that I have had thoughts of making you a Visit before my Journey into Shropshire, which has been delay'd by delays and disappointments to me out of the Country.] You give me an account in your Letter of the trouble you have undergone for me in compareing my Papers you took down with you with the old printed Volume, and with one another of that Bundle you have in your Hands; amongst which (you say) you find numerous repetitions of the same thoughts, and subjects; all which I muste confess my want of memory has prevented me from imagining, as well as commiting them; since of all Figures that of Tautologie is the last I would use, or least forgive myself for; but seeing is believing; wherefore I will take some pains to examine and compare those Papers in your hands, with one another as well as with the former printed Coppy or Book of my damn'd Miscellanys, all which, (as bad a memory as I have,) with a little more pains and care, I think I can remedy. Wherefore I wou'd not have you give yourself more trouble about them, which may prevent the pleasure you have and may give the World in writing upon new Subjects of your Own, whereby you will much better entertain yourself and the World. Now as to your remarks upon the whole Volume of my Papers; all that I desire of you is to mark in the Margent, (without defaceing the Coppy at all,) either any Repetition of words, matter, or sense, or any thoughts, or words too much repeated, which if you will be so kind as to form you will supply my want of memory with your good one, and any deficience of sense, with the infalibility of yours, which, if you will do, you will most infinitely oblige me, who almost repent the trouble I have given you, since so much. Now, as to what you call freedom with me, (which you desire me to forgive you;) you may be assured I would not forgive you unless you did use it with me, for I am so far from thinking your plainness a fault, or an offence to me that I think it a Charity and an obligation, which I shall always acknowledge with all sort of gratitude to you for it, who am therefore (Dear Mr Pope,) Your most obliged humble Servant. All the news I have to send you is that poor Mr Betterton is going to make his Exit from the Stage of this World, the Gout being gotten up into his Head, and (as the Physicians say) will certainly carry him of (off) suddenly. [My most humble service pray to St W Trombold, and your good Father and Mother, whilst I can assure you from hence all the world here are your Servants and Friends. I know not but I may see you very suddenly at Binfield after all my broken promisses.] · 1 It will probably be inferred by any reader who studies this correspondence, that those professed letters of Wycherley published by Pope which have no original voucher were concoctions of the poet. He imitates in them Wycherley's 'conceited' style, but he makes it much less laboured and obscure than it appears in the letters as actually written. His object was to preserve as much of the correspondence as exhibited him, while little more than a boy, acting as critic to a man so distinguished and advanced in years as Wycherley, and having made his extracts he gave them such an ideal setting as might place the whole situation in the light most advantageous to his own reputation. APPENDIX II. LETTERS FROM POPE TO SARAH, DUCHESS OF MARLBOROUGH. REPRINTED FROM THE EIGHTH REPORT OF THE I HAVE arranged these letters, which are inserted in the Report of the Commission without any particular order, according to such internal evidence of date as they contain. Wherever Hooke's name is mentioned the date of the letter must lie between January, 1741, and February, 1742, as the Duchess did not make his acquaintance till after the former date, and quarrelled with him before the latter. Again it is evident that the letter dated "January 18th, London" (number 14) must have been written in a later year than that dated "January 19, Twitnam" (number 11), since both must have been written after 1741; and No. 11 obviously refers to the flutter among the Opposition caused by the approaching downfall of Walpole heralded by his loss of the Westminster Election in December, 1741, and by the decision of the House of Commons against the Court in the Berwick Election on January 19 (the date of Pope's letter), 1742. Assuming that the letters have been arranged with approximate correctness, we see that in 1741 Pope was actively and zealously engaged in endeavouring to procure for the Duchess the help of Hooke for the publication of her apology which the latter eventually prepared for her under the title of the 'Conduct of the Duchess of Marlborough.' In 1742 the Duchess, who was evidently grateful for Pope's assistance, is seen to be warmly pressing upon him some pecuniary present, which he at first is equally steadfast in declining (Letter No. 13, dated 'Saturday Twitnam'), but which by January 18, 1743, he has been prevailed upon to accept. The correspondence continues through 1743 and perhaps into 1744, and the whole tenor of it makes it incredible that Pope should have intended to publish the character of Atossa as a satire upon the Duchess of Marlborough. It must therefore be accepted as an indirect demonstration that it was his intention, when the verses appeared, to proclaim them to be the portrait of Katherine, Duchess of Buckingham, with whom he had quarrelled, and who was already dead. 1. POPE TO THE DUCHESS OF MARLBOROUGH. Aug. 13th, 1741. I DESIRE to address your Grace with all simplicity of heart like a poor Indian, and prefer my petition to you with an offering of my best fruits (all I am worth, for gold and silver I have none tho' the Indians had). Accept, therefore, of these pine-apples, and be so good as to let me follow them to Wimbledon next Sunday (for the day after I am to entertain some lawyers upon venison, if I can get it). I will trouble your Grace's coach no further than to fetch me at whatever hour that morning you like, and if you please I will bring with me a friend of my Lord Marchmont's and therefore of yours and mine. I have provided myself of some horses for my own chariot to bring me back. I could not postpone any longer this pleasure, since you gave me some hopes it was to lead to an honour I've so often been disappointed of, the sceing your Grace a few hours at Twickenham in my grotto. 2. POPE TO THE DUCHESS OF MARLBOROUGH. Saturday. [1741.] YOUR letter is too good for one to answer, but not to acknowledge. I confine myself to one particular of it. I don't wonder some say you are mad, you act so contrary to the rest of the world, and it was the madman's argument for his own being sober, that the majority had prevailed and had locked up the few that were so. Horace (the first of the name, who was no fool') has settled this matter, and writ a whole discourse A stroke at Horace Walpole, brother of Sir Robert. to show that all folks are mad (even poets and kings not excepted), he only begs one favour, that the greater madmen would spare the lesser. Would those whom your Grace has cause to complain of, and those whom we have all cause to complain of, but do so, not only you, and I, but the whole nation might be saved. Your present of a buck is indeed a proper one for an Indian, one of the true species of Indians (who seeks not for gold and silver but only for necessaries), But I must add, to my shame, I am one of that sort who at his heart loves bawbles better, and throws away his gold and silver for shells and glittering stones, as you will find when you see (for you must see) my Grotto. What then does your Grace think of bringing me back in your coach about five, and supping there, now the moonlight favours your return, by which means you will be tired of what you are now pleased to call good company, and I happy for six or seven hours together? In short I will put myself into your power to bring, send, or expel me back as you please. P.S.-The friend of Lord Marchmont is yours already, and cleared of all prepossessions, so that you can make no fresh conquests of him as you have of me.' 3. POPE TO THE DUCHESS OF MARLBOROUGH. [1741.] I CAN say nothing to your Grace that is pretty or in the way of a wit, which I thank God was never the character of me in my writing. But I honestly thank you; you are directly kind to me, and I shall love you. This is very ill bred, but it is true and I cannot help it. The papers you favoured me with shew so much goodness, and so much frankness of nature, that I should be sorry you ever thought of writing them better, or of suffering any other to do so. In a word your conquest will be complete over me, but you conquer a cripple that would follow you, but cannot. You are the last person that shall ever see him sleep, tho' he has been, some years, Hooke is probably the friend referred to. |