I'd e'en forgot to let you knowThe Club w' once kept inChannel-row;WhereA. &B. C. D.&I,Were th' elements o' th' Company:But all which past there was so common,'Tis scarce worth th' pains of a Relation,How they kept a hideous pother,Damning the Times, and one another.Who most Glasses did destroy,Or with most Courage beat the Boy.How such-a-one commends a Whore,Which t'other prizes Sack before.Or who so neatly div'd away,Ere he his Reckoning did pay.Humours so trite as these, are knownTo ev'ry Tapster in the Town.But e're they so unruly grew,Thus each ones Character I drew.A.as 'tis first in th' Alphabet,So here he took the highest seat.As one whose Fortune, Birth, and Wit,Indeed did truly merit it.And here he neither struts nor swaggers,As I have known some Kings o' th' Beggers.But that convenient distance gave,Which else they'ld take without his leave.But him let all with Rev'rence nameThe Darling, and the Pride of Fame:Who's so all over wrapt in Bays,There's nothing to be seen but's Praise.He's one t' whom each Officious MuseWere of their Favours so profuse,That they have brought themselves to beFed by his Mercy now; and we,The little Infants of the Art, }Do as severely feel the smart, }Deny'd a Younger Brothers part. }Nay, all our stocks won't mount t' a sumTo pay him anEncomium.He's one whose Works, in times to come,Will be as Honour'd, and becomeDeathless asBen'sorCowley'sare, }AsBeaumont,Fletcher, orShakespear, }One he himself is pleas'd t' admire. }Nor could these Laureats living, beBetter prefer'd, or lov'd than he.What could theMusesmore have done,OrApollofor a Son?Yet still he discontented is,And snarles at all the happinessThe Richest Poetry can bring,And wounds it too with its own Sting.But who can blame that Active Soul,Which in a larger Sphere would roul?Whose Wit and Learning does deserveMore than that narrow Art can give.Next untoA.B.took his place,Or SirFopling, if you please.I mean that Famous Limner, whoSo exactly his own Picture drew.Bless me! how neat a Wigg he has!What a rich Watch and Pocket-Glass!What a gay Suit trim'd all about!Made by aFrench-manwithout doubt.His Ruffles and Cravat's all Lace,Poynt a Venicehe says it is.To what advantage does he wearHis Rings? How stuft with Stones they are?One having this Inscription,My Plow is all my Portion.For you must know he's kept by a Miss,AFrenchone too, I've heard she is;Whose Favours tho' he strives to shew,Her scars he has, I assure you too.Here I must his Description end,For fear he should a Challenge send.Tho' he had better stay at home,To Hector Foot-boy, or a Groom.On th' other side HeroickC.Did seat himself most formally.Whose Clothes now did not seem so bad,Because he lately vampt 'em had.His Hat new dress'd, darn'd were his Hose,And neatly underlay'd his Shoes.His Lac'd Cravats again appear, }And his kind Laundress lets him wear}His Ruffles, and an Hankercher. }And now he seems to be a made Man,Since he an Int'rest got inCadem—Who now-and-then does not refuseA Crown, t' encourage a slow Muse,A Dish of Coffee, or Bochet,Or on a Sunday a Meals-meat.And 'tis most Charitably done,T' encourage such a wretched one,Without hopes of a Recompence,At least 'till two or three years hence,About which time his Play, we guess,Will be ready for the Press.He's one who much ofOxfordtalks,Its stately Structures, Air, and Walks:Who, in his time, were Proctors there; }How often he was caught, and where, }Or with what craft he 'scap'd the snare.}But if you speak one word of's Chumb,The man immediately grows dumb.Then who sat next, if you would know it,'TwasD.the brisk lack-latine Poet;Who'll talk ofVirgilandHoratius,Homer,Ovid, andLucretius.And by the help of I know who,Sometimes presumes to quote 'em too.He's the fam'd Comedian of the Town,}Who near a dozen Plays does own, }Tho' I dare swear he ne'r writ one: }But he has good Acquaintance, thô,I am inform'd, a Lord or two,To whom he brings the lump; and theyClub to mould it to a Play.And if my Author tells me right,Epistles too themselves they write.May they continue to do so, }Or else poorD.to th' Goal must go,}Angling for single Money in a Shoe. }Lastly, I must my self explain,One of the same unhappy Train:Who neither Wit or Learning boast,For both are in a Poet lost.Scatter'd to nought in his Carreer,Through Airy Roads, he knows not where.Neither do I hope to findOne grain of Fortune left behind.For all I grasp'd which pleas'd me here,Whether they Wealth, or Honours were,As soon they were snatch'd back again,And swallow'd in this Hurricane.But, Sir, I need not op'e to you }These Ulcers of my Fate anew, }You've seen so oft, and pitty'd too.}I'll therefore only blame the CauseWhich did such Miseries produce:And then for ever bid good-by'eTo that starv'd Hag of Poetry.
