day; but it soon put an end ro her miserable life,—I wish, therefore, that there was a Corruption Act, as well as a Gin Act, the former being so much the more necessary than the latter, as the preservation of the whole community is preferable to the safety of individuals.

"I could carry on this parallel with humour, and even form a sketch of an Act of Parliament-The preamble might run thus:

"Whereas great inconveniences have arisen, and do daily arise, from the excessive use of corruption, and by the wicked, pernicious, and infamous practice of taking bribes; whereby many of his Majesty's good subjects are diverted from pursuing their own and their country's interest, to the great discouragement of honesty, the manifest detriment of trade and commerce, and the imminent danger of utter ruin to these kingdoms. Therefore, may it please your most excellent Majesty, that it be enacted by the authority aforesaid, that from and after the day of in the year of our Lord 1739, no man in England, the dominion of Wales, or the town of Berwick upon Tweed, (for I would not as yet extend the act any farther) shall for the future under any pretence, take or receive, or cause to be taken or received, any pension, bribe, gratuity,. gift, bounty, or reward, whatsoever.

"And be it enacted, by the authority aforesaid, that all contracts and agreements, for the receiving, paying, or delivering, any money, bonds, bills, stock, or any other pecuniary rewards, shall be null and void to all intents and purposes whatsover.

"And for the better discovery of such evil and

pernicious practices, every person shall be obliged to take the following oath.

"And be it further enacted, by the authority aforesaid, that every person offending against the act, shall upon conviction, forfeit treble the value of any such place, pension, or bribe: one moiety thereof to be paid to the informer, and the other moiety to the poor of the parish, where the offender may happen to reside.

"Provided always, and it is hereby enacted, by the authority aforesaid, that any person who will submit to be branded with the name of Rogue, Rascal, or Pensioner, on his face, or have a broad R. clapt on his back, denoting to whom he belongs, may still have, receive, and enjoy a pension, not exceeding two hundred guineas per annum, any thing in this act to the contrary thereof, in any wise notwithstanding.

"Nothing tends so effectually to encourage and propagate this destructive vice of corruption, as the keeping up old party names and distinctions, when the essential differences should be swallowed up in a general concern for the public good. This may be of great use to a wicked and declining minister, but is certain death to the people, if they are foolish enough to bite at so naked a hook.

"It is so far from being right to keep up the old distinctions of Whig and Tory, that I think even those of Court and County, ought to be laid aside. All persons who sincerely mean the preservation of the constitution, and the present happy establishment, may co-operate, and must have the same views. I have shewn in a former paper, that old Whigs may drop their principles, whilst they only pursue the same guide

with whom they at first set out,-and this puts me in

mind of a story which I heard when at Oxford. learned man,

"A reverend Doctor, who was a very and a very silly fellow, which, God knows, is too often the case,--had a great inclination to see London. He had a horse of his own, and did not care for the expence of the coach. But neither he nor his horse knew the way. Ashamed to discover his ignorance, he resolved to follow the stage coach; and for that reason took particular notice of the coachman who drove it. At Wycomb the passengers always shift coaches, which our Doctor not observing, but keeping his eye steadily fixed upon the same guide, took it for certain that he must be right, and was by him led quite the contrary road :—which is exactly the case of some of my honest Whig friends; very good men I dare say, but led out of the way by Robin the coachman.—And as the Doctor after jogging about fifty miles, found himself where he did not design to be, so I hope my good friends will not bring about the same thing which they design to prevent."

A letter written in the name of Colly Cibber, the laureate, appeared in the Craftsman of July 2d, 1797, in consequence of the passing of an act for licensing plays, to impose a check upon the political effusions of dramatic authors. In this letter the laureate proposes himself to the Chamberlain, to be made corrector of the old plays, as standing equally in need of correction with the modern ones; and he produces several passages from Shakspear, and other poets, in relation to Kings, Queens, Princes, and Ministers of State,

which he says are not now fit to be brought upon the stage. This letter gave such offence to the ministry that they caused the printer to be apprehended. Amhurst however, surrendered himself as author, and was committed to prison in consequence of his refusing to give bail, where he remained some time, and finally obtained his release by suing out a writ of habeas corpus, and the prosecution was given up.

The opposition to Sir Robert Walpole proved at length successful, and he was removed from office in 1742, when the party whose views Amhurst had been labouring to effect, acquired the vacant employments. But with the ingratitude which distinguish politicians by possession, these men neglected to reward the active agent of their elevation.-"Poor Amhurst," says Mr. Ralph," after being the drudge of his party for the best part of twenty years together, was as much forgotten in the famous compromise of 1742, as if he had never been born. And when he died of what is called a broken heart, which happened within a few months afterwards, became indebted to the charity of his very bookseller for a grave-not to be traced now, because then no otherwise distinguished, than by the freshness of the turf brought from the next common to cover it."The name of this worthy man should be mentioned; it was Richard Franklin, of Russell Street, Covent Garden, printer and publisher.

On the subject of the neglect experienced by Amburst, Davies, in his work entitled "Lord Chesterfield's character reviewed," has the following remarks :"But if the Earl of Bath had his pensioners, how came it that Amhurst was forgotten? The fate of this

* In his "Case of Authors."

poor man is singular. Bolingbroke and Pulteney, in writing the celebrated weekly paper called the Craftsman; his abilities were unquestionable: he had almost as much wit, learning, and various knowledge as his two partners; and when those great masters chose not to appear in public; he supplied their places so well, that his essays were often ascribed to them. Amhurst survived the downfall of Walpole's power, and had reason to expect a reward for his labours. If we excuse Bolingbroke, who only saved the shipwreck of his fortune, we shall be at a loss to justify Pulteney, who could with ease have given this man a comfortable income. The utmost of his generosity to Amhurst, that I ever heard of, was a hogshead of claret. He died it is supposed of a broken heart, and was buried at the charge of his honest printer Richard Franklin."

He was the able associate of

Dr. Kippis adds of himself:-" Mr. Amhurst was probably one of those imprudent and extravagant men, whose irregularities, in spite of their talents, bring them at length into general desertion and neglect. But this does not excuse the conduct of his employers. His want of purity in morals, if that was his real character, was no objection to their connection with him when he could serve their purpose; and they ought to have so far provided for him, as to have placed him above necesity, during the remainder of his days. The ingratitude of the great to the ingenious persons they make use of as the instruments of their ambition, should furnish instruction to men of abilities in future times, and engage them to build their happiness on the foundation of their own personal integrity, discretion and virtue."