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AS FIRST OF HIS CLASS
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S.1 H WlJL L Zd M JOWMS K^T
Bxlibri*
WORKS
OF
SIR WILLIAM JONES.
WITH
THE LIFE OF THE AUTHOR,
BY
LORD TEIGNMOUTIL
IN THIRTEEN VOLUMES.
VOLUME I.
LONDON:
PRINTED TOR JOHN STOCKDALE, PICCADILLY;
AND JOHN WALKER, PATERNOSTER-ROW.
1807.
l-rlnted by T. DAVISON,
Whitefriars.
LIBTIAKY
UNIVERSITY OF < NIA
SANTA BAEBAHA
v.i
MEMOIRS
OF
THE LIFE,
WRITINGS AND CORRESPONDENCE,
OF
SIR WILLIAM JONES,
TO LADY JONES.
MADAM,
I have the honour to prefent
to your Ladyfhip, the Memoirs of the
Life of Sir William Jones; and it will
afford me the fincereft pleafure to know,
that the expectations which induced you
to requeft me to undertake this work,
have not been difappointed by the pe-
rufal of it.
I have the honour to be,
madam,
Your Ladyfhip's moll obedient
humble Servant,
TEIGNMOUTH.
Clapham,
June 20, 1804.
PREFACE.
IN prefenting the public with an account of
the Life of Sir WILLIAM JONES, I feel
a particular anxiety, to guard againft the
charge of prefumption for an undertaking,
which may be thought to require a more
than ordinary fhare of learning and abilities.
I hope therefore, to have credit for a declar-
ation, that nothing but the earneft folicita-
tion of Lady Jones, who knew my affection
for her Hufband when living, and my un-
abated regard for his memory, and who con-
ceived that theie qualifications might fupply
the deficiency of more effential talents, could
have prevailed upon me, to enter upon a
Jlterary career, {o foreign to the habits of a
V •
VI 11
life, of which more than fifty years are now
elapfed.
It may be proper to notice the materials,
which I have ufed in this compilation, and
to explain the plan which I have adopted in
the arrangement of them. The firft, is a
fingle fheet written by Sir William Jones,
containing fhort notices of his lituation and
occupations during every year of his life ; it
is indeed extended beyond the date of his
exiflence, to the 50th year, oppofite 16 which
the words <rw ®z$, if God pfeqfes, are infert-
ed ; it appears to have been haftily written,
a few months only before his death, and al-
though the dates are fometimes inaccurate,
and the notices too brief to fupply more than
a reference, it fuggefted enquiries which have
fometimes terminated fatisfactorily, though
more frequently in difappointment. This
paper however dictated the plan of the work,
and I have endeavoured, as far as my mate-
rials permitted, to trace the life of Sir Wil-
liam Tones, year by year.
For the firft twenty-two years of it, my
IX
authorities are ample and fatisfattory ; they
confift principally of memoranda written by
Sir William himfelf, and in defcribing the
occurrences of this period, I have frequently
availed myfelf of his own words. I wifh in-
deed that I could have ufed them exclufively,
but the paper is not altogether in a form to
admit of publication.
The account of the laft twelve years of his
life in India, is chiefly fupplied by my own
recollection, affifted by information collected
from his writings and correfpondence.
Of the events of his life between 1768, his
twenty-fecond year, and the date of his em-
barkation for India in 1783, my information
is lefs complete, although I have fpared no
diligence in endeavouring to collect all that
could be obtained. I was in hopes that the
recollection of his contemporaries at Oxford,
where he occafionally refided until he left
England, might have fupplied fome material
anecdotes, and that farther information might
have been procured from his companions in
Weft minder Hall, or on the Circuit, but my
X
refearches have had little fuccefs, and I am
chiefly indebted to his correfpondence for the
information which I have been able to com-
municate.
In the arrangement of thefe materials, it
was my wifh, as far as poflible, to make Sir
William Jones defcribe himfelf; and with
this view, I have introduced his letters into
the body of the Memoirs. They develop
his occupations, hopes, purfuits, and feel-
ings ; and although the narrative, from the
introduction of them, may lofe fomething in
point of connection, this inconvenience, I
flatter myfelf^ will be more than compen-
fated by the letters themfelves. By this
mode they will excite an intereft, which they
might have failed to produce, if the fubftance
or fubjecls of them only had been interwoven
into the narrative, with a reference to the
letters themfelves in the Appendix.
This arrangement has however impofed
upon me the neceliity of translating many of
the letters of Sir William Jones and his
learned correfpondents, from the Latin or
XI
French, and I have endeavoured to give the
fenfe of them in a plain familiar ftyle. But
I muft warn the reader, that he is to expect
nothing more in thefe transitions, and that
thofe who are qualified to perufe the original
letters of Sir William Jones, will find in them
an elegance which I do not pretend to trans-
fufe into my verfion of them. Some few
fentences of the original letters have been
purpofeiy omitted in the tranflation, and
many paffages of the originals themfelves have
been fupprefled.
The Latin letters of Sir William Jones are
printed in the Appendix, and with refpeel to
them it is further proper to obferve, that in
confequence of interlineations, corrections,
erafures, and mutilation from time, I could
not always afcertain the exact words which
he ultimately adopted, In fuch cafes I have
been compelled to exercife my own judg-
ment, and I deftre the reader to notice this
remark, left any inaccuracy of mine mould
be imputed to a man, who was equally qua-
Xll
lified to guide the tafte of the elegant, and
correct the errors of the learned.
To elucidate the life, occupations, and
opinions of Sir William Jones, was the prin-
cipal object which I had in view, in the
lelection of the letters now prefented to the
public ; fome have been inferted, as calcu-
lated in my opinion to afford entertainment
to the reader. I am very fenfible that many
of thefe letters relate to topics not generally
interesting : engaged in literary purfuits from
ft
his earlieft youth, extending and cultivating
them with ardour during his life, and neve 1 '
lofmg fight of them under any accumulation
of bufinefs, the letters of Sir William Jones
neceffarily refer to habits fo dear to him, and
fo long eflablifhed ; and I mull requeft the
reader to carry this remark with him to the
perufal of his correfpondence throughout,
and particularly of the letters written by him
in Bengal, which frequently relate to Indian
literature, as well as to fubjecls and occupa-
tions peculiar to that country,
• • »
Xiii
The Memoirs and Appendix contain Tome
original compofitions of Sir William Jones,
which have not hitherto been published ;
they are not of equal importance with thofe
of which the public are in pofTeflion ; there
are ftill more, which I have not ventured to
print.
It would have been eafy to have enlarged
the fize of thefe volumes, but having no am-
bition to extend them beyond their proper
limits, I have confined them as clofely as I
could to the objecl: of them, that of elucidat-
ing the life and opinions of Sir William
Jones. With this rule conftantly in my re-
collection, I have avoided diflertations on the
events of the times ; the notice which I have
taken of characters incidentally mentioned,
is brief and explanatory only ; and I have
fupprelTed many obfervations, which would
have added more to the bulk of the Memoirs,
than to the information or entertainment of
the reader.
I have now given fuch explanation on the
fubjeel of the Memoirs, as appeared to me
XIV
neceflary ; but I cannot conclude the Preface,
without mentioning fome information which
materially affects an important paflagq in
thefe Memoirs, vol. ii. p. 249, and which I
received from Bengal, long after it had been
printed.
The paflage alluded to, is dated to be an
exact tranflation from one of the mythologi-
cal books of the Hindus ; it firft appeared in
a note annexed by Sir William Jones, to an
EJ/ay on Egypt and the Nile, in the 3d vol.
of the Afiatic Refearches, by Lieutenant
(now Captain) Wilford, and relates to Noah
(under the defignation of Satyavrata) and
his three fons.
Captain Wilford has fince had the morti-
fication and regret to difcover, that he was
impofed upon by a learned Hindu, who af-
fifted his inveftigations, that the Parana, in
which he actually and carefully read the paf-
fage which he communicated to Sir William
Jones, as an extract from it, does not contain
it, and that it was interpolated by the dex-
trous introduction of a forged fheet, difco-
XV
loured, and prepared for the purpofe of de~
ception, and which having ferved this pur-
pofe, was afterwards withdrawn.
The uncommon anxiety of Captain Wil-
ford to re-examine all the authorities quoted
in his efTay, led to the detection of the im-
pofition, and he immediately determined to
publifh it to the world, in another efTay
which he was then preparing, and which I
underftand to be now printing in Bengal.
To guard againft the effects of any accident
which might prevent the execution of this
determination, he communicated the circum-
ftance to his friends, that it might eventually
be made known to the public, and in the ex-
planation now fubmitted to them, I only an-
ticipate the folicitude of Captain Wilford, to
expofe the impofition which has been prac-
tifed on him *.
* The particulars of the imposition practised upon
him by the pandit, whom he employed in making ex-
tracts from the books of the Hindus, are detailed by
Captain Wilford, in the introduction to a work now
printing in Bengal, under the title of An ESSAY on the
XVI
In vol. ii. p. 1 75, of the Memoirs, the
reader will find mention of an unfuccefsful
Sacred Isles in the West, with other Essays connected
with that Work.
In the course of collating the Sanscrit authorities quot-
ed or referred to, in this Essay, he discovered some
discolorations in the manuscripts, which led to suspicions
of deception, which examination fully verified. The
discovery naturally excited an apprehension, that a si-
milar imposition had been practised upon him, with
respect to his former Essay on Egypt and the Nile, and
he had the mortification to find it well grounded. His
first step was to inform his friends of it, either verbally,
or by letters, that he might secure at least the credit of
the first disclosure.
" The forgeries of the pandit, (Captain Wilford ob-
" serves,) were of three kinds: in the first, a word or
* e two onlv was altered. In the second, were such le-
" gends, as had undergone a more material alteration ;
" and in the third, all those which he had written from
" memory.
" With regard to those of the first class, when he
" found that I was resolved to make a collation of the
" manuscript, he began to adulterate and disfigure his
ft own manuscript, mine, and the manuscripts of the
" college, by erasing the original name of the country,
" and putting that of Egypt or of Swetani in its place.
" To prevent my detecting those of the second class,
" which were not numerous, but of the greatest import-
" ance in their nature, (and as books in India are not
" bound as in Europe, and every leaf is loose,) he took
M out one or two leaves, and substituted others with ac
CONTENTS
TO THE
CORRESPONDENCE IN TltE MEMOIRS-
MORRIS, Lewis, Esq. to William Jones, Esq. Father to
Sir William Jones - - vol. i. — page 2
LETTERS from SIR WILLIAM JONES
TO PAGES
Althorp - Lord * vol.
Anonymous - - vol. ii. — 34
Asaph - Bishop of - vol. i. — 345, 384
Ashburton - Lord - vol. ii. — 5
Banks - Sir Jos. Bart. vol. ih— J ^4, i8i > 210 >
Bayer - F. P. - vol. i.— 210, 228
Burnet - J. Lord Monboddo vol. ii.— 168
I#e— V. I. c
CONTENTS.
LETTERS from SIR WILLIAM JONES
TO
Caldecott
Cartwright
Chapman
Czartoriski -
Cornvvallis -
PAG2S
T. Esquire vol. ii.— 77, 128, 164
The Rev. E. vol. i.
C311, 321, 329,
£340, 356, 370
Charles, Esq. vol. ii. — 36, 39, 67
Prince Adam vol. i. — 297
Earl - vol. ii.— 140
D. B.
Eyre -
Ford -
Gibbon
llalhed
Hardynge
Hastings
Hawkins
Hyde -
Howard
- - - vol. i — 169
Mr. Baron - vol. i.— 388
Dr. - - vol. ii.— 133, 201
Mr. - - vol. i.— 364
N. B. Esq. - vol. i. — 128
G. Esquire - vol. ii.— 77, 166, 209
Warren, Esq. vol. ii. — 17, 217
Mr. - - vol. i.— 176, 182
-,.■'. , •• C29, 30, 82, 84,
Mr. Justice - vol. 11.— ^ 17l>176jl85
Mr.
- vol. i — 224
Macpherson - Sir J. Bart. - vol
C54,55, 57, 59,
. ii.— ] 60, 64, 74, 79,
£166, 205
Michaelis
Milman
Morris
Or me
Price
G.S. -
Dr.
R. Esquire
Robert, Esq.
Dr. -
vol. i.— 231
vol. i.— 314
vol. ii.— 207
vol. i.— 184
vol. ii.— 200
CONTENTS.
TO
Reviczki
Russel
Schultens
LETTERS from SIR WILLIAM JONES
i
PAGES
c.
Dr. P.
vol. i
H. A. -
V0 1 ij_JS2, 66,98, 125,
vol. 11. £ 163
, . (210, 216, 246
V01 ' ** (267, 361
Shipley
Miss E.-
vol. ii — 96
Shipley
William, Esq.
vol. ii. — 103, 167, 202
Shore
John, Esq. -
C 110, 111, 115,
\ 116, 119, 181,
vol. ii.— < 156, 161, 162,
) 168, 170, 173,
V.174, 187, 226
Sinclair
Sir J. Bart.
vol. ii.— 208
Sister
-
vol. i.— 39
Sloper
Mrs.
vol. ii.— 203
Spencer
Walker
Wetherel
Wheeler
Lady
vol i_J 11S > 131 > ,36 >
(232, 396
Jos. Cowper, Esq. vol. ii. — 143
Dr. - - vol. i.— 327
Dr. - - vol. i. — 319
-1T7-, T -p fvol.i. — 109, 17'
Wilmot - Jon , Esq. A ... ' 10
* tvol.u. — 130, 18
2
84
Yeates
Mr. Thomas
vol. i.— 376, 3.79
LETTERS to SIR WILLIAM JONES
FROM
ASAPH - Bishop of
Ashburton Lord
vol. i.— 347, 359, 3(2*
vol, i. — 461
CONTENTS.
LETTERS to SIR WILLIAM JONES
FROM PAGES
Bates - Mr. - - vol. i.— 167
Burke - Edmund, Esq. - vol. i. — 280, 360
Burrowes - Mr. - - vol. i. — 313
Cartwright
The Rev. E. -
vol. i. — 310
Czartoriski
Prince Adam -
vol. i.— 292— vol. ii. 17S
Devonshire
Dutchess of
vol. i. — 398
Franklin -
Benjamin
vol. i. — 405
Howard -
Mr.
vol. i. — 223
Hunt
Dr.
vol. i.— 191, 192, 20S
Parr
The Rev. Dr. - vol. i.— 200
Reviczki - C.
'vol. i. — 79, 82, 88 y 92,
96,146,149,177,
237, 302
vol. ii. — 198
Schultens -
H. A.
-
? vohl --^316
Spencer -
Lady
-
- vol. i.— 233
Stuart
Dr,
-
- vol. i.— 283, 300,301
Sullivan -
J. -
m
.- vol. ii. — 314
Swinney -
J- -
T
- vol. i.— 28 1
N oTE , — The originals of the Latin and French letters, of
which translations are inserted in the Memoirs, will be found
in the Appendix, by referring to the number annexed to the
translation.
CONTENTS.
LETTERS to SIR WILLIAM JONES.
FROM PAGES
Tucker - Dean - - vol. i.~ 285,291
Waddelove Mr. - - vol. i.— 226
INDEX. TO THE APPENDIX,
VOL. II.
PAGE
A. The design of Britain Discovered, an Heroic
Poem, in twelve books - 429
Britain Discovered, an Heroic Poem - - 444
B. A Prefatory Discourse to An Essay on the
History of the Turks - 455
No. 1. De Graecis Oratoribus - 496
2. Terzetti - 498
3. An Ode of Jami - 501
4. A Song from the Persian - - - 502
5. Plassey Plain. A Ballad - 503
6. Verses on seeing Miss * * * ride by him
without knowing her - 505
7. Au Firmament - 507
8. A Song - j 50s
Sketch of a Tragedy - - - 5 1 1
Fac Simile of the Writing of Sir William
Jones - - - . - 513
Verses on the Death of Sir William Jones;
by her Grace the Dutchess of Devonshire 513
DIRECTIONS TO THE BINDER.
IN consequence of the two volumes of the Memoirs
being prefixed to the Works of Sir William Jones, the
J st, 2, 3, 4,5,6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11th volumes, become now
the 3d, 4, 5, &c. two volumes onward. The Binder will
therefore be very careful to place the plates in the follow-
ing order :
All the Plates marled with Volume I. to be placed in Volume III.
II IV.
Ill V.
IV VI.
V VII.
, VI VIII.
grrata. — Place the Plates marked vol. VI. page 26, Nos. 1, 2, 3, &c.
to 11, at page 183 VIII.
... VII IX.
VIII x.
IX XI.
X XII.
XI XIII.
The etched head of Sir William Jones to be placed
opposite the title-page of volume I. of the Memoirs j the
fac-simile of his writing at p. 513 of volume II. of the
Memoirs; and the engraved head of Sir William JoNEr,
to be placed opposite the title to volume III.
XV11
attempt of the Hindus, to impofe upon Sir
William Jones, a forged Sanfcrit book on
oaths.
The fame fagacity which detected the
" adulterous legend. In books of some antiquity, it is
" not uncommon to see a few new leaves inserted in the
" room of others that were wanting.
" To conceal the more numerous impositions of the
" third class, he had the patience to write two volumin-
" ous sections, supposed to belong, one to the Scanda-
" Parana, and the other to the Bramdnda, in which
" he connected all the legends together, in the usual
" style of the Puranas. These two sections, as he wrote
" them, consist of no less than 12,000 slocas or lines,
" the title of which he borrowed."
The above is an extract from Mr. Wilford's Essay,
and affords a remarkable though not a singular instance
of industry and ingenuity in literary forgeries. I shall
only add, from the same Essay, the following lines im-
mediately applicable to the passage which has occasioned
my remarks.
" A few instances of the impositions of my pandit,
" will exemplify his mode of proceeding. The first is a
" legend of the greatest importance, and is said to be
" extracted from the Padma. It contains the history
" of Noah and his three sons, and is written in a mas-
'* terly style. But unfortunately there is not a word
" of it to be found in that Parana. It is however
w mentioned, though in less explicit terms, in many
" Puranas, and the pandit took particular care in point-
1 ing out to me several passages, which more or less
" confirmed this interesting legend."
Lifc—V. I. b
xvin
fraud in this inftance, might have difcovered
the forgery of the pundit employed by Mr.
Wilford, if the original document had been
fubmitted to the infpection of Sir William
Jones. In this country the fabrications of
a Chatterton, efcaped for a feafon, the pene-
tration of the learned and acute.
In the Poftfcript to the Memoirs, I have
omitted to mention in its proper place, that
a monument was erected at Oxford to the
memory of Sir William Jones, by a fubferip-*
tion of the gentlemen refiding in Bengal,
who had received their education at the uni-
verfity there and at Cambridge. The in-?
fcription on the elegant monument executed
by Flaxman, at the expenfe of Lady Jones,
and placed in the anti- chamber to the Chapel
of Univerfity College, Oxfprd, is annexed
to the Preface.
It has frequently been remarked, that the
characters of very eminent men cannot be
clofely examined without a confiderable dir
ir/inuticn of the refpect, which their general
fame has excited.
XIX
From whatever fource this remark may
have proceeded, or to whatever degree of
truth it may be entitled, I cannot but ex-
prefs a folicitude, that it may derive no con-
firmation from the work now prefented to
the public. ImprefTed with admiration, re-
fpe£t, and efteem for the memory of Sir
William Jones, whether I contemplate his
genius, his learning, or his virtues, I wifh
to transfer my own feelings to the minds of
my readers; but whilft I diftruft my own
efforts, I am equally anxious to guard againft
extravagant expectations in them, and any
want of difc eminent in myfelf.
TEIGNMOUTH.
GVLIELMI . JONES . EQVITIS . AVRATI,
Q VI - CLARVM . IN . L1TERIS . NOMEN . A . PATRE. ACCEPTYM,
MAGNA . CVMVLAVIT . GLORIA.
INGENIVM . IN. ILLO. ERAT . SCIENTIARVM. OMNIVM. CAPAX,
DISCIPJLINISQVE . OPTIMIS . D1LIGENTISSIME . EXCVLTVM.
ERAT . INDOLES I AD . VIRTVTEM . EXIMIA,
XT. IN . IVST1TIA . LIBERTATE . RELIGIONE . VINDICANDA,
MAXIWE . PROBATA.
QVICQVID . AVTEM . VTILE . VEL . HONESTVM
CONSILIIS.EXEMPLO. AVCTORITATE . VI VVS. PROMO VERAT,
ID . CMNE .SCRIPTIS . SVIS . IMMORTALIBVS,
ETIAM . NVNC . TVETVR . ATOVE . ORNAT.
PIL£STANTISSIMVM . HVNC . VIRVM,
CVM . A . PROVINCIA . BENGALA,
UBI.IVDICIS . INTEGERRIMI . MVNVS
PER . DECENNIVM . OBIERAT,
REDITVM . IN . PATRIAM . MEDITARETVR,
INGRVENTIS . MORBI . VIS. OPPRESSIT,
IX . KAL . IVN. . A. C . MDCCLXXXXIII. . JET. . XLVIII.
VT . QVIBVS . IN . .EDIBVS,
IPSE . OLIM . SOCIVS . INCLARVISSET,
IN . IISDEM . MEMORI A . E1VS . POTISS1MVM.CONSERVARET I R
HONORAR1VM . HOC . MONVMENTVM,
ANNA . MARIA . FILIA . JONATHAN . SHIPLEY . EPIS. . ASAPH,
CONIVGI.SVO.B.. M.
P..C.
MEMOIR;
O
OF THE
I1FF-, WRITINGS, AND CORRESPONDENCE,
OF
SIR WILLIAM JONES,
THE origin of the family of Sir William
Jones on the maternal fide, has been traced,
by the induftry of Lewis Morris, a learned
Britiih antiquary, to the ancient Princes and
Chieftains of North Wales. "With whatever
delight, however, the Cambrian genealogift
might purfue the line of his anceftry, a bar-
ren catalogue of uncouth names would fur-
nifli no entertainment to the reader. I fhall
only tranfcribe from the lift a fingle and
remarkable name in one of the collateral
branches, that of William o Dregaian, who
died in one thoufand five hundred and eighty
Life—V. I. B
2
one, at the age of one hundred and five
years ; with the note annexed to it, that by
three wives he had thirty-fix ehildren, feven
more by two concubines, and that eighty of
his iflue, during his life, were living in the
parifh of Tregaian, in Anglefey.
But I infert, without apology for the anti-
cipation, a letter addreffed by Mr. Morris to
the father of Sir William Jones, as an inter-
efting memorial of an ancient cuftom which
is daily falling into difufe, and a pleafing
fpecimen of the mind and talents of the
writer.
To William Jones, Efquire.
SlR ; January 1, 1748-
It was a cuftom among the Ancient
Britons (and Hill retained in Anglefey) for
the moft knowing among them in the de-
fcent of families, to fend their friends of the
fame ftdck or family, a dydd calan Ionaior a
caknnigy a prefent of their pedigree ; which
was in order, I prelume, to keep up a friend-
(hip among relations, which thefe people
3
preferred furprifingly, and do to this day
among the meaneft of them, to the fixth and
feventh degree.
Some writers take notice that the Gauls
alfo were noted for this affection and regard
for their own people, though ever fo diftantly
related. Thefe thing?, to be fure, are trifles :
but all other things in the world are trifles
too.
I take men's bodies in the fame fenfe as I
take vegetables. Young trees propagated by
feed or grafts, from a good old tree, certainly
owe forne regard to their primitive flock,
provided trees could acT; and think j and as
for my part, the very thought of thofe brave
people, who frruggled fo long with a fuperior
power for their liberty, infpires me with fuch
an idea of them, that I almoft adore their
memories. Therefore, to keep up that old
laudable cuftom, I herewith fend you a ca-
hnnig of the fame kind as that above men-
tioned ; which I defrre you will accept of.
I have reafon to know, it is founded on
good authority; for both my father and mo-
B 2
4
ther were related to your mother, and eame
from the fame ftock mentioned in the in-
clofed ; whieh is the reafon I am fo well ac-
quainted with your mother's defcent; and on
the fame account, till further enquiry, an
utter ftranger to your father's family.
x^s you were young when you left the
country, it cannot be fuppofed that you could
know much of thefe things. I have had too
much time there ; I wifli I had not ; for I
might have applied it to better ufe than I have.
If this gives you any pleafure, I fhall be glad
of it ; if not, commit it to the flames : and
believe me to be, w T ith truth and fincerity, &c.
Lewis Morris.
Leaving the genealogical fplendour of the
family of Sir William Jones to the contempla-
tion of the antiquary, it may be remarked
with pleafure, that its lateft defcendants have
a claim to reputation, founded upon the ho-
nourable and unambiguous teltimony of per-
fonal merit. His father was the celebrated
philofopher and mathematician who fo emi-
5
neatly diftinguifhed himfelf in the commence-
ment of the laft century: and a fhort, but
more accurate fketch of his life than has hi-
therto appeared, which I am enabled to give
from the authority of his fon, may be accept-
able to the lovers of fcience.
Mr. William Jones was born in the year
1680, in Anglefey; his parents were yeomen,
or little farmers, on that ifland ; and he there
received the beft education which they were
able to afford: but the induftrious exertion
of vigorous intellectual powers, fupplied the
defects of inadequate inftruction, and laid the
foundation of his future fame and fortune.
From his earlier! years, Mr. Jones difcovered
a propenfity to mathematical ftudies, and,
having cultivated them with alliduity, he be-
gan his career in life, by teaching mathema-
tics on-board a man of war: and in this litu-
ation he attracted the notice, and obtained
the friendfhip, of Lord Anfon. In his
twenty-fecond year, Mr. Jones publifhed a
Treatife on the Art of Navigation j which was
received with great approbation. He was
6
prefent at the capture of Vigo, in 1702; and,
having joined his comrades in quefl of pil-
lage, he eagerly fixed upon a bookfeller's
fhop as the object of his depredation; but
finding in it no literary treafures, which were
the fole plunder that he coveted, he content-
ed himfelf with a pair of fchTars, which he
frequently exhibited to his friends as a trophy
of his military fuccefs, relating the anecdote
by which he gained it. He returned with
the fleet to England, and immediately after-
wards eftablifhed himfelf as a teacher of ma-
thematics, in London ; where, at the age of
twenty-fix, he publiihed his Sytiopjis palma-
riorum Mathefeos; a decifive proof of his
early and confummate proficiency in his fa-
vourite fcience.
The private character of Mr. Jones was
refpectable, his manners were agreeable and
inviting; and thefe qualities not only contri-
buted to enlarge the circle of his friends*
whom his eftablifhed reputation for science
had attracted, but alfo to fecure their attach-
ment to him,
7
Amongft others who honoured him with
their efteem, I am authorized to mention the
great and virtuous Lord Hardwicke. Mr.
Jones attended him as a companion on the
circuit when he was chief juftice; and this
nobleman, when he afterwards held the great
fcal, availed himfelf of the opportunity to
teftify his regard for the merit and character
of his friend, by conferring upon him the
office of fecretary for the peace. He was alfo
introduced to the friendfTiip of Lord Parker
(afterwards prefident of the Royal Society),
which terminated only with his death; and,
amongft other diftinguifhed characters in the
annals of fcience and literature, the names of
Sir Ifaac Newton, Halley, Mead, and Samuel
Johnfon, may be enumerated as the intimate
friends of Mr. Jones. By Sir Ifaac Newton,
he was treated with particular regard and
confidence, and prepared, with his aflent, the
very elegant edition of fmall tracts on the
higher mathematics, in a mode which ob-
tained the approbation, 'and increafed the
efteem, of the author for him.
8
After the retirement of Lord Macclesfield
to Sherborne Caftle, Mr. Jones refided with
his lordfhip as a member of his family, and
inftructed him in the fciences. In this fitu-
ation, he had the misfortune to lofe the
greateft part of his property, the accumulation
of induftry and economy, by the failure of a
banker: but the friendfhip of Lord Maccles-
field diminifhed the weight of the lofs, by
procuring for him a finecure place of confi-
derable emolument- The fame nobleman,
who was then Teller of the Exchequer, made
him an offer of a more lucrative fituation;
but he declined the acceptance of it, as it
would have impofed on him the obligation of
more official attendance, than was agreeable
to his temper, or compatible with his attach-
ment to fcientific purfuits.
