saying he had no hope but in God, and wanted nothing but death; and Des Maizeaux, his biographer, and the editor of his works, informs us that he met his end without the least perturbation of mind, bidding farewell to those that were about him, and telling them he was going to sleep.

The character of Toland does not appear to advantage, either upon a review of his conduct or writings. Both appear to be tainted with inconsistency, obstinacy, and conceit; and, according to the author of The Freeholder, arose

from no other motive than the pleasure of appearing singular and paradoxical. The same authority justly says, that no one has written so much against religion, and no one done so little injury to it, as Toland. Swift calls him a miserable sophist, and Des Maizeaux admits that he might have employed much better the great talents and learning which he undoubtedly possessed. He wrote several works of minor consideration in addition to those already mentioned.

COLLEY, the son of Caius Gabriel Cibber, a German statuary, was born in Southampton Street, Westminster, on the 6th of November, 1671, and educated at the free school of Grantham, in Lincoln, where he seems to have been equally conspicuous for his vanity, carelessness, and talent. On one occasion he was flogged for having written a very bad theme, although the master declared that, in some parts of it, he had excelled all his competitors. On the death of Charles the Second, the boys of his class were directed to compose a funeral oration for that monarch; but all of them pleaded inability to execute such a task but young Cibber, who was consequently placed at their head. When James the Second was crowned, his schoolfellows petitioned for a holiday, which the master consented to grant on condition that one of them should write an English ode on the occasion; which, it is said, Cibber produced within half an hour, but displayed so much vanity on account of his success, as to disgust his companions, who would not permit him to join a party of them, in whose recreations he felt particularly anxious to share.

In 1687, he left school, and attempted to obtain a fellowship at New College, Oxford, on the plea of founder's kin by the maternal side. His claim being disallowed, he entered the army for a short while, but afterwards, coming to London, his partiality for the stage induced him to accept an engagement, at

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the age of eighteen. at Drury Lane Theatre, at ten shillings per week. This was, shortly afterwards, increased to twenty shillings, on the mendation of Congreve, who expressed himself much .pleased with his performance of Touchwood, in The Double Dealer. His next character of importance was that of Fondle wife, in The Old Bachelor; on hearing his resolution to undertake which, Powel observed, "If the tool has a mind to blow himself up at once, let us even give him a clear stage for it." He performed the part in imitation of Dogget, and with such verisimilitude, that the latter, who was present, joined in applauding him, and many of the spectators mistook him for Dogget himself.

In 1696, on the recommendation of Southern, his first production, entitled, Love's Last Shift, was brought on the stage, in which he represented the principal character. After its performance, Lord Dorset said to him, "That it was the best first play that any author in his memory had produced; and that for a young fellow to shew himself such an actor and such a writer in one day was something extraordinary." next piece was Love in a Riddle, the failure of which Cibber attributed to the prejudice then existing in favour of the author of The Beggar's Opera; a sequel to which, written by Gay, about this time, was forbidden to be acted. Cibber's piece, being exactly of an opposite nature, met with a proportionate

His

opposition, and, to use his own expression," was assassinated without mercy." In 1697, he produced Woman's Wit, and, in 1699, the tragedy of Xerxes; the former of which met with little success, and the latter was damned the first night of representation. These were succeeded by Love makes a Man, She Would and She Would Not, and The Careless Husband, which appeared in 1706, and was received with the applause it merited. He next produced, in succession, his Peroka and Izadora, a tragedy; and his comedies of The School Boy, The Comical Lovers, The Double Gallant, The Lady's Last Stake, and The Rival Fools. In 1711, he obtained a share in the patent of Drury Lane Theatre, with Wilkes and Dogget; and, upon the death of Queen Anne, the names of Booth and Sir Richard

Steele were substituted in lieu of Dogget, in the new license. Steele, however, falling into pecuniary difficulties, and not attending to the concerns of the theatre, found such deductions made from his demands, that he brought a suit in Chancery against his partners, which was successfully defended by Cibber in person.

