attorney or make the probates, nay before you tell them of the value of the subscribed annuities, you should by all means, in my opinion, insist, carry, and secure two points: first, that Partinton should consent to a partition of this stock, &c. which I believe he cannot deny: secondly, that Marshal should engage not to touch one penny of it till all debts on this side the water are satisfied. I even desire you would take advice, and legally secure it in such sort that he may not touch it if he would, till the said debts are paid. It would be the wrongest thing in the world, and give me the greatest pain possible to think, we did not administer in the justest sense. Whatever therefore appears to be due, let it be instantly paid: here is money sufficient to do it. I must therefore entreat you once for all to clear up and agree with Marshal what is due, and then make an end by paying that which it is a shame was not paid sooner. For God's sake adjust, finish, conclude any way with Partinton; for at the rate we have gone on these two years, we may go on twenty. In your next let me know what you have proposed to him and Marshal, and how they relish it. I hoped to have been in Dublin by this time; but business grows out of business. P. S. Bermuda prospers,

Er. 30.-October 16, 1725. I beg you will lose no more time, but take proper methods out of hand for selling the S. S. stock and annuities. I have very good reason to apprehend they will sink in their value, and desire you to let Vanhomrigh Partinton and Mr. Marshal know as much. The less there is to be expected from them, the more I must hope from you. I know not how to move them at this distance but by you; and if what I have already said will not do, I profess myself to be at a loss for words to move you. You have told me Partinton was willing to refer matters to an arbitration, but not of lawyers; and that Marshal would refer them only to lawyers. For my part, rather than fail, I am for referring them to any honest knowing person or persons, whether lawyers or not lawyers; and if M. will not come into this, I desire you will do all you can to oblige him, either by persuasion or otherwise: particularly represent to him my resolution of going (with God's blessing) in April next to Bermuda, which will probably make it his interest to compromise matters out of hand. But if he will not, agree if possible with P. to force him to compliance in putting an end to our disputes.

Ex. 31.-Dec. 2, 1725. I must repeat to you that I earnestly

wish to see things brought to some conclusion with Partinton. Dear Tom, it requires some address, diligence, and management, to bring business of this kind to an issue, which should not seem impossible, considering it can be none of our interests to spend our lives and substance in law. I am willing to refer things to an arbitration, even not of lawyers. Pray push this point, and let me hear from you upon it.

Er. 32.-Dec. 11, 1725. It is now near three months since I told you there were strong reasons for haste [in selling the S. S. stock], and these reasons grow every moment stronger. I need say no more; I can say no more to you.

Ex. 33.-Dec. 30, 1725. I am exceedingly plagued by these creditors, and am quite tired and ashamed of repeating the same answer to them, that I expect every post to hear what Mr. Marshal and you think of their pretensions, and that then they shall be paid. It is now a full twelvemonth that I have been expecting to hear from you on this head, and expecting in vain. I shall therefore expect no longer, nor hope or desire to know what Mr, Marshal thinks, but only what you think, or what appears to you by Mrs. Vanhomrigh's papers and accounts. This is what solely depends on you, what I sued for several months ago, and what you promised to send me an account of long before this time.

Ex. 34.-Jan. 20, 1726. I am worried to death by creditors: I see nothing done, neither towards clearing their accounts, nor settling the effects here, nor finishing affairs with Partinton. 1 am at an end of my patience, and almost of my wits. My conclusion is, not to wait a moment longer for Marshal, nor to have (if possible) any further regard to him, but to settle all things without him, and whether he will or no. How far this is practicable, you will know by consulting an able lawyer. I have some confused notion that one executor may act by himself; but how far, and in what case, you will thoroughly be informed. It is an infinite shame that the debts here are not cleared up and paid. I have borne the shock and importunity of creditors above a twelvemonth, and am never the nearer-have nothing new to say to them: judge you what I feel. But I have already said all that can be said on this head. It is also no small disappointment to find that we have been near three years doing nothing with respect to bringing things to a conclusion with Partinton. Is there no way of making a separate agreement with him? Is there no way of prevailing with him to consent to the sale of the

reversion? Let me entreat you to proceed with a little management and dispatch in these matters, and inform yourself particularly whether I may not come to a reference or arbitration with P. even though M. should be against it? whether I may not take steps that may compel M. to an agreement? what is the practised method, when one of two executors is negligent or unreasonable? In a word, whether an end may not be put to these matters one way or other? I do not doubt your skill: I only wish you were as active to serve an old friend as I should be in any affair of yours that lay in my power.

Er. 35.-Sept. 3, 1726. I must desire you to send me in a letter a full state of the particulars of our pretensions upon Partinton, that I may have a view of the several emoluments expected from this suit, and the grounds of such expectation, these affairs being at present a little out of my thoughts; that so hav-` ing considered the whole, I may take advice here, and write thereupon to Marshal, in order to terminate that affair this winter, if possible. It is worth while to exert for once. If this be done, the whole partition may be made, and your share distinctly known and paid you between this and Christmas. But I know it cannot be done unless you exert. As for M. I had from the beginning no opinion of him, no more than you have; otherwise I should not have troubled any body else.