I'd e'en forgot to let you knowThe Club w' once kept inChannel-row;WhereA. &B. C. D.&I,Were th' elements o' th' Company:But all which past there was so common,'Tis scarce worth th' pains of a Relation,How they kept a hideous pother,Damning the Times, and one another.Who most Glasses did destroy,Or with most Courage beat the Boy.How such-a-one commends a Whore,Which t'other prizes Sack before.Or who so neatly div'd away,Ere he his Reckoning did pay.Humours so trite as these, are knownTo ev'ry Tapster in the Town.But e're they so unruly grew,Thus each ones Character I drew.
A.as 'tis first in th' Alphabet,So here he took the highest seat.As one whose Fortune, Birth, and Wit,Indeed did truly merit it.And here he neither struts nor swaggers,As I have known some Kings o' th' Beggers.But that convenient distance gave,Which else they'ld take without his leave.But him let all with Rev'rence nameThe Darling, and the Pride of Fame:Who's so all over wrapt in Bays,There's nothing to be seen but's Praise.He's one t' whom each Officious MuseWere of their Favours so profuse,That they have brought themselves to beFed by his Mercy now; and we,The little Infants of the Art, }Do as severely feel the smart, }Deny'd a Younger Brothers part. }Nay, all our stocks won't mount t' a sumTo pay him anEncomium.He's one whose Works, in times to come,Will be as Honour'd, and becomeDeathless asBen'sorCowley'sare, }AsBeaumont,Fletcher, orShakespear, }One he himself is pleas'd t' admire. }Nor could these Laureats living, beBetter prefer'd, or lov'd than he.What could theMusesmore have done,OrApollofor a Son?Yet still he discontented is,And snarles at all the happinessThe Richest Poetry can bring,And wounds it too with its own Sting.But who can blame that Active Soul,Which in a larger Sphere would roul?Whose Wit and Learning does deserveMore than that narrow Art can give.
Next untoA.B.took his place,Or SirFopling, if you please.I mean that Famous Limner, whoSo exactly his own Picture drew.Bless me! how neat a Wigg he has!What a rich Watch and Pocket-Glass!What a gay Suit trim'd all about!Made by aFrench-manwithout doubt.His Ruffles and Cravat's all Lace,Poynt a Venicehe says it is.To what advantage does he wearHis Rings? How stuft with Stones they are?One having this Inscription,My Plow is all my Portion.For you must know he's kept by a Miss,AFrenchone too, I've heard she is;Whose Favours tho' he strives to shew,Her scars he has, I assure you too.Here I must his Description end,For fear he should a Challenge send.Tho' he had better stay at home,To Hector Foot-boy, or a Groom.
On th' other side HeroickC.Did seat himself most formally.Whose Clothes now did not seem so bad,Because he lately vampt 'em had.His Hat new dress'd, darn'd were his Hose,And neatly underlay'd his Shoes.His Lac'd Cravats again appear, }And his kind Laundress lets him wear}His Ruffles, and an Hankercher. }And now he seems to be a made Man,Since he an Int'rest got inCadem—Who now-and-then does not refuseA Crown, t' encourage a slow Muse,A Dish of Coffee, or Bochet,Or on a Sunday a Meals-meat.And 'tis most Charitably done,T' encourage such a wretched one,Without hopes of a Recompence,At least 'till two or three years hence,About which time his Play, we guess,Will be ready for the Press.He's one who much ofOxfordtalks,Its stately Structures, Air, and Walks:Who, in his time, were Proctors there; }How often he was caught, and where, }Or with what craft he 'scap'd the snare.}But if you speak one word of's Chumb,The man immediately grows dumb.
Then who sat next, if you would know it,'TwasD.the brisk lack-latine Poet;Who'll talk ofVirgilandHoratius,Homer,Ovid, andLucretius.And by the help of I know who,Sometimes presumes to quote 'em too.He's the fam'd Comedian of the Town,}Who near a dozen Plays does own, }Tho' I dare swear he ne'r writ one: }But he has good Acquaintance, thô,I am inform'd, a Lord or two,To whom he brings the lump; and theyClub to mould it to a Play.And if my Author tells me right,Epistles too themselves they write.May they continue to do so, }Or else poorD.to th' Goal must go,}Angling for single Money in a Shoe. }
Lastly, I must my self explain,One of the same unhappy Train:Who neither Wit or Learning boast,For both are in a Poet lost.Scatter'd to nought in his Carreer,Through Airy Roads, he knows not where.Neither do I hope to findOne grain of Fortune left behind.For all I grasp'd which pleas'd me here,Whether they Wealth, or Honours were,As soon they were snatch'd back again,And swallow'd in this Hurricane.But, Sir, I need not op'e to you }These Ulcers of my Fate anew, }You've seen so oft, and pitty'd too.}I'll therefore only blame the CauseWhich did such Miseries produce:And then for ever bid good-by'eTo that starv'd Hag of Poetry.
