before me. Her body I depofited in the next church-yard, and immediately after, rid as faft as I could to London, to lofe thought in diffipation, and refign the better to the decree. For fome days I lived at the inn I fet up at, but as foon as I could, went into a lodging, and it happened to be at the houfe of the famous Curl the bookfeller; a man well known in the Dunciad, and Pope's letters to his friends, on account of Curl's frauds in purchasing and printing ftolen copies of Mr. Pope's works. : It font icy vaines; on ne fauroit émouvoir la parque: me voila morte, chacun arrive à ce terme la. Ceffez donc encore un fois: Ainfi puiffiez-vous ne fentir jamais une femblable douleur! Ainfi tous les dieux foient favorable à vos fouhaits! Et veuille la parque ajoûter à vôtre vie ce qu'elle a ravi à la mienne. Et toy qui paffes tranquillement, arreté icy je te prie un moment ou deux, afin de lire ce peu de mots. Moy, cette Homonée que preferra Atimete a de filles confiderables; moy a qui Venus donna la beauté, les graces et les agrémens ; que Pallas enfin avoit inftruite dans tous les arts, me voila icy renfermée dans un monument de peu d'efpace. Je n'avois pas encore vingt ans quand le fort jetta fes mains envieufes fur ma perfonne. Ce n'eft pas pour moy que je m'en plains, c'eft pour mon mari, de qui la douleur m'eft plus difficile à fupporter que ma propre mort. Que la terre foit legere, ô éfpoufe digne de retourner à la vie, et de recouvrer un jour que tu a perdu ! N. B. The Reader who does not understand French, will find this in English at the end of this Xith Section. It is in relation to thefe tricks, that Pope mentions Curl in his Dunciad and Letters. A fuccinct hiftory of him I fhall here give: but had I complied with his requests, it would have been a long relation, to the advantage and glory of this extraordinary man: For he came one morning into my closet, with an apron full of papers; being letters, memorandums, parodies, and notes, written by or concerning himfelf; and requested I would, on a good confideration, write his life, to his profit and honour, and make it a five fhilling book. That I faid was not then in my power to do: but I would, one time or other, give the public a true account of him, and make it conclude I hoped to the glory of his character. Here it is. The picture and charact of Curl the bookjeller. §. 2. CURL was in perfon very tall and thin, an ungainly, aukward, whitefaced man. His eyes were a light-grey, large, projecting, gogle and pur-blind. He was fplay-footed, and baker-kneed. He had a good natural understanding, and was well acquainted with more than the title pages of books. He talked well on fome fubjects. He was not an infidel as Mrs. Mrs. Rowe mifrepresents him in one of her letters to lady Hartford, (afterwards Dutchefs of Somerfet.) He told me, it was quite evident to him, that the scriptures of the Old and New Teftament contained a real revelation. There is for it a rational, a natural, a traditionary, and a fupernatural testimony; which rendered it quite certain to him. He said, he no more doubted the truth of the chriftian religion, than he did the existence of an independent fupreme Creator; but he did not believe the expofitions given by the divines. So far Curl was right enough. His fault was, that with fuch a belief, he took no pains with his heart. Trusting entirely to the merits of the Saviour, like too many other mistaken chriftians, he had no notion of religion as an invifible thing within us, called the kingdom of God: He did not even confider it as a good outfide thing, that recommends a man to his fellow-creatures. He was a debauchee to the last degree, and fo injurious to fociety, that by filling his tranflations with wretched notes, forged letters, and bad pictures, he raised the price of a four fhilling book to ten. Thus, in particular, he managed Burnet's Archiology: And when I told him he was very culpable in this, and other articles he fold, his answer was, What would I have him to do? He was a book feller. feller. His tranflators in pay, lay three in a bed, at the Pewter-Platter Inn in Holborn, and he and they were for ever at work, to deceive the Public. He likewife printed the lewdeft things. He loft his ears for the Nun in her Smock, and another thing. As to drink, he was too fond of money, to spend any in making himself happy that way; but at another's expence, he would drink every day till he was quite blind, and as incapable of felf-motion as a block. This was Edmund Curl: But he died at laft as great a penitent, (I think in the year 1748) as ever expired. I mention this to his glory. As Curl knew the world well, and was acquainted with feveral extraordinary characters, he was of great ufe to me at my first coming to town, as I knew nobody, nor any place. He gave me the true characters of many I faw, told me whom I fhould avoid, and with whom I might be free. He brought me to the play-houses, and gave me a judicious account of every actor. He understood those things well. No man could talk better on theatrical fubjects. He brought me likewise to Sadler's Wells, to the night-cellars, and to Tom King's, the famous night-house at Covent Garden. As he was very knowing, and well well-known at fuch places, he foon made me as wife as himfelf in these branches of learning; and, in fhort, in the fpace of a month, I was as well acquainted in London, as if I had been there for years. My kind preceptor spared no pains in lecturing. But what of all things I thought moft wonderful, was the company I faw at the Sieur Curl's. As he was intimate with all the high whores in town, many of them frequented his fhop, to buy his dialogues, and other lively books. Some of these girls he often asked to dine with him, and then I was fure to be a gueft. Many very fine women I thereby faw, but none worth mentioning, till Carola Bennet arrived. She did. furprize me. Her mind and body were very wonderful, and I imagine a defcription of her, and her ftory afterward, will not be ungrateful to my readers, The picture of §. 3. Carola Bennet was at this time in the two and twentieth year of her age, a dazzling beauty in the height of life and vigour. Her eyes were black and amazingly fine: Her mouth charming: Her neck and breaft very beautiful: Her ftature was just what it ought to be. She had a glow of health, a lufcious air, and a be 3 witching |