which have come down to us from antiquity

we read them, we pry into a secret which was intended to be kept from us. That is a pleasure. We fee Cato, and Brutus, and Pompey, and others, fuch as they really were, and not fuch as the gaping multitude of their own age took them to be, or as hiftorians and Poets have reprefented them to ours. That is another pleasure."

When we reflect that among his correfpondents are to be found the celebrated names of Bolingbroke, Pope, Addison, Gay, Arbuthnot, Prior, Archbishop King, Peterborow, Pulteney, Voltaire, &c. we need not wonder that the curiofity of the present times has been fo highly gratified by their publication. Nor is there any doubt but that their value will continue to increase with pofterity, in proportion to the distance of time, down to the latest period. And even among those correfpondents of an inferiour clafs, the letters will perhaps be found the best patterns in our language, whether of the easy, familiar, or elegant style: in which fome of the Ladies have distinguished themselves, particularly the Duchefs of Queensbury and Lady Betty Germaine. But Swift's

C E.

in every thing elfe, til fome great ori

re valuable, or has y of the public, lets us more into all his other Writings al, daily addreffed to thought as it rifes in his

y feeling of his heart, are laid open

in all the nakedness of truth, 'Thro'out the whole he is thinking aloud, as if he were converfing with her tête a tête; and out of this as true a portrait may be made of the peculiar features and complexion of his mind, as could be done of his external form, by any artist, to whom he might fit for his picture; and to this I have been chiefly indebted, for the proofs produced in fupport of his character,

The first thing to be done in this edition, was, to difembroil these Works from the chaos in which they have hitherto appeared, and reduce them into fome regular order under proper heads,

The 1ft volume is wholly taken up with the Hiftory of his Life.

The 2d contains his Tale of a Tub, Battle of the Books, being his earliest productions, and the first of his Political Tracts written in England.

The 3d and 4th contain all his other Political Tracts relative to English Affairs,

The 5th, his Effays on various Subjects,

The 6th, Gulliver's Travels.

The 7th and 8th, all his Poetical Works, and

Polite Converfation,

The

The 9th, All his Political Tracts relative to Ireland.

The oth, His Sermons, and a variety of detached Pieces written in Ireland.

Volumes 11, 12, 13, 14 and 15-contain the whole of his Epiftolary Correfpondence. As the fevéral parcels containing thefe Letters, had fallen into different hands, and were published at different times, they were printed without any regard to order, infomuch that the answers to numbers of the Letters were to be fought for in different vo lumes. They are here digefted in a regular feries according to their dates. The correfpondence between Mr. Pope and the Dean, not in the former edition, is here added, as published by Pope; and the whole closed with his Journal to Stella, in an uninterrupted feries.

In volume 16, are thrown together all his Sketches and unfinished Pieces.

The 17th and laft volume, confifts of Martinus Scriblerus, John Bull, and various other Pieces in profe and verfe, published in Pope's Mifcellanies. As thefe Pieces are admirable in themfelves, and as it is well known that Swift had a great fhare in some of the most capital, tho', according to his ufual practice, he never claimed any, but let his friends Arbuthnot and Pope enjoy the whole reputation as well as profit arifing from them; and as thefe have always made a part of Swift's Works, where only they are now to be found collected, it was thought proper to add this volume to the reft.

As Swift has been univerfally allowed to write the purest and most correct English, of any of our Authors,

A 4

Authors, I thought it might be of public benefit, to point out all grammatical errors folecifms, or inaccuracies that might occur in his yle. For

Decipit exemplar vitiis imitabile.

This I have done throughout, as occafion offered, notes; except in his more familiar Letters, where fome degree of negligence is allowable, and the use of colloquial phrafes, not confiftent perhaps with trict proprie is permitted, as giving them a more natural air. Nor have I taken notice of many inaccuracies of a fimilar kind in his Gulliver's Travels; where he fometimes purposely makes ufe of phrafes and expreffions not strictly grammatical, in order that the ftyle might feem more in character, as coming from a fea-faring man. The not adverting to this, has been the reafon that feveral critics, who have taken upon them to point out Swift's inaccuracies, have produced almoft all their inftances from Gulliver's Travels,

But, befide the particular paffages which I have commented upon in the notes, there are fome general improprieties which run thro' the whole body of the Works, not only of our Author, but of all other English Writers. Thefe have been established by long cuftom, and fuffered to keep their pofls thro' an unpardonable neglect of ftudying our own Janguage. To point thefe out wherever they occurred, would have been an endless task, and occafioned a difgufting repetition; I have therefore corrected them throughout; and that the reader

may

may judge of the propriety of fo doing, I here sub join a lift of them.

As the living fpeech has never engaged our at→ tention, the whole being employed about the written language, many barbarous words of uncouth found are still retained, notwithstanding there are others of the fame import, more pleafing to the ear, Such as

No final found can be more disagreeable than that of ft as it is only the fudden ftop of a hifs.

What occafion is there for continuing the final s in those words?

Further-farther

Why is this anomaly fuffered to remain, when we have the regular degrees of comparison in—

Far, farther, fartheft?

Befide-befides

These two words being of fimilar found, are very improperly used promifcuously, the one for the other. When employed as a prepofition, the word befide should always be used; when as an adverb, befides— The firft fignifies-over and above-The laft, moreover. As in the following fentences. Befide (over and above) what has been advanced upon this fubject, it may lead us to enquire, &c. 3

Befides,