Profe-tranflation. There had been a very elegant Profe-tranflation before, that of Monfieur de la Valterie; fo elegant, that the ftyle of it was evidently the original and model of the famous Telemaque. Your Grace very justly animadverts against the too great difpofition of finding faults, in the one, and of confeffing none in the other: But doubtlefs, as to Violence, the Lady has infinitely the better of the Gentleman. Nothing can be more polite, difpaffionate, or fenfible, than M. de la Motte's manner of managing the difpute: and fo much as I fee your Grace admires the beauty of his verfe (in which you. have the fuffrage too of the Archbishop of Cambray) I will venture to fay, his profe is full as good. I think therefore when you fay, no difputants even in Divinity could be more outragious and uncharitable than thefe two authors, you are a little too hard upon M. de la Motte. Not but that (with your Grace) I doubt as little of the zeal of Commentators as of the zeal of Divines, and am as ready to believe of the paffions and pride of mankind in general, that (did but the fame interefts go along with them) they would carry the learned world to as violent extremes, animofities, and even perfecutions, about variety of opinions in Criticism, as ever they did about Religion: and that, in defect of Scripture to quarrel upon, we fhould have French, Italian, and Dutch Commentators ready to burn one another about Homer, Virgil, Terence, and Horace.

I do not wonder your Grace is fhock'd at the flight of Hector upon the first appearance of Achilles in the twenty-fecond Iliad. However (to fhew myfelf a true Commentator, if not a true Critic) I will endeavour to excufe, if not to defend it in my Notes on that book. And to fave myself what trouble I can, instead of doing it in this letter, I will draw up the fubftance of what I have to fay for it in a fe

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parate

parate paper, which I'll fhew your Grace when next we meet. I will only defire you to allow me, that Hector was in an absolute certainty of death, and deprefs'd over and above with the confcience of being in an ill cause. If your heart be fo great, as not to grant the first of these will fink the spirit of a Hero, you'll at leaft be fo good, as to allow the fecond may. But, I can tell your Grace, no lefs a Hero than my Lord Peterborow, when a person complimented him for never being afraid, made this anfwer; "Sir, fhew me a danger that I think an "imminent and real one, and I promise you I'll be "as much afraid as any

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of you."

I am your Grace's, &c,

LETTER XIV.

From Dr. ARBUTHNOT.

London, Sept. 7, 1714.

AM extremely obliged to you for taking notice of a poor old diftreffed courtier, commonly the moft despiseable thing in the world. This blow has fo rous'd Scriblerus that he has recovered his senses, and thinks and talks like other men. From being frolickfome and gay he is turn'd grave and morofe. His lucubrations lie neglected among old news-papers, cafes, petitions, and abundance of unanswerable letters. I wifh to God they had been among the papers of a noble Lord fealed up. Then might Scriblerus have paffed for the Pretender, and it would have been a most excellent and laborious work for the Flying Poft or fome fuch author, to have allegoriz'd all his adventures into a plot, and found out myfteries fomewhat like the Key to the Lock. Martin's office is now the fecond door on the left hand in Dover-ftreet, where he will be glad to fee Dr. Parnelle, Mr. Pope, and his old friends, to whom he can ftill afford a half pint of claret. It

is

is with fome pleasure that he contemplates the world ftill bufy, and all mankind at work for him. I have feen a letter from Dean Swift; he keeps up his noble fpirit, and tho' like a man knock'd down, you may behold him still with a ftern countenance, and aiming a blow at his adverfaries. I will add no more, being in hafte, only that I will never forgive you if you don't use my aforefaid house in Doverftreet with the fame freedom as you did that in St. James's; for as our friendship was not begun upon the relation of a courtier, fo I hope it will not end with it. I will always be proud to be reckon❜d amongst the number of your friends and humble fervants.

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LETTER XV.

To Dr. ARBURTHNOT.

Sept. 10. AM glad your Travels delighted you; improve you, I am fure, they could not; you are not fo much a youth as that, tho' you run about with a King of fixteen, and (what makes him still more a child) a King of Frenchmen. My own time has been more melancholy, spent in an attendance upon death, which has feized one of our family: my mother is something better, though at her advanced age every day is a climacteric. There was joined to this an indifpofition of my own, which I ought to look upon as a flight one compared with my mother's, because my life is not of half the confequence to any body that her's is to me. All these incidents have hinder'd my more speedy reply to your obliging letter.

The article you enquire of, is of as little concern. to me as you defire it should; namely the railing papers about the Odyffey. If the book has merit, it will extinguish all fuch nafty fcandal; as the Sun puts an end to ftinks, merely by coming out.

I wish I had nothing to trouble me more; an ho neft mind is not in the power of any dishonest one. To break its peace, there must be fome guilt or confeioufnefs, which is inconfiftent with its own principles. Not but malice and injuftice have their day, like fome poor fhort-lived vermine that die in fhooting their own ftings. Falfhood is Folly (fays Homer) and liars and calumniators at last hurt none but themselves, even in this world: in the next, 'tis charity to fay, God have mercy on them! they were the devil's vicegerents upon earth, who is the father of lies, and, I fear, has a right to difpofe of his children.

I've had an occafion to make these reflections of late more juftly than from any thing that concerns my writings, for it is one that concerns my morals, and (which I ought to be as tender of as my own) the good character of another very innocent perfon, who I'm fure fhares your friendship no lefs than I do. No creature has better natural difpofitions, or would act more rightly or reasonably in every duty, did fhe act by herself, or from herself; but you know it is the misfortune of that family to be governed like a ship, I mean the Head guided by the Tail, and that by every wind that blows in it.

LETTER XVI.

Mr. POPE to the Earl of OXFORD.

MY LORD,

Oct. 21, 1721.

Yty I take in writing to you; tho' you will al

OUR Lordfhip may be furpriz'd at the liber

low me always to remember, that you once permitted me that honour, in conjunction with fome others who better deferved it. I hope you will not won der I am still defirous to have you think me your grateful and faithful fervant; but, I own, I have an ambition yet farther, to have others think me fo,

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which is the occafion I give your Lordship the trouble of this. Poor Parnell, before he died, left me the charge of publifhing these few remains of his : I have a ftrong defire to make them, their author, and their publisher, more confiderable, by addreffing and dedicating them all to you. There is a pleasure in bearing teftimony to truth, and a vanity perhaps, which at least is as excufable as any vanity can be. I beg you, my Lord, to allow me to gratify it in prefixing this paper of honest verses to the book. I fend the book itself, which, I dare fay, you'll receive more fatisfaction in perufing, than you can from any thing written upon the fubject of yourself. There fore I am a good deal in doubt, whether you will care for fuch an addition to it. All I fhall fay for it is, that 'tis the only dedication I ever writ, and fhall be the only one, whether you accept of it or not: for I will not bow the knee to a less man than my Lord Oxford, and I expect to see no greater in my time.

After all, if your Lordship will tell my Lord Harley that I must not do this, you may depend up on a fuppreffion of these verses (the only copy whereof I fend you) but you never fhall fupprefs that great, fincere, and entire refpect, with which I am always,

My Lord,

Your, &c:

XVII.

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LETTER

The Earl of OXFORD to Mr. POPE.

SIR,

Bramton Caftle, Nov. 6. 1721.

Received your packet, which could not but give me great pleasure, to fee you preferve an old friend in your memory; for it must needs be very agreeable to be remember'd by those we highly va