mony

"in an undertaking of this kind, which he supervised "himfelf." Whether Mr. Addison did find it conformable to his tafte, or not, beft appears from his own teftithe year following its publication, in these words: Mr. ADDISON, FREEHOLDER, No. 40. "When I confider myself as a British freeholder, I "am in a particular manner pleafed with the labours "of thofe who have improved our language with the "tranflations of old Greek and Latin authors.-We "have already most of their Hiftorians in our own

tongue, and, what is more for the honour of our "language, it has been taught to exprefs with elegance "the greatest of their pocts in each nation. The illi"terate among our own countrymen may learn to judge "from Dryden's Virgil of the moft perfect Epic per"formance. And thofe parts of Homer which have "been published already by Mr. Pope, give us reason "to think that the Iliad will appear in English with "as little difadvantage to that immortal poem."

As to the rest, there is a flight mistake, for this younger Mufe was an elder: nor was the gentleman (who is a friend of our author) employed by Mr. Addifon to tranflate it after him, fince he faith himself that he did it before y. Contrariwife, that Mr. Addison engaged our author in this work appeareth by declaration thereof in the preface to the Iliad, printed fome time before his death, and by his own letters of October 26, and

y Vid. pref. to Mr. Tickell's translation of the first book of the Iliad, 4to.

November

November 2, 1713, where he declares it is his opinion that no other perfon was equal to it.

Next comes his Shakespeare on the ftage: "Let him (quoth one, whom I take to be

Mr. THEOBALD, Mift's Journal, June 8, 1728.)

publish such an author as he has least studied, and forget to discharge even the dull duty of an editor. "In this project let him lend the bookfeller his name (for a competent fum of money) to promote the cre"dit of an exorbitant fubfcription." Gentle reader, be pleased to caft thine eye on the Propofal below quoted, and on what follows (fome months after the former affertion) in the fame Journalist of June 8, "The bookfeller propofed the book by fubfcription, "and raised fome thousand of pounds for the fame: I "believe the gentleman did not share in the profits of "this extravagant subscription."

"After the Iliad, he undertook (faith

MIST'S JOURNAL, June 8, 1728.) "the fequel of that work, the Odyssey; and having "fecured the fuccefs by a numerous fubfcription, he "employed fome underlings to perform what, accord"ing to his propofals, fhould come from his own "hands." To which heavy charge we can in truth oppofe nothing but the words of

Mr. POPE'S PROPOSAL for the ODYSSEY, (printed by J. Watts, Jan. 10, 1724.)

"I take this occafion to declare that the fubfcription "for Shakespeare belongs wholly to Mr. Tonfon: And

"that

"that the benefit of this Propofal is not folely for my "own use, but for that of two of my friends, who have "affifted me in this work." But these very gentlemen are extolled above our poet himself in another of Mift's Journals, March 30, 1728, faying, "That he would not "advife Mr. Pope to try the experiment again of get"ting a great part of a book done by affiftants, left "thofe extraneous parts fhould unhappily afcend to "the fublime, and retard the declension of the whole." Behold! thefe Underlings are become good writers!

If any say, that before the said Proposals were printed, the subscription was begun without declaration of fuch affiftance; verily thofe who fet it on foot, or (as the term is) fecured it, to wit, the right honourable the Lord Viscount HARCOURT, were he living, would testify, and the right honourable the Lord BATHURST, now living, doth teftify, the fame is a falfhood.

Sorry I am, that persons profeffing to be learned, or of whatever rank of authors, fhould either falfely tax, or be falfely taxed. Yet let us, who are only reporters, be impartial in our citations, and proceed.

MIST'S JOURNAL, June 8, 1728.

“ Mr. Addison raised this author from obfcurity, ob"tained him the acquaintance and friendship of the “whole body of our nobility, and transferred his power

ful interefts with thofe great men to this rifing bard, "who frequently levied by that means unusual con"tributions on the Public." Which furely cannot be, if, as the author of the Dunciad diffected report

eth,

eth, Mr. Wycherley had before "introduced him in"to a familiar acquaintance with the greatest Peers "and brightest Wits then living."

"No fooner (faith the fame Journalist) was his body lifeless, but this author, reviving his refentment, "libelled the memory of his departed friend; and "what was ftill more heinous, made the scandal pub"lic." Grievous the accufation! unknown the accufer! the perfon accused, no witness in his own caufe; the perfon, in whofe regard accufed, dead! But if there be living any one nobleman whose friendship, yea any one gentleman whose subscription Mr. Addifon procured to our author; let him ftand forth, that truth may appear! Amicus Plato, amicus Socrates, fed magis amica Veritas. In verity, the whole story of the libel is a lie; witness those persons of integrity, who, feveral years before Mr. Addison's decease, did fee and approve of the faid verfes, in no wife a libel, but a friendly rebuke fent privately in our author's own hand to Mr. Addison himself, and never made public, till after their own Journals, and Curll had printed the fame. One name alone, which I am here authorized to declare, will fufficiently evince this truth, that of the right honourable the Earl of BURLINGTON.

Next is he taxed with a crime (in the opinion of fome authors, I doubt, more heinous than any in morality) to wit, Plagiarifm, from the inventive and quaint conceited

JAMES-MOORE SMITH, Gent.

"Upon

"z Upon reading the third volume of Pope's Misa "cellanies, I found five lines which I thought excellent; "and happening to praise them, a gentleman produced "a modern comedy (the Rival Modes) published last year, where were the fame verfes to a tittle.

"These gentlemen are undoubtedly the first pla"giaries, that pretend to make a reputation by steal"ing from a man's works in his own life-time, and "out of a public print." Let us join to this what is written by the author of the Rival Modes, the faid Mr. James-Moore Smith, in a letter to our author himfelf, who had informed him a month before that play was acted, Jan. 27, 1726-7, that "Thefe verfes, which "he had before given him leave to infert in it, would "be known for his, fome copies being got abroad. "He defires, nevertheless, that fince the lines had "been read in his comedy to several, Mr. P. would "not deprive it of them," &c. Surely, if we add the teftimonies of the Lord BOLINGBROKE, of the Lady to whom the faid verses were originally addreffed, of Hugh Bethel, Efq; and others, who knew them as our author's, long before the faid gentleman compofed his play; it is hoped, the ingenuous that affect not error, will rectify their opinion by the fuffrage of fo honourable perfonages.

And yet followeth another charge, infinuating no lefs than his enmity both to Church and State, which

z Daily Journal, March 18, 1728.

could