company of his old friends. This hope, however, was but of fhort duration; for a few days afterwards he funk into a state of total infenfibility, flept much, and could not, without great difficulty, be prevailed upon to walk cross the room. [vol. 4. p. 344.] This was the effect of another bodily disease, his brain being loaded with water. Mr Stevens, an ingenious clergyman of Dublin, pronounced this to be the cafe during his illnefs; and upon opening his body, it appeared that he was not mistaken: but tho' he often intreated the Dean's friends and phyficians that his head might be trepanned, and the water difcharged, no regard was paid to his opinion or his intreaty. [7. R. p. 149.]

AFTER the Dean had continued filent a whole year in this ftate of helplefs idiocy, his houfekeeper went into his room on the 30th of November, in the morning, and told him that it was his birth-day, and that bonfires and illuminations were preparing to celebrate it as ufual. To this he immediately replied, It is all folly, they had better let it alone.

SOME other instances of fhort intervals of fenfibility and reafon, after his madness had ended in ftupor, seem to prove, that his diforder, whatever it was, had not deftroyed, but only fufpended the powers of his mind.

He was fometimes vifited by Mr Deane Swift, a relation; and about Christmas 1743 he seemed defirous to speak to him. Mr Swift then told him he came to dine with him; and Mrs Ridgeway, the housekeeper, immediately faid," Won't you give Mr Swift a glass of wine, "Sir ?" To this he made no answer, but fhewed that he understood the question, by fhrugging up his fhoulders, as he had been used to do when he had a mind a friend fhould spend the evening with him; and which was as much as to fay, You will ruin me in wine. Soon after he again endeavoured, with a good deal of pain, to find words; but at last, after many efforts, not being able, he fetched a deep figh, and was afterwards filent. A few months afterwards, upon his housekeeper's removing a knife as he was going to catch at it, he fhrugged up his fhoulders, and faid, "I am what I am, I am what "I am ;" and in about fix minutes repeated the fame words two or three times. [vol. 4. P. 345.]

"I am a

In the year 1744, he now and then called his fervant by his name; and once attempting to fpeak to him, but not being able to exprefs his meaning, he fhewed figns of much uneafinefs, and at laft faid, "fool." Once, afterwards, as his fervant was taking away his watch, he said, Bring it here; and when the fame fervant was breaking a large hard coal, he said, "That is a ftone, you blockhead." [vol. 4. p. 345.]

FROM this time he was perfectly filent till the latter end of October 1745; and then died, without the least pang or convulfion, in the 78th year of his age. [vol. 4. P. 347.]

By his will, which is dated in May 1740, juft before he ceased to be a reasonable being, he left about 1200 1. in fpecific legacies, and the reft of his fortune, which amounted to about 11,000l. to erect and endow an hofpital for idiots and lunatics.

He was buried in the great ifle of St Patrick's cathedral, under a ftone of black marble, infcribed with an epitaph in Latin, written by himself, [vol. 4. p. 334]

FROM this narrative of his life, and from his works, to which it is prefixed, the ftriking peculiarities of his character may eafily be collected; but there are some incidents which relate to his converfation, and fome which refpect his perfon and private economy, which fhould by no means be omitted.

f

IN company he neither wrapped himself up in his own importance without deigning to communicate his knowledge, or exert his wit; nor did he ingrofs the converfation by perpetual and overbearing loquacity. His rule was, never to speak more than a minute at a time, and then to wait at least as long for others to take up the converfation; after which he had a right to speak again. His colloquial ftyle, like that of his writings, was clear, forcible, and concife. [D. S. p. 366. J. R.1 p. 203. He greatly excelled in punning; a talent which, he faid, no man affected to defpife, but those that were without it; and his converfation would have furnished a more excellent compendium of this fpecies of wit, than was ever yet compiled, or perhaps ever will. Some of these fallies of his imagination are still remem

bered

bered; and among others the following, which may ferve for examples.

HE happened to be at the caftle, in the lieutenancy of the Earl of Pembroke, when a learned phyfician was haranguing his Excellency upon the nature and qualities of bees, which he was perpetually calling a nation and commonwealth: "Yes, my Lord," fays Swift, "they are a nation, and of great antiquity; you know, my "Lord, Mofes takes notice of them; he numbers the "Hivites among the nations which Joshua was appoint"ed to conquer."

He was another time in company with a lady, whofe long train happened to fweep down a fine fiddle, and break it upon which he immediately cried out,

Mantua va miferæ nimium vicina Cremone.

