may
be as angry and as ſevere
and as ſevere upon the old
cenſor, as in the abundance of his generoſity
he may think convenient. Neither indeed
has Gulliver, as the critick is pleaſed to
aſſert, excluded all future generations from
adding to this SEXTUMVIRATE. For, Gul-
LIVER ſpeaks only of the time paſt; what
Caros may appear to bleſs the world, and
oppoſe the torrent of corruption, in after
ages ; God only knows. But, why ſhould
we trouble ourſelves any longer with theſe
Aimſy Remarks ; the Doctor being no more
accountable for the miſtakes and blunders of
his commentators, than HOMER and Ari-
STOTLE are accountable for the miſtakes
and blunders of theirs ?
In the next chapter we are told by Gul-
LIVER, that Homer had eyes the moit quick
and piercing he had ever beheld. You
fee what his critick fays upon this point, if
you think it will be worth your Attention.
All that is meant by GULLIVER is, that
Homer had the moſt quick and piercing ge-
nius of all human race.
GULLIVER'S account of the STRULD-
BRUGGs in the tenth chapter of the voyage
to LAPUTA; which is the fineſt lecture
that ever was conceived by any mortal man
to reconcile poor tottering creatures unto a
chearful reſignation of this wretched life, and
perfectly
You may
Character of Dr. Swift. 189
perfectly agreeable to that ſentiment of the
inſpired prophet, The days of our life are
threeſcore years and ten; and though men be
so ſtrong, that they live to four ſcore years; yet
is their life then but labour and forrow; hath
furniſhed the critick with an opportunity of
reproaching Dr. Swift with thoſe calamities,
which it was by no means in his power to
avert. Theſe diſpenſations of the Al-
MIGHTY, which are frequently the conco-
mitants of old age, and which the Doctor
throughout his whole life conſtantly appre-
hended from ſome peculiar infirmities at-
tending his habit of body would ſeize upon
him at laſt *
j
the critick, without
any
ſort
of heſitation, as roundly aſſerts to be the
* It was for many years before the Doctor had loft his
memory a common ſaying of his, at the time of his parting in
the evening with an intimate friend, that uſed to viſit him
twice orthrice a week, “ Well; God bleſs you ; good night to
you ; but I hope I fall never ſee you again." In this manner
he would frequently expreſs the deſire he had to get rid of
the world, after a day ſpent in chearfulneſs, without any
provocation from anger, melancholy, or diſappointment.
This puts me in mind of an accident that happened about
the latter end of the year 1739.
As DR. SWIFT and a cler-
gyman were talking together in one of the bed-chambers at
the deanery houſe, they ſtood for ſome time between the
windows under a very large, weighty pier glaſs; but upon
their moving accidentally to another part of the room, down
fell the glaſs, and broke into a thouſand pieces, within kalf a
minute after they had quitted the place. Was it not a mer.
cy, ſaid the clergyman to the dean, that we moved from that
ſpot the moment we did ; for undoubtedly if we had ſtaid
there any longer, we ſhould both have been killed ? I am
ſorry for it, anſwered the dean : I wiſh the glaſs had fallen
upon me. So extreamly apprehenſive was. Dr. Swift that
his memory would totally fail him fome time before his
avenging
deceaſe.
218
Eſſay on the Life and
avenging judgments of God, as if he had
been let into the ſecret by ſome particu-
lar revelation. And from thence he takes
occaſion, in three or four different paffa-
ges of what he calls Remarks upon the Life
and Writings of Dr. JONATHAN SWIFT,
riotouſly to inſult the memory of that great
perſon, whoſe friendſhip, notwithſtanding
the Doctor's pride, he would inſinuate to
the world that he might have the honour
to boaſt of : which is a point I ſhall cond-
der of in it's due place, if it happens to fall
in
my way. But by what ſpirit, either from
above or below, theſe revelations were com-
municated unto him, he is perfectly filent.
And therefore I cannot but infer, at leaſt
until there appear ſome better authority to
vouch the affertions of the critick ; that in-
ſtead of inſulting the aſhes of fo bright a
genius with the infirmities of his latter days,
and comparing him to one of his own
STRULDBRUGS,
we ſhould endeavour to
inflame our ſouls by catching fire, and ſpirit,
and patriotiſin, from his inimitable writ-
ings ; and filently confeſs the ways of God
to be infcrutable, and his judgments paſt
finding out.
I have been told that ſome others, beſide
the grand remarker upon the works of Dr.
SWIFT, have thought proper to cenſure
GULLIVER's voyage to the HOÚYHNHMNS.
But whether indeed their animadverfions
proceeded
Character of Dr. Swift.
219
proceeded from the infirmity of their judg-
ment, or from ſome YAHOO depravity in
their own nature, I ſhall not vouchſafe to
enquire ; as the daily occurrences of this
wretched world prove, illuſtrate, and con-
firm all the ſarcaſms of the Doctor. Shall
we praiſe that excellent moraliſt, the humo-
rous Hogarth, for expoſing midnight re-
vels, debaucheries, and a thouſand other
vices and follies of humankind, in a ſeries
of hieroglyphicks, ſuited to the improve-
ment and the correction of the wild, the
gay, the frolick, and the extravagant ? And
ſhall we condemn a preacher of righteouſ-
neſs
, for expoſing under the character of a
nafty unteachable YAHOO the deformity,
the blackneſs, the filthineſs, and corrup-
tion of thoſe helliſh, abominable vices,
which inflame the wrath of God againſt
the children of diſobedience ; and ſubject
them without repentance, that is, without
a thorough change of life and practice, to
everlaſting perdition ? Ought a preacher of
righteouſneſs ; ought a watchman of the
Chriſtian faith, (who is accountable for his
talents, and obliged to warn the innocent,
as well as terrify the wicked and the
pro-
phane) to hold his peace, like a dumb dog
that cannot bark, when avarice, fraud,
cheating, violence, rapine, extortion, cruel-
ty, oppreſſion, tyranny, rancour, envy, ma-
lice, detraction, hatred, revenge, murder,
whore
220 Eſſay on the Life and
whoredom, adultery, laſciviouſneſs, bribery,
corruption, pimping, lying, perjury, ſuborna-
tion, treachery, ingratitude, gaming, flattery,
drunkenneſs, gluttony, luxury, vanity, ef-
feminacy, cowardice, pride, impudence,
hypocriſy, infidelity, blaſphemy, idolatry,
ſodomy, and innumerable other vices are as
epidemical as the pox, and many of them
the notorious characteriſticks of the bulk of
humankind? I would aſk theſe mighty fof-
teners; theſe kind pretenders to benevo-
lence ; theſe hollow charity-mongers; what
is their real opinion of that OLD SERPENT,
which, like a roaring lion, traverſeth the
globe, ſeeking whom he may devour ? Was
he not created by the ALMIGHTY pure,
faultleſs, intelligent? but is there now through-
out the whole fyftem of created exiſtences,
any Beast, any Yahoo, any TYRANT ſo
vile, ſo baſe, fo corrupted? And whence
originally proceeded the change? was it
not from the abuſe of that freedom, with-
out which no created INTELLIGENCE can
be reputed faithful, wiſe, brave, or virtuous,
in the eyes of his CREATOR ? And ſurely,
if this once great, once glorious ſpirit hath
been reduced for many thouſands of ages,
for aught we know to the contrary, below
all the ſeveral gradations of created beings,
whether intelligent, animal, or inſenſible
and expoſed to the fury of that avenging,
although merciful God, who is the fountain
of
ܕ
Character of Dr. Swift. 221
of all wiſdom, goodneſs, and virtue ; are we
not to conclude by an exact parity of reaſon,
that every moral agent is equally accountable
to God for that degree of intelligence and
per-
fection, which determine the nature of ex-
iſtence? And upon this very principle, which
cannot be denied without running into the
laſt of abſurdities; and which in fact is the
reaſoning of St. PETER throughout his
whole ſecond chapter of his ſecond epiſtle ;
that creature man, that glorious creature
man, is deſervedly more contemptible than
a brute beaſt, when he flies in the face of
his CREATOR by enliſting under the banner
of the enemy; and perverts that reaſon,
which was deſigned to have been the glory
of his nature, even the directing ſpirit of his
life and demeanour, to the vileſt, the moſt
execrable, the moſt helliſh purpoſes. And
this manifeſtly appears to be the ground-
work of the whole ſatyre contained in the
voyage to the HOUYHNHNMS.
But, to ſilence theſe taſteleſs animadverters
upon the works of an uncommon, hetero-
clite genius; I ſhall obſerve, that DR. SWIFT
was not the firſt preacher, whoſe writings
import this kind of philoſophy. And, to
confirm what I have aſſerted, I ſhall pro-
duce ſome unqueſtionable authorities, which
in effect will juſtify all the farcaſms of the
Doctor,
EsDRAS,
222 Eſlay on the Life and
himſelf in prayer unte
ESDRAS, one of the poſterity of AARON
the prieſt, hath the boldneſs to addreſs
words; " Let it not be thy will to deſtroy
" them which have lived like BEASTS; but
« to look upon them that have clearly taught
thy law. Take thou no indignatoin at them
" which are deemed WORSE THAN BEASTS:
“ bụt love them that always put their truſt
“ in thy righteouſneſs and glory.” * And
SOLOMON, reaſoning upon the forbearance
of the God of ISRAEL, doth acknowledge
with regret ; " How the Jews had all gone
aſtray very far in the ways of error, and
“ held them for gods, which even among
“ the Beasts of their enemies (meaning
es the ſeveral idolatrous Nations in the vici-
nity of Judæa) were deſpiſed, being de-
« ceived as children of no underſtanding." +
ISAIAH the prophet, laſhing fatyrically e-
nough the avarice, and the luxury, and the
ſtupidity of the upper claſſes of the Prieſts
and Levites, openly declares ; “ The watch-
men (of Israel) are blind; they are all
" ignorant; they are all dumb Dogs, they
cannot bark ; ſleeping, lying down, loving
to lumber. Yea, they are greedy Dogs
is which can never have enough, and they
are ſhepherds that cannot underſtand;
they all look to their own way, every one
2 ESDRA's viii. 29, 30.
of Wild. of SOL. xii. 24.
« for
ac
co
***
Character of Dr. Swift. 223
** for his gain, from his quarter. Come
ye,
ſay they, I will fetch wine, and we will
“ fill ourſelves with ſtrong drink, and to
morrow ſhall be as this day, and much
more abundant.” *
Neither do we find
the Præcurfor of our Lord and SAVIOUR to
be leſs ſarcaſtick in the manner of his addrefs
even to the poſterity of ABRAHAM ; " Ye
“ generation of Vipers (faith the voice of
one crying in the wilderneſs to the Scribes
" and Phariſees when they came to his bap-
tiſm) who hath warned you to flee from
" the wrath to come?”+ And after the pro-
mulgation of the goſpel, the Apoſtles of our
BLESSED LORD ſpeak with great boldneſs
in the ſame dialect. " Beware of Dogs,
(faith the converted Paul of Tarſus to
« his Chriſtian Profelytes) beware of evil
" workers, beware of the conciſion.” I
And again, talking of the Cretans in his epiſtle
to TITUS;
« One of themſelves, even a pro-
phet of their own (which was EPIME-
Nides the Gnojian poet] faid, the Cre-
tans are always lyars, evil beaſts, Now
« bellies. This witneſs is true : wherefore
“ rebuke them ſharply, &c.” S We are al-
ſo told by the fame Apoſtle in plain terms,
" That he fought with Beasts at Epheſus.”|
St. PETER carries the matter ſtill further;
* Isai, lvi. 10, 11, 12.
I Phil. iii. 2.
1. COR. XV. 32.
+ Matt. iii. 7.
$ Tit, i, 12, 13.
and
224 Eſſay on the Life and
and is by no means leſs ſarcaſtick than Dr.
Swift in the manner of his expreſſion.
This great Apoſtle, fired with indignation at
the avarice, the villainy, and corruption of
thaſe falſe teachers, who privily bring in
damnable hereſies, even denying the LORD
that bought them like many ſcandalous
wretches in our own times, and other blaf-
phemous ſeducers to infidelity and vice ; de-
clares without heſitation ; " That having
“ blaſphemed in matters, whereof they are
totally ignorant, they ſhall, as natural
" BRUTE BEASTS, made to be taken and de-
• Rroyed, utterly periſh in their own corrup-
« tion !” * And again the ſame Apoſtle in
the fame chapter, talking of the wicked and
diſobedient, a ffures us; « That it would have
« been better for them not to have known
way of righteouſneſs, than after they
“ had known it, to have turned away from
" the holy commandment delivered unto
"them. But, it has happened unto them
according to the true proverb, the Dog
« returneth to his own vomit; and the Sow
" that was waſhed, to her 'wallowing in the
" mire." Let us hear alſo what faith the An-
gel, who perſonates the ALPHA and OMEGA,
the BEGINNING and the END, the FIRST
and the LAST. " Bleſſed are they that do
" his [ God's] commandments, that they
may have a right unto the tree of life, and
" the
**
2 Pet. ii. 12,
a
may
Character of Dr. Swift.
225
may enter in through the gates into the
city. But without ſhall be Dogs, and for-
cerers, and whoremongers, and murder-
ers, and whoſoever loveth and maketh a
lye.”
» * But not to accumulate from the
holy ſcriptures any further quotations ; I ſhall
only obſerve, that our SAVIOUR CHRIST
himſelf compareth falſe prophets, and the
bulk of humankind to a parcel of ravening
Wolves; f and beſides, not only calleth
the Scribes and Phariſees a generation of Vi-
PERS; but on account of the depravity of
their nature, gives them the appellation of
SERPENTS, in alluſion to the perverted na-
ture of that once glorious ſpirit, the OLD
DRAGON, whoſe children he expreſly de-
clareth them to be, and not the children of
God. I
BUT, to conclude theſe remarks upon the
voyage to the HOUYHNHNMS ; if the bru-
tality and filthineſs of the Yanoos be repre-
ſented by the ſatyrick genius of Dr. Swift
in colours the moſt nocking and deteſtable ;
as they certainly are, and as in fact they
ought to have been; the picture is the
more ſtriking, as well as the more terrible
and
upon that account, more likely to en-
force the obligation of religion and virtue up,
on the ſouls of men.
* Rev. xxii. 14, 15.
+ MATT. vii. i5. and Matt. x. i6.
1 John viii. 44.
.
Q
CHAP
227
Eſſay on the Life and
C H A P XI.
T!
HE merits of DR. SWIFT in the cha-
racter of a poet are conſiderably great.
His deſcriptions, wherein there conſtantly
appear the diſtinguiſhing marks of his own
peculiar talents, are extreamly juſt and live-
ly; many of his groups are not to be ex-
celled by any painter's imagination ; his
rhymes and his pumbers are chaſte and deli-
cate; and in places, when rather by accident
than choice he riſes from the earth, and ſoars
into the regions of poetry, he is equal to the
fineſt maſters among the Greeks and Romans;
his ideas are lofty, and his verſification muſi-
cally ſonorous. And yet after all, he is not
to be conſidered in the light of a profeſied
poet; the multitude of his writings on va-
rious ſubjects both in verſe and proſe being
an evident demonſtration, that he was ſupe-
riour to any particular courſe of learning.
He was born to be the encourager of virtue,
and the terror of the wicked. He never fate
muſing in his elbow chair upon new ſubjects,
for the exerciſe of his genius, and the ad-
vancement of his fame; but writ occaſionally
to pleaſe and to reform the world, as either
politicks or humour gave the four to his fa-
culties. There are but few of his poems
that ſeem to have been the labour of more
than
Character of Dr. Swift. 227
than one day, how greatly foever they might
have been corrected and poliſhed afterwards
to his own liking, before he tranſcribed them
fair. In the month of October 1710 he
writ a ballad, full of puns, on the Weſtmin-
fler election, that coſt him half an hour,
which had a great run, although he tells
Mrs. JOHNSON in one of his letters, it was
good for nothing. In December 1711 he
writ TOLAND's invitation to DISMAL to dine
with the Calves Head Club, occaſioned by
his friend the Lord Treaſurer OXFORD's
hinting to him one evening, that he wiſhed
a ballad was made on the E. of *** The nottingham
am
ballad, which according to Swift's obſerva-
tion is two degrees above Grubſtreet, was
written and ſent to the preſs the next morn-
ing; and when it was brought by the printer
to that famous and grand fociety, whereof
Swift was a member *, and read by one of
company, it made them all laugh a dozen
times + As this ballad has abundance of
wit and humour, ſtrangely adapted to the
proceedings and outrage of the Whigs at
that particular juncture, and is not to be
found in any collection of Swift's works
that I know of, I ſhall gratify the men of
the
* The members of this fociety were about fixteen of the
greateſt men in England. They dined once a week at each
other's houſes, or åt taverns, if more convenient, by ro-
+ This we are told in a letter from SWIFT 1. Mrs.
tation.
] JOHNSON.
Q 2
taſte
228 Ellay on the Life and
taſte and ſpirit, who are all of them ad-
mirers of the Doctor, with this rapid per-
formance.
T-1-ND's Invitation to DISMAL, to dine
with the Calves Head Club.
Imitated from Horace, Epiſt. 5. Lib. i.
If, deareſt Diſmal, you for once can dine
Upon a ſingle diſh, and tavern wine,
Tland to you this invitation ſends
To eat the Calves-HEAD with your truſty
friends :
Suſpend a while your vain ambitious hopes,
Leave hunting after bribes, forget your
tropes.
To morrow we our myſtick feaſt prepare,
Where thou, our lateſt profelyte, Thalt ſhare:
When we, by proper ſigns and ſymbols tell,
How, by brave bands, the royal TRAYTOR
fell,
The meat ſhall repreſent the Tyrant's head,
The wine, his blood, our predeceſſors ſhed,
Whilſt
Si potes archaicis conviva recumbere lectis,
Nec modicâ cænare times olus omne patella ;
Supremo te ſole domi, Torquate, manebo.
Mitte leves ſpes, & certamina divitiarum,
Et Moſchi cauſam. Cras nato Cæſare feftus
Dac
Character of Dr. Swift.
229
Whilſt an alluding hymn ſome artiſt fings,
We toaſt confuſion to the race of kings:
At monarchy we nobly ſhew our ſpight,
And talk what fools call treaſon all the night.
Who, by diſgraces or ill fortune ſunk,
Feels not his ſoul enliven'd when he's drunk?
Wine can clear up Gadelph-ton's cloudy
face,
And fill Jäck Sm+th with hopes to keep
his place;
By force of wine ev’n Schrberough is brave,
Hal
grows more pert, and S.-nm-ers not ſó
grave :
Wine can give Pert--d wit, and Clevelina
ſenſe,
Mo-tague learning, Balton eloquence :
Ch-2, when drunk can never loſe his wand,
And Lt-ncoln then imagines he has land.
My province is, to ſee that all be right,
Glalies and linen clean, and pewter bright;
From our myſterious club to keep out ſpies,
And Tories (dreſs'd like waiters) in diſguiſe.
You
can
Q3
Dat veniam fomnumque dies : impunè licebit
Eftivam fermone benigno tendere noctem.
Quid non ebrietas defignat? Operta recludit;
Spes jubet effe ratas ; in prelia trudit inermem :
Sollicitis animis onus eximit; addocet artes.
Fæcundi calices quem non fecere diſertum ?
Contracta quem non in paupertate ſolutum?
Hæc ego procurare & idoneus imperor, & non
Invitus ; ne turpe toral, ne ſordida mappa
Corruget nares, ne non & cantharus, & lanx,
Oftea
vzory hugle- tertind 3 homes in
Khi ballad.
.230
Eſſay on the Life and
You ſhall be coupled as you beſt approve,
Seated at table next the men you love
Sundha, Urford, Beyle, and Rich-d's grace
Will come ; and Hampiten ſhall have Walpole's *
place.
Wharton, unleſs prevented by a whore
Will hardly fail, and there is room for more ;
But I love elbow-room whene'er I drink,
And honeſt Harry is too apt to ſt--k.
Let no pretence of bus'neſs make you ſtay,
Yet take one word of counſel by the way.
if(Guernſey call, ſend word you're gone
abroad,
He'll teaze you with king Charles and biſhop
Or make you faſt, and carry you to pray’rs ;
But if he will break in, and walk up ſtairs,
Steal by the back-door out, and leave him
there;
Then order Squaſh to call a hackney chair.
Laud,
Jan. 29.
There indiſputably runs a vein of ſatyre
throughout all the writings of Dr. SWIFT;
Oftendat tibi te ; ne fidos inter amicos
Sit, qui dicta foras eliminet : ut coeat par,
Jungaturque pari. Brutum tibi, Septimiumque,
Et, niſi cæna prior, potiorque puella Sabinum
Detinet, affumam ; locus eft & pluribus umbris :
Sed nimis arcta premunt olidæ convivia capræ.
Tu, quotus effe velis, reſcribe ; &, rebus omiffis,
Atria fervantem poftico falle clientem.,
but,
* Bes csrfund in the lower
ad Atirghams Biker.
Character of Dr. Swift.
231
but, as he declares that no age could have
more deſerved it, than that particular age
wherein he was deſtined to live ; he is en.
titled to all the praiſe we can beſtow upon
him, for exerting his whole abilities in the
defence of honour, virtue, and his country.
In his general fatyre, where perhaps thou-
ſands were equally meant, he hath never
once through malice inſerted the name of any
one perſon; the vice nevertheleſs he ex-
poſeth to contempt and ridicule. But, in
par-
ticular ſatyre, when egregious monſters, tray-
tors to the weal publick, and llaves to party,
are the objects of his reſentment, he laſhes
without mercy; well knowing that infamy,
which is perhaps a taſte of hell, is the only
puniſhment, which in this world can be in.
flicted upon ſuch rebels to ſociety, as either
by craft or corruption bid defiance to the
laws.
Perhaps it may be expected, that in a
work of this kind we ſhould run into a mi-
nute detail of his poetry, and ſingle out many
of the fineſt ſtrokes of his uncommon, hete-
roclite genius. But, ſince every man of taſte
and learning has abilities in himſelf to be his
own critick, and to admire the real beauties
of an author, as well as to accompany his
flights into the moſt diſtant regions of poetry,
without guide or monitor ; we ſhall be very
ſparing in references and quotations of that
lort. It may not, however, be amiſs to ob.
ſerve
Q4
232 Eſſay on the Life and
ſerve in general, before we proceed to any
critical remarks, that Swift's poetical writ-
ings, which in their preſent ſituation are on-
ly a beautiful heap of confuſion, rather di-
Atracting the eye, and flathing upon the
imagination, than conducting our fancies in-
to poetick ſcenes; and commanding our ap.
probation, while they improve our faculties;
might eaſily be reduced into a number of
claſſes under their proper heads, and thoſe
which are too miſcellaneous for any particu-
lar ſeries might follow the reſt to poſterity
in a courſe by themſelves ; in which order, for
the ſake of the Doctor's reputation, I would
earneſtly recommend them to be publiſhed
by all future editors. Neither would the
arrangement of his works in proſe and verſe
(for indeed they are both very ſtrangely con-
fuſed through his own careleſsneſs). be any
difficult taſk to a man of common abilities
with any degree of attention.
One of the moſt diſtinguiſhing characte-
riſticks of Dr. Swift was a bright and clear
genius, fo extreamly piercing, that every the
moſt ſtriking circumſtance, ariſing from any
ſubject whatever, quickly occurred to liis
imagination ; and theſe he frequently ſo
accumulated one upon another, that perhaps
beyond all other poets, of all ages and coun-
tries, he deſerves in this particular to be the
inoſt univerſally admired. And this choice
of circumſtances; if any ſtreſs can be laid on
the
Character of Dr. Swift.
233
er ;
the opinion of LONGINUS,
that
great
director
of our taſte and judgment, renders a com-
poſition truly noble and ſublime *. The
moſt remarkable pieces of this fort, are, The
Furniture of a Woman's Mind; Betty the
Grizette; The Journal of a Modern Lady;
His Poem on reading Dr. Young's Satyres;
MORDANTO ; The Deſcription of a City Show-
The Deſcription of Quilca ; The Deſcrip-
tion of the Morning ; and, The Place of the
Damned. This power of the mind gave
him alſo that deſperate hand, as Pope terms
it, in taking off all forts of characters. To
omit for the preſent thoſe of a political na-
ture ; vid. The Progreſs of Poetry; The Se-
cond Part of TrauLUS ; The Progreſs of
Love; The Character of CorinNA; and,
The Beautiful young Nymph juſt going to
Bed; where you will find that his imagina-
tion could even dream in the character of an
old battered ſtrumpet. And, from the ſame
inexhauſtible fund of wit, he acquired the
hiſtorick arts both of deſigning and colouring,
either in groups, or in ſingle portraits. How
exact, how lively, and ſpirited, is that group
of figures in The Journal of a Modern Lady?
But let me now a while ſurvey
Our madam o'er her ev'ning tea ;
Surrounded with her noiſy clans
Of prudes, coquets, and harridans ;
* Vid. Longix. fect. 10,
And
234 Eſſay on the Life and
;
When frighted at the clam'rous crew,
Away the God of filence flew,
And fair DISCRETION left the place,
And MODESTY with bluſhing face :
Now enters over-weening Pride,
And SCANDAL, ever gaping wide;
HYPOCRISY with frown ſevere,
SCURRILITY with gibing air
Rude LAUGHTER ſeeming like to burſt;
And MALICE always judging worſt ;
And VANITY with pocket-glaſs;
And IMPUDENCE with front of braſs ;
And ſtudy'd AFFECTATION came,
Each limb and feature out of frame:
While IGNORANCE, with brain of lead,
Flew hov’ring o'er each female head.
And for a ſingle portrait, if we conſider
the deſign, the attitude, the drapery, or the
colouring, what is it that can excel the re-
prefentation of CASSINUS in The Tragical
Elegy
He ſeem'd as juſt crept out of bed;
One greaſy ſtocking round his head;
The other he ſat down to darn
With threads of diff'rent colour'd yarn.
His breeches torn, expoſing wide
A ragged ſhirt, and tawny hyde.
Scorch't were his ſhins, his legs were bare,
But, well embrown'd with dirt and hair.
A rug was o'er his ſhoulders thrown;
A rug; for night-gown he had none.
His
2
Character of Dr. Swift.
235
His j-d-n ſtood in manner fitting
Between his legs, to ſpew or ſpit in.
His antient pipe in fable dy'd,
And half unſmoak't, lay by his ſide.
Him, thus accoutrd Peter found,
With eyes in ſmoak, and weeping drown'd;
The leavings of his laſt night pot
On embers plac't, to drink it hot.
THROUGHOUT all his poetical writings,
although many of them be dedicated imme-
diately to the fair ſex, there cannot be found,
to the beſt of my recollection, one ſingle
diſtich, addreſſed in the character of a lover
to any one perſon. If he writ any poems of
that fort in his younger days, they muſt have
been deſtroyed, if they be not concealed.
Thoſe verſes upon women, which are deemed
the moſt fatyrical, were written principally
with a view to correct their foibles, to improve
their taſte, and to make them as agreeable
companions at threeſcore, as at the age of five
and twenty: and, by what I can hear, the
moſt exceptionable of his poems in that way
have produced ſome very extraordinary effects
in the polite world; which was in truth the
ultimate deſign of his writing The Lady's
Dreſſing Room, and other pieces, which are
acknowledged to be ſomewhat liable to cen-
ſure on account of their indelicacy.
AMONG the admirers of Dr.Swift many
have compared him to HORACE, making pro-
per
:
236 Eſſay on the Life and
The re-
per allowances for the reſpective ages in
which they ſeverally flouriſhed.
ſemblance however between them is not ſo
exceedingly ſtrong, as that a ſimilitude and
manner of writing could have excited the
leaft degree of emulation between them, fur-
ther than to be equally renowned for their
peculiar excellencies. Each of them had,
independent of what is generally called a fine
taſte, a thorough knowledge of the world,
fuperadded to an abundance of learning.
Both the one and the other of theſe
great
men held the numerous tribe of poets *, as
well as that motley generation of men called
criticks, in the utmoſt contempt ; op and at
the ſame time have manifeſted themſelves to
be incomparable judges of all that is truly
excellent, whether in books or men. Nei-
ther of them had the leaſt regard for the
STOICKS: and whatever may be ſaid of their
being of the EPICUREAN taſte, which, if
rightly underſtood, is far from being incon-
ſiſtent with the higheſt virtue; neither of
them was attached to any particular ſyſtem
of philoſophy. HOMER was the darling
* Vid. Swift's progreſs of poetry ; his rhapſody ; and
other pieces.
+ Till criticks blame, and judges praiſe,
The poet cannot claim his bays.
On me, when dunces are ſatyrick,
I take it for a panegyrick;
Hated by fools, and fools to hate,
Be that my #9610, and my fate.
SHIFT.
author
Character of Dr. Swift.
237
author both of HORACE and Swift. Ho-
RACE declares in his epiſtle to LoLlius, that
HOMER had abundantly more good ſenſe and
wiſdom than all the philoſophers; and Swift's
opinion was, that Homer had more genius
than all the reſt of the world put together *.
Yet neither the one nor the other of them
have attempted to imitate his manner ; but,
like heroes of a bold and true ſpirit, have in-
duſtriouſly followed the bent of nature, and
ſtruck out originals of their own t. But,
however ſtrong may be ſuppoſed the reſem-
blance between HORACE and Swift, they
were in fact upon the whole quite different
men. Their tempers, their complexions,
and their fortunes were totally unlike. Each
--Hor. l. 1. ep. 19.
* Theſe were Swrer's own words in a converſation
with the author about three or four and twenty years ago,
upon the merits of HOMER.
+ O imitatores, ſervum pecus, ut mihi fæpe
Bilem, fæpe jocum, veltri movere tumultus!
Libera per vacuum poſui veſtigia princeps ;
Non aliena meo prelli pede. Qui fibi fidit
Dux, regit examen. Parios ego primus iambos
Oltendi lacio.
Agreeable to the fame ſpirit Swift has choſen tor his
motto to the Tale of a Tub theſe words of LUCRETIUS ;
----Juvatque novos decerpere flores,
Infignemque meo capiti petere inde coronam,
Unde priùs nulli velârint tempora muſa.
And again more expreſsly in another place ;
ARBUTHNOT is no more my friend,
Who dares to irony pretend ;
Which I was born to introduce,
Refind it firſt, and laei'd it's uſe.
of
Lib. 1.
:
238 Eſſay on the Life and
(
of them had in many reſpects greatly the ad-
vantage of the other.
,
BUT, to confine theſe remarks within the
limits of their excurſions in the poetick fields.
Poetry was in HORACE the buſineſs of his
life; every deſire; every comfort ; and eve-
ry paſſion of his mind, were centered in
the Muses : he followed the example of
the Greek poets, præter laudem nullius avaris*.
Poetry in Swift was only an appendage to
his character : he wore it as an emblem of
wit and ſpirit, which gave him an air of
grandeur in the republick of letters. Ho-
RACE by diverting his thoughts from all ſub-
lunary affairs, and perpetually ranging about
from flower to flower, among the gardens,
and groves, and wilderneſſes of the Greeks,
with infinite labour extracted, like an in-
duſtrious bee, the quinteſſence of their
ſweets t; and by frequently experimenting
all the changes of harmony, is defervedly
the joy and admiration of the poetical world
for the muſick of his lines, and the variety
of his numbers. His addreſſes to the EM-
PEROR ; to AGRIPPA ; to POLLIO; and his
panegyrick on Drusus; are prodigiouſly
* Art. poet. v. 324.
-Ego apis Matinæ
More modoque
Grata carpentis thy ma per laborem
Plurimum, circa nemus uvidique
Tiburis ripas, operofa parvus,
Carmina fingo, Lib. 4. Od. 2.
ſublime.
Character of Dr. Swift. 239
fublime. But his hymns to the Muses; to
MERCURY; to PAN; to APOLLO and DIA-
NA; to VENUS; to his LYRE; and to BAC-
CHUS; are abſolutely raptures of poetry, e-
ven the divine ſpirit of that amabilis Inſa-
nia *, that delightful madneſs, which is only
to be felt, impoſſible to be deſcribed. His
verſes nevertheleſs are but few in number,
the whole of his works at a random compu-
tation amounting only to about ſeven thou-
ſand lines, whereof not above one half are of
that ſpecies of poetry, on which he deſired
to fix all his pretenſions to fame. And it
was upon theſe only that he beſtowed the
greater part of his life. Swift, on the
contrary, from the age of one and twenty
was deeply immerſed in politicks during his
whole life ; fometimes fighting the battles
of church and ftate againſt a virulent, op-
poſing faction, which threatened to under-
mine the conſtitution; ſometiines reſiſting
the torrent of eccleſiaſtical, and frequently
the torrent of miniſterial power; whenever
the rights of the CLERGY, or the liberties of
his COUNTRY, were occaſionally invaded.;
and generally fighting with beaſts of one ſpe-
cies or other, like a fierce and bold cham-
pion, reſolutely bent on either death or vic-
tory: yet ſtill he could find opportunities, by
fnatching hours of leiſure, to write poetry
for his amuſement. He had read many of
* Lib. 3. Od. 4.
the
5
240 Effay on the Life and
j
the Greek and Latin poets ; reliſhed and ad.
mired what was agreeable to his own taſte
but never devoted either his thoughts or his
time to APOLLO and the Muses. Through-
out his whole works there is no ſuch thing
as an ode to CALLIOPE ; to MERCURY; to
VENUS; to APOLLO and DIANA; to his
LYRE'; to Bacchus; or to Pan: Nothing,
which was ever intended as a rapture of poe-
try.. Is it not then ſomewhat very amazing,
if we conſider him in this fair and true light,
that he ſhould produce, by the meer force
of taſte and abilities, without any laboured
correction at all, ſuch wonders in the poetick
ſtrain, as to make any, the moſt partial of
his admirers, not only prefer him to all the
poets of theſe latter centuries, but compare
him to that immortal genius of the Au-
GUSTAN age, whoſe whole delight, ſpecula-
tion, and amuſement, whether in bed or in
the fields *, was in meditating, writing, po-
liſhing, or correcting his verſes?