In this retreat, he became acquainted with
Mifs Mary Nix, the youngeft daughter of
George Nix, a cabinet-maker in London,
who, although of low extraction, had faifed
himfclf to eminence in his profeffion, and,
from the honeft and pleafant franknefs of
9
his conver (ktion, was admitted to the tables
of the great, and to the intimacy of Lord
Macclesfield. The acquaintance of Mr.
Jones with Mils Nix, terminated in mar-
riage; and, from this union, fprang three
children, the laft of whom, the late Sir
William Jones, was born in London, on the
eve of the festival of Saint Michael, in the
year 1746; and a few days after his birth
was baptized by the chriftian name of his
father. The firft fon, George, died in his
infancy ; and the fecond child, a daughter,
Mary, who was born in 1736, married Mr.
Rainsford, a merchant retired from bufinefs
in opulent circumftances. This lady perifh-
ed miferably, during the year 1802, in con-
fequence of an accident from her clothes
catching fire.
Mr. Jones furvived the birth of his fon
William but three years; he was attacked
with a diforder, which the fagacity of Dr.
Mead, who attended him with the anxiety of
an affectionate friend, immediately difcover-
ed to be a polypus in the heart, and wholly
10
incurable. This alarming fecret was com-
municated to Mrs. Jones, who, from an af-
fectionate but miftaken motive, could never
be induced to difcover it to her hufband; and,
on one occafion, difplayed a remarkable in-
ftance of felf- command and addrefs in the
concealment of it.
A well-meaning friend, who knew his
dangerous fituation, had written to him a
long letter of condolence, replete with phi-
lofophic axioms on the brevity of life,; Mrs.
Jones, who opened the letter, difcovcred the
purport of it at a glance, and, being defired
by her hufoand to read it, compofed in the
moment another lecture (o clearly and ra-
pidly, that he had no fufpicion of the decep-
tion ; and this {he did in a ftyle fo cheerful
and entertaining, that it greatly exhilarated
him. He died foon after, in July 1749,
leaving behind him a great reputation and
moderate property.
The hiflory of men of letters is too often
a melancholy detail of human mifery, exhi-
biting the unavailing ftruggles of genius and
11
learning agairift penury, and life confumed
in fruitlefs expe«5tation of patronage and re-
ward. We contemplate with fatisfaction the
reverfe of this picture in the hiftory of Mr.
Jones, as we trace him in his progrefs from
obfcurity to diilinction, and in his participa-
tion of the friendihip and beneficence of the
iirft characters of the times. Nor is it lefs
grateful to remark that the attachment of
his profefTed friends did not expire with his
life ; after a proper interval, they vifited his
widow, and vied in their offers of fervice to
her; amongft others to whom me was par-
ticularly obliged, I mention with refpect,
Mr. Baker, author of a Treatife on the Im-
proved Microfcope, who afforded her im-
portant afli fiance, in arranging the collection
of (hells, foffils, and other curiofities, left by
her deceafed hufband, and in difpofing of
them to the heft advantage. The library of
Mr. Jones, by a bequeft in his will, became
the property of Lord Macclesfield.
The compilers of the Biographical Dic-
tionary, in their account of Mr. Jones, have
12
aflerted, that he had completed a mathe-
matical work of thefirft importance, and had
lent the firft meet of it to the prefs, when
the indifpoiition, which terminated in his
death, obliged him to difcontinue the im-
preflion ; that, a few days before his demife,
lie entrufied the manufcript, fairly tranferib-
ed by an amanueniis, to the care of Lord
Macclesfield, who promifed to publifh it, as
well for the honour of the author, as for the
benefit of the family, to whom the property
of the work belonged. The Earl furvived
his friend many years ; but The Introduction
to the Mathematics (the alleged title of the
work) was forgotten, and, after his death,
the manufcript was not to be found. There
is no evidence in the memoranda left by Sir
William Jones, to confirm or difprove thefe
afTertions. Such of the mathematical works
of Mr. Jones as have been publifhed, are
much admired for neatnefs, brevity, and
accuracy *.
* In Button's Philosophical Dictionary, we have the
A New
following enumeration of the works of Mr. Jones:
1 ,l>
l.>
The care of the education of WitHam now
devolved upon his mother, who, in many
A New Compendium of the whole Art of Navigation,
small Svo. 1702.
Synopsis palmarxorum Matheseos; or a new Intro-
duction to the Mathematics, containing the principles of
arithmetic and geometry, demonstrated in a short and
easy method; Svo. lTOo'.
In the Philosophical Transactions: — ■
A Compendious Disposition of Equations for exhibit-
ing the Relations of Geometrical Lines.
A Tract of Logarithms.
Account of a Person killed by Lightning in Totten-
ham-court Chapel, and its Effects on the Building.
Properties of Conic Sections, deduced by a compen-
dious method.
He was also the editor of some mathematical works of
Sir Isaac Newton, under the title of " Analysis, per
quantitatum series, fluxiones, ac differentias : cum enu-
meratione linearum tertii ordinis."
In the library of Trinity-college, Cambridge, some let-
ters from Mr. Jones to Mr. Cotes, who was at that time
engaged in giving lectures at the college, are preserved.
They do not contain any material information: but
having, with the permission of the college, obtained
copies of them, by the polite assistance of Mr. Brown, I
annex them to this note, together with one from Mr.
Cotes to Mr. Jones.
Letter from Mr. Jones to Mr. Cotes.
Sir; London t September \1th t 1711.
The paper concerning Sir Isaac Newton's
method of interpolation, which you have been pleased to
14
rcfpecls, w^s eminently qualified for the tafk.
Her character, as delineated by her huiband
with fomewhat of mathematical preciiion,
is this : " that (lie was virtuous without
send me, being done so very neat, that it will be an in-
jury to the curious in these things to be kept any longer
without it; therefore must , desire that you would grant
me leave to publish it in the Philosophical Transactions.
You may be assured that I do not move this to you
without Sir Isaac's approbation, who I find is no less
willing to have it done. The new edition of the Prin-
e'tp'ia is what we wait for with great impatience, though at
the same time I believe the book will be far more valua-
ble than if it had been done in a hurry, since I find the
interruptions are necessary, and such as will render it
complete. We have nothing considerable in hand here
at present, only Mr. Demoire's Treatise on Chances,
which makes a whole transaction. He is very fond of it,
and we may expect it well done. Mr. Raphson has
printed off four or rive sheets of his history of Fluxio-
but being shewed Sir Isaac Newton's (who it xems
would rather have them write against him, than have a
piece done in that manner in his favour) he got a stop
put to it, for some time at least. Dr. Halley has almost
finished the printing of the Greenwich Observations,
which will be a work of good use, especially as it is now
freed from the trifles it was loaded with. Sir, I have
one thing which I would trouble you with further, and
that is, to let me know what lectures, or other papers of
Sir Isaac Newton's, remain in your University unpub-
lished. This may be done at your leisure. It would be
a great satisfaction to me, if I could be any way service-
'« blemifh, generous without extravagance,
" frugal but not niggard, cheerful but not
able to you here at London; and should readily embrace
any opportunity to approve and express myself, what I
am exceedingly obliged to be,
Your most affectionate friend,
And faithful servant,
William Jones.
From the Same to the Same.
Sir, London, Oct. 25, 1711.
The favour cf your account of Sir Isaac's
papers left at Cambridge, I return you my hearty thanks
for; and, as you have some further considerations about
the Doctrine of Differences, I am assured that they can-
not but be valuable; and if a few instances of the applica-
tion were given, perhaps it would not be amiss. Having
tarried some time for a convenient opportunity, I was
obliged to send you at last Moreton's book by the carrier,
though it will only satisfy you that Dr. Gregory had but
a very slender notion of the design, extent, and use of
lib. 3d of the Principta. I hope it will not be long before
you find leisure to send me what you have further done
on this curious subject. No excuse must be made
against the publishing of them, since with respect to
reputation, I dare say it will be no way to your disadvan-
tage. I have nothing of news to send you, only the
Germans and French have in a violent manner attacked
the philosophy of Sir Isaac Newton, and seem resolved
to stand by Des Cartes. Mr. Keil, as a person concerned,
has undertaken to defend and answer some things, as
Dr. Friend and Dr. Mead do in their way, the rest. I
would have sent vou the whole controversy, was I not
16
*' giddy, clofe but not fullen, ingenious but
" not conceited, of fpirit but not paffionatc,
sure that you know those only are most capable of ob-
jecting against his writings, that least understand them.
However, in a little time, you will see some of them in
the Philosophical Transactions.
I am, Sir,
Very much your friend and servant,
William Jones,
Answer to the foregoing, by Mr. Cote.s
Dear Sir,
I have received Moreton's book. I thank
you for the favour you did me in sending it. I have
looked over what relates to his way of interpolation ; but
I find no cause from thence to make any alteration.
The controversy concerning Sir Isaac's philosophy is a
piece of news that I had not heard of. I think that phi-
losophy needs no defence, especially when attacked by
Cartesians. One Mr. Green, a fellow of Clare-Hall,
seems to have nearly the same design with those German
and French objectants, whom you mention. His book is
now in our press, and almost finished I am told ; he will
add an Appendix, in which he undertakes also to square
the circle. I need not recommend his performance any
further to you.
I am, Sir, your obliged friend,
And humble servant,
R. C
17
" of her company cautious, in her friendmip
" trufty, to her parents dutiful, and to her
From Mr. Jones to Mr. Cotes.
Dear Sir, London, Jan. 11, lVll-12*
I have sent you here enclosed the
copy of a letter, that I found among Mr. Collins' s papers,
from Sir Isaac Newton to one Mr. Smith. The contents
thereof seem in a great measure to have relation to what
you are about, as being the application of the Doctrine
of Differences to the making of tables; and for that
reason I thought it might be of use to you, so far as to
see what has been done already. I shewed this to Sir
Isaac: he remembers that he applied it to all sorts or*
tables. I have more papers of Mr. Mercator's, and
others, upon this subject ; though I think none so mate-
rial to your purpose as this. I should be very glad to see
what you have done upon this subject all published ; and
I must confess, that unless you design a large volume, it
were much better to put them into the Philosophical
Transactions, for that would sufficientlypreserve them from
being lost, which is the common fate of small single tracts,
and at the same time, to save the trouble and expense of
printing them, since the subject is too curious to expect
any profit from it; and besides now, as the R.oyal Society
having done themselves the honour of choosing you at,
member, something from you cannot but be acceptable
to them. Sit Isaac himself expects these things of you,
that I formerly mentioned to him as your promise.
I am, Sir, your much obliged friend,
and humble servant,
William Jones.
I#e— V. I. C
18
" hufband ever faithful, loving, and obedi-
(i ent." She had by nature a ftrong under-
From Mr. Jones to Mr. Cotes.
Sir ; London, Feb. 6th, 1712-13.
The Royal Society having ordered one
of their books for you, and another for Mr. Saunderson,
also one for Trinity-College library, and one for the
University library ; I would not lose the opportunity of
paying you my respects, by sending them. I need not
tell you the occasion and design of that collection. You
will see readily, that it affords such light concerning what
it relates to, as could not easily have been discovered any
other way; it also shews, that your great predecessor,
whose illustrious example I don't doubt but you follow,
never employed his time about things ordinary. I have
no mathematical intelligence to send you. Mr. Keil
thinks he has discovered a very easy and practical solu-
tion of the Keplerean problem. If Moreton's book is of
no use to you, please to send it to me, though I fear it
will yield me but small assistance, having occasion for
variety of modern solstitial meridian altitudes of the Sun,
such as may be depended upon. Helvetius, Flamstead,
and the French observations, seem defective. I should
be glad to be informed where I can be supplied best. I
am extremely pleased to find that Sir Isaac's book is so
near being finished; and it is not less agreeable to me to
hear, that your own book is in such forwardness. You
are much in the right of it to print your lectures and
other papers, in a book by itself: it is better than to have
them lie up and down among other things. What I
formerly proposed as to the putting of things in the
Philosophical Transactions, is only fit for a sheet or two,
but not exceeding that. I very much long to see those
19
{landing, which was improved by his con-
versation and inftrucTiion. Under his tuition
valuable pieces, and hope you will let me know in what
time I may expect them. — Do me the justice to believe,
that I am, with all sincerity,
Your most humble servant,
William Jones.
From the Same to the Same.
Sir, London, April 29///, 1713.
Ever since I received your very kind
letter, and Moreton's book, I waited for an opportunity
of sending you some old manuscripts I had by me, and
at last am obliged to venture them by the carrier. They
relate, in some measure, to the method of Differences:
the folio one, I find, was written by one Nath. Torperly,
a Shropshire man, who, when young, was amanuensis to
Vieta, but afterwards writ against him. He was cotem-
porary with Briggs. The book, I think, can be of no
other use to you than in what relates to the history of
that method, and in having the satisfaction of seeing
what has been formerly done on that subject. I am
mightily pleased to see the end of the Principia, and re-
turn you many thanks for the instructive index, that you
have taken the pains to add, and hope it will not be long
before we shall see the beginning of that noble book. I
shall be in some pain till I hear that you have received
my old manuscript, it being a favourite purely on account
of some extravagancies in it; but I shall think it safe in
your hands.
I am, Sir,
You affectionate friend, and humble servant,
William Jones.
C 2
20
fhe became a confiderable proficient in Al-
gebra, and with a view to qualify herfelf for
the office of preceptor to her lifter's fon, who
was deftined to a maritime profeflion, made
herfelf perfect in Trigonometry, and the
Theory of Navigation. Mrs. Jones, after
From the Same to the Same.
Dear Sir, London, July llth, 1718.
It is impossible to represent to you,
with what pleasure I received your inestimable present
of the Principia, and am much concerned to find myself
so deeply charged with obligations to you, and such I
fear as all my future endeavours will never be able to re-
quite. This edition is indeed exceedingly beautiful, and
interspersed with great variety of admirable discoveries
so very natural to its great author ; but it is more so from
the additional advantage of your excellent preface, which
I wish much to get published in some of the foreign
journals; and since a better account of this book cannot
be given, I suppose it will not be difficult to get it done.
Now, this great task being done, I hope you will think
of publishing your papers, and not let such valuable
pieces lie by. As to what you mentioned in your last,
concerning my old manuscripts, though for my part I
know of nothing worth your notice publicly in them, but,
if you do find any, the end of my sending them is the
better answered ; and you know that you may do as you
please.
I am, Sir,
Your most obedient servant,
William Jones.
21
the death of her hufbanJ, was urgently and
repeatedly folicited, by the Countefs of Mac-
clesfield, to remain at Sherborne Caftle ; but
having formed a plan for the education of
her fon, with an unalterable determination
to purfue it, and being apprehenfive that her
residence at Sherborne might interfere with
the execution of it, me declined accepting
the friendly invitation of the Countefs, who
never ceafed to retain the moft affectionate
regard for her.
In the plan adopted by Mrs. Jones for the
inftruction of her fon, fhe propofed to reject
the fe verity of difciplinc, and to lead his
mind infenfibly to knowledge and exertion,
by exciting his curiofity, and directing it to
ufeful objects. To his incefTant importuni-
ties for information on cafual topics of con-
vention, which fhe watchfully Simulated,
flie conftantly replied, trendy and you will
know ; a maxim, to the obfervance of which
he always acknowledged himfelf indebted
for his future attainments. By this method,
his defire to learn became as eager as her
22
wifh to teach ; and fuch was her talent of
instruction, and his facility of retaining it,
that in his fourth year he was able to read,
diftin&ly and rapidly, any Englifh book. She
particularly attended at the fame time to the
cultivation of his memory, by making him
learn and repeat fome of the popular fpeeches
in Shakefpeare, and the beft of Gay's Fables.
If, from the fubiequent eminence of Sir
William Jones, any general concluficn mould
be eagerly drawn in favour of early tuition,
we mull not forget to advert to the uncom-
mon talents both of the pupil and the
teacher.
In common cafes, premature inftruction
has often been found to retard, rather than
accelerate, the progrefs of the intellectual
faculties ; and the fuccefs of it fo much de-
pends upon the judgment of the tutor, and
the capacity of the fcholar, upon the fkill
of the one, as well as upon the difpofition
and powers of the other, that it is impoifible
to prefcribe a general rule, when inftruction
ought to begin, or a general mode, by which
23
it fhould be conveyed ; the determination in
both cafes mull be left to the difcretion of
parents, who ought to be the moft compe-
tent to decide.
In this year of his life, Jones providen-
tially efcaped from two accidents, one of
which had nearly proved fatal to his fight,
the other to his life. Being left alone in a
room, in attempting to fcrape fome foot from
the chimney, he fell into the fire, and his
clothes were inftantly in flames : his cries
brought the fervants to his affiftance, and he
was preferved with fome difficulty •> but his
face, neck, and arms, were much burnt.
A fhort time afterwards, when his attendants
were putting on his clothes, which were im-
prudently fafhened with hooks, he flruggled,
either in play, or in fome childifh pet, and
a hook was fixed in his right eye. By due
care, under the directions of Dr. Mead,
whofe friendfhip with his family continued
unabated after his father's death, the wound
was healed; but the eye was fo much weak-
u
ened, that the fight of it ever remained im-
perfect
His propenfity to reading, which had be-
gun to difplay itfelf, was for a time checked
by thefe accidents ; but the habit was ac-
quired, and after his recovery he indulged it
without reftraint, by perufing eagerly any
books that came in his way, and with an at-
tention proportioned to his ability to com-
prehend them. In his fifth year, as he was
one morning turning over the leaves of a
Bible in his mother's clofet, his attention
was forcibly arretted by the fublime defcrip-
tion of the angel in the tenth chapter of the
Apocalypfe, and the impreflion which his
imagination received from it was never ef-
faced. At a period of mature judgment, he
confidered the pafTage as equal in fublimity
to any in the infpired writers, and far fupe-
rior to any that could be produced from
mere human compofitions ; and he was fond
of retracing and mentioning the rapture
which he felt, when he firft read it. In his
25
fixth year, by the afliftance of a friend, he
was initiated in the rudiments of the Latin
grammar, and he committed fome paflages
of it to memory ; but the dull elements of a
new language having nothing to captivate
his childifh attention, he made little progrefs
in it; nor was he encouraged to perfeverance
by his mother, who, intending him for a pub-
lic education, was unwilling to perplex his
mind with the ftudy of a dead language, be-
fore he had acquired a competent knowledge
of his native tongue.
At Michaelmas 1753, in the clofe of his
feventh year, he was placed at Harrow School,
of which the worthy and amiable Dr. Thack-
eray was then head matter, The amufe-
ments and occupations of a fchool-boy are of
little importance to the public ; yet it cannot
be uninterefting, or uninftruclive, to trace
the progrefs of a youth of genius and abilities,
from his earlieft efforts to that proficiency in
univerfal literature which he afterwards at-
tained. During the two firft years of his refi-
dence at Harrow, he was rather remarked
26
for diligence and application;, than for the fli-
periority of his talents, or the extent of his
acquifitions ; and his attention was almoft
equally divided between his books and a lit-
tle garden, the cultivation and embellishment
of which occupied all his leifure hours. His
faculties however neceffarily gained ftrength
by exercile ; and during his fchool vacations,
the fedulity of a fond parent was without in-
termifhon exerted to improve his knowledge
of his own language. She alfo taught him
the rudiments of drawing, in which fhe ex-
celled.
In his ninth year, he had the misfortune
to break his thigh-bone in a fcramble with
his fchool-fellows, and this accident detained
him from fchool twelve months. After his
relief from pain, however, the period of his
confinement was not fuffered to pafs in in-
dolence ; his mother was his conftant com-
panion, and amufed him daily with the pe-
rufal of fuch Englifh books, as fhe deemed
adapted to his tafte and capacity. The ju-
venile poems of Pope, and Dryden's Tranf-
27
lation of the iEneid, afforded him inceflant
delight, and excited his poetical talents, which
difplayed themfelves in the compofition of
verfes in imitation of his favourite authors.
But his progrcfs in clafiical learning, during
this interval, was altogether fufpended ; for
although he might have availed himfelf of
the proffered inftrucHon of a friend, in whofe
houfe he refided, to acquire the rudiments of
Latin, he was then fo unable to comprehend
its utility, and had fo little relifh for it, that
he was left unreftrained to purfue his juve-
nile occupations and amufements, and the
little which he had gained in his two firft
years, was nearly loft in the third.
On his return to fchool, he was however
placed in the fame clafs which he would have
attained, if the progrefs of his ftudies had
not been interrupted. He was of courfe far
behind his fellow-labourers of the fame {land-
ing, who erroneoufly afcribed his infuffici-
ency to lazinefs or dulnefs, while the matter
who had raifed him to a fituation above his
powers, required exertions of which he was
28
incapable, and corporal punishment and de-
gradation were applied, for the non-perform-
ance of tafks, which he had never been in-
llntcted to furnifh. But in truth he far ex-
celled his fchool-fellows in general, both in
diligence and quicknefs of apprehenfion; nor
was he of a temper to fubmit to imputations,
which he knew to be unmerited. Punifh-
ment failed to produce the intended effect ;
but his emulation was roufed. He devoted
himfelf inceffantly to the perufal of various
elementary treatifes, which had never been ex-
plained nor even recommended to him; and
having thus acquired principles, he applied
them with fuch fkill and fuccefs, that in a
few months he not only recovered the ftation
from which he had been degraded, but was
at the head of his clafs: his compofitions
were correct, his analyfis accurate, and he
uniformly gained every prize offered for the
bed exercife. He voluntarily extended his
ftudies beyond the prefcribed limits, and, by
folitary labour, having acquired a competent
knowledge of the rules of profody, he com-
29
pofed verfes in imitation of Ovid; a tafk,
which had never been required from any of
the ftudents in the lower fchool at Harrow.
The behaviour of the matter to Jones,
made an impreffion on his mind, which he
ever remembered with abhorrence. Little
doubt can be entertained, that he might have
been itimulated to equal exertions, if encou-
ragement had been fubftituted for feverity,
and inftru&ion for difgrace. The accumu-
lation of punifhment for his inability to foar,
before he had been taught to fly, (I ufe his
own expreffion) might have rendered the feel-
ings callous; and a fenfe of the injuitice at-
tending the infliction of it, was calculated to
deftroy the refpec! due to magifterial au-
thority, and its influence over the fchoiar.
It is a material and perhaps unavoidable de-
fect in the fyftem of education at public
fchools, that the neceffity of regulating in-
ftruction by general rules, mult often pre-
clude that attention to the tempers and capa-
cities of individuals, by which their attain-
ments might be eflentially promoted.
so
In his twelth year, Jones was moved into
the upper fchool. Of the retentive powers of
his memory at this period, the following
anecdote is a remarkable inftance. His
fchool -fellows propofed to amufe themfelves
with the reprefentation of a play; and at his
recommendation they fixed upon the Tem-
peft: as it was not readily to be procured, he
wrote it for them fo correctly from memory,
that they acted it with great fatisfaction to
themfelves, and with confiderable entertain-
ment to the fpectators. He performed the
character of Profpero.
His diligence increafed with his advance-
ment in the fchool: he now entered upon the
ftudy of the Greek tongue, the characters of
which he had already learned for his amufe-
ment. His genius and affiduity were alfo dif-
played in various compofitions, not required
by the difcipline of the fchool. He tranflated
into Englifh verfe feveral of the epiftles of
Ovid, all the paftorals of Virgil, and compos-
ed a dramatic piece on the ftory of Meleager,
which he denominated a tragedy ; and it was
51
acted during the vacation, by fome of his
fchool-fellows with whom he was mod in-
timate. In his own play, he performed the
part of the hero.
A copy of this little compofition, inaccu-
rately tranfcribed by a relation, has been
preferred ; and to gratify that curiofity which
the mention of it may have excited, I fele&
from it the following lines:
At ala nt a (speaks).
Still Discord raves, Beilona fiercely storms,
Mars calls, and Caledonians exclaim.
Althaea, fraught with ire, forgets her son,
And meditates fierce vengeance in her heart*
At Dian's sacred shrine a billet lies,
On which depends the life of Meleager.
This, stern Althaea spied, — then fury fir'd
Her furious mind, — she knew the fate's de ree :
Thrice did she rave, and thrice repress'd uer hand -,
At length she threw the billet on the fire,
Which gently gather'd round its impious prgy;
And now in absent flames the hero burns.
Wildly be stares ; his glaring eye-balls sink
Beneath their sockets, and omit their light.
His shiver 'd hair han^s dangling o'er his face*,
He rends his silken vest, and wrings his hands,
And groans, possess'd with agonizing pain.
Thefe juvenile efforts contributed to cfla-
bli£h the influence and reputation of Jones in
the fchool; and the fuccefs with which his
ftudies had latterly been purfued, left him no
reafon to regret the difadvantages under
which he had at firft laboured. His im-
provement in the knowledge of profody was
truly extraordinary; he foon acquired a pro-
ficiency in all the varieties of Roman metre,
fo that he was able to fcan the trochaic and
iambic verfes of Terence, before his compa-
nions even fufpecled that they were any thing
but mere profe. He alfo learned to tafte the
elegance of that writer, and was frequently
heard to repeat with particular fatisfaction the
rule in the Andria :
Facile omnes perferre et patl,
Nunquam pneponens se aliis.
Such was the extent of his attainments, and
fuch his facility of compofition, that for two
years he wrote the exercifes of many boys in
the two fuperior clafTes, who often obtained
credit for performances to which they had no
title, whilft the ftudents in the fame clafs
with himfelf were happy to become his pu-
S3
pils. During the holidays, his {ladies were
varied, but not relaxed; in these intervals, he
learned the rndiments of French and arith-
metic, and was particularly gratified with an
invitation to attend the meetings of learned
and ingenious men, at the houfe of that
amiable philofopher, Mr. Baker, and his
friend, Mr. Pond. As an introduction to the
knowledge of the fubjects difcufTed in this
literary fociety, by the particular recommend-
ation of his mother, he read the Speffacle de
la Nature: he acknowledged, however, that
he was more entertained with the Arabian
Tales, and Shakefpeare, whofe poems and
plays he repeatedly perufed with increafed
delight.
In the ufual recreations of his fchool-fel-
lows at Harrow, Jones was rarely a partaker;
and the hours which they allotted to amufe-
ment, he generally devoted to improvement.
The following anecdote ftrongly indicates the
turn of his mind, and the impreflion made
by his ftudies. He invented a political play,
Life—V. I. D
34
in which Dr. William Bennet*, Bifhop of
Cloyne, and the celebrated Dr. Parr, were his
principal aflbciates. They divided the fields
in the neighbourhood of Harrow, according
to a map of Greece, into ftates and king-
doms; each fixed upon one as his dominion,
and aflumed an ancient name. Some of their
fchool-fellows confented to be ftyled barbari-
ans, who were to invade their territories and
* The Bishop of Cloyne, in a letter to the Dean of St.
Asaph, dated November 1795, mentions Sir William
Jones in terms of respect and affection: — " I knew him
" (he writes) from the early age of eight or nine, and he
" was always an uncommon boy. Great abilities, great
H particularity of thinking, fondness for writing verses
<c and plays of various kinds, and a degree of integrity
'* and manly courage, of which I remember many in-
* { stances, distinguished him even at that period. I
" loved him and revered him, and, though one or two
H years older than he was, was always instructed by him
tc from my earliest age.
" In a word, I can only say of this amiable and won-
" derful man, that he had more virtues, and less faults,
" than I ever yet saw in any human being; and that the
*' goodness of his head, admirable as it was, was ex-
" ceeded by that of his heart. I have never ceased to
" admire him from the moment I first saw him •, and my
c< esteem for his great qualities, and regret for his loss,
*' will only end with my life."
35
attack their hillocks, which were denominat-
ed fortrefles. The chiefs vigoroufiy defended
their refpective domains againft the incurfions
of the enemy; and in thefe imitative w r ars,
the young ftatefmen held councils, made
vehement harangues, and compofed memo-
rials, all doubtlefs very boyifh, but calculated
to fill their minds w T ith ideas of legiflation and
civil government. In thefe unufual amufe-
ments, Jones was ever the leader; and he
might juftly have appropriated to himfelf the
words of Catullus ;
Ego gymnasii flos, ego decus olei.
Dr. Thackeray retired from the fuperin-
tendance of the fchool at Harrow, when his
pupil had attained his fifteenth year. It was
a lingular trait in the character of this good
man and relpeftable tutor, that he never ap-
plauded the beft compofitions of his fcholars,
from a notion which he had adopted, that
praife only tended to make them vain or idle.
