Addreffing himself likewife to Mr. Allen, het fays--"The fentiments you exprefs upon the anniversary of your birth-day, fhew you a good man, and therefore I have reafon to be

66

glad, that you can account the friendship I "bear you, as one of the fatisfactions of your "life: otherwife it might be but a difgrace to. "be ranked among the things you like, if you "liked fuch things and men, as many do like, "and make their enjoyments. I trust in God "fuch a friendship will out-laft all thofe that 66 are built upon vanity, intereft, or fenfuality; "the common grounds upon which people build "them."

At the fame time, he ufed very feelingly to bewail the uncertainty of our judgment, with respect to the fincerity of friendship: particularly in a letter to Mr. Allen, where he fays,--"No true judgment can be here made of any

man, or any thing with certainty, farther than "that we think another man means well, and "that we know we ourfelves mean well. It is "in this fituation every honeft man ftands with "respect to another, and upon which all well "principled friendships depend."

This uncertainty, however, did not degenerate into diftruft. The feelings of his own heart were fufficient to convince him, that men of honour and fincerity, though rarely, were yet to be found; and he expreffed upon all occafions the moft ardent affection for honeft men, frequently lamenting the little union which fubfifted among

fuch.

fuch. Addreffing himself to Mr. Bethel, he fays

"A few honeft people is all the world is "worth: but you fhall never find them agree to ftand by one another and defpife the reft; "which, if they would, they would prevail

over the follies and the influence of the world: "but they comply with what is round about "them, and that being almoft fure to be folly or misery, they muft partake of both."

He was one day, in a converfation with the prefent Bishop of Gloucefter, condemning himfelf for his undistinguished choice of friends in his youth. He faid, if they fought his acquaintance, and could amufe or entertain him, it was enough; he was too inattentive to their moral qualities *.

In the course of this converfation, Mr. POPE added,--- “ I am now quitting my hands of these "unworthy acquaintance, as faft as I can, and

turn them off by dozens. Having found "they fought me out of vanity, and when en

*In those times, Dr. Arbuthnot, (whofe morals were equal to any man's, and whofe wit and humour, as POPE used to tell this friend, were fuperior to all mankind) one day faid to him, "What makes you fo frequent with John of Bucks? "He knows you have got money by Homer, and he wants "to cheat you of it."-This fufpicion, in the opinion of fome, has been thought to have been warranted, by his perfuading the poet to buy an annuity of him, when in the general opinion, there was not the leaft probability that he could furvive his youth. But the feller over-reached himself. "couraged

I i4

દર

couraged by their profeffions, I have afked any thing of them, for a man who was in reality what they pretended to be, had always "fome paltry excuse to evade their promises and "profeffions. It was, fays he, but the other

day, that a noble Lord in my neighbourhood, "who till then I had much mistaken, told me “in conversation, that he had a large benefice "fallen, which he did not know what to do "with--Give it to me, faid I, and I will promife "to beftow it on one who will do honour to 6c your patronage. He faid I should have it. "I believed him, and after waiting fome time, "without hearing farther of it, I reminded "him of what had paffed, when he said, with "fome confufion, that his fteward had difpofed ¶ of it, unknown to him or his lady *."

the

In his riper years he formed no connections through vanity; and though he lived among great and wealthy, he lived with them upon the cafy terms of reciprocal amity, and focial familiarity t. But his familiarity with them never

fo

The diffimulation and infincerity of thofe, whom, by a ftrange abufe of words, we call the great, is not without its ufe. It affords a profitable leflon to men of worth and abilities, to rely folely on their own induftry, as the moft effectual means to attain that fure and noble independence, which renders them fuperior to the neglect and infolence of exalted bafenefs.

In one of his letters to Swift, he fays, with honeft franknefs"The greatest man in power of this fort, (meaning knaves, of whom he was before fpeaking) "fhall

66

hardly

fo far corrupted his manners, or influenced his' writings, as to induce him to flatter or diffemble. He courted none on account of their honours or titles; but was a friend to fuch only whom he thought diftinguished by their virtues. He did not idolife their power, but refpect their principles; as is evident from his attachment to the two fallen minifters Bolingbroke and Oxford; to whom he never offered incenfe in their profperity; but paid them the grateful tribute of applaufe, after their difgrace. Not only his principles but his fpirit, excluded him from all views of employing their influence to procure for himself either place or penfion.

He feemed indeed to have entertained no very favourable idea of the motives on which the great, ufually confer their favours. In one of his letters to Mr. Allen, speaking of his endeayours to ferve a common friend, he fays

"I am trying to ferve that gentleman with a great man, who declares the greatest cfteem for him, and preffes much to be brought ac"quainted with him: but I never truft entirely "in great men, though this has much of that,

"hardly make me bow to him, unless I had a perfonal ob"ligation; and that I will take care not to have. The top "pleasure of my life, is one I learned from you, both how "to gain, and how to ufe, the freedom of friendship with "men, much my fuperiors. To have pleafed great men, "according to Horace, is a praise; but not to have flattered them, and yet not displeased them, is a greater."

"which generally animates them most to do any "good, vanity."

In another letter to the fame perfon, fpeaking of Mr. Hooke*, who had then lately been pro

*This gentleman feems to have poffeffed no small share of Mr. POPE's efteem and friendship. His folicitude to do him fervice, is ftrongly exemplified in the following anecdote.

"The firft Duchefs of Marlborough was defirous of having

an account of her public condu& given to the world. This "Mr. Hocke, a Roman Catholic, in the myftic way, and com "piler of the Roman Hiftory, was, by Mr. POPE and others, "recommended to her Grace, as a proper perfon to draw 66 up this Account, under her inspection; and by the affiftance of the papers the communicated to him, he performed this work fo much to her Grace's fatisfaction, that the "talked of rewarding him largely, but would do nothing till Mr. POPE came to her, whofe company fhe then fought all opportunities to procure, and was uneafy to be without it. He was at that time with some friends, whom "he was unwilling to part with, a hundred miles diftant. "But at Mr. Hooke's earneft folicitation, when Mr. POPE "found his prefence fo effentially concerned his friend's "intereft and future fupport, he broke through all his en

gagements, and in the depth of winter, and ill ways, "flew to his affiftance. On his coming, the Duchefs "fecured to Mr. Hooke five thoufand pounds; and by that 66 means attached him to her fervice. But foon after the "took occafion, as was ufual with her, to quarrel with him.

1 "Her ev'ry turn by violence purfu’d,

3 T

"Not more a form her hate, than gratitude.”

Thus Mr. Hooke reprefented the matter. The reafon f gave of her fudden diflike of him, was his attempt to pervert her to popery. This is not without probability: for he finding her Grace (as appears from the Account of her Conduct) without any religion, might think it an act of no common charity to give her his own.

moted,

2