HOWEVER, it is impoſſible to remark on
the poetical writings of Dr. Swift without
being ſomewhat particular on that piece, en-
titled CADENUS and VANESSA ; a poem,
which is built on the fineſt model ; ſupport-
Neque enim, cum le&tulis, aut me
Porticus excepit, defum mihi: *
hæc ego mecum
Comprelis agito labris : ubi quid datur otî,
Hlodo chartis.
Lib. 1. Sat. 4.
ed
Character of Dr. Swift:
241
ed with infinite humour, wit, and gaiety ;
embelliſhed with ideas the moſt lovely and
delicate ; beautifully adorned with variety
of the moſt attractive images; and conducted
throughout the whole with ſuch perfect re-
gularity, that beyond all other pieces, whe-
ther of Dr. Swift, or any Poet that ever
writ in Engliſh, it appears calculated to abide
the fevereſt examination of criticks.
In the apparatus of this poem we find,
that Venus the Goddeſs of love and beau-
ty, having cauſe to be afraid, upon hear-
ing the merits of a trial between the
NYMPHS and SHEPHERDS, that her fove-
reignty might be called in queſtion on ac-
count of that wretched corrupted taſte, which
prevails among the youth of both ſexes ; re-
folves on a political expedient to maintain
the dignity of her throne, and to reduce her
rebellious ſubjects unto their loyalty, their
chains, and their obedience.
Now this debate, which was ſpun out for
ſixteen years between the Nymphs and
SHEPHERDS, is ſuppoſed to have commenced
only ſome few days before the birth of VA-
NESSA. But, to avoid tranſcribing whole
pages after pages from the poem itſelf, to
which I refer the curious ; the Cyprian
Queen having: in order to try an experiment,
ſelected VANESSA upon the day of her birth
from all the reſt of the little female world,
adorns her with every grace and beauty that
R
is
242 Eſſay on the Life and
is ſuppoſed to attract the admiration of the
fhepherds. And, to compleat her deſign,
the prevails on the Goddeſs of Learning (al-
though by a ſtratagem) to pour down all her
gifts into the boſom of this delightful girl.
But, to the world's perpetual ſhame,
The Queen of Beauty loſt her aim.
Too late with grief ſhe underſtood,
Pallas had done more harm than good :
For great examples are but vain,
Where ignorance begets diſdain.
Both ſexes, arm’d with guilt and ſpite,
Againſt VANESSA's pow'r unite ;
To copy her few nymphs aſpir'd ;
Her virtues fewer ſwains admir'd:
So, ſtars beyond a certain height
Give mortals neither heat nor light.
Here let us ſtop for a few minutes, and
take an impartial view of this enchanting
fair. With regard to the beauty, the ele-
gance, the graces, and the ſweetneſs of her
perſon, ſhe is beyond all contradiction, to
uſe an expreſſion of PARNEL,
All bright as an Angel new-dropt from
the ſkies.
And with regard to the accompliſhments
of the mind; her ſoul is endued with
knowledge, judgment, wit, decency, mo-
deſty, truth, juſtice, fortitude, honour,
politeneſs, generoſity, wiſdom, and every
other virtue, which can poſſibly enter into
the compoſition of the moſt illuftrious cha-
racter.
Character of Dr. Swift.
243
racter. She had a foul worthy to be the in-
habitant of ſo beautiful, fo angelick a man-
ſion. However, to ſpeak as a critick, (al-
though I ſhall never deſire to be ranked a-
mong that fraternity) it matters not, whether
Vanessa be a real or a fictitious charac-
ter. If indeed the character be drawn from
real life, we muſt infiſt upon it, that VA-
NESSA behaved herſelf throughout all the
habitudes and viciffitudes of life with un-
blemiſhed honour ; as in truth her charac-
ter would not otherwiſe have been even poeti-
cally juít; and conſequently the poem, in-
ſtead of being univerſally admired for its ſu-
perior excellencies, would (to ſpeak in the
ſtile of criticks) have been damned on its firſt
appearance for its inaccuracies and inconſif-
tencies. On the other hand, if the character
be fictitious, the whole is a fable ; and con-
ſequently there never exiſted any ſuch per-
fon as the charming Vanessa. It is certain,
however, that among the poets we frequently
meet with characters, eſpecially when compli-
ments are addreſſed to ſome particular favou-
rites in the Grand Monde, which are partly real,
and partly fictitious. What I mean by real
is, when ſome perſón, really and truly exiſt-
ing, is generally underſtood to be the object
of the poet's complaiſance ; and what I mean
by fictitious is, when the poet, without any
regard to truth, elegantly diſplays the fine-
neſs and delicacy of his own tafte, in all the
carefies
R 2
PI
244
Effay on the Life and
careſſes of gallantry, politeneſs, courtſhip, aırd
addreſs, unto this real not imaginary Lady.
For example ; were a poet to inſert the
name of ſome little, nut-brown, trilling
girl, under the portrait of all that is beau-
tiful, accompliſhed, and adorable in the
faireſt of the creation ; his compliment
would nevertheleſs be extremely polite ; no
matter for the reſemblance : pictures we all
know are deſigned for pofterity; and poſteri-
ty cares not, whether in fact the picture was
drawn from the life, or was only imagina-
ry. They fee; they are pleaſed; they en-
quire no further. The moſt remarkable in-
ſtance of this kind that we know of among
all the poets, whether antient or modern, is
that of PRIOR'S CHLOE, who was a chear-
ful, gay, facetious, old woman, that uſed to
laugh with a profuſion of good-humour, un-
til ſhe was almoſt ready to dye, at the con-
ceit of her being a poet's flame. And Prior,
we may be ſure, was equally delighted with
the excellence of her underſtanding. VA-
NESSA was perhaps another remarkable in-
Itance of this kind : for, as the poet has ex-
preſsiy declared, that “ber name on earth Mall
not be told,” we are by no means at liberty
to form any conjectures about her. It is af-
firmed however, that VANESSA was in love
with CADENUS; and declared her paſſion
to him after a ſtrange manner. That VA-
NESSA might have liked Cadenus, at least
the
Character of Dr. Swift.
245
***
;
the poetical VANESSA, we cannot make any
fort of doubt, becauſe we are expreſsly told
fo. The manner in which ſhe declared her
paſſion to him, is only to be collected from
the poem itſelf, wherein we find, that after
an apology founded on maxims truly philofo-
phical, ſhe reveals her ſentiments in the fol-
lowing terms;
I knew by what you ſaid and writ,
How dang’rous things were men of wit
You caution'd me againſt their charms,
But never gave me equal arms:
Your leſſons found the weakeſt part,
Aim'd at the head, and reach'd the heart.
The Remainder of the converſation between
CADENUS and VANESSA, for half a dozen
pages together, is evidently nothing more
than a flight of imagination, wholly deſigned
for the entertainment of thoſe who have a
reliſh for compoſition and a taſte for poetry.
But, fuppofing it was ſome real VANESSA
that liked CADENUS ; or, in plain terms,
ſuppoſing that Miss VANHOMRIGH had
a paſſion for Dr. Swift: Is there any
crime in love ? Far from it: the voice
of God; and the voice of NATURE,
ſpeak the direct contrary. The worſt that
can be ſaid of it is, that VANESSA, who
had really and truly been educated under the
inſpection of CADENUS (a man beyond all
others upon earth, whoſe delight was to give
inſtruction
R 3
However, in juſtice to the honour and
246 Eflay on the Life and
inſtruction to young people, and eſpecially to
young women) had not ſufficiently confider-
ed, that in love we are all ſportſmen, careleſs
of joys that are within our reach, and perpe-
tually driving after the flying game. Never-
theleſs, to maintain the dignity of her ſex,
and to apologize for this little failure in point
of diſcretion (that cool ſober quality, not
virtue of the mind; which frequently, or ra-
ther notoriouſly preſides in that breaſt, where
every humane, generous, and ſpirited affec-
tion of the ſoul are wanting) The availeth her-
ſelf of the Doctor's own maxims, before
The adventures to impart the moſt tender
of her ſentiments to an old experienced man,
whoſe heart, like a rock of adamant, was in
capable of impreſſions.
She well remember'd to her coſt,
That all his leſſons were not loſt.
Two maxims ſhe could ſtill produce,
And fad experience taught their uſe;
That virtue pleas’d by being ſhewn,
Knows nothing which it dare not own;
Can make us without fear diſcloſe
Our inmoft fecrets to our foes:
That common forms were not deſign'd
Directors to a noble mind.
Now, ſaid the nymph, &c.
reputation of VANÉSSA, we are obliged to
remark, that CADENUS from his earlieſt
youth
Character of Dr. Swift. 247
1
youth had been always a courtier of the wo-
men, as far as words, and terms, and polite-
neſs, and gallantry without profeffing any
degree of ſincerity, conſtancy, and love,
can recommend a cavalier to their ſervice.
And this we are told in the following
lines ;
CADENUS, common forms apart,
In ev'ry ſcene had kept his heart.
Had ſigh’dand languiſh’d, vow'd and writ,
For paſtime, or to thew his wit.
But, ſure it is, that courtſhip and addreſs,
without any proteſtations of fidelity and love,
may be carried ſomewhat too far; as the
deportment of CADENUS to the beautiful and
accompliſh'd VANESSA, in this poetical re-
preſentation of gallantry, ſufficiently demon-
ſtrates. Is it therefore any matter of aſto-
niſhment, that VANESSA (before whom CA-
DENUS might have ſighed and languiſhed,
and to whom at particular times he might
have both vowed and written) ſhould have
been enccuraged to hope, as ſhe liked his
perſon, and was enamoured of his writings,
that ſhe might have carried off fo glorious a
prize from all the reſt of her cotemporaries?
Allowing this to have been the caſe, which is
perhaps agreeable to truth, as well as to com-
mon report, VANESSA's declaration to her
admired CADENUS, may without violence be
interpreted into a gentle demand of thoſe
tender
RA
248 Eſſay on the Life and
tender affections, which, from the current
of his behaviour towards her, ſhe had a right
to expect.
However, it is ſaid by the author of the
remarks, “ that the fair VANESSA made a
" ſurprizing progreſs in the philoſophical
doctrines, which ſhe had received from
“ her preceptor. His rules were certainly of
“ a moſt extraordinary kind. He taught her
" that vice, as ſoon as it defied ſhame, was
" immediately changed into virtue.” If CA-
DENUS ever infilled that maxim into the
foul of VANESSA, we muſt, I am afraid,
give him intirely up to cenſure, as an agent
for the prince of darkneſs: and, if CADE-
NUS himſelf were of that opinion, he muſt
neceſſarily have admired Chartres, who
daily committed crimes worthy of the gib-
bet *, for being the moſt virtuous of all hu-
man race, meerly on account of his innu-
merable vices, which by the power of a
inatchleſs impudence were immediately chang-
ed into virtues. But, without any racking,
or tranſmutation of words, Swift's maxim
Was;
That virtue pleas’d by being ſhown,
Knows nothing which it does not own;
Can make us without fear diſcloſe
Our inmoft fecrets to our foes,
* Vid. Arbuth. Wilt on CHARTRES,
Epilash
a ma-
Character of Dr. Swift.
249
a maxim which every man of honour would
inftil into the hearts of his children ; and
which Swift himſelf hath occaſionally ex-
preſſed in other terms highly advantageous,
on ſeeing verſes written upon windows in inns
The fage, who ſaid he ſhould be proud
Of windows in his breaſt;
Becauſe he ne'er one thought allow'd
That might not be confeſt :
His window ſcrawld by ev'ry rake,
His breaſt again would cover,
And fairly bid the Dl take
The di'mond and the lover.
And ſuch were the noble ſentiments of that
old Roman, I forget his name, whoſe reply
to an architect could have proceeded only
from the mouth of an hero. The architect
made him an offer, upon his giving him ſo
much money, to contrive a houſe for him in
ſuch a manner, as that none from abroad
ſhould poſſibly look into it. I will give you
double the fum, replied the hero, if you will
contriye a houſe for me in ſuch a manner,
as that every one that pleaſes may look into
every corner of it.
As to the ſecond rule of CADENUS," that
vulgar forms (the critick Mould rather have
ſaid, according to his own explication in the
Jubſequent page, that the rules of honour and
virtue] were not binding upon certain
* choice ſpirits (among the female ſex] to
« whom
250 Eſſay on the Life and
.
“ whom either the writings, or the perſons
“ of men of wit were acceptable.” What a
glorious ſentiment for an old DOCTOR OF
DIVINITY to impart unto a fine lady! how-
ever indeed, I cannot but think my ſelf re-
ſtrained by the rules of decency from enlarg-
ing upon ſuch topicks; not that I preſume
any commentaries of mine, ſuppoſing that
DR. Świft had been a man of intrigue,
could have been ſo exceedingly entertaining
to the publick, as to make them“ wiſh that
“ CADENUS had as many wives and miſ-
“ treſſes as SOLOMON, in order to fur-
" nith me with perpetual materials for the
“hiſtory of a lady.” But, this maxim of
the Doctor's, like the foregoing, is ſo
clear and plain, that it can no more be
tortured into an encouragement to vice, than
the ſecond commandment into an encourage-
ment to idolatry. His maxim was,
That common forms were not deſign'd
Directors to a noble mind.
but, where do we find in theſe lines one fyl-
lable relating either to vice or virtue ? Are
COMMON FORMS either vices or virtues ?
whoever can imagine them to be either the
one or the other, muſt have a certain vacuity
in his brain for the reception of the moſt
groſs and palpable abſurdities. However,
DR. SWIFT, when he writ to the earl of
Oxford in the Tower ſome time before his-
trial, had a ſentiment not very unlike unto
the above maxim;
Virtue,
Character of Dr. Swift.
251
Virtue, to crown her fav’rites, loves to try
Some new unbeaten paſſage to the ſky;
Where Jove a ſeat among the Gods will
give
To thoſe, who die for meriting to live.
AND, immediately afterwards the critick
ſubjoins ; “ ſo unaccountable a conduct in
“ Cadenus" (meaning, that he would not com-
prehend the overtures of VANESSA] “ may
“ be thought rather to proceed from defects
“ in nature, than from the ſcrupulous difficul-
" ties of a tender conſcience.” Nothing ſure-
ly can equal the fagacity of this remark, but
the plealantry which accompanies it? The
poetical VANESSA, a woman of fortune *
dropt an idea, whereby ſhe ſignified to her
admired CADENUS, whoſe revenue was at that
time very ſlender and precarious I, that if
he would pleaſe to make his addreffes to her,
they would not be unacceptable. And ſo the
Doctor is blamed for not endeavouring to
ſeduce a woman of honour, who had given
him fo fair an advantage, to the meaneſt,
and the moſt infamous of all other compli-
* Five thouſand guineas in her purſe;
The Doc'ror might have fancied worſe,
I The poem of CADenus and VANESSA was written in
the
year 1712, about a year before Dr. Swift was made
Dean of St. PATRICK'S; but the ſcene of it was in the
1711.
VANESSA, not in years a ſcore,
Dreams on a gown of forty four.
ances.
year
252 Eſſay on the Life and
ances. For, that a man of wit, and a Doc-
Tor of divinity, ſhould have had any ſcru-
pulous difficulties ariſing from a tender conſci-
ence about affairs of that kind, is too ridicu-
lous and abſurd to be conceived; and there-
fore his oppoſition to the allurements of ſo
bright a flame could only have proceeded
from the exceſive coldneſs of his nature. But,
left his reputation for gallantry ſhould have
fuffered among rakes, profligates, and cox-
coinbs; it is ſuppoſed that he has thrown out
an inſinuation againſt VANESSA, not ſo
“ much perhaps intended to wound her re-
" putation, as to ſave his own.
But what ſucceſs VANESSA met,
Is to the world a ſecret yet:
Whether the nymph to pleaſe her ſwain,
Talks in a high romantick ſtrain;
Or whether he at laſt deſcends
To act with leſs ſeraphick ends ;
Or, to compound the bus'neſs, whether
They temper love and books together ;
Muſt never to mankind be told,
Nor ſhall the conſcious muſe unfold.
* It is impoſſible (ſays the critick) to read
" this cruel hint without great indignation
againſt the conſcious muſe.” But, is there
no allowance to be made for the rants and
vagaries of an heteroclite genius? Or, would
any poet, who had the leaſt ſpark of honour,
luppoſing he had been ſo unfortunate as to
have
:
253
Character of Dr. Swift.
i
have had amours with a lady, have told the
ſtory, or given the leaſt intimation of it? Is
one part of a poem “to be thought fine
painting, but, in general fictitious," and an-
other part of the fame to be interpreted, by
the racking and torturing of a conjecture, in-
to the moſt folid, proſaïck, and impure of all
imaginable ideas? However, do not, in fact,
all profeſſed admirers of particular women
temper love and other amufements together
in the days of courtſhip? If then CADENUS
and VANESSA be conjectured to have temper-
ed love and books together; why ſhould
they be ſuppoſed to have tranſgreſſed the
rules of honour beyond the reſt of the world?
But, allowing it were juſt that our indig-
nation ſhould riſe againſt the conſcious miile
(as indeed, to confeſs a truth which I have
been told very lately, Miss VANHOMRIGII
herſelf was extreamly angry with the Doc-
TOR on account of theſe lines) the higher
ſurely that our indignation ſhould be inflam-
ed againſt her, the more ought VANESSA to
be cleared and juſtified. And yet, the ſame
individual author, who faith it is impoſible
to read this cruel bint without great indigna-
tion againſt the CONSCIOUS Muse, inſtead of
engaging himſelf generouſly in the defence
of a lady's honour, hath exerted his whole
abilities to make her compleatly infamous.
And, with this intention, that nothing might
be omitted within the ſphere of his criticiſm,
he
254 Eſſay on the Life and
he hath by no means forgotten to ſcatter a-
bout ſome diſdainful reflexions, pro ſolitá bu-
manitate fua, to the prejudice and degrada-
tion of her parents: and having thus almoſt
cleared the way for aſſaulting the reputation
of a lady, he makes VANESSA and her filter
MARY, upon the deceaſe of their mother,
whoſe only fault was being ſomewhat too
profuſe in keeping up a correſpondence
with the beſt company in England, haſten
“ back in all ſecrefy to Ireland, beginning
“ their journey on a Sunday, to avoid the in-
terruption, and importunities of a certain
" fierce kind of animals called bailiffs, who
are not only ſworn foes to wit and gaiety,
" but whoſe tyranny, although it could not
« have reached the deified Vanessa, might
“ have been very fatal to Esther VANHOM-
RIGH.” What a CICERONIAN amplificati-
on is here! How delightfully one expreſſion
corroborating another, ſtrikes an impreſſion
upon the mind; ſwells upon the imagina-
tion ; and in ſpight of our compaſſion to
thoſe who are in peril of a jayl, takes pof-
ſeſſion of our memories with a îneer at the
unfortunate!
The critick, having now removed all ob-
ſtructions, vigoroully affails the character of
VANESSA. He makes her vanity like a train
of artillery, “batter down all reſtraints of
modeſty, and carry away every feed of vir-
tue;" he declares that the was " happy in
ii tlie
60
Character of Dr. Swift.
255
" the thoughts of being reputed Swift's con-
“ cubine :” he makes her philoſophize in
the character of MESSALINA; Nature, ſaid
« VANESSA, abhors a vacuum, and nature
ought always to be obeyed;" and after
wards communicate theſe ſentiments to her
tutor. But, CADENUS, “not ſeeming to
comprehend her meaning, nor to con-
“ceive her diſtinctio rationis,” which I
“ preſume is Latin for aſking the queſtion,
“ anſwered her in the non-eſſential modes ;
i. e. gave her to underſtand in a very po-
lite manner, that he was totally unacquaint-
ed with Arabick.
It is likewiſe affirmed by the critick, that
VANESSA “ had long thrown away the gen-
“ tle lenitives of virtue ; that ſhe had utter-
ly deſtroyed her character and her con-
“ ſcience” (by the oddeſt means that per-
haps were ever imagined, even by the ex-
ceffive coldneſs of her præceptor ; or,
if
you
would rather have it ſo, by his defects in na-
ture]" and was fallen a prey to the horror
" of her own thoughts :” and at laſt in the
abundance of his wonted charity, he makes
her " periſh under all the agonies of deſpair ;
a miſerable example of an ill-ſpent life,
“ fantaſtick wit, viſionary ſchemes, and fe-
“ male weakneſs."
PHRHAPS it was not unlucky for the quiet
of VANESSA, that when the author of the Re-
marks had proceeded thus far, his paper was
not
256 Eſſay on the Life arid
not of a ſize to contain further lucubrations.
Had he purſued her into the kingdom of the
Ghoſts, we know not what racks and tor-
ments might have been contrived to afflict
her. But, fortunately his paper ſcarce al-
lowed him room for the affectionate name
of, &c.
But, in what manner ſhall we reconcile
this critick's peremptory condemnation of
VANESSA with what he afferted but a page
or two before ; wherein he declares, “that
" the particular converſation of CADENUS
" and VANESSA, as it paſſed without wit-
nefles, muft for ever remain unknown?"
I proteſt for my own part, I am ſtrangely at
a loſs, having by no means fagacity enough
to clear him of inconſiſtency; unleſs it be a
general maxim, which I preſume it is, that
in criticiſing the works and the lives of
others (provided they be fix feet under
ground) we are always to ſuppofe the worſt.
HAVING written thus far in vindication of
a lady's honour, without any affiſtance from
private anecdotes ; I had ſome curioſity to
acquaint myſelf with the particulars of Miss
VANHOMRIGH’s life and ſtory ; not, I con-
feſs, with any remote deſign, if truth had
borne hard againſt her, to blacken the ine-
mory of the unfortunate ; but ſtill with an
intention, as far as truth could apologize in
her favour, but no further, to remove the
aſperſions lately thrown upon her fame. And
accordingly
Character of Dr. Swift.
257
ܪ
accordingly having applied for inſtructions
to foine two or three gentlemen of honour
and veracity, whoſe accounts, I do pre-
lume, are beyond all others the moit to be
relied on for being unqueſtionably authen-
tick, I have at laſt gathered up the following
particulars.
MR. BARTHOLOMEW VANHOMRIGH, firſt
a merchant of Amſterdam, and afterwards a
merchant of Dublin in the reigns of CHARLES
and JAMEs the ſecond ; was, upon his MA-
JESTY king WILLIAM's expedition into
Ireland, appointed Commiſary of the Stores,
an employment ſuppoſed to have been
worth, during the continuance of the war,
fix thouſand pounds per anrium.
What
fortune he poſſeſſed before the revolution
is not certainly known : his circumſtan-
ces, however, muſt at leaſt in appearance
have been in a proſperous way, and his cre-
dit firmly eſtabliſhed; otherwiſe an employ-
ment, whereon ſo much depended, would
never have been conferred upon him, And
after the affairs of Ireland were fettled, he
was appointed Muſter-Maſter-General, and
a Commiſſioner of the Revenue ; which employ-
ments he held until the time of his deceaſe
in the year 1703.
We are told by the author of the Re-
marks, “ that Miss VANHOMRIGH's mother,
" whoſe name he forgets, was born in Ire-
land of very mean extraction." But, aċ-
S
cording
«
258 Effay on the Life and
cording to the information I have received,
which I think unqueſtionable, MR. VAN-
HOMRIGH ſome time about the year 1685
married a young lady, that was born in Dub-
lin of Engliſ parents: ſhe was fole heireſs
of Mr. Stone the Commiſioner, whoſe bro-
ther was Accomptant-General of Ireland. But,
as her father had been an expenſive man,
her fortune, I think, did not amount to a-
bove five hundred pounds, which at the
time of her marriage was paid to Mr. Van-
HOMRIG# by her uncle the Accomptant-Ge-
neral, who was her father's executor. She
appears to have been a woman of politeneſs
and good-breeding; for, in the latter
part
of
the Queen's reign ſhe was viſited by many
of the firſt quality in England. Mrs. VAN-
HOMRIGH and her daughters are mentioned
fifty times by Dr. Swift in his letters to
Mrs. JOHNSON *, in one of which dated
* Theſe letters, which are in number about 38, are all of
them, except the firſt, writcen in the manner of journals,
each containing about a fortnight's news, regularly dated
every day, and many of them are extremely curious.
They were lent to Mr. Swift by a lady, who found them
accidentally about half a year ago among a parcel of papers
given to her by the Docror in the year 1738. The seit
of them, which are ſuppoſed to be about twice as mans,
are in all probability still in the hands of thoſe, who are in
poffeßion of the Doctor's effects. But, MR. SIIFT,
although he has frequently ſolicited the favour within theſe
lalt three years, never could get a fight of them; notwith-
1tanding that he himſelf was the perſon, who faved theni
from being utterly deſtroyed in the year 1741. But, the
original cauſe of this politeneſs to Mr.Swift, will perhaps
appear in one of the ſubſequent chapters.
February
Character of Dr. Swift. 259
RIGH.
February 26, 1710-11, now lying before
me, are the following words; “ SIR AN
Drew FOUNTAINE and I dined by invi-
“ tation [to day) with Mrs. VANHOM-
They keep as good female
company as I do male. I ſee all the drabs
“ of quality of 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 both, and
" the wit of neither, would have made a
« fine woman." And March the ift the
ſame year ; “ I dined to-day at Mrs. Van-
HOMRIGH's, being a rainy day *, and lady
* Betty BUTLER knowing it, ſent to let
me know ſhe expected my company in
" the evening, where the VANS (ſo we
"call them) were to be. The Dutcheſs
" and ſhe do not go over this ſummer
« with the Duke.” Mrs. VANHOMRIGH'S
chief intimates among the men, as far as I
can obſerve, were SIR ANDREW FOUN-
TAINE and Dr. Swift. And, by means
of Dr. Swift The became alſo acquainted
in thoſe times with MR. FORD of Wood-
Park in the kingdom of Ireland, and with
the famous Dr. BERKELEY, afterwards bi-
ſhop of Cloyne.
* Dr. Swift's lodgings in Bury-ftreet were within five
doors of MRS. VANHOMRICH'S ; where he was equally in-
timate and free to go in and out when he pleaſed, as if he
had been her friend and her brother ; as appears from num-
berleſs paſſages in the abovementioned letters.
BUT,
ܪ
S 2
260 Eſſay on the Life and
...But, to return from this digreſſion to the
affairs of her huſband. Immediately after
the wars of Ireland, MR. VANHOMRIGH'S
fortune was in a condition ſo thriving and
proſperous, that he laid out ten or twelve
thouſand pounds in the purchafe of forfeited
lands; the yearly revenue whereof added to
the profits of his appointments, muſt have en-
creaſed his fortune to a good deal above two
thouſand pounds per annum, which in thote
days was intrinſically worth at leaſt three times
what the like fortune would be at preſent:
wherefore it muſt be granted, that MR. VAN-
HOMRIGH was ſo far from 'accumulating
wealth by parlimony and prudence ; that
he was very improvident, or rather very ex-
travagant, it the whole fortune which he left
behind him in the year 1703, after he had
been a Commilimer of the Revenue and Muf-
ter-Maſter-General for 13 years, amounted
in value (his purchaſe of forfeited lands in-
cluded) to nothing more than £. 16000.
But, as that is a point of no conſequence ; 1
ſhall only obſerve, that MRS. VANHOMRIGH,
after the death of her two ſons (the younger
of whom left his fortune after the deceale
of his ſiſters to MR. PETER PARTINGTON
of Dublin, he taking the name of VAN-
HOMRIGH) went over with her daughters to
live at London in the year 1909: where it
is allowed that her expencès greatly exceed-
ed the bounds of her income, her huſband's
executor
4
Character of Dr. Swift. 261
executor having ſupplied her with money to
the prejudice of her children's fortunes. She
died at London in the year 1714, leaving
fome debts unpaid. Upon hearing this ac-
count, I had the curioſity to aſk, whether
Miss VANHOMRIGH and her ſiſter were
obliged to abſcond, as I preſumed the debts
of their mother could not affect their liber-
ty? In anſwer to this queſtion I was told,
that Mrs. VANHOMRIGH had left her daugh-
ters joint executrixes, a troubleſome office in-
deed, which however the ſituation of their
affairs obliged them to accept : by which
means they became ſubject to an arreſt in
that character; which however, they need
not have been afraid of, had they been well
adviſed; for, an application to the courts of
law they would immediately have been re-
leaſed, had they chanced to have been arreſt-
ed in London for their mother's debts. In
the year 1715 they returned to Ireland; and
foon after the younger fiſter died, leaving VA-
NESSA, or Mrs. ESTHER VANHOMRIGH in
full poſſeſſion of all that remained of the
whole fortune belonging to her father, MR.
PARTINGTON's right to the eſtate in rever-
ſion only excepted. Mrs. Esther VAN-
HOMRIGH was engaged, I think, in a law-
fuit with her father's executor; which, among
other ſhocks and defalcations in her revenue,
obliged her to live retired in a frugal man-
She was intimately acquainted, how-
ever,
ner.
S 3
262 Eſſay on the Life and
ever, with many families of rank and fortune
in Dublin (a city as worthily remarkable for
the unblemished honour of the female world,
as for the contempt which is thrown univer-
ſally upon any particular perſon, who has gi-
ven the leaſt colour to be ſuſpected of an in-
trigue) and more eſpecially The often viſited
the late Mrs. CoNolly, a lady of great de-
corum, and very high reputation, where
ſhe uſed to meet with abundance of good
company; which was one inducement for
repeating her viſits there more frequently
perhaps than any where elſe. She was, I
believe, not averſe from being acquainted
with men of learning and abilities: the late
biſhop of Cloyne, the late judge LINDSAY,
and the lord chief juſtice MarLAY, were
among the number of her friends.
For ſome time after Miss VANHOMRIGH
returned to Ireland ſhe was frequently viſited
by DR. SWIFT; whoſe delight was to fee
what progreſs ſhe had made in literature,
and particularly to re-examine her in thoſe
books, which he had recommended to her
peruſal in former days. But, the Doctor,
obſerving that her paſſion for him rather en-
creaſed than diminiſhed, became from the
year 1716 abundantly more ſparing in his
viſits ; and, by all efforts and diffuaſives
in his
power vainly endeavoured to eſtrange
her thoughts from all romantick ideas.
Among other diſſuaſives to VANESSA, he
ventured
Character of Dr. Swift. 263
ventured ſo far in the ſummer of the
year
1716 as to pay her a viſit in company with
Mr. DeAN WINTER, who was her profeſſed
admirer; than which it is impoſſible that any
thing could have been more grating to the
foul of this enamoured fair; as it was equal
in
appearance to a manifeſt reſignation of all
right and claim to her affections. This
gen-
tleman, who had an eſtate of fix or eight
hundred pounds per annum, beſide three hun-
dred pounds a year preferments in the church,
made ſome overtures of marriage to Miss
VANHOMRIGH about this period of time:
but, her affections were ſo intirely devoted
to her old præceptor, that ſhe would not fo
much as hearken to his propoſal. I ſhall
only obferve, how unreaſonable it is to ima-
gine, that Dean WINTER, a gentleman of
fortune, who by all accounts was far from
not being ſufficiently ſtocked with pride,
would have made propoſals of marriage to
any woman, " that was happy in the
thoughts of being Swift's concubine.”
Neither by any fort of perſuaſions, although
frequently ſolicited, would Miss VANHOM-
RIGH conſent to receive the addreffes of Dr.
Price*, who lived at Cellbridge, and muſt
* Dr. Price was at that time the particular friend and
favourite of old MR. CONOLLY, the ſpeaker of the houſe
of commons of Ireland. What his fortune was in thote
days, I know not; but ſure it is, that he was in the high-
road to preferment. He was afterwards biſhop of Meath,
and died archbiſhop of Caſhel fome few years ago.
have
S 4
264
Effay on the Life and
have been acquainted with her whole ſtory
and character.
I HAVE been affured, that Miss VANHOM-
RIGH was in her general converſe with the
world, as far from encouraging any ſtile of
addreſs, inconſiſtent with the rules of honour
and good-breeding, as any woman alive. Nei-
ther can it be ſaid, if any concluſions may be
drawn from her appearance and behaviour in
Ireland, that ſhe was either a vain woman,
or fond of dreſs; although ſhe was extreamly
nice and delicate, as well in the cleanlineſs
of her perſon, as in every thing the wore.
Her only misfortune was, that ſhe had a
paſſion for Dr. Swift, which was not to be
conquered; although it is a point inconteſta-
ble, that Dr. SWIFT had never once made
her the moſt diſtant overtures of marriage.
And this paſſion (her friends, I hope, will
excuſe me for aſſerting it) was in all proba-
bility the remote cauſe of her death. She
languiſhed, I think, for ſome years, and fell
into a conſumption; neither, as I have heard,
was the convinced that Dr. SWIFT was mar-
ried to Mrs. JOHNSON, until about two
months before her deceaſe. She was at laſt
carried off by a fever in the year 1723, and
in the 37th year of her age.
Thus died at Cellbridge, worthy of an
happier fate, the celebrated Mrs. Esther
VANHOMRIGH, a martyr to love and con-
ſtancy.
HERSED
Character of Dr. Swift. 265
:..
Hersed in Death's cold, frozen arms;
Lye deep entomb’d VANESSA's charms;
Transfixt by Love's unerring dart,
The gentle Fair indulg'd the ſmart;
For twice fix long revolving years
Her days were ſpent in ſighs and tears ;
Her tender frame at laſt decay'd,
She quits the world a lifeleſs ſhade;
Nor can, alas! the grave ſecure
Her virtues uncorrupt and pure!
VANESSA's fate in mournful ſtrains
Bewail, ye NYMPHS, and SHEPHERD
SWAINS;
Ye tuneful Choirs, to whom belong
The pow'rs of verſe; in plaintive ſong
Bewail the NYMPH, who dy'd to prove,
That reaſon was her guide in love *.
CH A P. XII.