Ex. 36.-Nov. 12, 1726. I have writ to you often for certain eclaircissements which are absolutely necessary to settle matters with the creditors, who importune me to death. You have no notion of the misery I have undergone, and do daily undergo on that account. For God's sake disembrangle these matters, that I may once be at ease to mind my other affairs of the college, which are enough to employ ten persons. I will not repeat what I have said in my former letters, but hope for your answer to all the points contained in them, and immediately to what relates to dispatching the creditors. I propose to make a purchase of land (which is very dear) in Bermuda, upon my first going thither; for which, and for other occasions, I shall want all the money I can possibly raise against my voyage. For this purpose it would be a mighty service to me if the affairs with P. were adjusted this winter by reference or compromise. The state of all that business, which I desired you to send me, I do now again earnestly desire. What is doing, or has been done, in that matter? Can you contrive no way for bringing P. to an immediate sale of the remaining lands? What is your opinion

and advice upon the whole? What prospect can I have, if I leave things at sixes and sevens when I go to another world, seeing all my remonstrances even now that I am near at hand are to no purpose? I know money is at present at a very high foot of exchange. I shall therefore wait a little, in hopes it may become lower but it will at all events be necessary to draw over my money. I have spent here a matter of 6007. more than you know of, for which I have not yet drawn over. I had some other points to speak to, but am cut short.

As

Ex. 37.-Dec. 1, 1726. I have lately received several letters of yours, which have given me a good deal of light with respect to Mrs. Vanhomrigh's affairs. But I am so much employed on the business of Bermuda, that I have hardly time to mind any thing else. I shall nevertheless snatch the present moment to write you short answers to the queries you propose. to Bermuda, it is now, &c. [See above, Ex. 12.] You also desire I would speak to Ned. You must know Ned hath parted from me ever since the beginning of last July. I allowed him six shillings a week, beside his annual wages; and beside an entire livery, I gave him old clothes, which he made a penny of. But the creature grew idle and worthless to a prodigious degree : he was almost constantly out of the way; and when I told him of it, he used to give me warning. I bore with this behaviour about nine months, and let him know I did it in compassion to him, and in hopes he would mend: but finding no hopes of this, I was forced at last to discharge him, and take another, who is as diligent as he was negligent. When he parted from me, I paid him between six and seven pounds, which was due to him, and likewise gave him money to bear his charges to Ireland, whither he said he was going. I met him t'other day in the street, and asking why he was not gone to Ireland to his wife and child, he made answer that he had neither wife nor child. He got, it seems, into another service when he left me, but continued only a fortnight in it. The fellow is silly to an incredible degree, and spoiled by good usage. I shall take care the pictures be sold in an auction. Mr. Smilert, whom I know to be a very honest skilful person in his profession, will see them put into an auction at the proper time, which he tells me is not till the town fills with company, about the meeting of parliament.-[ remember to have told you I could know more of matters here than perhaps people generally do. You thought we did wrong

to sell: but the stocks are fallen, and depend upon it they will

fall lower.

After our Author's return to Europe, the correspondence was renewed with Mr. Prior. The following extracts will continue Dr. Berkeley's history to a late period of his life.

Ex. 38.-Green-street, March 13, 1733. I thank you for the account you sent me of the house, &c. on Arbor-hill. I approve of that and the terms: so you will fix the agreement for this year to come (according to the tenor of your letter) with Mr. Lesly, to whom my humble service. I remember one of that name, a good sort of man, a class or two below me in the college. I am willing to pay for the whole year, commencing from the 25th instant, but cannot take the furniture, &c. into my charge till I go over, which I truly propose to do as soon as my wife is able to travel. She expects to be brought to bed in two months; and having had two miscarriages, one of which she was extremely ill of, in Rhode-island, she cannot venture to stir before she is delivered. This circumstance not foreseen occasions an unexpected delay, putting off to summer the journey I proposed to take in spring. I hope our affair with Partinton will be finished this term. We are here on the eve of great events, tomorrow being the day appointed for a pitched battle in the House of Commons.

Ex. 39. March 27, 1733. This comes to desire you will exert yourself on a public account, which you know is acting in your proper sphere. It has been represented here, that in certain parts of the kingdom of Ireland, justice is much obstructed for the want of justices of the peace, which is only to be remedied by taking in dissenters. A great man hath spoke to me on this point. I told him the view of this was plain; and that in order to facilitate this view I suspected the account was invented, for that I did not think it true. Depend upon it, better service cannot be done at present than by putting this matter as soon as possible in a fair light, and that supported by such proofs as may be convincing here. I therefore recommend it to you to make the speediest and exactest inquiry that you can into the truth of this fact, the result whereof send to me. Send me also the best estimate you can get of the number of papists, dissenters, and churchmen, throughout the kingdom; an estimate also of dissen