But the opinion which he gave of Jones in
private was, that he was a boy of fo active a
D 2
36
mind, that if he were left naked and friend-
lefs on Salifbury Plain, he would neverthelefs
find the road to fame and riches.
Dr. Thackeray was fucceeded by Dr. Sum-
ner; and for his information of the courfe of
itudy purfued at Harrow, a plan of the lec-
tures and exercifes in the upper fchool was
accurately delineated by Jones, at the fug-
geflion of the principal affiftant, who pre-
fented it to the new matter, with many en-
comiums on the talents of his favourite fcho-
lar. He annexed to it a collection of his
compofitions, including his tranflation of the
paftorals of Virgil. Dr. Sumner quickly dif-
tinguifhed him; and of the two complete
years which he paffed under that excellent
inftruSor, it is fufficient to fay, that he em-
ployed them in reading and imitating the
beft ancient authors; nor did he confine him-
felf merely to the compofitions of Greece and
Rome; he learned the Arabic chara&ers, and
ftudied the Hebrew language fufficiently to
enable him to read fome of the Pfalms in the
original. His ardour for knowledge was fo
37
unlimited, that he frequently devoted whole
nights to ftudy, taking coffee or tea as an an-
tidote to drowfinefs; and his improvement
by thefe extraordinary exertions was fo rapid,
that he foon became the prime favourite of
his mafter, who with an excufable partiality
was heard to declare, that Jones knew more
Greek than himfelf, and was a greater pro-
ficient in the idiom of that language. Nor
was he lefs a favourite with his fellow-ftu-
dents than with his mafter. He acquired
popularity with them, by the frequent holi-
days that rewarded the excellence of his com-
politions. His reputation at the fame time
was fo extenfive, that he was often flattered
by the enquiries of flrangers, under the title
of the Great Scholar.
Of his juvenile compofitions in profe and
verfe, the early fruits of rare talents and un-
bounded induftry, fome have been printed in
the fragment of a work which he began at
fchool and entitled Limon *, in imitation of
Cicero. During the laft months of his refi-
* Works of Sir William Jones, vol. vi. p. 3S5.
58
dcnee at Harrow, Dr. Sumner not only di£-
penfed with his attendance at fchool, but was
obliged to interdict his application, in con-
fequence of a weaknefs of fight contracted by
It. His compofitions were not however dif-
continued; and he obtained the affiftance of
the youger ftudents to write them from his
dictation. He employed the intervals of
fufpended duty, which he was reluctantly
compelled to admit, in learning chefs, by
practifing the games of Philidor.
During the vacations, his application was
directed to improve his knowledge of French
and arithmetic, to which he alfo added the
ftudy of the Italian. Books he had always at
command ; for his mother, who contem-
plated with delight the progrefs of her fon,
with a wife liberality allowed him unlimited
credit on her purfe. But of this indulgence,
as he knew that her finances were reftricted,
he availed hirafelf no further than to pur-
chafe fuch books as were effential to his im-
provement.
I fhall here tranferibe, without alteration or
59
omlflion, a letter which the young ftudent,
at the age of fourteen, wrote to his filler, to
confole her for the death of a friend.
Dear Sister,
When I received your letter, 1 was
very concerned to hear the death of your
friend Mr. Reynolds, which I confider as a
piece of affliction common to us both. For
although my knowledge of his name or cha-
racter is of no long date, and though I never
had any perfonal acquaintance with him, yet
(as you obferve) we ought to regret the lofs
of every honourable man ; and if I had the
pleafure of your converfation, I would cer-
tainly give you any confolatory advice that
lay in my power, and make It my builncfs to
convince you what a real fhare I take in your
chagrin. And yet to reafon philofophically,
I cannot help thinking any grief upon a per-
ibn's death very fuperfluous, and inconfiftent
with fenfe; for what is the caufe of our for-
row ? Is it becaufe we hate the perfon deceafed ?
that were to imply ftrange contradiction, to
40
exprefs our joy by the common figns of far-
row, If, on the other hand, we grieve for
one who was dear to us, I fhould reply that
we fhould, on the contrary, rejoice at his
having left a ftate fo perilous and uncertain as
life is. The common ftrain is; " 'Tis pity fo
virtuous a man fhould die:" — but I afTert the
contrary; and when I hear the death of a
perfon of merit, I cannot help reflecting, how
happy he muft be who now takes the reward
of his excellencies, without the pofftbility of
falling away from them and lofing the virtue
which he profeffed, on whofe character death
has fixed a kind of feal, and placed him out
of the reach of vice and infamy ! for death
only clofes a man's reputation, and determines
it as either good or bad. On the contrary,
in life nothing is certain; whilft any one is
liable to alteration, we may poflibly be forced
to retract our efteem for him, and fome time
or other he may appear to us, as under a dif-
ferent light than what he does at prefent; for
the life of no man can be pronounced either
happy or miferable, virtuous or abandoned.
41
before the conclufion of it. It was upon thib
reflexion, that Solon, being afked by Crcefus,
a monarch of immenfe riches, who was the
happieft man? anfwered, After your death I
ihall be able to determine. Befides, though a
man mould purfue a conftant and determin-
ate courfe of virtue, though he were to keep
a regular fymmetry and uniformity in his
actions, and preferve the beauty of his repu-
tation to the laft, yet (while he lives) his very
virtue may incur fome evil imputation, and
provoke a thoufand murmurs of detraction;
for, believe me, my dear filter, there is no in-
stance of any virtue, or focial excellence,
which has not excited the envy of innumer-
able afTailants, whofe acrimony is raifed
barely by feeing others pleafed, and by hear-
ing commendation which another enjoys.
It is not eafy in this life for any man to
efcape cenfure; and infamy requires very little
labour to aflift its circulation. But there is a
kind of fanclion in the characters of the dead,
which gives due force and reward to their
merits, and defends them from the futrref-
ou
tions of calumny. But to return to the point j
what reafon is there to difturb yourfelf on
this melancholy occafion ? do but reflect that
thoufands die every moment of time, that
even while we fpeak, fome unhappy wretch
or other is either pining with hunger, or
pinched with poverty, fometimes giving up
his life to the point of the fword, torn with
convulfive agonies, and undergoing many
miferies which it were fuperfluous to mention.
We mould therefore compare our afflictions
with thofe who are more miferable, and not
with thofe who are more happy. I am
afhamed to add more, left I mould feem to
miftruft your prudence; but next week, when
I underfiand your mind is more compofed, I
ihall write you word how all things go here.
I defigned to write you this letter in French,
but I thought I could exprefs my thoughts
with more energy, in my own language.
I ccme now, after a long interval, to men-
tion fome more private circumftances. Pray
give my duty to my Mamma, and thank her
for my mirts. They fit, in my opinion, very
43
Well ; though Biddy fays they are too little iij
the arms. You may expect a letter from me
every day in the week till I come home; for
Mrs. Bifcoe has defired it, and has given me
fome franks. When you fee her, you may
tell her that her -little boy fends his duty to
her, and Mr. Bifcoe his love to his fiiter, and
defires to be remembered to Mifs Cleeve: he
alfo fends his compliments to my Mamma
and you. Upon my word I never thought
our bleak air would have fo good an efFecl
upon him. His complexion is now ruddy,
which before was fallow and pale, and he is
indeed much grown: but I now fpeak of tri-
fles, I mean in comparifon of his learning;
and indeed he takes that with wonderful
acutenefs; befides, his exceffive high fpirits
increafe mine, and give me comfort, fince,
after Parnell's departure, he is almoft the only
company I keep. As for news; the only
article I know is, that Mrs. Par is dead and
buried. Mr. and Mrs. Sumner are well:
the latter thanks you for bringing the letter
44
from your old acquaintance, and the former
has made me an elegant prefer) t. I am now-
very much taken up with ftudy; am to fpeak
Antony's fpeech in Shakefpeare's Julius Csefar
( which play I will read to you when I come
to town), and am this week to make a de-
clamation. I add no more than the fincere
well-wifhes of your faithful friend,
And affectionate brother,
William Jones.
If I am not deceived by my partiality for
the memory of Sir William Jones, this letter
will be perufed with intereft by the public.
The topics feleeted for the confolation of his
fifter, are not indeed of the moft novel na-
ture, nor the beft adapted to afford it; and
we may fmile at the gravity of the young
moralift, contrafted with the familiarity of the
circumftances detailed in the latter part of the
epiftle, which I found no difpofition to reject:
but the letter, as it ftands, will furnifh no
contemptible proof of his talents and frater-
45
nal affection, and may ferve as a fiandaru of
companion to parents, for eftimating the abi-
lities of their own children.
The period of tuition under Dr. Sumner
paffed rapidly, to the mutual fatisfaction of
the mafler and fcholar, until Jones had reach-
ed his feventeenth year ; when it was deter-
mined to remove him to one of the Univcr-
fities. This determination was not adopted
without much hefitation ; for it had been
ftrongly recommended to his mother, by
Sergeant Prime, and other Lawyers, to place
him, at the age of fixteen, in the office of
fome eminent fpecial pleader : and they fup-
ported their recommendation by an obferva-
tion, equally flattering to him and tempting
to his mother, that his talents, united with
fuch indefatigable induftry, mull enfure the
moft brilliant fuccefs, and confequently the
acquifition of wealth and reputation. It is a
fingular proof of his curiofity to explore un-
ufual tracks of learning, that, at this early
age, he had perufed the Abridgement of
Coke's Inftitutes, by Ireland, with fo much
40
attention, that he frequently amufed the legal
friends of his mother, by reafoning with
them on old cafes, which were fuppofed to
be confined to the learned in the profeflion.
The law, however, at that time, had little
attraction for him ; and he felt no inclina-
tion to renounce his Demofthenes and Cicero
for the pleadings in Weftminfler-Hall. His
cHfgufl to the ftudy of the law had alfo been
particularly excited, by the perufal of fome
old and inaccurate abridgement of law-cafes
in barbarous Latin. This difinclination on
his part, the folicitude of Dr. Sumner, that
he mould devote fome years to the comple-
tion of his ftudies at the Univerfity, and the
objections of his mother, founded on reafons
of economy, to a profeflion which could
not be purfued without confiderable expenfe,
fixed her decifion againft the advice of her
legal friends. The choice of an Univerfity
was alfo the occafion of fome difcuflion.
Cambridge was recommended by Dr. Sum-
ner, who had received his education there :
but Dr. GlafTe^ who had private pupils at
47
Harrow, and had always diitinguiihed Jones
by the kindeft attention, recommended Ox-
ford. His choice was adopted by Mrs. Jones,
who, in compliance with the wiihes of her
ion, had determined to refide at the Univcr-
fity with him, and greatly preferred the fitua-
tion of Oxford.
In the Spring of 1764, he went to the
Univerfity for the purpofe of being matricu-
lated and entered at College * : but he re-
turned to Harrow for a few months, that he
might finilh a courfe of lectures, which he
had juft begun, and in which he had been
highly interefted by the learning, eloquence,
tafte, and fagacity of his excellent inftructor.
They feparated foon after with mutual regret,
and in the following term he fixed himfeif
at Oxford.
The name of Jones was long remembered
at Harrow, with the reipeft due to his fupe-
* The following is the form of his admission into
University College, copied from his owft writing: — Ego
Gulielmus Jones, filius unicus Gulielmi Jones, Armigeri,
de civitate Lond. lubens subscribo sub tutamine Magistri
Betts, et Magistri Coulson, annos natus septendecirn.
48
rior talents and unrivalled erudition; and he
was frequently quoted by Dr. Sumner, as the
ornament of his fchool, and as an example for
imitation. He had not only diftinguifhed
him felf by the extent of his claflical attain-
ments, and his poetical compofitions, but by
the eloquence of his declamations, and the
mafterly manner in which they were deliver-
ed. In the varied talents which conftitute an
orator, Dr. Sumner himfelf excelled; and his
pupil had equally benefited by his example
and inftruction. In the behaviour of Jones
towards his fchool-fellows> he never exhibited
that tyranny, which in the larger feminaries
of learning is fometimes praclifed by the
fenior, over the younger ftudents. His dif-
pofition equally revolted at the exercife or
fufferance of oppreffion; and he early exhi-
bited a mind, ftrongly imprefTed with thofe
moral diftinctions which he ever retained.
Of the friendfhips which he contracted at
fchool, many were afterwards cultivated with
reciprocal affection; and among the friends
of his early years, fome (till furvive, who re-
49
member his virtues with delight, and deplore
his lofs.
His friend Parnell, whofe departure from
fchool he laments in the letter to his fifter,
was the late Sir John Parnell, who hekl the
office of Chancellor of fc the Exchequer, in
Ireland. His teftimony of the merits, ca-
pacity, and proficiency of his friend and fel-
low-ftudent, at Harrow, extracted from a
memorandum, which he gave to Lady Jones,
will confirm my own account of him : —
<( The early period of life is not ufually
4t marked by extraordinary anecdote : but
" fmall circumftances become interefting,
" when we can trace in them the firft prin-
" ciples of virtue, and the firft fymptoms of
" thofe talents which afterwards fo eminently
" diftinguifhed the character of Sir William
■' Jones. He gave very early proofs of his
" pofTeffing very extraordinary abilities. His
" induftry was very great, and his love of li-
" terature was the refult of difpofition, and
41 not of fubmifhon to control. He excelled
" principally in his knowledge of the Greek
* l language. His compofitions were dif-
IAfc— V. I. E
50
" tinguifhed by his precife application of
" every word, agreeably to the moft ftrict
" claffical authority. He imitated the cho-
" rufes of Sophocles fo fuccefsfully, that his
u writings feemed to be original Greek com-
" pofitions ; and he was attentive even in
" writing the Greek characters with great
" correctnefs. His time being employed in
" ftudy, prevented his joining in thofe plays
" and amufements which occupied the time
" of his other fchoolfellows : but it induced
" no other fmgularity in his manners ; they
" were mild, conciliating, and cheerful. When
" I firft knew him, about the year 1761, he
" amufed himfelf with the ftudy of botany,
"and in collecting fofhls. In general, the
" fame purfuits which gave employment to
" his mature underftanding, were the firft
" objects of his youthful attention. The
" fame difpofition formed the moft diftin-
" guifhed features at an early, and at a late
* c period of his life. A decifion of mind,
" and a ftridt attachment to virtue, an en-
" thufiaftic love of liberty, an uniform fpirit
" of philanthropy, were the characteriftics of
51
" his youth, and of his manhood : he did no
" act, he ufed no expreffion, which did not
" juftify thefe affertions."
A collection of Englifh poems, compofed
hy Mr. Jones, at Harrow, was prefented by
him to his friend Parnell, in 1763. The
firft and longeft of the collection, containing
more than three hundred and thirty lines, is
entitled Prolufions, and is a critique on the
various ftyles of paftoral writers. This was
written by Mr. Jones, at the age of fifteen,
and is the original of the poem, which he
afterwards publiihed under the title of Ar-
cadia *.
The variations between his firft attempt
and fubfequent publication are very confi-
derable. In his earlieft compofition, he makes
Menalcas, who reprefents Theocritus, the
father of paftoral poetry, adopt the language
of Chaucer, as the only model he could take
for a fpecimen of the Englifh. Doric. Spenfer
fpeaks in his own dialect, and, as the poet fays,
Masks in the roughest veil the sweeteft song.
* Works, vol. x. p. 233.
E 2
52
In the original efTay, Mr. Jones gives the
prize to Tityrus, or Virgil : but, in the latter,
Theocritus divides the kingdom of Arcadia
between Virgil and Spenfer, and affigns to
them his two daughters, Daphne and Hyla,
by whom he underftands the two forts of paf-
toral poetry; the one elegant and polifhed,
the other fimple and unadorned, in both
which Theocritus excels.
The remaining poems in the collection,
confift of tranflations and imitations of Ho-
race, Sophocles, and Theocritus ; Saul and
David, an Ode ; and a Satire on the inor-
dinate Love of Novelty.
A manufcript of thefe poems, in the hand-
writing of Mr. Jones, was prefented to Lady
Jones, by Sir John Parnell, a few weeks only
before his death. I felect as a fpecimen of
Mr. Jones's poetical talents, at the age of
fourteen, the fhorteft in the collection, in
imitation of a well-known Ode of Horace *,
and addreffed to his friend Parnell : —
* Ode 14. lib. ii.
53
How quickly fades the vital flow'r !
Alas, my friend! each silent hour
Steals unperceiv'd away:
The early joys of blooming youth,
iSweet innocence, and dove-ey'd truth,
Are destin'd to decay.
Can zeal, drear Pluto's wrath restrain?
No; tho' an hourly victim stain
His hallow'd shrine with blood,
Fate will recall her doom for none ;
The sceptred king must leave his throne,
To pass the Stygian flood.
In vain, my Parnell, wrapt in ease,
We shun the merchant-marring seas ;
In vain we fly from wars;
In vain we shun th' autumnal blast;
(The slow Cocytus must be pass'd;)
How needless are our cares !
Our house, our land, our shadowy grove
The very mistress of our love,
Ah me, we foon must leave !
Of all our trees, the hated boughs
Of Cypress shall alone diffuse
Their fragrance o'er our grave.
To others shall we then resign
The num'rous casks of sparkling wine,
Which, frugal, now we store;
With them a more deserving heir,
(Is this our labour, this our care?)
Shall stain the stucco iloor.
17-6
54
The new fituation of Mr. Jones, at the
Univerfity, did not at firft correfpond with
his expectations. Under the tuition of a
mafter, who faw with admiration his ca-
pacity and application, who was anxious to
affift his exertions, and rewarded their fuccefs
with unlimited applaufe, his ardour for learn-
ing had been raifed to a degree of cnthufiafm:
at the Univerfity, he expeded to find a Sum-
ner or Afkew, in every mafter of arts, and
generally the fame paflion for literature, which
he had himfelf imbibed. It was evident that
fuch extravagant expectations muft be dif-
appointed ; and from the public lectures, he
derived little gratification or inftrudion ; they
were much below the ftandard of his attain-
ments, and, in fad, were confidered as merely
formal; and, inftead of pure principles on
fubjeds of tafte, on rhetoric, poetry, and prac-
tical morals, he complained that he was re-
quired to attend dull comments on artificial
ethics, and logic, detailed in fuch barbarous
Latin, that he profefTed to know as little of it
as he then knew of Arabic. The only logic
55
then in fafhion was that of the fchools ; and
in a memorandum written by himfelf, which
is my authority for thefe remarks, I find an
anecdote related of one of the fellows, who
was reading Locke with his own pupils, that
he carefully paffed over every paflage in which
that great metaphyfician derides the old
fyftem.
With the advice of Dr. Sumner, he was
preparing for the prefs his Greek and Latin
compofitions, including a Comedy, written
in the language and meafures of Ariftophanes.
But his folicitude to appear as an author, was
perhaps prudently checked by the advice of
other friends ; and the propofed publication
from which he expected an increafe of re-
putation, was reluctantly poftponed. This
comedy, which bears the title of Mormo,
ftill exifts, but in a ftate of fuch mutilation,
from the depredations of worms and time, that
it cannot be publifhed without very copious
conjectural emendations.
After the refidence of a few months at the
Univcrfity, on the 31ft of October, 1764,
56
Mr. Jones was unanimoufly elected one of
the four fcholars on the foundation of Sir
Simon Bennett, to whofe munificence he was
ever proud to acknowledge his obligations.
The profpect of a fellowship, to which he
looked with natural impatience, was however
remote, as he had three feniors.
His partiality for Oriental literature now
began to difplay itfelf in the ftudy of the
Arabic, to which he was ftrongly incited by
the example and encouragement of a fellow-
fludent, of great worth and abilities, who had
acquired fome knowledge in that celebrated
language, and offered him the ufe of the befl
books, with which he was well provided. In
acquiring the pronunciation, he was affifted
by a native of Aleppo, who fpoke and wrote
the vulgar Arabic fluently, but was without
any pretenfions to the character of a fcholar,
Mr. Jones accidentally difcovered him in
London, where he ufually paiTed his vaca-
tions, and prevailed upon him to accompany
him to Oxford, under a promife of maintain-
ing him there. This promife he was obliged
57
exclufively to fulfil for fcvcral months, at an
expenfe which his finances could ill afford,
being difappointed in the hopes which he had
entertained, that fome of his brother collegians
nwht be inclined to avail thcmfelves of the
o
affiftance of the Syrian, and participate with
him in the expenfe of his maintenance.
The difguft expreffed by Mr. Jones after
his firft introduction into the Univerfity foon
fubfided, and his time now pafled with great
fatisfaclion to himfelf. He found in it, all
the means and opportunity of inftrudtion
which he could wifh ; and adopted that re-
fpectful attachment to it, which he ever after
retained. His college tutors, who faw that
all his hours were devoted to improvement,
cifpenfed with his attendance on their lec-
tures, alleging with equal truth and civility,
that he could employ his time to more ad-
vantage. Their expectations were not dif-
appointed : he perufed with great affiduity all
the Greek poets and hiftorians of note, and
the entire works of Plato and Lucian, with a
vail apparatus of commentaries on them j con-
58
ftantly reading with a pen in his hand, mak-
ing remarks, and compofing in imitation of
his favourite authors. Some portion of every
morning he allotted to Mirza, whom he em-
ployed in tranflating the Arabian tales of
Galkind into Arabic, writing himfelf the trans-
lation from the mouth of the Syrian. He
afterwards corrected the grammatical inac-
curacies of the verfion, by the help of Erpe-
nius and Golius. In the courfe of his ap-
plication to this ancient language, he diicover-
ed,, what he never before fufpected, a near
connection between the modern Perfic and
Arabic, and he immediately determined to
acquire the former. He accordingly fludied
it with attention in the only Pernan grammar
then extant; and having laboured diligently
at the Guliftan of Sadi, affifted by the accu-
rate but inelegant verfion of Gentius, and at
the well chofen praxis at the clofe of Me-
ninski's grammar, he found his exertions re-
warded with rapid fuccefs.
His vacations were parted in London,
where he daily attended the fchools of An-
59
gelo, for the purpofe of acquiring the elegant
accomplishments of riding and fencing. He
was always a ftrenuous advocate for the prac-
tice of hodily exercifes, as no lef's ufcfnl to in-
vigorate his frame, than as a neceffary qua-
lification for any active exertions to which
he might eventually be called. At home, his
attention was directed to the modern lan-
guages ; -and he read the beft authors in Ita-
lian, Spanifh, and Portuguefe, following in
all refpec~ts the plan of education recommend-
ed by Milton, which he had by heart; and
thus, to tranferibe an obfervation of his own,
with the fortune of a peafant, giving himfelf
the education of a prince.
If the literary acquifitions of Mr. Jones at
this period be compared with his years, few
inftances will be found, in the annals of bio-
graphy, of a more fuccefsful application of
time and talents, than he exhibits ; and it is
worthy of oblervation, that he was no lefs
indebted to his uncommon induftry and
method for his attainments, than to his Su-
perior capacity.
60
A mind thus occupied in the purfuit of
unlverfal literature, was little fufceptiblc of
the pa(lion3 of avarice or ambition: but, as
he was fenfible that the charges attending his
education, notwithstanding his habitual at-
tention to economy, mu ft occafion a con-
siderable deduction from the moderate income
which his mother porTerTed, he anxioufly
wifhed for a fellowship, that he might relieve
her from a burden which me could ill fupport.
If the profpeel of acquiring that advantage
had not been remote, no temptation would
have feduced him from the Univerfity ; but
at the period when he began to defpair of
obtaining it, he received through Mr. Arden,
whofe fifter was married to his friend Sumner,
an offer to be the private tutor of Lord Al-
thorp, now Earl Spencer. He had been re-
commended to the family of this nobleman
by Dr. Shipley, to whom he was not then
perfonally known, but who had feen and
approved his competitions at Harrow, and
particularly a Greek oration in praife of
Lvon, an honeil yeomen, who founded the
Cl
fchool at that place in the reign of Elizabeth,
The propofal was cheerfully accepted by Mr.
Jones ; and in his nineteenth year he went to
London, and was fo delighted with the man-
ners of his pupil, then juft feven years old,
that he abandoned all thoughts of a profef-
fion, and refolved to devote himfelf to the
faithful difcharge of the important duties of
his new fituation. He had the fatisfaction
to find that this determination would pro-
bably reftore him to the fociety of his bed
and mod refpected friend, Dr. Sumner, as
he underftood from Mr. Arden, that his
pupil, after fome preliminary inftruction,
would be fixed at Harrow.
He returned for the prefent to Oxford,
where he remained for a few months, and
in the fummer of 1765, went for the firfl
time, as had been propofed, to Wimbledon
Park, to take upon himfelf the charge of his
pupil's education.
He was now placed in a fphere perfectly
new to him. — If he quitted the Univeriity
with a regret proportioned to his increafing
62
attachment to it, his change of fituation
offered other advantages, amongft which he
juftly efteemed his introduction into the firft
ranks of fociety, and a refidence in one of
the molt agreeable places in the kingdom.
He had new objects to engage his obferva-
tion, and an interesting occupation, from the
difcharge of which he derived great fatis-
fiitlion ; his application to literature was pur-
fued without intermiffion, for, although he
refided at Wimbledon until the approach of
the winter only, he found fufiicient leifure to
coinpofe many of his Englifh poems, and to
read the greateft part of the Old Teftament in
Hebrew, particularly the Book of Job, and
the Prophets, which he fludied with great
attention.
In the courfe of the following fummer, by
an unexpected concurrence of circumftances,
a fellowship, which, in his eftimation, gave
him abfolute independence, was beftowed
upon him, and he went for a fhort time to
Oxford, that he might go through the regular
forms of election and admiflion. He was
63
accordingly elected fellow on the foundation
of Sir Simon Bennett, on the 7th of Auguft,
1766.
The idea of deriving an abfolute independ-
ence from an annual income, not exceeding,
upon an average, one hundred pounds, may
appear ridiculous when contrafted with the
enlarged eftimate of a competence in thele
times. But this mm, in fact, was more than
the wife economy of a college life then made
neceffary for a fmgle man, whofe habits of
prudence were formed, and Mr. Jones con-
sidered his fellowship as a freehold, in a
place for which he bad. now contracted aa
enthufiaftic fondnefs, where he had accefs to
extenfive libraries, rare manufcripts, the com-
pany of learned men, and all, as he exprefTed
himfelf, that his heart could wifh ; and if he
had obtained it a year fooncr, he would pro-
bably have been induced to decline the de-
licate and refponfible tafk of education.
On his return to Wimbledon, he was flat-
tered by an offer from the Duke of Grafton,
then at the head of the Treafury, of the place
64
of Interpreter for Eaftern languages : but, al-
though the acceptance of it might not have
interfered with his other purfuits, or engage-
ments, he declined it politely, but without
hefitation, earneftly requeuing that it might
be conferred upon Mirza, whofe character he
wrote. This difmterefled folicitation was
unnoticed ; and his disappointment made him
regret his ignorance of the world, in not ac-
cepting the proffered office, under a refolution
to confign the entire emoluments of it to his
Syrian friend.
During his fummer refidence at Wimble-
don, he formed an acquaintance to which he
owed the future happinefs of his life. He
there faw, for the firft time, Anna Maria, the
eldeft daughter of Dr. Shipley, then Dean of
Winchefler : but whatever impreffions her
perfon and converfation made upon the heart
of Mr. Jones, his fixed ideas of an honourable
independence ,and a determined refolution never
to owe his fortune to a wife, or her kindred,
excluded all ideas of a matrimonial connec-
tion. In different circumftances, he might
65
perhaps have then folicited an alliance, which
he afterwards courted and obtained.
The family of Lord Spencer removed late
ill Autumn to London; and Mr. Jones, with
his ufual avidity to acquire the accomplifh-
ments of a gentleman, as well as thofe of a
fcholar, privately arranged a plan with Gal-
lini, who attended the younger part of the
family, for receiving inftruetions from him in
dancing; at the fame time he continued his
morning attendance, without intermiflion, at
the two fchools of Angelo, with whofe man-
ners he was extremely pleafed. Before he
left London, he had an opportunity, which
he did not neglect, of learning the ufe of the
broad-fword, from an old penfioner at Chelfea,
who had been a&ive, as his fears proved, in
many engagements, and whofe narrative pro-
penfity frequently amufed him.
