MEMOIRS OF THE LIFE AND WRITINGS OF POPE. As S the Life of this distinguished Poet has been already written, by perfons fo eminent for literary talents and critical acumen as Johnsen and Warton, all further attempts to illuftrate the incidents of his fortune, or the character of his mind, muft appear fuperfluous; charity alfo might feem to fuggeft, when so many years have paffed fince the grave closed over his virtues and his infirmities, that we should now, "No farther feek his merits to disclose, "Nor draw his frailties from their dread abode." But if any new circumstances may arise, if any additional light, however trifling, may be thrown on the picture and features of the poet and the man, the faithful biographer will not fhrink from his task. If he does not prefume, farther than may be abfolutely neceffary, to advance on the ground, which has been already fo ably occupied; if he forbears, unneceffarily and wantonly, to obtrude any thing which might injure another's fame, except where a regard to truth extorts it, or where, as in the case of Addison, it is demanded by justice, to those whose fame has fuffered; if he be confcious of being actuated folely by these feelings, he will not fear, though he approaches the task with diffidence, to represent, as faithfully as he is able, the leading facts and traits in the hiftory and character of a person, eftimable indeed for many virtues, but those blended, as all human excellence muft be, with fhades of infirmity; distinguished for fuperior poetical talents, and pre-eminently adorning the literature of his age, but memorable for merits and defects, for attachments and animofities. NE QUID FALSI DICERE AUDEAM! With this difpofition, though in all other respects reluctant and diffident, I presume to give fome further account of the Life and Writings of Pope. Alexander, fon of Alexander and Editha Pope, it is univerfally understood, was born in London, in the year 1688. Much has been faid refpecting his father's fituation in life: Pope's adverfaries have called him a hatter, &c. and Pope, who with all his affected difdain of the "great," was fufficiently proud of the diftinction he received from them, wished to deduce his "stemmata" *It feems understood by Johnson, that he was a linen-draper. mata" from the noble family of the Earl of Downe; and there is probably as little truth in one circumftance as the other. From the most authentic information obtained at the heralds' office, it appears-that the pedigree which he made out for himself was as much fabricated as Mr. Ireland's defcent from SHAKESPEARE *. The account of his mother's family, of the Turners in Yorkshire, as it has not been contradicted, is prefumed to be true. Pope fays, "Of gentle blood each parent came;" but if Mrs. Pope was of "gentle" blood, her education must have been very defective, at least it appears fo from her letter in this edition. Although the edu cation of females was then very inferior to what it is at present, yet it is difficult to imagine, that a lady of "very gentle blood" could be the writer of fuch an epiftle as the following. To POPE from his Mother. "MY DEARE, "A letter from your fifter yuft now is come and gone, Mr. Mannock and Charles Racket, to take his leve of us, but being nothing in it doe not send it. He will not faile to coll here on Friday morning, and take ceare to cearrie itt to Mr. Thomas Doncaster; he will dine wone day with Mrs. Dune, in Duckestreet: but the day will be unfirton, foe I think you VOL. I. *From Mr. Dallaway. a had |