In 1717, appeared The Nonjuror, now acted under the title of The Hypocrite. The piece, which is an adaptation of The Tartuffe of Moliere, had a great run, and procured the author a pension from the court. In 1730, he was appointed poet laureat; a distinction which, as he possessed no poetical genius, procured him the ridicule of both friends and enemies, whose laugh he joined in with the good-nature of a fortunate coxcomb. He soon afterwards sold out his share of the patent, and retired from the stage; on which, however, he still occasionally

appeared; and, at the age of seventyfour, he played Pandulph, in Papal Tyranny, a tragedy of his own composition. In 1740, in consequence of the continued attacks that were made against him, he published An Apology for the Life of Colley Cibber, in which he vindicates his own character, and gives a curious and amusing account of many of his contemporaries. He wrote several other plays, in addition to those mentioned, previously to his death, which took place on the 12th of December, 1757, when he was found dead in his bed.

Cibber appears, in his Apology, a work of talent and naiveté, and highly entertaining, to have drawn a very fair estimate of his own character. He confesses that, even from his school-days, there was ever a degree of inconsistency in his disposition; that he was always in full spirits; in small capacity to do right, but in a more frequent alacrity to do wrong; and, consequently, often under a worse character than he really deserved. As an actor, Cibber excelled chiefly in foppish, and feeble old men ; but in every branch of acting he appears to have been, at different times, successful. As an author, Cibber possessed more genius than he was allowed by his contemporaries; and he proved himself by no means a despicable opponent to Pope, who carried his virulence so far as to displace Theobald from the Dunciad for the purpose of substituting Cibber.

In addition to the plays before-mentioned, Cibber wrote, in conjunction with Vanbrugh, The Provoked Husband, and several other original pieces, which, as well as his adaptations from Shakspeare, have been printed in five duodecimo volumes.

RICHARD STEELE, son of a barrister, who was secretary to the first Duke of Ormond, was born at Dublin, according to one account, in 1671; but another, by conjecture, places his birth about 1676. By the influence of the above nobleman he was placed at the

Charter-House School, whence, in 1691, he was removed to Merton College, Oxford. Devoting himself to light literature, instead of the classics, he left the university without taking a degree, and had so strong a passion for a military life, that he entered as a private in the

horse-guards, by which he lost the succession to his Irish estate. By this step he offended his relations; but his frank and generous temper soon procured him friends, some of whom obtained for him an ensign's commission in the guards. At this time his mode of life may be guessed from his own confession:"When I was an ensign in the guards," he says, "being thoroughly convinced of many things, of which I often repented, and as often repeated, I wrote, for my own private use, a little book called The Christian Hero; with a design principally to fix upon my mind a strong impression of virtue and religion, in opposition to a stronger propensity to unwarrantable pleasures." He printed this work in 1701, with a dedication to Lord Cutts, who appointed him his private secretary, and obtained for him a company in a regiment of fusiliers. The contrast, however, between his conduct and his precepts exposing him to the ridicule of his friends, he diverted their attention from his former work, by producing a comedy called The Funeral, or Grief a-la-Mode, which was brought upon the stage in the same year. was received with applause, and procured him the favourable notice of King William; shortly after whose death he was appointed gazetteer to the ministry of Lords Halifax and Sunderland, on the recommendation of Mr. Addison.

It

In 1704, appeared The Tender Husband, in which Steele was materially assisted by the author of The Spectator; and shortly afterwards was acted his Lying Lover, which, in a speech in the house of commons, he declared "was damned for its piety." In 1709, he commenced the publication of The Tatler; taking both the notion of his paper and the name of Bickerstaff, under which he wrote them, from the previous letters of Swift, who became one of his contributors, together with Addison and other eminent writers. Combining both moral and political views, Steele found his end in siding with the existing ministry, who, in 1710, rewarded him with the post of commissioner of the stamp duties. On a change of administration he still continued his office; but having, in The Guardian, which succeeded The Tatler, in 1713, attacked the new ministry under borrowed names, he, to prevent dismissal, sent in his resignation