Phœbus!art thou the God of Wit,Yet takest no more care of it?Because thou art invok'd by us,Must we be damn'd and tortur'd thus?And art resolv'd, lean PovertyShall still thy Badge and Liv'ry be?As well, let Paper-Mills, and allThe lousie Tribe of Begger's Hall,With the ragged Gipsie-Crue,Be Dedicated to thee too!All theMusesask thee whyThou 'dopt'st 'em to such Slavery!And suffer'st ev'ry Fop in Town, }For to insult and trample on }These rad'ent Di'dems of thy Crown! }Sure thou want'stPow'rto Rule below;For 'tis notPolicyto do so.No!Kingstheir Greatness do secureBy theirSubjectsWealth and Pow'r.Nay, th'Godsmay lose their Deities,If their ReligiousVotariesDo so Poor and Needy grow,That they wantVictimsto bestow.But Wit will above all things cease,Deny'd the helps of Wealth and Ease.It must be cherish'd and kept warm;Which, like theHalcyon, hates a Storm.But since I find I am us'd so,And treated worse thanTurkorJew:Since the Tinker and his TrullStrut it with their Bellies full:Since the Cobler and the Sweep-ChimneyLive happier and more safe than me,I'll quit thy Service, greatApollo,And some new Vocation follow:And tear thyIdea'sfrom my Brain,With thy starv'd, wretched Female Train.But must I from thy Service goNaked, in mid'st of Winter too?Did I for this a year, or more,Thy Airy, empty Shrine adore?Are thus my Cares and Watchings pay'd?The thousand Vows and Pray'rs I made?The Lights which on thy Altar shone,When thou wert forc'd to hide thy own?Think how ost thou hast me espy'dWalking by such a Rivers side!When I saw thy shining BeamGild the smooth Surface of the Stream,Thou know'st I did thy Image greet,And sang a thousand Hymns to it.But since I find I am thus serv'd,Rent and torn, and almost starv'd,Yet would'st thou have me longer stayTo expect a fairer Day?Should I be couzen'd to do so,And again my Vows renew,My Case would never better'd be }Under thy Conduct, no, tho' I }Should share in th' Immortality.}Loath'd Muse! Hag of my rest, be gone!Who'rt Scandalous as Av'rice grown:Common as anyWhetstone-Whore,Where Poets learn their Stage-Amour.Go jilt among thy Vot'ries there,And clap 'em with Poetick fire!Flie to some Rhymer of the Town,By his lean, hungry Visage known!That Renegado, whifling Blade,Who's not himself but when he's Mad!But 'tis not all thySyren-charmsCan again tempt me to thy Arms:For I too well thy Couz'nage know,Thy hollow Heart, and painted Brow.How first thou to my Brain did'st creep,And whil'st my Sense was lock'd in sleep,Thou did'st before my Fancy's EyeA thousand gaudy Fantasms lay.Then thorow false Perspectives showGroves, where gilded Lawrels grow.And ev'ry Tree's Ambrosiack RootWith Arms of Nectar clasp'd about,In whose bright Streams I did espieNine Naked Airy Ladies play:Some swimming on their Backs were seen,Who rise aloft, then dive agen;Whilst others yet more Am'rous grew,}And seem'd not only to bestow }Brimmers, but gave Embraces too. }And th' little Mansions where they dwell,}Were some of Gold, and some of Pearl, }Tyl'd and Pav'd with Tortoise-shell. }A hundred things as vain as these,Did once my partial Fancy please:But when I look'd about to knowWhether they real were, or no;I apprehended the mistake,As Dreams of Pleasures when we 'wake.For when the craftyMusesthoughtThey'd me for a Disciple got;They took the painted Scene away;Lay'd down their Smiles and Flattery,And now in their own Shapes appearRough, and Ghastly, as they are.Wherefore once more, Ladies adieu!Farewel toEngland, and to you.For I'm resolv'd; and now ev'n GainShan't draw me to yee back again.Tho'Junoshould assure me more,Than she didParisheretofore:OrVenustoo at the same time;I would not give 'em thanks in Rhyme.No, tho' should all of you agreeTo give yourHeliconto me.Tho' those dear Bays I once did woo, }Should strive to cling about my Brow;}Nay, thô they were gilded too. }I'ld thence those fruitless Branches tear,And throw 'em with my Muse in th' fire.So what she so long courted, shallAt last adorn her Funeral.Here I would end, be'ng much in hast,And tyr'd with scribbling so fast:Howe're a word or two I'll add,Lest you infer from what I've said,That Poverty's the only causeWhich makes me thus desert my Muse.Thus far, indeed, the cause 't'as bin,As 'tis th' effect of such a sin.For who 'n that Art can hope to thrive,Which does such wicked Licence give?Whose first FoundersPaganswere,Groping for Truth they knew not where?And shall weChristiansSacrificeTo their FantastickDeities?No, were I Rich 'nough to set up,I would not keep a Poet's Shop;Nor Traffick in such dang'rous Ware,They sell so cheap, and buy so dear.I'ld not pick up each Whore I meet, }Give her aGuynieand a Treat; }Nor maintain Pimps nor Bawds for wit. }No, I'ld not give one brass Half-crownFor all the Bawdry in the Town:For all th' Intrigues yourWhetstone-Bawd,More-Fields, orTower-Hillafford.To seeMiss Bettyev'ry day,Dance Naked, or the Tumbler play.How well upon her Head she stood,Or with what Art she us'd the Rod.Or how she was unrig'd and kick'd,WhenSir Johnfound his Pockets pick'd.I have not been atNewgateyet,To learn the Lifter, or the Cheat.But such lewd Learning let aloneTo the briskPoetsof theTown.