I
A M interrupted in the courſe of my
deſign by ſomebody, I know not whom,
the Obſervator, I think he is called, upon
thoſe Remarks, which were publiſhed about
two or three years ago, on the Life and Writ-
ings of Dr. Jonathan Swift. This ano-
nymous author, whoever he be, has endea-
voured by a thouſand artifices to conceal the
latent purpoſes of his heart, under the fair
appearances of candour, friendſhip and reli-
* Vid. Caden. and VANESS.
gion,
266
Effay on the Life and
gion. Safe in the covert of his obfcurity, he
degrades, he reviles the Doctor, with whom
he had the honour to be acquainted; and
fhoots the moſt fiery darts, even the moſt
bitter words, the moft cruel farcafms, with-
out any regard to truth, againſt the moſt
innocent of all the human race, for any thing
he knows, or can prove to the contrary, ſo
far as they had any commerce or intimacy
with Dr. Swift* He pretends, indeed,
to have written ſeveral of his anecdotes from
information. But, let him look to that; and
clear himſelf as well as he can, by caſting the
odium of his calumnies on the backs and
reputations of thoſe monſtrous miſinformers;
thoſe abominable ſwervers from truth, by
whom he hath been ſo groſsly and ſo fre-
quently abuſed: otherwiſe, I am afraid, he
muſt endure the reproach of being the author
and publiſher of ſcandal and defamation. I
fhall not vouchſafe to animadvert upon all
the miſtakes in his performance, having nei-
ther time nor inclination for an amuſement
of that fort: I ſhall only detect his falfifica-
tions, one after another, and perhaps now
and then ſome critical blunders, as they hap-
pen to fall in my way, no matter how
abrupt and irregularly; and at laſt wind up
the whole with what I have principally to
fay to him.
* Vid. Obſervations, Letter 1.
2
THE
Character of Dr. Swift. 267
The Obſervator writes, as if he took it
for granted, that STELLA's real name was
JOHNSTON; an error, which he hath in-
duſtriouſly adhered to upon all occaſions ;
and therefore, ſuppoſing him to have had the
honour of being in the loweſt claſs of Dr.
Swift's acquaintance (which I believe as
ſincerely, although it be a ſentiment of his
own, as I do any one paragraph in his twen-
ty epiſtles) it cannot paſs for a miſtake, but
for a notorious and wilful untruth. John-
son is the name ſhe brought over with her
from England, and the name, whereby the
was perpetually called as well by Dr.
Swift *, as by all the reſt of the world.
“ We are told, ſaith the Obſervator ot,
(and I am ſatisfied by Swift himſelf) at
" the bottom of a letter to Dr. SHERIDAN,
« dated Sept. 2, 1727, that Mrs. JOHNSTON,
" and Mrs. DINGLEY, were both relations
to Sir WILLIAM TEMPLE ; at whoſe
“ houſe Swift became acquainted with
“ them, after he left the Univerſity of Dub-
“ lin. Mrs. JOHNSTON then was not the
daughter of Sir William's menial fer-
vant; at leaſt if ſhe was, that ſervant was
ca his relation.
Now, what is an author capable of writ-
ing; or rather, properly ſpeaking, what is
* Vid. Swift's letters to DR. SHERIDAN, and ſeveral
other paſſages in his works.
+ Letter 5:
an
the front to impoſe upon the world ſuch an
268 Effay on the Life and
an author not capable of writing ; who hath
abandoned falfhood ? the Obſervator declar-
eth himſelf to be ſatisfied, that in fact this
marginal note * at the bottom of a letter to
DR. SHERIDAN (which by the way he does
not vouchſafe to call a note, but ſlurs it over
with an intention to deceive) was written by
Swift himſelf. Written by Swift him-
felf, as an explanatory note, in a letter to
DR. SHERIDAN, which he never intended
ſhould have feen the light? I would as ſoon be-
lieve, that it was written by the Doctor ſome
time after his deceaſe ; for, it is only to be
found in the 8th volume of his works, which
was never printed until the year 1746. ' If
this be rhetorick, it is the rhetorick of SA-
TAN, built on the foundation of a groſs and
palpable falfhood; and purely deſigned with
a view to impoſe on the careleſs, the credu-
lous, and the unwary. But, to throw this
matter beyond all diſpute, as Dr. SWIFT
was a man of honour, it is impoſſible he could
have written or inſinuated what he knew to
be falſe.
4
* The editor's note is this ; “ Mes. Johnson and Mrs.
DINOLEY, both relations to SIR WILLIAM TEMPLE, at
“ whoſe houſe the author (the author ? pray mind that word:
THE AUTHOR of a letter to Dr. SHERIDAN I]
* became
* acquainted with them, after he left the Univertity of Dub.
" lin.-Their fortunes being not very conſiderable, they
“ choſe to ſpend their days in Ireland."
THE
Character of Dr. Swift. 269
The account of Dr, Swift's applying
himfelf to my Lord Treaſurer in favour
of Mr. CONGREVE, happens to be grounded
on a miſtake, at leaſt in the manner it ap-
pears in the obſervations, *" My good Doc-
tor, &c.” For, that noble anſwer of my
Lord OXFORD,
: Non obtuſa adeo geftamus pectora poeni,
Nec tam averſùs equos Tyria fol jungit
ab urbe ti
was not made to DR. SWIFT, but to my
Lord HALLIFAX: which the Obſervator
might eaſily have known, if he had con-
ſulted Dri Swift's letter to Pope, dated
January 10, 1721.
The application of the above lines was
certainly extreamly fine, and worthy of a
great Miniſter. And yet, I remember an
application of another paffage in the ſame
ſpeech of Queen Dido, at leaſt equally as
happy and ſpirited : the account of it I had
from Dr, SWIFT about three or four and
twenty years ago. The Dean having aſked
my Lord CARTERET, when he was Lord
Lieutenant of Ireland, how he could perſe-
cute, and iffue a proclamation, offering
300l. for diſcovering a poor honeſt Drapier,
who had been guilty of no other crime
* Let. 3.
| Our hearts are not ſo cold, nor flames the fire
Of Sol lo diſtant from the race of Tyre. DUNKIN.
than
270 Effay on the Life and
than that of writing three or four letters for
the inſtruction of his neighbours, and the
good of his country ; his ExceLLENCY
was pleaſed to anſwer,
-Regni novitas me talia cogit
Moliri *
An anſwer indeed, which was at once
an apology for his proceeding in the man-
ner he did; and a juſtification of the mea-
ſures he had purſued in his regal capacity.
The Obſervator in his 5th letter, ſpeaking
of the Doctor's having taken his Batchelor
of Arts degree Speciali Gratiâ, declares,
" That Swift explained himſelf in the
following manner. That he looked up-
on the Study of Greek and Latin to be
downright pedantry, and beneath a gen-
“ tleman. That poetry and plays and no-
“ vels, were the only polite accompliſh-
ments.” Which account, taken in the
groſs, I can never perſuade myſelf to believe.
That Swift had read over a good number
of plays and novels, and perhaps ſeveral of
the Engliſh poets, during his reſidence in
the univerſity of Dublin, I ſhall never diſ-
pute. But, that any man of Swift's abili-
ties, conſcious to himſelf that he was born
to no fortune, ſhould ſo much affect the
idleneſs and folly of a young heir, impatient
* Doubts atrending an unſettled ſtate
of
«
Force me.
LRYDEN.
I
Character of Dr. Swift.
271
of control, as to look upon the ſtudy of
Greek and Latin as downright pedantry,
and beneath a gentleman, I ſhall never ſub-
ſcribe to; but, on the contrary, I ſhall
wholly rely upon that account which I had
from the Doctor himſelf * ; and eſpecially
on the Doctor's own words in ſection the
22d of the Appendix, where it happens we
are aſſured, that having no great reliſh by
nature for thoſe ſtudies which are expreſsly
Academick, he turned himſelf to reading
hiſtory and poetry f; wherein every body
knows there are fields of literature, exten-
five enough for a man of genius and applica-
tion to range in for a great part of his life,
ſuppoſing his ſpeculations were wholly con-
fined within the limits of the Greek and Ro-
man territories.
We are alſo told by the Obſervator in his
5th letter; " That Swift had been often
* heard to ſay, that from the time of his
taking this degree (his Maſter's degree at
Oxford] he ſtudied at leaſt eight hours
a day, one with another, for ſeven years.”
The Obſervator ſhould rather have ſaid, that
from the time SWIFT went to Sir W.
TEMPLE's in the year 1688 untill the
death of Sir W. in the year 1699, he ſpent
ten hours a day one with another in hard
ſtudy, abating only the time which he con-
* Vid. Chap. 3. P. 30.
† Append. ſect. 22.
ſumed
272 Eſtay on the Life and
06
fumed in bodily exerciſe; for, every twa
hours (lince we are fond of the moſt trifling
anecdotes) he ran up a hill that was near
Sir W. TEMPLE's, and back again to his
ſtudy; this exerciſe he performed in about
fix minutes ; backwards and forwards it was
about half a mile: but, that any man of
Swift's underſtanding, or half his under-
ſtanding, could have been ſuch a pedant,
as " to eſtimate the attainments of other
men, by that exact proportion of time,
“ which he himſelf had paſſed in a cloſe
application to ſtudy; and to anſwer with
contempt if any gentleman were cried
Up
“ for learning, if his attention to books fell
« ſhort of that period : He a ſcholar? 'tis
impoſſible ;” is an abſurd imagination, cal-
culated meerly to flatter ſome old dreaming
book-worms.
In Letter the 16th the Obſervator gives an
account of Swift's" rebuking the Biſhop of
"Meath apparently, in the moſt gentle and
reſpectful manner, and with great cool
"neſs of temper, &c. &c. becaule he had
“ reflected with ſome roughneſs (which the
“ Dean conſidered as rudeneſs) upon one
" of his clergy." Great coolneſs of temper,
gentleneſs of deportment, and a profound
reſpect to his ſuperiors in the church *, eve-
Vid. his. Preface to the Bp. of Sarum's Introduction :
his Poem on the Biſhops of Ireland, who endeavoured to get
an act to divide the church livings; his poem enticuled Ju-
DAS; and fifty other pallages in his works.
ту
.
Character of Dr. Swift. 273
ry body knows were the diſtinguiſhing cha-
racteriſticks of Dr. SwifT. But, let that
paſs among the reſt of the Obſervator's con:
liſtencies. However, the truth of the ſtory,
which I well recollect to have heard many
years ago, is this : Biſhop ***, who had
been lately tranſlated from Bangor to the
See of Meath, had not only the misfortune,
in the violent days of party, to reflect with
ſome degree of afperity on the Reverend
MR. * * *
one of his own clergy; but alfo
to recommend unto his whole dioceſe the
wearing of numms, or ſcraps of linen to co-
ver dirty Thirts. This behaviour in the
Biſhop, and eſpecially this recommendation
of numms, fired the indignation of Swift
to the uttermoſt: he fell upon the Biſhop,
when he got him into the ſynod, with out-
ragious ſeverity; and after he had ſpoken in
defence of MR. ***; what, ſaid he, do
you think you have gotten among your Welch
clergy? I would have you to know, ſaid he,
ſtripping up his cafſock from his arms, and
tearing open the breaſt of his waſtecoat, that
you have gotten into a dioceſe of gentlemen,
who abhor dirt, and filth, and paſtineſs;
and thus he drove on, laſhing the Biſhop, and
making him feel his ſarcaſms. And to con-
vince the Obſervator, that I know ſomething
of this ſtory, I can tell him, that Peter
Ludlow and Dick Ashe lay concealed in
the church of Trim during the time of the
T
fynod,
275 Eſſay on the Life and
fynod, not without the connivance of Dr.
Swift; who had in a great meaſure invited
them to the feaſt.
To form a judgment on the candor and
abilities of the Obſervator, the fureſt method
we can take, is to review his friendly, and
critical remarks on the life and writings of
Dr. Swift. However, as theſe remarks
happen to lye ſcattered here and there
pro-
fuſely in his epiſtles, it will be neceſſary to
collect them together, and range them
pro-
perly into ſome kind of order. And, when
that is done, perhaps the reader of taſte and
learning, will adore his candor, and be ama-
zed at his abilities.
But ſince the fair, the equitable, and ten-
der criticiſm he hath paſſed on GULLIVER,
is apparently the ground-work of all the reſt,
even the point which he hath laboured with
all his art, with all his ſtrength, with all his
finefles, and with all his hypocriſy; we ſhall
firſt examine what his ſentiments are with
regard to that performance.
The Obſervator inſiſts upon it, that GUL-
LIVER's Travels, “ was not written in that
“ interval which paffed between the demiſe
of the Queen and the year 1720*.” But
the arguments he produces to ſupport this
negative opinion are vain, frothy, and ab-
ſurd. He would aſſure the world,
so that
« SWIFT's time was much better filled than
" in writing, GULLIVER during that inter-
- val;
* Let. 9..
Character of Dr. Swift.
274
<
« val;” which is the firſt invective he throws
out, by way of proluſion, againſt thoſe unim..
portant travels *
“ The care of his deanery,
(faith the wiſe and judicious Obſervator)
“his cathedral, its regulations, its income,
“and economy took up much of his thoughts
" at this time.” Now, what a pity it is,
that Dr. SWIFT himſelf has contradicted
every ſyllable of this fine ſtory: "I was three
years (faith he in a letter to Gay, dated
Jan. 8, 1722-3)“ reconciling myſelf to the
“ ſcene, and the buſineſs, to which For-
TUNE hath condemned me, and ſtupidity
was what I had recourſe to.”
He went
through a very voluminous courſe of 'ec-
'cleſiaſtical hiſtory (faith the Obſervator)
' in that period. Now that voluminous
courſe of eccleſiaſtical hiſtory which SWIFT
went through was BARONIUS (the only hiſtory
of the church, to the beſt of my recollection,
that was to be found in his library) a courſe
indeed of fixteen volumes in folio, which, I
preſume, would take up a man of conſtant
application to books ſomewhat like half a
year in the peruſal. But, unfortunately for
the Obſervator, Swift read BARONIUS about
two years after GULLIVER was printed. “I
" dine alone (faith he in a letter to my lord
BOLINGBROKE, dated April, 5, 1729)
upon
half a diſh of meat, mix water with
my wine, walk ten miles a day, and read
A
* Let. 15.
T 2
B BARO
wt
276 Eſſay on the Life and
« BARONIUS." The Obſervator likewiſe faith,
“ he has reaſon to believe, that all the know-
ledge Swift had of the early fathers, was
“ then alſo acquired.” But, that Swift
acquired all the knowledge he had of the
early fathers during that period, is, to ſay no
worſe of it, a thick and a groſs miſtake of the
Obſervator ; which nevertheleſs he deſerves
to be commended for, as a true, genuine hero,
that will ſtick at nothing, when it ſeemingly
anſwereth to his purpoſe. And yet I can-
not help declaring upon this occaſion, that I
have a demonſtration lying before me this
very inſtant, which effectually overturns the
whole of his conjecture. It is a book of
extracts from St. CYPRIAN and St. IRENEUS,
taken by Swift in the year 1697. He has
not marked in this book when he began to
read St. CYPRIAN; but the day, on which he
compleated his extract, was Nov. 19, 1697.
And the day following he began to read St.
IREN ÆUS, and finiſhed his extract from
that early father, Dec. 12, 1697. And fur-
ther I can tell you, that in the preceding
part of the ſame year, he took ſome very
copious extracts from SLEIDAN's commen-
taries, and from Padre Paolo's Hiſtory of
the council of Trent, which are alſo at prę.
fent lying upon my table.
In the Obſervator's 12th letter his reaſoning
upon this point is admirable. He is of opi-
nion that Swift's genius was verging to-
wards
Character of Dr. Swift.
277
over
wards the decline, when he writ GULLI-
ver's Travels; and eſpecially becauſe when
he writ the voyage to Laputa, he did not
make the king of that flying Iſland preſide
an immenſe extent of dominion, wholly
dependent upon him, and govern his ſub-
jects in a manner ſomewhat analogous to
" that of GOD's dominion over the earth.”
An obſervation, I confeſs, not unworthy of an
enthuſiaſt. But, Swift had more religion,
more ſobriety, and more good ſenſe, than
to proceed on a plan fo impious, viſionary,
and abſurd. The very thought of " illu-
ſtrating the appointments and determina-
"tions of providence,” by the greateſt effort
of the human genius, not immediately un-
der the direction of the HOLY SPIRIT;
carries in it ſomewhat or other, I know not
what to call it, that is ſhockingly prophane.
He would infer in the ſaine letter from
Swift's application of thoſe words, non fum
qualis eram*, in a letter to Pope, dated
Sept. 20, 1723, that Swift's genius was
then upon the decline ; whereas, if it proves
any thing at all, it will prove fome trifle more
than, I believe, the Obſervator is aware of:
For, it will prove, that Swift began to fink
in his genius for want of that lively and fpi-
rited converſation, which in the reign of
* An expreſſion which HORACE made uſe of on a particu-
lar occaſion, when he was about forty years old. Vid. lib.
iv. od. 1.
1
T3
Queen
278 Eſſay on the Life and
Queen ANNE, bonæ fub regno CYNARA *,
he had been uſed to at London. For, SWIFT's
words refer to a ſentiment in the preceding
letter from my lord BOLINGBROKE **
In one word; the Obſervator calls Gul-
LIVER a book of unimportant travels ;
and declares, “ that if Swift had reco-
"vered one hour of rational reflection, after
" the ſignal chaſtiſement of his total infatu-
“ation, he would have habered his lat-
"s ter works (and conſequently bis GULLIVER,
if we may judge from the tenor of the whole
paſage, both text and context] among the
“ follies of his life. ll."
I had really almoſt forgotten to animad-
vert upon one of the fineſt remarks in the
whole twenty epiſtles. The Obſervator
apprehends that Sept. 20, 1723, is a date
“ fome years antecedent to Swift's writing
« his ĠULLIVER $." In: the year 1724,
SWIFT was engaged in the defence of Li-
BERTY and his COUNTRY againſt that im-
poſtor Wood and his accomplices; and con-
fequently Swift's writing thoſe unimportant
travels was not the buſineſs of that
year.
ther do I apprehend that Swift could have
* Hor. lib. iv. od. I.
+ My lord BOLINGBROKE's words are theſe, “ No man
comes to an hermitage but for the ſake of the hermit; a
“ few philoſophical friends come often to mine, and they
are ſuch as you would be glad to live with, if a dull cli-
mate and duller company have not altered you extreamly
“ from what you were nine years ago.".
$ Let. 12.
Nei.
Let. 15.
| Let. 13
written
Character of Dr. Swift. 279
written his Gulliver in the ſpring of the
year 1725, having amuſed himfelf that
whole ſeaſon in writing a great number of
verſes *, and that political treatiſe + referred
to in his letter to DR. SHERIDAN, dated
June 29, 1725
But, ſure it is, that Swift, who left
Dublin early in the fummer of the year
1725, and went to the north of Ireland,
where he employed his leiſure in correcting
GULLIVER I writ a letter to SHERIDAN,
dated Sept. 11, 1725 || ; wherein he puts
his friend ſtrongly in mind of his deſcription
of the Yahoos; and conſequently SHERI-
DAN muſt have read GULLIVER in manu-
ſcript ſome time before the ſummer of the
year 1725, but GOD knows how long be-
fore that period. And in a letter to Pope,
dated Sept. 29, 1725, “ Oh, if the world
" bad but a dozen ARBUTHnots in it, I
would burn my travels !” Then pray, Mr.
OBSERVATOR, how many years do you think
it was after your famous 20th of Sept. 1723,
* Viz. 4 Receipt to reſtore Stella's Youth. A Simile on
our Want of Silver, and the only way to remedy it. A Poem
On Wood Ibe Ironmonger ; another Wood an Infe&t; another
entitled, WILL. WOOD's Petition to the People of Ireland, and
fourteen Riddles.
+ Viz. Some Confiderations on the Attempt to paſs Mr.
Wood's Braſs-Money in Ireland. Vid. BATHURST's editia.
of Swift's works, vol. ix. p. 118.
| Vide letter to Pope, dated Seot. 29, 1725.
# Vide Swift's works, vol. viii.
that
I
회
​PL
280 Eſſay on the Life and
that Swift writ his GULLIVER? But, to
throw this matter quite out of diſpute; I ain
aſſured by one of the real friends of the
Doctor, whoſe authority is beyond ten thou-
find arguments, that Swift himſelf had de-
clared upon ſome occaſion or other, that he
had laid the deſign of Gulliver eighteen
years before it was printed; and confequent-
ly that muſt have been in the year 1708.
But, as none can imagine, that he writ
any
confiderable part of thoſe travels during the
time he was engaged in defending the con-
ſtitution, and protecting the miniſtry, in the
four laſt years of the Queen, it is not un-
reaſonable to conjecture, that he writ the
greater part of that work, if not the whole,
foon after his return to Ireland, in the year
1714, and before the cloſe of the year 1720.
If in a caſe of this ſort I might be allowed
to offer a conjecture of my own, I would
almoſt take upon me to fay, that Dr. SWIFT
having finiſhed his account of the four
laſt years of the Queen, about the month of
December 1715, he then began to apply
himſelf in earneft to GULLIVER's travels,
and compleated that work, corrections, a-
mendments, and the like only excepted;
in the winter of the year 1720.
And this
conjecture, without any racking or tortur-
ing of words, ſeemeth to ariſe from a pal-
füge in the laſt chapter of the voyage to
Houy-
Character of Dr. Swift.
281
HOUYHNHNMS *, where indeed the author
declares, ſpeaking in the perſon of his hero,
" that at the time he is writing, it is five years
“ ſince his laſt return to England,” which
happened in the month of December 1715,
as you may read in one of the preceding pa-
ragraphs : and this, I preſume, (with great
ſubmiſſion to better judgments) was intended
as a mark, whereby the exact point of time,
when he finiſhed that noble and grand per-
formance, which, in the prophetick ſtyle of
his friend Pope, will in future ages be the
admiration of all men, ſhould be known to
pofterity.
I SHALL not follow the Obſervator in his
critique upon Gulliver: I ſhall only re-
mark, that for want of abilities to underſtand
his author ; or rather, for want of a delicate
ſenſe to reliſh the obligations of virtue, he
miſinterprets one of the fineſt ſtrokes in the
* The 11th chapter of the voyage to the HOUYHNHNMS,
properly ſpeaking is the laſt chapter of Gulliver's Travels,
the'i ath being only a ſort of a critique, and a very bad one too
upon the whole work in general. “I muſt confeſs, in the ſpi.
sit of candor and fincerity, that I heartily with that i zth
chapter, which is, without exception, the dulleſt piece (at
leafit that I can remember) in his whole writings, were either
burnt or annihilated. This indeed, like the reſt of his cri-
ticks, I could eaſily have palled over uncenſured ; perhaps
they never obſerved it. And yet all that I mean by this gen-
tle ſeverity (for I deſpiſe the reputation of a little cenſuring
critick) is to thew the world, that I would ſcorn to approva
through thick and thin the works of the moſt improved,
conſummate genias, in deſpight to that little knowledge,
which I have endeavoured to acquire, as a direction to my
owo taſte and judgment.
wholc
282 Eflay on the Life and
whole voyages, and perverts it into a blun-
der. His obſervation is this, " the Houy-
HNHNMS met once in four
once in four years
years to
's make laws which no body was bound to
" obey *." Whereas, the great delicacy of
SWIFT's notion conſiſted in this; having told
us, that the etymology of the word Houy-
HNHNM is the perfection of nature of; he ob-
ferves to his reader, “ that a decree of their
"general aſſembly is expreſſed by the word
Hnbloayn, which fignifies an exhortation;
" for they have no conception how a ra-
“tional creature can be compelled, but only
adviſed, or exhorted; becauſe no perſon
can diſobey reaſon without giving up his
" claim to be a rational creature
It is ſcarce worth our remark, that the
Obſervator makes SWIFT treat ARISTOTLE
with very little reſpect: whereas, on the
contrary, Swift admired ARISTOTLE be-
yond all the philoſophers which had appeared
in theworld, from the days of ALEXANDER
the GREAT to the moment he was then writ-
ing ; I had almoſt faid, even to the contempt
of all others, not excepting DESCARTES,
GASSENDI, and the famous fir Isaac New-
TON; as any one may obſerve with half an
eye, that will be at the pains to read over the
two firſt paragraphs of the viiith chapter of
*
Let. 13
+ Vide ĞUL. voy. to the Houyh. ch. 3,
I Vid. id, chap. x.
tha
*
Character of Dr. Swift. 283
the voyage to Laputa ||. What, I fancy, be-
trayed the Obſervator into this miſtake, was
the difference of the portraiture between
HOMER and ARISTOTLE, as repreſented by
Swift in the above chapter. “ HOMER
“ (faith he) was the taller and comelier
per-
“ ſon of the two, walked very erect for one
“ of his age, and his eyes were the moſt
quick and piercing I ever beheld. Aris-
Totle ſtooped much, and made uſe of a
" ſtaff. His viſage was meagre, his hair
“ lank and thin, and his voice hollow.” In
this portrait of HOMER we obſerve all the
marks and delineations of quickneſs, genius,
and fire, accompanied with an exquiſite pow-
er and felicity, in the communication of
his ideas, with clearneſs and force, unto the
ſouls of his auditors. Swift's portrait of
ARISTOTLE is equally ſtrong and maſterly:
He ſtooped much *, faith he, and made uſe
of
|| I have lately found by accident in a little book of in-
Itructions, which Dr. Swift was pleaſed to draw up for the
uſe of a lady (enjoining her to get it all by heart) what his
real opinion was of ARISTOTLE. Without any variation, I
ſhall tranſcribe his own words. " AristoTLE, the diſci-
ple of Plato, and tutor to ALEXANDER the Great. His
" followers were called Peripateticks from a Greek word
“ which ſignifies to walk; becauſe he taught his diſciples
* walking We have not all his works; and ſome of
" thoſe which are imputed to him, are ſuppoſed not ge-
" nujne. He writ upon logick, or the art of reaſoning ;
‘upon moral and natural philofophy ; upon oratory, poetry,
" &c. and ſeems to be a perſon of the moſt comprehenſive
genius that ever lived."
This idea of pooping is ſo far from implying the want of
genius in the moſt exquiſite degree, that even the Angels
of
284 Eſſay on the Life and
of a ſtaff; that is, he thought, he conſidered,
he ruminated, he pondered deeply, on the
moſt intricate, and abſtruſe points, relating
to the ſciences; and, by the force of reaſon-
ing, which is meant by his ſtaff, he cleared
his way through briars and thorns, until he
ſtruck into the road which leads to ſcience
and philoſophy.
The remaining part of Aristotle's por-
trait, is only the repreſentation of an ab-
Atracted ſcholar, worn away, and decayed with
years, hard ſtudy, nocturnal lucubrations,
and the want of bodily exerciſe.
HAVING remarked, perhaps more than
ſufficiently, on what the Obſervator is pleaſed
to affert in derogation to Swift's genius when
he writ his GULLIVER, we ſhall now marſhal
his critical obfervations into rank and file ;
and according to their natural order paſs them
in review before the judgment and candor of
the learned, and the impartial reader.
In the firſt place, we are told by the Ob-
ſervator ut, “ that Swift's genius was verge
of beaves are reported to have ſtooped down, when they ap-
plied their faculties to the conſideration of the divine mercy
in the redemption of humankind; els at mabaon aysenos
desgaid'abei, which things the ANGELS deſire to floop down and
look into, i Pet. i. 12. If the unlearned ſhould imagine, that
I have taken more liberty than I ought in tranflating the
words of St. Peter, I can only refer them to the zoth
chapter of St. John's goſpel
, ø lith, where they may find
expaxurlu tranſlated to their hands, exactly in the ſame
manner; nagérvyo tiste perspection, the pooped down and
looked into the fetalchre
+ Lét. 12.
« ing
Character of Dr. Swift.
285
ing towards the decline when he writ GUL-
LIVER, or rather indeed, ſome time before ;
u at leaſt the Doctor himſelf ſeemed to think
fo, in a letter to Mr. Pope, dated Sept.
20, 1723; a date which the Obſervator
apprehends to have been fome years ante-
“ cedent to the writing of his GULLIVER's
« Travels."
But what ſignifies the loſs of abilities in
the year 1723, when Swift's “ genius ne-
ver ſhone out in greater ſtrength than in the
year 1724 *, in his Drapier's Letters, and
“ the ſubſequent occaſions that called it forth?
" The performances beſt praiſe themſelves.
“O fi fic omnia !”
“ The letter to my lord PALMERSTON
[written in the month of Jan. 1725-6] and
" the letter to Mrs Moore [written in Dec.
1727, and above a year after the publica-
tion of Gulliver) are both of them in their
“kind as maſterly as any other productions
“ of Swift's pen, without exception t:
In the year 1726 Swift wrote a poem,
[1 preſume the Epiſtle to a Lady] “ which by
& the help of a ſtrong deluſion, we may
“ obſerve to be encircled with the words
NOLI ME TANGERE in as ſtrong and clear
capitals, as any green ribbon ever gloried
UI
Now we are to ſuppoſe that Mrs. JOHN-
SON, that Medicine of life, being dead (for
Let. 18.
| Ibid,
She
o in
• Let. 9.
286 Eſſay on the Life and
Doe died in Jan. 1727-8) “ Swift's paſſions
impaired his memory; and his ſolitude,
“ for want of a chearful, ſelect, and learned
“converſation, unfurniſhed it with ideas *."
However, Swift's genius was ſo alert,
ſo briſk, ſo lively, in the year 1732, when
he writ the BEAST's Confeffion; that his wit,
in the preface to that poem, is " like ſpark-
ling champain t."
Not forgetting what praiſes the Obſerva-
tor beſtows on the Legion Club, which will
require ſome particular animadverſions, I
ſhall cloſe this review of his critiques, with
what he obſerves on a treatiſe of Dr. SWIFT's,
written in the year 1737.
" There is ſuch
a maſtery of ſtyle, (faith the Obſervator)
« humour, wit, and good ſenſe in Swift's
s little diſcourſe about badging the
poor, (al-
though it was written above nine
years after
“ his memory was, for want of a learned con-
verſation, unfurniſhed with ideas) as muſt
"make it at once both delightful and inſtruc-
“ tive, to men of the beſt abilities and know-
ledge of the world |)."
And here it is to be noted, that if any
compoſition more than another requires ge-
nius in a vigorous and exalted degree, it is
the compoſition of a lively, fpirited, and ſub-
lime
rapture
Not empire to the riſing fun,
By valour, fortune, conduct won;
* Let. 12.
+ Let, 18.
# Let. 1.
Not
SC
of poetry;
Character of Dr. Swift. 287
Not higheſt wiſdom in debates
For framing laws to govern ſtates;
Not ſkill in ſciences profound,
So large to graſp the circle round;
Such heav'nly influence require,
As how to ſtrike the muses lyre.
Swift's Rhapſody.
Now the Obſervator declares in plain
terms, “ that he perfectly agrees with the
« author of the remarks, that the ſcheme of
" that poem, entitled CADENUS and VANESSA,
" is very judicious and maſterly; indeed, be-
yond any other of Swift's compoſitions,
except the Legion Club (written in the year
1735, which was three years after SWIFT
himſelf had acknowledged that his poetical
fountain was drained * ; ſeven years after
“the death of Mrs. JOHNSON; twelve years
after Swift's genius had begun to fail; and
" nineteen years after that period of life, from
“ whence ARISTOTLE (with whom the Obſer-
“ vator agrees) dates the decline of human
" abilities || ] which, he thinks, far excels
every other of Swift's poetick perform-
ances of.” A frank confeffion, I acknow-
ledge; and doubly obliging to the Doctor's
memory upon ſome other accounts.
That very Don Quixote, that indivi-
dual" romantick hero, who thinks himſelf
1
* Vide Swift's letter to Pare, dated June 12, 1732.
# Vide Obf. Let. 12. + Let. 10.
2
" bound,
288. Effay on the Life and
bound, at the hazard of his life, to defend
“ the honour and purity of ſtyle and imagi-
" nation, againſt all the defilements and dis-
graces of DUNCIADS, Dreſſing-rooms, and
“ other abominations and debaſements of
genius *; declares himſelf in raptures with
a poem, which happens to be as ſhockingly
diſgraced with turpitude of ſtyle and imagi-
nation, as any Dunciad or Dreſſing-room
whatſoever f; and is beſides horribly defiled
with that odious, that infernal word," with
« which the Obſervator would not pollute his
page, and which is in truth ſuch, as would
more effectually defile the mouth of a well-
" bred woman, than onion and aſafoetida
“ would her breath ll."
<C
Let.
7:
+ That I may not be charged with offending againſt the
rules of delicacy and politeneſs; quod vitium procul abfore
chartis, atque anima prius! The ladies will give me leave to
intreat the favour of them to paſs over the following quota-
tions from the Legion Club, without reading them at all, as
they are only deſigned to confirm what I have aſſerted againſt
the Obſervator.
Such a crowd their * * throws
On a far leſs villain's noſe.
While they never hold their tongue,
Let them dabble in their *
Let them d'er they crack a
Call for th' orders of the houſe.
We e may, whilt they ftrain their throats,
Wipe our
with their votes.
Dear companions, hug and kiſs,
Toaft OLD GLOrious in your
Tie them, keeper, in a tether,
Let them flar ve and * together.
Let. 7.
HOWEVER,
Character of Dr. Swift. 289
HOWEVER, there is an obvious reaſon,
why the ſame critick, forgetting his deteſta-
tion of the YAHOOS, together with all his
affected purity, charity, and benevolence,
ſhould vouchſafe his benediction to an
" abandoned fatyre," wherein at leaſt, part
of the human ſpecies " are drawn in the moſt
“ odious colours, and ſhewn in a magnify-
ing-glaſs, which enlarges all the deform
« features into monftrous dimenſions *."
The author of that poem gives the appella-
tion of bell to the parliament-houſe ; in other
places he calls it an harpy's -neft; the mem-
bers, without diſtinction, he calls a parcel of
rogues, brainleſs villains, a dire infectious
crew, an odious groupe of fools, monſters, old
dotards, rampant afjes, prating monkies, beafts,
and demoniacks: He wiſhes that the devil in
the midſt of rattling thunder, might with a red
fiery
, poker crack the stones, melt the lead, and
drive down the ruins upon the ſculls of the na-
tion's repreſentatives; and at laſt in the fury
of his indignation,
He concluded looking round 'em,
May their God, the Devil, confound 'em!
If this be not exaggerated fatyre, and ex-
aggerated with a vengeance ; which, accord-
ing to the Obſervator's peculiar way of
thinking never yet
did any good, nor ever
will;" I proteſt for my own part, I know
• Vid. Let. 13.
