feveral beauties of the ancient and modern hiftorians the impartial temper of Herodotus; the gravity, aufterity, and strict morals of Thucydides, the extenfive knowledge of Xenophon, the fublimity and grandeur of Titus Livius; and, to avoid the careless style of Polybius, I have borrowed confiderable ornaments from Dionyfius Halicar naffeus and Diodorus Siculus. The fpecious gilding of Tacitus I have endeavoured to fhun. Mariana, Davila, and Fra. Paulo, are thofe among the moderns whom I thought moft worthy of imitation; but I cannot be fo difingenuous, as not to own the infinite obligations I have to the Pilgrim's Progrefs of John Bunyan, and the Tenter Belly of the reverend Jofeph Hall.

From fuch encouragement and helps, it is easy to guess to what a degree of perfection I might have brought this great work, had it not been nipt in the bud by fome illiterate people in both houfes of parliament, who envying the great figure I was to make in future ages, under pretence of railing money for the war, have padlocked† ali thofe very pens that were to celebrate the actions of their heroes, by filencing at once the whole univerfity of Grubstreet. I am perfuaded that nothing but the profpect of an approaching peace could have encouraged them to make fo bold a step. But fuffer me, in the name of the reft of the matriculates of that famous univerfity, to ask them fome plain questions: Do they think that peace will bring along with it the golden age? Will there be never a dying fpeech of a traitor? Are Cethegus and Catiline turned fo tame, that there will be no opportunity to cry about the streets, a dangerous plot? Will peace bring fuch plenty, that no gentleman will have occafion to go upon the highway, or break into a houfe; I am forry, that the world fhould be fo much impofed upon by the dreams of a falfe prophet, as to imagine the Millennium is at hand. O Grub-ttreet! thou fruitful nurfery of towering genius's! How do I lament thy downfal? Thy ruin could never be meditated by any who meant well to English liberty: no modern Lyceum will ever equal thy glory: whether in

in

* A parody on Boyer's preface to his history of Queen Anne. † Act reftraining the liberty of the prefs, etc. which was paffed 1712; and the peace of Utrecht, concluded in 1713.

foft

oft paftorals thou didst fing the flames of pampered apprentices and coy cook-maids; or mournful ditties of departing lovers; or if to Maconian strains thou raised'ft thy voice, to record the ftratagems, the arduous exploits, and the nocturnal fealade of needy heroes, the terror of your peaceful citizens, defcribing the powerful Betty or the artful Picklock, or the fecret caverns and grotto's of Vulcan sweating at his forge, and ftamping the queen's image on viler metals, which he retails for beef, and pots of ale: or if thou wert content, in fimple narrative, to relate the cruel acts of implacable revenge, or the complaints of ravished virgins, blushing to tell their adventures before the liftening croud of city damfels; whilft in thy faithful history thou intermingleft the graveft counfels and the pureft morals. Nor lefs acute and piercing wert thou in thy fearch and pompous defcription of the works of nature; whether in proper and emphatic terms thou didst paint the blazing coinet's fiery tail, the ftupendous force of dreadful thunder and earthquakes, and the unrelent ing inundations. Sometimes, with Machiavelian fagacity, thou unravelleft intrigues of ftate, and the traiterous confpiracies of rebels, giving wife counfel to monarchs. How didst thou move our terror and our pity with thy paffionate fcenes between Jack Catch and the heroes of the Old-Bailey! How didit thou describe their intrepid march up Holborn-hill! Nor didft thou shine less in thy theological capacity, when thou gavest ghoftly counsel to dying felons, and didft record the guilty pangs of fabbathbreakers. How will the noble arts of John Overton's * painting and fulpture now languifh! where rich invention, proper expreffion, correct defign, divine attitudes, and artful contrast, heightened with the beauties of ClarObfcur. embellifhed thy celebrated pieces, to the delight. and astonishment of the judicious multitude! Adieu, perfuafive eloquence! the quaint metaphor, the poignant irony, the proper epithet, and the lively fiunile, are fled for ever! Instead of thefe, we fhall have, I know not what! -The illiterate will tell the reft with pleasure +! I hope,

The engraver of the cuts before the Grub-street papers. + Vid. the preface to four fermons by William Fleetwood,

It

I hope, the reader will excufe this digreffion, due by way of condolence to my worthy brethren of Grub-street, for the approaching barbarity that is likely to overfpread all its regions, by this oppreflive and exorbitant tax. has been my good fortune to receive my education there; and fo long as I preferved fome figure and rauk amongst the learned of that fociety, I fcorned to take my degree either at Utrecht or Leyden, though I was offered it gratis by the profeffors in thofe universities.

