hitherto made to supply the deficiency are of that meagre description, as to afford but few materials for attaining to a just knowledge of his character. In these too, owing to the lapse of time and other circumstances, some mistakes have been unavoidedly committed, which for the sake of accuracy it is now desirable to correct.

Those who are acquainted with the narratives of De Foe, must be satisfied that no one could be so competent to become his own biographer, as the ingenious author of Robinson Crusoe. His accurate painting from nature, his skill in the delineation of character, and the interest which he contrives to throw over the commonest incidents, all combine to enchant the reader, and to inspire a wish that so masterly a pen had been employed in telling his own story to posterity. This was in a measure

demanded by the eventful nature of his life, and the misrepresentations which he suffered from his political opponents; nor is the regret diminished when we consider the multiplicity of his writings, which being mostly anonymous, are now in some measure difficult to be identified.

In the absence of his own pen, a biography of De Foe, from the hands of a contemporary, conversant with his history, and competent to appreciate his character, would have been a rich addition to our literature. But he probably out-lived all his friends, and neglected to preserve the requisite materials for such a work. Although any substitute

at this distance of time cannot be otherwise than imperfect, yet a careful perusal of his various works, in connexion with what has been said of him by his friends and his enemies, will furnish no incon-. siderable memorial of his fame, and may serve to recal the attention of the public to his writings.

His present biographer would probably have shrunk from the undertaking, had not his path been previously smoothed by the labours of Mr. Chalmers and Dr. Towers. The narrative of the former, extending to seventy octavo pages, as it was the first attempt to do justice to De Foe, so it is the source from whence succeeding writers have drawn their materials. Some important facts connected with his history would probably have been lost, had it not been for the timely discoveries of Mr. Chalmers; the admirers of De Foe are therefore under considerable obligations to that gentleman, for the zeal and perseverance which enabled him to produce such successful results.

But valuable as are the materials of Mr. Chalmers, they are much too scanty to satisfy the admirers of De Foe, or to assist them in doing justice to his merits as a man, or as a writer. His services being of a public nature, led him into a wide field of controversy, the occasions of which can only be properly understood by a reference to connecting circumstances. Nor can we form a just estimate of his character without listening to the motives, which he has himself assigned for his

conduct. Such inquiries, if they lead to greater detail, present us with a more extended portrait of the individual; and furnish the truest criterion of his actions. The researches of the present writer have enabled him not only to correct some errors that have crept into the former accounts of De Foe, but also to bring to light some new facts; and he has considerably extended the catalogue of his writings.

De Foe is now known almost entirely as a writer of fiction, and this will probably constitute the basis of his fame in succeeding times. Yet, it was not until he was verging towards the age of threescore, that he employed his creative powers upon those delightful works that will continue to be admired as long as there is any taste for real genius.

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But it was for politics chiefly that he acquired distinction with his contemporaries, who bore witness to the influence of his writings. In the conflict of parties from the reign of Charles II. to the accession of George I., few persons took a more active share; and in the number of his publications, he probably outstripped all the other writers of his time. During ten of his busiest years, and those the most factious in English history, he was the sole writer of a periodical paper which appeared three times a week, and contained many elaborate essays upon the most important subjects in trade and politics. These, and his other labours

in the cause of liberty, civil and religious, entitle him to more distinguished notice than he has hitherto received; it is therefore to this part of his history and character that his present biographer has principally directed his attention. If he has been led further into the discussion of politics than may seem properly to fall within the province of biography, it must be remembered that De Foe passed the prime and vigour of his life in active employment, sometimes in the service of the state, and always occupied upon subjects in which the public took a warm interest. Upon these accounts, the history of his life is very much interwoven with the events of the times. It must be recollected, also, that many of the topics upon which he employed his pen, are of vital importance to the interests of the community, extending even to the foundations of government, and the principles that regulate the intercourse of society. If their purpose was temporary, their utility is far from having ceased with the occasion: for without insisting, that it is never unseasonable to recal the attention of mankind to such subjects, it may be observed, that no man who sits down to study the history of his country with minute exactness, can hope for satisfaction upon a variety of points, without a previous acquaintance with the writings of De Foe. Upon this account, an uniform edition of his works is still a desideratum in British literature. In elucidating the history of the times, the

present writer has availed himself of the assistance of De Foe, as far as practicable. When this authority fails, the narrative has been connected from other sources, and chiefly from the writings of his contemporaries. In the quotations from De Foe, his sentiments have been delivered faithfully, and in his own words, without any other liberty than the abbreviation of a sentence, and the occasional substitution of a word, for the purpose of rendering the passage more intelligible. As the biographer of De Foe, rather than his apologist, the writer does not hold himself responsible for the accuracy of his opinions nor for the propriety of his conduct, any further than they will admit of a just defence. In many of his opinions, political and ecclesiastical, he freely avows a congeniality of thinking; but he has no desire to prejudice the reader by giving them more effect than is warranted by the facts and reasonings brought forward in the work.

Dryden, in his life of Lucian, observes, that biographical writing is at all times the most difficult task for an historian; and it may be added, that it is increasingly so when the times of which he writes are distinguished by faction. The characters of men then become distorted by prejudice, and the page of history presents a tissue of misrepresentation and falsehood. It was the misfortune of De Foe to flourish at a period when every thing was viewed through the false light of party.