C
C
not
blunder in the Remarks happens to remain
290 Eſſay on the Life and
not what to call it: perhaps, like a witch's.
prayer it is to be interpreted backwards; and
therefore is a panegyrick in the literal ſenſe
and meaning of the word. But the Legion
Club (which I eſteem for its variety of ex-
cellence, as much as the Obſervator can do
for his life, and eſpecially becauſe it has in all
likelihood done abundance of good) was writ-
ten upon a certain occaſion againſt the wick-
ed repreſentatives of the wicked laity; and
therefore hath an undoubted claim in ſpight
of its turpitudes and exaggerated fatyre; to his
particular admiration.
WHAT an amazing diſcernment has the
Obſervator ſhewn in the above criticiſnis !
But alas! fo great is the difference between a
critick and a judge of excellencies in the
productions of the learned, that he miſtakes
the viſions of an old woman for the writings of
Dr. Swift, and praiſes them into the bar-
gain. But where hath the Obſervator been
guilty of this egregious blunder? In letter the
8th, paragraph the firſt. His words are
theſe, addreſſing himſelf to the author of the
Remarks, “I hope it will always be taken for
“granted, that where I do not animadvert,
" I affent; nay more, for the moſt part high-
ly approve.” And therefore, whatever
undetected, the Obſervator affumes it to him-
ſelf; nay more, he fanctifies it with his ap-
frobation, or rather indeed, with his filent
atte-
2
:
still
Character of Dr. Swift. 291
atteſtation ; which in his great humility (for-
getting that ſome people's atteſtation, in ſome
places, and upon ſome cccafions
, is but little
regarded) he declares to be a point of ſome con-
ſequence. Now, the author of the Remarks
hath unhappily miſtaken the viſions of arz
old woman for the writings of Dr. SWIFT,
as you may find in letter the 17th, where
{peaking of the Examiners *, he declares,
that
* Every body knows the Examirer was a weekly paper
in defence of the Tory miniſtry. This paper, as it was car-
ried on by ſome very entinent hands, having obtained a
vogue, Swift took up the character of the Examiner, and
commenced a regular ſeries of politics with that number
which' is marked 13, dated November 2, 1710 : And
biaving compleated the main deſign, which firſt engaged
him in the undertaking, with number 44, dated June 7,
1711, and taken his leave of the town, as you may obſerve in
the two laſt paragraphs of that number; he dropt the charac-
ter of the Examiner, and never more writ another paper. I
have been ſomewhat particular in my account of this matter,
becauſe the ſubſequent numbers, which by fome accident
are at prefent bound up with the works of Dr. SWIFT, are
ſupported under the title of the Examiner, but it funk imme
diately into rudeneſs and ill-manners: And, what is ſtill
more, I can take upon me to aſſert from undeniable au.
thority, even from the authority of DR. Swift himſelf,
that in fact the ſcurrility in thoſe papers was encouraged by
the miniſtry. In ſhort ; the ſubſequent Examiners were
written by ſome underſpurleachers in the city, and were
deſigned meerly as proper returns to thoſe Grub-freet in-
vectives, which were thrown out againſt the adminiſtration
by the authors of the Medley, the Engliſman, and ſome
other abuſive, detracting papers, of the like ſtamp. But
lince an Item from Dr. Swift will undoubtedly go farther
(as it juftly ought) towards the clearing up of this matter,
than all I can pretend to ſay in the way of reaſoning, I shall
give you his own extempore words to Mrs. JOHNSON upon
this point, in a letter dated June 7, 1711: "As for the
- Exa.
U2
292
Eſſay on the Life and
that “while Swift was writing in defence
" of the commonwealth, he had an oppor-
tunity of giving a looſe to his own ſeverity,
" of which the Houſe of pride, and ſeveral
« other allegorical eſſays are very ſpirited
examples.” But the Houſe of pride is ſo
far from being the production of Dr. Swift,
that, on the contrary, it is one of the viſions
of Mrs. MANLEY, who wrote the Atalantis.
Ergo, the Obſervator hath unhappily miſ-
taken the viſions of an old woman for the
writings of Dr. Swift.
And here let it be noted once for all, that
our ſincere and candid Obſervator hath never
once, throughout all his epiſtles, had the
courage or the ingenuity to advert, that the
author of the Remarks, who had ſpent a
great part of his time in Ireland within the
compaſs of eighteen years *, fairly and openly
acknowledges in a letter to Mr. Pope, dated
OET. 4, 1738 t, “that he was particularly
fo
“ Examiner. I have heard a whiſper, that after that of this
si day, which tells what this parliament has done, you wil
" hardly find them ſo good: I prophefy they will be traſh
Vi for the future; and methinks in this day's Examiner the
“ author talks doubtfully, as if he would write no more,
" that if they go on, they may probably be by ſome other
hand, which in my opinion is a thouſand pities; but who
“ can help it? Obſerve whether the change be diſcovered in
" Dublin; only for your own curioſity, that's all. ---Make
a month there." And in another letter dated Auguſt 24,
1711. “ The Examiner has been down this month, and
was very ſilly the five or fix laft papers."
* Vid. Rem. Let. 16.
f Vid. Swift's works,
vol. 7. p. 299.
ac-
Character of Dr. Swift. 293.
acquainted with moſt, if not all, of the
“ Dean's friends:” and therefore might in
all likelihood have drawn up that account,
which he has publiſhed to the world, of
the Dean's companions, (an account, which
beyond every thing elſe grates the Obſervator
to the ſoul) from the information of his own
judgment, without any farther aſſiſtance.
HAVING ſaid in a former chapter 6,
without preſuming to mention the names of
particular perſons or families, what occurred
to me upon the ſubject of the Dean's friend-
ſhips in Ireland, I ſhall neither repeat what
I have already aſſerted, nor vouchſafe (as I
am no way concerned in the controverſy) to
enter the liſts in the character of a mediator
between the author of the Remarks and the
author of the Obſervations. But ſince the
Obſervator, looking full and ſtrong in their
faces, hath taken the liberty to arraign ſome
particular perſons, as if through “an unbri-
" dled ſpirit of ſcandal I” they had abuſed
the author of the Remarks by their mon-
" ſtrous miſinformations ; ||” I ſhall freely
declare, not indeed through a ſpirit of ſcan-
dal, but through a ſpirit of indignation; that
I accord ſo far with the Obſervator's account
of Dr. Swift's companions, that WORRALL
and his wife (whoſe houſe the Obſervator
acknowledges the Dean uſed as a tavern)
were the meaneſt people the DR. converſed
I Vid. Obſ. Let. 1. | Let. 11.
with,
+ Chạp. 9.
U 3
294 Eſſay on the Life and
with, whether from the year 1714 to the
year 1720, or at any other period in his
whole life. For, WORRALL himſelf was a
foundling, which was the reaſon that SWIFT,
as the Obſervator might eaſily have recol-
lected, uſed to call him MELCHISEDECK;
and his wife was the daughter of a ſmith in
Dublin, at whoſe houſe Worrall had lodg-
ed, where he contracted ſuch an intimate
friendſhip with this young woman, this cele-
brated lady, that it was thought proper by
his friends that he ſhould marry her, as well
as by her father, who gave her 2001. fortune,
But WORRALL was neither a man of an im-
proved underſtanding, nor a man of humour;
he was, I believe, a good walker, ever in the
way, and always at the command of Dr.
Swift: And Mrs. WORRALL, as the Obſer-
vator juſtly remarks, was a neat, clean look-
ing woman in her dreſs and perſon, and had
perhaps a good deal of that ſort of vivacity,
which is conſiſtent with a mean education,
and very trifling abilities : But her chief ex-
cellency was, that ſhe underſtood the buſineſs
of marketting perfectly well; had ſtudied
what the Dean liked, and if the markets
afforded any thing nice, when the Dean's
ftomach, as years came on, began to be in
fome meaſure weak and capricious, ſhe con-
ftantly bought it for him, and ſent it home
to the deanery. In theſe little obliging offices
the Doctor found his account; but never
had
Character of Dr. Swift. 295
had any eſteem either for the huſband or the
wife.
THERE is one circumſtance in the Dean's
character (a character, which I am afraid,
can never be drawn
up
with
any
ſort of jur-
tice, the outlines being fo extreamly various,
heteroclite, and perplexed) which ought to
have been conſidered by thoſe, who have
attempted to criticiſe upon his life and con-
verſation. From a principle of wiſdom,
taking the world as he found it, no man ever
ſtudied more than 'SWIFT did, to reduce
every man's talents to his own particular
gratification. He could feaſt upon the delica-
cies of wit and learning, when they happened
to fall in his way; and at other times be con-
tent with plain common entertainment. He
could laugh, and drink a bottle with SHERI-
DAN over night ; and the next morning walk
into the fields, and prattle to WORRALL.
Perhaps there never was a man equally de-
firous with Dr. Swift, to have a compa-
nion always at his beck, of ſome ſort or other ;
and without diſpute, throughout all Dublin he
could not have fixed upon another fo exactly
calculated to receive his commands, and eſpe-
cially to attend him in his morning exerciſe,
as JOHN WORRALL; the reſt of his acquaint-
ance being either gentlemen of fortune, fel-
lows of the univerſity, clergymen of diſtinc-
tion, or lawyers of eminence; who had their
own ſeveral ſtudies, amuſements, and occu-
pations,
U 4
296 Eſſay on the Life and
pations, as well as the Dean. However, it
is certain, that after the death of Mrs. Wor-
RALL, the Dean having by that time left off
walking abroad in a morning, ſhook off the
huſband as a man of little or no conſequence;
and behaved himſelf to WoRRALL with ſo
much dryneſs and coldneſs, that whenever
he came to his houſe, which he ſtill conti-
nued to do ſometimes, he was barely civil to
him; on account whereof the Dean was cen-
ſured in private, even by thoſe perſons,
whom the Obſervator would leaſt ſuſpect,
For any kindneſs or tenderneſs to the Doctor's
old acquaintance; not that any of them cared
threepence for WORRALL, or knew any thing
more of him, than as a man whom the
DOCTOR had once condeſcended to honour
with a ſhare in his friendſhip.
This in truth is to me one of the moſt
diſagreeable parts in the whole ſubject I have
undertaken to manage ; and yet I muſt ſtill
in Gift
upon
the remainder of WORRALL'scha-
racter ; becauſe the account given of this little
maſter of the ſong, appears to have been
drawn up by the Obſervator in direct oppo-
ſition to what he falſely imagines (for any
thing I know to the contrary) was dictated
by the monopolizers of Dr. Swift to the
author of the Remarks.
Now WORRALL's true character is this.
He was one of the greateſt miſers in the
world;' and ſpent the latter ſcenes of his life
in
Character of Dr. Swift.
297
in acting the part of VOLPONE. He had en-
deavoured without ſucceſs to play his tricks
upon ſome of the choir, on whom he wanted
to faſten himſelf, not only as a perpetual
gueſt, but as a director and judge of their
æconomy; under a notion that he would
leave his adopted ſon the greater part, if not
the whole of his fortune. And this matter
he puſhed fo far in one of their families, that
at laſt he was actually forbidden the houſe;
and afterwards became the ſtanding jeſt of
the whole choir. But, although he failed
in his attempts upon his brethren, he con-
trived to inſinuate hiinſelf into the good graces
of another family; and by degrees became ſo
far maſter of their table, as not only to make
it his property, but to fignify what diſhes he
liked beft, (which were generally of the ex-
penſive kind) and to aſk a friend, or a ſtran-
ger, whenever he had a mind, to partake
of the entertaiment, which he might freely
do without any ſort of heſitation, having
declared Mr. F ** his adopted ſon. And
theſe artifices he carried ſtill farther, in order
to cloke his purpoſes, and to baniſh all ap-
pearances of deceit. The following inſtance,
which Mr. F * * told me with abundance
of humour, will perhaps give you ſome ideą
A tenant of WORRALL's hav-
ing come to town, in order to ſettle 'accounts
and renew a leaſe ; WORRALL invited him
to the tavern, where he beſpoke an expen-
five
of the man.
298 Eſſay on the Life and
five dinner ; then called upon Mr. F **
to be of the party. The accounts were all
Itated in the preſence of his adopted fon; and
the reſt of their buſineſs talked over, and ap-
proved. But, when the bill for their enter-
tainment was brought up, WORRALL turning
himself to Mr. F** defired him in a low
voice to pay the reckoning; for, George',
faid he, this perſon will be your own tenant
one of theſe days: And accordingly the
adopted ſon paid the whole expences at the
tavern. I cannot but fay, that Mr. F**
through meer indignation confeſſed to me
above a year ago, when I had no thought of
making uſe of the ſtory, or of introducing
WORRALL’s name into any page of this work,
that he believed in his conſcience he had
ſpent ſomewhat above 400l. extraordinary
upon this little fox of a clergyman, this little
maſter of arts, this reader and vicar of Sr.
PATRICK's cathedral, and maſter of the
long.
However, this foundling; I beg his par-
don; this gentleman (faith the Obſervator)
" is lately dead; and hath left a large ſum of
moncy to publick charities, and the Dean's
hoſpital in particular."
GREAT G-D! what an amazing aſſer-
tion is here! to the Dean's hoſpital in particu-
lar. If Worrall bequeathed one ſhilling to
the hoſpital founded by Dr. SWIFT, then
every word in this chapter is a calumny.
And,
is
Character of Dr. Swift. 299
And, if he did not; I appeal unto the com-
mon ſenſe of all human kind, what credit is
to be given to the affirmations or the atteſta-
tions of a writer, who makes not the leaſt
ſcruple of impoſing on the world ſo notorious
a falfhood; a wilful, an abandoned falfhood,
even in defiance of a record, proved, like
moſt other wills, in the court of prerogative,
and regiſtered in the proper office to his con-
fuſion. But, that I may not ſeem to the
world as a deceiver, I will endeavour to ſet
this matter in a clear and impartial light.
Worrall, whom all his friends, until his
dying moments were approaching, could
never prevail upon to make a will, expreſſed,
as I have been told by an authority which I
deem unqueſtionable, a very great ſenſibility
of his own covetous and miſerable temper,
ſome little time, perhaps twp or three days,
before his final exit. And 'accordingly, as
riches would not avail him in the next world,
having reſolved to make the beſt uſe of them
he could before he defcended to the grave,
totally forgetting Mr. F ** his adopted ſon,
he bequeathed 301, a year for life to his old
houſekeeper, 1001, a year exhibitions to ten
ſervitors, or ſizers, in the univerſity of Dub-
lin, and the reſt to his executors, to be diſ-
poſed of, as I apprehend, in publick chari-
ties, after what manner they ſhould approve.
His executors indeed were pleaſed to appro-
priate 500l. to Dr. Swift's hoſpital, and the
like
300 Eſſay on the Life and
convey unto the minds of thoſe who are
like ſum, as I have been told, of sool. each,
to two other hoſpitals. But WORRALL him-
felf left not one Thilling to Dr. Swift's, or
to any other hoſpital whatſoever.
'But ſuppoſing the Obſervator's account
of this little maſter of arts, to be every fylla-
ble of it true in its full extent and meaning,
whick it certainly is not; if any man will
talmly reflect upon the inſignificancy of
WORRALL, his ſituation, his character, his
birth, and education, (for, like others I could
name, whoſe delight was to bring SWIFT
acquainted with very mean people, and ſome
of them exceſſively immoral, he had been
bred 'a fizér, or fervitor, 'in the univerſity,
to attend upon his betters) he cannot but in-
fer, that it rather eſtabliſhes than overthrows
what is argued to the diſadvantage of Dr.
Swift by the author of the Remarks; al-
though it muſt be confeſſed, the fagacity of
thie Obſervatór deſigned it otherwiſe. So
much for his obſervation, “ that Swift al-
ways lived with, and loved the people of
" talents moſt congenial to his own*."
There is another paſſage in the 8th letter,
which I could not read with any ſort of pa-
tience. The Obſervator compares ſome of the
worthieſt gentlemen among all the DOCTOR'S
acquaintance to his night-gown, his couch,
and his eaſy chair. What ideas he would
* Vid. Let. 19.
unac-
Character of Dr. Swift.
301
unacquainted with the merits of thoſe geni
tlemen, he beſt can tell.
THERE is beſides, a great want of delicacy
and politeneſs, over and above the hazard of
an untruth, in the character which he gives
of MR. FORDE. He declares without heſita.
tion, that MR. FORDE was the beſt lay-
ſcholar of his time and nation. Had he ſaid
that MR. FORDE was one of the beſt ſcholars
&c. his compliment would have made its
appearance with eaſe and gracefulneſs; nei-
ther can I preſume to fay, that any objection
could have been raiſed againſt it. But, in
declaring that Mr. Forde was the beſt lay-
ſcholar&c. it is manifeft, that he proudly
diſtinguiſhes between the clergy and the laity;
and contemptuouſly ſinks the latter below all
degrees of compariſon with the former. And
yet how can the Obſervator be ſure, that the
beſt lay-ſcholar in the kingdom, at any time
whatſoever, is not abſolutely the beſt ſcholar
in the kingdom? For, if holy orders do not
convey the gift of languages and abilities,
in theſe corrupt ages of the world, as it is
plain to a demonſtration they do not, the
odds are clearly on the ſide of the laity; and
for this ſingle reaſon; becauſe a man of for-
tune, leiſure, and application to the ſeveral
branches of learning, who is not encumbered
with a profeſſion, has double the advantage
of any other, whoſe time and thoughts (how
reputably, how glorioully foever employed
in
3.02 Eflay on the Life and
in the cure of ſouls) are principally devoted,
or, at leaſt, ought to be devoted, to one
particular ſtudy. 1
The Obſervator is likewiſe, for want of
ſome little conſideration, which it muſt be
confefíed he has not always about him, under
a ſtrange dilemma, and runs the hazard of an
untruth, by declaring abſolutely that Mr.
FORDE was the beſt Jay-ſcholar of his time
and nation. : Fof, how could the Obſervator,
or any man upon earth, have known for cer-
taini, who was the beſt lay-ſcholar among
two million of people? Was the Obſervator
acquainted perſonally, ſuppoſing him to be a
competent judge of thoſe matters, with every
gentleman of abilities and learning ſcattered
up and down throughout the whole king-
dom? In ſhort; further than as it appears
from the productions of the age, it is a point
hardly to be conjectured, much leſs ever to be
decided with any degree of certainty, who
is the beſt fcholar, no matter whether of the
laity or of the prieſthood, in any civilized
pation whatſoever.
I HAVE little more to object againſt the
remainder of this 8th letter, only that ſince
the Obſervator has ventured ſo far as to men-
tion the names of particular perſons, (which
is perhaps a method of reaſoning ſcarce to be
allowed in matters of fuch a delicate nature,
where the abilities, learnings and politeneſs
,
of a number of gentlemen are brought into
the
Character of Dr. Swift.
303
lan
the queſtion) he ſhould have gone fornewhat
further, and given us a more compleat,cata-
logue of Swift's acquaintance in Ireland,
whether of the firſt, ſecond, or third claſs;
for, it is certain he has omitted the names of
as great, as worthy, and as learned men, as
any
that he has recorded: And then perhaps
his argument might have food in a fair and
a clear point of light, and defied all oppoſition
as well as it could.
But, to come to another particular. The
Obſervator, without any the leaſt provoca-
tion, further than what his own wild inco-
herent ideas ſuggeſted to his imagination, is
pleaſed to be exceſſively inraged againſt ſome
very near relations of Dr. Swift, who were
perhaps as warmly and ſincerely his friends,
at leaſt one of them undoubtedly was *, as
any the moſt fanguine, that ever wereacquaint-
ed with him in the whole courſe of his life.
This furious writer, not able to contain his
in the very apparatus of his book, wherein he
falls upon them bitterly, outrageouſly, un-
mercifully: In the former they are accuſed in
plain terms of ingratitude, lying, inſincerity,
and other crimes of an atrocious nature: In
the latter they are not only accuſed of circum-
vention, fraud, untruth, defamation, and
hypocriſy; but of endeavouring to monopo-
* The author poſitively, and without affadation, de
çlares, that he does not mean himſelf,
I've
a
ü:
304 Effay on the Life and
to any
lize the Doctor unto themſelves, in all pro-
bability with a deſign to pillage him. Dread-
ful accuſations! Falſe and groundleſs accuſa-
tions; the work of darkneſs, forged in hell,
and as devoid of truth, as the anſwer upon oath
bill in Chancery, which has been prefer-
red in Ireland within the compaſs of theſe laſt
feven years. If indeed the Obſervator can
exhibit one ſingle teſtimony, or even the
colour of a teſtimony, which he is defied to
produce, in the ſupport of his charge; let the
credulous world hereafter give an implicit
aſſent, without ever calling his veracity in
queſtion, to the moſt ſilent of his atteſtations.
On the contrary; if the Obſervator cannot
maintain the moſt minute article in that
whole body of accumulated ſlander, with
which he hath endeavoured to aſperſe the
innocent; he is an infamous detractor; and
whatever elſe the reader will pleaſe to call
him. But, allowing, for the ſake of argu-
ment, that ſome of the Doctor's near rela-
tions; who might on the ſcore of nature, and
perhaps other conſiderations, be ſuppoſed to
have ſome claim to his friendſhip; had been
deſirous, like all the reſt of the world in
fimilar caſes, to have monopolized him unto
themſelves, principally with an intention to
enlarge their own fortunes, (which however
is entirely falſe) their crime would neither
have been devouring widows houſes; nor, by
the moſt helliſh and abominable of all iniqui-
tous
Character of Dr. Swift.
305
tous contrivances, cheating whole families out
of their lawful, their bereditary poleſions.
But, without the aſſiſtance of great and
ſuperior abilities, any candid impartial reader,
who hath eyes to ſee, and common ſenſe to
underſtand, might eaſily have collected from
Swift's own writings; which at leaſt a man
who pretends to criticiſe upon his life and
converſation, ought carefully to have peruſed;
that he was forſaken by his friends or com-
panions, call them which you pleaſe, long
before the vigour and ſprightlineſs of his
genius had began to fail; even a year before
his writing the famous Rhapſody, and three
years before his writing the Legion Club,
which the Obſervator is pleaſed to extol
greatly beyond all the reſt of his poetick per-
formances. And therefore the Obſervator
muſt allow, whether he will or not; or at
leaſt the reſt of the world will do it for him ;
that SWIFT was in thoſe times not to be ſo
far impoſed on by the inſinuations of
any
deſigning people whatſoever, as to encourage
them to baniſh from his houſe and converſa-
tion all his beſt acquaintance; even his clear-
ful, his felett, his learned companions * Is
it reaſonable to imagine, they could have
baniſhed from his houſe that fine poet; GOD
knows whom, (for the world is ftrangely at
a lofs to form any conjectures about him)
whoſe congenial talents of enabled him to pay
* Obf. Ler. 12. + Obf. Let. 19
X
a com
306 Eſſay on the Life and
ز
a compliment to Swift in his own irony; and
whoſe modeſty was ſo great, that he burnt ſome
of the genteeleſt verſes, in anſwer to his ironical
compliment, that ever were written by Dr.
Swift, in a fit of mortification*; and after-
wards told the ſtory to the Obſervator (from
hypocriſy, and all its attendant abominations,
good Lord deliver us!] in a fit of ſpiritual pride?
If indeed ſuch was the opinion of the Doc-
TOR's beſt friends, as the Obſervator calls thoſe
who neglected to vifit him in his declining
years; how came it to paſs, that not one of
the whole circle had either wiſdom or cou-
rage enough to repreſent this matter to the
Dean, and to 'warn him againſt the ſubtilty
of thoſe deſigning wretches? But, inſtead
of that open, fair, and generous dealing,
up ſtarts an Obſervator two and twenty years
after, and tells the world an abſurd ridiculous
ſtory, a fable of his own creation, without
head or tail, or ſo much as one grain of truth
in the whole compoſition. This mirror of
criticiſm, if he had written with any ſhare
of impartiality and candor, might have told
us in what year it was, that Swift began to
complain he was forſaken by his friends.
But ſince it happens that he has drawn a veil.
over this matter, and is cunningly ſilent upon
the occaſion; I muſt inform the publick, that
Swift began to complain in that very year,
fo renowned for the vigour and ſprightlineſs
* Obf. Let, 2.
of
Character of Dr. Swift. 307
of his genius, that his wit, as the Obſervator
terms it, was ſparkling champaign*. For,
in the ſame year that he wrote the Beaſt's
confeffion, talking occaſionally to his friend
GAY, he has theſe words; " I would fain
“ have you get enough againſt you grow
old, to have two or three ſervants about
you and a convenient houſe. It is hard
to want thoſe ſubſidia fene&tuti of, when
a man grows hard to pleaſe, and few peo-
ple care whether he be pleaſed or no: I
« have a large houſe ; yet I ſhould hardly pre-
" vail to find one viſitor, if I were not able to
“ hire him with a bottle of wine : So that
“ when I am not abroad on horſeback, I
generally dine alone, and am thankful
if a friend would paſs the evening with
I am now with the remainder of
my pint before me, and ſo here's your
“health I.” And again he ſays to POPE,
" I know not any man who is in a greater
“ likelihood than myſelf, to die poor
and
friendlefs ||.” Nay, the very women he
complains förlook him; “what (faith he)
vexes me moſt is, that my female friends
" who could bear with me very well a dozen
years ago, have now forſaken me, (which
by the way is not very conſiſtent with his
houſe being a conſtant ſeraglio
, whatever
" that means, of very virtuous women from
* Let. 18. † Supports to old age. | Let. 57. July 1738.
p. 200. | Let. 83. 1732-3. p. 285.
morn.
me.
X 2
66
308 Eſſay on the Life and
is
“ morning till nigbt*] although I am not ſo
" old in proportion to them, as I formerly
was;
which I can prove by arithmetick;
« for then I was double their age, which
now I am not.” But in the year 36 and
37 he complains tenderly; “Mrs White-
WAY is ever your friend; (faith he to
“ SHERIDAN) but your old ones have for-
" ſaken you, as mine have me of.” And
again, lamenting his condition to that ſame
worthy man, that abominator of hypocriſy,
whoſe friendſhip and ſincerity were equal to
his wit and learning; “ I have not one rag
“ of memory left; (faith he) and my friends
“ have all forſaken me I.”
Vertiginoſus, inops, furdus, malè gratus amicis (18.
But to finiſh all that is requiſite to be
urged upon this point. The death of Mrs.
Johnson contributed more, as I have hinted
in the gth chapter, to baniſh the Dean's com-
panions, or beſt friends, as the Obſervator
calls them about him, (as indeed from that
period he'dropt the cuſtom of entertaining
them twice a week on his publick days) than
all the preſumed efforts of any particular per-
fons whatſoever. Nay, the Doctor him-
ſelf hints in a letter to his friend SHERIDAN,
that with the loſs of Mrs. JOHNSON, all liis
* Vid. Remarks Let. 10. + Vol. 8. June 1736. p. 442:
I Vol. 8. April 1737. P: 450,
I Vol. 8. p. 466.
Deaf, giddy, helpleſs, left alone,
To all my friends a burtben grown.
plea-
:
Character of Dr. Swift. 309
***
pleaſures would be at an end. “ I have been
long (faith he) weary of the world, and
" Thall for my ſmall remainder of years
be
" weary of life, having for ever loſt that con-
verſation (this he wrote from England,
upon a ſuppoſition that Mrs. JOHNSON was
dead] which could only make it tolera-
“ ble*.” There was beſides, I am afraid,
fome heteroclite impatience in the Dean's tem-
per, even before he had compleated his 65th
year, which precluded the neceſſity of uſing
any ſiniſter arts to baniſh his acquaintance
from about him. “I am grown (faith he to
Pope) leſs patient with ſolitude, and harder
to be pleaſed with company; which I could
formerly better digeit, when I could be
" eaſier without it than at preſent of." Theſe
ſeveral cauſes added to the death of fome;
the diſperſion of others; and the ingratitude
of thoſe, who forſook the Doctor's ac-
quaintance, after they had made their for-
tunes under the ſhelter of his patronage; gave
occaſion to thoſe melancholy, thoſe tender
complaints, of that once great and admired
perſon; whoſe converſation even in his latter
days, after the vigour and ſprightlineſs of his
genius had greatly ſubſided, had ſomewhat
in it ſtrangely uncommon, which was not
to be remarked in the reſt of human kind.
• Vol. 8. July 1725. p. 410.
P. 281.
+ Let. 82. June 1732.
X 3
THE
310 Eſſay on the Life and
THE virulence of the Obſervator is ſo ex-
ceſſively malignant, that he cannot endure
with any patience to admit, that Swift's
abilities rendered him ſuperior to envy; which
is, I think, very juſtly obſerved by the author
of the Remarks. The Obfervator declares,
that Swift well knew MR. POPE to be
much his ſuperior in Epick poetry; Mr.
Gay in paítoral, &c; and my lord treaſurer
OXFORD much his ſuperior in politicks; a
ſcience however on which he valued himſelf
pot a little *
I Do profeſs, I have ſo high an eſteem for
my lord OXFORD, Mr. POPE, and Mr.
GAY, that I ſhall only remark; if any of
theſe great men were poffefſed of talents
which Swift had not, SWIFT was un-
doubtedly poſſeſſed of many
other
ſhining talents, which every one of them
were entirely ſtrangers to: And therefore it
may be ſtill aſſerted and maintained, in de-
fiance of the Obfervator and all his conjec-
tures, That Swift's abilities, or, if you
would rather have it ſo, his pride of abilities,
rendered him ſuperior to envy.
WAVING therefore any critique on his
poetical talents, which I have occaſionally
remarked in a former chapter t; I think,
we may venture to prophefy, that Swift's
reputation will in ſpight of his criticks, ob-
ſervators, and detractors, continue to flouriſh
. # Chap. II.
great and
* Obf. Let. 3:
and
Character of Dr. Swift.
311
and be adored, ſo long as any taſte for wit
and politics fhall remain in England. For,
it is not the hiſſing, ill-natured whiſper of a
gloomy retired monk, or diſconfolate hermit;
but, the loud and clear trumpet of the pub-
lick voice, which exalteth the reputation of
an author, and crowneth his fame with ho-
nour and immortality.
Before I proceed any further, I muſt beg
leave to acquaint the reader of taſte and judg-
ment, that I am well apprized the following
account of Dr. SWIFT will appear abrupt
and irregular; neither in truth could it well
have been contrived otherwiſe, unleſs there
had been a violent departing from the Doc-
TOR's own words; which, for many reaſons
will, eſpecially at this time, be more ſatis-
factory to an inquiſitive and curious world,
than a thouſand pages of Remarks and Obſer-
vations, unſupported by his authority.
But, to return to the Obſervator. How
is it poſſible he could “have been well aſſured,
" that Swift well knew my lord treaſurer Ox-
“ FORD to be much his ſuperior in politicks?
Is the Obſervator himſelf a politician? or, how
came he to be ſo well acquainted with the
politicks of my lord OXFORD, who is allowed
even by his friend Swift to have had the
greateſt inequalities of any man alive*; and
by all the reſt of the world to have been one
of the moſt reſerved, and myſterious, of at
* Vid. Vol. 7. p. 140.
leaſt
X 4
312 Eſſay on the Life and
::
leaſt all Engliſh politicians; which was in
fact the ruin of himſelf*, and the whole
Tory miniſtry +? However, with great reſpect
to the abilities of my lord treaſurer; I will
venture to aſſure the publick from unque-
ſtionable authority, even from the authority
of Dr. Swift's letters to Mrs. JOHNSON,
that my lord OXFORD never in his life act-
ed the politician with more dexterity and
finefle, than he did in the whole courſe of his
behaviour to Dr. Swift; barring indeed
the laſt act, (vid. the Faggot] wherein he
would not be directed by Swift, and recon-
ciled to his fellows: And accordingly his
ftoical obſtinacy proved the deſtruction of
them all. But, to avoid digreſſions; SWIFT
no ſooner appeared at London in the month
of Sept. 1710, but “all the Whigs were
« raviſhed to ſee him, and would have laid
s hold on him as a twig to ſave them from
finking; and the great men were all making
« him their clumſy apologies I.” “ It is
good (faith the DOCTOR) to ſee what a
lamentable confeſſion the whigs all make
* He was deprived of his treaſurer's ſtaff three days before
the queen died.
+ Vid. ATLAS, or the miniſter of Itate ; vid. the Faggot ;
vid. ſome free thoughts upon the preſent poftyre of affairs,
Vol. 7: and eſpecially my lord BOLINGBROKE's letter to
Swift, Numb. 39. Vol. 7. p. 134. and Swift's anſwer,
Numb. 40. V.7. p. 139. on' which I defire to be excuſed
from waking any particular remarks.
1 let. to Mrs. JOHNSON, Sept. 9. 1710. Memorandum
be writ to Mrs. Johnson every day.
« of
Character of Dr. Swift.
313
.
“ of my ill uſage *." In ſhort; the Whigs
would gladly have depended on his ſuperior
talents for their reſurrection; and the Tories
dreaded from his pen their inevitable deſtruc-
tion. Such was the opinion that both parties
had in thoſe days conceived of his abilities.
SWIFT was indeed repreſented to Mr. HAR-
LEY, as one extremely ill uſed by the laſt
miniſtry +;" a ſentiment, which in his
political wiſdom that great miniſter both
greedily and fearfully imbibed. And accord-
ingly, when Swift waited upon him about
the Firſt-Fruits and Twentieth Parts; HAR-
LEY knowing the pride and ſpirit of the man
with whom he had to deal, inſtantly began
to pay his court to Swift in all the ſhapes
that were conſiſtent with his ſpirit and dig-
nity. The moment that Swift appeared in
his houſe, HARLEY “received him with the
greateſt reſpect and kindneſs imaginable;
“and appointed him an hour two or three
days after to open his buſineſs to him I.”
No ſooner had SWIFT told him his buſineſs
on the day appointed, but Harley “enterea
“into it with all kindneſs, aſked him for his
powers and read them, and read likewiſe
“ the memorial he had drawn
put
“it into his pocket to ſhew the queen; told
“him the meaſures he would take; and in
ſhort, ſaid every thing he could wiſh; told
* Sept. 30. 1710,
+ Vid. Vol. 8. p. 357.
up, and
# 0&t. 4, 1710.
" him
314 Eſſay on the Life and
“ him he muſt bring Mr. Sr. John and
is him acquainted, and ſpoke ſo many things
" of perſonal kindneſs and eſteem, that he
[Swift) was inclined to believe what fome
« friends had told him, that he [HARLEY]
“ would do every thing to bring him over.
