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"Abridgment" of it in one volume, 12mo. * both printed for Thomas Davies. For whom he also compiled a "History of England," in 4 vols. 8vo. * which performance, like the preceding, although elegantly written, and highly calculated to attract and interest young readers, enters into no critical discussion of disputed points; and is often superficial and inaccurate.

* It may gratify the curiosity of the Reader, to see the articles of agreement concerning these last two publications, which were drawn up by Dr. Goldsmith himself.

"MEMORANDUM.

Russel-street, Covent-Garden. "It is agreed between Oliver Goldsmith, M. B. on the one hand, and Thomas Davies, bookseller, of Russel"street, Covent-Garden, on the other, that Oliver Goldsmith "shall write for Thomas Davies, an History of England, "from the birth of the British empire, to the death of George "the Second, in four volumes, octavo, of the size and the "letter of the Roman History, written by Oliver Goldsmith. "The said History of England shall be written and compil"ed in the space of two years from the date hereof. And "when the said history is written and delivered in manu" script, the printer giving his opinion that the quantity "above-mentioned is completed, that then Oliver Goldsmith "shall be paid by Thomas Davies the sum of five hundred "pounds sterling, for having written and compiled the same. "It is agreed also, that Oliver Goldsmith shall print his 66 name to the said work. In witness whereof we have set our names, this thirteenth of June, 1769.

66

"OLIVER GOLDSMITH. "THOMAS DAVIES."

"MEMORANDUM.

"September 15, 1770.

"It is agreed between Oliver Goldsmith, M. B. and Thomas "Davies, of Covent-Garden, bookseller, that Oliver Gold"smith shall abridge for Thomas Davies the book entitled

Of this we have a striking instance in his account of one of the most remarkable occurrences in the history of his own country, to which he might have been expected to have been most attentive. This was the celebrated siege of Londonderry, in 1689, sustained for 104 days against a numerous and cruel French army, after that city had been abandoned by the military commanders, as utterly untenable, and not furnished with provisions for more than ten days: but Providence had raised them up a heaven-taught general, the Rev. George Walker, a clergyman, who had chanced to take refuge in that city; and who, with the assistance of one or two officers, accidentally there, conducted their defence with such admirable courage, skill, and judgment, and was so well seconded by the persevering valour, fortitude, and patience of the poor destitute inhabitants, that they finally saved the city, and thereby in effect, as was then judged, the whole kingdom.

This extraordinary man is slightly mentioned by Goldsmith, as "one Walker a dissenting minister:" for which he received a proper reproof in the following letter.

"Goldsmith's Roman History, in two volumes 8vo. into one "volume in 12mo. so as to fit it for the use of such as will not "be at the expense of that in 8vo. For the abridging of the " said History, and for putting his name thereto, said Thomas Davies shall pay Oliver Goldsmith fifty guineas, to be "paid him on the abridgment and delivery of the copy; as "witness our hands.

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"OLIVER GOLDSMITH. "THOMAS DAVIES."

Since Dr. Goldsmith's death," an Abridgment of the "History of Greece," hath been published under his name, in which his friends believe he had no concern, though it is possible he may have intended a compilation on that subject.

SIR,

TO DR. GOLDSMITH.

I BEG leave to acquaint you, there is a mistake in your Abridgment of the History of England, respecting Dr. Walker, viz. 'one Walker, a dissenting minister.'

I venture to assure you, Mr. Walker was a clergyman of the established church of Ireland, that was appointed Bishop of Dromore by King William, for his services at Derry; but was unfortunately killed at the battle of the Boyne ;-which I hope you will be pleased to insert in the future editions of your late book. The Duke of Schomberg was certainly killed in passing the river Boyne. I am, Sir, with great respect,

Your most obedient humble servant,

THOMAS WOOLSEY,

Dundalk, April 10, 1772.

Had this ecclesiastic been, as Goldsmith supposed, a dissenting minister, he ought not to have passed over with so little notice a man, of whatever profession, who had been the instrument of saving so many lives and a whole city from destruction. But it was the fate of Walker to be considered with almost as little attention by king William himself, to whose cause he had afforded such important assistance. For when the king heard he was killed in the field of battle, he asked with true Batavian sang froid, "What "business had he there?" But his Majesty should have considered, that although Mr. Walker wore a black coat and not a red one, he had shown great skill and courage in one of the most arduous services in

war; that he had displayed a very superior genius for military command, and had been led by a natural and allowable curiosity to view the conduct of a battle under so distinguished a commander, and to examine critically a subject, in one branch of which he had shown himself so great a master*.

Besides his regular histories, of which Dr. Johnson thought very favourably †, Goldsmith had all the other business of an author by profession: he wrote introductions and prefaces to the books and compilations of other writers; many of which have never come to our notice, but such as have occurred will be inserted in this collection. They all exhibit ingenious proofs of his talents as a composer, and generally give a better display of the subjects than could have been done by their own authors. But herein he is rather to be considered as an advocate pleading the cause of another, than delivering his own sentiments, for he often recommends the peculiarities, if not the defects of a work; which, if his pen were engaged on the other side, he would with equal ability and eloquence detect. The reader will find something like this in an address to the public, which was to usher in proposals (dated March 1, 1764) for "A New History of the World "from the Creation to the present Time. By Wil"liam Guthrie, Esq &c in 12 volumes, 8vo. to be

* A curious journal, which he had kept of all that passed during the siege, was published at that time in 4to. and republished by the late Dr. Brown, author of the Estimate, &c.

One very remarkable providence happened to the besieged, who, being reduced by extremest famine to eat unwholesome food, were dying fast of the bloody flux: when accidentally discovering some concealed barrels of starch and tallow ; had thereby their hunger not only relieved, but were cured of their dysentery.

Boswell. Vol, ii, p. 234.

"printed for Newbery, &c." This was to be an abridgment of all the volumes of the ancient and modern universal histories: and he urges a great variety of topics in praise of such contracting and condensing histories as the present subject required; which with equal ingenuity he could have opposed and confuted. But the whole is excellent as a composition. In the preceding year, he drew up a Preface or Introduction to Dr. Brooks's "System of Natural History," 1763, in 6 vols. 12mo. a very dull and uninteresting work; but in this preface he gave such an admirable display of the subject, which he rendered so extremely interesting and captivating, that both himself and the booksellers were induced by it to engage him in his larger work of the "History of the Earth and "Animated Nature." This, although finely written, is full of mistakes and defects, from which this preliminary essay or prospectus of the subject is entirely free of this work Dr. Johnson said, 'He is now writing a Natural History, and will make it as entertaining as a Persian tale*.'

He also drew up a "Life of Parnell," to be prefixed to an edition of his poems, in which the want of incidents in the private life of a scholar, is very ingeniously supplied by the biographer's reflections.

Johnson, in his Lives of the Poets, says, 'The life of Dr. Parnell is a task which I should very willingly decline, since it has lately been written by Goldsmith, a man of such variety of powers, and such felicity of performance, that he always seemed to do best that which he was doing; a man who had the art of being minute without tediousness, and general without confusion: whose language was copious without exuberance, exact without constraint, and easy without weak

ness

Boswell's Life. Vol. ii. p. 236,

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