neral of a man like Dryden, would not, for fuch an accident, have withdrawn their contributions.

He was buried among the poets in Westminster Abbey, where, though the duke of Newcastle had, in a general dedication prefixed by Congreve to his dramatick works, accepted thanks for his intention of erecting him a monument, he lay long without distinction, till the duke of Buckinghamshire gave him a tablet, inscribed only with the name of DRYDEN.

He married the lady Elizabeth Howard, daughter of the earl of Berkshire, with circumstances, according to the fatire imputed to lord Somers, not very honourable to either party: by her he had three fons, Charles, John, and Henry. Charles was usher of the palace to pope Clement the XIth, and visiting England in 1704, was drowned in an attempt to fwim cross the Thames at Windsor.

John was author of a comedy called The Hufband his own Cuckold. He is faid to have died at Rome. Henry entered into fome religious order. It is fome proof of Dryden's fincerity in his fecond religion, that he taught it to his fons. A man confcious of hypocritical profeffion in himself, is not likely to convert others; and as his fons were qualified in 1693 to appear among the tranflators of Juvenal, they must have been taught fome religion before their father's change.

Of the perfon of Dryden I know not any account; of his mind, the portrait which has been left by Congreve, who knew him with great familiarity, is fuch as adds our love of

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his

his manners to our admiration of his genius. "He was," we are told, "of a nature exceed

tr

ingly humane and compaffionate, ready to forgive injuries, and capable of a fincere "reconciliation with thofe that had offended him. His friendship, where he professed it, went beyond his profeffions. He was of a very eafy, of very pleafing accefs; but fome"what flow, and, as it were, diffident in his "advances to others: he had that in his na"ture which abhorred intrufion into any fociety whatever. He was therefore lefs known, "and confequently his character became more liable to mifapprehenfions and mifreprefen"tations: he was very modeft, and very eafily "to be discountenanced in his approaches to his equals or fuperiors. As his reading had

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been very extenfive, fo was he very happy "in a memory tenacious of every thing that "he had read. He was not more poffeffed of knowledge than he was communicative of it; but then his communication was by no means pedantick, or impofed upon the converfation, but just such, and went fo far, as by the natural turn of the conversation in which he was engaged, it was neceffarily promoted or required. He was extreme ready, and gentle in his correction of the errors of any writer who thought fit to con"fult him, and full as ready and patient to "admit of the reprehenfion of others, in re

fpect of his own overfights or mistakes." To this account of Congreve nothing can be objected but the fondness of friendship; and to have excited that fondness in such a mind is no fmall degree of praife. The difpofition of Dryden,

Dryden, however, is fhewn in this character rather as it exhibited itself in curfory conversation, than as it operated on the more important parts of life. His placability and his friendship indeed were folid virtues; but courtefy and good-humour are often found with little real worth. Since Congreve, who knew him well, has told us no more, the ref must be collected as it can from other teftimonies, and particularly from thofe notices which Dryden has very liberally given us of himself.

The modesty which made him so flow to advance, and fo eafy to be repulfed, was certainly no fufpicion of deficient merit, or unconsciousness of his own value: he appears to have known, in its whole extent, the dignity of his character, and to have fet a very high value on his own powers and performances. He probably did not offer his converfation, because he expected it to be folicited; and he retired from a cold reception, not fubmiffive but indignant, with fuch reverence of his own greatness as made him unwilling to expose it to neglect or violation.

His modefty was by no means inconfiftent with oftentatioufnefs: he is diligent enough to remind the world of his merit, and expreffes with very little fcruple his high opinion of his own powers; but his felf-commendations are read without fcorn or indignation; we allow his claims, and love his franknefs.

Tradition, however, has not allowed that his confidence in himself exempted him from jealousy of others. He is accused of envy and infidiousness; and is particularly charged with inciting Creech to tranflate Horace, that he

might lose the reputation which Lucretius had given him.

Of this charge we immediately discover that it is merely conjectural; the purpose was such as no man would confefs; and a crime that admits no proof, why fhould we believe?

He has been described as magifterially prefiding over the younger writers, and affuming the diftribution of poetical fame; but he who excels has a right to teach, and he whose judgement is incontestable may, without ufurpation, examine and decide.

Congreve reprefents him as ready to advise and inftruct; but there is reafon to believe that his communication was rather useful than entertaining. He declares of himself that he was faturnine, and not one of those whose fpritely fayings diverted company; and one of his cenfurers makes him fay,

Nor wine nor love could ever fee me gay; To writing bred, I knew not what to say. There are men whofe powers operate only at leisure and in retirement, and whofe intellectual vigour deferts them in converfation; whom merriment confuses, and objection difconcerts; whose bashfulness restrains their exertion, and fuffers them not to speak till the time of speaking is paft; or whose attention to their own character makes them unwilling to utter at hazard what has not been confidered, and cannot be recalled,

Of Dryden's fluggishness in conversation it is vain to search or to guefs the cause. He certainly wanted neither fentiments nor language; his intellectual treasures were great, though they were locked up from his own use.

His thoughts, when he wrote, flowed in upon him fo faft, that his only care was which to chufe, and which to reject. Such rapidity of compofition naturally promises a flow of talk, yet we must be content to believe what an enemy fays of him, when he likewise says it of himself. But whatever was his character as a companion, it appears that he lived in familiarity with the highest persons of his time. It is related by Carte, of the duke of Ormond, that he used often to pass a night with Dryden, and those with whom Dryden conforted: who they were Carte has not told; but certainly the convivial table at which Ormond fat was not surrounded with a plebeian fociety. He was indeed reproached with boafting of his familiarity with the great; and Horace will fupport him in the opinion, that to please fuperiours is not the lowest kind of merit.

The merit of pleasing muft, however, be estimated by the means. Favour is not always gained by good actions or laudable qualities. Careffes and preferments are often beftowed on the auxiliaries of vice, the procurers of pleasure, or the flatterers of vanity. Dryden has never been charged with any perfonal agency unworthy of a good character: he abetted vice and vanity only with his pen. One of his enemies has accufed him of lewdness in his converfation; but if accufation without proof be credited, who fhall be innocent?

His works afford too many examples of diffolute licentiousness, and abject adulation; but they were probably, like his merriment, artificial and constrained; the effects of study

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