BUT his converfation abounded with turns of wit of an higher kind. Being one day at a sheriff's feaft, who, after feveral other toafts had been drank, called out to him," Mr Dean, The trade of Ireland:" the Dean turned about, and immediately anfwered," Sir, I “drink no memories*." [7. R. p. 214.] ́

HE greatly admired the talents of the late Duke of Wharton; and hearing him, one day, recount many of his frolics, "Ay, my Lord," faid he, "you have had 66 many frolics; but let me recommend one more to you, take a frolic to be virtuous. I affure you it will "do you more honour than all the reft." [J. R. p. 216.]

66

THE Dean alfo greatly excelled in telling a story: and tho' in the latter part of his life he was very apt to tell his ftories too often, yet his wit, as well as his virtue, was always fuperior to the wretched expedients of those despicable babblers, who are perpetually attempting to put off double entendre and profanenefs for humour and wit. His converfation was in the higheft degree chafte, and wholly free from the least tincture of irreligion. [7. R. p. 218.]

A

Dr Brown, Bishop of Cork, had just then printed two pamphlets and preached several sermons, in which drinking to memories was zealously condemned. Hawkef.

As he was zealous to preserve all the delicacies of converfation, he was always best pleased when some of the company were ladies. And in a letter to Lord Oxford, he says, "Since women have been left out of all "meetings, except parties at play, or where worse defigns are carried on, our converfation has very much "degenerated+." And in this inftance, his example is a reproof to thofe pedants, who fuppofe that women. are never in their proper fphere, but in the dreffing room or the nursery

If the converfation turned upon serious subjects, he was neither petulant in the debate, nor negligent of the iflue. He would liften with great attention to the arguments of others; and whether he was or was not engaged as a difputant himself, he would recapitulate what had been said, state the question with great clearness and precifion, point out the controverted particular, and appeal to the opinion either of fome neutral person, or of the majority. [D. S. p. 368.]

It is, however, true, that he kept his friends in fome degree of awe and yet he was more open to admonition than flattery, if it was offered without arrogance, and by perfons of whofe ability and honesty he had no doubt. [. R. p. 19.]. In his poem of Baucis and Philemon [vol. 6. p. 45.], which does not confift of quite two hundred verfes, Mr Addifon made him blot out fourscore, add fourfcore, and alter fourfcore. It was customary with his friends to make him fome little annual prefent on his birth-day; fomething, according to his own definition of a prefent, which was of no great value, but which could not be bought: and Dr Delany, foon after he was admitted to fome degree of intimacy, fent him, with fuch a memorial of his esteem, fome verfes in which he upbraids him, tho' with great delicacy, for mifapplying his talents; and admonishes him to turn the force of ridicule, of which he was fo great a master, upon those who had laboured to employ it against the facred doctrines of Christianity. The Dean, as he had fuffered Addifon's correction with approbation, received this admonition with kindness: he fighed, and VOL. I. faid,

h

† Propofal for correcting the English tongue, in vol. 2. p. 354.

faid, with great appearances of regret, that it was too late; and from that day took all occafions to diftinguish Delany by the name of friend.

He had indeed no fkill in mufic, and fo was not able to entertain his company with a fong, to which fome men of great dignity, and great parts, have condefcended; but his power of ridicule extended even to mufic, of which he gave an inftance too fingular to be forgotten.

DR Pratt, who was then provost of Dublin college, had acquired much of the Italian tafte for mufic in his travels: and Tom Roffengrave, a celebrated performer, being juft returned from Italy, played a voluntary at St Patrick's cathedral, where Dr Pratt heard him, and Swift was also prefent. The Doctor happened to dine at the deanery the fame day, and was fo extravagant in his encomiums on Roffengrave's voluntary, that feveral of the company faid they wished they had heard it. "Do you?" faid Swift; "then you fhall hear it ftill," and immediately he fung out fo lively, and yet fo ridiculous an imitation of it, that all the company were kept in continual laughter till it was over, except one old gentleman, who fat with great compofure; and tho' he liftened, yet fhewed neither curiofity nor approbation After the entertainment, he was afked by fome of the company, How it happened that he had been no more affected by the mufic? To which he anfwered with great gravity, That he had heard Mr Roffengrave himself play it before.

SUCH was Swift as a companion. As a mafter he was not lefs remarkable or meritorious.

As he expected punctual, ready, and implicit obedience, he always tried his fervants when he hired them by fome test of their humility. Among other queftions, he always asked whether they understood cleaning fhoes; because, faid he, my kitchen-wench has a fcullion that does her drudgery, and one part of the business of my groom and footman is conftantly to clean her fhoes by turns. If they fcrupled this, the treaty was at an end; if not, he gave them a farther hearing.

His kitchen-wench, however, was his cook, a woman of a large fize, robust constitution, and coarse fea

tures,