rewards we receive. When unreasonable bills are brought in, they ought to be taxed, or cut off in the middle. Where there have been long accounts between two persons, I have known one of them perpetually making large demands, and pressing for payment; who, when the accounts were cast up on both sides, was found to be debtor for some hundreds. I am thinking, if a proclamation were issued out for every man to send in his bill of merits, and the lowest price he set them at, what a pretty sum it would amount to, and how many such islands as this, must be sold to pay them. I form my judgment from the practice of those who sometimes happen to pay themselves, and, I dare affirm, would not be so unjust as to take a farthing more than they think is due to their deserts. I will instance only in one article: a lady of my acquaintance appropriated twenty-six pounds a-year out of her allowance, for certain uses, which her woman received, and was to pay to the lady, or her order, as it was called for. * But, after eight years, it ap

*This alludes to an anecdote, which, as told by the Duchess of Marlborough herself, does her more discredit than she seems to be aware of. "These," she says, after a pretty handsome enumeration of royal favours, 66 were the only grants I ever had from the queen, except one, which occasioned the witty comparison that was made between me and the lady's-woman, who, out of her mistress's pin-money of 261., put twenty-two into her own pocket. The matter was this: At the queen's accession to the government, she used to lament to me, that, the crown being impoverished by former grants, she wanted the power her predecessors had enjoyed to reward faithful servants; and she desired me to take out of the privy purse 2000l. a-year, in order to purchase for my advantage. I made my grateful acknowledgments to her majesty, but at the same time said, that, as her majesty was so good to provide for my children, and as the offices I enjoyed by her favour brought me in more than I wanted, I could not think it reasonable to accept her offer, and I absolutely refused it. I

peared, upon the strictest calculation, that the woman had paid but four pounds a-year, and sunk twoand-twenty for her own pocket. It is but supposing, instead of twenty-six pounds, twenty-six thousand; and by that you may judge what the pretensions of modern merit are, where it happens to be its own paymaster.

constantly declined it till the time that, notwithstanding the uncommon regard I had shewn to her majesty's interest and honour, in the execution of my trusts, she was pleased to dismiss me from her service; then, indeed, it was thought I had no longer the same reason to be scrupulous on this head. By the advice of my friends, I sent the queen one of her own letters, in which she had pressed me to take the 2000l. a-year; and I wrote at the same time to ask her majesty, whether she would allow me to charge in the privy purse accounts, which I was to send her, that yearly sum from the time of the offer, amounting to 18,000l. Her majesty was pleased to answer, I might charge it. This, therefore, I did."—Account of the Conduct of the Dowager Duchess of Marlborough.

It were to be wished that the Duchess had favoured us with a statement of the reasons which convinced her, that, having absolutely refused to receive this annuity as a gratuity from her sovereign while in favour, in consideration of 50001. given in portion to each of her daughters, and the lucrative offices vested in her own person, she was nevertheless entitled to levy the same annuity, with all its arrears, by way of fine, when dismissed from the queen's service. As it is, we must be contented with the reason announced in a parallel case by Dr Ratcliffe, who, during a long attendance in the family of a particular friend, regularly refused the fee pressed upon him at each visit. At length, when the cure was performed, and the doctor about to give up attendance, the convalescent patient again proffered him a purse containing the fees for every day's visit. The doctor eyed it some time in silence, and at length extended his hand, exclaiming, "Singly I could have refused them for ever; but altogether, they are irresistible.”

No. XVII.

THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 30, 1710.

Quas res luxuries in flagitiis, avaritia in rupinis, superbia in contumeliis efficere potuisset; eas omnes sese, hoc uno prætore per triennium, pertulisse aiebant.

These things were the effect of his scandalous and unbounded luxury, his insatiable avarice, his contumelious insolence. These were the sufferings of that unhappy nation, for three years, under his oppressive government.