The acquifition of his new accomplifh-
ment, by Gallini's affiftance, had been made
with fecrecy; and the difplay of it enabled
him to participate with much fatisfaction, in
the evening amufements at Althorp, where he
Life— V. I. F
66
patted the winter with his pupih But hi*
greateft delight was furnifhed by an excellent
library, in which he found intellectual tre'a-
fures of the higheft value in his eftimation ;
fcarcely a fingle book efcaped his infpection ;
and fome of the mod rare he perufed with
indefatigable application. It was at this pe-
riod, in the twenty -firft year of his age, that
he began his Commentaries on Afiatic Poetry,
in imitation of Dr. Louth's Prelections at
Oxford, on the facred poetry of the Hebrews.
The fummer of 1767, opened a new fcene
to him; the indifpofition of Lord Spencer ren-
dered a journey to Spa advisable for the reftor-
ation of his health, and Mr. Jones attended
the family: but his refidence on the Continent
was too fhort to gratify his curiofity. At Spa
he remained only three weeks, part of which
he dedicated to the leflbns of Janfon, ©f Aix-
la-Chapelle, a moft incomparable dancing-
matter, and part to the acquisition of the
German language, in which he fo far fuc-
ceeded, as to be able to read Gesner with
delight, aflifted only by an excellent German
67
Grammar and Dictionary; the pronunciation
he had formerly learnt from a fellow collegian,
who had paifed fome years at Brunfwick.
He would gladly have availed himfelf of the
inftruction of a German mafter; but none
was to be found at Spa, and his finances were
unequal to the expenfe of procuring that a£-
fiftance from Aix-la-Chapelle. Notwithstand-
ing thefe occupations, he found leifure to
participate in all the amufements of the
place.
In the winter of 1767, Mr. Jones refided
with his pupil at Althorp : the attention of
Lord Spencer's family was then much occu-
pied in the contended election at Northamp-
ton ; but as he had neither inclination nor
inducement to take any part in it, he con-
fined himfelf chiefly to the library, which
never failed to fupply him with increafing
fources of entertainment and improvement.
His excurfions into the regions of literature
were unlimited, and as his application was
directed with his ufual perfeverance, he near-
ly completed his Commentaries, tranfcribed
F 2
68
an Arabic manufcript on Egypt and the' Nile,
borrowed from Dr. Ruflel, and copied the
keys of the Chinefe language, which he
wifhed to learn.
The clofe of this year is marked with an
occurrence, which probably had a material
influence on the determination of his future
purfuits. From a motive of mere curiofity,
he was prompted to perufe the little treatife
of Fortefcue, in praife of the Laws of Eng-
land; and, although he was more diverted
with the fimplicity of the Latin ftyle, than
attracted by the fubject, he felt fo much in-
tereft in the work, as to ftudy it with con-
fiderable attention. In the courfe of the re-
flections which it excited, he was naturally
led to a comparifon of the laws of England
with thofe of other countries, and he marked
with delight their uncontroverted claim to
fuperiority over the laws of every other ftate,
ancient or modern. Of this fact he acknow-
ledged that he had never before entertained
an idea. He was now qualified to appre-
ciate with more accuracy, the merits and de~
69
fects of the republican fyftem of Greece and
Rome, for which he had adopted a ftrong
partiality, natural to an enthufiaftic admirer
of the orators and poets of thofe celebrated
nations; and to examine their jurifprudence
by a ftandard of comparifon, which imprefled
his mind with a decided reverence for the
inftitutions of his own country. He was
not, however, regardlefs of the deviations in
practice from the theoretical perfection of the
conftitution in the contefted election, of
which he was an unwilling fpectator.
From Althorp he removed, in the fpring
of 1768, to Wimbledon, where he received
a propofal from Mr. Sutton, then Under-
Secretary to the Duke of Grafton, the account
of which I mall relate nearly in his own
words'*.
The King of Denmark, then upon a vifit
to this country, had brought with him an
eaftern manufcript, containing the life of Na-
* Introduction to the History of the Life of Nadir Shah.
Works, vol. xii. p. 311.
70
dir Shah, which he was defirous of having
tranilated in England. The Secretary of
State with whom the Danifh minifter had
converfed upon the fubjecl, fent the volume
to Mr. Jones, requefting him to give a literal
tranflation of it in the French language ; but
he wholly declined the talk, alleging for his
excufe, the drynefs of the fubjecl, the diffi-
culty of the ftyle, and chiefly his want both
of leifure and ability, to enter upon an under-
taking fo fruitlefs and laborious. He men-
tioned, however, a gentleman, with whom
he was not then acquainted, but who had
diftinguiihed himfelf by the tranflation of a
Perfian hiitory, and fome popular tales from
the Periic, as capable of gratifying the wiihes
of his Danifh Majefty. Major Dow, the
writer alluded to, exculed himfelf on ac-
count of his numerous engagements, and the
application to Mr. Jones was renewed. It
was hinted, that his compliance would be of
no fmall advantage to him, at his entrance
into life; that it would procure him fbme
mark of diftinclion, which would be pleating-
71
to him; and, above all, that it would be a
reflection upon this country, if the king
mould be obliged to carry the manufcript
into France. Incited by theie motives, and
principally the Iaft, unwilling to be thought
churlifh or morofe, and eager for reputation,
he undertook the work, and lent a ipecimen
of it to his Danilh Majefty, who returned his
approbation of the ftyle and method, but de-
fired that the whole tranflation might be per-
fectly literal, and the oriental images accu-
rately preferred. The talk would have been
far eaiier to him, if he had been directed to
finifh it in Latin; for the acquifition of a
French ftyle was infinitely more tedious, and
it was necefTary to have every chapter cor-
rected, by a native of France, before it could
be offered to the difcerning eye of the public,
fince in every language there are certain pe-
culiarities of idiom, and nice fhades of mean-
ing, which a foreigner can never attain to
perfection. * The work, however arduous and
unpleafant, was completed in a year, not
without repeated hints from the Secretary's
72
office, that it was expected with great im-
patience by the Court of Denmark. The
tranflation was not, however, publilhed until
1770. Forty copies upon large paper were
fent to Copenhagen; one of them bound
with uncommon elegance, for the king him-
felf ; and the others, as prefents to his cour-
tiers.
Such were the circumftances which in-
duced him, (as he modeftly obferved,) againfl
his inclinations, to defcribe the life of a con-
queror; and to appear in public as an author,
before a maturity of judgment had made him
fee the danger of the ftep. If, (to quote his
own words) he had reflected on the little folid
glory which a man reaps from acquiring a
name in literature, on the jealoufy and envy
which attend fuch an acquifition, on the dif-
tant referve which a writer is fure to meet
with from the generality of mankind, and
on the obftruction which a contemplative
habit gives to our hopes of being diftinguifh-
ed in active life; if all, or any of thefe re-
flections had occurred to him, he would not
73
have been tempted by any confidcration to
enter upon fo invidious and thanklei's a ca-
reer: tut, as Tully fays, he would have eon-
/idered, before he embarked, the nature and ex-
tent of his voyage; now, Jin ce the fails are
fpready the veffel muji take its courfe.
What marks of diftinclion he received, or
what fruits he reaped from his labours, he
thought it would ill become him to mention
at the head of a work, in which he profefTed
to be the hiftorian of others, and not of him-
felf : but, to repel the falfe aflertions which
appeared in an advertifement on this fubjecl
in the public papers, containing a moft unjuft
reflection on the King of Denmark, he con-
sidered it a duty impofed upon him, by the
laws of juftice and gratitude, to print, at the
beginning of his tranflation, the honourable
teftimony of regard which his Majefty Chrif-
tian VII. fent publicly to London, a few
months after the receipt of the work, toge-
ther with the letter of thanks which he re-
turned for fo fignal a token of his favour *.
* See Works, vol. xi r Freface.
74
From thefe documents, it appears that his
Daniih Majefty fent to him a diploma, con-
ftituting him a member of the Royal Society
of Copenhagen, and recommended him, in
the ftrongeft terms, to the favour and bene-
volence of his own fovereign.
To the hiltory of Nadir Shah, he added a
Treatife on Oriental Poetry, in the language
of the tranflation : and I may venture to af-
fert, that Mr. Jones was the only perfon in
England, at that time, capable of producing
a work, which required a critical knowledge
of two foreign languages, one of which was
fcarcely known in Europe. Indeed, when
we confider the accuracy of the tranflation,
which has been acknowledged by the mofl
competent judges; the extreme difficulty at-
tending a literal verlion of Oriental imagery
and idioms; the errors common to all manu-
fcripts, which he had no means of amending
by the collation of different copies; and the
elegance and correctnefs of his French flyle;
we cannot but • expreis our aftonifhment at
the perfection of his performance, and the
75
rapidity with which it was completed. The
annexed treatife on Oriental poetry is inftruc-
tive and elegant, interefting from its novelty,
and entertaining from its fubjecl: and variety,
and exhibits the combined powers of tafte and
erudition. This work was executed by a
young man in his twenty-third year; and the
motives which induced him to undertake it,
had an equal influence on his exertions to
render it as perfect as poffible.
In detailing the circumftances attending
the firft publication of Mr. Jones, I have car-
ried the narrative to its conclufion, with fome
anticipation of the order of time. Part of
the fummer of 1768 he parTed at Tunbridge,
where his private ftudies formed his chief oc-
cupation, and the winter of that year in Lon-
don. He availed himielf of the opportunity,
which his fituation there afforded, of begin-
ning to learn mufic; and, having made
choice of the Welch harp, for which he had
a national partiality, he received leffons from
Evans, as long as he remained in town; but,
as he was then ignorant of the theory of
76
muiic, the mere practice, without a know-
ledge of the principles of the art, gave him
little delight. I know not that he ever after-
wards refumed the practice of the harp, nor
is it to be regretted that he employed the
time, which mufl have been dedicated to the
attainment of any degree of perfection on this
inftrument, in more important purfuits.
In the beginning of this year, Mr. Jones
formed an acquaintance with Reviczki, after-
wards the Imperial minifter at Warfaw, and
Ambaflador at the Court of England, with
the title of Count. This learned and accom-
plifhed nobleman was deeply captivated with
the charms of Oriental literature; and the
ruputation of Mr. Jones as an Oriental fcholar
attracted his advances towards an intimacy,
which were eagerly received.
After their feparation, they commenced a
correfpondence, which was cultivated with
attention for many years. Of this corre-
fpondence, much has been loft, and many of
the remaining letters are defaced and mutilated.
They generally wrote in Latin, occafionally
77
in French, on literary fubjects chiefly, but
more particularly on Oriental literature. From
that part of the correfpondence, which took
place in 1768, I felect fuch letters as feem to
fall within my plan, and now prefent a fami-
liar tranllation of them to my readers.
* Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKI.
How pleafmg was that half hour
to me, in which we converfed on Perfian
poetry, our mutual delight. I confidered it
the commencement of a moft agreeable friend-
fhip and intercourfe between us ; but my ex-
pectations are difappointed by the circum-
ftances in which we are unavoidably placed ;
for, my bufinefs will confine me to the coun-
try longer than I wifh ; and you, as I am in-
formed, are preparing to return immediately
to Germany. I have, therefore, to lament
that our intimacy is, as it were, nipped in
the bud. I am not, however, without this
confolation, that if I cannot perfonally con-
verfe with you, I can at leaft correfpond with
* Apgendix, No. I
78
you, and thus enjoy the fatisfaclion arifing
from a communication of our fentiments and
ftudies. In mentioning our friendjhip, I mail
not, I truft, be deemed guilty of an improper
freedom. Similarity of ftudies, fondnefs for
polite literature, congenial purfuits, and con-
formity of fentiments, are the great bonds of
intimacy amongft mankind. Our ftudies
and purfuits are the fame, with this differ-
ence indeed, that you are already deeply
verfed in Oriental learning, whilfl I am in-
ceffantly labouring with all my might to ob-
tain a proficiency in it. But I will not allow
you to excel me in partiality for thofe ftu-
dies, fmce nothing can exceed' my delight in
them. From my earlieft years, I was charm-
ed with the poetry of the Greeks; nothing,
I then thought, could be more fublime than
the Odes of Pindar, nothing fweeter [than
Anacreon, nothing more polifhed or elegant
than the golden remains of Sappho, Archi-
lochus, Alcxus, and Simonides : but when I
had tafted the poetry of the Arabs and Per-
nans ^ ^ ^ ■& .■& ■*
79
The remainder of this letter is loft : but
from the context, and the anfwcr of Reviczki,
we may conclude that it contained an elabo-
rate panegyric on Eaftern poetry, expreiTed
with all the rapture which novelty infpires,
and in terms degrading to the Mufes of
Greece and Rome.
C. REVICZKI to W. JONES, Efquire. *
London, Feb. 19, 1768.
Sir,
I am highly gratified by your
recollection of me, as well as by the repeated
compliments which you pay me, in your let-
ters to Madame de Vauclufe. I mull ac-
knowledge, that I feel not a little proud of
them; but (till more, that an interview of a
quarter of an hour has procured me the ho-
nour of your friendship. I mould be moft
happy to cultivate it, if my plans allowed me
to remain longer in this country, or if I
could at leail fee you at Oxford, which I
* Appendix, No. 2,
80
purpofe vifiting before I leave England. I
hear, with pleafure, that you have under-
taken to publifh a Treatife on Oriental Pro-
ibdy. As I am convinced that you will per-
form this talk mofl ably and fuccefsfully, I
anticipate with fatisfaclion the mortification
of all our European poets, who mud biufh at
the poverty of their profaic language, when
they find that the Oriental dialects (inde-
pendently of rhyme, which is of their inven-
tion) have true fyllabic quantities as well as
the Greek, and a greater variety of feet, and
confequently the true fcience of metre and
profody.
I take the liberty of fending you a rough
{ketch of one of my lateft tranflations from
Hafez, with whom I fometimes amufe m felf
in a leifure hour. You are too well ac-
quainted with the genius of the Perfian lan-
guage, not to perceive the rafhnefs of my at-
tempt ; I do not indeed pretend to give the
beauty of the original, but merely its fenfe,
fimple and unornamented. I have added to
it a very free paraphrafe in verfe, in which,
8L
however, the greater! deviation from the text
confifts in the occasional fubrliiution of mif-
trefs for mignon, either to give a connection
to the ftanzas, which in this kind of compofi-
tion is never preferved, or to make it more
conformable to our European tafte. The
Persian poet indeed fpeaks of his miftrefs in
the fir ft verfe.
You will find in the margin feveral quo-
tations from the Greek and Latin Poets,
which occurred to my recollection, whilft I
was reading Hafez, cxpreffing the fame fen-
timents with the Periian. I hope to have the
fatisfaction of feeing you here before I leave
England, alluring you with truth, that I con-
fider the honour of your acquaintance among
the greater! advantages attending my vifit to
this country.
I am, &c,
Life—V. I. G
82
* C. REVICZKI to Mr. JONES.
London, Feb. 24,1708.
Sir,
I received your learned and
obliging letter on the fame day on which I
wrote to you; and I read it with the greatefl
pleafure, though I could have wifhed that it
had been more juft to your own merit, and
lefs flattering to me. I will not however take
your expreffions literally ; and notwithstand-
ing your declarations, the tafte and judg-
ment which you have difplayed in the paf-
fages quoted by you, evidently prove that
you have advanced far in Oriental literature.
I muft however beg quarter for the Greek
and Latin; for, admitting, what I am not dif-
pofed to deny, the perfection, and even the
fuperiority of the Orientals, particularly the
Perfians in fome fpecies of poetry, I would
without hefitation renounce all knowledge of
the three Eaflern languages for that of the
* Appendix, No. 3.
83
Greek alone. I rejoice that you have made
fo much progrefs in your work, and that I
may hope foon to fee it published; but how
to affift you with my advice I know not, as I
have not with me a fiagle treatife upon the
fubject of Oriental prcfody. It is in truth an
ocean; and fuch are the abundance and va-
riety of meafures ufed by the Orientals, that
no memory can retain them.
I am very anxious to learn under what
head you clafs the Kafidah, a fpecies of com-
pofition highly admired by the Arabs, and
very fuccefsfully cultivated by them; it has a
nearer refemblance than any other kind of
poetry to the Latin elegy, but its conftru&ion
partakes of that of the Gazel*, with this dif-
ference, that the latter is reflricled to thirteen
couplets, whilft the number of thofe in the
Kafidah is unlimited; and fecondly, that in
each diftich of the Gaze/, the fenfe mud be
complete and finifhed, whilft in the Kafidah,
* Amatory Poem; it is not restricted to thi,t?en cou-
plets, as Reviczki writes, but to seventeen, and generally
contains about seven or eight.
G 2
84
die fentiment is continued through fucceffive
lines.
Of this fpecies of compofition, I do not
know a more perfect fpecimen, than the
poem on the death of Mohammed, fo cele-
brated throughout the Eait, that every man
of letters can repeat it. It is one continued
allegory, but admirable and pathetic, and be-
gins, if I rightly remember, thus :
Does memory recall the blissful bovvers «
Of Solyma, the seat of many a friend;
That thus, thy grief pours forth such copious shoivers,
And bursting sighs thy lab'ring bosom rend?
With refpeet to your doubts on the fup-
pofed allegory of Hafez, much may be faid.
I am rather inclined to believe, that the
myftical expofition of this great poet, by the
Mohammedans, may be imputed to their ve-
neration and refpeel for his memory, and
that their object in it is to juftify his conduct
as a poet, by reprefenting him equally irre-
proachable in his morals and compofitions.
Molt of the commentators, as Shemy, Surury,
and others, labour to give a myflical inter-
8.)
pretation of his verfes on wine, youths, plea-
fures, and a contempt for religion, fo difcre-
ditableto a good mufTulman; but the ableft
of them all, the learned Sudi, difclaims this
mode of illuftration, and profefTes to give a
literal expofition of the text of Hafez, in op-
pofition to the opinions of other commen-
tators, and without queftioning the purity of
their intentions. It may not be amifs to
communicate to you an anecdote, which I
have read fomewhere refpecting Hafez *.
* This anecdote is quoted by Sir William Jones, in the
ninth chapter of his Commentaries on Asiatic Poetry,
where he states the respective arguments in support of
a literal or mystical interpretation .of it. Without pro-
nouncing a positive decision, he gives an opinion in fa-
vour of a literal interpretation as the most probable.
In an essay on the mystical poetry of the Persians and
Hindus, composed some years afterwards in India,
(Works, vol. iv p. 211.) he thus expresses himself on
the subject : " It has been made a question, whether the
" poems of Hafez must be taken in a literal or figurative
" sense : but the question does not admit of a general
" and direct answer; for, even the most enthusiastic of
" his commentators allow, that some of them are to be
" taken literally, and his editors ought to have distin-
" guished them. — Hafez never pretended to more than
" human virtues, and it is known that he had human
" propensities ; — after his juvenile passions had subsided,
86
After the death of this great man, fome of
the religious were difpofed to deny his body
the right of fepulture, alleging in objection,
the licentioufnefs of his poetry : after a long
difpute, they left the decifion to a divination
in ufe amongft them, by opening his book at
random, and taking the firft couplet which
occurred : It happened to be this :
Turn not away from Hafez 1 bier,
Nor scornful check the pitying tearj
For tho' immers'd in sin he lies,
His soul forgiv'n to Heaven shall rise.
This paflage was deemed a divine decifion ;
the religious withdrew their objections, and
he was buried in Mofella, a place rendered
famous by his own verfes. This anecdote,
I think, is related by Kaleb Celebi. As to
myfelf, although I am difpofed to believe,
that when Hafez fpeaks of love and wine, he
has no recondite meaning, I am equally will--
" we may suppose, that his mind took that religious
" bent, which appears in most of his compositions j for
" there can be no doubt that the following distichs, col-
" lected from different odes, relate to the mystical theo-
« logy of the Sufis;" &c.
87
ing to declare, that his writings are not dis-
graced by thofe obfcenities, nor thofe grofs
and filthy expreflions, which fo frequently
occur in Sadi.
Nor can I avoid confidering him a free
thinker; and a hundred paffages might be
quoted, in which the poet ridicules the Pro-
phet and his Coranj as for inftance, when
he fays,
Wine, that our sober Seer proclaims
Parent of sir, and foul misnames,
With purer joy my soul beguiles,
Than beauty's bloom, or beauty's smiles.
As to the Turkifh poets, I confefs I do not
read them with the fame pleafure, although
I am willing to allow that fome of them
have merit. In my opinion, Ruhi, of Bag-
dad, is the moit agreeable of them all; he
has written fome admirable fatires. Perhaps
you are not acquainted with him. The
Turkifh poets in general, are no better than
flavifh imitators of the Perfians, and often
deficient in tafte and harmony.
I cannot comprehend how you have dif-
88
covered an indelicate meaning in thcfe beau-
tiful lines of Mefihi :
Send me not, O God, to the tomb, before I
have embraced my friend:
unlefs you annex an idea of obfcenity to the
expreflion of embracing a youth; a fubjec~t
which perpetually occurs not only in Orien-
tal poetry, but in Greek and Latin. I fend
you a recent translation, with a requeft that
you will return it when you are tired with
it, as I have no copy.
I am, with the greater! efleem
and veneration,
Sir, &c.
* REVICZKI to Mr. JONES.
London, March 7, 1768.
I am at a lofs to determine whether
your letter has afforded me molt pleafure or
jnftruclion; it is indeed fo admirable, that I
mull point out the only fault which I find in
it, that of brevity, although you feem ap-
prehenfive of being thought tedious. I fuf-
* Appendix, No. &.
89
peel that I am indebted to your partiality and
politenefs only, for the exceffive encomiums
which you have bellowed upon my tranfla-
tion of the two odes which I fent to you, as
well as for the favourable opinion which you
entertain of my trifles. I am, however, feri-
oufly obliged to you for your animadverfions
upon my inaccuracies, though when I con-
fider their number, I mu(t. impute it to your
indulgence that you have been fo fparing in
your corrections. Without wifhing to lefTen
my obligations to your kindnefs, I cannot
avoid mentioning by way of apology, that it
is only three months fmce I refumed the tafk
of writing verfes, which I renounced when
I left fchool; and not from any motive of
vanity, or defire of reputation, but merely
as an amufement of my leifure hours. My
relapfe has produced the tranflation of about
fifty odes of our learned Hafez,
For whom, each hour a growing fondness brings *,
As by degrees the vernal alder springs.
* These lines are taken from a juvenile translation of
Sir Wil'iam Jones.
90
But obferving, in the progrefs of the work,
the immenfe inferiority of my verfion to the
original, I began to be diigufted with it.
I recollect to have read fomewhere with
great pleafure, the Prelections of the Bifhop
of Oxford, of which you fpeak fo highly,
and which you propofe to imitate, but I re-
member nothing more of this work, than
that I thought both the ftyle and arrangement
of it, equally admirable. The Grecian and
Oriental flowers fcattered throughout your
letter, delighted me exceedingly, and your
felection of them mews your judgment. I
alfo approve your idea of vifiting the Eaft;
but previoufly to your undertaking it, I
would recommend to you, to make yourfelf
mafler of the common language of the Turks,
or of the vulgar Arabic, not only as indifpen-
fably necefTary to your communications with
the Mohammedans, but as a means of deriv-
ing pleafure and profit from the journey.
I do not mean to apply my cenfures on the
fervile imitations of Turkifh authors to every
fpecies of imitation -, for in fome inftances the
91
imitation, as in the cafe of Virgil with re-
fpect to Hefiod, has furpafTed the original.
Nor can Hafez himfelf deny the imputation
of plagiaiifm, having aclually tranfcribed
whole lines from other poets; his colleclion
of poems begins with an inftance of this kind,
for the very firft hemiftich is tranfcribed
from one of Yezid*, the fon of Mowavea,
with an alteration only in the collocation of
the words, not to mention nearly a complete
ode in another place; but I am difgufted with
the flat and perpetual imitation of the many
Turkifh poets, to whom we may aptly apply
the words of Horace :
O servile herd of imitators !
Do you wifh to know my opinion refpecl-
ing the other Perfian poets, and whether I
* Yezid was the son of Mowavea, the first Caliph of the
race of Ommiah, and being reproached by his father for
excessive drinking, replied as follows :
Does this thy wrath inspire, because I quaff 1 d
The grape's rich juice? — then doubly sweet the draught.
Rage — I will drink unmoved, for to my soul,
Sweet is thy wrath, and sweet the flowing bowl.
m
think Hafez alone elegant? far from it; for
who can read without ecftafy the fuft page of
Sadi ? Indeed, my paiiion for Oriental lite-
rature was firft excited by hearing the fol-
lowing lines of Sadi accidentally repeated by
my teacher at Conftantinople, who explained
them to me :
All-bounteous Lord ! whose providential care
E'en on thy proud rebellious sons descends j
How canst thou bid thy votaries despair,
Whose boundless mercy to thy foes extends I
But who can fupprefs his indignation,
when he reads the wretched tranllation of
this elegant writer, by Gentius ? I acknow-
ledge however, that I am more delighted with
Hafez, who unites fine morality with cheer-
fulnefs. With refpecl: to JamL whofe works
I do not at prefent pofTefs, I remember
enough of what I read at Conftantinople to
venture to afTert, that he is the mod fuccefs-
ful of the Perfian poets. In the judgment
of Sudi, Hafez is unequal ; fome of his odes
are excellent, others very inferior, and fome
very tame, whilft Jami preferves an equality
93
throughout. I have not tranflated the ode of
Hafez, " If that fair maid," &c. * into Latin
verfe, as the fenfe is fo unconnected : but a
profe tranflation of it with notes, if you wifh
to have it, is at your fervice. In the mean
time, I fend you my lateft production, not
complete indeed, but a mere embryo. Fare-
wel.
P. S. It is little to fay, I approve your
Arabic verfes; I really admire them, but dare
not in this inftance attempt to imitate you.
Reviczki.
f REVICZKI to Mr. JONES.
London, March 17///, 1768.
I was highly delighted with your
letter, particularly with your various tranf-
lations, imitations, and competitions; they
not only prove you have
Made the Greek authors your supreme delight,
Read them by day, and studied them by night :
(Francis :)
* See a poetical translation of this ode, in Sir William
Jones's Works, vol. v. p. 316.
•j- Appendix, No. 5.
,04
but that you have attained all the "peculiar
elevation, as well as elegance of that lan-
guage. Your Ode to Venus is as beautiful
as Venus herfelf; and you have imitated
with wonderful fuccefs fo divine an original.
Is it not melancholy to reflect, that not
only fo much of the compofitions of this
elegant writer mould be loft, but that the
little which remains is fo mutilated and
corrupted ?
That the text of the ode felecled by you,
and even that preferved by Dionyfius, and
publifhed by Upton, is preferable to that of
Stephens, or whoever made the emendations
(fuch as they are), I freely admit; for the
rules of dialed are not only better obferved,
but it contains ftronger marks of being genu-
ine : yet, after all, it is impoffible to deny,
that there are many chafms in it, as well as
errors, which cannot be fatisfadorily amend-
ed by any explanation or twirling of the
fenfe.
That Sappho wrote in the dialed: of her
own country, which cannot at this time be
95
perfectly understood, is fufficiently probable;
but it would be abfurd to fuppofe the iEolic
dialect irreconcileable to metre and profody;
not to mention the evident corruption of the
fenfe in fome pafiages.
******
Your tranflation of the Epigram on the
Kifs of Agatho, is very elegant, and the idea
in it refembles that of Hafez in the following
lines :
Anxious thy blooming charms to see,
Quick to my lips my soul ascends ;
Must it expire or live ? — decree j —
For on thy voice my fate depends.
T fend you, as I promifed, a profe tranfla-
tion of the Perfian ode, together with an at-
tempt at a poetical verfion of it, which I will
hereafter improve. Pray inform me, whether
there is any tranflation of Hafez, printed or
manufciipt, in Latin, or any other European
language ; for I know of no other attempt at
a tranflation of this poet, than that of the fir ft
ode, lately publifhed in the Anale&a of Pro-
fefTor Hyde.
I requeft likewife to be informed, where
I am likely to find the firft book of the Iliad
of Homer, with an analyfis and notes, for
the ufe of fcholars, printed in England,
which a friend of mine w r ifhes to procure for
his fon.
The ode, of which you praife the conclud-
ing verfe, is elegant; I remember only the
firft couplet : —
Bring wine, and scatter flow'rs around,
Nor seek the depths of fate to sound : —
Such was the morning rose's tale; —
What say'st thou, warbler of the vale ?