“ He [HARLEY] deſired him to dine with
" him on Tueſday, and after four hours bew
“ ing with him, ſet him down at St.
JAMES’s Coffee-houſe in a hackney-coach*.”
And again; "I muſt tell you (faith the Dr.)
" a great piece of refinement in HARLEY
[Memorandum, this was but four days after
" their firſt acquaintance] He charged me to
come to ſee him often ; I told him I was
"cloth to trouble him in ſo much buſineſs as
“ he had, and deſired I might have leave to
" come at his levee; which he immediately
es refuſed ; and ſaid, that was no, place for
friends t." In two days after HARLEY
" told him he had ſhewn his memorial to the
queen, and ſeconded it very heartily; be-
« caufe (faid he) the queen deſigns to fignify
" it to the biſhops of Ireland in form, and
“ take notice that it was done upon a memo-
"rial from you; which MR. HARLEY told
« Swift, he did to make it look more reſpect-
"ful to bim 1."
“I believe (faith he) never any thing was
* compaffed fo foon, and purely done by my
perſonal credit with MR. HARLEY, who is
. Oct. 7. 1710, O&. 8. 1710. # Oct. 10. 1710.
" so
is
Character of Dr. Swift. 315
« ſo exceſſively obliging, that I know not
“ what to make of it, unleſs to ſhew the
“ raſcals of the other party, that they uſed a
man unworthily who had deſerved bet-
" ter *.” “HARLEY (faith the Dr.) ſpeaks
all the kind things to me in the world f."
But, the account of his entertainment and
reception at the ſecretary's, will give you
fome clearer light into theſe matters. " I
“ dined to day (faith he) by invitation with
" the ſecretary of ſtate, Mr. ST. JOHN.
" MR. HARLEY came in to us before dinner,
“ and made me his excuſes for not dining with
“us, becauſe he was to receive people who
came to propoſe the advancing money to
the government.-The ſecretary uſed me
“ with all the kindneſs in the world. PRIOR
so came in after dinner; and upon an occaſion
"he (the ſecretary] ſaid, the beſt thing he
"ever read is not yours, ſays he, but Dr.
“ Swift's on VANBRUG; which I do not
“ reckon ſo very good neither; hut Prior
was dampt till I ſtuft him with two or three
compliments. He told me among other
things, that Mr. HARLEY complained he
“ could keep nothing from me, I had the way
ſo much of getting into him. I knew that
was a refinement; and ſo I told him; and
" it was ſo. Indeed it is hard to ſee theſe
great men uſe me like one who was their
“ better, and the puppies with you in Ire-
+ Nov. 8. 1710.
* Qa. 21. 1710,
is land
316 Effay on the Life and
“ land hardly regarding me. But, there are
“ ſome reaſons * for all this, which I will
“ tell you when we meet t.
But to avoid accumulating quotations
upon quotations, and crowding them one
upon the back of ancther; it is a point be-
yond all controverſy, that no ſovereign prince
was ever more careſſed by noble, generous,
and manly ſpirits, than Swift undoubtedly
was, not only by the great HARLEY, but all
the Tory miniſtry. For, it is certain, that
SWIFT courted not the miniſtry; but the
miniſtry courted Swift to be their champion
and their protector ; and uſed him with the
ſame reſpect, as well after, as before, he had
taken them under his care: Neither did he
once conſent, as will be ſeen hereafter, to
Stay with the ininiſtry, and run his fortune
among them. How different is this juſt and
true account, which I have extracted from
Swift's own letters, from what we meet
with in the fourth letter of the Obſerva-
tor; whoſe homely manner of repreſenting
I
* Theſe words have an eye to his writing the Examiner ;
which he kept as a profound ſecret from all the world, ex-
cept the printer and the miniſtry. Prior was ſuſpected for
being the author of the Examiner, Vid. Numb. 26, 31. and
had like to have been inſulted for it in the ſtreet; to which
the letter from the Whigs to the Examiner, Numb. 28. very
plainly alludes. I cannot but obſerve, that Swift teils
Mrs. Johnson in one of his letters dated March 7. 1710.
that ſhe may count upon all things in the Examiner to be true.
t Nov. 11. 1710.
I Vid. his own words, Examiner, Numb. 26.
Swift's
Character of Dr. Swift. 317
Swift's intimacy with ny lord OXFORD, is
not worth my quotation.
But, to proceed; it appears, I think, very
plainly, from ſome accidental paſſages in
Swift's letters to Mrs. JOHNSON, that how
reſerved and myſterious ſoever were the poli-
ticks of my lord OXFORD, he was more open
to Swift than to any of thoſe great men,
who had the honour to ſerve their country
under the appointment of HER MAJESTY.
His words are theſe; “ I dined with him
(Harley] to day. Every Saturday, Lord
Keeper, Secretary St. John, and I dine
“ with him, and ſometimes Lord RIVERS,
" and they let in none elſe *.--I ſtayed with
“MR. HARLEY till nine; when we had
“ much diſcourſe together after the reſt were
gone ; and I gave him very truly my opi-
“nion when he deſired it f." And the next
day he confirms what I have aſſerted in more
expreſs terms. But, as I have reaſon to be-
lieve, the curious and political would be glad
to know what was the converſation of two
ſuch great men as Harley and Swift in
thoſe factious times, I ſhall ſet down the
whole reſult of their deliberations, without
any diſguiſe, addition, or ſubſtraction, in the
Doctor's own words. “ This kingdom
* This was the infancy of that famous fociety of about
fixteen of the greateſt men in England, whereof Swift was
a member. They all pasted under the general denomination
of brothers,
† March 3. 1710.
' (faith
318 Eſſay on the Life and
“ (faith he) is certainly ruined as much as
was ever any bankrupt merchant. We
« muſt have peace, let it be a bad or a good
one *; though no body dares talk of it.
“ The nearer I look upon things, the worſe
" "I like them. I believe the confederacy
“ will ſoon break to pieces; and our factions
at home increaſe. The miniſtry is upon
“ a very narrow bottom; and ſtand like an
Iſthmus between the Whigs on one ſide,
" and violent Tories of on the other. They
are able feamen; but the tempeſt is too
great, the ſhip too is rotten, and the crew
" all againſt them. Lord SOMMERS has been
“ twice in the queen's cloſet, once very
lately; and the dutcheſs of St who
now has the key, is a moſt inſinuating
woman; and I believe they will endeavour
"to play the ſame game that has been played
againft them. I have told them all this
,
" which they know already; but they cannot
help it: They have cautioned the queen
“ ſo much againſt being governed, that ſhe
“ obſerves it too much. I could talk till to-
“ morrow upon theſe things; but they make
me melancholy. I could not but obſerve,
*" In my opinion (ſaid he in a former letter dated Jan. 7.
1710.) we have nothing to ſave us but a peace, and I am
or ſure we cannot have ſuch a one as we hoped ; and then
“ the Whigs will bawl what they would have done, had they
“ continued in power. I tell the miniſtry this as much as I
• dare, and Mall venture to ſay a little more to them."
+ Theſe violent Tories were the OCTOBER CLUB.
I
" that
Character of Dr. Swift. 319
« that lately after much converſation with
“ Mr. Harley; though he is the moſt
« fearleſs man alive, and the leaſt apt to
“ deſpond; he confeſſed to me, that uttering
“ his mind to me gave him eaſe *.”
HAVING in the above paſſage hinted at
the Oetober Club; perhaps that clear, impar-
tial account, of their indigeſted ſchemes, as
it fell accidentally from the pen of Dr.
Swift, may throw ſome additional light
upon the hiſtory of that æra, which it muſt
be confeſſed is very greatly wanted; and, at
the ſame time be a caution to all worthy and
ſober men, who principally intend the good
of their country in all their reaſonings and
debates, not violently to oppoſe and diſtreſs
any miniſtry whatſoever, who deſire to act
with temper and moderation upon conſtitu-
tional principles. His account of them runs
in theſe terms: “ We are plagued with an
" October Cub, that is, a ſet of above a hun-
“ dred parliament men of the country t,
" who drink October beer at home, and meet
every evening at a tavern near the parlia-
ment, to conſult affairs, and drive things
on to extreams againſt the Whigs; to call
“ the old miniſtry to account, and get off
March
4. 1710.
+“ A hundred and fifty he faith in another paſſage,
April 13. 1710.
# The country members, ſaid he in a former letter dated
Jan. 7.1710, are violent to have paſt faults enquired into,
and they have reaſon; but I do not obſerve the miniſtry to
be very fond of it.
r6 five
::
320 Effay on the Life and
“ five or fix heads. The miniſtry ſeem not
“ to regard them; yet one of them in confi-
“ dence told me, that there muſt be ſome-
thing thought on to ſettle things better.
“ I'll tell you one great ſtate fecret: The
queen ſenſible how much ſhe was governed
by the late miniſtry, runs a little into the
“ other extream; and is jealous in that point
even of thoſe who got her out of the others
“ hands. The miniſtry is for gentler mea-
“ ſures, and the other Tories for more violent.
“ Lord Rivers talking to me the other day,
“ curſed the paper called the Examiner for
ſpeaking civilly of the duke of Marl-
borough. This I happened to talk of to the
ſecretary, who blamed the warmth of that
« lord and ſome others, and ſwore that if
“ their advice were followed, they would be
“ blown up in twenty-four hours. And I
“ have reafon to think that they will endea-
vour to prevail on the queen to put her
“affairs more in the hands of a miniſtry than
« ſhe does at preſent: And there are, I be-
“ lieve, two men thought on, one of them
you have often met the name of in my
« letters *."
Swift, conſcious of his great abilities,
and that he was not obliged to the miniſtry
for
any
the leaſt favour; how much loever
they had been obliged to him for his care and
protection; treated every one of them round,
* Feb, 18. 1710.
juſt
Character of Dr. Swift. 321
juſt in what ſtile and manner he thought con-
venient. The miniſtry,
The miniſtry, who were them-
ſelves men of wit and penetration, bore with
his temper, and ſoothed him in his greateſt
irregularities. Had, they ventured to have
acted otherwiſe; they knew in their fouls,
that he would have taken horſe the next
morning; and, careleſs of their fate, expoſed
them to the fury of their enemies. But this
ſpirit of dominion, which more or leſs gave
a tincture to all his converſation and behaviour
throughout his whole life, was ſuffered freely
to paſs under the ſoft and gentle appellation
of wit and humour. “I dined to day (faith
he) with Mr. Secretary Sr. Joun: I went
to the court of requeſts at noon, and ſent
« MR. HARLEY into the houſe to call the
Secretary, to let him know I would not
" dine with him, if he dined late*.” Where
do you find in the Roman, the Grecian, the
Perſick, the Allyrian, the Ægyptian, or the
Punick ſtory, any champion, or protector of
a miniſtry, alive and ſpirited to ſuch an exalted
degree, as to command the firſt miniſter of
ſtate to call out the Secretary from the import-
ant buſineſs of his King and Country, upon
ſo bootleſs an affair? But, a ſpirit of liberty,
or, in other words, a juſt and true notion of
inherent wiſdom and fortitude, will bear up
the poffeffor, like the hand of an angel, and
encourage him to things, which are wild,
* Feb. 12. 1710.
Y
ſtrange,
2
322 Effay on the Life and
ſtrange, and amazing to ſlaves, and flat-
terers, and all the inferior claffes of wretched
human kind. Agreeable to the ſame ſpirit
,
" The miniſtry (ſaith the Doctor) are good
“ honeft hearty fellows: I uſe them like dogs,
“ becauſe I expect they will uſe me fo. They
“ call me nothing but JONATHAN; and I
fayd I believed they would leave me Jon A-
" THAN 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
lo; but I care not*.”
AT the hours that Swift was not engaged
in political affairs, he laughed, he played, he
amuſed himſelf, with every whim and vagary
that floated on the ſurface of his imagina-
tion. “Secretary St. John (faith he) would
“ needs have me dine with him to day;
& there I found three perſons I never ſaw,
“ two I had no acquaintance with, and one
« I did not care for: So I left them early and
came home, it being no day to walk, but
ſcurvy rain and wind. The Secretary tells
« me he has put a cheat upon me ; for Lord
« PETERBOROUGH ſent him twelve dozen
flaſks of Burgundy on condition that I
" ſhould have my ſhare; but he never was
quiet till they were all gone; ſo I reckon he
owes me thirty-fix pound ." But, in a
few days after, Swift in a pleafant manner
+ Feb. 18. 1710.
and
• Feb. 17.1710.
took
Character of Dr. Swift.
323
took ample ſatisfaction of the Secretary: For,
“ I dined to day (faith he) with Mr Secre-
tary ST. JOHN, on condition I might chufe
my company, which were Lord Rivers,
“ Lord CARTERET, Sir THOMAS MANSELL,
“ and MR. LEWIS; I invited MASHAM;
HILL, Sir John STANLEY, and GEORGE
“GRANVILLE, but they were engaged; and
" I did it in revenge of his having ſuch bad
company when I dined with him before:
“ So we laughed &c*." This puts me in
mind of an accident which happened at
Windſor. “ The court here (faith the Doc-
TOR) have got by the end a good thing I
" ſaid to the Secretary fome weeks ago. He
“ Thewed me his bill of fare to tempt me to
“ dine with him: Poh, faid I, I value not
your bill of fare; give me your bill of
company. Lord Treaſurer was mightily
pleaſed, and told it every body as a notable
thing t."
But further ; SWIFT was a man of ſuch
exalted ſpirit and fire, that if a benefit deſigned
him were not accompanied with elegance and
grace in the manner of propoſing it, he would
fcorn the intended favour, and reſent it as an
affront. He quarrelled with his friend HAR-
LEY on a punctilio of this kind. “MR. HAR-
LEY (faith he) deſired me to dine with hich
again to day, but I refuſed him; for I fell
out with him yeſterday, and will not ſee
+ Sept 2. 17112
« him
* Feb. 23. 1710.
Y 2
324 Eſſay on the Life and
“ him again till he makes me amends*.”
But to come to the point. “I was this
morning early (faith he) with Mr. Lewis
“ of the Secretary's office, and ſaw a letter
“ MR. HARLEY had ſent him deſiring to be
" reconciled; but I was deaf to all intreaties,
" and have deſired Lewis to go to him, and
« let him know I expect further ſatisfaction.
If we let theſe great miniſters pretend too
“ much, there will be no governing them. He
“ promiſes to make me eaſy if I will but come
“and ſee him; but I wont; and he ſhall do
" it by meſſage, cr I will caſt him of: 1
« will tell you the cauſe of our quarrel when
you,
and refer it to yourſelves of.
“In that he did fonsething which he in-
tended for a favour, and I have taken it
“quite otherwiſe, diſliking both the thing
" and the manner, and it has heartily vexed
me; and all I have ſaid is truth, though it
“ looks like jeſt: And I abſolutely refuſed to
"ſubmit to his intended favour, and expect
« further ſatisfaction 1.” But in a few days
after he ſays, “ I have taken MR. HARLEY
“ into favour again li.
I CANNOT find out the nature and circum-
ſtances of this quarrel from Dr. Swift's
letters. I am inclined to believe (which how-
ever is a wild imagination of my own) that
" I fee
* Feb. 6. 1710.
+ Stella and her friend Mrs Diwaly. His letters
ſeemingly are often addreſſed to both thoſe Ladies.
| Feb. 7: 1710.
Feb. 13. 1710
MR.
Character of Dr. Swift. 325
Mr. HARLEY, perhaps with too much rapi-
dity, caught up ſome hint from the laſt
printed Examiner [dated Feb. 1. 1710.) that
Swift began to think it was time he ſhould
have ſome reward for the pains he had taken
in ſupport of the adminiſtration. For, in
the heart of that paper, he talks very highly
of his own merit and abilities; and ſeemingly
complains between jeſt and earneſt; that ſo
far from being rewarded ſuitable to his deſerts,
he never had any recompenſe at all, for being
their champion and protector againſt a routed
cabal of hated politicians, with a dozen fcri
blers at their head. Which however, in his
uſual manner, by the help of an irony, he
turns to their advantage. But what particu-
lar favour it was, that Mr. HARLEY deſigned
him, is not to be conjectured: Neither have
we any thing more in his letters concerning
this matter, than what is darkly hinted at,
whatever that be, in the following words.
“Yes, I underſtand a cypher, and ppt
(STELLA) gueffes right, as ſhe always does.
“ He [HARLEY] gave me al bſadnuk lboinlpt
dfaonir ufainfbtoy dpionufnad; which I ſent
" him again by Mr. Lewis, to whom I
“ writ a very complaining letter that was
" Thewed him, and ſo the matter ended.
" He told me he had a quarrel with me;
I
« faid I had another with him, and we re-
“ turned to our friendſhip; and I think he
" loves me as well as a great miniſter can love
*
Y 3
a
326 Eſſay on the Life and
à man in fo ſhort a time. Did not I do
"right*?". But whoſoever was the original
cauſe of their quarrel, it is certain that Mrs.
JOHNSON approved his conduct, and the ſpirit
with which he had behaved himſelf; for, a
good while after he faith gravely enough in
one of his letters; “ I am pleaſed that ppt
f the conjurer approves what I did with
Ś MR. HARLEY fo.
The open, generous manner, in which he
treated his miniſterial friends, and expected
to be treated by them, is clear and evident
from a diſcourſe he had with the Secretary
on a particular occaſion. “I dined (ſaith he)
ss with the Secretary, who ſeemed terribly
“ down and melancholy, which MR. PRIOR
" and Lewis obſerved as well as I: Perhaps
« fomething is gone wrong; perhaps there is
nothing in it I.” This alone gave riſe
to the following expoftulation. “I called
(faith he) at Mr. Secretary's, to ſee what
" the D-ailed him on Sunday: I made him
" a very proper ſpeech, told him I obferved
“ he was much out of temper; that I did
“ not expect he would tell me the cauſe, but
“ would be glad to ſee he was in better; and
one thing I warned him of, never to appear
« cold to me, for I would not be treated
s like a ſchool-boy; that I had felt too much
" of that in my life already; that I expected
every great miniſter who honoured me with
* Marcb 7. 1710. † April 5. 1711. April 1. 1711:
« his
Character of Dr. Swift.
327
“ his acquaintance, if he heard or faw any
thing to my diſadvantage, would let me
“ know it in plain words, and not put me
“ in pain to gueſs by the change or coldneſs
" of his countenance or behaviour, for it was
“ what I would hardly bear from a crowned
head, and I thought no ſubject's favour was
« worth it. And that I deſigned to let my
“ Lord Keeper and MR. HARLEY know the
“ ſame thing, that they might uſe me accord-
ingly. He took all right; ſaid, I had rea-
“ fon; vowed nothing ailed him but fitting
up
whole nights at buſineſs, and one night
“at drinking; would have had me dined
« with him and Mrs. MASHAM's brother, to
“ make up matters; but I would not: I don't
"know, but I would not. But indeed I
“ was engaged with my old friend ROLLISON;
you never heard of him before* And
in his letter of the next day, he has theſe
words: Why I think what I ſaid to MR.
Secretary was right t."
BUT, what importance do theſe late writers
imagine Dr. SWIFT was of to the miniſtry
and the conſtitution in general ?
“ He was a man of wit; a ſcholar; in-
dulged by the ſmiles and converſation of the
“ Earl of OXFORD; one that flattered himſelf
too highly in the notion, that the place of
Hiſtoriographer was intended for him ;
[wbicb by.the way be diſdained to accept,
April 3. 1711.
+ April 4. 1711.
because
Y 4
328. Eſſay on the Life and
“ becauſe it was at the diſpoſal of a pirſon,
"s who had not the ſmalleſt share of feddineſs
"cr fincerity * ;] elated with the appearance
“ of enjoying miniſterial confidence. He en-
joyed the ſhadow : The ſubſtance was de-
"tained from him. He was employed, not
truſted ; and at the ſame time that he ima-
“ gined hiinſelf a ſubtil diver, who dex-
" trouſly ſhot down into the profoundeſt
“ regions of politicks, he was ſuffered only
to found the ſhallows neareſt the ſhore,
" and was ſcarce admitted to deſcend below
" the froth at the top. Perhaps the deeper
" bottoms were too muddy for his inſpec-
tionut. A cruel inſinuation, compriſed in
thoſe laſt words, to the diſhonour of a great
miniſter, whoſe only apparent faults (bad
enough, it is true, and fatal in their confe-
quences !) were reſerve and procraſtination.
• BUT, to form fome clear and right con-
ception of what importance Dr. Swift was
in thoſe turbulent days of party; we had, I
think, better rely upon his own words, and
upon the authority of ſome undoubted facts,
than upon the groundleſs and chimerical
aſſertions of any writers whatſoever. To
enlarge indeed upon this point, as far as it
might be carried from accidental paſſages in
the abovementioned letters to Mrs. JOHN-
«
* Vid. Swift's Let. to Pore dated Jan, 101721.
Vol. p. 14.
+ Vid. Remarks Let: 4.
SON,
Character of Dr. Swift. 329
son, would be to write a good moderate
volume expreſsly on that ſubject. I ſhall
therefore reſt the whole of his political merit
on a few ſhort quotations out of at leaſt an
hundred that I could extract from theſe ex-
tempore, 'undiſguiſed epiſtles, all written
within the compaſs of a year and a half;
and upon two original letters from Dr.
Swift, one of them to his friend the Lord
TREASURER, the other to the late Earl, of
OXFORD; and then refer it to the ingenuity
and candor of an impartial world, to form
what conjectures they pleaſe on his import-
ance and abilities.
It does not appear from theſe letters, that
Swift had any deſign of attaching himſelf
to the Tory miniſtry when he came firſt to
London in the beginning of Sept. 1710. For,
he declares within a few days after his arrival,
that, “he is heartily weary of London, and
“ wiſhes that he had never ſtirred (from Ire-
“ *
land] *.” But obſerving in the month of
October in what manner he was courted by
Mr. HARLEY and Mr. Secretary ST. JOHN,
(“who frequently proteſted, after he had
" become their intimate, that he was the
only man in England they were afraid
" of it) as well as by all the reſt of the great
people in power, to whom he was imme-
diately introduced by MR. HARLEY upon
their firſt acquaintance, he readily enough
* Sept. 12. 1710.
+ June 30. 1711.
ac-
330 Effay on the Life and
court.
accepted the invitation to be their friend and
protector.
And now the publick intereſt to ſupport,
By HARLEY SWIFT invited comes to
SWIFT's Poems.
" I STAND with the new people (faith
he) ten times better than ever I did with
" the old; and forty times more careffed *.
“ THE preſent miniſtry have a difficult
taſk, and want me, &c. According to
" the beft judgment I have, they are purſu-
ing the true intereſt of the publick, and
" therefore I am glad to contribute what lies
" in my power t."
“ As for your news (faith the DOCTOR)
" that Mr. ST. JOHN is going to Holland,
" he has no fuch thoughts to quit the great
“ ſtation he is in; nor if he had, could I be
" fpared to go with him I.
AND again;
“ May my enemies live here (at London]
“ in ſummer; and yet I am ſo unlucky, that
* I cannot poffibly be out of the way at this
juncture. --The Wbigs whiſper that our
miniſtry differ among themſelves, and they
begin to talk out the Secretary. They have
" ſome reaſons for their whiſpers; though I
thought it was a greater ſecret. I do not
" much like the preſent poſture of things; I
always apprehended that any falling out
* 08.14. 1710. + Nov, 29. 1710. | Jan. 24. 1710.
" would
Character of Dr. Swift. 331
« would ruin them, and ſo I have told them
“ feveral times. The Whigs are mighty full
of hopes at preſent, and whatever is the
" matter, all kinds of ſtocks fell. I have
« not yet talked with the Secretary about
“ Prior's journey [to France). I ſhould be
apt to think it may foretell a peace; and
" that is all we have to preſerve us*."
Swift and the Secretary having appointed
to ſpend a whole day in private together upon
affairs of the greateſt conſequence; “ The
" duce (faith he) is in this Secretary; when
“ I went to him this morning he had people
« with him; but fays we are to dine with
“ Prior to day, and then will do all our
« buſineſs in the afternoon: At two, PRIOR
“ fends word he is otherwiſe engaged: Then
« the SECRETARY and I go and dine with
brigadier BRITON, fit till eight, grow
merry, no buſineſs done, we part, and
appoint no time to meet again. This is
“ the fault of all the prefent miniſters, teaz-
“ing me to death for my affiſtance, laying
" the whole weight of their affairs upon it;
“ and Nipping opportunities it."
But, not to infift wholly upon generals,
or upon matters of inferior conſequence, al-
though I could produce forty inſtances of
SWIFT's political wiſdom, and Herculean
ſtrength in fupport of the conſtitution; the
Tory miniftry would certainly have been
* Aug, 27. 1711.
08.31. 1711.
over-
6
.
332 Effay on the Life and
overthrown in the latter end of the year 1711,
had it not been for that ſingle treatiſe, enti-
tled, The Conduct of the Allies. To engage in
political controverſies, or to enter into the
merits of the peace of Utrecht, is by no means
any part of my deſign. I fall therefore only
obſerve, without regarding whether a peace
was neceſſary, or whether it was more expe-
dient to continue the war in Flanders, that it
was Swift's opinion, “the miniſtry might
“ hold, if they could carry a peace; but not
« otherwiſe *.” And accordingly he began to
write this famous tract, which he frankly
acknowledges coſt him abundance of pains,
in the month of June 1711, much about the
time that preliminaries for a peace were under
confideration.
TAKING it then for granted, without dif-
puting the point through a long ſeries of rea-
ſoning, that HARLEY, ST. JOHN, and the
reſt, were at that period in a very tottering
condition, as they certainly were; I ſhall ob-
ſerve in a curſory manner, what oppofi!ion
was made to their conduct, and by what
means they were preſerved from their in-
tended ruin.
The Whigs encouraged, ſupported, and
abetted, by the Dutch, the Emperor, and all
the Princes in the Grand Alliance, were
furious againſt a peace. In the ſummer of
the year 1711 they had been extremely active
* Dec. 3. 1711.
in
Character of Dr. Swift.
333
in muſtering up their forces, and collecting
their whole itrength againſt the next meeting
of the parliament; and with ſuch dexterity
their affairs were managed, that actually they
had gotten the Queen herſelf to be ſecretly on
their fide, as appeared to a demonſtration
from her behaviour to the Duke of Shrews-
bury on the 7th of December, 1711* Thus
elated with hope, and with a full aſſurance of
ſucceſs in defeating the miniſtry, and qualhing
the preliminaries of a peace, ſtocks fell, and
all difficulties ſeemed to vaniſh before them.
“ We have no quiet (ſaith the DOCTOR)
« with the Whigs, they are ſo violent againſt
* As the curious perhaps would be glad to know this little
point of hiſtory, I ſhall deliver it in the words of Dr.
Swift, whole teſtimony is, I believe, unqueſtionable.
" When the Queen was going from the houſe of Lords,
“ where ſhe ſate to hear the debate, on the 7th of December,
1711. the Duke of SUREWSBURY, I.ord Chamberlain,
" aſked her Majeſty, whether he, or the great. Chamberlain
“ LINDSAY, ought to lead her out. She anſwered ſhort,
" neither of you ; and gave her hand to the Duke of SOMER-
SET, who was louder than any in the houſe, againſt
" the peace.” [Dec. 8. 1711.) And what is more, Dr.
Swift having aſked my Lord OXFORD, whether ſome
particular lords would have voted against the court, if
“ the Duke of SOMERSET had not aſſured chem it would
pleaſe the Queen; my Lord Oxford plainly told him, his
conjectures were true, and that my Lord Duke of Somera
SET had ſo aſſured them.” (Dec. 11. 1711.) And this
behaviour of the Queen was in fact the original cauſe of her
making twelve Peers at once, “after ſhe had at laft been
" perfuaded to her own intereſt and ſecurity. Yet after all,
« iaith the Doctor, it is a ſtrange unhappy neceffity of
" making ſo many peers together; but the Queen has drawn
“ it upon herfelf by her trimming and moderation" (Dec.
29, 1711.)
a peace;
.
334 Eſſay on the Life and
« a peace;
but I will cool them with a ven-
geance, very foon *."
« I have written
"a paper (faith he) which the miniſters
" reckon will do abundance of good, and
open the eyes of the nation, who are half
** bewitched againſt a peace. Few of this
* generation can remember any thing but
* war and taxes, and they think it is as it
« ſhould be; whereas it is certain, we are the
a moft undone people in Europe, as I am
“afraid I ſhall make appear beyond all con-
« tradi&iont." And accordingly, upon the
27th of November, juſt ten days before the
meeting of parliament, The Conduět of the
Allies was publiſhed I. The pamphlet made
a world of noiſe, and in two days a thouſand
of them were ſold. The ſecond edition came
out December the ift, and was fold off in five
hours. By this time all London, both court
and city, were alarmed. The Dutch Envoy
deſigned to complain of it, and refuſed din-
ing with Dr. D'AVENANT, becauſe, among
others, he was fuſpected to be the author.
The Whigs reſolved to bring it into the
houſe of Lords, to have it there examined;
and the Lord Chief Juſtice ſent for MORPHEW
the printer, threatened him, aſked him who
was the author of The Conduet of the Allies,
and bound him over to appear the next term.
# 0&t. 30. 17.11.
# The following accounts relative to this pamphlet, are
extracted from various paffages in Swife's letters, and are
all the Doctor's own words.
The
off Oct. 26. 1711.
Character of Dr. Swift. 335
The noiſe which it made was extraordinary
“ It is fit (faith the Doctor) it hould anſwer
“ the pains I have been at about it. Some
lay it to Prior, others to Mr. Secretary
“ST. JOHN, but I am always the firſt they
lay every thing to*.” However, within
four days after it was publiſhed, there was a
report in London, that ſeveral of the Wbigs
began to be content that a peace ſhould be
treated: In ſhort, no pamphlet ever had
ſuch a prodigious run. It immediately paſſed
through ſeven editions: Eleven thouſand of
them were ſold before the 28th of January,
and three editions in Ireland before the begin-
ning of February t.
The parliament, however, met on the
7th of December. “The Earl of NOTTING-
« HAM began and ſpoke againſt a peace, and
« deſired that in their addreſs they might
put in a clauſe to adviſe the Queen not
to make a peace without Spain; which
was debated and carried by the Whigs by
« about fix voices in a committee of the
“ whole houſe I :" and the next day the
" clauſe was carried againſt the court in the
" houſe of Lords almoſt two to onell."
The Doctor, who has written copiouſly
on theſe proceedings, concludes his Letter
* Dec. 2. 1711.
+ This account of three editions being ſold in Ireland, I
find by his Letters was a point of news received from Mrs.
Johnſon.
I Dec. 7, 1711.
| Dec. 8, 1711.
in
2
336 Effay on the Life and
in theſe words ; “ This is a long journal,
" and of a day that may produce great al-
“ terations, and hazard the ruin of England.
“ The Whigs are all in triumph. They'
« foretold how all this would be, but we
" thought it boaſting. Nay they ſaid the
parliament ſhould be diffolved before
“ Chriſtmas, and perhaps it may; this is
" all
your
* DS of S-T's doings: I
“ warned them (the Miniſters] of it nine
“ months ago, and a hundred times ſince.
“ The Secretary always dreaded it.--I told
“ Lord TREASURER, I ſhould have the ad-
vantage of him, for he would loſe his
“ head and I ſhould only be hanged, and ſo
carry my body entire to the grave."
And ſhortly after talking of theſe affairs ;
" Here are (faith the Doctor) the firſt
ſteps towards the ruin of an excellent mi-'
niſtry; for I look upon them as certainly
“ ruined. --Some are of opinion the whole
miniſtry will give up their places nexť
" week; others imagine, when the ſeſſions
" is over.--I do reſolve if they give up, or
are turned out ſoon, to retire for ſome
" months, and I have pitched upon the
place already: I would be out of the
way upon the firſt of the ferment. For
they lay all things on me, even fome I
. Mrs. Johnſon was certainly a Wbg, as appears from
numberleſs pafruges in theſe Letters.
+ Dec 8, 1711.
" have
Character of Dr. Swift. 337
;
(6
« have never read *.” Nevertheleſs, while
things continued in this doubtful ſituation,
and many of the friends of the miniſtry had
given all for gone; ſuch was the force of
reaſoning, and ſuch were the merits of that
pamphlet, The Conduct of the Allies ; “ that
“ the tory Lords and Commons in parlia-
ment argued all from it; and all agreed that
never any thing of that kind was of ſo
great conſequence, or made ſo many con-
verts t." And at laſt, ſuch were the
effects that it produced almoſt univerſally
in the minds of men, that the houſe of
“ Commons (faith the Doctor) have this
day made many ſevere votes about our
being abuſed by our allies. Thoſe who
ſpoke drew all their arguments from my
book, and their votes confirm all I writ.
" The court had a majority of 150. All
agree that it was my book that ſpirited
“ them to theſe reſolutions I.” And pre-
fently after he confirms what he had afferted
beyond all poſſibility of miſtake. " The
“ reſolutions (faith he) printed the other day
" in the votes, are almoſt quotations from it,
and would never have paſſed, if that book
" had not been written 1.” Such were the
politics, and ſuch was the importance of
DR. SWIFT, in thoſe furious times.
(
* Dec. 15. 1711.
Feb. 4. 1711.
+ Dec. 18. 1711.
| Feb. 8. 1711.
N
THE
338 Eſſay on the Life and
The following Letters may perhaps throw
ſome additional light upon the Doctor's
character ; and principally on that account I
have thought it convenient to inſert them in
this place.
To the Earl of OXFORD, Lord TREASURER.
My Lord,
July 1. 1714.
* When I was with you, I have ſaid more
than once that I would never allow quality
or ſtation made any real difference between
men. Being now abfent and forgotten, I
have changed my mind; you have a thou-
fand people who can pretend they love you,
with as much appearance of ſincerity as I;
ſo that according to common juſtice, I can
have but a thouſandth part in return of what
I give. And this difference is wholly owing
to your ſtation.
ſtation. And the misfortune is ſtill
the greater, becauſe I always loved you juſt
ſo much the worſe for your ſtation. For in
your publick capacity you have often angered
me to the heart, but as a private man never
once. So that if I only look towards myſelf,
I could wiſh you a private man to morrow.