to Lord Oxford, and at the same time resigned a pension he had hitherto received from Queen Anne. He now continued to write against ministers with a view of obtaining a seat in the new parliament, to which he was returned, as member for Stockbridge, in Dorsetshire, in the autumn of the year last mentioned. His senatorial career was not of long duration; for having written, in two papers, called The Crisis and The Englishman, what was pronounced a libel by the commons, he was expelled the house by a majority of two hundred and forty-five to one hundred and fifty

two.

He now engaged in several literary undertakings, and among others, wrote The Spinster; and, in opposition to The Examiner, a paper called The Reader. On the accession of George the First, he was appointed surveyor to the royal stables at Hampton Court, and put into the commission of the peace for Middlesex; and having procured a license to be chief manager of the royal company of comedians, he had interest to get it exchanged for a patent for life. In 1714, he re-entered parliament as member for Boroughbridge; and in the following year he received, successively, the honour of knighthood, and £500 from Sir Robert Walpole for special service. Continuing to write political pamphlets in favour of King William, he was, in 1717, appointed one of the commissioners for inquiring into the estates forfeited by the late rebellion in Scotland; in which country, notwithstanding the unwelcomeness of his errand, he was so well received, that he was enabled to make some progress towards effecting an union between the Scotch and English, in church as well as in state. This project, however, failing, on his attempting to introduce it at court, he started the more humble one of conveying fish alive to any part of the kingdom, for which he obtained a patent in 1718.

His scheme, however, after having involved him in considerable expense, proved fruitless; and he was still further embarrassed, in 1719, by being deprived of his theatrical patent, in consequence of his having voted against the peerage bill. In the following year, he appealed to the public in a paper called The Theatre, and employed his

pen against the South Sea scheme; shortly after which his patent was restored to him. In 1722, he brought upon the stage his excellent comedy of The Conscious Lovers, which produced him a considerable profit, besides a present of £500 from the king, to whom it was dedicated. His heedless extravagance, however, rendered his good fortune of such little avail, that he was ultimately compelled to sell his share in the playhouse, with the managers of which he had the additional misfortune of maintaining an unsuccessful law-suit. In these circumstances, he received a paralytic shock, which greatly impaired his understand standing; and, having retired to his seat at Langanor, in Wales, he died on the 1st of September, 1729. He was survived by one daughter, the issue of his second wife, on whose death he came into possession of the estate above mentioned. By his first wife he had no children, and both marriages brought a great increase to his fortune.

The character of Sir Richard Steele, though not exemplary, appears to have made almost every man his friend, and to have left him no enemy but himself. He possessed great benevolence and warmth of disposition, with the corresponding faults of indiscriminate liberality and reckless improvidence; but in every sense of the words, he appears to have been an amiable and agreeable man. "He was the best-natured crea ture in the world," says Dr. Young, " even in his worst state of health; he seemed to desire nothing but to please and be pleased." His veneration for Addison continued to the last; and, although the author of The Spectator used now and then to play upon him, we are told by Pope that "he always took it well." A more serious charge, however, than that of bantering his friend in society has been laid to Addison, who is said to have arrested Steele for the loan of £100 during his pecuniary embarrassments. Yet this was readily forgiven by Steele, who seems to have been incapable of harbouring either literary jealousy or personal malevolence.