Although I have begun the preparations
for my departure, and have packed up my
books, if you wiih to have a tranflation of
this ode, or if it will be of any ufe to you, I
will undertake it before I go. I wait your
commands. Farewel.
* C. REVICZKI to Mr. JONES.
London, March 29th, 176 S.
That I have deferred longer than
ufually my reply to your obliging letter, you
* Appendix, No. 6.
97
muft impute to the novel, and ftrange ap-
pearance of things here. You will not, I
truft, be difpofed to blame a delay, occafioned
by the attention of a foreigner to cuftoms
which are peculiar to your country, and
which I never obferved in any other; for I
confers to you that I never faw any thing
fimilar to the mode here purfued of electing
members of parliament, the novelty of it
at firft amufed me, but the increafing tumult
fickened and difgufted me, and, by compel-
ling me to remain at home, afforded me an
opportunity of writing to you, I rejoice that
my verfion of the Perfian ode pleafes you, and
that it has induced you to think me equal to
the translation of the whole collection. But
highly as I am honoured by your opinion,,
I cannot but think your advice fomewhat
unmerciful, for what mortal, unlefs
Or oak, or brass, with triple fold,
Around his daring bosom roll'd,
(Francis,)
would undertake a tranflation in prcfe and
verfe of fix hundred odes ? The attempt
Xj/c— V. I. H
98
would not only require many years, but an
entire exemption from all other occupations;
which is not my cafe ; I can only make thefe
fludies my occafional amufement. I mean,
however, fome time or other, to publifh as
much as I can.
The perfon who applied to me for the firft
book of the Iliad, with a verbal analyfis, al-
ready pofTefTes the key to Homer; but he
thinks the other work better adapted to the
ufe of boys, becaufe the notes in it are fub-
joined to the text, which is not the plan of
the Clavis. If you have one at hand, oblige
me byjufl looking into it; for, if my me-
mory does not fail me, there is a catalogue
prefixed, mentioning the work which I want,
and the name of the printer.
Although your politenefs has excufed any
further efforts, I neverthelefs fend the ode
which you requefled in your laft letter but
one, as I think it will pleafe you. It is by
no means one of the eafieft, either to under-
ftand, or tranflate; and indeed, the force of
the peculiar idioms of a foreign language
99
cannot be well conveyed by any circumlo-
cution.
You aik my opinion of the affinity be-
tween the Hebrew and Arabic, and of an
idiom common to both, of ufmg the future
for the paft. Though I feldom read He-
brew, or, to fay the truth, though I confi-
der this facred language rather as an object
of veneration than of delight, (for, excepting
the Old Teftament itfelf, and fome rabbinical
dreams about it, there is nothing in it worth
perufal,) I well remember, from the little of
it which I have read, having remarked a clofe
connection between the grammar of the He-
brew and Arabic, the moods and tenfes in
both are fo few, as to require the frequent
fubftitution of one for another; the Greek,
however, which is fo redundant in moods
and tenfes, fometimes docs the fame; for in-
ftance, when it ufes the infinitive for the im-
perative. With refpecl: to the meafures ufed
in the two languages, I am of a different
opinion, for I confider the metrical art of the
Arabs of much later invention, and to have
H 2
100
affumed its prefent form only a fhort time
before Mohammed, there being no trace
whatever among them of a more ancient
poetry. If the Hebrew poetry had a fimilar
conftruction, which may indeed be fufpected
from a fimilar ufe of the vowels, we might
by this time have traced, without difficulty,
the laws of Hebrew metre by the rules of
analogy *.
If the text of the ode, which you mention
to have read in the mifcellaneous works of
fome anonymous author, had been correct,
you would not have wanted my humble af-
fiftance : but it is fo full of errors, that I
muft be an CEdipus to interpret it, Every
one knows, that the mere irregularity of the
diacritical points occafions infinite difficulty
* The probability that the metrical compositions of
the Hebrews and Arabs were founded on the same rules
of prosody, is intimated by Sir W. Jones, in his Com-
mentaries on Asiatic poetry, and proposed to the inves-
tigation of the learned. This opinion is suggested, by
the close affinity of the languages of those ancient people,
whence he argues to a presumption that their poets used
the same numbers, feet, and measures, in their com-
positions.
101
in the Oriental languages; but this is doubly
increafed by the cafual omiflion or alteration
of the letters themfelves. It is therefore ab-
solutely necefFary in my opinion, as it is im-
poffible to find manufcripts without errors, to
poiTefs two copies of every one which you
read, that the faults of the one may be cor-
rected by the other; and this is my method.
******
I have only to conclude by thanking you
for your Italian fonnet, and expreffing the
commendation to which it is entitled.-—
Farewel.
* Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKL
April 1768.
Nothing can afford a ftronger proof
of your polite attention to me, than your
laft very friendly letter, which you contrived
to write in the midft of city buftle, during
the noife of riotous mobs, and the tumult of
a parliamentary election, and to accompany
* Appendix, No, 7.
LIBRARY
UNIVERSITY ' T.TF0RNIA
SANTA BARBARA
102
it with a moft beautiful Perfian Ode, and a
Latin tranflation. Our favourite Hafez de-
fences indeed to be fed with ambrofia, and
I daily difcover, with increafing delight, new
beauties and elegances in him. The prin-
cipal difficulty attending the tranflation and
publication of his poems as you have begun,
confifts in giving them a poetical drefs; but
this will prove eafier than you imagine; for
there are many of his odes, which I conclude
you will not attempt to tranflate, as contain-
ing expreffions wholly foreign to our man-
ners, lofty and daring figures, or abrupt un-
connected lines; and this will in fome mea-
fure alleviate the Herculean labour of the
talk.
# * * * * *
If I were not a fincere lover of
truth, and averfe from all diflimulation, I
fhould lament that our capital has fallen un-
der your infpeclion in thefe times of turbu-
lence and diffraction, when the liberty of my
country, fo univerfally celebrated, has dege-
nerated into unbridled licentioufnefs, not to
103
fay outrage. The original form of our con-
ftitution is almoft divine; — to fuch a degree,
that no ftate of Rome or Greece could ever
boaft one fuperior to it; nor could Plato,
Ariftotle, nor any legiflator, even conceive a
more perfect model of a ftate. The three
parts which compofe it are fo harmonioufly
blended and incorporated, that neither the
flute of Ariftoxenus, nor the lyre of Timo-
theus, ever produced more perfect concord.
What can be more difficult than to devife a
conftitution, which, while it guards the dig-
nity of the fovereign, and liberty of the people,
from any encroachment by the influence and
power of the nobility, preferves the force and
majefty of the laws from violation, by the
popular liberty? This was the cafe formerly
in our ifland, and would be fo flill, if the
folly of fome had not prompted them to fpur
on the populace, inftead of holding them in.
I cannot therefore reftrain my indignation
againft Wilkes, a bold and able, but turbulent
man, the very torch and firebrand of fedi-
tion : but what can be faid in defence of the
104
honour and coniiftency of fome of our nobi-
lity, who, after having given him their coun-
tenance and fupport, fhamefully deferted and
betrayed him ?
If you wifh to obtain more accurate in-
formation refpecting our laws and cuftoms, I
recommend to your peruial Smith's Treatife
on the Englifh Conftitution, and the Dia-
logue of Fortefcue in praife of the Laws of
England. Thomas Smith was the Englifh
ambaflador in France in the reign of Eliza-
beth, and his work is in Latin, and not in-
elegantly written. To Fortefcue 's little tract,
we may apply the words of Xenophon to the
Teleboas; " it is not large, but beautiful."
He was Chancellor of England under Henry
the Sixth, and was compelled by the diftrac-
tions of the times, to take refuge with his
pupil Prince Edward in France, where, in
an advanced age, he compofed his little
golden dialogue. Thefe books will convince
you that our laws are framed with the great-
eft wifdom, and that as Pindar, quoted by
Plato in his Gorgias, ,fays,
105
Sov' reign o'er all, eternal law
On Gods and Men imposes awe,
And justice, strengthen'd by her hand,
O'er all exerts supreme command.
When I reflect on our conftitution, I feem
as it were to contemplate a game at chefs, a
recreation in which we both delight. For we
have a king whofe dignity we ftrenuouily de-
fend, but whofe power is very limited; the
knights, and rooks, and other pieces, have
fome kind of refemblance to the orders of
nobility, who are employed in war, and in
the management of public affairs; but the
principal flrength is in the pawns, or people;
if thefe are firmly united, they are fure of
victory, but if divided and feparated, the
battle is loft. The motions of all, as in
the game of chefs, are regulated by fixed
laws : laftly, when I confider myfelf, I feem
like a fpectator, contemplating for his mere
amufement the two parties at the game; but
if it ever fhould be my lot to be concerned in
the adminiftration of affairs, I will renounce
gain and popularity, and purfue one object,
106
and one only, to preierve our beautiful con-
Uitution inviolate.
Contrary to my intention, I find I have
been prolix; I will, therefore, turn to another
fubjeet. I read your la ft letter with an ap-
prehenfion, that it might communicate the
intelligence of your fpeedy departure from
England; but as you are filent on this head, as
my bufmefs here will loon be concluded, and
as I know the uncertainty of all human
affairs, I am determined to embrace an op-
portunity, which, if I now neglect, may not
again occur, of paying you a vifit in London
about the middle of the month. — Farewel.
* Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKI.—
No Date. — 1768.
I have received your
two letters replete with tafte and erudition ;
your kindnefs towards me is as confpicuous
in them, as the brilliancy of your genius. I
now reply to both.
* Appendix, No. 8.
107
Your approbation of my intention to pub-
lifh my work, gives me, as it ought, great
pleafure; for I cannot but rejoice, as Hector
in the tragedy fays, " in the praife of one,
" who is himfelf entitled to praife." The
perufal of the two odes of the divine poet,
afforded me infinite delight; they are very
beautiful, but their beauties are more confpi-
cuous from your luminous interpretation.
Your metrical imitation of them is elegant,
and if you will allow me to publifh it in my
work, you will equally oblige me and my
readers, who will be glad to hear the Perfian
poet fpeak Latin; if you object to this, copies
of them fhall be depofited with my treafures,
and the originals reftored to you as foon as
pofhble. You bid me return the verfes to
you when I am tired with them : this is as
much as to fay keep them for ever, for it is
impoflible that I can ever be tired with the
perufal.
308
* Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKL
Oxford, November 176S.
I cannot refift the temp-
tation of writing to you, although I fear you
may have quitted this country before my
letter arrives.
I have received your obliging letter, with
an elegant ode of Hafez, which I read with
the greateft pleafure, or rather devoured.
But what neceffity is there to fay more,
fince it is poffible that what I write, may
never reach you ? Let me, again and again,
intreat and befeech your remembrance of me
wherever you go, and that you will write to
me as fpeedily, and at as great a length as
poffible. Be affiired that nothing has, or
ever can, afford me greater pleafure than your
friendship,
******
Thefe letters ftrongly mark the enthufiafm
of Mr. Jones, and his learned friend Reviczki,
for Oriental literature; nor am I furprifed to
Vppendix, No. 9,
109
find that the former mould have been led by-
it, to entertain an intention of vifiting the
Eaft : no one, however, will regret that it
was at that period abandoned. Every reader
will perufe with plcafurc the enthufiaftic
veneration exprefled by Mr. Jones for the
Britifh conftitution, and the ardour with
which he pronounces himfelf its champion;
they will alfo remark that his attachment to it
was indelible, and acquired ftrength from his
increafing knowledge of its laws and prin-
ciples.
For an account of his occupations at Wim-
bledon, where he paffed the Spring of 1769,
I mail tranfcribe part of a letter which he
wrote to an intimate friend, John Wilmot,
Efquire.
" My life is one unvaried fcene of writing
" letters, and attending the donzelle vezzofe
<{ e tenerolle, by whofe beauties I confefs
" myfelf eafily overcome.
" I have juft read Robertfon's Life of
*'• Charles the Fifth, the narrative of which
110
el is amufing and inftructive, and the ftyle
" flowing and elegant : but the former wants
" that fpirit and fire of genius, that alone
" can make a hiftory animated, and leave
" great impreffions on the mind and the
" latter has too great a famenefs in the turn
<c of the fentences, and abounds with too
" many affected words.
ff I have alfo given my favourite Petrarch
" a fecond reading, and was fo much pleafed
" with his lamentations over Laura, that I
<£ felected the moft beautiful paffages, and
*' threw them altogether in the form of an
" Elegy *, which I fend you enclofed, but
" beg you will return it as foon as you can,
" as I have no other copy. I fear I fhall not
" be at Oxford this Spring, but am not cer-
* c tain. Give my compliments to Poore, and
* l tell him, if he will defcend from the ftarry
<c temple of philofophy, and write to a very
" idle fellow, I fhall be glad to hear from
* Works, vol. x. p. 261.
Ill
i% him, efpecially as I am defirous of know-
u ing his fentiments about my Treatife De
« PolTi Afiaticu."
*****
In the Summer of this year, Lord Althorp
was fettled at Harrow, and Mr. Jones, who
accompanied him there, had the fatisfaclion
of feeing himfelf reftored to the fociety of
Dr. Sumner. Their enthufiafm for literature
was equal : the mafter contemplated, with,
delight unmixed with envy, a rival of his
own erudition in his fcholar, who acknow-
ledged with gratitude his obligations to his
preceptor. Their intercourfe, although in-
terrupted, had never been difcontinued; and
Mr. Jones feldom fullered any confiderable
time to elapfe without vifiting Harrow. Dur-
ing his refidence there at this period, he
tranfcribed a Perfian Grammar, which he had
three years before compofed for the ufe of a
fchool-fellow who had been deftined for India,
but had fince relinquifhed that object for a
commiffion in the army.
I find alfo from his correfpondence, that
112
he had begun a Dictionary of the Perfian
Language, in which the principal words were
illuftrated from the moft celebrated authors
of the Eaft : but he exprefled at the fame
time his determination not to continue the
work, unlefs the India Company would pur-
chafe it at a confiderable expenfe.
The ferious reader has probably remarked,
that, amid ft the attention of Mr. Jones to
general literature, Religion has not been men-
tioned as an object of his ftudy, and he may
be folicitous to know his opinions on this
important fubjedt, and whether he had made
any, and what, progrefs in that knowledge,
in comparifon of which all erudition is tri-
fling, and human fcience vain. Notwith-
ftanding the anxiety of Mrs. Jones for the
improvement of her fon, and her indefatiga-
ble exertions to promote it in his early years,
fhe had initiated him no further in the prin-
ciples of our holy faith, than to teach him the
Lord's Prayer and Apoftles' Creed. During
his refidence at Harrow, at the earned recom-
mendation of Dr. Glafle, whofe name I men-
113
tion with reverence, Mr. Jones was induced
to perufe a work, intitled, " Private Thoughts
on Religion," by Bifhop Beveridge, with
confiderable attention; and he was particu-
larly ft ruck with a paffage, in which the
pious author argues, that a profeffion of
Chriftianity merely becaufe our countrymen
profefs it, without a candid enquiry and fin-
cere conviction, would be no better reafon
for our faith, than the Mohammedans have
for theirs. The obfervation readily fuggefted
to his recollection a famous couplet in Zayre,
which he did not hefitate to apply to himfelf:
Peusse ete pres du Gange, esclave des faux dieux,
Chretienne dans Paris, Mussulmane en ces lieux.
I wim for my own fatisfaction, as well as
that of my reader, that I were able to pro-
nounce what impreflion the perufal of this
work made upon the mind of Mr. Jones.
It is probable, and the prefumption is not
advanced without reafon, that it induced him
to reflect: with more ferioufnefs than he had
ever before entertained on the fubje& of re-
life— V. I. I.
114
ligion, and to inveftigate the grounds on
which the Old and New Teflament had been
received, during fo many ages, as the Word
of God. It is evident however, from a con-
verfation with two of his clerical friends at
Harrow at this time, when he was in his
twenty-fourth year, that his belief in Chrif-
tianity was not unmixed with doubts. Thefe
doubts were ftated by him, in hopes of ob-
taining a folution of them; but being difap-
pointed, he declared his determination to
perufe the whole of the Scriptures in the
original uninterruptedly, that he might be
enabled to form a correct judgment of the
connection between the two parts, and of
their evidence both internal and external.
The expofition of his doubts to thofe whom
he thought qualified to folve them, was a
proof of his anxiety to kno the truth ; and
the determination which he formed in con-
fequence of his difappointment, is no lefs a
proof of his fincerity in the fearch of it. I
cannot deny myfelf the fatislaction of anti-
the conclufion to which his inveili-
115
gation led, a firm belief in the authenticity
and infpiration of the Holy Scriptures.
In a Hebrew copy of the book of Hofea,
I find a feries of Propofitions in the hand-
writing of Mr. Jones, containing the fketch
of a demonftration of the divine authority of
the Chriftian Religion. Thefe Propofitions
appear to have been written near the period
of the preceding converfation at Harrow.
They are not exprefTed with fuch accuracy or
elegance, as to juftify a fuppofition that they
were intended to be made public; but as I
know that he always confidered the demon-
ftration contained in them fatisfactory, I ex-
hibit them as evidence of his early conviction
of the truth and completion of the prophecies
refpecting our Saviour.
PROPOSITION I.
There is as much reafon to believe, that the
writings of Ifaiah and the Hebrew Prophets,
as that thofe of Homer and the Greek Poets,
are more ancient than the time of Jefus.
I 2
[116
Objection. Some men might have an in-
tereft in forging Ifaiah.
Anfwer, Forged writings would have
been more in point, Thofe of Ifaiah bear no
marks of forgery; and the Jews themfelves,
who were puzzled by them, acknowledged
their antiquity,
PROPOSITION II.
Thefe ancient writings, efpecially Ifaiah^
allude to fome great event, and to fome real
extraordinary perfon, " who was put to
" death, and complained not;" &c. Ifaiah,
chap. liii.
PROPOSITION III.
The life and death of Jefus, his virtues and
doctrines, though not his miracles, are as
much to be believed, as the life and death of
Socrates, his virtues, and his doctrine.
PROPOSITION IV.
No perfon in the hiftory of the Jews, be-
117
fore or after Jefus, coincides with this ac-
count, except Jefus.
Therefore Jefus was the fubjec"t, of their
writings, which are confequently infpired,
and he a perfon of an extraordinary nature,
that is, the Meffiah.
If this be jult reafoning, we may believe
his miracles, and mujl obey his law.
If difficulties occur, and we are afked,
M how they can be folved," we may fafely
anfwer, " We do not know;" yet we may
truly be, and juftly be called Chriftians.
To thefe Propofitions, the following note
is fubjoined : — " What muft be the import -
(t ance of a book," of which it may be truly
faid, '"' if this book be not true, the religion
" which we profefs is falfe ?"
Mr. Jones returned with his pupil from
Harrow, in the Autumnal vacation of 1 769,
and availed himfelf of this opportunity to
vifit his friends at Oxford. During his refi-
dence there, he made an excurfion to Foreft
Hill, the occafional habitation of Milton ; for
118
whofe genius and learning, he early and ever
entertained the higheft veneration. The
public will read with pleafure his own rela-
tion of what he faw and felt on this occafion,
in an animated letter which he wrote to
Lady Spencer.
To Lady SPENCER.
1th Sept. 1769.
The neceflary trouble of cor-
recting the firft printed meets of my hiftory,
prevented me to-day from paying a proper
refpect to the memory of Shakefpeare, by at-
tending his jubilee. But I was refolved to
do all the honour in my power to as great
a poet, and fet out in the morning in com-
pany with a friend to vifit a place, where
Milton fpent fome part of his life, and where,
in all probability, he compofed feveral of his
earlieft productions. It is a fmall village
fituated on a pleafant hill, about three miles
from Oxford, and called Foreft Hill, becaufe
it formerly lay contiguous to a foreft, which
has fince been cut down. The poet chofe
J 19
this place of retirement after his firit mar-
riage, and he defcribes the beauties of his
retreat in that fine pafTage of his L 'Allegro :
Sometime walking, not unseen,
By hedge-row elms, on hillocks green.
******
While the ploughman, near at hand,
Whistles o'er the furrow'd land,
And the milkmaid singeth blithe,
And the mower whets his scythe;
And ev'ry shepherd tells his tale,
Under the hawthorn in the dale.
Straight mine eye hath caught new pleasures,
Whilst the landscape round it measures :
Russet lawns, and fallows grey,
Where the nibbling flocks do stray;
Mountains, on whose barren breast,
The lab'ring clouds do often rest;
Meadows trim, with daisies pied,
Shallow brooks, and rivers wide ;
Towers and battlements it sees,
Bosom'd high in tufted trees.
******
Hard by, a cottage chimney smokes,
From betwixt two aged oaks. &c.
It was neither the proper feafon of the
year, nor time of the day, to hear all the
rural founds, and fee all the objects men-
tioned in this defcription; but, by a pleafing
concurrence of circumftances, we were fa-
120
luted, on our approach to the village, with
the mufic of the mower and his fcythe ; we
faw the ploughman intent upon his labour,
and the milkmaid returning from her coun-
try employment.
As we afcended the hill, the variety of
beautiful objects, the agreeable ftillnefs and
natural fimplicity of the whole fcene, gave
us the higheft pleafure. We at length reach-
ed the fpot, whence Milton undoubtedly took
molt of his images; it is on the top of the
hill, from which there is a molt extenfive
profpect en all fides : the diftant mountains
that feemed to fupport the clouds, the vil-
lages and turrets, partly fhaded with trees of
the nneft. verdure, and partly raifed above
the groves that furrounded them, the dark
plains and meadows of a greyifh colour, where
the fheep were feeding at large, in fhort, the
view of the ftreams and rivers, convinced us
that there was not a fingle ufelefs or idle
word in the above-mentioned defcription, but
that it was a mod exact and lively reprefent-
ation of nature. Thus will this fine pafTage,
121
which has always been admired for its ele-
gance, receive an additional beauty from its
exaclnefs. After we had walked, with a
kind of poetical cnthufiafm, over this en-
chanted ground, we returned to the village.
The poet's houfe was clofe to the church,
the greateft part of it has been pulled down,
and what remains, belongs to an adjacent
farm. I am informed that feveral papers in
Milton's own hand, were found by the gen-
tleman who was laft in pofieffion of the eftate.
The tradition of his having lived there is
current among the villagers : one of them
fhewed us a ruinous wall that made part of
his chamber, and I was much pleafed with
another, who had forgotten the name of
Milton, but recollected him by the title of
The Poet.
It mult, not be omitted, that the groves
near this village are famous for nightingales,
which are fo elegantly defcribed in the Pen-
fierofo. Moil of the cottage windows are
overgrown with fweet briars, vines, and ho-
aey-fuckles ; and that Milton's habitation had
vn
the fame ruflic ornament, we may conclude
from his defcription of the lark bidding him
good-morrow,
Thro* the sweet-briar, or the vine,
Or the twisted eglantine :
for it is evident, that he meant a fort of ho-
ney-fuckle by the eglantine; though that
word is commonly ufed for the fweet-briar,
which he could not mention twice in the
fame couplet.
If I ever pafs a month or fix weeks at Ox-
ford in the Summer, I fliall be inclined to
hire and repair this venerable manfion, and
to make a feflival for a circle of friends, in
honour of Milton, the moll perfect fcholar,
as well as the fublimeft poet, that our coun-
try ever produced. Such an honour will be
lefs fplendid, but more fincere and refpectful,
than all the pomp and ceremony on the
banks of the Avon,
I have the honour, Sec,
Towards the end of this year, Mr. Jones
accompanied the family of Lord Spencer in a
journey to the Continent. I cannot better
123
defcribe his occupations and reflections during
this excurfion, than in his own words :
* Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKI.
Nice, Mk Feb. 1770.
The date of my letter will not fail
to furprize you ; for I do not write from the
plains, through which the Thames or Ifis, fo
juftly dear to me, glides, but from the foot
of the Alps, and in front of the Ligurian fea.
I have refided in this delightful little
fpot nearly three months; it was not pof-
fible therefore for me to receive your two
moft acceptable letters, dated in September
and January, before my departure from Eng-
land: I have read them with fingular pleafure,
to which their length did not a little contri-
bute. You cannot conceive my anxiety to
perufe your Treatife on the Military Art of
the Turks; it is, I underftand, depofited in
Lord Spencer's houfe in London, but I ex-
pect to receive a copy by the firft vefTel which
* Appendix, No. II.
:24
fails from England for this port, and I will
take care that the three remaining copies
fhall be fafely and expeditioufly delivered to
your friends, and if yours, mine alio, al-
though I do not even know them by fight.
The approbation which your work has re-
ceived in Germany, delights, without fur-
prizing me. It was firft mentioned to me by
a nobleman of that country, apparently a man
of tafte and amiable manners, who holds, I
believe, a public office at Milan ; and he pro-
mifed not only to fend it to me, but to inform
me of your health, and where to addrefs you;
a promife which gave me the greateft fatisfac-
tion: for I fufpe&ed (forgive the injuftice of
the fufpicion) that I no longer retained a
place in your remembrance, and in confe-
quence defpaired of hearing from you, unlefs
I firft wrote to you. In this fufpenfe, I re-
ceived your two moft welcome letters with
fourteen odes: they are not only worthy of
the lyre, but the lyre to which they are fung,
ought to be of gold. I am indeed proud of
your condefcenfion in alking my opinion of
V25
them, as I can by no means think myfelf en*
titled to fuch an honour. I will however
make my remarks upon them as well as I can,
and return them to you when I receive an
anfwer to this letter; for I fhould be lorry to
truft fuch precious writings to the uncertain
conveyance of the poft.
This letter will probably reach you in a
fortnight, and I beg you to gratify me by an
early acknowledgment of it ; for I aflure you
with great truth, that nothing can give me
more pleafure than a letter from you, how-
ever hafty. You perhaps wifh to know how
I employed my time after your departure
from England; a fhort explanation will fuf-
flce. Amongft other occupations, I revifed
and corrected my Commentaries on Oriental
Poetry, and when I was preparing an accurate
tranfcription of the manufcript for your peru-
fal, I was unexpectedly interrupted by a bufi-
nefs of more importance*.
* The business here alluded to, Is the translation of
the life of Nadir Shah, the circumstances of which have
been already detailed, and are repeated in another letter:
126
******
I had fcarcely brought this work to a con-
clufion, when, in confequence of the'fud-
den indifpofition of the younger fifter of my
pupil, (who frequently talks of you) her
father determined to pafs the winter with his
family in Italy, or the South of France. I was
therefore under the iieceflity of entruftingmy
hiftory (as the King of Denmark was anxious
for its publication) to a Frenchman, upon
whofe accuracy I could depend, for correct-
ing the errors of the prefs. I have juft learn-
ed from him, that the work is printed; and I
will take care that not even his Danifh
Majefty Ihall receive a copy of it before you.
Having thus left England, we repaired to
Paris, and after rather a tedious refidence
there, we proceeded with great rapidity by the
Rhone to Lyons, and from that place con-
tinued our journey by Marfeilles. Frejus, and
Antibes, to Nice,
the particular mention made of them in the letter before
/.he reader, is therefore untranslated.
<
127
Where Spring in all her charms perpetual reigns,
And banish' d Winter flies the blooming plains.
Even here we fhall remain longer than I
wifh; but I hope to return to England by the
beginning of June. I propofe, however, if I
mould have an opportunity, to crofs the fea
about the middle of this month, and vifit
Florence, that celebrated colony of the Tri-
umviri, and the cradle of reviving literature,
.as well as Rome, the nurfe of all elegant arts,
and perhaps Naples; but on this plan you
fhall hereafter know my determination. You
may perhaps enquire, what are my occupa-
tions at this place : I will tell you in few
words; mufic, with all its iweetnefs and feel-
ing; difficult and abftrufe problems in ma-
thematics; the beautiful and fublime in po-
etry and painting; thefe occupy all my fenfes
and thoughts; nor ,do I neglect the ftudy of
the military art, which it would be the great-
eft difgrace to an Englilh gentleman not to be
acquainted with. I have written much in
my native language, and amongft other things
a little Tract on Education, in the manner
123
of Ariftotle, that is, the analytic manner. I
have moreover begun a tragedy, to which I
have given the title of Soliman, whofe moll
amiable fon perifhed miferably, as you know,
by the treachery of a ftep- mother. The
itory is full of the mod afFecling incidents,
and has more fublimity even than the trage-
dies of iEfchylus, as it abounds with Oriental
images. I fend you tranflations of two odes,
one from Hafez, the other from the very an-
cient Arabic poet; but I have adapted the
images of the latter to the Roman manners,
and I fill the remainder of the paper with a
Greek epigram, in imitation of a little Eng-
lifh fong. Farewel. You fhall have your
papers as foon as I am informed that you
have received this letter.
