sires I will not be in any pain at all. I will write again to the archbishop to-morrow, and desire you will say it on occasion.

I went to Mr Sterne, who said he

tell him this, and I From the secretary would write to you

to-night, and that the box must be at Chester, and that some friend of his goes very soon, and will carry it over. I dined with Mr Secretary St John, and at six went to Darteneuf's house to drink punch with him, and Mr Addison, and little Harrison, a young poet, whose fortune I am making. Steele was to have been there, but came not, nor never did twice, since I knew him, to any appointment. I staid till past eleven, and am now in bed. Steele's last Tatler came out to-day. You will see it before this comes to you, and how he takes leave of the world. * He never told so much as Mr Addison of it, who was surprised as much as I; but to say the truth, it was time, for he grew cruel dull and dry. To my knowledge he had several good hints to go upon; but he was so lazy and weary of the work, that he would not improve them. I think I will send this after + to-morrow: shall I before it is full, Dingley ?

3. Lord Peterborow yesterday called me into a barber's shop, and there we talked deep politics: he desired me to dine with him to-day at the Globe in the

* Steele's last Tatler, No. 271, is written in a bold and manly tone. On the subject of politics he only says, "What I find is the least excusable part of all this work is, that I have, in some places in it, touched upon matters which concern both church and state. All I shall say for this is, that the points I alluded to are such as concerned every Christian and freeholder in England; and I could not be cold enough to conceal my opinion on subjects which related to either of these characters."

↑ After is interlined.

Strand; he said he would show me so clearly how to get Spain, that I could not possibly doubt it. I went to-day accordingly, and saw him among half a dozen lawyers and attornies and hang dogs, signing deeds and stuff before his journey; for he goes to-morrow to Vienna. I sat among that scurvy company till after four, but heard nothing of Spain; only I find, by what he told me before, that he fears he shall do no good in his present journey. We are to be mighty constant correspondents. So I took my leave of him, and called at Sir Andrew Fountaine's, who mends much. I came home, an't please you, at six, and have been studying till now past eleven.

4. Morning. Morrow, little dears. O, faith, I have been dreaming; I was to be put in prison, I do not know why, and I was so afraid of a black dungeon and then all I had been inquiring yesterday of Sir Andrew Fountaine's sickness I thought was of poor Stella. The worst of dreams is, that one wakes just in the humour they leave one. Shall I send this to-day with all my heart: it is two days within the fortnight; but may be MD are in haste to have a round dozen, and then how are you to come up to me with your eighth, young women? But you indeed ought to write twice slower than I, because there are two of you; I own that.-Well then, I will seal up this letter by my morning candle, and carry it into the city with me, where I go to dine, and put it in the postoffice with my own fair hands. So let me see whether I have any news to tell MD. They say, they will very soon make some inquiries into the corruptions of the late ministry: and they must do it, to justify their turning them out. Atterbury, we think, is to be dean of Christ

church in Oxford; but the college would rather have Smallridge. *-What is all this to you? what care you for Atterburys and Smallridges? No, you care for nothing but Presto, faith. So I will rise and bid you farewell; yet I am loth to do so, because there is a great bit of paper yet to talk upon; but Dingley will have it so; yes, says she, make your journals shorter, and send them oftener; and so I will. And I have cheated you another way too; for this is clipped paper, and holds at least six lines less than the former ones. I will tell you a good thing I said to my Lord Carteret. So, says he, my Lord came up to me, and asked me, &c. No,

to you.

said I, my Lord never did, nor ever can come up We all pun here sometimes. Lord Carteret set down Prior the other day in his chariot, and Prior thanked him for his charity; that was fit for Dilly. + I do not remember I heard one good one from the ministry, which is really a shame. Henley is gone to the country for Christmas. The puppy comes here without his wife, and keeps no house, and would have me dine with him at eating-houses; but I have only done it once, and will do it no more. He had not seen me for some time in the coffeehouse, and, asking after me, desired Lord Herbert to tell me, I was a beast for ever after the order of Melchisedec. Did you ever read the Scripture? it is only changing the word priest to beast.--I think I am bewitched to write so much in a morning to you, little MD. Let me go, will you? and I will come again to-night in a fine clean sheet of paper; but I can nor will stay no longer now; no, I will not, for all

* They were great friends; Atterbury, however, succeeded. + Dillon Ashe.

Strand; he said he won

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do not smile at me, little more. Ah! you

Nay, but pray thee

: it is a good girl, and do.

Jade is just out, and I must go

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vt về mà at the wrong side. So farewell,

Dark almost: I must have another canup, to seal this; but I will fold it up , and make what you can of this, for I se this paper I am writing upon.

As and Mrs Stoyte.

Almighty bless you, &c.

Service to

What I am doing I

eurot see; but I will fold it up, and not look on it

LETTER XIII.

London, Jan. 4, 1710-11.

I WAS going into the city (where I dined) and put my 12th, with my own fair hands, into the post-office as I came back, which was not till nine this night. I dined with people that you never heard of, nor is it worth your while to know; an authoress and a printer.* I walked home for exercise, and at eleven got into bed; and all the while I was undressing myself, there was I

Probably Mrs Manley, who then wrote the Examiner, and Barber, the printer, by whom she is said to have been kept.

speaking monkey things in air, just as if MD had been by, and did not recollect myself till I got into bed. I writ last night to the archbishop, and told him the warrant was drawn for the first-fruits, and I told him Lord Peterborow was set out for his journey to Vienna: but it seems the lords have addressed to have him stay to be examined about Spanish affairs, upon this defeat there, and to know where the fault lay, &c. * So I write to the archbishop a lie; but I think it was not a sin.

5. Mr Secretary St John sent for me this morning so early, that I was forced to go without shaving, which put me quite out of method: I called at Mr Ford's, and desired him to lend me a shaving, and so made a shift to get into order again. Lord! here is an impertinence Sir Andrew Fountaine's mother and sister are come above a hundred miles from Worcester to see him before he died. They got here but yesterday, and he must have been past hopes, or past fears, before they could reach him. I fell a scolding when I heard they were coming; and the people about him wondered at me, and said what a mighty content it would be on both sides to die when they were with him. I knew the mother; she is the greatest Overdo upon earth, and the sister, they say, is worse; the poor man will relapse again among them. Here was the scoundrel brother always crying in the outer room till Sir Andrew was in danger, and the dog was to have all his estate if he died;

* This was done accordingly; and Peterborough, in answer to five questions put to him by the House of Lords, gave such a recital of the affairs of Spain, as to call down a censure, both on the ministry who had directed that the campaign of 1707 should be offensively conducted, and upon the Earl of Galway, under whose conduct it miscarried.