THE LIFE OF PARNELL. For the life of Parnell, the work is obliged to Goldsmith, a biographer worthy of his virtue and his genius. It is much to be retted, that so masterly a writer had not the means of being more completely informed. Goldsmit not ably did not know him himself, but was " obliged to take his character from such as knew but little aim, or who perhaps could have given very little information if they had known more." The facts stated in the prefent account of Parnell, arè principally taken from Goldsmith, whose narrative is written with an activity of research, that leaves little to be supplied, and an agreeable manner of communication that approaches fo near perfection, as to preclude the most distant hope nent. of imp omas butewie a tai fas Dr. Johnson," which I fhould very willingly decline, en by Goldfmith, a man of such variety of powers, and fuch felicity ays feemed to do beft, the which he was doing; a man who had the ut tediousness, and general thout confufion; whofe language was co kubance, exact without constraint, and easy without weakness. What fuch an au would tell again?" men was defended from an ancient family, that had for fome centuries been fettled at Congleton, in Cheshire. His father, Thomas Parnell, who had been attached to the Commonwealth party, upon the Restoration went over to Ireland, where he purchased an estate, which, with his lands in Cheshire, descended to the poet, who was his eldest son, and still remain in the family. He was born in Dublin, in 1679, and received the first rudiments of his education at the school of Dr. Jones, in that city. When was only thirteen years old, he was admitted a member of Trinity College, Dublin, which may be confidered as a prefumption, that he had made great progrefs in learning at a very arly age; for young men, propofed to be entered at that University, are expected to be well acainted with the Latin, and to have attained some proficiency in the Greek. "His progrefs," fas Goldfmith," through the College courfe of Rudy was probably marked with but little splendor; his imagination might have been too warm to relish the cold logic of Burgerdicius, or the dreary fubtleties of Smiglefius; but it is certain, that as a claffical fcholar, few could equal him. His own compofitions fhew this, and the deference which the most eminent men of his time paid him upon that head, put it beyond a doubt.” He was admitted to the degree of Master of Arts, July 9. 1700, and was the fame year ordained a deacon by Dr. King, Bishop of Derry, having obtained a difpenfation from the Primate, as being under the canonical age. About three years afterwards, he was made a pricft by Dr. King, then Archbishop of Dublin, and în 1705, Dr. St. George Aihe, Bishop of Clogher, conferred on him the Archdeaconry of Clogher. About the fame time, he married Mifs Anne Minchin, a young lady of great merit and beauty, upon whom he wrote the fong beginning, My days have been fo wondrous free. His first excurfions to England began about the year 1706, where his company was desired, and his friendship was fought by perfons of every rank and party, even before he made any figure in \ the literary world. He had been bred a Whig, and for fome time adhered to that party; but afterwards attached himself to the Tories. Private affection and friendship have often a very powerful influence on political principles. Men of vigorous understandings, and of upright intentions, frequently approve of measures and systems, merely becaufe they are embraced or fupported by men whom they love and efteem. He was the intimate friend of Pope, Gay, Arbuthnot, and Swift, and was probably induced to in the Tories by the perfuafions and arguments of the latter; who, after he had joined that party f, was very eager to make converts of other men of genius. certain, ever was the cause, that, as the difmiflion of the Whig Ministry, in the end of Queen Anne's gn, he cliged his party, not without mu censure from those whom he deferted, and was received, by the new Miniftry, as a valuable re forcement. Swift introduced him to Harley, whom he had before highly Harley was told, that Parnell waited among e crow crowth fuafion of Swift, with his Treasurer's staff in his hand, to favourite companion of his convivial hours Pope condiments Harley on the delicacy of his choice of intimate friends, and mentions Parnell among the number. poffeffed in his favour. When an outer-room, he went, by the perhim welcome; and admitted him as a For him, thou oft haft bid the world attend His companionable talents and claffica at; udition, procured him adm on to Arbuthnot, Swift, and Jervas. +, called ha he club and Con. ter the Scriblerus Club, forthed by Pope, Gay, The connection between thefe wits advanced the fame and intereft of them all. They fubmit- My bufincfs," fays he, "depends entirely upon you. The moment I loft you, Euftathius, with zine thousand contractions of the Greek chara&ter, arofe