ter the ingenious Method of that made by Dr. Martin L- - [Lifter] the fame year; which he defigned as a vindication of his country, in the view of fhewing Britain as much preferable to France as wealth, plenty, and liberty, are beyond tortoifes' hearts, champignons, and moroglios; or the raising

"The Doctor cunningly diftinguishes upon me, and says “it " is worth nothing indeed to the reft of the world, but it is "better for the world if a price were to be fet upon it." I beg "his pardon for my mistake; I thought we were talking of books in the way of fcholars, whereas he anfwers me like a bookfeller, and as if he dealt in MS. inftead of reading them. "For my part, I measure the value of these kind of things

from the advantage the publick may receive from them, " and not from the profit they are likely to bring to a private "owner; and therefore I have the fame opinion of the Alex"andrian MS. (which he fays he keeps in his lodgings) now "as I fhould have had before the editors of the English Poly86 glot published the collation of it, though it may not per"haps bear up to the fame price in St. Paul's Churchyard or "an auction: but I hope if it be fafely, kept it need never come "to the experiment.-As to the particular reflections he has "caft upon me it is no more than I expected; I could neither "hope nor with for better treatment from one that had ufed "you ill. It is reputable both to men and books to be ill spoken "of by him, and a favourable prefumption on their fide that "there is fomething in both which may chance to recom"mend them to the world. It is in the power of every little "creature to throw dirty language, but a man must have "fome credit himself in the world before things he fays can leffen the reputation of another: and if Dr. Bentley "inuft be thus qualified in order to mifchief me, I am fafe "from all the harm his malice can do me. I am, &c."

of two millions and two hundred thousand pounds in a few hours is preferable to any coins of Zenobia, Odenatus, and Vabaluthus. This was a fpecimen of that particular humour in which he excelled, and the charms of which proved irresistible; whence giving way to that fuga negotii so incident to the poetical race, he paffed his days in the pursuit of the same ravishing images, which being aptly moulded came abroad in manuscript in the form of pleasant tales, and other pieces in verse, at various times as they happened to be finished t.

Thus captivated with thefe beauties he neglected his business, and even grew by degrees, as ufual in

But our Author did not reft the matter here; in the courfe of this famous difpute he published Dialogues of the Dead relating to the present Controverfy concerning the Fpiftles of Phalaris. He tells us thefe were written in felfdefence; and I "prefume," continues he, "with modefty." And nothing fhews he had it at heart more than the various memorandums relating to that fubject found fcattered up and down in his Adverfaria.

He collected thefe afterwards, and published them, together with fome other pieces, in his Mifcellanies, prefixing this remark in the preface concerning them: "The remaining 66 poems which are here muit feek their fate: they were "abroad in inanufcript, and I hope will not have harder for

tune now they are in print than they had in the opinion "of fome friends before they were fo." That entitled Little Mouths had been univerfaily admired. The reader will find it, with Dr. King's whole other poems, in this edition of his Poetical Works in two volumes.

fuch tempers, to dread and abhor it. Heediefs of those useful fupplies which it brought to his finances, and which were in a few years fo much impaired by this neglect, and by the gay course of life he led in the company of fome of the best wits and principal gentry and nobility of the age, he gladly accepted a feasonable offer made to him in 1707 by the Lord Pembroke, appointed Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, to attend his Lordship to that kingdom, where he was made Judge Advocate, fole Commiffioner of the Prizes, and Keeper of the Records; and the Lord Primate alfo conftituted him his Vicargeneral.

With these honours he was well received and countenanced by perfons of the highest rank, and might have made his fortune if the change of climate could have wrought a change in his difpofition; but fo far was he from forming any defign to heap up riches, or of treasuring up any of that money which was now thrown into his lap, that he returned to England with no other treasure than a few merry poems and humorous effays; and retiring to his ftudent's place at Chrift-church, he employed himself in finishing his Art of Love, in imitation of Ovid de Arte Amandi, to which he prefixed an excellent ac count of that poet t.

This is fuch an Imitation of Ovid as that wherein the imitator and his author ftand much upon the fame terms as

We have obferved that our Author while in Ireland neglected the best opportunity of increasing his fortune, and the circumftance which occafioned it we find to be this: he had contracted an intimacy, which foon grew into friendship, with Judge Upton, a man of the fame temper with himself, who delighted in retirement and poetical amusement. The Judge had a country villa called Mountown near Dublin, where he and Dr. King used to retire and spend most of their time without any regard to their publick offices; and by these means neglecting to pay court to the Lord Lieutenant, they fell under his displeasure. These two poetical companions indulged no other thoughts but those of living and dying in their rural retreat. Upon this occafion Dr. King wrote a paftoral poem called Mully of Mountown. Mully was the name of a red cow which gave him milk, and was the fubject of his poem. As our Author was known

Ben does with his father in the comedy; " What tho'f he be my father? I an't bound 'prentice to 'en." The Doctor's virtuous difpofition is no where more remarkably diftinguished than in this piece, wherein both the fubject and the example fo naturally and almost unavoidably lead into fome lefs chatte images, fome loofer love,which stands in need of a remedy. But there is no occafion for any remedy to be prescribed for the love here treated of besides the fpeedy obtaining of what it defires, fince it is all prudent, honourable, and virtuous. It is divided into fourteen parts, mof of which end with fome remarkable fable that carries with it foine real moral.

to fide with the party for the church, the criticks among the oppofite party would have impofed Mully upon the world for a political allegory, the remotest from the Doctor's defign of any thing they could have devised; and he would hardly think of attempting to undeceive them: on the contrary, we may fuppofe he was not ill pleased to see himself in fuch good company as that of Mr. Pope, whofe Rape of the Lock was about the fame time allegorized in the fame manner by a critick, who affuming this poftulatum, that the Lock fignified the Barrier Treaty, made all the rest of the allegory out very clearly and unexceptionably. But to return from this digreffion.

Dr. King had not been long at the college after his return from Ireland when an incident fell out that had power enough to draw him from his beloved amusements. An action at law had been brought against the Earl of Anglesey for feveral cruelties used to his lady †, wherein she was backed by her mother the Countess of Dorchester. Upon this occafion his Lordship folicited Dr. King to come to Town and undertake his caufe, which was then before the House of Lords. Here the force of friendship prevailed over

She was a natural daughter of James II. and having obtained a divorce on this occafion from the Earl of Anglesey, was afterwards married to John Sheffield Duke of Buckinghamthire.