To the REA DE R.

IN or about the year 1731, Mr. Wogan, a gentlman of an antient and good family in Ireland, fent a prefent of a cask of Spanish Caffala wine to the Dean, alfo a crimson velvet bag, with gold and filk ftrings, in which were inclofed a paraphrafe on the Leven penitential Pfalms of David, and feveral original pieces in verfe and profe, dedicated to the Rev. Dr. Swift, D. S. P. D. whom he never faw. This Mr. Wogan was a gentleman of great bravery and courage, and diftinguished himself in feveral battles and fieges. He was appointed, by the Chevalier de St. George, in the year 1718, to take the Princess Sobieski, (granddaughter of the famous James Sobieski, King of Po land, who raifid the Siege of Vienna) to whom he was married by proxy in Poland, who, in her journey to Rome, was, by order of the Imperial Court, made a prifoner in Tyroll, and clofely confined in the castle of Infpruck for fome time, when Mr. Wogan undertook to fet her at liberty, and bring her fafe to Rome, which he effectually performed, by bringing her through all the guards: for which dangerous and gallant Service, he was made a Roman Knight, which was an honour that was not conferred on a foreigner for many centuries be fore. This gentleman, foon after went into the fervice of Spain, where he got a government and other military commands, and diftinguifbed himself in many engagements, being well known all over Europe by the name of Chevalier, or Sir Charles Wogan.

The

The ANSWER of the Reverend Dr. JONATHAN SWIFT, Dean of St. Patrick's, Dublin, to the author Sir CHARLES WOGAN, an officer of diftinction in the fervice of the King of Spain..

I

SIR,

Received your packet at least two months ago, and took all this time not only to confider it maturely myself, but to fhew it to the few judiciousfriends I have in this kingdom. We all agreed that the writer was a fcholar, a man of genius, and of honour. We gueffed him to have been born in this country from fome paffages, but not from the style, which we are furprised to find fo correct in an exile, a foldier, and a native of Ireland. The history of yourself, although part of it be employed in your praife and importance, we did not diflike, because your intention was to be wholely unknown, which circumftance exempts you from any charge of vanity. However, although I am utterly ignorant of prefent perfons and things, I have made a fhift, by talking in general with fome perfons, to find out your name, your employments, and some of your actions, with the addition of fuch a character, as would give full credit to more than you have said (I mean of yourself) in the dedicatory epistle.

You will pardon a natural curiofity on this occafion, especially when I began with fo little, that I did not fo much as untie the ftrings of the bag for five days after I received it, concluding it must have come from fome Irish. friar in Spain, filled with monaftic fpeculations, of which I have seen some in my life, little expecting a hiftory, a dedication, a poetical tranflation of the enitential pfalms, Latin poems, and the like, and from a foldier. In thefe kingdoms you would

be:

be a most unfashionable military man, among troops where the leaft pretenfion to learning or piety, or common morals, would endanger the owner to be cafhiered. Although I have no great regard for your trade, from the judgement I make of thofe who profefs it in thefe kingdoms, yet I cannot but highly esteem thofe gentleman of Ire land, who with all the difadvantages of being exiles and strangers, have been able to distinguish themselves by their valour and conduct in fo many parts of Europe, I think, above all other nations; which ought to make the English afhamed of the reproaches they caft on the ignorance, the dulnefs, and the want of courage in the Irish natives; thofe defects, wherever they happen, arifing only from the poverty and flavery they fuffer from their inhuman neighbours, and the bafe corrupt fpirits of too many of the chief gentry, &c. By fuch events as thefe, the very Grecians are grown flavish, ig. norant, and fuperftitious. I do affert that from feveral experiments I have made in travelling over both kingdoms, I have found the poor cottagers here, who could fpeak our language, to have a much better natural tafte for good fenfe, humour and raillery, than ever I obferved among people of the like fort in England. But the millions of oppreffions they lie under, the tyranny of their landlords, the ridiculous zeal of their priests, and the general mifery of the whole nation, have been. enough to damp the best fpirits under the fun. I return, to your packet.

Two or three poetical friends of mine have read your poems with very good approbation, yet we all agree fome corrections may be wanting, and at the fame time we are at a loss how to venture on fuch a work. One gentleman of your own country, name, and family, who could do it beft, is a little too lazy but however fomething fhall be done and fubmitted to you. I have been only

a. man

trifles, never having my life; yet never However, as an adyours as a critic, and

of rhimes, and that upon written ferious couplets in any without a moral view. mirer of Milton, I will read make objections, where I find any thing that fhould be changed. Your directions about publifhing the epiftle and the poetry, will be a point of fome difficulty. They cannot be printed here with the leaft profit to the author's friend in diftrefs. Dublin bookfellers have not the least notion of paying for a copy. Sometimes things are printed here by fubfcription, but they go on fo heavily, that few or none make it turn to account. In London it is otherwife; but even there the authors must be in vogue, or, if not known, be difcovered by the ftyle, or the work must be some thing that hits the tafte of the public, or what is recommended by the prefiding men of genius.

When Milton firft publifhed his famous poem, the first edition was very long going off; few either read, liked, or understood it; and it gained ground merely by its merit. Nothing but an uncertain ftate of my health (caused by a difpofition to giddinefs, which although lefs violent, is more: conftant) could have prevented my paffing this fummer into England to fee my friends, who hourly have expected me in that cafe I could have managed this affair myself, and would have readily confented that my name fhould have stood at length before your epiftle; and by the caprice of the world, that circumftance might have been of ufe to make the thing known; and confequently better anfwer the charitable part of your defign, by inciting people's curiofity. And in fuch a cafe I would have writ a fhort acknowledgment of your letter, and published it in the next page after your epiftle; but giving you no name, nor confeffing my conjecture of it. This fcheme I am ftill upon,

as,

as foon as my health permits me to return to England *.

As I am conjectured to have generally dealt in raillery and satire, both in profe and verse, if that conjecture be right, although fuch an opinion hath been an abfolute bar to my riding in the world; yet that very world muft fuppofe, that I followed what I thought to be my talent, and charitable people will fuppofe I had a defign to laugh the follies of mankind out of countenance; and as often to lafh the vices out of practice. And then it will be natural to conclude, that I have fome partiality for fuch kind of writing, and favour it in others. I think you acknowledge, that in fome time of your life you turned to the rallying part; but I find at prefent your genius runs wholely into the grave and fublime, and therefore I find you lefs indulgent to my way, by your diflike of the Beggar's opera, in the perfons particularly of Polly Peachum and Macheath; whereas we think it a very fevere fatire upon the most pernicious villainies of mankind. And fo you are in danger of quarrelling with the fentiments of Mr. Pope, Mr. Gay, the author, Dr. Arbuthnot, myself, Dr. Young, and all the brethren whom we own. Dr. Young is the graveft among us, and yet his fatires have many mixtures of fharp raillery. At the fame time you judge very truly, that the taste of England is infamoufly corrupted by tholes of wretches who write for their bread; and therefore I had reason to put Mr. Pope on writing the poem, called the DUNCIAD; and to hale thofe fcoundrels out of their obfcurity, by telling their names at length, their works, their adventures, fometimes their lodgings, and their lineage; not with A's and B's, according to the old way, which would be unknown in a few years.

The last time the Dean was in England was in the year 1727.

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