For I have nothing to aſk, at leaſt nothing
that
you
will give, which is the ſame thing.
2.
* This Letter was written from Berkſhire, after the
Doctor had wholly quitted the miniſtry, upon finding it
impoſſible to reconcile che miſunderſtandings between the
Lord TREASURER and the SecretARY.
'And
Character of Dr. Swift.
339
And then you would ſee whether I ſhould
not with much more willingneſs attend you
in a retirement, whenever you pleaſed to give
me leave, than ever I did at London or Wind-
for. From theſe ſentiments I will never
write to you, if I can help it, otherwiſe than
as to a private perſon, nor allow myſelf to
have been obliged by you in any
other
capa-
city.
The memory of one great inſtance of
your
candor and juſtice I will carry to my grave;
that having been in a manner domeſtick with
you for almoſt four years, it was never in the
power of any public or concealed enemy to
make you think ill of me, though malice
and envy were often employed to that end.
If I live, poſterity ſhall know that and more;
which though you and ſomebody that ſhall
be nameleſs ſeem to value leſs than I could
wiſh, is all the return I can make you. Will
you give me leave to ſay how I would deſire
to ſtand in your memory? As one who was
truly ſenſible of the honour you did him,
though he was too proud to be vain upon it:
As one who was neither aſſuming, officious,
nor teazing; who never willfully miſrepre-
ſented perſons or facts to you, nor conſulted
his paffions when he gave a character :
And laſtly, as one whoſe indiſcretions pro-
ceeded altogether from a weak head, and
not an ill heart. I will add one thing more,
which is the higheſt compliment I can make;
that
Z 2
340 Effay on the Life and
that I never was afraid of offending you, nor
am now in any pain for the manner I write
to you in. I have ſaid enough, and like one
at your levee, having made my bow, I Neink
back into the crowd. I am, my Lord, &c.
To the ſlate] Earl of OxFORD.
My Lord, Dublin, June 14. 1737.
I had the honour of a letter from
your
Lordſhip, dated April 7th, which I was not
prepared to anſwer until this time. Your
Lordſhip muſt needs have known, that the
hiſtory you mention of the four laſt years
of the Queen's reign, was written at Windjer,
juſt upon finiſhing the peace *, at which time
your father and my lord BOLINGBROKE had
a miſunderſtanding with each other, that was
attended with very bad conſequences. When
I came to Ireland to take this deanery, (after
the
peace was made) I could not ſtay bere
above a fortnight, being recalled by an hun-
dred letters to haſten 'back, and to uſe my
endeavours in reconciling thoſe miniſters
.
I left them the hiſtory you mention, which
I had finiſhed at Windſor, to the time of the
* The Doctor means only the first draught of that
hiftory; for, it is certain, that after the Queen's death, he
ſpent a good deal of his time in improving and correcting it
to his own caſte and liking: And particularly we find in a
letter of the Dean's to Pope, dated Jan. 10. 1721. that he
ftill employed fome part of his leiſure in digelling it into
order.
2
peace
Character of Dr. Swift.
341
I pre-
peace. When I returned to England, I found
their quarrels and coldneſs encreaſed; I la-
boured to reconcile them as much as I was
able; I contrived to bring them to my
Lord
MASHAM's at St. James's; my Lord and
Lady MASHAM left us together; I expoftu-
lated with them both; but could not find any
good conſequences: I was to go to Windſor
next day with my Lord TREASURER;
tended buſineſs that prevented me; and ſo I
fent them to Windſor next day, which was
Saturday, expecting they would come to
ſome * * * * * * *
*****.. But I fol-
lowed them to Windſor; where my Lord
BOLINGBROKE told me that my ſcheme had
come to nothing. Things went on at the
ſame rate. They grew more eſtranged every
day. My Lord TREASURER found his Cre-
dit daily declining. In May, before the Queen
died, I had my laſt meeting with them at
my Lord Masham's: He left us together,
and therefore I ſpoke very freely to them
both; and told them I would retire, for I
found all was gone: Lord BOLINGBROKE
whiſpered me, I was in the right: Your
father fayd, All would do well I.. I told him
that I would go to OXFORD on Monday, ſince
+ Here is an Hiatus of about half a line. The reader's
imagination can eaſily fill it up, ſo as to make the ſenſe
perfect.
This was a very common expreſſion of my Lord TREA-
SURER, who was the leaſt apt to deſpond of any miniſter in
the world.
Z 3
I found
342 Effay on the Life and
my Lord
I found it impoſſible to be of any uſe: I took
coach to Oxford on Monday; went to a
friend in Berkſhire; there ſtayed till the
Queen's death, and then to my ſtation here;
where I ſtayed twelve years, and never ſaw
your
father afterwards. They could
not agree about printing the hiſtory of the
four laſt years; and therefore I have kept it
to this time, when I determine to publiſh it
in London, to the confuſion of all thoſe * *
who have accuſed the Queen and that mi-
niſtry of making a bad peace; to which that
party entirely owes the Proteſtant fucceffion.
I was then in the greateſt truſt and confidence
with your father the Lord TREASURER, as
well as with my Lord BOLINGBROKE, and
all others who had part in the adminiſtration.
I had all the letters from the Secretaries office
during the treaty of peace: Out of thoſe,
and what I learned from the miniſtry, I
formed that hiſtory which I am now going
to publiſh for the information of poſterity,
and to control the moſt impudent fallhoods
which have been publiſhed ſince. I wanted
no kind of materials. I knew your father
better than you could at that time; and I do
impartially think him the moſt virtuous mi-
niſter, and the moſt able that ever I remem-
ber to have read of. If your Lordſhip hath
any particular circumítances that may fortify
what I have fayd in the hiſtory, ſuch as let-
ters, or other memorials, I am content they
ſhould
Character of Dr. Swift.
343
Thould be printed at the end, by way of Ap-
pendix. I loved my Lord your father better
than any other man in the world, although I
had no obligation to him on the ſcore of pre-
ferment, having been driven to this wretched
kingdom, to which I was almoſt a ſtranger,
by his want of power to keep me in what I
ought to call my own country, though I hap-
pened to be dropped here, and was a year
old before I left it; and to my ſorrow, did
not die before I came back to it again. I am
extremely glad of the felicity you have in
your alliances, and deſire to preſent my moſt
humble reſpects to my Lady OXFORD, and
your daughter the Dutcheſs. As to the
hiſtory, it is only of affairs which I know
very well, and had all the advantages poſſible
to know, when you were in ſome fort but a
lad. One great deſign of it is to do juſtice
to the miniſtry of that time, and to refute
all the objections againſt them, as if they had
a deſign of bringing in popery and the Pre-
tender; and further, to demonſtrate that
the preſent ſettlement of the crown was
chiefly owing to my Lord your father. I can
never expect to ſee England; I am now too
old and ſickly, added to almoſt a perpetual
deafneſs and giddineſs. I live a moſt domeſtic
life; I want nothing that is neceſſary; but I
am in a curſed, factious, oppreſſed, miſera-
ble country, not made ſo by nature, but by
the ſlaviſh, helliſh principles, of an execra-
ble,
24
SH
344 Eſſay on the Life and
ble, prevailing faction in it. Farewell, my
Lord: I have tired you and myſelf. I deſire
again to preſent my moſt humble reſpects to
my Lady OXFORD, and the Dutcheſs your
daughter : Pray GOD preſerve you long and
happy. I ſhall diligently enquire into your
conduct from thoſe who will tell me: You
have hitherto continued right; let me hear
that you perſevere ſo: Your taſk will not be
long; for I am not in a condition of health
or time to trouble this world, and I am
heartily tired of it already; and ſo ſhould be
in England, which I hear is full as corrupt
as this poor enſlaved country. I am with the
trueſt love and reſpect, my Lord, &c.
HAVING now done with the Obſervator,
as far as the genius, writings, and publick
character of my old acquaintance ſeem to be
any way concerned ; I am now in point of
juſtice obliged to refute ſome malignant ſlan-
ders, which in defiance of truth, are fcat-
tered in the Obſervations, to the prejudice and
diſhonour of particular perſons; to whom, in
charity to the Obſervator, I am willing to
ſuppoſe he was an abſolute ſtranger. In treat-
ing however theſe matters, I ſhall be forced
to reveal fome private anecdotes, which, had
it not been for the calumnies of this writer,
fhould have paſſed unnoticed, for any thing
I cared, unto all eternity.
IT
Character of Dr. Swift.
345
It is among ſeveral others one of the in-
ventions of the Obſervator, that Swift al-
lowed his mother a conſiderable penſion,
which he is pleaſed to remark, “ as a ſure
“ indication of his filial piety *.” But, that
SWIFT allowed his mother a conſiderable
penſion, or any penſion at all, is really a
caſtle in the air, without any ground to ſup-
port it; the account of her ſender income,
and other means that were contrived to
make her life eaſy and comfortable, being
thoſe only which I have already mentioned
in their proper place t. Her revenue, it is
certain, was not very conſiderable; and yet
ſo far was the Doctor's mother from want-
ing a penſion, that ſhe bequeathed ſome for-
tune to her daughter; But unto what value
that fortune amounted, is I declare, totally
beyond my conjecture. Nevertheleſs, be it
great, or be it ſmall, it ſeemeth to have been
worth her attention. For, in a letter to
Mrs. Johnson from Dr. Swift, dated Jan.
I, 1710-11, are theſe words; “Mrs. Fen-
“ TON has writ me another letter about ſome
money of hers in Lady GIFFARD's I hands,
" that is entruſted to me by my mother, not
" to come to her huſband.” It is true in-
deed that Swift uſed to make his mother
preſents of coffee, and particularly of choco-
late, which ſhe was extreamly fond of; and
+ Vid. Chap. 3. p. 23.
Lady GIFFARD, Sir W. TEMPLE's daughter.
it
* Let. 7.
346 Effay on the Life and
it was uſual with her to make her ſon
pre-
fents of little necefiaries that were of her own
making. Such was the affectionate inter-
courſe that ſubſiſted between them. But
fuppofing the Obſervator's conjecture to have
been as true as it is falſe; and that Dr.Swift
from a ſpirit of tenderneſs, gratitude, and
benevolence, had made his parent very hand-
fome donations, is there any man ſuch a brute
as to imagine, that he could have endured
to think of his generoſity in the file of a
penſion? So far from it, that Dr. SWIFT,
who allowed Mrs. DINGLEY 521. a year,
contrived that matter in fo genteel a way,
becauſe it was impoffible to keep it wholly a
fecret, that he pretended he was only her
friend, and her agent for money that ſhe had
in the funds: And to carry on the deceit
with ſtill greater politeneſs, he would ſome-
times cry, when ſhe ſent to him for
part
of
this allowance,“ pox take that woman; ſhe
" is eternally plaguing me for money; tell
"her I have none to fend her; I have had
no remittances from London this quarter of
a year;” and after pretending to be in a
rage for three or four minutes, he would
ſend her the money by way of advancing it,
and take her receipt accordingly; by which
ſtratagem, worthy to be imitated by every
generous mind, he effectually deceived the
moſt fagacious of his acquaintance: Neither,
as I have been told, was the contrary ever
ſuſpected,
Character of Dr. Swift.
347
upon this
ſuſpected, until ſome years after his memory
had partly failed, when by accident he dil-
covered his payments to Mrs. Dingley to
be a donation of his own. And really, a
penſion to a ſiſter, is far from having a found
that is agreeable to politeneſs. However in-
deed, the Obſervator's reflection
point is entirely worthy of himſelf, and of a
piece with the reſt of his criticiſms. Dr.
Swift " allowed his fifter a penſion, &c.
“which, faith he, is a clear demonſtration,
“ that his reſentment (however founded) was
“ neither immortal nor invincible *." But
the direct contrary happens to be a truth,
far beyond the politics or the fagacity of the
Obſervator. For, as I have occaſionally ſaid
before, talking of theſe matters; “ the Doc-
TOR upon the death of Mr. FENTON,
acquainted his ſiſter by meſſage, for he
« would never be ſo far reconciled as to ſee
“ her face, that he would allow her 201. a
year during her life, (a gratuity which it
" is certain that he never encreaſed) provided
“ ſhe would live in England, but not other-
wife of.” Which indeed was a reach of
politics in Dr. Swift, and perhaps the
only effectual means he poſſibly could have
taken, to drive both his ſiſter and her chil-
dren quite out of the kingdom, and pat ą
final negative upon her living in ſpight of him,
directly under his noſe. There is not, be-
+ Vid. Chap. 6. p. 104.
fides,
* Let. 7.
348 Eſſay on the Life and
fides, any colour of reaſon, either to believe
or ſuſpect, that Swift ever ſaw Mrs. Fen-
TON, whether by accident or otherwiſe,
from the time of her huſband's death until his
laſt hour, except once in a chariot with Lady
GIFFARD, as he was going from London to
Windſor, in the year 1711.
But further, the Obſervator, never at a
loſs for an argument to prove or diſprove any
fact whatſoever, has ventured to aſſert, that
Dr. Swift's reſentment to his ſiſter aroſe not
from her having accepted an overture of mar-
riage, which he utterly diſdained; but from
“ her having married a man, againſt whom
«: he had conceived a particular and perſonal
“ diſlike *.” But the Obſervator, in the
hurry of his imagination, when he was writ-
ing this letter, abſolutely forgot that Dr.
SWIFT ſpent his whole time in England
from the year 1688 until the year 1699, ex-
cepting two vifits that he made to Ireland;
the former in the year 1690, and the latter
in the year 1694, when he was recom-
mended to my Lord CAPELL, and got the
prebend of Kilroor in the dioceſe of Connor,
which he reſigned in a few months, and went
back to England; from whence he never re-
turned, until he came over with my Lord
BERKLEY in the year 1699, at which period
this match of his ſiſter was really in agitation;
and, by the perſuaſion of her uncles, in great
Let. 7.
forward-
Character of Dr. Swift.
349
forwardneſs. And therefore, it is abſurd to
imagine, that Dr. Swift, who had been
abſent from Ireland for ſuch a length of time
as five whole years, could have conceived
any
particular or perſonal diſlike to MR. FENTON.
So far from it, that in all likelihood, and I
have reaſon to be of that opinion, he never
knew that ſuch a man exiſted upon earth,
until he received an account of the propoſal
which had been made to his ſiſter. How-
ever, it is certain, that within a ſhort time
after the marriage; FENTON, who was by
all accounts an inſolent, brutal fellow, ob-
ſerving DR. SWIFT to be extreamly exaf-
perated againſt his ſiſter, and never likely to
be reconciled to, or have any correſpondence
with her, on account of her degrading her-
ſelf, and expoſing her brother, by accepting
ſo deteſtable a match, gave himſelf great
liberties in abuſing and vilifying the Doc-
TOR; which naturally ſerved only to encreaſe
the fury and bitterneſs of Swift againſt him
and his family. I could enlarge abundantly
on the circumſtances of this quarrel; but I
think already we have had much more than
ſufficient.
We are alſo told by the Obſervator, “ that
" a friend of MRS. WHITEWAY's ſometimes
“ marketted for Dr. SWIFT, when his in-
« firmities called for a more than ordinary
attention to his diet *.” It is falſe: There
* Let. 11.
never
350 Eſſay on the Life and
:
never was any friend of Mrs. Whiteway's,
that ever once marketted for him; nor any
body elſe that I know of, except Mrs. Wor-
RALL, and his own domeftics.
But, to remove fome vile afperfions,
which have been thrown by the Obſervator
on particular perfons, I cannot but fay, that
he never was ſo unfortunate in the blackeſt
of his contrivances to fink and degrade the
memory of Dr. SWIFT, as in aſſerting, that
one of the methods he deviſed to cheat his
avarice, was that of giving penſions to his
neareſt relations: A point ſo far from having
the leaſt foundation of truth to ſupport it,
that I believe I ſhall be able to produce ſome
reaſons, I had almoſt faid demonſtrations, to
the contrary.
WHEN DR. SWIFT came over to his dean-
ery in the year 1713, he had in Ireland nine
couſin-germans living, viz. five fons and one
daughter, the children of that uncle, at
whoſe houſe he was born, and by whoſe
bounty he was ſupported and educated until
he was one and twenty *; one daughter of
his uncle WILLIAM Swift, and two daugh-
ters of his uncle ADAM Swift: He had
beſides, two relations more, who were the
daughters of his great benefactor and couſin
german WILLOUGHBY Swift +: Theſe,
and their infant children, were all the rela-
* Vid. Chap. 3. p. 22. and Chap. 4. p. 36.
+ Vid. Dr. Swift's Letter, Chap. 4. p. 51.
tions
Character of Dr. Swift. 351
tions which Dr. Swift had in the king-
dom, Now, three of the ſons of his uncle
SWIFT were men of eſtates, who lived in the
country, and had larger properties than Dr.
SWIFT himſelf was ever poſſeſſed of; the fourth
was a lieutenant in LIGONIER's horſe, and mar-
ried to a widow, who had a jointure of a
hundred and twenty pounds a year; the fifth
and youngeſt of theſe brothers, who lived a
bachelor all his life, and was bred to the
law, was agent to the great eſtate of his
friend and couſin-german the late Sir Ri-
CHARD MEAD, by whom he was fincerely
beloved, and with whom he ſpent the greater
part of his time: The daughter of his uncle
SWIFT, who never married, lived with her
own brother (who was the old friend and
correſpondent of Dr. SWIFT *) until he
died, in the ſpring of the year 1714; after
his death ſhe went and lived with her elder
brother GODWIN SWIFT, and died at his
houſe in the year 1719: The daughter of his
uncle WILLIAM Swift was an heireſs, and
the daughter of an heireſs; ſhe married her
couſin-german GODWIN Swift, and brought
him an addition to his own eſtate of about
four hundred pounds a year: One of the
daughters of his uncle ADAM Swift was
likewiſe an heireſs; her fortune was worth a
good deal above two thouſand pounds; the
married a clergyman who had a benefice in
* DEANE SWIFT, Vid. Chap. 4. p. 51.
the
I
3
352 Eſſay on the Life and
the church, and about two hundred pounds
a year
eſtate of inheritance: The other daugh-
ter of his uncle ADAM married, I think,
rather to pleaſe her ſelf, than to anſwer the
expectations of her friends: Her father, ne-
vertheleſs, after his paſſion cooled, and his
anger ſubſided, gave her a thouſand pounds:
The elder daughter of WILLOUGHBY SWIFT
had a fortune of 1700 1. and was married to
a gentleman of about four or five hundred
pounds a year eſtate, who has been dead this
great while; her jointure is two hundred
pounds a year: The younger daughter of
WILLOUGHBY SWIFT, whoſe fortune was
not quite ſo large as that of her elder ſiſter,
married a clergyman, whoſe eſtate of inhe-
ritance is between three and four hundred
pounds a year.
This indeed, after all the ſhocks and mis-
fortunes of their anceſtors, both in England
and Ireland, was the real condition and ſtate
of the family in the year 1713.
But, left the Obſervator, whoſe genius
ever delights in falfhood, malice, and defa-
mation, Thould inſinuate hereafter, that al-
though Dr, Swift's relations abovemen-
tioned were greatly above accepting any fort
of penſions, the Doctor through kindneſs
and affection might have affifted the younger
branches of the family as they grew up, and
were very numerous; I ſhall endeavour to
obviate even this, and all other ſuppoſitions
of
Character of Dr. Swift. 353
dozen young
of the like nature : For, ſince truth, in
ſpight of a thouſand arts that have been uſed
to conceal it, will out, and muſt be told;
the family of the Swifts in general were
upon no terms of friendſhip with the Doc-
Tor, nor he with them; at leaſt after his
return to Ireland upon the Queen's death.
But, what occaſion is there for inſiſting
upon a thouſand arguments to refute a mali-
cious and groundleſs calumny? The only
preſents which Doctor Swift ever made
in his life, beſide what hereafter ſhall be ac-
knowledged, to any man of his name and
family, were a bundle of oſiers, and half a
young cherry trees to his couſin DEANE
SWIFT, when he was planting his garden
near fifty years ago; and an ELZEVIR VIR-
GIL, in the year 1738, to one of the preſent
generation.
HOWEVER indeed, there were ſome
three or four, among the women of the fa-
mily, whom the Doctor greatly regarded :
But, excepting to that one perſon, whom
every body knows to have been his intimate
friend; and who upon all occaſions acknow-
ledges her obligations to him, and is pleaſed
in doing ſo; he never gave to the value of ten
pounds to all the reſt; unleſs it were a ſeal, a
ring, or ſome little toy, which he thought
would be acceptable to a young perſon:
What he hath left in his will is already pub-
lic, and therefore I ſhall avoid repeating it
.
Bur
:
A a
354 Eſſay on the Life and
But further, the Obſervator is pleaſed,
without any reaſon or provocation, to reproach
the Author of theſe papers, if I do not great-
ly miſunderſtand him, with the moſt helliſh
ingratitude to Dr. SwIFT*, Strange, in-
credible, and amazing, to all thoſe who are
acquainted with the fortunes of MR. S.
and his connexion with the Doctor! This
however is no place for inſerting the annals
of twenty years, or telling a long, various,
and complicated ſtory. I ſhall therefore only
obſerve, that Mr. S. freely acknowledges
to have received from Dr. Swift in preſents
of books and toys to the value of 81. at the
higheſt computation. The Doctor alſo
gave
him a picture of the late Duke of ORMOND,
and left him in his will a ſilver ſtandiſh;
which are all the favours of any kind he
ever received at his hands. But for obliga-
tions;---(whatever he could fay in relation
to himſelf on the other fide of the queſtion;
à point which by no means concerneth the
public to be inquiſitive about) he never had
one obligation, or the colour of an obliga-
tion, to Dr. Swift, in his whole life.
However indeed, ſince we are talking of
ingratitude ; there were, I confeſs, fome few
ungrateful people among the Dean's acquaint-
ance; in particular there is one inſtance * *
*
*
*
*
*
* Vid. Obf. Let. I.
which
Character of Dr. Swift. 355
which occaſioned the following epitaph on
the Dean's dog.
* Of all the dogs array'd in fur,
Hereunder lies the trueſt cur ;
He knew no tricks, he never flatter'd;
Nor thoſe he fawn'd upon, beſpatter'd :
So far a courtier, he would wait,
And condeſcend to lick a plate;
But never Itrove, O Swift, when fed,
To bite the hand, which gave him bread.
Oh, that your dogs, who walk on two,
Had only been but half as true!
Through thick and thin, replete or hollow,
Thy ſteps unerring he would follow;
While they, who pride in being ſcholars,
Deſert thee now with golden collars;
Or, like ACTÆON's horrid pack,
Return, to fall upon thy back,
The Obſervator ſeemingly doth alſo accuſe
MR. S. at leaſt among others, of flatter-
ing the Doctor, and “ feeding him in the
“ decline of his underſtanding, as if he were
a child, with plumbs and ſweet-meats, in-
“ ſtead of falutary food t." This, I believe,
is the firſt time that ever Mr. S. was accuſed
or ſuſpected, either by friends or enemies, to
have the leaſt tincture of that inſinuating art
in his whole compoſition. He appeals on
* Mr. S. would have been proud to have b:en the Au-
thor of theſe verſes: But as they are not of his wii.ing, he
fo declares it to the world.
+ Vid. Obf. Let. 19.
A a 2
this
+
356 Eſſay on the Life and
this occaſion to every perſon now remaining
alive, that ever ſaw him at the deanery.
But, not to inſiſt upon trifles; if Mr. S.
was a flatterer, he was ſurely the moſt un-
fortunate in the application of his talents,
of any man that ever was acquainted with
the Dean; as, in truth, he never had, nor
ever pretended to have had, any ſort of inte-
reſt with Dr. Swift, at any period of his
life. I am therefore ſomewhat inclined to
an opinion, that he was the fartheſt from
being a flatterer of any man that ever con-
verſed with the Dean.
MR. S. cannot but think himſelf ac-
cuſed in the third paragraph of the Obſerva-
tor's firſt letter; which, if I miſtake not, is
fraught with an infinuation, for which the
Obſervator, had he ſet his name to his book,
would rather have deſerved to have been
****, what politeneſs hinders me to ſay,
than anſwered. But whatever this accuſation
contains, I ſhall vouchſafe it with mildneſs
a ſhort confutation.
AND yet before I proceed in the vindica-
tion of Mr. S. I ſhould be glad to know
who were thoſe beſt friends of the Dean, in
oppoſition to the reſt of his acquaintance,
who are luppoſed to have been baniſhed from
about him. For, this I cannot but affert,
in truth and juſtice to thoſe, with whom I
had the pleaſure to ſpend ſome very
chearful
hours; that I have converſed at the deanery,
2
ever
Character of Dr. Swift.
357
ever fince the year 1738, with as faithful and
fincere friends of Dr. Swift, and with men
of as much honour, as ever he was acquainted
with in his life, or perhaps could have been
acquainted with. If an odd deſigning hypo-
crité, or ſo, got admittance into his company,
and by degrees into his friendſhip; (as I have
reaſon to believe he never was, even in the
beſt of his days, without ſome ISCARIOT
or other about him) ſurely the remaining part
of his friends and acquaintance ought no
more to be abuſed and calumniated without
exception, for the unworthy demeanour of
ſuch people, than ST. MATTHEW, ST. JOHN,
and the reſt of the Apoſtles, for the beha-
viour of a JUDAS?
But, to reſume what I was about: MR.
S. although he was acquainted with Dr.
Swift from the age of thirteen, had but
little correſpondence with him until the
year
1738, having ſpent the greater part of his
rational life in England. Upon his return to
Ireland in thoſe days, he had not one ac-
quaintance in the kingdom, to the beſt of his
recollection, that wanted any favour of any
kind, that was in the Doctor's power to
confer: And, as for himſelf, as he was nei-
ther a lawyer nor a divine, he was greatly
above accepting all the favours, accumulated
one upon another, which the Doctor had
in his gift. Moreover, he had neither fpleen
Ror pique to any human creature that was
3
Аа 3
ac
358 Efſay on the Life and
acquainted with the Dean; but, on the con-
trary, reſpected moſt of them, as he had al-
ways done, upon account of their reputation,
from his early years.
He therefore may, I
preſume, be credited, when he declares, of
his own accord, in the moſt folemn manner,
(not that he cares one ſingle farthing, whe-
ther
any
of thoſe who pretend to have been
the Doctor's friends, will believe or diſhe.
lieve it) that to the beit of his belief, know-
ledge, and recollection, he never did once
in the revolution of twenty years, or more,
that he was acquainted with him, either di-
rectly or indirectly, by words, by geſture,
by looks, or otherwiſe, convey any fort of
idea, any kind of ſentiment, to the brain,
to the eyes, or to the heart, of Dr. Swift,
tending to the prejudice or diſhonour of any
man whatſoever, in the whole circle of his
acquaintance: But, on the contrary, he
ge-
nerally, if not always, did, as occaſion offered,
Speak as favourably and reſpectfully of them
as he thinks he could have done, without
inſulting truth, and leaping over its bounda-
ries. Neither indeed was he ever once
teinpted throughout all his life, to baniſh
any friend or acquaintante of the Dean's from
about him: He faith he never was tempted,
becauſe ſuch a deſign never came into his
thoughts.
C H A P.
Character of Dr. Swift. 359
CH A P. XIII.
TH
HE character of Swift is upon the
whole fo exceedingly ſtrange, various,
and perplexed, that I am afraid it can never
be drawn up with any degree of accuracy;
the materials for it, neverthelets, are moſt
of them to be collected from his own writings.
I ſhall therefore content myſelf with remark-
ing ſome few particulars, which have occur-
red to my thoughts upon this occafion; with-
out recapitulating what I have ſaid before ;
or indeed venturing to expoſe my own want
of judgment, in attempting the delineation
of a character, which hath entirely baffled
all endeavours which have been hitherto
made, either by friends or enemies.
Swift's natural temper ſeemeth to have
been a miraculous compound of the placid
and the ſevere. The placid frequently had
the ſuperiority in his breaſt; and the ſevere
in its turn, when excited by the follies and
corruptions of human kind, as frequently, the
predominance.
He was by nature of a ſpirit wonderfully
exalted. His pride, if pride it muſt be called,
was of a turn peculiar to himſelf.
“ Lord *, (faith he) what I would have ſaid
“ of fame, is meant of fame which a man
enjoys in his life; becauſe I cannot be a
* Pepe, Vol. 9. Let. 41. to Lord BOLINGBROKE.
" My
A a 4
great
360 Eſſay on the Life and
" MR.
great lord, I would acquire what is a kind
* of ſubfidium; I would endeavour that my
“ betters ſhould ſeek me by the merit of
ſomething diſtinguishable, inſtead of my
ſeeking them.” A point which he really
valued himſelf highly upon throughout his
whole life; but eſpecially after he had arrived
to the full enjoyment of his fame.
“ GAY (ſaith he) will tell you (the dutcheſs
" of QUEENSBURY) that a nameleſs perſon
” ſent me eleven meſſages before I would
yield to a viſit: I mean a perſon to whom
"he is infinitely obliged, for being the occa-
“ſion of the happineſs he now enjoys under
" the protection of my lord Duke and your
" Grace *. His whole deportment was of a
piece with theſe ideas; neither would he have
itooped to converſe with the greateſt monarch
in Europe, upon any terms lower than equa-
lity.
He knew to a point the reſpect that was
due unto him ; which he took care to exact
without any ſort of abátenients. You may
obſerve from one particular inſtance, with
what quickneſs he reſented any failure in good
manners, properly ſo called. An Engliſh
clergyman that was appointed biſhop of ſome
dioceſe in Ireland, ſent his ſervant one morn-
ing to the Dean, to beg the favour of him
to order St. PATRICK's cathedral to be got
ready againſt the next Sunday for his conſe-
Pope, Vol. 9. Let. 51.
cration;
Character of Dr. Swift. 361
cration; but the Doctor would by no means
grant his requeſt: However, he thought
proper to ſay, he would order the church to
be in readineſs againſt the Sunday following.
When the ſervant was gone, the Doctor
told a friend that was with him, he could as
well have had the church ready againſt the
next, as againſt the following Sunday: But,
ſaid he, my reaſon for refuſing to grant that
gentleman's requeſt was, becauſe he ought to
have come himſelf, and not ſent his ſervant
to me upon ſuch a meſſage.
NEITHER could he endure to be treated
with any ſort of familiarity; or, that any man
living (his three or four old acquaintances in
England, with whom he correſponded to the
laſt, only excepted) ſhould rank himfelf in
the number of his friends, I remember there
was a young perſon of quality, a good many
years ago, who upon fome occafion or other,
I forget what it was, ventured to addreſs the
Doctor in the ſtile of DEAR Swift, and
afterwards call himſelf the DOCTOR's friend.
When the Dean opened his epiſtle; which,
if I miſtake not, was deſigned as a com-
pliment, his indignation took inſtant fire:
DEAR SWIFT, ſaid he! What monſtrous
familiarity is here! But, when he found the
writer of the epiſtle had called himſelf his
friend, he was out of all patience. My
friend! my friend! ſaid the Doctor; piſh,
plha;
362 Eſſay on the Life and
prha ; my friend! But ---- (faid he, recollect-
ing himſelf) he is a lord, and ſo let it paſs.
It is, I think, very juſtly remarked by the
Obſervator, “ that Swift's ſpirit was formed
“ with a ſtrong reluctance to ſubmiſſion of
any kind; and particularly that he paid no
regard to the monitions of his friends and
phyſicians, Doctor HELSHAM and Doc-
TOR GRATTAN, who had frequently ad-
“ moniſhed himn of his over-exerciſe *. How-
ever, it was not, as the Obſervator is pleaſed
to conjecture, becauſe he was weary of life,
that he payed no regard to their monitions.
It was from an old ſettled principle, con-
firmed and rivetted in his mind, when he
was in the height of his glory, and the meri-
dian of his life; a principle indeed, which
he maintains, or at leaſt endeavours to main-
tain, with infinite wit and humour, in a let-
ter to Mrs. JOHNSON, who had, upon
ſome
occaſion or other, adviſed him to take phy-
fic
upon
the fall of the leaf. “A fig, (faith
he) Madam, for your phyſician; if I grow
worſe, I will; otherwiſe I will truſt to
temperance and exerciſe. Your fall of a
« leaf? What care I when the leaves fall? I
"am ſorry to ſee them fall with all my heart;
" but why ſhould I take phyſic becauſe
“ leaves fall off from trees? That wont hinder
" them from falling: If a man falls off a
* Obſ. Let, 12,
horſe,
Character of Dr. Swift. 363
like a
" horſe, muſt I take phyſic for that? This
" arguing makes you mad; but it is true
right reaſon, not to be diſputed *.”
Swift was not only above all tincture of
envy in his compoſition; but his talents were
ſo great, that he was totally ſuperior to the
emulation of all inferior wits: They every
one of them bowed down unto him as unto
the Viceroy of Apollo.
The dæmon of malice was alſo a ſtranger
to his heart: And well it might; for, if at
any time he was attacked with injurious treat-
ment, he never Imothered his revenge
way-laying coward, until a ſafer opportunity;
but, like a brave and generous fpirit, knocked
down his adverſary directly on the ſpot.
The common vices and foibles of human
kind he laſhed with great ſeverity, in order
to reſtrain their influence ; and, if it were
poſſible, to hinder the contagion from ſpread-
ing in the community; yet ſtill without
making examples of particular perſons: But,
Naves to party, and traitors to the publick
intereſt he expoſed without mercy to the
deriſion of the world. It may be thought,
perhaps, that private animoſity frequently
gave an edge to his fatire. I cannot tell, but
in ſome caſes it might. But then we are to
conſider, that Dr. Swift never looked
upon
himſelf in the character of a private perſon.
He knew that a patriot, like an Afiatic
* Let. to Mrs. Johnson, Nov. 3, 1711.
prince,
364 Efſay on the Life and
prince, muſt make himſelf dreaded: If he
be once foiled, his power is at an end. And
without controverſy, dominion, abſolute do-
minion, he had reſolved to poſſeſs over the
minds of men, eſpecially over the minds of
·
his countrymen ; and accordingly he did
poſſeſs it.