And now, that pofterity may not be ignorant in what age fo excellent a history was written (which would otherwife, no doubt, be the fuhject of its enquiries), I think it proper to inform the learned of future times, that it was compiled when Lewis the XIVth was king of France, and Philip his grandfon, of Spain; when England and Holland, in conjunction with the emperor and the allies, entered into a war against these two princes, which lafted ten years under the management of the Duke of Marlborough, and was put to a conclufion by the treaty of Utrecht, under the miniftry of the Earl of Oxford, in the year 1713.

bishop of St. Afaph, printed in 1712; where having displayed the beautiful aud pleafing profpet which was opened by the war, he complains that the spirit of difcord had given us in its stead-I know not what Our enemies will tell the reft with pleasure. This preface was, by order of the House of Commons, burat by the hangman in Palace-yard, Westminster. Hawkef.

Many at that time did imagine the hiftory of John Bull, and the perfonages mentioned in it, to be allegorical, which the au. thor would never own. Notwithstanding, to indulge the reader's fancy and curiosity, I have printed at the bottom of the page the fuppofed allufions of the most obscure parts of the ftory.

The

The HISTORY of JOHN BULL.

PART I.

CHAP. I.

The occafion of the law-fuit.

his cou

NEED not tell you of the great quarrels, that have happened in our neighbourhood lince the death of the late Lord Strutt*; how the parfon †, and a‡ cunning attorney, got him to fettle his eftate upon fin Philip Baboon, to the great difappointment of his cou fin* Efquire South. Some stick not to fay, that the parfon and the attorney forged a will, for which they were well paid by the family of the Baboons: let that be as it will, it is matter of fact, that the honour and estate have continued ever fince in the perfon of Philip Baboon.

You know, that the Lord Strutts have for many years been poffeffed of a very great landed eftate, well conditioned, wooded, watered, with coal, falt, tin,, copper, iron, etc. all within themselves; that it has been the mif, fortune of that family to be the property of their stewards, tradefmen, and inferior fervants, which has brought great incumbrances upon them ; at the fame time, their not abating of their expenfive way of living has forced them to

* Charles II, of Spain died without iffue, and

+ Card. Portocarero, and the

Marshal of Harcourt, employed, as is fuppofed, by the `houfe of Bourbon, prevailed upon him to make a will, by which he fettled the fucceffion of the Spanish monarchy upon

|| Philip of Bourbon Duke of Anjou, though his right had, by the most folemn renunciations, been barred in favour of * The Archduke Charles of Auftria;

mortgage

mortgage their best manors: it is credibly reported, that the butchers and bakers bill of a Lord Strutt, that lived two hundred years ago, are not yet paid.

When Philip Baboon came first to the poffeffion of the Lord Strutt's eftate, his tradefmen, as is usual upon fuch occafions, waited upon him to with him joy and be peak his custom: the two chief were * John Bull the clothier, and Nic. Frog the linen-draper: they told him, that the Bulls and the Frogs had ferved the Lord Strutts with drapery-ware for many years; that they were honest and fair dealers; that their bills had never been questioned ; that the Lord Strutts lived generoufly, and never uled to dirty their fingers with pen, ink, and counters; that his lordship might depend upon their honefty; that they would use him as kindly, as they had done his predecef fors. The young Lord feemed to take all in good part, and difmiffed them with a deal of feeming content, affuring them he did not intend to change any of the honourable maxims of his predeceffors.

CHA P. II.

How Bull and Frog grew jealous, that the Lord Strutt intended to give all his cuflom to his grandfather Lewis. Baboon t

T happened unfortunately for the peace of our neighbourhood, that this young Lord had an old cunning. rogue, or (as the Scots call it) a falfe loon, of a grandfather, that one might justly call a Jack of all trades fometimes you would fee him behind his counter felling broad-cloth, fometimes measuring linen; next day be would be dealing in mercery-ware; high-heads, ribbons, gloves, fans, and lace, he understood to a nicety; Charles

* the English, and

the Dutch, congratulated Philip upon a fucceffion, which they were not able to prevent: but to disappoint the ambition of Lewis the XIV. and hinder the French nation, whose

* trade and character are thus defcribed, and whofe king had a Mather