with whom he is faid to have lived unhappily, but of the nature of this unhappiness we have no information in any of the memoirs of his life, except hints that the prefumed on the fuperiority of her rank. But to suppose that she despised or vexed ADDISON on that account will not fupply the place of fact, and will obscure the few facts we poffefs. We cannot easily imagine that any woman would think herself fuperior to ADDISON by a rank which inher was merely adventitious, for fhe was not of a noble family, and of which the had loft all but the bare title; and if we do form this theory, how can we reconcile the long admiration and inceffant purfuit of fuch a woman with his knowledge of the world, and acute difcernment of character?" If," fays an author to whom I have often referred, "the was a woman of fuch a despicable understanding; that such a woman fhould have engaged, for years, the attention of fo confummate a judge of human nature as ADDISON, is not to be imagined. Confidering his character and accomplishments, and that at the time of his marriage he was a member of parliament, and foon after fecretary of state, the inequality of condition was not very great." It is generally agreed, however, that in one way or other fhe made his life uncomfortable; that he had frequently recourse to the fociety of his friends at a tavern; and that here he indulged to excess: and we may conjecture that in the character of fuch a man, this failing would foon be observed, and that they who reported it would probably not be anxious to lessen the extent or frequency of an indulgence * Mr. TYERS, in his unpublished Effay on ADDISON'S Life and Writings, fays, " Holland House is a large manfion; but could not contain Mr. ADDISON, the COUNTESS of WARWICK, and one gueft, PEACE." ADDISON became poffeffed of this houfe by his marriage, and died in it. + BEATTIE, which brought ADDISON for a time on a level with his inferiors. It is far more probable that he had always been fond of fociety; a fondness which cannot often be indulged with impunity, than that he had first recourfe to the bottle as a cure for domefticvexations. The latter fuppofition feems inconfiftent with his general character. It is indeed a frequent remedy, but principally with men of weak minds, and of low manners. But whatever deviations of this kind might have been obferved in ADDISON'S conduct, there is reafon to think they have been exaggerated, because they certainly were not accompanied by their usual effects, debasement of manners or morals. His religious principles remained unfhaken: those principles had influenced his whole life: they appear predominant in all his writings, and they gladdened his latter days with ferenity. Of this happy effect his biographers have recorded an inftance fo affecting and fo falutary, that no plea of brevity can excufe the omiffion of it wherever his character is the object of contemplation. It was firft related by Dr. YOUNG, in "Conjectures, or original Compofition," from which it is here copied. "After a long and manly, but vain ftruggle with his diftemper, ADDISON difmiffed his phyficians, and with them all hopes of life. But with his hopes of life he difmiffed not his concern for the living, but fent for a youth nearly related," (the EARL of WARWICK, who did not live long after this affecting interview), " and finely accomplished, yet not above being the better for good impreffions from a dying friend. He came; but life now glimmering in the focket, the dying friend was filent. After a decent and proper pause the youth faid, 'Dear Sir, you sent for me: I believe, and I hope, that you have fome commands: I fhall hold them moft facred.'-May diftant ages not only hear, but feel the reply! Forcibly grasping the youth's hand, he foftly faid, SEE IN WHAT PEACE A CHRISTIAN CAN DIE. He spoke with difficulty, and foon expired." ADDISON died on June 17, 1719, in the 48th year of his age, leaving a daughter by the COUNTESS of WARWICK, of whom we are told that she was bred up with little veneration for his memory; that she had a marked diflike to his writings, and an unconquerable averfion to the perufal of them; that she discovered very early in life as great an unlikeness and inferiority to ADDISON in refpect of filial fentiment, as in point of understanding; but that afterwards the conceived a great reverence for her father's memory, and a fuitable regard for his writings *. This lady died fingle, at an advanced age, a few years ago, and after her death her father's library, which had been in her poffeffion, was fold