Phœbus!art thou the God of Wit,Yet takest no more care of it?Because thou art invok'd by us,Must we be damn'd and tortur'd thus?And art resolv'd, lean PovertyShall still thy Badge and Liv'ry be?As well, let Paper-Mills, and allThe lousie Tribe of Begger's Hall,With the ragged Gipsie-Crue,Be Dedicated to thee too!All theMusesask thee whyThou 'dopt'st 'em to such Slavery!And suffer'st ev'ry Fop in Town, }For to insult and trample on }These rad'ent Di'dems of thy Crown! }Sure thou want'stPow'rto Rule below;For 'tis notPolicyto do so.No!Kingstheir Greatness do secureBy theirSubjectsWealth and Pow'r.Nay, th'Godsmay lose their Deities,If their ReligiousVotariesDo so Poor and Needy grow,That they wantVictimsto bestow.But Wit will above all things cease,Deny'd the helps of Wealth and Ease.It must be cherish'd and kept warm;Which, like theHalcyon, hates a Storm.But since I find I am us'd so,And treated worse thanTurkorJew:Since the Tinker and his TrullStrut it with their Bellies full:Since the Cobler and the Sweep-ChimneyLive happier and more safe than me,I'll quit thy Service, greatApollo,And some new Vocation follow:And tear thyIdea'sfrom my Brain,With thy starv'd, wretched Female Train.
But must I from thy Service goNaked, in mid'st of Winter too?Did I for this a year, or more,Thy Airy, empty Shrine adore?Are thus my Cares and Watchings pay'd?The thousand Vows and Pray'rs I made?The Lights which on thy Altar shone,When thou wert forc'd to hide thy own?Think how ost thou hast me espy'dWalking by such a Rivers side!When I saw thy shining BeamGild the smooth Surface of the Stream,Thou know'st I did thy Image greet,And sang a thousand Hymns to it.But since I find I am thus serv'd,Rent and torn, and almost starv'd,Yet would'st thou have me longer stayTo expect a fairer Day?Should I be couzen'd to do so,And again my Vows renew,My Case would never better'd be }Under thy Conduct, no, tho' I }Should share in th' Immortality.}
Loath'd Muse! Hag of my rest, be gone!Who'rt Scandalous as Av'rice grown:Common as anyWhetstone-Whore,Where Poets learn their Stage-Amour.Go jilt among thy Vot'ries there,And clap 'em with Poetick fire!Flie to some Rhymer of the Town,By his lean, hungry Visage known!That Renegado, whifling Blade,Who's not himself but when he's Mad!But 'tis not all thySyren-charmsCan again tempt me to thy Arms:For I too well thy Couz'nage know,Thy hollow Heart, and painted Brow.How first thou to my Brain did'st creep,And whil'st my Sense was lock'd in sleep,Thou did'st before my Fancy's EyeA thousand gaudy Fantasms lay.Then thorow false Perspectives showGroves, where gilded Lawrels grow.And ev'ry Tree's Ambrosiack RootWith Arms of Nectar clasp'd about,In whose bright Streams I did espieNine Naked Airy Ladies play:Some swimming on their Backs were seen,Who rise aloft, then dive agen;Whilst others yet more Am'rous grew,}And seem'd not only to bestow }Brimmers, but gave Embraces too. }And th' little Mansions where they dwell,}Were some of Gold, and some of Pearl, }Tyl'd and Pav'd with Tortoise-shell. }
A hundred things as vain as these,Did once my partial Fancy please:But when I look'd about to knowWhether they real were, or no;I apprehended the mistake,As Dreams of Pleasures when we 'wake.For when the craftyMusesthoughtThey'd me for a Disciple got;They took the painted Scene away;Lay'd down their Smiles and Flattery,And now in their own Shapes appearRough, and Ghastly, as they are.
Wherefore once more, Ladies adieu!Farewel toEngland, and to you.For I'm resolv'd; and now ev'n GainShan't draw me to yee back again.Tho'Junoshould assure me more,Than she didParisheretofore:OrVenustoo at the same time;I would not give 'em thanks in Rhyme.No, tho' should all of you agreeTo give yourHeliconto me.Tho' those dear Bays I once did woo, }Should strive to cling about my Brow;}Nay, thô they were gilded too. }I'ld thence those fruitless Branches tear,And throw 'em with my Muse in th' fire.So what she so long courted, shallAt last adorn her Funeral.
