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The spirit of moderation breathes in every line of his counsel to his brother dean, whose government had been vexed in a similar manner; and that of Christian charity is evident in the pardon he asks for the offenders.

Swift acknowledged the Bishop's communication in the following terms:

DEAN SWIFT TO THE BISHOP OF ROCHESTER.

My Lord,

Dublin, April 18, 1716.

I am extremely obliged to your lordship for the trouble you have given yourself in answering at length a very insignificant letter. I shall entirely follow your lordship's advice to the best of my skill. Your conjecture from whence my difficulties take their rise is perfectly true. It is all party. But the right is certainly on my side, if there be anything in constant immemorial custom. Besides, though the first scheme of this cathedral was brought from Sarum, yet by several subsequent grants from popes, kings, archbishops, and Acts of Parliament, the dean has great prerogatives. He visits the chapter as ordinary, and the archbishop only visits by the dean. The dean can suspend and sequester any member, and punishes all crimes except heresy, and one or two more reserved for the archbishop. No lease can be let without him. He holds a court-leet in his district, and is exempt from the Lord Mayor, &c. No chapter can be called but by him, and he dissolves them at pleasure. He disposes absolutely of the petty canons and vicars choral's places. All the dignitaries, &c., swear canonical obedience to him. These circumstances, put together, I presume may alter the case in your lordship's judgment. However, I shall, as your lordship directs me, do my utmost to divert this controversy as much as I can. I must add one thing, that no dignitary can preside without a power from the dean, who, in his absence, makes a sub-dean, and limits him as he pleases. And so much for deaneries, which I hope I shall never trouble your lordship with again.

I send this enclosed, and without superscription, to be sent

CONDITION OF IRELAND.

187

or delivered to you by a famous friend of mine and devoted servant of your lordship's.

I congratulate with England for joining with us here in the fellowship of slavery. It is not so terrible a thing as you imagine-we have long lived under it; and, whenever you are disposed to know how you ought to behave yourselves in your new condition, you need go no further than me for a director. But, because we are resolved to go beyond you, we have transmitted a bill to England, to be returned here, giving the Government and six of the Council power for three years to imprison whom they please for three months without any trial or examination; and I expect to be among the first of those upon whom this law will be executed. We have also outdone you in the business of Ben. Hoadly, and have recommended to a bishopric one whom you would not allow to be a curate in the smallest of your parishes. Does your lordship know that, as much as I have been used to lies in England, I am under a thousand uneasinesses about some reports relating to a person that you and I love very well? I have written to a lady upon that subject, and am impatient for an answer. I am gathering up a thousand pounds, and intend to finish my life upon the interest of it in Wales.

But it

God Almighty preserve your lordship miseris succurrere rebus !—whether you understand or relish Latin, or no. is a great deal your fault if you suffer us all to be undone; for God never gave such talents without expecting they should be used to preserve a nation. There is a Doctor in your neighbourhood to whom I am a very humble servant. I am, &c.

Some persons go this summer for England; and, if Dr. Younger be talked with, I hope you will so order it that it may not be to my disadvantage.†

There is a remarkable passage towards the close of the foregoing that indicates a knowledge of his correspondent's political projects, and expresses entire concurrence. Notwithstanding all this apparent friendliness, nothing is more clear than that it lasted only with the Bishop's prosperity.

* Dean of Salisbury.

+ Atterbury Papers.

188

RECORDS OF THE ABBEY.

The Prebendaries of Westminster in 1716 were Drs. South, Only, Dent, Linford, Gee, Bradford, Broderick, Kimberley, Canon, and Watson; and Messrs. Evans, Sub-Deacon, and Sprat, Archdeacon of Rochester.*

There were some intractable spirits amongst them, but the Dean was able to maintain his authority till they were tampered with to forward a political object.

He had to search the records of the Abbey, which interested him greatly. It was to this fact that his distinguished contemporary, Addison, thus refers :

I have heard one of the greatest geniuses this age has produced, who had been trained up in all the polite studies of antiquity, assure me, upon his being obliged to search into several rolls and records, that, notwithstanding such an employment was at first very dry and irksome to him, he at last took an incredible pleasure in it, and preferred it even to the reading of Virgil or Cicero. †

To the literary productions of Atterbury's already named must now be added a volume of Sermons, dedicated to the Bishop of Winchester.

* Chamberlayne, 658.

+ Spectator, No. 447.

CHAPTER VII.

LITERARY CORRESPONDENCE.

Swift's Liberality to Poor Authors-His Self-denial, Exaggerations, and Self-laudation-Atterbury's reported Attempts to convert Pope to Protestantism-Congreve's First Novel and Play-Jeremy Collier-Atterbury discourages Attacks upon the Theatre-Henrietta, Duchess of MarlboroughHer Devotion to Congreve-Atterbury consulted by PopeHis Letter respecting the Preface to Pope's Poems, and a Juvenile Epic-The Death of the Poet's Father, and on Milton-Pope's Reply-Appeal from Prior declined-His Epigram on Atterbury's Preaching-Pope's Account to Atterbury of the Lovers destroyed by Lightning-Atterbury's Reply.

SWIFT's good feeling towards his brother littérateurs is evident in the entries in his Journal to Stella of his efforts to assist them. February 12, 1712 :-" I was at Jack Hill's, the Governor of Dunkirk. I gave an account of sixty guineas I had collected, and am to give them away to two authors to-morrow; and Lord Treasurer has promised me one hundred pounds to reward some others." He anticipated that admirable institution, "The Literary Fund." On the 19th he writes:-"I was to see a poor poet, one Mr. Diaper, in a nasty garret, very sick. I gave him twenty guineas from Lord Bolingbroke, and disposed the other sixty to two other authors."

190

SWIFT'S BENEVOLENCE :

Again, at the close of the following month, he adds:

:

I was naming some time ago to a certain person, another certain person that was very deserving and poor and sickly; and the other, that first certain person, gave me one hundred pounds to give the other. The person who is to have it never saw the giver, nor expects one farthing, nor has the least knowledge nor imagination of it; so I believe it will be a very agreeable surprise-for I think a handsome present enough. I paid the £100 this evening, and it was a great surprise to the receiver.

Swift may have been worthy of being a bishop on other accounts; but his practical benevolence was perhaps his best claim to the dignity. He seems at this time always striving to do good offices to his literary friends without reference either to their religious or political principles. He warmly recommended Congreve to Harley, and, in noting down the act, says, "I have made a worthy man easy, and that's a good day's work." He did the same service for Parnell, with the same happy effect. He exerted his influence with such zeal in behalf of Pope, that he made the latter's great enterprise, the translation of Homer, certain of success by a preliminary subscription.*

In truth, he was constantly exercising his social influence, which was considerable, in behalf of poor clergymen and unfortunate men of letters; neglecting those opportunities for advancing his own interest which his status in the best society of the time gave him. Pope's genial mind thus couples him with the minister, Harley :

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"The author," he told Lord Orrery, "shall not begin to print till I have a thousand guineas for him."

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