to view! Spedanus, with all his auxiliaries, in number a thoufand pages, (value three fillings) and Dacier's three.volumes, Barnes's two, Valteries three, Cuperus, half in Greek, Leo Allacius, three parts in Greek, Scaliger, Macrobius, and (worse than them all) Aulus Gellius! All thefe rufhed upon my foul at once, and whelmed me under a fit of the headach. Dear Sir, not only as you are a friend and a good natured man, but as you ar Christian and a divine, come back speedily, and prevent the increase of my fins; for at the rate I have begun to rave, I fhall not only damn all poets and commentators who have gone before, but be daraned myself by all who come after me. In short, come down forthwith, or give me good realons for delaying, though but for a day or two, by the next poft. If I find them juft, I will come up to you, though you know how precious my time is at prefent; my hours were never worth fo much money before." { Gay was obliged to Parnell on another account; for, being always poor, he was not above receiv ing from him the copy-money which he got for his writings. "Your Zojlus," fays Fope," really tranfcends the expectation I had conceived of it. I have put it into the press, beginning with the poem Batrachom. Inform me upon what terms I am to deal with the bookfeller, and whether you design the copy-money for Gay, as you formerly talked. I ↑ scarce fee any thing to be altered in the whole piece. In the poem you fent, I will take the fi berty you allow me. The story of Pandora, and the Eclogue upon Health, are the most beautiful things I ever read." The Life of Homer, prefixed to the translation of the Iliad, was written by Parnell, and corrected "It is f by Pope; and he affures us, the correction was not effected without great labour ftiff," fays he," and was written ftill ftiffer; as it is, I verily think, it cost me more pains h correcting than the writing would have done.” In one of his letters to Parne he treats Life of Homer with much greater "If I were to tell you," ays he, above all things, it is fee you ag; the next is to fee your treatise of Zoilus, with the Batra shomuomachia, and the pervigilium. Vs, both which poms are mafter-pieces in their feveral kinds, and I question pot, the profe is as excellen sort as he Effay on Homer." ect. Fope, in this instance, is almost inexcufa · thin 1 with as what he feems to condemn in one place, he very much applauds in another. What he says in ben places may very easily be reconciled to truth; for every thing of Parnell's, that has appeared in profe, is written in a very awkward inelegant manner; but who can defend his candour and his fincerity? It would men. ᎢᏂ ftarts of pa har, however, fuppofe, that there was no real friendship between these great Folence of ell's difpofition remains unimpeached, and Pope though subject to and envy, yeter miffed occafion of being ferviceable to him. When he had to Parnell for poetical affange, and the latter as implicitly fub a mifcellany top blish, hap mitted to hin Parnell contributors to wrote poru aveen he of thofe poets who take delight in writing. He was one of the and Guardian, and probably published more than he owned, and certainly ifhed. and As hexpected very reafondy to rife to high preferment in the Church, he applied himself to preaching, and displayed his elocution with great applaufe in the pulpits of London; but the Queen's death putting an end to his expectations, he abated in his diligence. Amidst his expectations, he had the affliction to lofe his wife, by whom he had two fons who d young, and a daughter, who was living in 1770. Swift, in his "Journal to Stella,” Aug. 24. 1712, fays, "I am heartily forry for poor Mrs. Parnell's death; the feemed to be an excellent good-natured yung woman, and I believe the poor lad is much afflicted; they appeared to live perfectly we together." This event is fuppofed to have made an indelible impreffion on his spi Pope reprefents him as falling from that time into intemperance of wine. was now to derive ever future addition to his preferments from his perfonal intereft with vate friends. He wa warmly recommended by Swift to Archbishop King, who gave him a prebend in 1713, and the vicarage of Finglafs, in the diocefe of Dublin, worth 400l. a year, May 31. 