Here I would end, be'ng much in hast,And tyr'd with scribbling so fast:Howe're a word or two I'll add,Lest you infer from what I've said,That Poverty's the only causeWhich makes me thus desert my Muse.Thus far, indeed, the cause 't'as bin,As 'tis th' effect of such a sin.For who 'n that Art can hope to thrive,Which does such wicked Licence give?Whose first FoundersPaganswere,Groping for Truth they knew not where?And shall weChristiansSacrificeTo their FantastickDeities?No, were I Rich 'nough to set up,I would not keep a Poet's Shop;Nor Traffick in such dang'rous Ware,They sell so cheap, and buy so dear.I'ld not pick up each Whore I meet, }Give her aGuynieand a Treat; }Nor maintain Pimps nor Bawds for wit. }No, I'ld not give one brass Half-crownFor all the Bawdry in the Town:For all th' Intrigues yourWhetstone-Bawd,More-Fields, orTower-Hillafford.To seeMiss Bettyev'ry day,Dance Naked, or the Tumbler play.How well upon her Head she stood,Or with what Art she us'd the Rod.Or how she was unrig'd and kick'd,WhenSir Johnfound his Pockets pick'd.
I have not been atNewgateyet,To learn the Lifter, or the Cheat.But such lewd Learning let aloneTo the briskPoetsof theTown.
FINIS.
PRESS VARIANTS
AND
NOTES
Copies collated: Clark (CLC); Trinity College, Cambridge, H. 6. 939(CT1) and H. 10. 286(CT2); British Museum (L); Folger (WF1); Folger/Luttrell (WF2).
Sheet B—Outer Forme.
Uncorrected: CT1, CT2, L, WF1.
Corrected: CLC, WF2.
B4v, 0x2113 7. Paragraph indentation supplied.
Sheet B—Inner Forme.
Uncorrected: CLC, CT1, WF1.
Corrected: CT2, L, WF2.
B4r, 0x2113 1. Chymsts] Chymists
Sheet C—Inner Forme.
Uncorrected: CT1, CT2, CLC
Corrected: L, WF1, WF2.
C3v, 0x2113 15.Peruque]Perruque
C4r, 0x2113 13.Crevat]Cravat
These notes are of necessity selective and are chiefly concerned with the identification of persons. No attempt has been made to indicate the complex textual relationships of the two versions. Where detailed evidence for identifications is not given, the reader is referred to the article mentioned above.
Title-page.Parve...quò-. Ovid,Tristia, I, i, 1-2.
A2v-A3v. The authors of the extracts are Dryden, Shadwell, Lacy, Lee, and Banks. The Banks extract is unlikely to have been in print for more than a few weeks at the timePdTwas published. The corresponding list inPCis called "Quotations" and contains twenty-three passages of which only two reappear inPdT.
A4r: 15-16.Philip, the first Christian Emperour.Marcus Julius Philipus, c. 204-249.
P.2: 21-22.Yet ... Liberty.The press regained its liberty through the expiry of the Licensing Act in 1679. This passage does not occur inPCand may be one of the "Ingenious Person's" additions toPdT.
P.3: 28.Cris-cros-row.I.e., Christ-cross-row. The alphabet with a cross before it as represented in horn books.
P.4:4.Honourable stabs.Perhaps a reference to the attack on Dryden in Rose Alley on 16 December 1679, which was popularly attributed to various honorable persons satirized in Mulgrave'sAn Essay upon Satyr.
P.4: 9-10.Tho' ... Bays.Cf. John Aubrey on the funeral of Samuel Butler on 27 September 1680:
About 25 of his old acquaintance at his Funerall. I myself being one of the eldest, helped to carry the Pall. His coffin covered with black Bayes. (Brief Lives, ed. O. L. Dick [London, 1958], p. 47.)
About 25 of his old acquaintance at his Funerall. I myself being one of the eldest, helped to carry the Pall. His coffin covered with black Bayes. (Brief Lives, ed. O. L. Dick [London, 1958], p. 47.)
P.6: 7.As Tonnellers catch Partridge.A tunnel was a kind of net used by bird-catchers.
P.6: 21-22.As ... go.Cf. Donne's "A Lame Begger,"The Satires, Epigrams and Verse Letters, ed. W. Milgate (Oxford, 1969), p. 51.
P.6: 27.BARBARA.The opening word of a mnemonic used in expressing the moods of the syllogism.
P.7: 21.Lab'ring Muses.PChas "tab'ring" (i.e., playing on tabors), a fairly clear case oflectio difficilior.
P.10: 6.How a curst Broker met a Poet.The earlier part of the description seems to be hinting at the distresses of John Banks, who was reduced to poverty after two of his plays met censorship trouble; however, the closing section on pp.16-17is clearly meant to refer to Wycherley. It is possible that this is another of the "Ingenious Person's" additions. Indeed it would have to be as Wycherley's troubles did not begin until after the date given for the departure of the Poeta.
