"ritorious but virtue and friendship, and indeed "friendship itself is only a part of virtue."

He died in the evening of the thirtieth day of May, 1744, fo placidly, that the attendants did not difcern the exact time of his expiration. He was buried at Twickenham, near his father and mother, where a monument has been erected to him by his commentator, the Bishop of Gloucester.

He left the care of his papers to his executors, first to Lord Bolingbroke, and if he fhould not be living to the Earl of Marchmont, undoubtedly expecting them to be proud of the truft, and eager to extend his fame. But let no man dream of influence beyond his life. After a decent time Dodfiey the bookfeller went to foHicit preference as the publisher, and was told that the parcel had not been yet infpected; and whatever was the reason, the world has been difappointed of what was referved for the next age.

He loft, indeed, the favour of Bolingbroke by a kind of pofthumous offence. The political pamphlet called The Patriot King had been put into his hands. that he might procure the impreffion of a very few copies, to be diftributed according to the author's di rection among his friends, and Pope affured him that no more had been printed than were allowed; bur, foon after his death, the printer brought and refigned a complete edition of fifteen hundred copies, which Pope had ordered him to print, and to retain in fecret. He kept, as was obferved, his engagement to Pope better than Pope had kept it to his friend; and nothing was known of the tranfaction, till, upon the death of his employer, he thought himfelf obliged to deliver the books to the right owner, who, with great indignation,

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nation, made a fire in his yard, and delivered the whole impreffion to the flames.

Hitherto nothing had been done which was not naturally dictated by refentment of violated faith; refentment more acrimonious, as the violator had been more loved or more trufted. But here the anger might have stopped; the injury was private, and there was little danger from the example.

Bolingbroke, however, was not yet fatisfied; his thirst of vengeance excited him to blast the memory of the man over whom he had wept in his last struggles; and he employed Mallet, another friend of Pope, to tell the tale to the publick, with all its aggravations. Warburton, whofe heart was warm with his legacy, and tender by the recent feparation, thought it proper for him to interpofe; and undertook, not indeed to vindicate the action, for breach of truft has always fomething criminal, but to extenuate it by an apology. Having advanced what cannot be denied, that moral obliquity is made more or less excufable by the motives that produce it, he enquires what evil purpofe could have induced Pope to break his promife. He could not delight his vanity by ufurping the work, which, though not fold in fhops, had been fhewn to a number more than fufficient to preferve the author's claim; he could not gratify his avarice, for he could not fell his plunder till Bolingbroke was dead; and even then, if the copy was left to another, his fraud would be defeated, and, if left to himself, would be ufelefs.

Warburton therefore fuppofes, with great appearance of reafon, that the irregularity of his conduct proceeded wholly from his zeal for Bolingbroke, who might perhaps have deftroyed the pamphlet, which

Pope

Pope thought it his duty to preferve, even without its author's approbation. To this apology an answer was written in a Letter to the most impudent man living.

He brought fome reproach upon his own memory by the petulant and contemptuous mention made in his will of Mr. Allen, and an affected repayment of his benefactions. Mrs. Blount, as the known friend and favourite of Pope, had been invited to the house of Allen, where the comported herself with fuch indecent arrogance, that fhe parted from Mrs. Allen in a state of irreconcileable diflike, and the door was for ever barred against her. This exclufion fhe refented with fo much bitterness as to refufe any legacy from Pope, unless he left the world with a difayowal of obligation to Allen. Having been long under her dominion, now tottering in the decline of life, and unable to refift the violence of her temper, or, perhaps with the prejudice of a lover, perfuaded that she had fuffered improper treatment, he complied with her demand, and polluted his will with female refentment. Allen accepted the legacy, which he gave to the Hofpital at Bath; obferving that Pope was always a bad accomptant, and that, if to 150. he had put a cypher more, he had come nearer to the truth *,

THE

*This account of the difference between Pope and Mr. Allen is not fo circumstantial as it was in Johnson's power to have made it. The particulars communicated to him concerning it he was too indolent to commit to writing: the bufinefs of this note is to fupply his omiffions.

Upon an invitation in which Mrs. Blount was included, Mr. Pope made a visit to Mr. Allen at Prior-park, and having occation to go to Bristol for a few days, left Mrs. Blount behind him. In his abfence Mrs. Blount, who was of the Romish perfuafion, fignified an inclination to go to the Popish chapel at Bath, and defired of Mr. Allen the ufe of his chariot for the purpofe; but he being at that VOL. IV.

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time

1

THE perfon of Pope is well-known not to have been formed by the niceft model. He has, in his account of the Little Club, compared himself to a spider, and by another is defcribed as protuberant behind and before. He is faid to have been beautiful in his infancy; but he was of a conftitution originally feeble and weak; and as bodies of a tender frame are eafily diftorted, his deformity was probably in part the effect of his application. His ftature was fo low, that, to bring him to a level with common tables, it was neceffary to raise his feat. But his face was not displeasing, and his eyes were animated and vivid.

By natural deformity, or accidental diftortion, his vital functions were fo much difordered, that his life was a long difeafe. His most frequent affailant was the headach, which he ufed to relieve by inhaling the fteam of coffee, which he very frequently required.

Moft of what can be told concerning his petty pecuJiarities was communicated by a female domeftick of the Earl of Oxford, who knew him perhaps after the middle of life. He was then fo weak as to ftand in perpetual need of female attendance; extremely fenfible of cold, fo that he wore a kind of fur doublet, under a fhirt of a very coarfe warm linen with fine time mayor of the city, fuggefted the impropriety of having his carriage feen at the door of a place of worship, to which as a magistrate he was at leaft reftrained from giving a fanction, and might be required to fupprefs, and therefore defired to be excufed. Mrs. Blount refented this refufal, and told Pope of it at his return, and fo infected him with her rage that they both left the houfe abruptly.

An inftance of the like negligence may be noted in his relation of Pope's love of painting, which differs much from the information I gave him on that head. A picture of Betterton, certainly copied from Kneller by Pope, Lord Mansfield once thewed me at Kenwood-house, adding that it was the only one he ever finiflied, for that the weaknefs of his eyes was an obstruction to his ufe of the pencil.

fleeves.

fleeves. When he rofe, he was invefted in boddice made of stiff canvass, being scarce able to hold himself erect till they were laced, and he then put on a flannel waistcoat. One fide was contracted. His legs were fo flender, that he enlarged their bulk with three pair of ftockings, which were drawn on and off. by the maid; for he was not able to dress or undress himself, and neither went to bed nor rofe without help. His weakness made it very difficult for him to be clean.

His hair had fallen almost all away; and he used to dine sometimes with Lord Oxford, privately, in a velvet cap. His dress of ceremony was black with a tyewig, and a little sword.

The indulgence and accommodation which his ficknefs required, had taught him all the unpleafing and unfocial qualities of a valetudinary man. He expected that every thing fhould give way to his eafe or humour, as a child, whofe parents will not hear her cry, has an unrefifted dominion in the nursery.

C'eft que l'enfant toûjours eft homme,

C'eft

que l'homme eft toujours enfant.

When he wanted to fleep he nodded in company; and once flumbered at his own table while the Prince of Wales was talking of poetry.

The reputation which his friendship gave procured him many invitations; but he was a very troublesome inmate. He brought no fervant, and had fo many wants, that a numerous attendance was scarcely able to fupply them. Wherever he was, he left no room for another, because he exacted the attention, and employed the activity of the whole family. His errands were fo frequent and frivolous, that the footmen in