WHEN I first undertook this paper, I was resolved to concern myself only with things, and not with persons. Whether I have kept or broken this resolution, I cannot recollect; and I will not be at the pains to examine, but leave the matter to those little antagonists who may want a topic for criticism. Thus inuch I have discovered, that it is in writing as in building; where, after all our schemes and calculations, we are mightily deceived in our accounts, and often forced to make use of any materials we can find, that the work may be kept a going. Besides, to speak my opinion, the things I have occasion to mention are so closely linked to persons, that nothing but time (the father of oblivion) can separate them. Let me put a parallel case suppose I should complain, that last week my coach was within an inch of overturning in a smooth even way, and drawn by very gentle horses; to be sure, all my friends would immediately lay the

*

fault upon John, because they knew he then presided in my coach-box. Again, suppose I should discover some uneasiness to find myself, I knew not how, over head and ears in debt, although I were sure my tenants paid their rents very well, and that I never spent half my income; they would certainly advise me to turn off Mr Oldfox, † my receiver, and take another. If, as a justice of peace, I should tell a friend, that my warrants and mittimuses were never drawn up as I would have them; that I had the misfortune to send an honest man to gaol, and dismiss a knave; he would bid me no longer trust Charles and Harry, ‡ my two clerks, whom he knew to be ignorant, wilful, assuming, and ill-inclined fellows. If I should add, that my tenants made me very uneasy with their squabbles and broils among themselves, he would counsel me to cashier Will. Bigamy, the seneschal of my manor. And lastly, if my neighbour and I happened to have a misunderstanding about the delivery of a message,

* John Duke of Marlborough.

+ Lord Godolphin, lord-treasurer.

state.

Earl of Sunderland, and Henry Boyle, Esq. secretaries of

In the youth of William Earl Cowper, (lord high chancellor under Godolphin's administration,) he is said to have contracted an informal marriage with Mrs Elizabeth Culling, of Hertingfordbury Park, by whom he had a son and daughter. The former died soon after he came of age, and the latter sold Hertingfordbury Park to Judge Cowper, who conveyed it to the chancellor ; so it is now a seat of the family. Notwithstanding Swift's malicious insinuation, Cowper's connection with this lady was not such as to prevent him marrying, first, Judith, daughter and heiress of Sir Robert Booth of London; and after her death, Mary, daughter of John Clavering of Chopwell, in the bishopric of Durham. See his life in the Biographia Britannica, edit. 1789, and COLLINS's Peerage.

what could I do less than strip and discard the blundering or malicious rascal who carried it? *

It is the same thing in the conduct of public affairs, where they have been managed with rashness or wilfulness, corruption, ignorance, or injustice. Barely to relate the facts, at least while they are fresh in memory, will as much reflect upon the persons concerned, as if we had told their names at length.

I have therefore since thought of another expedient, frequently practised with great safety and success by satirical writers; which is, that of looking into history for some character bearing a resemblance to the person we would describe; and, with the absolute power of altering, adding, or suppressing what circumstances we please, I conceive we must have very bad luck, or very little skill, to fail. However, some days ago in a coffee-house, looking into one of the politic weekly papers, found the writer had fallen into this scheme; and I happened to light on that part where he was describing a person, who, from small beginnings, grew (as I remember) to be constable of France, and had a very haughty imperious wife. † I took the author as a friend to our faction; for so, with great propriety of speech, they call the queen and

I

* Horatio Walpole, secretary to the English Embassy at the treaty of Gertruydenberg. Swift, in the Conduct of the Allies, accuses him of misleading the nation, by falsely stating, that the French had willingly acceded to the preliminary articles, and would even have made farther concessions, when he must have known the contrary.

In the MEDLEY, No. 6. and No. 7, is an account of the rise and fall of the Marquis D'Ancre, and his wife Galigai, so told as to shadow forth Harley and Mrs Masham, Queen Anne's minister and favourite. Swift insinuates, with justice, that the character of Galigai would better have suited the Duchess of Marlborough.