SWIFT was certainly a man of great ambi-
tion, although he denies it in two or three
ſeveral paſſages of his writings: But, his
ambition, ever directed by the rules of ho-
nour, was of a noble, exalted ſtrain, worthy
to be cheriſhed in the breaſt of an angel.
Nothing ſo much contributed (faith he) to
my caſe as the turn of affairs after the
Queen's death; by which all my hopes be-
ing cut off, I could have no ambition left,
- unleſs I would have been a greater raſcal
« than happened to ſuit with my temper
It is certain, that without avarice, pro-
perly fa called, Swift had ſome defire for
wealth; But many were his inducements out
of the common road for procuring riches to
himſelf. He had obſerved, that all things
were running to wreck and ruin in the king-
dom of Ireland, particularly tithes, wherein
confifted almoſt his whole revenue: He had
obſerved, that dulneſs was the conſequence of
poverty to; that people's folicitude about their
own affairs perpetually filled their thoughts,
and diſturbed their converſation ; that wealth
* Pope, Vol. 9. Let. 51. † Popp, Vol. 9. Let. 42!.
I Pope, Vol. 9. Let. 50.
*"
1$
Character of Dr. Swift. 365
And HORACE was of my mind and les
is LIBERTY ; and LIBERTY is a bleſſing fit-
teſt for a philoſopher.-GAY (ſaith he) is a
ſave, juſt by two thouſand pounds too little :
my
Lord [BOLINBGROKE] contradiet him if he
dares*. Upon theſe principles it was, that
Swift recommended æconomy, and the
purſuit of wealth, to his deareſt friends. But,
in truth, Swift himſelf was of ſuch a tem-
per, that he could not live fine dignitate; he
declares that it would kill him in a month.
Beſides, he could not endure to make any
abatements in his liberalities of His ideas
were noble, vaſt, and extenſive; they ran
wild and various, through unbeaten paths;
inſtead of contracting, like a ſtoic, his occa-
fions for wealth, he rather was fond to create
new chanels for his
expences.
" Your wants
(faith he to POPE) are ſo few, that you
“ need not be rich to ſupply them; and my
“wants are ſo many, that a king's feven mile
“ lions of guineas would not ſupport me."
What a glorious thought in a patriot ſpirit,
that was liberal to profuſion!
Swift in his private character was a man
of fine addreſs, and perfectly well bred: He
knew to a point all the modes and variations
of complaiſance and politeneſs. And yet
his
manners were not framed like the manners
of any other mortal : But, corrected by gene-
ral obſervation, and adapted to his own pecu-
Pope, Vol.
+ Pope, Vol. 8. p. 408.
# Pope, Vol. 9. Let. 81,
liar
9.
Let. 33•
366 Effay on the Life and
liar turn of genius, they ſhone forth, always
enlivenad more or leſs with ſome ſpirit of
dominion, in a blaze of politeneſs, ſo ini-
mitably, and ſo determinately his own, that
in effect they ſeemed to be the reſult of pure
nature, uncopied from any the brighteft, or
the faireſt original.
Swift talked a great deal in all companies,
without engroſſing
the converſation to him-
felf. His rule of politeneſs in this caſe was,
that every man had a right to ſpeak for a
minute; and when that minute was out, if
nobody elſe took up the diſcourſe, after a
fhort pauſe of two or three moments, the
fame perſon had an equal right with any of
the reſt of the company, to ſpeak again,
and again, and again, and ſo on during the
whole evening. His chief delight, however,
was to entertain, and be entertained, in ſmall
circles; which he liked the better, if two or
three women of good underſtanding happened
to be of the party; the delicacy of their fen-
timents, like the delicacy of their frame, being
in all likelihood providentially deſigned, to
embelliſh and refine our converſation, as well
as to ſmooth and polith the roughneſs of our
nature: Which indeed is remarked by SWIFT
himſelf, in his letter to my lord Treaſurer
Oxford. “Since the women (faith he) have
“ been left out of all meetings, except parties
" of play, or where worſe deſigns are carried
on, our converſation hath very much dege-
ne.
Character of Dr. Swift. 367
"nerated *.” But, in the character of a tete
à tete companion, according to the beſt judg-
ment that I can form of his great abilities, if
I may be allowed the expreſiion, he rather
excelled himſelf. Few that are equal to himi
in that reſpect, perhaps none that are his
ſuperiors, can be found upon earth. He was
by no means in the claſs with thoſe, who
pour down their eloquence like a torrent,
driving all before it. Far from any defires
of that ſort, he equally loved to ſpeak, and
loved to hearken: Like FALSTAFF, he not
only had wit himſelf, but frequently was the
cauſe of wit in others. However indeed,
that univerſal reverence which was paid to
his great abilities, frequently ſtruck a damp
on the ſpirits of thoſe who were not perfectly
well acquainted with him; an effect of mo-
defty, which however did not always happen
to be conſtrued to their advantage, unleſs it
were in the caſe of very young people. For,
when ſuch perſons were gone, if none but
his intimates were preſent, he would expreſs
himſelf with ſome degree of emotion; and
cry, Such a one, I have heard, is a very great
man; or, ſuch a one, they ſay, has abun-
dance of learning; or, ſuch a one, I have
been told, has an excellent underſtanding;
but GOD deliver me from ſuch compa-
nions!
* Vol. 4. p. 245.
IR
368 Eſſay on the Life and
If any point, whether religious, moral,
or political, happened when he was preſent
to be controverted in a circle of his acquaint-
ance, he was fond to liſten with great atten-
tion to the merits of the argument; And, if
any doubt remained, after a fair diſcuſſion of
the point, he would recapitulate the ſum of
what had been ſaid; then ſtate the matter in
the cleareſt light, and appeal unto the unbi-
aſſed judgnient of the youngeſt perſon in
company
If we conſider Dr. Swift in his cha-
racter as a divine and a Chriſtian, we ſhall
find him, although not ſo grave, yet at leaſt
as perfect, as the moſt famous of his cotem-
poraries. His firſt ſetting out in the world
may be thought ſomewhat ſingular, in this
profane, hypocritical, corrupted age. We
are aſſured from his own accounts, that his
ideas of religion were ſo extreamly delicate,
that he could not but entertain ſome ſcruple,
notwithſtanding his fortune was very ſmall,
of entering into the church merely for ſup-
port; although it is plain, that he had
early ſeparated himſelf to the work of the
miniſtry: But, as ſoon as he had an oppor-
tunity of living, without being driven into
the church for a maintenance, he returned
from Moore-Park to Ireland, and took holy
orders *. He was of a genius thoroughly
well adapted for the improvement of any
* Vid. Appen. Se&. 25.
con-
Character of Dr. Swift. 369
congregation whatever, his arguments being
always clear, cogent, and ſatisfactory: But
ſurely, thoſe improved, extenſive abilities,
which rendered him at once the delight and the
admiration of the world, were never deſigned
by his Creator to be confined within the nar-
row limits of any pariſh or dioceſe. At his
firſt launching into the world, he promiſed
to be a ſtar of ſome extraordinary magnitude.
In the earlieſt of his productions, The Tale
of a Tub, he expoſeth the follies and cor-
ruptions of religion with irreſiſtible wit and
humour; he vindicateth the reformed church
of England and Ireland from the imputation
of abuſe, and diſplayeth all her graces and
beauties to the admiration of the world. In
the
year 1710. he procured for the clergy of
Ireland the twentieth-parts and firſt-fruits,
without any imagination of intereſt for him-
felf. With what egregious contempt and
ridicule, in his Argument againſt aboliſhing
Chriſtianity, doth he expoſe the abſurdity of
thoſe wretches, who are the patrons and
abettors of vice and irreligion? With what
apoſtolical freedom, in his Project for the
Advancement of Religion, doth he conjure the
monarch and the whole legiſlature, to preſs
forward the reformation of manners, and the
obligation of chriſtianity? And when he ar-
rived to ſome little ſhare of power among the
tory miniſters in the queen's time, he was
upon all occaſions the friend of the clergy;
Bb
he
370 Eſſay on the Life and
he was the guardian and the watchman of
the catholic church, againſt all her open, as
well as ſecret enemies. He tells BURNET,
whom he laſhes unmercifully, that he was a
man who could ſmell Popery at five hundred
miles diſtance, better than FANATICISM juſt
under his nofe *. And after he had come
to ſettle in Ireland upon the queen's death,
he was in all matters relating to the church
and clergy, their champion and their de-
fender.
In his character as Dean of ST. PATRICK'S,
he was perfectly regular and exemplary. He
went for many years to church every morn-
ing; generally preached in his turn; and, as
the Obſervator remarks, conſtantly attended
the holy facrament, which he confecrated and
adminiſtred in perſon t, an office, which it is
ſaid, that he performed with abundance of
grace and devotion. His phyſicians indeed,
long before his death, preſſed him to forbear
attending in his cathedral, St. PaTick's
church, which is unhappily ſubject to the
inundation of a little dirty river, being almoſt
perpetually damp the whole winter, and fre-
quently fo at other times of the
the leſs he continued his old practice for a great
while, in ſpight of all their remonftrances,
until he found by repeated colds and expe-
rience, that he could bear it no longer. In
* Vid. Pref. to the Bp. of Sarum's latroduction, Vol. 6.
+ Obl. Let. 4.
year ; never-
all
Character of Dr. Swift. 371
all buſineſs relating to his CHAPTER, he pur-
ſued their public intereſt with firmneſs and
conſtancy. He beſides took as much care
to regulate his Choir, as if he himſelf had
really and truly ſome regard for muſic: But,
in this particular, he was always guided by
the opinion of thoſe who were ſuppoſed to
have been judges of harmony. And, that
his Choir "might do their duty, particularly
on Sunday nights, when variety of the better
fort uſually came to hear the anthem, he con-
ſtantly went to church himſelf. This puts
me in mind of an anecdote, which happened
in thoſe times. An idle, careleſs fellow, but
an excellent finger, and one of the beſt per-
formers belonging to his cathedral, having la-
boured for ſome time under the higheſt dif-
pleaſure of the Dean, was forced to abſent
himſelf from the church, and keep entirely
out of his fight. But at laſt, one Sunday
evening having ventured into the ſinging loft,
full in the view of the Dean, he began that
particular anthem; Whither ſhall I go
, whi-
ther ſhall I go, whither ſhall I Ay, from thy
preſence? To jail, you dog you, to jail, faid
the Doctor, in a voice loud enough to be
heard by many that were about him. But,
the next morning he forgave the poor finner,
on his promiſe of amendment.
In his private character as a man of reli-
gion, he appears to have been a great and
Ahining example of chriſtian faith and morals.
B b 2
In
1
372 Eſſay on the Life and
In himſelf, he was chaſte, ſober, and tem-
perate: I remember he once told me occa-
fionally, that he never had been drunk in his
life: In his general behaviour, he was open,
free, diſengaged, and chearful: In his deal-
ings with the world, he was honeſt and fin-
cere: In relieving the poor and the diſtreſſed,
he was liberal to profuſion; if denying him-
ſelf, and throwing upon the waters above a
third part of his income, will entitle him to
the character of being exceedingly generous.
With regard to his faith, he was truly ortho-
dox; which I aſſert in oppoſition to a late
ſelf-conceited Polytheiſt, not worthy to be
named, who declares the Doctor to have
been ſuch another Pagan as himſelf. More-
over, he was regular, exceedingly regular, as
I have hinted before, in all his duties to
GOD, eſpecially in attending the public
worſhip; yet ſtill without any parade, of
colour of oftentation. But, to crown his
whole character as a man of religion; and to
Thew how much he deteſted that SATANI-
CAL vice of hypocrify, (the only doctrine
vigorouſly and heartily recommended by the
Obſervator) I ſhall tranſcribe one paragraph
from a ſermon of his, not yet publiſhed, On
the excellency of the CHRISTIAN RELIGION,
oppoſed to HEATHEN PHILOSOPHY.
" CHRISTIAN wiſdom (faith he) is with-
ç out partiality: It is not calculated for this
or that nation or people, but the whole
race
«
Character of Dr. Swift.
373
“ race of mankind; not to the philoſophical
ſchemes, which were narrow and confined;
adapted to their peculiar towns, govern-
“ ments or fects; but in every nation, he that
“ feareth GOD, and worketh righteouſneſs,
s is accepted with Him. Laſtly, it is with-
“out hypocriſy: It appears to be what it re-
ally is; it is all of a piece. By the doctrines
“ of the goſpel we are ſo far from being al-
“ lowed to publiſh to the world thoſe virtues
“ we have not, that we are commanded to
“ hide even from ourſelves thoſe we really
have, and not to let our right hand know
“ what our left hand does; unlike ſeveral
“ branches of the HEATHEN wiſdom, which
pretended to icach infenfibility and indiffe-
rence, magnanimity and contempt of life,
“ while at the ſame time in other parts it
belyed its own doctrines.”
But, to conclude theſe ſpeculations upon
his life and character. Philoſophy in Dr.
SWIFT was a complex idea, containing the
whole variety of his own accumulated know-
ledge. He was greatly above all philofophi-
cal ſyſtems. He had no very prong faith in
the pretenders to retirement: He laughed at
all their prattling and talking de contemptu
mundi & fuga fæculi *. I renounce your phi-
loſophy (faith he to PoPE and BOLINGBROKE)
becauſe it is not your practice. He approved
what old WEYMOUTH ſaid to him in the
* Pope, Vol. 9. Let. 9.
latter
374 Eſſay on the Life and
latter part of the queen's reign, and in his
fordly latin, philoſopha verba ignava opera.
The D-I take ſlupidity (faith he in another
place) that it will not come in to ſupply the
want of philoſophy *. In ſhort, my Lord
BOLINGBROKE never could perſuade him to
put on his philoſophical ſpectaclest: Neither
could POPE forbear to beg it of him as a
piece of mercy, that he would not laugh at his
gravity, but permit him to wear the beard of
a pbiloſopher, until he pulled it off, and made
a jeſt of it himſelf i. He continued to the
laft to improve the ſpeculations of his early
days. Wiſdom (faith he in his Introduction to
the Tale of a Tub, which he writ when he
was a perfect boy) is like a cheeſe, whereof to
a judicious taſte the maggots are the beſt. He
relished the advice which HORACE gave unto
his friend VIRGIL; Mifce ftultitiam confiliis
brevem ||. Accordingly we find, that when
he was fifty-ſix, he amuſed himſelf with
reading the moſt trifling books he could find;
and writing, if you will take his own word
for it, upon the moſt trifling ſubjects. Hæc
eft vita ſolutorum, &c. faith he with a grace
and carleſſneſs, which are not likely to be
imitated **. And when he was above three-
ſcore, recollecting the words of HORACE,
Dulce eft defpere in loco, he declared, that
* POPE, Vol. 9. Let. 41. + Pope, Vol. 9. Let. 40.
I Pore, Vol. 9. Let. 67. | Hor. Lib. 4. Od. 12.
Hor. Lib. I. Sat. 6. ** Pope, Vol. y. Let. 9.
he
Character of Dr. Swift. 375
he loved la bagatelle better than ever. Such,
and ſuch only, were his pretences to phi-
loſophy.
JONATHAN SWIFT, S. T. P.
OBIIT
OCTOBRIS DIE 19°
DOMINI MDCCXLV.
Anno {
ÆTATIS SUÆ LXXVIII.
I CANNOT but think myſelf obliged, before
I take my leave of the public, to make ſome
kind of an apology for the many and great
imperfections in theſe accounts relating to
Dr. Swift. The
proper
ſeaſon for collect-
ing materials to write the life of the Dean,
would undoubtedly have been while he him-
ſelf was alive: But, to ſpeak ſincerely, I ne-
ver had, until very lately, any remote deſign
of engaging in ſuch a work. Neither indeed
ſhould-an Eflay upon the Life and Character
of the Dean have been a taſk I would have
undertaken, had it not been to confute and
diffipate the erroneous accounts of others.
And therefore I cannot but entertain ſome
kind of hope, that whatever may chance to
be the faults or omifſions in this performance,
I ſhall eſcape the cenſure of the public, al-
though I cannot be ſo vain as to expect their
approbation.
Dec. 31. 17.54.
FINI S.
At Lady-Day next will be publiſhed,
Upon a large new Letter, and a ſuperfine Paper,
The Works of the Rev. Dr. JONATHAN
SWIFT, Dean of St. Patrick's, Dublin,
Complete,
In ſix Volumes in Quarto, and in twelve Volumes
in large Octavo,
Ornamented with Copper-Plates.
The whole carefully reviſed, and corrected from
many Errors of the Dublin and other Editions;
with hiſtorical and explanatory Notes.
Printed for C. BATHURST at the Croſs-Keys in
Fleetftreet.
Where may be had,
· The CANONS of CRITICISM and GLOSSARY;
being a Supplement to Mr. WARBURTON's Edi-
tion of
SHAKESPEARE,
Collected from the Nores in that celebrated Work,
and proper to be bound up with it.
By the other Gentleman of Lincoln's-Inn.
The Fifth Edition, with a compleat Index.
THE
APPEND I X.
Τ Η Ε
FAMILY of SWIFT .
SECT. I.
T:
mour.
HE family of the Swifts
1 was ancient in Yorkſhire, from
them deſcended a noted perſon, who
paſſed under the name of Cava-
LIERO Swift, a man of wit and hu-
He was made an Iriſh peer
by King James or King Charles
the firſt, with the title of baron
CARLINGFORD*, but never was in
that kingdom. Many traditional
pleaſant ſtories are related of him,
which the family planted in Ireland,
hath received from their parents.
This lord died without iffue male ;
A
and
2
THE APPENDIX.
and his heireſs, whether of the firſt
or fecond deſcent, was married to
ROBERT Fielding, Eſq; commonly
called handſomeFielding; ſhe brought
him a conſiderable eſtate in Yorkſhire,
which he ſquandered away, but had
no children. The earl of EGLINGTON
married another coheireſs of the ſame
family, as he hath often told me.
* This little tract, entitled, The Family of
Swift, which I have publiſhed by way of
Appendix, was written by Dr. JONATHAN
Swift, Dean of St. Patrick's, Dublin,
about fix or eight and twenty years ago, as
an introduction to his life, which he had
reaſon to apprehend would ſome time or
other become a topick of general converſa-
tion. The notes, wherein I have preſumed
to differ in ſome few particulars from the
Doctor, although in points very immate-
rial; I have written upon my owa autho-
rity, as in many caſes I have had better op-
portunities of being acquainted with ſeveral
anecdotes relating to the family; than had
fallen to the ſhare of Dr. Swift himſelf.
The original manuſcript under the Docs
TOR's own hand, which I had the honour
to receive as a preſent from his old, faithful
friend,
THE APPENDIX.
3
friend, and couſin-german, Mrs. WHITE-
WAY, I have lodged in the univerſity library
of Dublin ; to remain there as an authority,
ſo far as it goes, to juſtify my own accounts
in that eſſay, which I have written upon
the life, writings, and character of Dr. JONA-
THAN SWIFT.
* BARNAM SWIFT, Eſq; created viſcount
(not baron) of CARLINGFORD, in the realm
of Ireland, March 20, 1627, anno 3 CAROLI
regis.
SECT. II.
Another of the ſame family was
Sir EDWARD Swift, well known in
the times of the great rebellion and
uſurpation, but I am ignorant whe-
ther he left heirs or no.
SECT. III.
Of the other branch, whereof the
greater part ſettled in Ireland, the
founder was WILLIAM Swift', pré-
bendary of Canterbury, towards the
laſt years of Queen Elizabeth, and
during
A 2
4
THE APPENDIX.
during the reign of King James the
firſt. He was a divine of ſome di-
ſtinction: There is a ſermond of his
extant, and the title is to be ſeen
in the catalogue of the Bodleian
Library, but I never could geta copy,
and I ſuppoſe it would now be of
little value.
bIn this particular it happens that Dr.
SWIFT was miftaken : Had he read the de-
dication of WILLIAM Swift's ſermon, it
would have ſet him right. In that dedi-
cation 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 1591, ſucceeded his fa-
ther in the ſame pariſh.
I do not find the name of WILLIAM
Swift in the liſt of the prebendaries of Can-
terbury; I ſuppoſe the Doctor took it for
granted that the pariſh of St Andrew's was one
of the prebends belonging to that cathedral
.
THE fermon is written pretty much in
the ſtile and manner of thoſe days. It is full
of matter, and ſufficiently proves, from a
great variety of examples, that afflictions fall
unto
THE APPENDIX. 5
unto the lot of the righteous. It was preach-
ed at the funeral of Mr. Thomas WILSON,
in his own church of St. GEORGE's, in Can-
terbury, the 25th of January, 1621. He
hath choſen for his text, Rom. viii, 18.
SECT. IV.
This WILLIAM married the heireſs
of Philpot, I ſuppoſe a Yorkſhire
Gentleman', by whom he got a very
conſiderable eſtate, which however
The kept in her own power ; I know
not by what artifice. She was a ca-
pricious, ill-natured and paſſionate
woman, of which I have been told
ſeveral inſtances. And it hath been
a continual tradition in the family,
that ſhe abſolutely diſinherited her
only fon THOMAS', for no greater
crime than that of robbing an orchard
when he was a boy. And thus much
is certain, that except a church or
chapter leaſe, which was not renewed,
Thomas never enjoyed more than one
hundred pounds a year, which was
all
A 3
*
6
THH APPENDIX.
all at Goodrich', in Herefordſhire,
whereof not above one half is now in
the poſſeſſion of a great-great grand-
fon".
· Rather, a gentleman of Kent, or ſome
of the neighbouring counties. This miſake
of Dr. Swift proceeds from the ſame error
that was cleared up in one of the preceding
notes ; the Doctor having thought Wil-
LIAM SWIFT, and not his father, was the
firſt of our younger branch, which had re-
moved from Yorkſhire to Canterbury.
f Whom ſhe once threatened to whip for
fome trifling miſdemeanour after he had left
the univerſity.
8 AT Goodrich, and two other neighbour-
ing pariſhes, viz. Marſtow and Llangarran.
DEANE SWIFT, Eſquire,
h
.
SECT. V.
His original picture is now in the
hands of GODWIN SWIFT, of Dub-
lin, Eſq; his great grandſon, as well
as that of his wife's, who ſeems to
have a good deal of the ſhrew in her
countenance; whoſe arms aisan heir-
eſs
THE APPENDIX.
7
efs are joined with his own; and by
the laſt he ſeems to have been a per-
ſon ſomewhat fantaſtick; for there
he gives as his device a dolphin (in
thoſe days called a Swift) twiſted about
an anchor, with this motto, Feſtina
Lente.
In the hands of Mrs. ELIZABETH SWIFT,
relict of Godwin Swift, late of Swifts-
heath, in the county of Kilkenny, Eſq; His
picture was drawn in the year 1623, ætatis
fuæ 57: His wife's picture was drawn the
fame year, ætatis ſuæ 54.
SECT. VI.
There is likewiſe a feal with the
fame coat of arms (his not joined
with his wife's) which the ſaid Wil-
LIAM commonly made uſe of, and
this is alſo now in the poſſeſſion of
GODWIN Swift k above-mentioned.
k In the hands of Mrs. SWIFT, above-
mentioned.
SECT.
A4
8
THE APPENDIX.
SECT. VII.
His eldeſt ſon THOMAS ' feems to
have been a clergyman before his fa-
ther's death. He was vicar of Good-
rich, in Herefordſhire, within a mile
or two of Roſs: he had likewiſe ano-
ther church living, with about one
hundred pounds a year in land, as I
have already mentioned. He built a
houſe on his own land in the village
of Goodrich ", which by the architec-
ture denotes the builder to have been
ſomewhat whimſical and ſingular,
and very much towards a projector. .
The houſe • is above a hundred years
old and ſtill in good repair, inhabi-
ted by a tenant p of the female line,
but the landlord, a young gentle-
man, lives upon his own eſtate in Ire-
land.
His only fon THOMAS was a clergyman
before his fáther's death, as appears from the
drapery in his picture, which was drawn
at
THE APPENDIX.
9
at the ſame time with his father's, in the year
1623, ætatis fuæ 28.
m Within four miles of Roſs.
"Not in the village, but in the pariſh of
Goodrich.
• It is certainly a houſe of the oddeſt kind
that ever was built. It has three floors, con-
taining about twelve or fourteen rooms, be-
ſides vaults and garrets. The whole ſeems
to be three ſingle houſes all joining in one
central point. Undoubtedly there never was,
nor ever will be, ſuch another 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 1636.
p That tenant of the female line hath
been dead theſe many years.
SECT. VIII.
This THOMAS was diſtinguiſhed
by his courage, as well as his loyalty
to King CH'Arles the firſt, and the
ſufferings he underwent for that
prince, more than any perſon of his
condition in England. Some hiſtori-
ans of thoſe times relate ſeveral parti-
culars
IO
THE APPENDIX.
money
.
culars of what he acted, and what hard-
ſhips he underwent for the perſon and
cauſe of that bleſſed martyr'd prince.
He was plundered by the round-
heads fix and thirty times, ſome ſay
above fifty? He engaged his ſmall
eſtate, and gathered all the he
could get, quilted it in his waiſtcoat,
got
ot off to a town held for the King,
where being aſked by the governor,
who knew hiin 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
waiſtcoat: he bid the go-
vernor weigh it in his hand, who
ordering it to be ripped, found it
lined with three hundred broad pieces
of gold, which as it proved a fea-
fonable relief! muſt be allowed an
extraordinary ſupply from a private
clergyman with ten children, of a
ſmall eſtate, fo often plundered, and
foon
take my
THE APPENDIX.
II
ſoon after turned out of his livings in
the church.
9 The following note I have extracted
from MERCURIUS RUSTICUS, and WAL-
Ker's Sufferings of the CLERGY.
When the earl of STAMFORD (whole
name is frequently mentioned by the earl of
CLARENDON; vide vol. 2. p. 135, 137, 268,
270, 271, 273, of the 8vo edition) was in
Herefordſhire, in October 1642, and pillaged
all that kept faith and allegiance to the king,
information was given to Mrs. SWIFT, wife
of Mr. THOMAS Swift, parſon of Good-
rich, that her houſe was deſigned to be
plundered: to prevent ſo great a danger, ſhe
inſtantly repaired to Hereford, where the earl
then was, ſome ten miles from her own
home, to petition him, that no violence
might be offered by his ſoldiers to her houſe
or goods; he moſt nobly, and according to
the goodneſs of his diſpoſition, threw the
petition away, and ſwore no linall oaths, that
the ſhould be plundered to-morrow. The ,
good gentlewoman being out of hope to pre-
vail, and ſeeing there was no good to be done
by petitioning him, ſpeeds huine as taft as nice
could, and that night removed as much of her
goods as the ſhortneſs of the time would pero
mit: next morning, to make good the earl of
STAMFORD'S word, captain Kirle's troop,
con-
I 2 THE APPENDIX.
conſiſting of ſeventy horſe, and thirty foot
which were hangers on, (birds of prey) came
to Mr. Swift's houſe, there they took
away all his proviſion of victuals, corn,
houſhold ſtuff, which was not conveyed
away: they empty his beds, and fill the ticks
with malt; they rob him of his cart and
fix horſes, and make this part of their theft
the means to convey away the reſt : Mrs.
Swift, much affrighted to ſee ſuch a ſight
as this, thought it beſt to ſave herſelf, tho'
the loſt her goods; therefore taking up a
young child in her arms, began to ſecure her-
felf by flight; which one of the troopers per-
ceiving, he commanded her to ſtay, or (hold-
ing his piſtol at her breaſt) threatened to ſhoot
her dead; ſhe (good woman) fearing death
whether ſhe went on or returned ; at laſt, Thun-
ning that death which was next unto her, ſhe
retires back to her houſe, where ſhe ſaw her-
felf undone, and yet durft not oppoſe or aſk
why they did fo? Having thus rified the houſe
and gone, next morning early ſhe goes again
to Hereford, and there again petitions the
earl to thew ſome compaſſion on her and her
ten children, and that he would be pleaſed to
cauſe her horſes and ſome part of her goods to
be reſtored unto her: The good earl was ſo
far from granting her petition, that he would
not vouchſafe ſo much as to read it: When
the could not prevail herſelf, the makes
uſe of the mediation of friends: Theſe have
the
THE APPENDIX. 13
the repulſe too, his lordſhip remaining inex-
orable, without any inclination to mercy:
At laſt, hoping that all mens hearts were not
adamnant, relentleſs, ſhe leaves the earl, and
makes her addreſs to captain Kirle, who,
upon her earneſt intreaty, grants her a pro-
tection for what was left, but for reſtitution,
there was no hope of that; this protection
coſt her no leſs than thirty ſhillings : It ſeems
paper and ink are dear in thoſe parts. And
now thinking herſelf-ſecured by this protec-
tion, ſhe returns home, in hopes that what
was left ſhe might enjoy in peace and quiet-
neſs; ſhe had not been long at home, but
captain KIRLE ſends her word, that if it
pleaſed her, ſhe might buy four of her own
ſix horſes again, aſſuring her by his father's
ſervant and tenant, that ſhe ſhould not fear
being plundered of them any more by the
earl of STAMFORD's forces while they were
in thoſe parts. Encouraged by theſe promiſes
ſhe was content to buy her own, and depo-
ſited eight pounds ten ſhillings for four of her
horſes. And now conceiving the ſtorm to
be blown over, and all danger paſt, and
placing much confidence in her purchaſed
protection, ſhe cauſeth all her goods, ſecur'd
in her neighbours houſes, to be brought
home ; and ſince it could not be better, re-
joiced that ſhe had not loft all. She had not
enjoyed theſe thoughts long, but captain
KIRLE fent unto her for ſome vefſels of cy-
der,
14
THE APPENDIX.
der, whereof having taſted, but not liking
it, ſince he could not have drink for himſelf
,
he would have provender for his horſe; and
therefore inſtead of cyder, he demands ten
buſhels of oats. Mrs. Swift fearing that the
denial might give ſome ground of quarrel, fent
him word that her husband had not two
buſhels of oats in a year for tythe, nor did they
ſow any on their glebe ; both which were most
true ; yet to fhew how willing the was (to
her power) to comply with him, that the
meſſenger might not return empty, ſhe ſent
him forty ſhillings to buy oats. Suddenly af-
ter the captain of Goodrich caſtle ſends to Mrs.
Swift's houſe for victual and corn; Mrs.
Swift inſtantly repairs to him, and ſhews
him her protection; he, to anſwer ſhew with
ſhew, ſhews her his warrant, and ſo without
any regard to her protection, ſeizeth upon
that proviſion which was in the houſe,
together with the cyder which captain
KIRLE refuſed. Hereupon Mrs. Swifi
writes to captain Kirle, complaining of
this injury, and the affront done to him
in fighting his protection; but before the
meſſenger could return with an anſwer to her
letter, fome from the caſtle came a ſecond
time to plunder the houſe, and they did what
they came for: Preſently after comes a letter
from captain KIRLE, 'in anſwer to Mrs.
Swift's, telling her, that the earl of STAM-
FORD did by no meang approve of the injuries
done unto her; and withal, by word of
mouth,
:
THE APPENDIX. 15
a
mouth, ſends to her for more oats: ſhe per-
ceiving, that as long as
as ſhe gave they would
never leave aſking, reſolved to be drilled no
more: the return not anſwering expectation,
on the 3d of December, two hours before day,
captain Kirle's lieutenant, attended by a
conſiderable number of horſe and dragoons,
comes to Mr. SwIFT's houſe and demands
entrance; but the doors being kept ſhut a-
gainſt them, and not able to force them,
they broke down two iron bars in a ſtone
window, and ſo with ſwords drawn and pif-
tols cocked, they enter the houſe. Being en-
tered, they take all Mr. Swift and his wife's
apparel, his books, and his children's cloaths,
they being in bed ; and thoſe
and thoſe poor children
that hung by their cloaths, unwilling to part
with them, they ſwung them about until
(their hold-faſt failing) they dalhed them
againſt the walls. They took away all his
,
ſervants cloaths, and made ſo clean work
with one, that they left him not a ſhirt to
cover his nakedneſs. There was one of the
children, an infant lying in the cradle, they
robbed that, and left not the little poor ſoul
a rag to defend it from the cold. They took
away all the iron, pewter, and braſs, and a
very fair cup-board of glaſſes, which they
could not carry away, they broke to pieces ;
and the four horſes lately redeemed, are with
them lawful prizes again, and left nothing
of all the goods but a few ſtools for his wife,
children
16 THE APPENDIX.
children and ſervants, to ſit down and be-
moan their diſtreſſed condition. Having ta-
ken away all, and being gone, Mrs. Swift,
in compaſſion to her poor infant in the cra-
dle, took it up almoſt ſtarved with cold,
and wrapped it in a petticoat which ſhe took
off from herſelf; and now hoped, that hav-
ing nothing to loſe, would be a better pro-
tection for their perſons, than that which ſhe
purchaſed of captain Kirle for thirty ſhil-
lings. But as if Job's meſſenger would ne-
ver make an end, her three maid-ſervants,
whom they of the caſtle had compelled to
carry the poultry to the caſtle, return and
tell their miſtreſs, that they in the caſtle ſaid
that they had a warrant to ſeize upon Mrs.
Swift, and bring her into the caſtle ; and
that they would make her three maid-ſer-
vants wait on her there, threatning to plunder
all under the petticoat ; and other uncivil im-
modeſt words, not fit for them to ſpeak, or
me to write. Hereupon Mrs. Swift fled
to the place where her husband, for fear of
the rebels, had withdrawn himſelf: She
had not been gone two hours, but they come
from the caſtle, and bring with them three
teams, to carry away what was before deſign-
ed for plunder, but wanted means of convey-
ance. When they came, amongſt other
things, there was a batch of bread hot in the
oven, this they ſeize on, ten children on their
knces intreat but for one loaf, and at laſt with
much
THE APPENDIX.
17
much importunity obtained it: But before
the children had eaten it, they took even
that one loaf away, and left them deſtitute
of a morſel of bread amongſt ten children.
Ranſacking every corner of the houſe, that
nothing inight be left behind, they find
a ſmall pewter diſh, in which the dry nurſe
had put pap to feed the poor infant, the mo-
ther which gave it ſuck being fled to ſave
her life, this they ſeize on too.
