Wortley, and Hill, was mean in his re

treat.

The virtues which feem to have had moft of his affection were liberality and fidelity of friendfhip, in which it does not appear that he was other than he defcribes himself. His fortune did not fuffer his charity to be fplendid and confpicuous; but he affifted Dodfley with a hundred pounds, that he might open a fhop; and of the fubfcription of forty pounds a year that he raised for Savage, twenty were paid, by himself. He was accused of loving money, but his love was eagerness to gain, not foli citude to keep it.

In the duties of friendship. he was zealous and conftant: his early matu

rity of mind commonly united him with men older than himfelf, and therefore, without attaining any confiderable length

of life, he faw many companions of his youth fink into the grave; but it does not appear that he loft a fingle friend by coldness or by injury; those who loved him once, continued their kindnefs. His ungrateful mention of Allen in his will, was the effect of his adhe rence to one whom he had known much longer, and whom he naturally loved with greater fondnefs. His violation of the truft repofed in him by Bolingbroke could have no motive inconfiftent with the warmest affection; he either thought the action fo near to indifferent that he

forgot

forgot it, or fo laudable that he expected his friend to approve it.

It was reported, with fuch confidence as almoft to enforce belief, that in the papers intrufted to his executors was found a defamatory Life of Swift, which he had prepared as an inftrument of vengeance to be used, if any provocation should be ever given. About this I enquired of the Earl of Marchmont, who affured me that no fuch piece was among his remains.

The religion in which he lived and died was that of the Church of Rome, to which in his correfpondence with Racine he profeffes himself a fincere adherent. That he was not fcrupuloufly pious in fome part of his life, is known

by

by many idle and indecent applications of fentences taken from the Scriptures; a mode of merriment which a good man dreads for its profanenefs, and a witty man difdains for its eafinefs and vulgarity. But to whatever levities he has been betrayed, it does not appear that his principles were ever corrupted, or that he ever loft his belief of Revelation. The pofitions which he tranfmitted from Bolingbroke he seems not to have understood, and was pleased with an interpretation that made them orthodox.

A man of fuch exalted fuperiority, and fo little moderation, would naturally have all his delinquences observed and aggravated: thofe who could not

deny

deny that he was excellent, would rejoice to find that he was not perfect.

Perhaps it may be imputed to the unwillingness with which the fame man is allowed to poffefs many advantages, that his learning has been depreciated. He certainly was in his early life a man of great literary curiofity; and when he wrote his Efay on Criticifm had, for his age, a very wide acquaintance with books. When he entered into the

living world, it seems to have happened to him as to many others, that he was lefs attentive to dead mafters; he studied in the academy of Paracelfus, and made the universe his favourite volume. He gathered his notions fresh from reality, not from the copies of authors, but : the