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LIFE OF SIR JOHN DENHAM.

Or the history of Sir John Denham very little is known. He was born at Dublin in 1615, and was the only son of Sir John Denham of Little Horsley in Effex, fome time Chief Baron of the Exchequer in Ireland, and one of the Lords Juftices of that kingdom, by Eleanor, daughter of Sir Garret Moore, Baron of Mellefont. In 1617, upon his father's being made one of the Barons of the Exchequer in England, our Author was brought from the place of his nativity, and received his grammatical education in London.

In 1631, being then fixteen years of age, young Denham was entered a Gentleman Commoner in Trinity College, Oxford.

He refided three years in the university; and, after going through his academical exercises, was admitted to the degree of Bachelor of Arts. He had afterwards chambers in Lincoln's Inn, and for me time profecuted the Common Law with sufficient appearance of application, yet from propenfity to gaming, was frequently plundered by gamblers. However, being feverely chid by his father, who threatened to difinherit him if he did not reform, he profeffed, and perhaps believed, himself reclaimed; and, to teftify the fincerity of his repentance, wrote and published an Effay upon Gaming, which he prefented to his father, to convince him of his detestation of it. Notwithstanding this, his father dying in 1638, he was fo imprudent as to fquander away several thousands in gratifying a paffion which he feemingly fo much detefted.

He feems to have divided his studies between law and poetry; for in 1636 he tranflated the fecond book of the Æneid.

In 1641 he published the Sophy, which was acted at a private house in Blackfriars with great applaufe. This feems to have given him his first claim to public attention.

He was foon after pricked for High Sheriff of the county of Surrey, having an estate at Egham in that county, and appointed Governor of Farnham Castle; but his skill in military affairs not being extenfive, he refigned that charge, and went to King Charles I. then at Oxford, where, in 1643, he published Cooper's Hill.

This poem had such reputation as to excite the common artifice by which envy degrades excellence; a report was spread that the performance was not his own, but that he had bought it of a vicar for forty pounds. The fame attempt was made to rob Addison of his Cato, and Pope of his Effay on Criticifm.

In 1647 the diftreffes of the Royal family required him to engage in more dangerous employments. He was intrufted by the Queen with a meffage to the King, who was then in the hands of the army; and, by whatever means, fo far foftened the ferocity of Hugh Peters, that, by his interceffion, admimiffion was procured. Of the King's condefcenfion he has given an account in the Dedication t● his works.

After this he was employed in carrying on the King's correfpondence; and, as he says, discharged this office with great fafety to the Royalifts; and being afterwards difcovered by the adverse party's knowledge of Mr. Cowley's hand, he happily escaped.

In April 1648, he conveyed James Duke of York (then under the tuition of Algernon Earl of Northumberland) from London into France, and delivered him to the Queen and Prince of Wales. This year he published his tranflation of Cato Major.

He now refided in France, as one of the followers of the exiled King; and, to divert the melancholy of their condition, was fometimes enjoined by his mafter to write occafional verses.

About this time Mr. Denham was joined with William, afterwards Lord Crofts, in an embassy from Charles II. to the King of Poland. Whilst in Poland he and Lord Crofts procured a contribution of ten thousand pounds from the Scots who traded in that kingdom.

Mr. Denham returned into England about the year 1652, and what eflate the civil war and the gamefters had left him being fold by order of the Parliament, he was kindly entertained by the Earl of Pembroke at Wilton, with whom he continued near twelve months.

At the Restoration, he obtained the reward of his loyalty, being made Surveyor of the King's Buildings; and, at the coronation of Charles II. was dignified with the order of the Bath.

After the Restoration he wrote the Poem upon Prudence and Justice, and other picces. Being a man of piety, he confecrated his poetical powers to religion, and made a metrical version of the Pfalms of David. In this attempt he failed; but in facred poetry few have fucceeded.