* Mr. JONES to N. B. HALHED.
Nice, March i, 1770.
I received your fhort letter
with great pleafure, as it convinced me, that
you were not infenfible of my efteem for you,
* Appendix, No. 12.
129
and fuch as refemble you. I wrote immedi-
ately to my friends, as you defired, moft ear-
neftly requefting them to promote your views,
as if my own intereft were concerned ; if they
accede to my wifhes in this refpecT:, they will
oblige me and themfelves too; for doubtlefs
I fhall be ready to make them every return
that I can. I think however that I fhall have
it in my power to ferve you more effectually,
after my return to England ;,and I beg you to
believe, that no inclination or efforts on my
part, fhall ever be wanting to promote your
wifhes.
My health is good; but I long for thofe
enjoyments, of which I know not well how
to bear the privation. When I firft arrived
here, I was delighted with a variety of objects,
rarely, if ever, feen in my own country, —
olives, myrtles, pomegranates, palms, vine-
yards, aromatic plants, and a furprifmg variety
of the fweetefl flowers, blooming in the midfl
of winter. But the attraction of novelty has
ceafed; I am now fatiated, and begin to feel
fomewhat of difguft. The windows of our
Life— v. I. K
130
inn are fcarcely thirty paces from the fea, and
as Ovid beautifully fays —
Tired, on the uniform expanse I gaze.
I have therefore no other refource than,
with Cicero, to count the waves, or, with Ar-
chimedes and Archytas, to meafure the fands.
I cannot defcribe to you how weary I am of
this place, nor my anxiety to be again at
Oxford, where I might jeft with you, or phi-
lofophize with Poore. If it be not inconveni-
ent, I wifh you would write to me often, for I
long to know how you and our friends are:
but write if you pleafe in Latin, and with
gaiety, for it grieves me to obferve the un-
eafinefs under which you appear to labour.
Let me ever retain a place in your affection,
as you do in mine ; continue to cultivate po-
lite literature; woo the mufes; reverence
philofophy; and give your days and nights to
compolition, with a due regard however to
the prefervation of your health.
131
* Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKI.
Nice, April 1770.
It is impoffible to defcribe
my vexation at not hearing from you, and I
can only conclude that you have not received
my letter of February, or, what would be
more unpleafant, that your letter has mifcar-
ried, or finally, what I dread even to fufpefr,
that I no longer retain a place in your re-
membrance. I have written to you from
this place, not (as Cicero fays to Lucceius) a
very fine epiftle, but one that I cannot but
think would be acceptable to you. becaufe it
was very long, and contained, befides, much
information refpec.ing myfelf. After a fuf-
ficient time for the receipt of an anfwer,
which I raoft anxioufly expected, I daily en-
quired if there were any letters from Vienna;
— none, none, was the reply day after day.
My anxiety and uneafinefs at this difappoint-
ment daily increafed, and nearly two months
are now elapfed without a line from you.
* Appendix, No. 13*
K 2
132
What can I do ? or what mall I devife ? I
fear to truft your papers, which you defired
me to return, to a conveyance fo hazardous
as the poft; although I am perfuaded it will
be inconvenient for you to be fo long without
them; but although I cannot venture to fend
them before I hear from you, I inclofe my
remarks, which you may throw into the fire,
if you do not like them : — they are, as you
feemed to wifh, fomewhat hypercritical, and
perhaps too fevere.
Your Treatife on the Military Art of the
Turks, delighted me exceedingly; nothing
can be more ufeful or opportune. As I can-
not depend upon this letter reaching you, I
write but little, having no wifh to talk to the
winds, and rifk the lofs of time, which I can
better employ. I expect to leave this town
about the middle of the month. My propof-
ed Italian expedition is deferred to a future
period. Farewel, my Charles, and remember
me, as I do you. After my return to Eng-
land I will write to you frequently, and my
letters mall be longer and more cheerful.
133
*Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKL—
Date erafed.
Although I cannot poffibly receive
an anfwer to my letter before I leave this
place, I will not have to reproach myfelf for
neglecting an opportunity of writing to you.
I concur moft heartily in your fentiments on
the pleafnres of travelling, as on all other
fubjects; nothing, in my opinion, can be
more ufeful or more delightful. How much
more agreeable would my journey be, if I
could make Vienna a part of it, where I
might enjoy your converfation, philofophize
with you, trifle away an idle hour, or explore
with you the hidden treafures of poetry. As
I am deprived of this happinefs, I ihall take
the liberty of faying fomething not fo favour-
able of the pleafures, which I actually enjoy.
1 am difgufted with the odious rattle of
French gaiety; and the calm ferenity of an
Italian fky has fomething gloomy in it. I
am fo much in love with myfelf, /. e, fo much
■* Appendix, No. M.
134
befide myfelf, that, in my own eyes, I appear
more worthy of your friendmip than ever.
You cannot conceive how different I am from
what you knew me in England. I was then
young and thoughtlefs; now I devote myfelf
wholly to polite literature, and the great ob-
jects of my ambition are virtue, fame, and,
above all, your friendfhip; objefts than
which nothing can be more divine, eftimable,
or dear to me. That I may not altogether
write an unlettered letter, I fend you a Greek
verllon of an Epglifh epigram. It was com-
pofed in a calm night, by a friend of mine,
and I translated it at his requeft. I think it
will pleafe you, as it appears to have an af-
finity to the ftyle of Meleager, and other
poets in the Anthologia *.
To Lady SPENCER.
Nice, April \Uh s 1770.
It is with great pleafure,
that I acquaint your Ladyihip, that Mrs.
* Sir William Jones's Works, vol. v. — In the original,
Mr. Jones indulges himself with a play on words, which
cannot be imitated in the translation.
135
Poyntz, Lady Harriet, and her brother, are
perfectly well; Mrs. Poyhtz goes this morn-
ing to Villa Franca ; I am to be her knight,
and am juft equipped to mount my Rofi-
nante; Mademoifelle Annette is to go upon
Lady Mary Somerfet's afs ; fo we mail make a
formidable procefhon. It is a delightful morn-
ing, and I hope Mrs. Poyntz will be pleafed
with her jaunt. We have had very bad
weather, violent rains, and ftorms of thun-
der in the night, a clofe, fultry heat all day,
and a very fharp cold every evening; but
the fpring feems now to be pretty well fet-
tled; and I fancy we mail have a continually
clear iky, and a mild air, as long as we flay.
We all promife ourfelves great pleafure in
our journey homewards; and we have great
reafon to believe it will be enchantingly plea-
fant. I have every day more and more rea-
fon to be pleafed with the unfolding of my
pupil's difpofition : your Ladyfhip will per-
haps think thefe to be words of courfe, and
what you might naturally expect from any
other perfon in my fituation; but, believe
136
me, I fay them upon no other motive than
their truth ; for if it were my nature to fpeak
to any one what I do not think, I fhould at
leaft fpeak truly to your Ladyfhip, of whom
I am, with the greateft truth,
, jThe obliged and grateful
humble fervant,
William Tones,
To Lady SPENCER.
Paris, 4th June, 1770.
Your Ladyfhip will be fur-
prifed at receiving fuch a parcel of papers
from me : but I am willing to make amends
for not writing all laft month. The truth is,
I had nothing particular to fay at that time;
but on my arrival at Paris, I found a letter
from my friend Reviczki, with a very fpirited
ode compofed by him upon the marriage of
the Archduchefs. I dare fay Lord Spencer
will like it, and I therefore take the liberty
to inclofe it for him. I have marked in this
manner © two or three paffages that are faul-
137
ty ; and I have put this fign T* to one ftanza
that I do not quite underftand. I have alfo
fent with it the Baron's letter to me, which
will ferve as a comment upon many parts
of the ode. You will have heard of the
mocking accidents that happened here the
night of the fire-works. Above one hun-
dred and thirty people were killed; and fe-
veral people of fafhion were crulhed to death
in their carriages. We had the good fortune
to arrive here two days after this dreadful
cataftrophe; which perhaps has faved fome
of us, if not from real danger, at leaft from
the apprehenfion of it. We mall not be
forry to fee England again, and hope to have
that pleafure very foon. Soon after my re-
turn, I think of going to Oxford for a fhort
time : but if Lord Althorp goes back to
fchool this fummer, as I fincerely hope he
will, I fhall not go to College till Auguft;
for I am convinced that a public fchool has
already been, and will continue to be, of the
highefl advantage to him in every rcfpecl:.
"While Mrs. Poyntz ftaid at Lyons, I made
138
an excurfion to Geneva, in hopes of feeing
Voltaire, but was difappointed. I fent him
a note with a few verfes, implying that the
mufe of tragedy had left her ancient feat in
Greece and Italy, and had fixed her abode
On the borders of a lake, &c. He returned
this anfwer : *' The worft of French poets
" and philofophers is almoft dying; age and
" ficknefs have brought him to his laft day;
" he can converfe with nobody, and entreats
*- Mr. Jones to excufe and pity him. He
" prefents him with his humble refpects."
But he was not fo ill as he imagined; for he
had been walking in his court, and went into
his houfe jure, as I came to it. The fervants
fhewed me fomebody at a window, whom
they faid was he; but I had fcarce a glimpfe
of him. I am inclined to think that Voltaire
begins to be rather ferious, when he finds
himfelf upon the brink of eternity; and that
he refufes to fee company, becaufe he cannot
difplay his former wit and fprightlinefs. I
find my book* is published; I am not at all
■ Translation of the Life of Nadir Shah.
139
folicitous about its fuccefs : as I did not
choofe the fubjecl: myfelf, I am not anfwer-
able for the wild extravagance of the ftyle,
nor for the faults of the original; but if your
Ladyfhip takes the trouble to read the difter-
tation at the end, you may perhaps find fome
new and pleafing images. The work has
one advantage, it is certainly authentic.
Lady Georgiana is fo good as to enquire how
Soliman goes on -, pray tell her he is in great
affliction, as he begins to fufpecl: the inno-
cence of Muftafa, who is juft flain. To be
ferious; my tragedy is juft finiihed; and I
hope to ihew it to your Ladyfhip in a fhort
time.
I am, &c.
William Jones.
De La Fontaine is with us : he feems very
well, but is ftill weak and complaining. I
muft add a little ftroke of French courage,
which I have juft heard. In the midft of
all the difafters of the fire -works, the Maref-
chal de Richlieu was in fuch a panic, that he
140
got out of his carnage, and fcreamed out,
Eft-ce qu'on veut laifTer perir un Marefchal
de France ? N'y a-t-il perfonne pour fecourir
un Marefchal de France ? — This will be an
eternal joke againlt him ! —
* Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKI.
Spa, July 1770.
What an idle, unfettled fellow
I am ! I fly over Europe, fcarcely flopping
any-where. We paifed the winter at Nice,
enjoyed the fpring in France, and I am now
fpending the fummer (if this rainy feafon
may be fo called) on the borders of Ger-
many. I certainly can without any rifk fend
your manufcripts from this place, and I ad-
vife you by all means to publifh them.
They are worthy of your acknowledged ta-
lents, and will enfure you the applaufe of all
the learned. I fay this without flattery,
which is indeed foreign to my character.
The criticifms which I fent to you, are full
of errors, and you muft receive them with
* Appendix, No. 15.
141
great allowance; for during my refidence at
Nice, I was wholly without ancient books,
or other aids, to which I am in the habit of
applying, nor do I now pofTefs them.
I have received your French letter, with
an incomparable ode : I was particularly
charmed with that happy tranfition in it ;
O'er kindred, or o'er friendship's bier
Affection pours a transient tear : —
Soon flies the cloud; the solar rays
Disperse the gloom, and brighter blaze.
Believe me, when I read thefe lines, I could
fcarcely reftrain my tears; for nature has that
power over me, that I am more affected by
the beauties of a tender fimplicity, than by
the loftieft figures of poetry ; and hence I am
more delighted with a paflage in the firft
Pythian ode of the divine Pindar concerning
the Mufes, than by his elaborate defcriptiori
of the Eagle and ./Etna *.
What {hall I fend in return for your pre-
* But they on earth, or the devouring main,
"Whom righteous Jove with detestation views,
With envious horror hear the heav'nly strain,
Exil'd from praise, from virtue, and the muse.
West's Translation.
142
fent? Accept the accompanying ode, which
is at lead valuable for its antiquity. You will
perhaps fmile; it is not an epithalamium on
the marriage of Antoinette the Dauphinefs,
but contains the eulogium of a very ancient
Chinefe monarch, whofe name, though a
monofyllable only, I have forgotten. When
I read the works of Confucius, tranflated by
Couplet and others, I was ftruck with admir-
ation at the venerable dignity of the fenti-
ments, as well as at the poetical fragments,
which adorn the difcourfes of that philofopher.
They are feledted from the moft ancient re-
cords of Chinefe poetry, and particularly from
a work, entitled Shi-king, of which there is a
fine copy in the royal library at Paris. I
immediately determined to examine the ori-
ginal: and, referring to the volume, after a
long fludy, I fucceeded in comparing one of
the odes with the verfion of Couplet, and
analyfed every word, or, more properly,
every figure in it. Of this ode, I now fend
you a literal tranflation* : it is a compofition
* Sir William Jones's Works, vol. vi. p. 6.
143
of a wonderful dignity and brevity; each
verfe contains four words only, hence the
ellipfis is frequent in if, and the obfcurity of
the ftyle adds to its fublimity. I have an-
nexed a poetical verfion, making every verfe
correfpond with the fenfe of Confucius ; you
will judge whether I have fucceeded or not,
it will be fufficient for me if it pleafe you.
You know that this philofopher, whom I
may venture to call the Plato of China, lived
about fix hundred years before the Chriftian
sera, and he quotes this ode, as very ancient
in his time. It may therefore be confidered
as a moft precious *gem of antiquity, which
proves, that poetry has been the admiration
of all people in all ages, and that it every-
where adopts the fame images. I muft fay a
few words upon another work, left my long
letter of February, containing a particular
account of it from firft to laft, mould have
mifcarried. I allude to the tranilation of
the life of Nadir Shah, from Perfian into
French, a moft difagreeable tafk, which I un-
dertook at the requeft of my Aug.uftus, the
144
King of Denmark, who, I doubt not, wnf
verify the high expectations entertained of
him in Europe. It was his fpecial injunc-
tion, that the tranflation mould be ftrictly
literal, that I mould fupply fuch notes as
might be neceffary, and finally, that I mould
add a fhort diflertation on the poetry of the
Perfians. I finifhed this tirefome work to
the beft of my ability, and with fuch expe-
dition, in compliance with the importunities
of his Majefty, that the whole book, and
more particularly the dhTertation, is full of
errors. In the latter, I ventured to infert a
tranflation of ten odes of Hafez, from a very
fplendid but incorrecl manufcript, and with-
out the aid of any commentary. I have
written to the Under-Secretary of State, re-
queuing him to fend you a copy of it as ex-
peditioufly as poffible; and I truft he will
not difappoint me. Excufe thofe errors
which I could not perhaps have avoided, if
I had pofleffed the greater!; leifure, and which
the total want of it made almoft inevitable.
Excufe alio the infertion of the two odes,
145
which you fent to me with a French trans-
lation only; and laftly, I muft beg your ex-
cufe for the liberty which I could not avoid
taking of mentioning my friend ; for I could
not refift the defire of letting the King know,
how highly I valued you. You will greatly
add to the other proofs I have experienced of
your kindnefs towards me ; by noticing the
errors of the work, and particularly of the
difTertation, which I mean to publifh in a
feparate volume.
The King of Denmark, as I am informed,
approves my work much, and has some ho-
nours in view for me; but of what nature I
know not. When he was confidering what
recompence he fhould beftow upon me, a
noble friend of mine informed his Majefty,
that I neither wifhed for nor valued money,
but was anxious only for fome honorary mark
of his approbation.
I have directed a copy of your Treatife on
the Military Art of the Turks, to be fent to
his Majefty, becaufe it is worthy his perufal,
Life— V. I. « L
14b
and becaufe you are the author of it. Do not
fuppofe that I now conclude, becaufe I have
nothing more to fay; my mind, in truth,
overflows with matter, and I have more dif-
ficulty in reitraining my pen, than to find
topics for writing. But I will not abufe and
exhauft your patience with my loquacity.
For my fake* take care of your health.
* C. REVICZKI to Mr. JONES.
Vienna, Augusts, 1770.
Indeed,, my dear Sir, I cannot think you
much to be pitied, for having paft a year
£n travelling through various climates and re-
gions ; on the contrary, I think it extremely
fortunate that you have had an opportunity
which you are well qualiiied to improve.
You have efcaped the feverity of winter in
the mild and temperate climate of Italy, you
have enjoyed the fpring in France and Eng-
land, and you are now fpending the fummer
on the confines of Germany, in a place,
* Appendix, No. 16.
147
which is the general rendezvous of Europe ;
and where you may fee, at a glance, an affem-
blage of various nations. Is not this delight-
ful? Is not the great advantage of travel-
ling, to explore the characters of different
people? I can however eafily conceive the
inconvenience which a man of letters muft
fuffer from the want of means and opportu-
nity to purfue his ftudies, and this alone is
fufficient to diminifh the pleafure of it.
I am exceedingly obliged to you for the
extraordinary compofition with which you
favoured me; it is indeed a literary curiofity.
But pray inform me, when you learned the
Chinefe language; I did not fufpecl that this
was one of your accomplishments, but there
are no bounds to your acquifitions as a lin-
guift. I am the more delighted with this lit-
tle performance, as I can rely upon it as a
faithful tranflation from the Chinefe language,
of which the few things we have tranilated,
appear very fufpicious ; it has not only the
merit of being very ancient, but in your ver-
fion appears even elegant. I impatiently ex-
h 2
148
pe& your life of Nadir Shah ; and I beg yo'o
to accept my thanks for your attention, in
requefting the Under-Secretary of State to
forward a copy of it to me; nor am I lef§
anxious to perufe the effay, which you have
annexed to it, on Oriental poetry. I admire
your condefcenfion in fubmitting this work
to my criticifm ; you muft be fenfible that
you incur little rifk by it, and that you are
lure of my approbation. I mall however be
obliged to point out one fault, which is no
trifle,— your mentioning me in fuch honour-
able terms. I have no claim to this diftinc-
tion, although, if I had forefeen your inten-
tion, I would have at lead exerted myfelf to
deferve it. There are feveral of our Vienna
ladies and gentleman now at Spa, who are all
well worthy of your acquaintance. I am in-
formed that Lady Spencer is an intimate
friend of the Princefs Ezterhazy; fhe can in-
troduce you to the acquaintance of an amiable
and refpectable lady, who knows how to
eftimate the value of perfons of merit. I
have nothing at prefent worth troubling you
149
with. I referve this pleafure for a future op-
portunity, and in the mean time am, with
great refpect and veneration,
Your very humble fervant,
Reviczki.
* C. REVICZKI to Mr. JONES.
Vienna, Oct. 16th, 1770.
Although your laft letter gives
me no information of your intended deftina-
tion after your departure from Spa, I con-
clude from your very filence, that you are
now in London. This opinion is confirmed
by the late receipt of your letter. I was de-
prived of the pleafure of hearing from you
during my excurfion into Hungary; nor did
your letter reach me till after my return to
Vienna, long fubfequent to its date, and
when the fubjecl of it was in fact obfolete.
Moft fincerely do I hope that your wifhes
may be gratified, and that after fo much tra-
velling, I may have the pleafure of feeing
you at Vienna.
The French are light and frivolous, the
* Appendix, No. 17.
ISO
Italians effeminate and enervate, and the Ger-
mans may perhaps be dull and morofe; yet
they are not on this account to be defpifed,
for if nature has not endowed them with
the more elegant qualities, they poflefs what
is more valuable, and win the affections of
ftrangers by plain dealing and fimplicity of
manners.
I give this teftimony to the character of the
Germans, without partiality, for I am as
much a ftranger in Germany, as I lately was
in England; and no one, at all acquainted
with the character and country of the Ger-
mans and Hungarians, can poffibly confider
them the fame, for they are not only diffimi-
lar in difpofition, language, and manners,
but in their very nature. I will not however
diffemble, but candidly confefs the truth,
that my way of life here is extremely plea-
fant; nor have I any doubt that you, who
are fo accurate a judge of mankind, will one
day readily fubfcribe to my opinion of this
nation.
I fmile at your declaration that you are
151
changed, and that you hope to be more
agreeable to me, from having renounced
youthful gratifications, and devoted yourfelf
to the cultivation of literature and the pur-
fuit of virtue; for my own part, I only wifh
to find you again precifely the fame as when
I knew and admired you in England, fault-
lefs and irreproachable, I confefs indeed,
that what I particularly valued in you, was
the happy talent of blending pleafure and re-
creation, with the moil intenfe fhidy and
thirft for literature.
Take care "however, that you do not fuller
the ardour of application to deprive you of
the gratifications of life, fufficiently brief in
their own nature; they are indeed fo con-
nected with literature, that the wife and the
learned only are qualified for the true enjoy-
ment of them. Take care alfo, that you
have not hereafter reafon to complain, in the
words of Horace :
Ah why, while slighted joys I vainly mourn, —
Why will not youth, with youthful thoughts, return i
The chaflity of the Mufes, and their er>
lo'J
mity to Venus, is a mere fable adapted to
fiction ; for poetry delights to repofe on downy
pillows. I now turn to another fuhjedt. I
have not yet received your tranflation of the
Perfian manufcript which you promifed me,
and which indeed you feem to have fent;
what has delayed its arrival I know not, and
will trouble you to enquire about it.
I have read again and again the beautiful
Englifh fong, with your elegant tranflation of
it in two languages, and I am delighted with
it. I wonder however that you are fo little
fatisfied with the Latin verfion of it, with
which I am highly pleafed.
******
The laft letter was received by Mr. Jones,
after his return to England. It may be re-
gretted that his correfpondence during his
excurfion to the Continent, fhould have been
confined chiefly to literary topics, and that
his letters contain no obfervations of a parti-
cular nature, on the characters and manners
of the French, Italians, and Germans, amongft
whom he fo long refided. They exhibit
153
however what may be more interefling to
thofe who are anxious to explore his mind
and feelings, an undifguifcd picture of them;
and for this reafon, I more particularly regret
that fo few of his letters mould have been
preferved. The account which he gives of
his fuccefs in deciphering an ode of Con-
fucius, is a remarkable proof of his ardour for
univerfal literature, and of his invincible ap-
plication in the purfuit of it. He had before
acquired the keys of the Chinefe language,
and having accidentally difcovered, through
the medium of an inelegant tranflation, a
treafure locked up in it, he applies them fkil-
fully, and, with great perfeverance, obtains
accefs to it.
Nothing remains of the Treadle on Edu-
cation, mentioned by Mr. Jones, except the
plan; as it is fhort, I prefent it to the reader
in this place. He will probably regret with
me, that the Treatife, if it ever were com-
pleted, no longer exifts. In the culture of
his own talents, Mr. Jones appears ftriciiy to
have purfued the objects which he points
1 54
out as the end of education in general^ and
to. havea£terR t n ie attainment of them, by
the means which he recommends to others;
This little ikctch was written In erity«
third year.
ftAN Of AN ESSAY ON EXWCATIOHT.,
A celebrated Eaftera philoiopher begins
Ills. SffH dlfierfcatmn with the following period*
The perfect education of a great man, co-niliis
la three points : m cultivating and Impsrovisg
Ms undeirftanding ; in adding and reforming
his countrymen ; and 'in procuring to hlsnfelf"
the chief good, or a fc?e# and unalterable
habit of virtue.
I have chofen the words of this iubllme
author, as my fiihjecfc for a Jeries of e;f
in which I defign to diicourie on education;
in its fulieit extent, tracing it from its: be-
ginning with the elementary parts of lan-
guage, to tlie great end propofed by it, that
is, the ability to benefit mankind and our-*
f elves, either in war or in peace, by aft ion
or by peculation. I fhall, however, make
*« w w
10.)
a flight deviation from the definition of the
philofopher, by fixing the good of ourfelves
and our fellow-creatues, as the primary end
propofed by a liberal education; and by con-
fidering the cultivation of our underftanding,
and the acquifition of knowledge, as the fe-
^ondary objects of it. For knowledge mull
certainly be acquired before it can be con-
veyed to others; the confequence of actions
maft be known, before the good can be
felected from the evil ; and the mind muft be
enlightened by an improvement of our natu-
ral reafon, before a proper diftinction can be
made between the real and the apparent good.
Now, as neither this knowledge can be per-
fectly obtained, nor the reafon completely
improved, in the fhort duration of human
life, unlefs the accumulated experience and
wifdom of all ages and all nations, be added
to that which we can gain by our own re-
fearches, it is neceffary to underftand the
languages of thofe people who have been, in
any period of the world, diftinguifhed for
jheir fuperior knowledge; and that our own
156
attainments may be made generally beneficial,
we mull be able to convey them to other
nations^ either in their refpective dialects, or
in fome language, which, from its peculiar
excellence and utility, may be in a manner
univerfal. It follows, therefore, that the
more immediate object of education is, to
learn the languages of celebrated nations both
ancient and modern. But as thefe cannot,
confiilently with reafon and propriety, be
taught before our native tongue, our firft
ftep mull be to make ourfelves perfect mailers
of the language of the country in which wc
are born.
In confequence of this analylls, I intend to
diilribute my diifertation into feveral dillinct
treatifes; on language, on the underftanding,
on knowledge, on the good of mankind, and on
the good of ourfelves, or private happinef.
But there are other acquifitions which muft
go, as it were, hand in hand with thofe above
mentioned. I mean thofe which refrefh and
enliven the mind, and thofe which improve
and adorn the body. For as the human mind,
157
by reafon of its earthly impediments, cannot
at all times fupport with equal advantage its
attention to abftracled fubjec~ts, but requires
many intervals of relaxation, it is neceflary
that fome ftate be found between labour and
reft, to prevent the faculties from lying total-
ly inactive. Hence proceeds the ufe of polite
literature, and of the liberal arts, of poetry, of
painting, and of mufic, which relieve the
mind after any violent exertion of its powers,
and prepare it for the reception of frefh
knowledge with greater alacrity. And as the
mind can neither attend to inilruclion nor re-
ceive refrefhment, unlefs the body enjoy at
leaft a moderate (hare of health, thofe exercifes
are effentially neceflary, which tend to pro-
cure or preferve it, and which have the dou -
ble advantage, of ftrengthening the conftitu-
tion, by promoting a free and regular circula-
tion, and of giving grace to the body, by form-
ing it to eafy and elegant motions. Hence
arifes the great advantage of manly fports, of
dancing, of fwimming, of managing the horfe,
and of ufing every fort of weapon \ to which
muft be added, the habit of declaiming with
an oratorical voice and gefture, an exercife by-
no means general, but perhaps more ufeful
and more ornamental than any of the others-
Confidently with this divifion of necefTary
accomplishments, I lhall add two difcourfes,
on the polite arts, and on exercife.
******
From the terms in which Mr. Jones
fpeaks of the tragedy of Soliman, in one of
his letters, it appears, that he was confiderably
advanced towards its completion; and from
the mention which he afterwards makes of it,
in another to Reviczki, it would feem that it
was actually finifhed, but I have in vain at-
tempted to difcover any traces of it. The
preface to Soliman, written by Mr. Jones,
has been communicated to me, but does not.
appear fufficiently correft for publication.
He notices in it the cuftom of poets to fend
abroad their pieces with prefatory difcourfes
calculated to miflead the tafte or judgment of
their readers, and exemplifies the remark, by
reference to Dryden, La Motte, and Cor-
159
fceliie. Of Dryden, lie obferves, that, having
composed tragedies in rhyme, he thought
rieceilkry to prepare the public for fo novel an
attempt by telling them In his advertise-
ments, that every tragedy Sionld be written
in rhyme; that La Motte purpofely violated
the unifies of rhe Drama, while Comeille pre-
ferred them with an exactnefs approaching to
affectation; and that each endeavoured m a
prefatory difcourfe to prove himfelf alone ia
the right. He difclaims all idea of imitating
a. conduct, which he pronounces abfurd and
ufeiefs, and contents himfelf with a few hints
on the principles which had directed him in.
the compofition of the tragedy.