in London. ADDISON'S contributions to the SPECTATOR are ascertained on the beft authority. The principal writers of this work were diftinguished by fignature letters: and much has been said of thofe adopted by ADDISON, because they form the name of the mute CLIO: "When panting virtue her last efforts made, But it is not very likely that ADDISON intended this compliment to his papers, and it has therefore been conjectured that his fignatures refer to the places in which he happened to write, C. Chelsea, L. London, I. Iflington, and O. his office. We have better authority for afferting, that no man could be more fcrupulous in correcting both the errors of the press and fuch as had escaped him * Annotations on the TATLER, No. 235. See an account of this lady in the Gentleman's Magazine, vol. lxvii. p. 256 and 385. in the hurry of writing. Dr. WARTON relates, that the prefs was often stopped, that ADDISON might make a trifling correction. In the folio edition are many proofs of his being rather faftidious in little things, but when he had once corrected the press, he confidered his bufinefs as completed; the alterations made afterwards, when the work was published in volumes, are very few and not very important. It ought also to be mentioned, that ADDISON was, in general, fingularly happy in the choice of his Mottos. Dr. WARTON has given him this praife, but has, among other inftances, quoted No. 2, which was written by STEELE. The papers claimed for ADDISON are in number two hundred and seventy-four. About two hundred and thirty-fix are given to STEELE on the authority of his fignature, T; but with the reftrictions mentioned before*. The unknown correfpondents were certainly numerous, and STEELE made a free use of fuch letters as contained hints, or were thought worthy of infertion in their original ftate. From negligence, or want of matter, or want of leifure, for he was a man of many projects, he was frequently unprepared, and on this account it is on record, that the press has been fometimes ftopped; but when he determined to exert himself, he could do it to advantage. The series of papers from No. 151 to 157 inclufive, which are his compofition, rank among the best of the grave kind†. Of the value of his and of ADDISON's papers we become the more fenfible as we defcend to examine the contributions of contemporary wits, who from * Pref. Hist. and Biog. to the TATLFR. + STEELE's fignature was R. and T.; the former, it has been fuppofed, when he wrote the whole of the paper, the latter when he compofed or compiled from the letter-box; but this does not appear to be the universal rule, and the annotators imagine that T. fometimes means TICKELL. interest or inclination were induced to lend their aid to the general purpose of the work. The firft of thefe, if we refpect the quantity merely of his affistance, was EUSTACE BUDGELL, a writer of fome note in the days of the SPECTATOR. He was born about the year 1685. His father, GILBERT BUDGELL, D. D. of St. Thomas, near Exeter, appears to have been a man of property, as he sent his fon as a gentleman-commoner to Chrift-church, Oxford, and thence to the Inner Temple, to study law, with a provifion fuitable to his rank and neceffities. In the ftudy of the law, however, EUSTACE made little progress, being diverted from it by a tafte for polite literature, and the company of fuch men as that tafte eafily procures. In 1710, ADDISON, to whom he was nearly related, took him to Ireland as one of his clerks, when himself secretary to LORD WHARTON. In this employment, fuch was BUDGELL'S attention to bufinefs, that in 1714 he was promoted to the office of chief secretary to the lords juftices of Ireland, and deputy clerk of the council, and his talents were already fo diftinguished as to procure him a feat in the Irish parliament, where he was confidered as an able fpeaker. During the rebellion, in 1715, he discharged the service hitherto entrusted to a field-officer, of transporting the troops from Ireland to Scotland, with great ability and integrity. In 1717, he was promoted by ADDISON, then fecretary of ftate, to the place of accountant and comptroller general; and as he had fome time before fucceeded to the family eftate, valued at 950l. per annum, though fomewhat encumbered by his father's prodigality, he was exempted from the cares of wealth, if not wholly from thofe of ambition. He had now commenced a profperous career as a statesman, and was ill prepared for the fatal reverse which was at hand, and which, although there were other precipitating circum |