"Gafteronax in the ftomach, and the Plastick "prince in the organs of generation. I be"lieve I could make you laugh at the explica❝tion of diftempers from the wars and alliances "of those princes; and how the firft minifter gets the better of his mistress Anima Ratio"nalis.

"The beft is, that it is making reprisals upon "the politicians, who are fure to allegorize all "the animal œconomy into ftate affairs. POPE "has been collecting high flights of poetry, "which are very good; they are to be folemn "nonfenfe. I thought upon the following the "other day, as I was going into my coach, the "duft being troublesome.

"The duft in smaller particles arose

"Than thofe, which fluid bodies do compose: "Contraries in extreams do often meet,

" 'Twas now fo dry, that you might call it wet.

"I do not give you these hints to divert you, "but that you may have your thoughts, and "work upon them."

About this time, in the year 1726, our author narrowly escaped from an accident, which was very near proving fatal to him, as he was returning home from a vifit in a friend's chariot, which on paffing a bridge happened to be overturned, and thrown with the horfes into the river. The glaffes were up, and he not able to break them; fo that he was in immediate

danger of drowning, when the poftilion, who had juft recovered himself, came to his relief, and after breaking the glass which was uppermoft, took him out and carried him to the bank: but a fragment of the broken glafs, cut one of his hands fo desperately, that he loft the use of two of his fingers.

To this account he refers in one of his letters to Dean Swift, dated 16th Nov. 1726, where he fays;

"My two leaft fingers on one hand, hang "impediments to the others, like useless depen"dents who only take up room, and never are "active or affiftant to our wants; I fhall never "be much the better for them."

Voltaire was at that time in England, and on this occafion fent POPE a confolatory letter; it was written in these very words.

"SIR,

"I hear this moment of your fad adventure. "That water you fell in, was not Hippocrene's "water, otherwise it would have refpected you. "Indeed I am concerned beyond expreffion for "the danger you have been in, and more for <c your wounds. Is it poffible that those fingers "which have written the Rape of the Lock, and "the Criticifm, which have dreffed Homer fo "becomingly in an English coat, fhould have. "been fo barbaroufly treated. Let the hand of "Dennis, or of your poetafters be cut of. Yours.

❝is facred. I hope, Sir, you are now perfectly "recovered, really your accident concerns me 66 as much as all the disasters of a master ought to affect his scholar. I am fincerely, Sir, with. "the admiration which you deserve,

66

"Your moft humble fervant,

"In my Lord Bolingbroke's

* house, Friday at noon.

"VOLTAIRE."

This letter may enable the reader to pass a judgment on that elegant account published at the fame time in English, by this ingenious Frenchman*, of the civil wars of France, the fubject of his Henriad.

Our

It is much to be lamented that this lively writer, who is fo eminent for his literary abilities, fhould be fhamefully deficient in the moral and focial virtues. How lightly he regarded the rules of decency, and the dictates of faith and honour, may be collected from the following anecdotes—

Mr. POPE told one of his moft intimate friends, that the poet Voltaire had got fome recommendation to him when he came to England; and that the first time he saw him was at Twitenham, where he kept him to dinner. Mrs. Pope (a most excellent woman) was then alive; and obferving that this stranger, who appeared to be entirely emaciated, had no ftomach, she expreffed her concern for his want of appetite; on which Voltaire gave fo indelicate and brutal an account of the occafion of his diforder, contracted in Italy, that the poor Lady was obliged immediately to rise from table. When Mr. POPE related this, his friend asked him how he could forbear ordering his fervant John to thruft Voltaire head and shoulders out of his houfe: he replied, there was more of ignorance in this conduct, than a purpofed affront.

P 3

Our author having by his tranflation of Homer and other works, placed himself in circumstances

of

affront:That Voltaire came into England, as other foreigners do, on a prepoffeffion, that not only all religion, but all common decency of morals, was loft amongst us.

Mr. POPE faid further, that Voltaire was a fpy for the court, while he ftaid in England: of which he gave his friend the following inftance. When the fift Occafional Letter to Sir R. Walpole came out (by which circumftance the reader may collect the time of Voltaire's voyage hither) he made Mr. POPE a vifit at Twitenham; and walking with him in his garden, he faid, POPE, this occafional Letter alarms the court extremely. It is finely written. As you converfe much with the best pens converfant in public business, you must know the author. You may fafely tell this fecret to a ftranger, who has no concerns with your national quarrels. Mr. POPE faid, he perfectly underflood him, as he knew his character: and, to make a trial, which hardly needed any, he replied, "Mr. Voltaire, you are a man of honour ; "I may fafely, I know, truft an important fecret to your “breast. I myself wrote it." Voltaire, after lanching out into high encomiums on the performance, was, he perceived, impatient to get away; and next day he heard, that all the court reported that he was the author. This infamy of the man gave Mr. POPE and his friends much occafion of mirth, and much light in the manner how he ought to be treated. How he was treated ever after by Mr. POPE himself, appears from what paft on Voltaire's coming to take leave of Mr. POPE, on his return to France. After the common compliments had paffed, Mr. PoPE told his friend that Voltaire took his leave of him in thefe words, "And now I am come "to bid farewel to a man who never treated me seriously "from the first hour of my acquaintance with him to this "moment."-Mr. POPE faid the obfervation was juft, and the reason of his conduct has been given above.

Voltaire, however, conftantly paid court to Mr. POPE, and treated him with all the deference and refpect due to his merit; though, at the same time, he did not fcruple to speak lightly

of affluence, he was now at liberty to follow the true bent of his genius.

The independence of his fortune did not make him negligent of his fame, nor unmindful in the duty which he owed to fociety, in the application of those talents, which nature had fo bountifully bestowed upon him.

His natural benevolence fuggefted to him that he could not better ferve the interest of society, than, as himself expreffes it, by writing a book to bring mankind to look upon this life with comfort and pleasure; and put morality in good humour.

With this amiable difpofition, he applied his poetical talents to compofe the treatife, intitled the Effay on Man; in which he enforced the most important moral and religious truths, with all the logical method of argument, and embellished them with all the graces and ornaments of elegant and harmonious compofition.

Our author himself, with decent pride, claims the merit of this laudable exertion of his talents, where he says, in his epiftle to Arbuthnot

།

lightly of fome of the moft eminent writers in this country : particularly of Milton. It is well known, that while this very ingenious and sprightly freethinker was in England, the darling fubject of his converfation was Milton; whom he once took occafion to abuse for his Episode of Death and Sin. Whereupon a certain wit turned the laugh against him, by the following fmart impromptu :

"Thou art fo witty, wicked, and fo thin,

"Thou ferv't at once for MILTON, DEATH, and SIN."