P.10: 21.White-Fryers.The sanctuary area on the city side of the Temple: Shadwell's Alsatia.
P.12: 1-2.half ... Temple-Bar.I.e., Whitefriars.
P.12: 26.Being Tragedy, and writ in Rhimes.Dryden abandoned rhyme withAll for Love(1677). Cf. Elkanah Settle's complaint in the preface toIbrahim(licensed 4 May 1676): "Another misfortune the Play had, that it was written in Rhime, a way of writing very much out of Fashion...."
P.16: 9.Where Bread and Cheese he said he'ld buy.This detail has some resemblance to a circumstance in Shiels and Cibber'saccount of the death of Otway, which may derive from a mistaken belief that he was the subject of the passage. See R. G. Ham,Otway and Lee(New Haven, 1931), p. 214.
P.16: 14.One who would play at six-pence gleek.The index of extravagance at gleek seems to have advanced alarmingly in the course of the seventeenth century. Jonson inThe Devil is an Ass(V, ii, 31) specifies three-pence; however, Shadwell in 1680 was already foreseeing a shilling (Works, ed. M. Summers, IV, 60).
P.16: 15.Creswel's.The famous bawdy house, finally closed down in 1681.
P.16: 16.Locket's.An ordinary at Charing-Cross mentioned in many Restoration comedies.
P.16: 21.the Royal Theatre.Presumably the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, although the term could equally well be meant for the theatre at Whitehall.
P.17: 7.the briskest of our Crew.Probably Dryden, although the description has some problematical features. The fact that the poet is a rhymer and connected with the Duke's house rules out most other possibilities.
P.19: 1.Will have a Poet at their tail.Possibly Otway. InPC(pp. 2-3), a shorter version of the description is combined with lines from the "Dryden" portrait—the one piece of evidence for the truncation theory:
Then there are mighty Peers o' th' Realm,Whose conduct helps to steer the Helm:They're great pretenders unto Wit.And that they may seem to incourage itThey'll have a Poet at their Tail:And that to know him they mayn't fail,He has an old fashion thread-bare Coat,Foul Linnen, Hat not worth a Groat;One points and cries, there goesLong-lane,Another cries, he's Long-and-Lean.For like one newly fluxt he'l crawl,And lets the Foot-Boys take the Wall.But when to th' Tavern they do go,Their Honours will more freedom show;There they may Swagger Swear and Lye,And doe any thing, but Pay:Damn ye, I din'd with such a Lord to Day,And such a Lord did like my Play:And without Vanity it isThe best I writ, my Master-piece.
Then there are mighty Peers o' th' Realm,Whose conduct helps to steer the Helm:They're great pretenders unto Wit.And that they may seem to incourage itThey'll have a Poet at their Tail:And that to know him they mayn't fail,He has an old fashion thread-bare Coat,Foul Linnen, Hat not worth a Groat;One points and cries, there goesLong-lane,Another cries, he's Long-and-Lean.For like one newly fluxt he'l crawl,And lets the Foot-Boys take the Wall.But when to th' Tavern they do go,Their Honours will more freedom show;There they may Swagger Swear and Lye,And doe any thing, but Pay:Damn ye, I din'd with such a Lord to Day,And such a Lord did like my Play:And without Vanity it isThe best I writ, my Master-piece.
P.20: 2.Channel-row.The scene of this canto is Arthur Prior's Rhenish house in Channel-row near Whitehall.
P.20: 19.A. as 'tis first in th' Alphabet.In view of his exalted station, wealth, and Whiggish company, it is probably safe to identify "A" with Charles Sackville, Sixth Earl of Dorset, who is known as a habitué of Prior's wineshop through the stories of his encouragement of the owner's nephew Matthew. However, most details would apply equally well—in his own mind at least—to another prominent patron of the day, John Sheffield, Earl of Mulgrave. In this connection, it is interesting to note that Mulgrave's account at Child's bank records a payment of £20/—/—made on 14 May 1683 to a Thomas Wood. The name was, naturally, a common one.
P.21: 28.And wounds it too with its own Sting.Presumably a reference to Dorset's "On Mr. Edward Howard upon his British Princes" or Mulgrave's "An Essay upon Satyr." Both poems may be found in the first volume of the YalePoems on Affairs of Stateseries (ed. George deForrest Lord [New Haven, 1963]).
P.22: 3.Next unto A. B. took his place.Sir George Etherege. The opening lines anticipate Dean Lockier's comment recorded by Spence that "he was exactly his own Sir Fopling Flutter" which may on the other hand be derived from it. See Joseph Spence,Observations, Anecdotes, and Characters of Books and Men, ed. James M. Osborn (Oxford, 1966), p. 281.
