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His father, after Reading was taken by Effex, came to refide in his houfe; and his school increased. At Whitfuntide, in his thirty-fifth year, he married Mary, the daugh ter of Mr. Powel, a juftice of the Peace in Oxfordshire. He brought her to town with him, and expected all the advantages of a conjugal life. The lady, however, feems not much to have delighted in the pleasures of spare diet and hard study; for, as Philips relates," having for a month led a philofo "phical life, after having been used at home

to a great house, and much company and "joviality, her friends, poffibly by her own "defire, made earnest suit to have her company the remaining part of the fummer; "which was granted, upon a promife of her 66. return at Michaelmas.”

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Milton was too busy to much miss his wife he pursued his ftudies; and now and then vifited the Lady Magaret Leigh, whom he has mentioned in one of his fonnets. laft Michaelmas arrived; but the Lady had no inclination to return to the fullen gloom of her husband's habitation, and therefore

very willingly forgot her promife. He fent her a letter, but had no answer; he fent more with the same success. It could be alleged that letters miscarry; he therefore dispatched a meffenger, being by this time too angry to go himself. His meffenger was fent back with fome contempt. The family of the Lady were Cavaliers.

In a man whose opinion of his own merit was like Milton's, less provocation than this might have raised violent refentment. Milton foon determined to repudiate her for disobedience; and, being one of those who could easily find arguments to justify inclination, published (in 1644) The Doctrine and Difcipline of Divorce; which was followed by The Judgement of Martin Bucer, concerning Divorce; and the next year, his Tetrachordon, Expofitions upon the four chief Places of Scripture which treat of Marriage.

This innovation was oppofed, as might be expected, by the clergy; who, then holding their famous affembly at Westminster, procured that the author fhould be called before the Lords; "but that Houfe," fays VOL. I. Wood,

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Wood, "whether approving the doctrine, or not favouring his accufers, did foon dif"mifs him."

There feems not to have been much written against him, nor any thing by any writer of eminence. The antagonist that appeared is ftyled by him, a Serving man turned Solicitor. Howel in his letters mentions the new doctrine with contempt; and it was, I fuppose, thought more worthy of derifion than of confutation. He complains of this neglect in two fonnets, of which the first is contemptible, and the fecond not excellent.

From this time it is obferved that he became an enemy to the Prefbyterians, whom he had favoured before. He that changes his party by his humour, is not more virtuous than he that changes it by his intereft; he loves himself rather than truth.

His wife and her relations now found that Milton was not an unrefisting sufferer of injuries; and perceiving that he had begun to put his doctrine in practice, by courting a young woman of great accomplishments, the

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daughter of one Doctor Davis, who was however not ready to comply, they refolved to endeavour a re-union. He went fometimes to the house of one Blackborough, his relation, in the lane of St. Martin's-le-Grand, and at one of his ufual vifits was surprised to fee his wife come from another room, and implore forgiveness on her knees. He refifted her intreaties for a while; " but partly," fays Philips, his own generous nature, "more inclinable to reconciliation than to perfeverance in anger or revenge, and partly "the strong interceffion of friends on both "fides, foon brought him to an act of obli"vion and a firm league of peace." It were injurious to omit, that Milton afterwards received her father and her brothers in his own house, when they were diftreffed, with other Royalists.

He published about the fame time his Areopagitica, a Speech of Mr. John Milton for the liberty of unlicensed Printing. The danger of fuch unbounded liberty, and the danger of bounding it, have produced a problem in the fcience of Government, which human understanding seems hitherto unable

to folve. If nothing may be published but what civil authority shall have previously approved, power muft always be the standard of truth; if every dreamer of innovations may propagate his projects, there can be no fettlement; if every murmurer at government may diffuse discontent, there can be no peace; and if every sceptick in theology may teach his follies, there can be no religion. The remedy against these evils is to punish the authors; for it is yet allowed that every fociety may punish, though not prevent, the publication of opinions, which that fociety fhall think pernicious; but this punishment, though it may crush the author, promotes the book; and it feems not more reasonable to leave the right of printing unrestrained, because writers may be afterwards cenfured, than it would be to fleep with doors unbolted, because by our laws we can hang a thief.

But whatever were his engagements, civil or domestick, poetry was never long out of his thoughts. About this time (1645) a collection of his Latin and English poems appeared, in which the Allegro and Penferofo, with fome others, were first published.

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