1716. His gratitude is beautiful expreffed in an encomia..ic poem on Swift's birth day, 1713, "Such notice from fuch a man," fays Dr. Johnfon," inclines me to believe, that the vice of which he has been accused was not grofs or notorious." During the two or three last years of his life, he was more fond of company than ever, and could fcarce bear to be alone. The death of his wife was a lofs to him, that he was unable to support or recover. "From that time," fays Goldsmith, "he could never venture to court the mufe in folitude, where he was fure to find the image of her who first inspired his attempts. e begar, therefore, to throw himself into every company, and to feek from wine, if not relief, at least infenfibility. Thofe helps, that forrow first called in for affittance, habit foon Fendered necessary, an 1 he died before his fortieth year, in fome measure, a martyr to conjugal fidelity.” His end, whatever was the cause, was now approaching. He enjoyed his preferment little more than a year. The whole of his poetical existence was not of more than ten years continuance. Iz this fhort fpace, he attained a fhare of fame, equal to what most of his contemporaries were a long life in acquiring. He died at Chefter, on his way to Ireland, in July 1717, in the 38thyear of his age, and was buried in Trinity Church in that city, without any monument to mark the place of his in terment. As he died without male iffue, his eftate devolved to his only nephew, Sir John Parnell, Bart. whofe father was younger brother to the Archdeacon, and one of the justices of the King's Bench in Ireland. He left many compofitions behind him, of which Pope felected those which he thought best, and published them in one volume 8vo., 1721, with a dedication to the Earl of Oxford. A posthy mous volume was printed at Dublin, in 1758. And both thefe volumes united, with feveral additional ems, collected by Mr. Nichols, were printed in the collection of the " English Poets," 1779 and 1790. his own. wanted that He But the tur the ridicule of at his vexa the best advan avaks toge out a gloomy Scarce a bog Parnell was man of very great benevolence, and of ver agreeable manners. His converfation is faid to have been extremely pleafing, but in what its peculi excellence confifted, is now unknown. His connections were extenfive, and his friends numerous adrefpectable. He was intimately acquainted with Addifon, Steele and Congreve, and Pope, Swift and Arbuthnot. Joined by kindred talents, and qualities, he loved, esteemed, and revered his friends; and was by them loved, esteemed, and revered. He was refpe&ted by the world as a man of fuperior endowments. To talents, learning, and virtue were joined an ample eftate, and confiderable preferments in the church. Though not a very great economist, he was by no raeans fo profufe, as to have matexially reduced his fortune. Goldsmith fays," he was the moft capable man in the world to make the happiness of thofe he converfed with, and the leat able to f evenness of difpofition, which bears disappointment with phlegmad joy with inference. was ever very much elated or depred, and his whole life fpent iongior rapture. bulence of thefe paffions only affect imfelf, and never thofe abouhina; hen his own character, and very effectually raised the mirth of his companions as tions as at his triumphs. Indeed he took care, that his friends fhould feet hi tage; for when he found his fits of fpleen and unealinefs, which fometin ther, he returned, with all expedition, to the remote parts of Ireland, and then made kind of fatisfaction, in giving hideous defcriptions of the folitude to which he retired. in his neighbourhood was left without reproach, and scarce a mountain reared its head unfung.” "I have been once witness," fays Pope in one of his letters to him, " of fome, I hope all your fplenetic hours; come and be a comforter to me in mine." In anfwer to one of his dreary defcriptions, he fays, “I can easily image to my thoughts, the folitary hours of your cremetical life in the mountains, from fomething parallel to it in my own retirenient at Binfield ;" and in another place, "We are both miferable enough fituated, God knows; but of the two evils, I think the folitudes of the fouth are to be preferred to the deferts of the weft." In this manner, Pope answered him in this tone of his own complaints, and thefe defcriptions of his imaginary diftreffes ferved to relieve himfelf, yet they were not fo easily endured by the gentlemen of the neighbourhood, who did not re to confefs themfeives his fellow fufferers. He received many mortifications on that account among them; for being naturally fond of company, he could not endure to be without even theirs, which, His conduct, in this particular, was however, among his English friends, he affected to defpife rather fplendid than wife; he had either loft the art to engage, or did not employ his skill in fecuring those more permanent, though more humble connections; and facrificed, for a month or two, in England, a whole year's happinefs by his country firefide The profe writings of Parnell, are his papers in the Spectator and Guardian, Effay on Homer, Life of Zoilus, a Remarks of Zoilus. in general they dicover no very great degree of force or comprehensiveness of mind; but they teen with imagination, and flow great learning, good fenfe, and knowledge of mankind. The Life of Zoilus was written at the request of his friends, and defigned as a fatire against Theobald and Dennis, with who his club had been long at variance. Considered as a poet, Parnell is not distinguished for ftrength of intellect or fertility of invention, I |