The nurſe
intreats for God's fake, that they would ſpare
that, pleading, that in the mother's abſence
it was all the ſuſtenance which was or could
be provided to ſuſtain the life of the child ;
and on her knees, intreated to ſhew mercy
unto the child, that knew not the right hand
from the left, a motive which prevailed with
God himſelf, though juſtly incenſed againſt
Nineveh. But to thew what bowels of com-
paſſion and mercy are to be expected in fec-
taries, and how far they are from being dif-
ciples to him who ſays, be ye merciful as your
FATHER which is in heaven is merciful; they
tranſgreſs that precept of our SAVIOUR in the
letter, and take away the childrens meat and
give it unto dogs; for, throwing the pap to
the dogs, they put up the diſh as a lawful
prize.
Mr. Swift's eldeſt ſon, a youth, ſeeing
this barbarous cruelty, demanded of them a
reaſon of this ſo hard uſage; they replied,
that his father was a traitor to the king and
B
parlia-
18 THE APPENDIX.
.
parliament, and added, that they would keep
them ſo ſhort, that they ſhould eat the very
fleſh from their arms; and to make good
their word, they threaten the miller, that if
he ground corn' for theſe children, they
would grind him in his own mill; and not
contented with this, they go to Mr. Swift's
next neighbour (whoſe daughter was his ſer-
vant) and take him priſoner; they examine
him upon oath what goods of Mr. Swift he
had in his cuſtody; he profeſſing that he had
none, they charge him to take his daughter
from Mr. Swift's ſervice, or elſe they
threaten to plunder him, and to make ſure
work they make him give them ſecurity to
obey all their commands : Terrified with this,
the neighbours ſtand afar off, and pity the
diſtreſſed condition of theſe perſecuted chil-
dren; but dare not come or fend to their
relief: By this means the children and ſervants
had no fuftenance, bardly any thing to cover
them, from Friday 6 o'clock' at night, until
Saturday 12 at night, until at laſt the neigh-
bours, moved with the lamentable cries and
complaints of the children and ſervants, one
of the neighbours over-looking all difficulties,
and ſhewing that he durſt be charitable in
deſpite of theſe monſters, ventured in and
brought them fome proviſion. And if the
world would know what it was that ſo exaf-
perated theſe rebels againſt this gentleman,
the earl of STAMFORD, a man that its not
bound
THE APPENDIX. 19
bound to give an account of all his actions,
gave two reaſons for it; firſt, becauſe he had
bought arms and conveyed
and conveyed them into
Mennoutfi.ire, which under his lordſhip’s
good favour was not fo: and ſecondly, be-
cauſe not long before, he preached a ſermon
at Rofs upon that text, give unto CÆSAR the
things that are Cæsar's, in which his lord-
fhip ſaid, he had ſpoken treaſon, in endea-
vouring to give CÆSAR more than his due :
Theſe two crimes coft Mr. Swift no leſs
than three hundred pounds. See Mercurius
Ruſicus, chap. viii. p. 84.
Thus far the MERCURY; (faith Wal-
KER the hiſtorian) which being written a-
bout a year after the tranſacting of theſe bar-
barities, could not account for Mr. Swift's
fequeſtration ; becauſe that was not formally
iſſued until about three years after, viz. in
1646; and July 5 that year, I find the
committee of Hereford lequefired, and or-
dered the profits of Goodrich into the hands of
JONATHAN DRYDEN, minifter, until the
Chriſmas following. This Mr. Dryden
was to ſee the ſaid cure duly officiated; and to
receive, gather, and diſpoſe of the dues of the
living. When his other living of BridRow
was put under ſequeſtration, I know not ;
but Sept. 25, that year alſo, the fame com-
mittee ordered his ejectment from it, for fcan-
dal and delinquency, and for being in actual
ſervice againſt the parliament. At the ſame
B 2
time
20
THE APPENDIX.
time likewiſe, they ordered Mr. JONATHAN
SMITH, the then curate, to be inducted in
his cure. (What became of him (SMITH)af-
afterwards I know not, faith WALKER)
but in 1654, one John SOMERS got this
living.
"The 24th of March following, the com-
mittee ordered his eje&tment alſo from Good-
rich, and the inducting of Gyles Rawlins
to ſucceed him in that pariſh ; and aſſign the
Jame reaſons for it, as they before had done
for the turning him cut of Bridſtow. Mr.
Swift was alſo impriſoned by the committee
as ſoon as the garriſon of Hereford fell into
the hands of the rebels, and continued priſo-
ner a long time. I find him in cuſtody at
Ragland caſtle when the committee ordered
his eje&tment from Goodrich. He had a tem-
poral eſtate in Goodrich and Marſtow, which
the ſame committee ordered to be ſequeſtred,
Auguſt 4, 1646. After which he endured
many grievous hardſhips with his numerous
family; but lived to be reſtored with the
church and his majeſty, and died at Goodrich
in a good old age * (WALKER was miſin-
formed with regard to this laſt pårticular;
for Mr. Swift died in the year 1658, in the
63d year of his age.)
His cattle and ſtock were driven off his
land twelve times; his houſe was plundered
two and fifty times; and five times ſet on
Vide WALKER's ſufferings of the Clergy, p. 363.
fire
THE APPENDIX. 21
fire by the fanatical round-heads. And be-
cauſe they never came to his houſe without
finding ſome trifling proviſion or other ; (for
when the rebellion was beginning to break
out, he ſunk a private vault in a place not
to be ſuſpected, which he plentifully ſtored
with proviſions, and cominunicated the ſe-
cret to none but a faithful ſervant) they gave
him the appellation of Swift the conjurer ;
in conſequence whereof, ſeveral ridiculous
ſtories were invented; many of which, like
fairy tales, were, to my knowledge, credi-
ted by the ignorant in thoſe parts, within
theſe five and twenty years. I cannot help
relating one or two of them, becauſe they
are ſufficientlydroll and extravagant. The
people in that country verily believed, that
upon his retirement into one of the caſtles
held for the King (which I think was either
Chepſlow or Ragland) he uſed to walk upon
the batteries, and with his hand beat aſide
the balls that were ſhot againſt the caſtle.
The other ſtory is, that he once fought the
Devil in ſingle combat, and after many blows
given and received on both ſides, that the
Devil vaniſhed into the air, but not before
he had left a cake of blood on the conjurer's
breaſt. In ſhort, the common people of the
church party loved him to that degree for his
generoſity and courage in the royal cauſe, that
in truth they looked upon his fortitude to be
of ſuch a temper, that it was not to be con-
quered
B 3
22
THH APPENDIX.
quered even by the Devil himſelf. And,
without diſpute, let his merits and ſufferings
have been what they would before the year
1646, at which time both his church li-
vings and the greater part of his eftate ware
ſequeftred by that raſcally committee of
Hereford, he ſuſtained from that period even
to his laſt hour, which was in the year
1658, a moſt obſtinate and grievous conflict
againſt POVERTY, FANATICKS, the Usur-
PER, and the Devil, Yet in the midſt of
his calamities he never ſhrunk from his duty
as a clergyman of the church of England;
but regularly and conſtantly performed all the
buſineſs of his LORD and Master in private
houſes, with as much alacrity as before the
fequeſtration of his revenues, whether tem-
poral or ſpiritual
. His pocket chalice was
given to the church of Goodrich, by Dr.
Swift, with this infcription ;
"THOMAS Swift hujus eccleſiæ vica-
rius, notus in hiſtoriis ob ea quæ fecit et
« paffus eft pro CAROLO primo, ex hoc ca-
" lice ægrotantibus propinavit. Eundem ca-
“ licem JONATHAN SWIFT, S. T. D. deca-
nus ecclefiæ fanct. PATRICU Dublin
“ THOMÆ ex filio nepos huic eccleſiæ in
perpetuum dedicat, 1726.”
To Ragland caſtle, which to the eternal
honour of the old marquiſs of WORCESTER
(the brave and worthy anceſtor of the pre-
fent great duke of BEAUFORT) endured the
longeſt
THE APPENDIX.
23
longeſt ſiege of
of any fort or caſtle in England;
and was defended by that old Nestor with
extraordinary courage and reſolution againſt
the fanatical army, commanded by Fair-
FAX himſelf, until it was reduced to the ut-
moſt neceſſity. Vide Clarendon.
u PERHAPS there never was a more feaſon-
able, or at leaſt a more acceptable donation,
made to King CHARLES the firſt in the
whole courſe of the war, than theſe three
hundred broad pieces: For indeed they were
preſented to the King upon his Majeſty's re-
tirement to the caſtle of Ragland, when his
affairs were at the loweſt ebb, in the year
1645, immediately after that unfortunate
battle of Naſeby; where upon the whole,
both King and kingdom were loſt to all in-
tents and purpoſes. Vid. Clarendon.
SECT. IX.
At another time being informed
that three hundred horſe of the re-
bel party intended in a week to paſs
over a certain river, upon an at-
tempt againſt the cavaliers, Mr.
Swift having a head mechanically
turned, he contrived certain pieces
of iron with three ſpikes, whereof
B 4
one
24
THE APPENDIX.
one muſt always be with the point
upwards: He placed them over night
in the ford, where he received no-
tice that the rebels would paſs early
the next morning, which they ac-
cordingly 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 *
* Ir was undoubtedly for actions of this
kind that he was conſidered by the fanaticks,
in the character of a ſoldier, and deprived of
his church livings, together with the profits
of his eſtate ſo very early. For, according
to WALKER the hiſtorian, whom I have
quoted in a former note, the committee of
Hereford ordered his ſeveral ejectments from
his livings, and eſtate, not only for ſcandal
and delinquency, but for his being in actual
ſervice againſt the parliament.
SECT. X.
3922
His fons, whereof four y were fet-
tled in Ireland (driven thither by
their
1
THE APPENDIX.
25
their ſufferings, and by the death of
their father) related many other paſ-
ſages, which they learned either from
their father himſelf, or from what
had been told them by the moſt cre-
dible perſons of Herefordſhire, and
{ome neighbouring counties; and
which ſome of thoſe fons often told
to their children; many of which
are ſtill remembered, but many more
forgot
.
y He ſhould have ſaid five: I ſuppoſe he
forgot Dryden SWIFT, who died very
young and a batchelor, foon after he had
come over to Ireland with his brothers. He
recollects his name however in one of the
ſubſequent paragraphs.
SECT. XI.
He was deprived of both his church
livings founer than moſt other loyal
clergymen, upon account of his fu-
perior zeal for the King's cauſe, and
his eſtate fequeftred. His prefer-
ments,
—
bis name
26 THE APPENDIX.
menits, at leaſt that of Goodrich,
were given to a fanatical faint”, who
fcrupled not however, to conform
upon the reſtoration, and lived many
years, I think till after the revolú-
tion: I have feen many perfonis at
Goodrich, who knew and told me
his name, which I cannot now re-
member:
ZONE GYLES RAWLINs ſucceeded him in
the pariſh of Goodrich : but the fanatical ſaint
here mentioned, ſucceeded RAWLINS forne
time before the month of October: 1657;
.
SECT. XII.
The lord treaſurer OXFORD told
the dean that he had among his fa-
ther's (Sir EDWARD Harley’s) pa-
pers, ſeveral letters from Mr. Tho-
MAS i Swift writ in thoſe times,
which he promiſed to give to the
grandfon, whoſe life I am now writ-
ing'; but never going to his houſe
in
THE APPENDIX. 27
in Herefordſhire while he was trea-
ſurer, and the Queen's death hap-
pening in three days after his remo-
val, the dean went to Ireland, and
the earl being tried for his life, and
dying while the dean was in Ireland,
he could never get them.
a It is plain from this paſſage, and per-
haps one or two more in this Appendix, that
what is here publiſhed was only deſigned
originally by the Doctor, as a few memo-
rials, for the inſtruction of any perſon that
ſhould write his life. The Doctor hath
propheſied in ſome verſes (and you know
that VATES ſignifieth a prophet as well as a
poet) that his life would certainly become a
topick one time or other, that would amuſe
the world; his words are theſe
They'll ſerve me, as they've done my betters,
Publish
my will, my life, my letters.
All which have already been literally fulfilled,
to the intire ſatisfaction of a great number,
I know not whether to call them friends or
enemies,
.
SECT.
28
THE APPENDIX.
SEC T. XIII.
Mr. THOMAS SWIFT died in the
year 1658, and in the b
year
of
his age : His body lies under the al-
tar at Goodrich, with a ſhort inſcrip-
tion. He died about two years be-
fore the return of King CHARLES the
ſecond, who by the recommendation
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 extraordinary ſervices
and zealy and perſecutions in the
royal cauſe: But Mr. Swift's merit
died with himſelf
C
* In the 6zd year of his age.
• WHETHRR to accuſe CHARLES the le-
cond of ingratitude; or, to accuſe Mr. Tho-
MAS Swift's pofterity of pride, I do ac-
knowledge myſelf to be wholly at a loſs.
Nevertheleſs, I am perſuaded that no follici-
tation was ever made to the crown by one of
the name, from that day to this, for
any
the
leaſt
THE APPENDIX.
29
leaſt favour whatſoever, that was either worth
the crown's refuſal, or any of the family's ac-
ceptance; the refuſal of a biſhoprick to Dr.
Swift in the days of Queen Ann (not for-
getting King WILIAM's breach of promiſe
to the Doctor in the caſe of a prebend) only
excepted. If indeed the grant of the deane-
ry
ſhould be called a favour, I would almoſt
appeal unto a fanatick, whether in common
juſtice, throwing all merit as a clergyman out
of the queſtion, he had not bought it over and
over, and fifty times over, by his labours and
writings for the Queen and the conſtitution.
Nay, ſo thoroughly ſenſible were the miniſtry,
that his labours demanded ſome larger re-
compence, that even the Lord Treaſurer
(frugal of the nation's money, although care-
leſs of his own) procured him from the Queen
either a grant or a promiſe of a little paultry
thouſand pounds; which by the way he ne-
ver received unto the hour of his death, not-
withſtanding that he had put Sir RoBERT
WALPOLE in mind of it in the year 1726, al-
tho' in a manner ſomewhat obliquely, as you
may read in a letter of his to Dr. SHERIDAN,
vol. 8. p. 406. dated July 8, 1726, where
he faith, " tell him (Archdeacon WALL)
" that I never aſked for
my
thouſand pounds,
« which he hears I have got, although I men-
" tioned it to the princeſs of Wales the laſt
" time I ſaw her, but I bid her tell WAL-
POLE, I ſcorned to aſk for it.” And yet tổ
my
I
30
THE APPENDIX.
my knowledge, upon ſome diſobligations,
which he thought he had received, he had
it frequently in deſign to make a formal de-
mand of it, although he never expected the
money.
SECT. XIV.
He left ten fons and three or four
daughters, moſt of which lived to
be men and women: His eldeſt ſon
GODWIN Swift, of the Inner-Tern-
ple, Eſq; " (ſo ſtiled by Guillem the
herald ; in whoſe book the family is
deſcribed at large) was I think called
to the bar before the reſtoration. He
married a relation of the old marchi-
oneſs of ORMOND, and upon that ac-
count 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 offence of
his family, was coheireſs to admiral
Deane, who was one of the Regi-
cides. GODWIN left ſeveral children,
who
THE APPENDIX.
31
.
f
ever
who have all eſtates. He was an ill
pleader, but perhaps a little too
dextrous' in the ſubtle parts of the
law.
1 OF GRAY's-Inn, not of the Middle-
Temple.
SOL E heireſs to admiral DEANE.
These words perhaps a little too were in-
terlined in the original manuſcript ſome time
after it was firſt written, as appears mani-
feſtly from the different Thade of the ink,
and were deſigned by the Doctor to caſt
upon
the
memory of his uncle, whoſe
kindneſs to JONATHAN had deſerved much
better treatment at his hards. But, I ſhall
account for JONATHAN's diſlike to his uncle
in its proper place. JONATHAN ſays, that
counſellor Swift was an ill pleader; but he
allows at the ſame time, that he was dex-
trous (as he thinks proper to phraſe it) in the
ſubtle parts of the law. Whether or no
counſellor Swift was an ill pleader, it is
impoſſible that JONATHAN could form any
judgment, as the counſellor never appeared
in the courts after the time of the revolution;
nor, according to the information I have re-
ceived, for two or three years before. How-
oratory his brother-in-law, Sir John MEADF.,
eclipſed
a Nur
32
THE APPENDIX. .
eclipſed the whole bar in the reign of
CHARLES the ſecond; but for deep learning
and ſound judgment in his profeffion, there
was none ſuperior to counfellor Swift
among all his contemporaries
. He certainly
underſtood the moſt fubtil parts of the law :
but, the uſe he made of that knowledge was
to guard his friends, and thoſe who relied
upon his judgment, from the evil effects that
might ariſe from the want of being acquaint-
ed with thoſe very ſubtilties, And accord-
ingly, his reputation was fo firmly eſtabliſhed,
that moſt of the great ſettlements in thoſe
times were drawn up purſuant to his imme-
diate directions: And I believe I may venture
to ſay, they were drawn up in ſuch a man-
ner, as not to furniſh any materials for dif-
pute, through any miſmanagement of his.
The preſent generation of men, as before
this time of day they muſt have ſmarted for
any blunders in their family ſettlements,
will I am ſure, in this particular, juſtify his
reputation, both for integrity and judgment.
Counſellor Swift was beſides, one of the
beſt and ſureſt conductors of cauſes, of any
belonging to his profeſſion. And, many
were the ſuits deſigned to have been litigated,
which, upon mature deliberation, he diffuaded
his clients from engaging in at all; a conduct
ſo extraordinary, and ſo very detrimental to
the buſineſs of the terms, that his memory
can never be revered upon that account either
by
THE APPENDIX. 33
SECT. XV.
3
The ſecond ſon of Mr. THOMAS
Swift was called by the ſame name, ,
was bred at Oxford, and took or-
ders. He married the eldeſt daugh-
ter of fir WILLIAM D'AVENANT
but died young, and left only one
fon, who was alſo called THOMAS,
and is now rector of Putenham in
Surryh. His widow lived long, was
extremely poor, and in part ſupported
by the famous Dr. South, who had
been her husband's intimate friend,
by the gentlemen of the long robe, or indeed
by the jovial brethren of the ſcire facias
club.
8 ALTHOUGH it be quite foreign to our
purpoſe, I cannot forbear relating a particular
anecdote, wherein Sir WILLIAM D'AVE-
NANT, was deeply concerned; and which I
remember to have learned in converſation,
when I was a young man at Oxford. Du-
ring the exile of King CụARLES the ſecond
fir WILLIAM D'AVENANT was ſent over
to London upon ſome meſſage to the CAVA-
LIERS; but immediately after, being ſeized
С
by
34 THE APPENDIX:
by the USURPER, he was condemned to die.
In theſe calamitous circumſtances, he ap-
plied himſelf to MILTON the ſecretary (who
lodged at that time in all probability, as we
are told by an Italian writer, up .. two pair
of ſtairs, ſomewhere I think it was in Fleet-
ſtreet, at the ſign of the Carle-cat) and begged
of him to intercede with CROMWELL for his
life. The ſecretary having greater compaf-
fion for a poor diſtreſſed bard in ſuch a wo-
fol plight than perhaps in a like cafe he would
have had for the chancellor of the Exchequer,
or indeed for the great marquiſs of ORMOND,
went directly to CROMWELL and made inter-
ceffion for the life of D'AVENANT, which
after abundance of follicitation, the USURPER
granted to his intreaties with vaſt reluctance.
Whereupon D'AVENANT having obtained
his liberty, returned to Paris; but never
could think of the ſecretary without the
higheſt gratitude. And accordingly, as ſoon
as the King was reſtored, D'AVENANT
waited upon his Majeſty, threw himſelf
down upon his knees; and told him he had
a favour to beg, which if he could not ob-
tain from his Majeſty, he ſhould for ever after
be the moſt unhappy of mortals. The King
ſtaring for ſome time at the poſture of Sir
WILLIAM, his old and faithful ſervant, and
eſpecially at that anxiety which appeared
in his countenance, at laſt demanded of him,
what was the nature of his requeſt. Sir
Wil
THE APPENDIX. 35
WILLIAM told the King in what manner,
and by whoſe interceffion, his life had been
ſaved, and his liberty obtained, ſome years
before : and then, with tears of gratitude,
begged and intreated for the life of Mil-
TON; a life, which he perfectly well knew
was in the Black Lift, and beyond all other,
not excepting the Regicides, devoted to de-
ſtruction. The King, although exaſperated
againſt Milton to the higheſt degree, for
all the miſchief he had committed during
the time of the uſurpation, being unable to
refuſe the ſolicitation of D'AVENANT, grant-
ed that life to the world, which afterwards
produced the fineſt poem, which hath been
written theſe ſeventeen hundred years.
h MR. THOMAS Swift, a man of learn-
ing and abilities; but unfortunately bred up
like his father and grandfather, with an ab-
horrence and contempt for all the puritanical
Jeetaries ; continued Restor of Putenbam,
without any the leaſt hope of riſing in the
church, for the ſpace of threeſcore years,
and died in the month of May 1752, in the
eighty ſeventh year of his age.
SECT. XVI.
The reſt of his ſons, as far as I can
call to mind, were Mr. DRYDEN
SWIFT,
C 2
36 THE APPENDIX: .
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 Ireland; but
none of them left male iſſue except
JONATHAN, who beſides a daughter
left one fon, born ſeven months after
his father's death; of whoſe life I in-
tend to write a few memorials.
She was aunt to the famous JOHN
DRYDEN.
SECT. XVII.
J. S. D.D. and D. of St. P-,
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.
SECT.
THE APPENDIX. 37
SECT. XVIII.
His father died
young,
about two
years after his marriage : he had ſome
employments and agencies; his death
was much lamented on account of
his reputation, for integrity, with a
tolerable good underſtanding.
SECT. XIX.
He married Mrs. ABIGAIL Erick,
of Leiceſterſhire, deſcended from the
moſt ancient family of the Ericks,
who derive their lineage from Erick
the forefter, a great commander, who
raiſed an army to oppoſe the invaſion
of William the conqueror, by whom
he was vanquiſhed, but afterwards
employed to command that prince's
forces; and in his old age retired to
his houſe in Leiceſterſhire, where his
family hath continued ever ſince, but
declining every age, and are now in
C3
the
38 THE APPENDIX.
the condition of very private gentle-
men.
SECT. XX.
This marriage was on both ſides
very indiſcreet, for his wife brought
her husband little or no fortune ; and
his death happening fo ſuddenly *,
before he could make a fufficient eſta-
bliſhment for his family, his fon (not
then born) hath often been heard to
fay, that he felt the conſequences of
that marriage not only through the
whole courſe of his education, but
during the greateſt part of his life.
į
* He died at the age of about five and
twenty:
SECT. XXI.
He was born in Dublin, on St. An-
Drew's Day'; and when he was a
year old, an event happened to him
that
THE APPENDIX. 39
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 ex-
tremely fond of the infant, ſhe ſtole
him on ſhip-board unknown to his
mother and uncle, and carried him
with her to Whitehaven, where he
continued for almoſt three years.
For, when the maiter was diſcovered,
his mother ſent orders by all means
not to hazard a ſecond voyage, till
he could be better able to bear it.
The nurſe was ſo careful of him,
that before he returned he had learnt
to ſpell; and by the time that he was
three years old, he could read
any
chapter in the bible.
,
i
In the year 1667.
C4
SECT,
40 THE APPENDIX.
SECT. XXII.
After his return to Ireland, he
was fent at fix years old to the ſchool
of Kilkenny, from whence at fourteen
he was admitted into the univerſity
at Dublin; where by the ill treatment
of his neareſt relations m, he was fo
diſcouraged and funk in his fpirits,
that he too much neglected ſome
parts of his academick ftudies: for
which he had no great reliſh by na-
ture, and turned himſelf to reading
hiſtory and poetry; fo that when the
time came for taking his degree of
batchelor, although he had lived with
great regularity and due obſervance
of the ſtatutes, he was ſtopped of his
degree for dulneſs and infufficiency;
and at laſt hardly admitted in a man-
ner, little to his credit, which is cal-
led in that college, Speciali gratia.
And this diſcreditable mark, as I am
told,
:
THE APPENDIX. 41
told, ſtands upon record in their col-
lege regiſtry.
m ABOUT two years after Dr. SWIFT
had been admitted into the univerſity of
Dublin, the misfortunes of his uncle God-
WIN SWIFT, (who was at that time the
father of a numerous progeny by four wives)
occafioned by what I have told you in the
fecond chapter of the I ffay, began to fall
thick and frequent upon him from all
quarters: nevertheleſs, he continued to ſup-
port his nephew in the univerſity as well be-
fore as after he had taken his degree of
batchelor, although I verily believe in a
manner ſomewhat lefs affluent than was
agreeable to the ſpirit and ambition of the
aſpiring JONATHAN; or perhaps to what
JONATHAN himſelf had experienced the firſt
and ſecond year after his admiſſion into the
college. In ſhort, as the proſperity of the
bountiful and generous Godwin, was in fact
the proſperity of all his friends and relations,
fo the adverſity of the fame GODWIN was
equally the adverſity of all his friends and con-
nexions. And among the reſt, I will ſup-
poſe, that JONATHAN felt in a very ſenſible
manner the effects of his adverſity; but ne-
ver was, I believe, in thoſe days acquainted
with the cauſe of that deficiency which he
could not but remark in the ſcantineſs of his
allowance. It was, I believe, thought ſuffi-
cient
.
42 THE APPENDIX.
cient to maintain him at the univerſity, with
out making any kind of apologies to ſuch a
boy as JONATHAN was at that time ; eſpe-
cially if we conſider, that he had been
wholly depending on his uncle from the hour
of his birth, as well before as after that pe-
riod, until he arrived at the age of twenty
one years. However, let that matter have
been as it would ; ſure it is, that Dr. SWIFT
never loved his uncle, nor the Remembrance
of his uncle, to the hour of his death; fo
deep were the characters this want of money
in the univerſity of Dublin had engraven
upon his mind. And this in all probability
was the reaſon, that he never would vouch-
ſafe the leaſt of his intereſt to any of the poſtea
rity of GODWIN throughout his whole life.
*
SECT. XXIII.
The troubles then breaking out, he
went to his mother, who lived in
Leiceſter; and after continuing there
ſome months, he was received by fir
WILLIAM TEMPLE, whoſe father had
been a great friend to the family, and
who was now retired to his houſe called
Moor-park, near Farnham in Surry,
where he continued for about two
years:
THE APPENDIX. 43
years : For he happened before twenty
years old, by a ſurfeit of fruit to con-
tract a giddineſs and coldneſs of ſto-
mach, 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,
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 WILLIAM TEMPIE; with whom
growing into ſome confidence, he
was often truſted with matters of great
importance. King William had a
high eſteem for fir William Tem-
Ple by a long acquaintance, while
that gentleman was ambaſſador and
mediator of a general peace at Nime-
guen. The King
The King ſoon after his
expe-
dition to England, viſited his old
friend often at Sheen, and took his
advice in affairs of greateſt conſe-
quence. But fir William Temple,
weary
44
THE APPENDIX.
weary of living ſo near London, and
reſolving to retire to a more private
ſcene, bought an eſtate near Farn-
bam in Surry, of about 100 l. a
year, where Mr. Swift accompa-
nied him.
.
SECT. XXIV.
About that time a bill was brought
into the houſe of commons for trien-
nial parliaments ; againſt which, the
King, who was a ſtranger to our con-
ftitution, was very averſe, by the ad-
vice of ſome weak people, who per-
fuaded the earl of Portland, that
King Charles the firſt loft his crown
and life by conſenting to pafs ſuch a
bill. The earl who was a weak man
came down to Moor-park, by his
Majeſty's orders, to have fir Wil-
LIAM Temple's advice, who faid
much to ſhew him the miſtake. But
he continued ſtill to adviſe the King
againſt paſſing the bill. Whereupon
Mr.
THE APPENDIX. 45
Mr. Swift was ſent to Kenſington
with the whole account of that mat-
ter in writing, to convince the King
and the earl how ill they were inform-
ed. 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 triennal bill, which
did not hinder him from diffolving
any parliament, but to the paſſing
another bill, which put it out of his
power to diffolve the parliament then
in being, without the conſent of the
houſe. Mr. Swift, who was well
verſed in Engliſh hiſtory, although
he was then 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 any converſe with
courts, and he told his friends it was
the
46 THE APPENDIX.
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 neceſſity 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 re-
fuſe paſſing a bill, yet the learned in
the law think otherwiſc, from that
expreſſion uſed at the coronation,
wherein the prince obligeth himſelf to
conſent to all laws, quas vulgus
elegerit.
It was firſt written, but afterwards eraſed
in the original manuſcript three and twenty
gears old, which in all probability was right;
for, Dr. Swift was twenty one years old
the laſt day of November 1688, and before
that period there could have been no ſuch
bill under conſideration,
.
SECT.
THE APPENDIX. 47 .
1
SECT. XXV.
• Mr. Swift lived with him (lir
W. Temple) ſome time, but reſolv-
ing to ſettle himſelf in ſome way of
living, was inclined to take orders ?.
However, although his fortune was
very ſmall, he had a ſcruple of enter-
ing into the church merely for fup-
port', and Sir W. Temple then be-
ing maſter of the rolls in Ireland of-
fered him an employ of about 120 1.
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 reſolved to go
to Ireland and take holy orders. He
was recommended to the lord Capel;
* then lord deputy, who
prebend y in the north, worth about
100 l. a year, of which growing
weary in a few months, he return-
ed to England, reſigned his living?
gave
him a
IN
48 THE APPENDIX.
in favour of a friend, and continued
in fir William Temple's houſe till
the death of that great man, who
beſides a legacy', left him the care
and truſt and advantage of publiſhing
his poſthumous writings.
year 1688
• I BELIEVE there are fome remarks in
the latter part of the fourth chapter of the
Efſoy, which, if carefully reviſed, might
throw a good deal of light upon ſeveral ob-
fcurities in this paragraph.
? For ſome time] That is, for the ſpace of
about five years and a half from the
to the year 1694, taking into the account
fome little time he had ſpent at Oxford, Lei-
cefter, and Dublin.
? To take orders] And that immediately,
without loitering or dallying away his time
any longer, in hopes of being provided for
by King WILLIAM. Vid. DR. SWIFT's
letter to his uncle WILLIAM Swift, chap.
4. of the Effay.
Meerly for ſupport] SIR WILLIAM TEM-
PLE and Swift quarrelled juſt about this
period of time. Vid. Dr. Swift's letter to
his couſin DE ANE SWIFT, chap. 4. of the
Effay.
• This employment, which muſt have the
place of deputy maſter of the rolls, fir WIL-
LIAM
THE APPENDIX. 49
LIAM TEMPLE Offered him in a paffion, the
Doctor being at that time on the point of
leaving him, which he afterwards did in the
month of May 1694. Beſides, fir Wil-
LIAM Temple knew perfectly well, that
Swift was no more qualified to perform
the buſineſs of that office than he was to
command a regiment. And what is more,
ſir WILLIAM TEMPLE had promiſed him
the certainty of a church preferment at leaſt
a year and a half before ; (Vid. DR. Swift's
letter to his uncle. W. SWIFT] ſo that he
was no ſtranger to Swift's intention of go-
ing into the church.
" An Anſwer extremely polite, and ſeem-
ingly adorned with gratitude; but at the
ſame time extremely reſolute, and worthy of
himſelf.
* Recommended to the lord Capel]I be-
lieve we may ſuppoſe by fir W. T. but that
is a point I am not abſolutely ſure of: How-
ever, I ſhall take it for granted, that he was
juſt coldly recommended by fir W. to the lord
CAPEL : for ſurely the lord deputy would
have given him fome better preferment than
a hundred pounds a year, if he had been
heartily recommended to him by fo great
a man as fir WILLIAM TEMPLE, who
was undoubtedly at that time, and long
before, thoroughly apprized both of Swift's
genius and merit.
D
THE
+ 50 THE APPENDIX.
Z
y The prebend of Kilroot in the dioceſe of
Conncr ; which he reſigned in favour of a
poor man with
many
children.
Reſigned his living] by the perſuaſion, or
rather, I do verily believe, at the earneſt de-
fire of Sir W. T. Vide Effay, ch. iv.
· A legacy] which according to the beſt
conjecture that I can make, was five hundred
pounds; or elſe the legacy and what he
made by ſir WILLIAM TEMPLE's works a-
mounted to that ſum ; for in the year 1699
he was juſt worth ſo much and no more.
Vide Effay, ch. vi.
SECT. XXVI.
Upon this event Mr. Swift remo-
ved to London, and applied by peti-
tion to King William, upon the
claim of a promiſe his Majeſty had
made to fir W. Temple, that he
would give Mr. Swift a prebend of
Canterbury or Weſtminſter. The
earl of Rumney, who profeſſed much
friendſhip for him, promiſed to ſe-
cond his petition; but as he was an
old, vicious, illiterate rake, without
any ſenſe of truth or honour, ſaid
I
not
THE APPENDIX. 31
not a word to the King. And Mr.
Swift, after long attendance in
vain, thought it better to comply
with an invitation given him by the
earl of BERKLEY to attend him to Ire-
land, as his chaplain and private ſe-
cretary; his lordſhip having been
appointed one of the lords juſtices of
that kingdom. He attended his
lordſhip, who landed near Water-
ford, and Mr. Swift acted as ſecre-
tary during the whole journey to
Dúblin. But another perſon had ſo
far inſinuated himſelf into the earl's
favour, by telling him that the poſt of
ſecretary was not proper for a clergy-
man, nor would be of any advantage
to one, who only aimed at church
preferments; that his lordſhip, after a
poor apology, gave that office to the
other.
SECT,
$2 THE APPENDIX.
SECT. XXVII.
In ſome months the deanery of
Derry fell vacant, and it was the
earl of Berkley's turn to diſpoſe of
it. Yet things were ſo ordered, that
the fecretary having received a bribe;
the deanery was diſpoſed of to ano-
ther, and Mr. Swift was put off
with ſome other church-livings not
worth above a third part of that
rich deanery; and at this preſent
not a fixth. The excuſe pretended
was his being too young, although
he were then thirty years old.
.
* Thirty years old :] he was then upwards
of two and thirty years old; for it was in the
month of February, 1964, that he was pre-
ſented to the rectory of Agbar, and the vi-
carages of Loracor and Rathbeggan, in the
dioceſe of Meatb.
THE END.
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