sent Earl of Sunderland. The opera of Rofamond was written, while he poffeff ed that employment. What doubts foever have been raised about the merit of the music, which, as the Italian taste at that time began wholly to prevail, was 1 thought sufficiently inexcufable, because it was the composition of an Englishman; the poetry of this piece has given as much pleasure in the closet, as others have afforded from the stage, with all the afsistance of voices and instruments.

The comedy called The Tender Hufband appeared much about the fame time, to which Mr. Addison wrote the prologue. Sir Richard Steele surprised him with a very handsome dedication of this play, and has fince acquainted the public, that he owed fome of the most taking scenes of it to Mr. Addison.

His next step in his fortune, was to the post of Secretary under the late Marquis of Wharton, who was appointed Lord-Lieutenant of Ireland in the year 1709. As I have proposed to

to

touch but very lightly on those parts of his life, which do not regard him as an author, I shall not enlarge upon the great reputation he acquired by his turn to business, and his unblemished integrity, in this and other employments. It must not be omitted here, that the falary of keeper of the records in Ireland was confiderably raised, and that post bestowed upon him, at this time, as a mark of the Queen's favour. He was in that kingdom, when he first discovered Sir Richard Steele to be author of The Tatler, by an observation upon Virgil, which had been by him communicated to his friend. The assistance, he occasionally gave him afterwards in the course of the paper, did not a little contribute to advance its reputation; and, upon the change of the ministry, he found leifure to engage more constantly in that work, which however was droptat.. last, as it had been taken up, without his participation.

In

In the last paper, which closed those celebrated performances, and in the preface to the last volume, Sir Richard Steele has given to Mr. Addison the honour of the most applauded pieces in that collection. But as that acknowledgment was delivered only in general terms, without directing the public to the several papers: Mr. Addifon, who was content with the praise arifing from his own works, and too delicate to take any part of that which belonged to others, afterwards thought fit to distinguish his writings in the Spectators and Guardians, by such marks as might remove the least possibility of mistake in the most undifcerning readers. It was necessary that his share in the Tatlers should be adjusted in a complete collection of his works; for which reason Sir Richard Steele, in compliance with the request of his deceased friend, delivered to him by the editor, was pleased tomark with his own hand those Tatlers, which are inferted in this edition, and

even to point out several, in the writing of which they both were concerned.

The plan of the Spectator, as far as it regards the feigned person of the author, and of the several characters that compose his club, was projected in concert with Sir Richard Steele. And, because many passages in the course of the work would otherwise be obscure, I have taken leave to insert one single paper, written by Sir Richard Steele, wherein those. characters are drawn, which may serve as a Dramatis Persona, or as so many pictures for an ornament and explication of the whole. As for the distinct papers, they were never or seldom shown to each other by their respective authors; who fully answered the promise they had made, and far out-went the expectation they had raised, of pursuing their labour in the same spirit and strength, with which it was begun. It would have been impossible for Mr. Addifon, who made little or no use of VOL. I. letters

a

letters sent in by the numerous correfpondents of the Spectator, to have executed his large share of this task, in so exquisite a manner; if he had not ingrafted into it many pieces, that had lain by him in little hints and minutes, which he from time to time collected, and ranged in order, and moulded into the form in which they now appear. Such are the essays upon Wit, the Pleasures of the Imagination, the Critique upon Milton, and some others, which I thought to have connected in a continued series in this edition; though they were at first published with the interruption of writings on different subjects. But as such a scheme would have obliged me to cut off several graceful introductions and circumstances, peculiarly adapted to the time and occasion of printing them, I durst not pursue that attempt.

The Tragedy of Cato appeared in public in the year 1713, when the greatest part of the last act was added by