ceived and accommodated the Ladies, as he probably took no delight in telling it, is not known. The report is, that he was foon weary of either the restraint or fervility of his occupation, and eafily perfuaded his mafter to difcharge him.

The Dutchefs of Monmouth, remarkable for inflexible perfeverance in her demand to be treated as a princefs, in 1712 took Gay into her service as fecretary by quitting a fhop for fuch fervice, he might gain leifure, but he certainly advanced little in the boat of independence. Of his leifure he made fo good ufe, that he published next year a poem on Rural Sports, and infcribed it to Mr. Pope, who was then rifing faft into reputation. Pope was pleafed with the honour; and when he became acquainted with Gay, found fuch attractions in his manners and converfation, that he feems to have received him into his inmoft confidence; and a friendship was formed between them which lafted to their feparation by death, without any known abatement on either part. Gay was the general favourite of the whole affociation of wits; but they regarded him as a playfellow rather than a partner, and treated him with more fondness than respect.

Next year he published The Shepherd's Week, fix English paftorals, in which the images are drawn from real life, fuch as it appears among the rufticks in parts of England remote from London. Steele, in fome papers of the Guardian, had praised Ambrofe Philips, as the Paftoral writer that yielded only to Theocritus, Virgil, and Spenfer. Pope, who had alfo published Paftorals, not pleafed to be overlooked, drew up a comparison of his own compofitions with thofe of Philips, in which he covertly

R 2

covertly gave himself the preference, while he feemed to difown it. Not content with this, he is supposed to have incited Gay to write the Shepherd's Week, to fhew, that if it be neceffary to copy nature with minuteness, rural life must be exhibited fuch as groffhefs and ignorance have made it. So far the plan was reasonable; but the Pastorals are introduced by a Proeme, written with fuch imitation as they could attain of obfolete language, and by confequence in a style that was never spoken nor written in any language or in any place.

But the effect of reality and truth became confpicuous, even when the intention was to fhew them groveling and degraded. Thefe Paftorals. became popular, and were read with delight as juft reprefentations of rural manners and occupations, by thofe who had no intereft in the rivalry of the poets, nor knowledge of the critical difpute.

In 1713 he brought a comedy called The Wife of Bath upon the stage, but it received no applause: he printed it, however; and feventeen years after, having altered it, and, as he thought, adapted it' more to the public tafte, he offered it again to the town; but, though he was flushed with the fuccefs of the Beggar's Opera, had the mortification to fee it again rejected.

In the last year of queen Anne's life, Gay was made fecretary to the earl of Clarendon, ambaffador to the court of Hanover. This was a station that naturally gave him hopes of kindness from every party; but the queen's death put an end to her favours, and he had dedicated his Shepherd's Week to Bolingbroke, which Swift confidered as the crime that obftructed all kindness from the houfe of Hanover,

He did not, however, omit to improve the right which his office had given him to the notice of the royal family. On the arrival of the princefs of Wales, he wrote a poem, and obtained fo much favour, that both the prince and princefs went to fee his What d'ye call it, a kind of mock-tragedy, in which the images were comic, and the action grave; fo that as Pope relates, Mr. Cromwell, who could not hear what was faid, was at a lofs how to reconcile the laughter of the audience with the folemnity of the scene.

Of this performance the value certainly is but little; but it was one of the lucky trifles that give pleafure by novelty, and was fo much favoured by the audience, that envy appeared against it in the form of criticifm; and Griffin, a player, in conjunction with Mr. Theobald, a man afterwards more remarkable, produced a pamphlet called The Key to the What d'ye call it; which, fays Gay, "calls me a blockhead, and Mr. Pope a knave."

But fortune has always been inconftant. Not long afterwards (1717) he endeavoured to enter tain the town with Three Hours after Marriage; a comedy written, as there is fufficient reafon for believing, by the joint affiftance of Pope and Arbuthnot. One purpofe of it was to bring into contempt Dr. Woodward the Foffilift, a man not really or juftly contemptible. It had the fate which fuch outrages deferve: the fcene in which Woodward was directly and apparently ridiculed, by the introduction of a mummy and a crocodile, difgufted the audience, and the performance was driven off the ftage with general condemnation.

Gay is reprefented as a man eafily incited to hope, and deeply depreffed when his hopes were difappointed.

E 3

difappointed. This is not the character of a hero; but it may naturally imply fomething more generally welcome, a foft and civil companion. Whoever is apt to hope good from others is diligent to pleafe them; but he that believes his powers ftrong enough to force their own way, commonly tries only to pleafe himself.

He had been fimple enough to imagine that those who laughed at the What d'ye call it would raife the fortune of its author; and, finding nothing done, funk into dejection. His friends endeavoured to divert him. The earl of Burlington fent him (1716) into Devonshire; the year after Mr. Pultney took him to Aix, and in the following year lord Harcourt invited him to his feat, where, during his vifit, two rural lovers were killed with lightning, as is particularly told in Pope's Letters.

Being now generally known, he published (1720) his Poems by fubfcription with fuch fuccefs, that he raised a thoufand pounds; and called his friends to a confultation, what ufe might be best made of it. Lewis, the fteward of lord Oxford, advised him to intruft it to the funds, and live upon the intereft; Arbuthnot bade him intruft it to Providence, and live upon the principal; Pope directed him, and was feconded by Swift, to purchase an annuity.

Gay in that difaftrous year had a prefent from young Craggs of fome fouth-fea ftock, and once fuppofed himself to be master of twenty thoufand pounds. His friends perfuaded him to fell his fhare; but he dreamed of dignity and splendour, and could not bear to obstruct̃ his own fortune.

* Spence.

He

He was then importuned to fell as much as would purchase an hundred a-year for life," which," fays Fenton," will make you fure of a clean fhirt " and a fhoulder of mutton every day." This counsel was rejected: the profit and principal were loft, and Gay funk under the calamity so low that his life became in danger.

By the care of his friends, among whom Pope appears to have fhewn particular tendernefs, his health was restored; and, returning to his ftudies, he wrote a tragedy called The Captives, which he was invited to read before the princess of Wales. When the hour came, he faw the princefs and her ladies all in expectation, and advancing with reverence, too great for any other attention, ftumbled at a ftool, and falling forwards, threw down a weighty japan fcreen. The princess started, the ladies fcreamed, and poor Gay, after all the dif turbance, was ftill to read his play.

The fate of The Captives, which was acted at Drury-Lane in 1723-4, I know not*; but he now thought himself in favour, and undertook (1726). to write a volume of Fables for the improvement of the young duke of Cumberland. For this he is faid to have been promised a reward, which he had doubtless magnified with all the wild expectations of indigence and vanity.

Next year the prince and princefs became king and queen, and Gay was to be great and happy; but on the fettlement of the houfehold he found himself appointed gentleman ufher to the princefs Louifa. By this offer he thought himself infulted,.

It was acted feven nights. The Author's third night was by command of their Royal Highneffes. R.