till my work was nearly finished, I find an account of John Gilpin's first introduction to the world, and a circumstance relating to the first volume of Cowper's Poems, which may render the following felection from this correfpondence peculiarly interesting.

LETTER XXXII:

To JOSEPH HILL, Esq.

MY DEAR FRIEND,

Feb. 13, & 20, 1783.

IN writing to you I never want a subject. Self is always at hand, and Self with its concerns is always interesting to a friend.

You may think perhaps that having commenced Poet by profeffion, I am always writing verfes. Not so-I have written nothing, at least finished nothing fince I published-except a certain facetious hiftory of John Gilpin, which Mr. Unwin would fend to the Public Advertiser, perhaps you might read it without fufpecting the author..

My book procures me favours, which my modefty will not permit me to specify, except one, which, modest as I am, I cannot fupprefs; a very handfome letter from Dr. Franklin at Paffy. These fruits it has brought me.

I have been refreshing myself with a walk in the gar den, where I find that January (who according to Chaucer was the husband of May), being dead, February has married the widow. Yours, &c. W. C.

LETTER XXXIII,

To JOSEPH HILL, Efq.

OLNEY, Feb. 20, 1783.

SUSPECTING that I fhould not have

hinted at Dr. Franklin's encomium under any other influence than that of vanity, I was feveral times on the

point of burning my letter for that very reafon. But not having time to write another by the fame poft, and believing that you would have the grace to pardon a little felf complacency in an author on fo trying an occafion, I let it pafs. One fin naturally leads to another, and a greater, and thus it happens now; for I have no way to gratify your curiofity, but by tranfcribing the letter in queftion. It is addreffed by the way, not to me, but to an acquaintance of mine, who had tranfmitted the volume to him without my knowledge.

66 SIR,

"PASSY, May 8, 1782.

" I RECEIVED the letter you did me. and am much obliged by The relifh for reading of but there is fomething so

the honor of writing to me, your kind prefent of a book. poetry had long fince left me, new in the manner, so easy and yet fo correct in the language, fo clear in the expreffion, yet concife, and fo juft in the fentiments, that I have read the whole with great pleasure, and fome of the pieces more than once. I beg you to accept my thankful acknowledgements, and to prefent my respects to the author.

Your most obedient humble fervant,

B. FRANKLIN."

LETTER XXXIV.

To JOSEPH HILL, Efq.

MY DEAR FRIEND,

GREAT revolutions happen in this ant's neft of ours. One emmet of illuftrious character, and great abilities, pufhes out another, parties are formed, they range themselves in formidable oppofition, they threaten each other's ruin, they cross over, and are mingled together, and like the corufcations of the northern

Aurora, amufe the fpectator, at the fame time that by fome they are supposed to be forerunners of a general diffolution.

There are political earthquakes as well as natural ones, the former less shocking to the eye, but not always lefs fatal in their influence than the latter. The image

which Nebuchadnezzar faw in his dream was made up of heterogeneous and incompatible materials, and accordingly broken. Whatever is fo formed muft expect a like catastrophe.

I have an etching of the late Chancellor, hanging over the parlour chimney. I often contemplate it, and call to mind the day when I was intimate with the original. It is very like him, but he is disguised by his hat, which though fashionable is awkward, by his great wig, the tie of which is hardly difcernible in profile, and by his band and gown, which give him an appearance. clumfily facerdotal. Our friendship is dead and buried, yours is the only furviving one of all with which I was once honoured. Adieu.

LETTER XXXV.

To JOSEPH HILL, Esq.

May 26, 1783.

I FEEL for my uncle, and do not wonder that his lofs afflicts him. A connexion that has subsisted fo many years could not be rent asunder without great pain to the furvivor. I hope, however, and doubt not but when he has had a little more time for recollection, he will find that confolation in his own family, which is not the lot of every father to be bleffed with. It feldom happens that married perfons live together fo long, or fo happily; but this which one feels onefelf ready to fuggeft as matter of alleviation, is the very circumstance

that aggravates his diftrefs; therefore he miffes her the more, and feels that he can but ill fpare her. It is however a necessary tax, which all who live long must pay for their longevity, to lofe many whom they would be glad to detain, (perhaps thofe in whom all their happinefs is centred) and to fee them step into the grave before them. In one respect at least this is a merciful appointment. When life has loft that to which it owed its principal relifh, we may ourselves the more cheerfully refign it. I beg you would prefent him with my most affectionate remembrance, and tell him, if you think fit, how much I wish that the evening of his long day may be ferene and happy.

LETTER XXXVI.

To JOSEPH HILL, Esq.

October 20, 1783.

I SHOULD not have been thus long filent, had I known with certainty where a letter of mine might find you. Your fummer excurfions however are now at an end, and addreffing a line to you in the centre of the bufy fcene, in which you spend your winter, I am pretty fure of my mark.

I fee the winter approaching without much concern, though a paffionate lover of fine weather, and the pleafant fcenes of fummer; but the long evenings have their comforts too, and there is hardly to be found upon the earth, I fuppofe, fo fnug a creature as an Englishman by his fire-fide in the winter. I mean however an Englishman that lives in the country, for in London it is not very eafy to avoid intrufion. I have two ladies to read to, fometimes more, but never lefs-at prefent we are circumnavigating the globe, and I find the old story with

which I amufed myself some years fince, through the great felicity of a memory not very retentive, almost new. I am however fadly at a lofs for Cook's Voyage, can you fend it? I fhall be glad of Fofter's too. Thefe together will make the winter pafs merrily, and you will much oblige me.

The laft letter contains a flight sketch of thofe happy winter evenings, which the Poet has painted fo exquifitely in verfe. The two ladies whom he mentions as his conftant auditors were Mrs. Unwin and Lady Auften. The public, already indebted to the friendly and cheerful fpirit of the latter for the pleafant ballad of John Gilpin, had foon to thank her infpiring benevolence for a work of fuperior dignity, the very mafter-piece of Cowper's unbounded imagination!

This lady happened, as an admirer of Milton, to be partial to blank verfe, and often folicited her poetical friend to try his powers in that fpecies of compofition. After repeated folicitation, he promised her if she would furnish the subject, to comply with her request.-"O" The replied, "you can never be in want of a subject :— you can write upon any :-write upon this fofa!" The Poet obeyed her command, and from the lively repartee of familiar converfation arose a poem of many thousand verfes, unexampled perhaps both in its origin, and its excellence! A poem of fuch infinite variety, that it seems to include every subject, and every style, without any diffonance or diforder; and to have flowed, without effort, from infpired philanthropy, eager to impress upon the hearts of all readers whatever may lead them most happily to the full enjoyment of human life, and to the final attainment of heaven.

The Task appears to have been compofed in the winter of 1784. A circumftance the more remarkable, as win