The object of theatrical reprefentation, he
remarks, is to convey pleafure, and the hope
of receiving it, is the inducement which car-
ries people to the theatre; obferving, that
Shakefpeare delights and tranfports him, while
Corneille lulls him to deep; and judging of
the feelings of others by his own, he con-
cludes, that all who underfland both authors
perfectly, mull be affected in the fame manner.
160
He determines therefore to take Shakefpeare
for his model, not by adopting his fentiments,
or borrowing his expreffions, but by aiming
at his manner, and by ftriving to write as he
fuppofes he would have written himfelf, if he'
had lived in the eighteenth century.
Muftapha, upon whofe ilory the tragedy is
founded, was put to death by his father, Soli-
man the Magnificent, about the year 1553.
The hiftory of this unnatural murder is pa-
thetically related by Knolles, in his General
Hiftory of the Turks, who ftyles Muftapha
" the mirror of courtefie, and rare hope of
the Turkifh nation." In the reprefentation
of his tragedy, Mr. Jones intended to obferve
clofely the coftume of the Turks, which he
had attenively fludied.
Mr. Jones now determined to enter upon
a new career of life. Whatever fatisfaction
he mi^ht derive from his connection with the
noble family, in which he had undertaken
the office of tutor, or whatever recompence
he might ultimately hope to receive from
jheir gratitude or friendfhip, the fituation did
161
not altogether correfpond with his feelings,
nor the extent of his views. To a fpirit of
independence, which from his earlieft years
ftrongly marked his character, he united the
laudable defire of acquiring public diftinction,
and of making his fortune by his own efforts;
above all, he was animated with the noble
ambition of being ufeful to his country. In
the capacity of private tutor, his expectations
were bounded by a narrow profpect, and his
exertions circumfcribed; whilft in the pro-
feffion of the law, he faw an ample fcope for
the gratification of all his wifhes; and from his
extenfive knowledge, ftudious habits, and
indefatigable induftry, he had every reafon to
expect the mod brilliant fuccefs. The advice
and importunity of his friends confirmed the
fuggeftions of his own reflection, and he re-
folved to refign his charge in Lord Spencer's
family, and to devote himfelf in future to the
ftudy and practice of the law. In confe-
quence of this determination, which he im-
mediately executed, he was admitted into the
Temple on the nineteenth of September 1770,
Life— V. I. M
162
His attention, however, was not at firft
exclufively confined to his profeffional ftudies,
nor was it indeed to be expected, that he
would at once renounce his attachment to
Oriental learning and literature in general.
It would have required more than ordinary
refolution to abandon at once, what had coft
him fo much pains to acquire ; the attainment
of which had been the fource both of pleafure
and diftin&ion to him. But as his letters and
thofe of his friends, during the two following
years, contain all that I can fay of him, I re-
fer the reader to them for information, rather
than to a narrative of my own.
*Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKI.
March 1771.
A plague on our men in office,
who for fix months have amufed me with
idle promifes, which I fee no profpedt of their
fulfilling, that they would forward my books
and a letter to you! They lay, that they have
not yet had an opportunity; and that the ap-
* Appendix, No. 18.
163
prehenfion of a Spanifh war (which is now
no more) furnifhes them with inceflant occu-
pation. I have however fo much' to fay to
you, that I can no longer delay writing; I
wifh indeed I could communicate it in perfon.
On my late return to England, I found my-
felf entangled, as it were, in a variety of
important confiderations. My friends, com-
panions, relations, all attacked me with urg-
ent folications to banifh poetry and Oriental
literature for a time, and apply myfelf to ora-
tory and the ftudy of the law; in other
words, to become a barrifter, and purfue the
track of ambition. Their advice in truth
was conformable to my own inclinations ;
for the only road to the higheft itations in
this country is that of the law, and I need
not add, how ambitious and laborious I am.
Behold me then become a lawyer, and ex-
pect in future, that my correfpondence will
have fomewhat more of public bufinefs in it.
But if it ever mould be my fortune to have
any fhare in adminiftration, you fhall be my
Atticus, the partner of my plans, the confi-
M 2
. 164
dant of my fecrets. Do not however fup-
pote, that I have altogether renounced polite
literature. I intend (hortly to publifh my
Englifh poems, and I mean to bring my tra-
gedy of Sol! man on the ftage, when I can
find proper actors for the performance of it.
I intend alfo compofing an epic poem, on a
noble fubje£t, under the title of Britanneis :
but this I mud defer until I have more lei-
fure, with fome degree of independence. In
the mean time, I amufe myfelf with the
choiceft of the Perfian poets; and I have the
good fortune to poffefs many manufcripts,
which I have either purchafed or borrowed
from my friends, on various fubjects, includ-
ing hiftory, philofopliy, and fome of the
moil celebrated poetry of Perfia.
I am highly delighted with Jami's poem of
Yufef and Zuleika; it contains fomewhat
more than four thoufand couplets, each of
which is a liar of the nrft brilliance. We
have fix copies of this work at Oxford, one
of which is correct; it has the vowel points,
and is illuftrated with the notes of Golius..
355
T alio poffeis a copy, which, as foon as T have
ieifure, I "will print. Let me afk in the
mean time how you are employed ? Do you
continue your ■occupation of elucidating your
favourite Hafez ? I will moft willingly give
all the am* Ranee in my power to the pubhea-
tion of your work, if you will have it print-
ed in London; but I fcarcely think that any
printer will undertake it at his own expenfe*
unlefs the poems are accompanied with an
Englim or French translation, for you cannot
conceive how few Englifh gentlemen under-
ftand Latin. Let me recommend to you
therefore to give a literal verfion of Hafez in
French, with annotations in the fame lan-
guage; and this I think will be more accept-
able even to your own countrymen, than a
Latin translation; though indeed you may
annex to your work fuch odes as you have
translated into that language. The new edi-
tion of Meninflri goes on tolerably well. I
inclofe a fpecimen of the new Arabic types,
and earneftly beg your opinion upon them,
that any defects may be corrected as foon as
166
poflible. I have bad a copper-plate engrav-
ing made of one of the odes of Hafez, and
may perhaps, when my circumflances afford
it, print an edition of Jaini's whole poem in
the fame manner. A work of this kind on
fdken paper, would I doubt not be very ac-
ceptable to the Governor of Bengal, and the
other principal perfons in India. I cannot
conceive what is become of the book which
I fent to you, but I will take the firfl oppor-
tunity of transmitting a fairer and more cor-
rect copy, together with my little Treatife
on the Literature of Afia, and my Grammar
of the Perlian Language, which is printed
with fome degree of elegance ; and I earneftly
intreat you to tell me, if any thing is wrong
in it, or any thing omitted, that the next
edition may be more perfect. I only wait
for leifure to publifh my Commentaries on
Afiatic Poetry.
Do not however imagine that I defpife
the ufual enjoyments of youth; no one can
take more delight in finging and dancing
than I do, nor in the moderate ufe of wine,
167
nor in the exquifite beauty of the ladies, of
whom London affords an enchanting variety;
but I prefer glory, my fupreme delight, to
all other gratifications, and I will purfue it
through fire and water, by day and by night.
Oh! my Charles, (for I renounce all cere-
mony, and addrefs you with ancient fimpli-
city) what a boundlefs fcene opens to my
view! if I had two lives, I mould fcarcely
find time for the due execution of all the
public and private projects which I have in
mind !
Mr. BATES to W. JONES, Efq.
Sir; March 0,1th, 1771.
Lafl night, I received from
Mr. Williams your moft ingenious and fatis-
factory letter, for which my heartier! thanks
are due. If you have no objection to it, as I
think you cannot, I propofe to embellifh my
MS. with it, by flicking it into the book, in
like manner as I ha\ r e done my own account
of it. It will be no fmall addition to the
curiofity of the book; for I can eafily forefec,
168
that in times to come, a piece of your hand-
writing will be looked upon as a curiofity by
virtuofi yet unborn.
In the mean time, I hope this letter does
not preclude your fulfilling your promife of
obliging me with another vifit (and I hope
/till more) after your return from Oxford, at
the end of the holidays. I allure you, I wait
for the end of thofe holidays, as impatiently
as moft fchoolboys dread and abhor it.
Therefore I beg you would favour me with a
line to apprife me of your return back to
town, that in cafe I mould, in the dialect of
Deptford, be moored head and ftern by the
gout, I may let you know as much, to fave
you the trouble of a vifit, that will anfwer no
end ; but if I keep clear from that malady, as
I am at prefent, I fnall beg you to take a
nightcap here, that we may fpend one entire
morning in Oriental fpeculation, without the
interruption of other company. For I have
ftill many queries which you muft refolve.
I heartily wifh you a pleafant journey; and
hope that, for the good of the Literati, you'll
169
be blefTed with life and health to go on with
the noble undertaking you are engaged in,
and that you'll meet with the merited fuccefs.
I am, Sir, &c.
James Bates.
*Mr. JONES to D. B.
London, April 1 771.
Your Perfian book is more valuable than
the coftlieft jewel. Meninfki, that univerfal
fcholar, has a copy exactly like yours, and he
defcribes it in his ufual manner, that is, in-
elegantly, and in miferable Latin. From his
defcription, you may however eftimate the
real excellence of your book. I mall beg
leave to fay fomething more about it myfelf,
and as a poet, venture to affirm, that the fix
mod beautiful poems in the volume are far
more valuable for their intrinfic merit, than
for the elegance of the characters in which
they are written, or for the glowing tints of
the pictures which adorn them.
The author of thefe poems was the very
* Appendix, No. 19.
170
celebrated Nezami, who aflumed the name of
Kenjavi; he flouridied toward the clofe of
the twelfth century, and was the favourite of
that illuftrious warrior, and patron of litera-
ture, Togrul, the fon of Erflan.
The book comprifes five poems, the Iaft of
which is divided into two parts; the firft,
which is entitled The Treafury of Secrets,
contains many fables, and various difcourfes
on moral duties and human affairs; Nufhiro-
van, King of Perfia, who, towards the end of
the fixth century, waged a fuccefsful war
againft the firft Juftin, and Juftinian are fre-
quently introduced in it; Mohammed, the
legiflator of Arabia, was born during his
reign, and praifes him for his juftice, in the
Coran. The Perfian poets Sadi, Hafez, Jami,
and others, frequently extol his virtues, and
one of them has this couplet :
For ages mingled with his parent dust,
Fame still records Nushirovan the Just.
The fecond poem commemorates the lives
of a moft amiable youth, (named Mujnoon,
or the Frantic, from his mad paffion) and his
171
rniftrefs, the beautiful Leili. The loves of
Khofro and the adorable Sherin, form the
fubject of the third poem. Khofro was
the twenty-third in defcent from SafTan,
and the grandfon of Nuihirovan. The
fourth peom has the title of The Seven
Figures, and recites the hiftory of King Be-
haram, whom the Greeks, with their ufual
inaccuracy, call Yaranes: but it more parti-
cularly defcribes his feven palaces, each of
which is (aid to have been diftinguifhed by a
particular colour. In the fifth, we have the
life and actions of Alexander; it is however
to be remarked, that the Afiatics perpetually
confound the Macedonian monarch with
another and very ancient king of the fame
name, and blend their actions mod ridi-
culoufly. Thus much about your book,
and you may depend upon what I fay, as
certain and not conjectural. I fincerely re-
joice, that St. John's College, at Cambridge,
will poffefs this treafure by your gift ; and I
no lefs fincerely hope, that your own Univer-?
fity will boaft fome future fcholar, capable of
thoroughly understanding the elegance of the
172
charming Nezami. If any one wimes to ob-
tain further information refpecling this poet,
let him confult the pleafing work of Dowlat
Shah of Samercand, on the lives of the Perfian
poets. I faw a beautiful manufcript of it at
Paris. — Farewell
Mr. JONES to J. WILMOT, E%
Utiiv. Coll. Oxford, %d of Jane, 1171.
MY DEAR W1LMOT,
It makes me very happy
to hear that my Lord Chief Juflice does not
retire on account of ill health, but from a
motive which does him the higheft honour.
He will now enjoy the greateft happinefs of
human life, cafe with dignity, after having
palled through the moft honourable labour
without danger. 1 mould think myfelf
highly blefFed, if I could purfue a fimilar
courfe in my fmall fphere, and, after having
raifed a competency at the bar, could retire
to the bowers of learning and the arts.
I have juft begun to contemplate the
flately edifice of the laws of England,-—
" The gathcr'd wisdom of a thousand years," —
173
If you will allow me to parody a line of Pope.
1 do not fee why the ftudy of the law is call-
ed dry and unplcafant ; and I very much fuf-
pe£t that it feems fo to thofe only, who
would think any ftudy unpleafant, which re-
quired a great application of the mind, and
exertion of the memory. I have read moll
attentively the two firft volumes of Black-
ftone's Commentaries, and the two others
will require much lefs attention. I am much
pleafed with the care he takes to quote his
authorities in the margin, which not only
give a fandlion to what he afTerts, but point
out the fources to which the fludent may ap-
ply for more difFufive knowledge. I have
opened two common-place books, the one of
the law, the other of oratory, which is furely
too much neglected by our modern fpeakers.
I do not mean the popular eloquence, which
cannot be tolerated at the bar, but that cor-
reetnefs of ftyle, and elegance of method,
which at once pleafes and perfuades the
hearer. But I muft lay afide my ftudies for
about fix weeks, while I am printing my
174
Grammar, from which a good deal is expect-
ed; and which I mutt endeavour to make as
perfect as a human work can be. When that
is finifhed, I mail attend the Court of King's
Bench very conftantly, and fhall either take a
lodging in Weftminfter, or accept the invit-
ation of a friend, in Duke Street, who has
made me an obliging offer of apartments.
I am forry the characters you fent me are
not Perfian but Chinefe, which I cannot de-
cipher without a book, which I have not at
prefent, but tous Chinois qu'ils font, I fhall
be able to make them out, when the weather
will permit me to fit in the Bodleian, In the
mean time, I would advife you to enquire
after a native of China, who is now in Lon-
don; I cannot recollect where he lodges, but
fhall know when I come to town, which will
be to-morrow or Saturday. I fhall be at
Richardfon's till my Grammar is finifhed,
unlefs I can buy a fet of chambers in the
Temple, which I fear will be difficult. I will
certainly call upon you in a day or two. On
one of the Indian pictures at your houfe,
175
there was a beautiful copy of Perfian verfes,
which I will beg leave to tranfcribe, and
fhould be glad to print it, with a tranflation,
in the Appendix to my Grammar. I have not
yet had my Perfian propofals engraved, but
when you write to your brother, you would
much oblige me by defiring him to fend me a
little Perfian manufcript, if he can procure it
without much trouble. It is a fmall poem
which I intend to print; we have fix or fevea
copies of it at Oxford, but if I had one in
my poffeffion, it would fave me the trouble of
tranferibing it. I have inclofed its title in
Perfian and Englifh. I am very glad that
your family are well. I wifh them joy upon
every occafion ; my mother and fifter defire
their compliments to you, and I am, with
great regard,
Yours, moft affectionately,
William Jones.
176
Mr. JONES to Mr. HAWKINS.
Nov. 5, 1771.
I fhall ever gratefully acknow-
ledge, dear Sir, my obligation to you for the
trouble you take in infpecYmg my trifles.
Had Dryden and other poets met with fuch
a friend, their poems would have been more
polifhed, and confequently more fit to fee the
light. Your obfervations are fo judicious,
that I wifh you had not been fo fparing of
them. I entirely approve of all your correc-
tions, &c.
As to the years, in which the poems were
written, they are certainly of no confequence
to the public; but (unlefs it be very abfurd) I
would wifh to fpecify them, for it would hurt
me as a ftudent at the bar, to have it thought
that I continue to apply myfelf to poetry; and
I mean to infmuate that I have given it up
for feveral years, which I muft explain more
fully in the preface. For a man who wilhes
to rife in the law, muft be fuppofed to have
no other object.
177
* C. REVICZKI to Mr. JONES.
Vienna^ Oct. 13, 1771.
I have waited nearly twelve
months to no purpofe, for an opportunity of
fending you my laft work, which at your
recommendation has been publifhed; the
politenefs of one of the fecretaries of the
Englifh embafly, who is returning to Eng-
land, has at laft fupplied it, by kindly offering
to take charge of this production of mine
(unlefs you will call it yours) and deliver it
to you. It is my wifh to avail myfelf of the
fame opportunity to thank you for your pre-
fent, but it is not in my power to make you
the due acknowledgements: it is fufficient to
proclaim your deeds. I admire your wonder-
ful labour and learning, and more particularly
your diligence in the triple work, with which
you have favoured me; but I blufh at the
extravagant encomiums which you have be-
llowed upon me. If you perfevere as you
have begun in cultivating Oriental literature,
* Appendix, No. 20.
Lifc~-Y. I. N
178
the republic of letters will be greatly obliged
to you. I am extremely anxious to know
what recompence his Danifh Majefty, or
your own Sovereign, at his recommendation,
has conferred upon your learned labours. I
mould rejoice to have it in my power to con-
gratulate you, and thofe who efteem you as
much as I do, on your diil'mguiihed merit
having been honourably rewarded. — Farewell.
*Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKL
Oxford, Bee. 1771.
Thirteen months, or rather
I may fay years, have elapfed, without a line
from my friend ! I have however written to
you twice, once and very fully in Latin, laft
March, and again in July, in a great hurry,
in French. Thefe letters contained a detailed
account of my occupations and views, of the
profeffion which I had adopted> and of the
fplendid obje&s to which I ambitiolifly looked
forward. You have, I truft, received my four
* Appendix, No. 21. — This letter must have been
written before the receipt of the last from Reyiczki.
179
books, which Mr. Whitchurch, Chaplain to
our Ambaffador, at my requeft promifed to
deliver to you at Vienna. I recommend him
to your particular attention, as a young man
of an excellent difpofition, and very fond of
literature. This will be prefented to you by
Mr. Drummond, a man of letters, who pro-
ceeds to Vienna for the purpofe of ftudying
phyfic. You know that the medical profef-
fion is held in the higher!: eftimation with us,
and, as Homer fays,
A wise Physician, high distinction claims,
your reception of them both will, I hope, do
credit to my recommendation.
I beg your acceptance alfo of a little Phi-
lippic*, which I wrote againft an obfcure
coxcomb, who had the audacity to abufe our
Univerfity, not with impunity, I truft, if the
edge of my difcourfe have any effect upon the
fenfelefs knave. " / have difauieted" (as
Cicero fays of his Commentaries) <c the
French nation?'. How goes on Hafez, our
* Works, vol. ix. p. 274.
N 2
180
mutual delight ? Shall we never fee your
tranflation of his charming odes ? Tell me,
if you like my Englilh verfion of the fecond
ode * ? it has been favourably received by
my own countrymen. I mould like to trans-
late feveral more of his odes, but I want
leifure.
I have not yet found any tranilator capa-
ble of doing juftice to your Treatife on the
Military Art of the Turks. All agree that
your preface is both learned and elegant ; but
they urge, as you yourfelf remark in the in-
troduction, that the book does not correfpond
with its title, The Principles of the Science of
Government .
The original of this work in the Turkifh
language, with many others printed at Con-
ftantinople, including a moft beautiful copy
of the Odes of Mefihi, are depofited in the
library of our Royal Society. I beg to be
informed if all the works publimed by Ibra-
him, which you fo much commend, are to
be purchafed in Germany, Hungary, or the
* Works, vol. v. p. 316.
181
Eaftern parts of Turkey; as in that cafe, I
fhould wifh to procure them.
What news from Turkey ? no mention of
Peace ? Whenever the war with Ruflia is at
an end, I propofe making an open and direct
application for the office of Minifter at Con-
stantinople; at prefent, 1 can only privately
whifper my wifhes. The King is very well
difpofed towards me ; fo perhaps are the
men in power ; and the Turkifh Company
wifh much to oblige me -, all that I have to
apprehend, is the appearance of fome power-
ful competitor who may drive me off the
ftage. If I fhould fucceed in my wifhes,
how fhall I bound for joy ! Firft, I fhall
enjoy your company at Vienna, then I fhall
drink deep of Afiasic literature, and I fhall
explore the Turkifh manners in their moft
hidden fources. If I am difappointed, phi-
lofophy remains; the bar is open, and I fhall
not, I truft, want employment; for the har-
veft of litigation is always abundant. I fhall
apply to the ftudy of eloquence, to poetry,
hiftory, and phiiofophy, each of which, if
182
properly cultivated, would occupy a complete
life of
"Such men as live in these degenerate days."
I could fay much more, but I yield to the
imperious fummons (not of Proferpine I
hope, but) of the goddefs, if there be one,
who prefides over our tribunals. You may
expect longer letters in future from me : and
in the mean time I hope to hear very fully
from you. — Farewell, my dear friend.
Mr. JONES to Mr. HAWKINS.
Westminster, Jan. 16, 1T72.
As I have a frank directed
to you, I take the liberty to inclofe a letter
for my mother, which I beg you will be fo
kind as to fend to her. I have nothing at
prefent to fay on the fubjecl: of my publica-
tion, except that you will be fo good as to
fend me the fheets of the Effays, under cover,
to Mr. Brudenell, left there fhould be any
thing that may be altered. I entreat you
alfo to criticife my profe, as you have done
my verfe, and to reprimand me feverely,
where you find it ftiff, forced, or obfcurc.
183
I forgot to mention another refpeftable fcho-
lar, who faw and approved my poems, I
mean the prefent Bifliop of St. Afaph, whofe
learning, to fay a great deal, is as extenfive
as his virtues are amiable. Dr. Warton, of
Winchefter, is another excellent critic, through
whofe hands my trifles fhall pafs before they
fee the light. I have dined with him at Sir
Jofhua Reynolds's, where he paid me a com-
pliment before the whole company, which I
cannot write without blufhing: he faid, my
Greek poems which he had feen in manu-
fcript, were worthy of ancient Greece. I
dare fay this learned and ingenious man, will
fuffer me to fend to him a copy of the poems
at Winchefter ; and that he will make his re-
marks very fincerely. When I have collected
the criticifms of thefe gentlemen, I will com-
pare them, and add my corrections at the end,
under the title of emendations, as Pope has
inferted his alterations in the text of his
poems, and fet down the variations, or firfl
readings, in the margin. I think it will be
better (as we mull not lofe the feafon for
184
publication) to fend the copies to my friends,
as foon as the trifle on Chefs is printed, and
to fTiew them the profe afterwards.
My Turkifh Hiftory will go to the prefs
on Monday. Lord Radnor has given me
leave, in the mod flattering terms, to infcribe
it to him.
I have a notion I fhall be a great talker
when I am at the bar; for I cannot take up
my pen without filling three fides of paper,
though I have nothing to fay when I &$,
down.
I am, &c.
*Mr. JONES to ROBERT ORME, Efq,
April 1772.
It is impoflible for me to
defcribe the delight and admiration I have
felt, from the perufal of your Hiftory of the
War in India. The plans, circurnftances, and
events of it, are fo clearly defcribed by you }
that I felt an intereft in them rather as an
actor than a reader. I was particularly pleat-
* Appendix, No. 22.
185
ed with your delineation of the lives and
chara&ers of thofe, who had diftinguifhed
themfelves by their actions or wifdom; nor
was I lefs delighted with the elegance of
your topographical defcriptions; that of the
Ganges particularly pleafed me; it is abfolute-
ly a picture. I have remarked, that the
more polifhed hiftorians of all ages, as well as
the poets, have been fond of difplaying their
talents in defcribing rivers. Thus Thucy-
dides defcribes the Achelous, and Xenophon
the Teleboas, and both admirably, though in
a different manner; the latter with his ufual
brevity and elegance, the former with a de-
gree of roughnefs and magnificence not un-
common to him. With refpect to your
ftyle, if elegance confift in the choice and col-
location of words, you have a moft indubita-
ble title to it ; for you have on all occafions
felected the moft appropriate expreffions, and
have given to them the moft beautiful ar-
rangement; and this is almoft the greateft
praife, which a compofition can claim.
The publication of the fecond part of you#
186
Hiftory, which has been fo long and earneftly
looked for, will be highly acceptable to thofe
whofe opinions you refpect ; and I need not
lay that it will add to your reputation. In-
deed it is not juft, that the Coromandel coafl
only mould receive the ornament of your
pen, to the neglect of Bengal, which an In-
dian monarch pronounced the delight of the
world.
* * * % * *
If the reader ihould complain that the cor-
refpondence prefented to him, is not always
important or interefting, I can only plead in
excufe, my inability to make any felection
that would obviate this remark, without being
liable to the weightier objection of exhibiting
an imperfect picture of the character of Mr.
Jones. To me it is pleaimg to trace him in
his clofet, unfold his meditations, develop his
projects, and follow him in his familiar in-
tercourfe with his friends ; and whilfl my ad-
miration is excited by the ardour of his mind,
embracing in idea excellence unattainable
e^en by him, and conceiving works imprac-
187
Ucable from their extent, I participate with
equal pleafure in his relaxations and amufe-
ments.
The plan of the Epic Poem, which he
mentions in his letters to his Polifh friend,
was fketched during his refidence at Spa, in
July 1770. The original manufcript has
been preferved ; and I am enabled to com-
municate it to the public*. The fubject of
the poem was the fuppofed difcovery of our
ifland by Tyrian adventurers, and he propofed
to exhibit under the character of the prince
of Tyre, that of a perfect king of this country;
a character which he pronounces the molt
glorious and beneficial of any that the warm-
er! imagination can form. It reprefents (to
quote his own words) the dangers to which a
King of England is neceflarily expofed, the
vices which he mud avoid, and the virtues,
and great qualities, with which he muft be
adorned. On the whole, " Britain dii-
" covered" is intended as a poetical pane-
gyric on our excellent Conititution, atfd as
* Appendix, A.
183
a pledge of the author's attachment: to it ; as
a national epic poem, like thofe of Homer,
Virgil, Taflb, and Camoens, defigned to ce-
lebrate the honours of his country, to difplay
in a ftriking light the moll: important prin-
ciples of politics and morality, and to inculcate
thefe grand maxims, that nothing can fhake
our ftate, while the true liberty of the fubjeft
remains united with the dignity of the fo-
vereicrn ; and that in all dates, virtue is the
only fure bafis of private and public happi-
He referved the completion of the poem to
a period of leifure and independence which
never arrived ; and although after an interval
of fome years, he refnmed the idea of com-
jpofing an Epic Poem on the fame fubject, but
with considerable alterations, he never ex-
tended the execution of it beyond a few
lines.
Whether the Turkifh Hiftory, which Mr.
Jones mentions as ready for the prefs, was
ever finifhed, I am not informed; part of
the original manuscript ftill remains; the in-
189
troduclion * to it was printed, but not pub-
lifhed, and will form a number in the Ap-
pendix.
The anticipation of future profpe&s fug-
gefted by the fervour of youthful imagination,
is too common to all, but particularly to men
of genius, to excite much furprife ; and of
them it has been generally and juftly remark-
ed, that what has been performed by them,
bears little proportion to what was projecled.
In their progrefs through life, impediments
occur to the execution of their plans, which
the mind at firft eagerly overlooks ; whilft
time, imperceptibly advancing, deprives them
of the power and even of the inclination to
complete what has been defigned with fo
much ardour. They find what experience
daily proves, that the duties of life can only
be properly performed, when they are the
primary objeSs of our regard and attention.
The little difcourfe, to which Mr. Jones
humouroufly alludes in his letter to Reviczki,
was a letter in French, addreffed to Monfieur
* Appendix, B.
190
Anquetil du Perron, and printed in 1771*
The Frenchman had publifhed, in three quarto
volumes, an account of his travels in India,
the life of Zoroafter, and fome fuppofed works
of that philofopher. To this publication he
prefixed a difcourfe, in which he treated the
Univerfity of Oxford, and fome of its learned
members and friends of Mr. Jones, with ri-
dicule and difrefpecl. From the perufal of
his works, Mr. Jones was little difpofed to
agree with Monfieur du Perron, in the boafted
importance of his communications ; he was
d ilgufted with his vanity and petulance, and
particularly offended by his illiberal attack
upon the Univerfity, which he refpe&ed, and
upon the perfons whom he efteemed and ad-
mired. The letter which he addrefTed to
M. du Perron was anonymous ; it was writ-
ten with great force, and expreffes his in-
dignation and contempt with a degree of
afperity, which the judgment of maturer years
would have difapproved. Profeflbr Biorn
Sthal, a Swedifh Orientalift, fays of it, that
he had known many Frenchmen fo far mil-
191
taken in the writer, as to afcribe it to fome
belefprit of Paris. Such in their opinion was
the brilliancy and correctnefs of its ftyle.