P.22: 17.For you must know he's kept by a Miss.Frederick Bracher has pointed out in a letter that Etherege was closely connected at this time with the circle of the Duchesse de Mazarin. See James Thorpe's note on "A Song on Basset,"The Poems of Sir George Etherege(Princeton, 1963), pp. 85-87.
P.22: 25.Heroick C.Elkanah Settle.
P.23: 7.Cadem——. William Cademan, Settle's principal publisher.
P.23: 23.But if you speak one word of's Chumb.Probably William Buller Fyfe, an Oxford friend who had assisted Settle with his first play,Cambyses. Fyfe was dead by the time the play reached the stage and Settle was criticized for bringing it out under his own name only.
P.23: 26.D. the brisk lack-latine Poet.Thomas Shadwell. The accusation that he knew no Latin was repeated by Dryden inThe Vindication of the Duke of Guise(1683) and is denied with characteristic stridency by Shadwell inThe Tenth Satyr of Juvenal(1687). The accusation that his plays were partly written by others is made by Dryden inMac Flecknoe("But let no alien Sedley interpose") and is present by implication in Rochester's reference in "Timon" to "Shadwell's unassisted former Scenes...." Shadwell began his career as the collaborator of the aged Duke of Newcastle and acknowledges Sedley's help in his best comedy,A True Widow(1678). He was on good terms with Rochester, Dorset, and Buckingham and addressed dedications to the two last. The references to Horace and Lucretius allude to the preface toThe Humoristsand the opening scene ofThe Virtuoso, respectively.
P.24: 14.Angling for single Money in a Shoe.This line from the Epilogue toThe Libertine(1676) is quoted in context in the Author's Epistle. It also appears on the title-page ofPC.
P.27: 14.Whetstone-Whore. A reference to Whetstone Park, a street at the North end of Lincoln's Inn Fields. The name was subsequently changed to Whetstone St., but has since reverted,perhaps under the liberalizing influences of its principal present-day occupants,The New Statesmanand the Olivetti typewriter company.
P.30: 12-17.To ... pick'd.The reference is apparently to one of the "posture artists" of Moorfields, another brothel district; however, there may also be an allusion intended to an incident in the Duke's playhouse on 23 June 1679, when John Churchill, the future Duke of Marlborough, attempted to cane Betty Mackerell, an orange girl, and was thrashed in his turn by Thomas Otway. See Ham,Otway and Lee, pp. 112-115.
William Andrews Clark Memorial Library: University of California, Los Angeles
The Augustan Reprint Society
2520 CIMARRON STREET, LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA 90018
General Editors:William E. Conway, William Andrews Clark Memorial Library; George Robert Guffey, University of California, Los Angeles: Maximillian E. Novak, University of California, Los Angeles
Corresponding Secretary:Mrs. Edna C. Davis, William Andrews Clark Memorial Library
The Society's purpose is to publish rare Restoration and eighteenth-century works (usually as facsimile reproductions). All income of the Society is devoted to defraying costs of publication and mailing.
Correspondence concerning memberships in the United States and Canada should be addressed to the Corresponding Secretary at the William Andrews Clark Memorial Library, 2520 Cimarron Street, Los Angeles, California. Correspondence concerning editorial matters may be addressed to the General Editors at the same address. Manuscripts of introductions should conform to the recommendations of the MLAStyle Sheet. The membership fee is $5.00 a year in the United States and Canada and £.19.6 in Great Britain and Europe. British and European prospective members should address B. H. Blackwell, Broad Street, Oxford, England. Copies of back issues in print may be obtained from the Corresponding Secretary.
Publications of the first fifteen years of the Society (numbers 1-90) are available in paperbound units of six issues at $16.00 per unit, from the Kraus Reprint Company, 16 East 46th Street, New York, N.Y. 10017.
Make check or money order payable toThe Regents of the University of California.
145-146. Thomas Shelton,A Tutor to Tachygraphy, or, Short-writing, 1642, andTachygraphy, 1647. Introduction by William Matthews.
147-148.Deformities of Dr. Samuel Johnson, 1782. Introduction by Gwin J. Kolb and J. E. Congleton.
149.POETA DE TRISTIBUS: or, the Poet's Complaint, 1682. Introduction by Harold Love.
150. Gerard Langbaine,Momus Triumphans: or, the Plagiaries of the English Stage [A New Catalogue of English Plays], 1687. Introduction by David Rodes.
Members of the Society will receive copies of Clark Library seminar papers.
Gerard Langbaine,An Account of the English Dramatick Poets(1691), Introduction by John Loftis. 2 Volumes. Approximately 600 pages. Price to members of the Society, $7.00 for the first copy (both volumes), and $8.50 for additional copies. Price to non-members, $10.00.