From the indulgence of his royal master, joined to public esteem, there was reason to hope our Author might now be happy; but human felicity is fhort and uncertain: upon fome difcontent arifing from a fecond marriage, Sir John Denham became disordered in his understanding; but, recovering from that diforder, he continued in great esteem for his poetical abilities, not only at court, but with all perfons of tafte and erudition; for he afterwards wrote his excellent poem upon the death of Cowley. Butler lampooned him for his lunacy; but it is not known whether the malignant lines were then made public, nor what provocation incited Butler to do that which no provocation can excufe.

Sir John Denham died at his office near Whitehall in March 1668, and was interred in Westmin fter-Abbey, near the tomb of Chaucer, Spepfer, and Cowley,

TO THE KING.

91R,

AFTER the delivery of your Royal father's perfon | into the hands of the army, I undertaking to the Queen-mother that I would find fome means to get accefs to him, she was pleased to fend me; and by the help of Hugh Peters I got my admittance, and coming well inftructed from the Queen, (his Majefty having been kept long in the dark) he was pleafed to difcourfe very freely with me of the whole state of his afairs. But, Sir, I will not launch into an history instead of an epiftle. One morning waiting on him at Caufham, fmiling upon me, he faid he could tell me fome news of my felf, which was, that he had feen fome verfes of mine the evening before, (being thofe to Sir R. Fanshaw) and afking me when I made them, I told him two or three years fince. He was pleafed to fay, that having never feen them before, he was afraid I had written them fince my return into England; and though he liked them well, he would advife me to write no more; alleging that when men are young, and have little elfe to do, they might vent the overflowings of their fancy that way; but when they were thought fit for more ferious employments, if they fill perfifted in that course, it would look as if they minded not the way to any better.

banishment, which now and then fell not fhort of your Majefty's expectation.

After, when your Majefty, departing from St. Germains to Jerfey, was pleafed freely (without my afking) to confer upon me that place wherein I have now the honour to ferve you, I then gave over poetical lines, and made it my bufinels to draw fuch others as might be more ferviceable to your Majesty, and I hope more lasting. Since that time I never difobeyed my old mafter's commands till this fummer at the Wells, my retirement there tempting me to divert thofe melancholy thoughts which the new apparitions of foreign invafion and domeftic difcontent gave us : but thefe clouds being now happily blown over, and our fun clearly fhining out again, I have recovered the relapfe, it being fufpected that it would have proved the epidemical difeafe of age, which is apt to fall back into the follies of youth: yet Socrates, Ariftotle, and Cato, did the fame; and Scaliger faith, that fragment of Ariftotle was beyond any thing that Pindar or Homer ever wrote. I will not call this a Dedication, for thofe epiftles are commonly greater abfurdities than any that come after: for what author can reasonably believe, that fixing the great name of fome eminent patron in the forehead of his book Whereupon I ftood corrected as long as I had can charm away cenfure, and that the firft leaf the honour to wait upon him; and at his depar-fhould be a curtain to draw over and hide all the ture from Hampton-Court he was pleafed to command me to ftay privately at London, to fend to him and receive from him all his letters from and to all his correfpondents at home and abroad; and I was furnished with nine feveral cyphers in order to it; which I truft I perfo: med with great fafety to the perfons with whom we correfponded: but about nine months after, being difcovered by their knowledge of Mr. Cowley's hand, I happily efcaped, both for myleaf and thofe that held correspondence with me. That time was too hot and bufy for fuch idle fpeculations: but after I had the good fortune to wait upon your Majefty in Holland and France, you were pleasca fometimes to give me arguments to divert and put off the evil hours of our

deformities that stand behind it? neither have I any need of fuch shifts, for most of the parts of this body have already had your Majefty's view; and having paft the teft of fo clear and fharp-fighted a judgment, which has as good a title to give law in matters of this nature as in any other, they who fhall prefume to diffent from your Majefty will do more wrong to their own judgment than their judgment can do to me and for those latter parts which have not yet received your Majelly's favourable afpect, if they who have feen them do not flatter me, (for I dare not truft my own judgment) they will make it appear that it is not with me as with most of mankind, who never forfake their darling vices till their vices forfake them;

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