With respect to his writings, he is perhaps rather to be considered a man of parts than a man of genius; and while he must be allowed the praise

due to one who uses his pen in the cause of virtue, he is, at the same time, open to censure for a style and train of thinking equally lax and incorrect, and for precepts occasionally not less exceptionable than his own example. Among other objects of his benevolence and generosity was the illfated Savage; in the account of whose life, Dr. Johnson relates the following anecdote:-Savage was desired by Sir Richard, with an air of the utmost importance, to come very early to his house one morning. Savage came as he had promised, found the chariot at the door, and Sir Richard waiting for him, and ready to go out. What was intended, or whither they were to go, Savage could not conjecture, and was not willing to inquire; but immediately seated himself with Sir Richard. The coachman was ordered to drive, and they hurried with the utmost expedition to Hyde Park Corner, where they stopped at a petty ale-house, and retired to a private room. Sir Richard then informed him, that he intended to publish a pamphlet, and that he had desired him to come thither that he might write for him. They soon sat down to the work. Sir Richard dictated, and Savage wrote, till the dinner that was ordered had been put upon the table. Savage was surprised at the meanness of the entertainment, and, after some hesitation, ventured to ask wine, which Sir Richard, not without reluctance, ordered to be brought. They then finished their dinner, and proceeded in their painphlet, which they concluded in the afternoon. Savage then imagined his task over, and expected that Sir Richard would call for the reckoning and return home; when Sir Richard told him that he was without money, and that the pamphlet must be sold before the dinner could be paid for; and Savage was, therefore, obliged to go and offer the new production to sale for two guineas, which, with some difficulty, he obtained. Sir Richard then returned home, having retired that day only to avoid his creditors, and composed the pamphlet to discharge his reckoning. The following is also told respecting Steele:-Having one day invited to his house a great number of persons of the first quality, they were surprised at the number of liveries which surrounded the table; and after dinner,

THIS eminent writer, son of Dean Addison, was born at Milton, near Amesbury, in Wiltshire, on the 1st of May, 1672. In this town he received the rudiments of education, under the Rev. Mr. Naish, and was afterwards removed to the Rev. Mr. Taylor's school, at Salisbury, and from thence to the Charter-House, where he became acquainted with Steele. At the age of fifteen, he was entered of Queen's College, Oxford; and, shortly afterwards, a copy of some of his Latin verses falling into the hands of Dr. Lancaster, Dean of Magdalen College, that gentleman was so pleased with the talent they displayed, that he procured the author's election into his own hall, where Addison took his degrees of B. A. and M. A. In the course of a few years, he gained the applause of both universities, by his Latin compositions, which were no less esteemed abroad, and are said to have elicited from Boileau the remark that he would not have written against Perrault, had he before seen such excellent pieces by a modern hand. His first publication, a copy of verses addressed to Mr. Dryden, appeared about 1694, who bestowed great commendation both on this and the one that followed it, which was a translation of the fourth Georgic of Virgil (omitting the story of Aristaus). His next production was An Essay on the Georgics, prefixed to Mr. Dryden's translation, an admirable piece of criticism; and, about the same time, he wrote several small poems; one of which, dated April, 1694, was addressed to the famous Sacheverell, his intimacy

with whom was subsequently broken off by their disagreement in political principles.

Mr. Addison had, it seems, been urged by his father to go into the church; but either on account of his remarkable seriousness and modesty, as related by Tickell, or, according to Steele, at the suggestion of Lord Halifax, he declined taking orders; and, in 1699, commenced a tour to Italy, on a travelling pension of £300 per annum, obtained for him by Sir John Somers, whose patronage he had previously secured by addressing to him some verses on one of the campaigns of King William. Ia 1701, he wrote, from Italy, an epistolary poem to Lord Halifax, which was much admired both at home and abroad, and was translated into Italian verse by the Abbot Antonio Maria Saloini, professor of Greek, at Florence. In 1702, he was appointed to attend Prince Eugene, who then commanded for the emperor, in Italy; but the death of King William happening soon afterwards. which put an end to this affair as well as his pension, he returned home, and published an account of his travels, dedicated to Lord Somers. The work did not at first succeed, but, by degrees, says the writer of his life in the Biographia Britannica, as the curious entered deeper and deeper into the book, their judgment of it changed, and the demand for it became so great, that the price rose to five times its original value before a second edition was printed. In 1704, an opportunity was afforded to him of displaying his abilities with advantage from the following cir