Already published in this series:
1. John Ogilby,The Fables of Aesop Paraphras'd in Verse(1668), with an Introduction by Earl Miner. 228 pages.
2. John Gay,Fables(1727, 1738), with an Introduction by Vinton A. Dearing. 366 pages.
3.The Empress of Morocco and Its Critics(Elkanah Settle,The Empress of Morocco[1673] with five plates;Notes and Observations on the Empress of Morocco[1674] by John Dryden, John Crowne and Thomas Shadwell;Notes and Observations on the Empress of Morocco Revised[1674] by Elkanah Settle; andThe Empress of Morocco. A Farce[1674] by Thomas Duffett), with an Introduction by Maximillian E. Novak. 348 pages.
4.After THE TEMPEST(the Dryden-Davenant version ofThe Tempest[1670]; the "operatic"Tempest[1674]; Thomas Duffett'sMock-Tempest[1675]; and the "Garrick"Tempest[1756]), with an Introduction by George Robert Guffey. 332 pages.
Price to members of the Society, $3.50 for the first copy of each title, and $4.25 for additional copies. Price to non-members, $5.00. Standing orders for this continuing series of Special Publications will be accepted. British and European orders should be addressed to B. H. Blackwell, Broad Street, Oxford, England.
PUBLICATIONS IN PRINT
1948-1949
16. Henry Nevil Payne,The Fatal Jealousie(1673).
18. Anonymous, "Of Genius," inThe Occasional Paper, Vol. III, No. 10 (1719), and Aaron Hill, Preface toThe Creation(1720).
1949-1950
19. Susanna Centlivre,The Busie Body(1709).
20. Lewis Theobald,Preface to the Works of Shakespeare(1734).
22. Samuel Johnson,The Vanity of Human Wishes(1749), and twoRamblerpapers (1750).
23. John Dryden,His Majesties Declaration Defended(1681).
1951-1952
26. Charles Macklin,The Man of the World(1792).
31. Thomas Gray,An Elegy Wrote in a Country Churchyard(1751), andThe Eton College Manuscript.
1952-1953
41. Bernard Mandeville,A Letter to Dion(1732).
1963-1964
104. Thomas D'Urfey,Wonders in the Sun; or, The Kingdom of the Birds(1706).
1964-1965
110. John Tutchin,Selected Poems(1685-1700).
111. Anonymous,Political Justice(1736).
112. Robert Dodsley,An Essay on Fable(1764).
113. T. R.,An Essay Concerning Critical and Curious Learning(1698).
114.Two Poems Against Pope: Leonard Welsted,One Epistle to Mr. A. Pope(1730), and Anonymous,The Blatant Beast(1742).
1965-1966
115. Daniel Defoe and others,Accounts of the Apparition of Mrs. Vea
116. Charles Macklin,The Covent Garden Theatre(1752).
117. Sir Roger L'Estrange,Citt and Bumpkin(1680).
118. Henry More,Enthusiasmus Triumphatus(1662).
119. Thomas Traherne,Meditations on the Six Days of the Creation(1717).
120. Bernard Mandeville,Aesop Dress'd or a Collection of Fables(1704).
1966-1967
123. Edmond Malone,Cursory Observations on the Poems Attributed to Mr. Thomas Rowley(1782).
124. Anonymous,The Female Wits(1704).
125. Anonymous,The Scribleriad(1742). Lord Hervey,The Difference Between Verbal and Practical Virtue(1742).
1967-1968
129. Lawrence Echard,Prefaces to Terence's Comedies(1694) andPlautus's Comedies(1694).
130. Henry More,Democritus Platonissans(1646).
132. Walter Harte,An Essay on Satire, Particularly on the Dunciad(1730).
1968-1969
133. John Courtenay,A Poetical Review of the Literary and Moral Character of the Late Samuel Johnson(1786).
134. John Downes,Roscius Anglicanus(1708).
135. Sir John Hill,Hypochondriasis, a Practical Treatise(1766).
136. Thomas Sheridan,Discourse ... Being Introductory to His Course of Lectures on Elocution and the English Language(1759).
137. Arthur Murphy,The Englishman From Paris(1736).
138. [Catherine Trotter],Olinda's Adventures(1718).
1969-1970
139. John Ogilvie,An Essay on the Lyric Poetry of the Ancients(1762).
140.A Learned Dissertation on Dumpling(1726) andPudding Burnt to Pot or a Compleat Key to the Dissertation on Dumpling(1727).
141. Selections from Sir Roger L'Estrange'sObservator(1681-1687).
142. Anthony Collins,A Discourse Concerning Ridicule and Irony in Writing(1729).
143.A Letter From A Clergyman to His Friend, With An Account of the Travels of Captain Lemuel Gulliver(1726).
144.The Art of Architecture, A Poem. In Imitation of Horace's Art of Poetry(1742).
Publications of the first fifteen years of the Society (numbers 1-90) are available in paperbound units of six issues at $16.00 per unit, from the Kraus Reprint Company, 16 East 46th Street, New York, N.Y. 10017.
Publications in print are available at the regular membership rate of $8.00 yearly. Prices of single issues may be obtained upon request. Subsequent publications may be checked in the annual prospectus.