Dr. Hunt, the Laudian Profeffor of Arabic,
at Oxford, who had been contemptuoufly
mentioned by du Perron, addrefTed the two fol-
lowing letters to Mr. Jones on this occafion :
DEAR SIR, Ch. Church, Oct. 25, 1771.
I have now found the tranflation of
all the remains of Zoroafler, mentioned in
your laft, and think, upon an attentive pe-
rufal of it, that the account which Dr. Fra-
fer has given of it is true.
I never told Perron, that I underftood the
ancient Perfic language ; and I am authorized
by Mr. Swinton, who was prefent all the time
Perron was with me, to fay that he never
heard me tell him fo. I might perhaps fay,
that I knew the old Perfic character, as given
by Dr. Hyde ; but to a further knowledge
of the language I never pretended, nor could
I tell him that I did. But for a proof of the
veracity of this fellow, I beg leave to refer
192
you to page 46 1 . of his preliminary difcourfe,
where he fays, that he made me a prefent of
a fine Sanjkirrit, (or, as he calls it, Sanfkrotan)
alphabet, and that he promifed Dr. Barton
and Mr. Swinton, to fend them alphabets of
the feveral Afiatic languages ; whereas he
neither made me the prefent, nor performed
the promife to them. Mr. Swinton fays, he
can furnifh us with other inftances of this
Frenchman's veracity, which he has promifed
to do in a few days. In the mean time t
I am, Sec,
Thomas Hunt.
DEAR SIR, Ch. Church, Nov. 28, 1771.
I received the welcome prefent of
your excellent pamphlet againft Perron* in
due time, and yefterday I was favoured with
your kind letter ; for both which I return you
my hearty thanks. I fhould have thanked
you for your pamphlet fooner, but have been
out of town. I have read it over and over
again, and think the whole nation, as well a$
* Works, vol. :•-. p. 461.
193
the Univerfity and its members, are much
obliged to you for this able and fpirited de-
fence. I acknowledge myfelf to be fo in a
particular manner, and fo does Mr. Swinton,
who defires his compliments and thanks.
But there is one thing which Mr. Swinton
feems to doubt of, which is, whether there
has been fuch a general deftrucYion of the
writings of the ancient Perfians as you ima-
gine there has been. For my own part, till
fome better proof can be given of the au-
thenticity of thole books, which have been
produced as the genuine compofitions of that
ancient people, than what I have yet feen
given, I am inclined to be of your -opinion.
At leaft, this I am fure of, that if the books,
which Alexander, Omar, &c. deftroyed, were
no better than thole which have been publiih-
ed, the world has had no great lofs j witnefs
the infufferable jargon which you have given
from their writings in the 38th and 4 lit, &zc.
pages of your letter ; to which, as this bulky-
performance of Perron* will be but in few
* Mons. Anquetil ciu Perron made a voyage to India,
Ljje—V. I. O
194
hands, it may not perhaps be amifs to add
fome others. But, as Mr. Swinton has fug-
gefted, that he has fome doubts about the
fate of the writings of the old Perfians, I think
in 1 755, for the purpose of acquiring the ancient lan-
guage of Persia, and that of the Bramins. His ardour
for this undertaking was so great, that he engaged him-
self to the French East-India Company as a private sol-
dier, as affording the speediest means of accomplishing
the voyage, but some friends procured his discharge, and
a small pension for him from the Crown of France. Fie
arrived at Pondicherry, in 1755, and, after travelling
over various parts of India, by the assistance of the Go-
vernment of Bombay, was enabled to return to Europe
in an English vessel, and landed at Portsmouth, in No-
vember 1761. He brought with him many Oriental ma-
nuscripts, which he afterwards carried to France, and in
1771 published three quarto volumes, containing an ac-
count of his travels, and the information which he had
obtained in the course of them, under the general title of
Zind-Avesta, Ouvrage de Zoroaster.
In a discourse addressed to the Asiatic Society at Cal-
cutta, in 1789, Sir William Jones speaks of him, as " hav-
u ing had the merit of undertaking a voyage to India in
" his earliest youth, with no other view than to recover
" the writings of Zeratusht (Zoroaster) and who would
" have acquired a brilliant reputation in France, if he had
" not sullied it by his immoderate vanity and virulence
" of temper, which alienated the good-will even of his
" own countrymen." In the same discourse, he affirms,
that M. Anquetil most certainly had no knowledge of
Sanscrit.
In 1798, M. Anquetil published a work, entitled,
195
you would do well to confilt him, before
you publifh your Englifh tranflation.
I am glad you intend to oblige the world
with an Englifh tranflation of your letter;
and if, among the anecdotes which Mr.
Swinton fent you, you will be fo good as to
infert that, wherein he fays, that he was pre-
fent all the time that Perron was with me,
but does not remember that I ever told him
that I underftood the ancient Perfian language,
I fhall be much obliged to you. I am fure I
never pretended, nor could pretend, to any
further knowledge of it, than that of the al-
phabet, as given by Dr. Hyde.
I am, 6cc.
Thomas Hunt.
L'Inde en rapport avec 1'Europe, which is more remark-
able for the virulence of its invectives against the English,
and for its numerous misrepresentations, than for the in-
formation which it contains, or the soundness of the re-
flections which it conveys. In the summary of its con-
tents, stated in the title-page, he professes to give a de-
tailed, accurate, and terrilic picture of the English Ma-
chiavelism in India, and he addresses his work in a rant-
ing bombast dedication to the manes of Dupleix and La-
bourdonnais. It does not appear that the temper of Mr.
A. has been meliorated, although he had then nearly at-
tained his 70th vear.
O 2
196
The fmall volume of poems*, confifting
chiefly of tranflations from the Afiatic lan-
guages, with two profe differtations annexed,
was publifhed in 1772. We may be allowed
to fmile at the folicitude, which Mr. Jones
exprefTcs in his correfpondence on the fubjedt
of this publication, to avoid the imputation
of devoting that time to the Mufes, which
belonged to his profeffional ftudies, whilft we
participate with pleafure the effects of his de-
votion to the objects of his admiration ; but
his anxiety for his literary reputation, in de-
ferring the publication of his poems until they
had received all the improvements which care
and attention, affifted by the criticifrris of
his friends, could beftow, is highly praife-
v/orthy.
On the 30th of April, 1772, Mr. Jones
was eleded a Fellow of the Royal Society,
and admitted on May the 14th of the fame
year. He does not appear to have com-
municated any paper for the Philofophical
Tranfactions.
* Works, vol. :■:. p. I
197
Prom the firft entrance of Mr. Jor.es into
the Univerfity, until Michaelmas 1/68, when
he took the degree of A. B., he had kept the
terms regularly; from that period to 1773,
only occafionally. In the Eafter term of that
year, during the Encaenia, he took his matter's
degree. It was on this occafion, that he
compofed an oration with an intention, which
he did not execute, of fpeaking it in the
Theatre. The fpeech was publifhed ten years
after, and exhibits a ftriking memorial of in-
dependent principles, and well-cultivated abi-
lities: — to vindicate learning from the male-
volent afperfion of being dcftruStive of manly
fpirit, unfavourable to freedom, and intro-
ducltive to flavifh obfequioufnefs j to fupport
the honour and independence of learned men,
to difplay the tranfeendant advantages of the
Univerfity of Oxford, — were the topics,
which he had propofed to difcufs ; but on
which the limits prefcribed to his oration,
forbad him to expatiate.
The animation of his language fhews, that
thefe topics were ever near his heart : an ar-
1P8
dent love of liberty, an enthufiaftic veneration
for the Univerfity, a warm and difcriminate
eulogium on learned men, who devoted their
talents and labours to the caufe of religion,
fcience, and freedom, characlerife his dif-
courfe ; of whim, part has been lately quoted
with applaufe by Dr. Parr*.
The kindnefs of a contemporary ftudent
has communicated an anecdote in proof of
his particular averfion to the logic of the
fchools, that, in an oration which he pro-
nounced in Univerfity- Hall, he declaimed
violently againfi: Burgerfdifcius, Cracanthor-
pius, and the whole body of logicians in the
College of Queen Philippa, his oppofite neigh-
bour. Of his uncommon induftry, many proofs
might be enumerated, and among others the
copying of feveral Arabic manufcripts, of
which one was the entertaining romance of
Bedrcddm HaJJhi, or, Aladdin's Lamp, from a
moft elegant fpecimen of Arabian calligraphy.
Nor was he lefs remarked for an affection-
ate attention to his mother and fifter, who re-
* Notes to Spital Sermon, p. 136.
1-99
flded at Oxford ; fuch portion of his time as
he could fpare from his ftudies was given to
their fociety, and during his occafional ab-
fence from the Univerfity, he was regular in
his correfpondence with his mother.
We may conceive and participate the de-
light of a fond parent, contemplating the in-
creafing reputation of her fon ; fhe now found
her maternal care and anxiety repaid in a
degree equal to her moll fanguine expeela-
tions, and her affection rewarded by a full
meafure of filial duty and gratitude. The
progrefs of the virtues is not always in pro-
portion to literary improvement ; and learning,
which ought to meliorate the affections, and
ftrengthen the principles of duty, has been
known to diftort the mind by pride, and en-
gender arrogance. In Mr. Jones, we have
the pleafure to fee every moral principle pro-
moted and invigorated by his literary attain-
ments.
In the commencement of 1774? he pub-
lifhed his Commentaries on Afiatic Poetry.
This work was received with admiration and
200
applaufe by the Oriental fcholars of Europe
in general, as well as by the learned of his
own country. It was perhaps the firft pub-
lication on Eaftern literature, which had an
equal claim to elegance and erudition. This
work was begun by Mr. Jones in 1766, and
finifhed in 1769, when he was in his twenty-
third year : but with the fame folicitude
which he had exhibited on other occafions,
to lay his compofitions before the public in
the greateft poffible perfection, he had re-
peatedly fubmitted the manufcript to the exa-
mination and critical remarks of his learned
friends. Their approbation of it was liberal
and general : but the opinion of Dr. Parr on
any fubjecl of literature is decifive. and I
felect from a letter, which he wrote to Mr.
Jones in 1769, fome paffages, in which he
expreiTes his admiration of the work.
" I have read your book De Poefi Afia-
u tica with all the attention that is due to a
" work fo ftudioufly dcfigned, and fo happily
" executed. The obfervations are juft and
rf curious, and equally free from indifcrhninate
201
* £ approbation, licentious cenfure, and cxcef-
" five refinement. Through the hurry of
" the firil compofition, the fame expreffion
" frequently occurs, and fentences begin in
<c the fame manner, and now and then two
" words are improperly combined.
" Thefe inaccuracies are very rare, and very
" trifling. On the whole, there is a purity,
<f an eafe, an elegance in the ftyle, which
" fhew an accurate and moft perfect know-
" ledge of the Latin tongue. Your Latin
tranflations in verfe gave me great fatis-
facTion. I am uncommonly charmed with
" the idyllium, called Chryfis. The flow of
" the verfes, the poetic ftyle of the words,
" and the elegant turn of the whole poem, arc
* 4 admirable.
" On the whole, I have received infinite
u entertainment from this curious and learned
" performance, and I look forward with plea-
lt fure, to the great honour fuch a publica-
" tion will do our country."
It will readily be fuppofed, that in the in-
terval between the date of the letter and the
4C
a
publication of the Commentaries, Mr. Jones
had not neglected to make the corrections
fuggefted by the criticifms of his learned cor-
refpondent ; and that fuch further emenda-
tions were adopted, as the growing maturity
of his own judgment pointed out.
In the preface to the Commentaries, Mr.
Jones mentions and laments the death of Dr.
Sumner, in terms which ftrongly mark his
affection for the memory of his refpected
friend and inftructor, who died in September
1771:—
" There never was a man more worthy
" of being remembered, for his talents, in-
u tegrity, admirable difpofition, amiable man-
* e ners, and exquilite learning; in the art of
" mftructing, I never knew any mafter equal
•' to him ; and his cheerfulnefs and fweetnefs
" were ftich, that it is difficult to fay, whether
" he was moft agreeable to his friends or his
" pupils. In Greek and Latin literature he
si was deeply verfed : and although, like So-
* e crates, he wrote little himfelf, no one had
il more acutenefs or precifion in correcting
203
" the faults, or in pointing out the beauties of
*' others ; fo that if fortune or the courfe of
" events, inftead of c rifining his talents to a
" fchool, had placed him at the bar, or in the
" fenate, he would have contefted the prize
tt of eloquence with the ableft orators of his
i£ own country, where only this art is fuc-
" cefsfully cultivated. For if he did not
*' poflefs all the qualities of an orator in per-
<c fection, he had each of them in a great de-
H gree. His voice was clear and diftincr, his
" ftyle polilhed, his expreffion fluent, his
" wit playful, and his memory tenacious ; his
" eyes, his countenance, his aclion, in fhort,
" were rather thofe of a Demofthenes than of
u an ordinary fpeaker ; in fhort, we may fay
" of him what Cicero faid of Rofcius, that
** whilft he feemed the only mafter qualified
*' for the education of youth, he feemed at
" the fame time, the only orator capable of
" difcharging the moil important functions of
" the ftate."
Thofe who had the good fortune to re-
ceive their tuition under Dr. Sumner, will
1204
not think this culogium exaggerated, and
mud read with pleafure a teftimony, which
their own recollection confirms *.
* The following epitaph, said to be composed by Dr.
Parr, is inscribed on the monument of Dr. Sumner, at
Harrow on the Hill:
H. S. E.
ROBERTUS SUMNER, S. T. P.
Coll. Regal, apud Cantab, olim socius;
Scholse Harroviensis, hand ita pridem,
Archididascalus.
Fuit huic prffistantissimo viro
Ingenium natura peracre, optimarum
disciplinis artium sedulo excultum,
llsu diuturno confirmatum, et quodam
modo subacturn.
Nemo enim
Aut in reconditis sapientix studiis illo
subtiiior extitit,
Aut humanioribus Uteris Hmatiof.
Egregiis cum dotibus naturae, turn
doctrinae praeditus,
Insuper accedebant
In sententiis, vera ac perfecta elo-
quentia;
In sermone, facetiarum lepos, plans
Atticus,
Et gravitate insuper aspersa urbanitasj
In moribus, singularis quzedam
integritas et fides;
Vita: denique ratio constans sibi, et ad
virtutis normam diligenter
severequc exacta,
205
The dedication of his Commentaries to the
Univerfity of Oxford, v\ hich he pronounced
i( would be the moft illiiftrious of all uni-
<f verfities, as long as flic remained the moft
" free," was a pleafmg proof of his gratitude
to his alma mater ; and he concludes the pre-
face with fome animated thoughts, which I
{hall endeavour to convey, with the full con-
fcioufnefs, at the fame time, of the imper-
fection of my attempt.
" Whether this work will pleafe the French,
u or their admirers, is to me of little concern,
fi provided it prove acceptable to my country,
" and to that renowned Univerfity, in which
i( I received my education ; with a view to
et the honour of both, thefe Commentaries
" were undertaken and completed ; nor is
il there any wifh fo near to my heart, as that
Omnibus qui vel amico essent eo,
vel rnagistro usi,
Doctrinae, ingenii, virtutis justum
reliquit desideriir.a.
Subita, eheu ! atque immatura morte
correptus,
Prid. Id. Septem!..
Anno Domini m,dcc,lxxi.
iEtat. suss 41.
206
" all my labours, paft or future, may be ufe-
" ful and agreeable to them. I lament, in-
f* deed, the necemty which compels me to
<c renounce the purfuit of polite literature:
'* but why do I fay, lament ? let me rather
ie rejoice, that 1 am now entering upon a
" career, which will fupply ampler and better
Cf opportunities of relieving the oppreffed, of
" afTifting the miferable, and of checking the
" delpctic and tyrannical.
" If I am alked, who is the greatejl man f
<fc I anfwer the be ft : and if I am required
" to fay, who is the beft ? I reply, he that
" has deferved moft of his fellow-creatures,
" Whether we deferve better of mankind by
* c the cultivation of letters, by obfeure and
" inglorious attainments, by intellectual pur-
" fuits calculated rather to amufe than iri-
'* form, than by flrenuous exertions in fpeak-
** ing and acting, let thofe confider who bury
" themfelves in ftudies unproduclive of any
1 " benefit to their country or fellow-citizens.
" I think not. I have been long enough en-
" gaged in preparatory exercifes, and I am
207
" now called to the field. What my fortune
i( may be, I know not j this, however, I
" know, that the moft anxious object of my
" heart is, after having run my career, to
" retire, in advanced life, to the ever-beloved
" retreat of the Univerfity ;' not with a view
" to indulge myfelf in indolence, which my
" difpofition abhors, but to enjoy a dignified
" leifure in the uninterrupted cultivation of
V letters, which the profeflion I am preparing
" to embrace, no longer fuffers me to purfue."
At the conclufion of the Commentaries,
we find an elegant addrefs to the Mufe, in
which Mr. Jones exprelTes his determination
to renounce polite literature, and devote him-
felf entirely to the ftudy of the law. He was
called to the Bar, in January 1774, and had
difcovered, as he writes to an intimate friend,
that the law was a jealous fcience, and would
admit no partnerfhip with the Eaftern mufes.
To this determination he appears to have in-
flexibly adhered for fome years, notwithftand-
ing the friendly remonftrances and flattering
invitations of his learned correfpondents. He
had about this time an intention of publiihing
208
the mathematical works of his father, and
with this view circulated propofals ; but, for
what realbn I know not, he abandoned it.
I now revert to his correfpondence, of
which I repeat my regret that fo little
remains.
Dr. HUNT to Mr. JONES.
DEAR SIR, Ch. Church, March 2, 1774.
I return you my hearty thanks for
your moft acceptable prefent of your excellent
book on the Afiatic poetry. I mould have
made you my acknowledgements for this
great favour before, but I have been fo en-
tirely engaged in reading the book (which I
have done from the beginning to the end)
that I have not had time to think of its wor-
thy author any otherwife, than by tacitly ad-
miring, as I went along, his exquifitely fine
parts, and wonderful learning. Indeed, fo en-
gaging is the beautiful ftyle of this admirable
performance, and fo {hiking the obfervations it
contains, that it is next to impoffible for a per-
fon, who has any tafte for this branch of litera-
ture, when he has once taken it into his hand,
209
to lay it afide again without giving it a thorough
perufal. I find you have enriched this work
with a great variety of curious quotations,
and judicious criticifms as well as with the
addition of feveral valuable new pieces, fince
you favoured me with the fight of it before,
and the pleafure which I have now had in
reading it has been in proportion. I hope this
new key to the Afiatic poetry, with which,
you have obliged the world, will not be fuf-
fered to ruft for want of ufe ; but that it will
prove, what you intended it to be, an happy
inflrument in the hands of learned and in-
quifitive men, for unlocking the rich treafures
of wifdom and knowledge which have been
preferved in the Hebrew, Arabic, Perfic, and
the other Oriental languages, and efpecially
the Hebrew, that venerable channel, through
which the facred compofitions of the divinely
infpired poets have been conveyed down to us.
I hope this will find you well,
and am, &c.
Thomas Hunt,
P, S. I have feen your propofals for print-
210
ing the mathematical works of my worthy
friend, your late father, and beg to be of the
number of your fubfcribers.
* Mr. JONES to F. P. BAYER.
March 1774.
I have received a moft elegant copy of
your Treatife on the Phoenician Language
and Colonies, and I am at a lofs to decide
whether it is moft learned or entertaining. Al-
though I fear, like Diomede, that I fhall give
you brafs in exchange for your gold ; yet I
fend you, as a proof of my gratitude and ef-
teem, my Commentaries on Afiatic Poetry ;
and it will afford me great fatisfaction to learn
that they pleafe you. — Farewell.
t Mr. JONES to H. A. SCHULTENS.
July 1774.
This letter will be prefented to you
by Mr. Campbell, a young gentleman of
great modefty and worth, and I recommend
* Appendix, No. 23. f Appendix, No. 24.
211
him to your particular attention. He in-
tends going to India as a merchant, but, pre-
vious to his embarkation, wifhes to give fome
time to the ftudy of foreign languages, Eu-
ropean and Afiatic, and particularly the Per-
fian. Any affiftance which you may afford
him in his ftudies, or other little affairs, I
{hall efteem a favour done to myfelf, and he
will confider it a great obligation.
How goes on our Hariri ? Will it ever be
publifhed with your elucidations ? My time
is employed in the courts ; and whatever
leifure I can command is exclufively devoted
to the ftudy of law and hiftory. I hope
you have received my Commentaries, which
I fent you. — Farewell.
* H. A. SCHULTENS to Mr. JONES,
The phoenix of his time, and the
ornament of the age — Health !
Amsterdam, Sept. 1774.
When I reflect, my dear Jones, upon the
fortunate period, which I paffed in your hap-
Appendix, No. 25.
P 2
212
py ifland, I feel the moft exquifite delight at
the recollection of the pleafure and improve-
ment, which I derived from your fociety ; at
the fame time, my anxiety for your company
excites the moft lively regret at our fepara-
tion. If I cannot altogether conquer it, I
can at leaft alleviate it by correfponding with
you.
Nothing but a variety of unufual occu-
pations could have delayed my writing to you
fo long after my return to Amfterdam ; I was
moreover apprehenfive of interrupting your
ftudies by my intrufion. The receipt of the
obliging prefent of your Commentaries, has
removed all my fear on this account, and af-
fords me a moft agreeable proof of your re-
membrance. Accept my fincereft thanks for
your finiihed and moft elegant work, which
I have eagerly read again and again with ad-
miration and aftoniihment.
As fincere a lover as yourfelf of the Mufes,
how much I regret their unhappy lot, that
whilft they have fo few admirers, one of their
moft diftinguifhed votaries mould be feduced
213
from their fervice by the difcordant broils of
the bar ! Do they not then poflefs fuch charms
and graces as to merit a preference to others,
who have no portion but wealth and honour ?
Is not their beauty fo attractive, their drefs
fo elegant and enchanting, as to fafcinate their
admirers to a degree, which makes them
defpife all others, and feel no delight but in
their fociety ? Forgive, my dear Jones, this
friendly expoflulation.
Two or three copies only of your work
have reached us ; I beg you will not fuffer
the inattention of bookfellers to deprive us of
a larger fupply. You will receive fhortly a
little inaugural difcourfe which I pronounced
here, On extending the limits of Oriental li-
terature. It was done too much in hafte to
be as perfect as it ought to have been, and as
I could have made it with more leifure. The
office which I hold here is moft agreeable to
me, but is attended with this inconvenience,
that the duties of it allow me no time for the
purfuit of other ftudies ; and the attention
which I am forced to beftow on grammatical
214
institutions, on explanatory lectures on the
Old Teftament, and in difquifitions on the
Jewifh antiquities, precludes the perufal of
Arabic, and ftill more of Perfian authors.
But I fubmit the more cheerfully to this re-
straint, as the affiduity of my prefent exertions
will produce more leifure in future ; and
when I have once committed to paper the
mafs of lectures which I have annually to
repeat, I mail then be at full liberty to em-
ploy myfelf as I pleafe. I have abfolutely
determined to publifh Meidani, but it will re-
quire the labour of ten years : you well know,
that without a competent knowledge, not
only of the language of the Eaft, but of Orien-
tal hiftory, ceremonies, and manners, it would
be madnefs to attempt it. Whether my la-
bours will ever have the affiftance of a mid-
wife, time muft fhew. Profeflbr Scheidius
is employed in publishing Gievvhari : the ex-
penfe of the undertaking far exceeds his means,
but he hopes to provide againft this difficulty, by
publifhing one, or more numbers annually, ac-
cording to alphabetical arrangement, by which
215
means the fale of each may furnifh the ex-
penfe of the fucceeding.
I have nothing further to communicate to
you, but I moft anxioufly long to fee you.
If you have the ambition of your country-
man, Banks, to expofe yourfelf to the in-
clemency of winter by vifiting me here, all my
fear of the cold will be loft in the hope, that
a long and intenfe froft may detain you.
Nothing however can give me more pleafure,
either in winter or fummer, than to have you
for my gueft. My wife, whom I married
about five months fince, is equally anxious to
fee a man, of whom fhe hears her hufband
perpetually talking ; fhe, as well as my father,
who received inexpreflible delight in the pe-
rufal of your Commentaries, defires to be re-
membered to you ; he entertains the higheft
refpedt and efteem for you. Let me know how
you are, and whether your mother and fifter
are well. Do me the favour alfo to inform
them, that I fhall ever remember with gra-
titude the obligations which I owe to their
216
great politenefs and attention to me. Con^
fider me ever as the humble fervant of your-
felf and friends. — Farewell, and love me
ever.
P. S. I almoft forgot to mention our Da-
mafcene prince ; his name, 1 think, is Jofeph
Abas. 1 regret that during his refidence at
this place, he only called upon me two days
before his departure for BrufTels. I was
h.ghly delighted with his liberal; manly, and
truly Arabian fpirit ; neither did he appear
deficient in polite literature, but of this you
are a better judge than I am. For my own
part, 1 muft ever retain a regard for a man,
whofe converfation fo entertained and in-
terefted me, under the attack of a fever, that
it ablblutely prevented the return of it.
* Mr. JONES to H. A. SCHULTENS.
October 1 774,
I have had the pleafure to receive
your letter dated in September, which did not
* Appendix, No. '26.
217
however reach me, till after my return to
London, from a fummer excurfion to the
Kentifh coaft.
1 am highly gratified by your father's and
your approbation of my Commentaries, and
I acknowledge the kindnefs of your friendly
and polite expostulation in telling me that you
cannot bear to fee me defert the caufe of li-
terature. But, my friend, the die is caft, and
1 have no longer a choice ; all my books and
manufcripts, with an exception of thofe only
which relate to law and oratory, are locked
up at Oxford, and I have determined, for the
next twenty years at leaft, to renounce all
(Indies but thofe which are connected with
my profeffion. It is needlefs to trouble you
with my reafons at length for this deter-
mination ; I will only fay, that if I had lived
at Rome or Athens, I mould have preferred
the labours, ftudies, and dangers of their
orators and illuftrious citizens, connected as
they were with banifhment and even death, to
the groves of the poets, or the gardens of the
philofophers. Here I adopt the fame refo--
218
lution. The Conftitution of England is in
no refpect inferior to that of Rome or Athens;
this is my fixed opinion, which I formed
in my earlieft years, and mall ever retain.
Although I fincerely acknowledge the charms
of polite literature, I muft at the fame time
adopt the fentiment of Neoptolemus in the
tragedy, that we can philofophize with a
few only ; and no lefs the axiom of Hip-
pocrates, that life is fhort, art long, and time
fwift. But I will alfo maintain the excel-
lence and the delight of other ftudies. What !
mail we deny that there is pleafure in ma-
thematics, when we recollect Archimedes,
the prince of geometricians, who was fo
intenfely abforbed in the demonftration of a
problem, that he did not difcover Syracufe
was taken ? Can we conceive any ftudy more
important, than the fingle one of the laws of
our own country ? Let me recall to your re-
collection the obfervations of L. CrafTus and
Q^Scaevola on this fubjecl:, in the treatife of
Cicero de Oratore. What ! do you imagine
the goddefs of eloquence to polTefs lefs at~
219
tra&ions than Thalia or Polyhymnia, or have
you forgotten the epithets which Ennius be-
ftows on Cethegus, the quintefTence of elo-
quence, and the flower of the people ? Is
there a man exifting who would not rather
refemble Cicero, (whom I wifh abfolutely to
make my model, both in the courfe of his
life and ftudies,) than be like Varro, however
learned, or Lucretius, however ingenious as a
poet ? If the ftudy of the law were really un-
pleafant and difgufting, which is far from the
truth, the example of the wifeft of the an-
cients, and of Minerva herfelf, the goddefs of
wifdom and protectrefs of Athens, would
juftify me in preferring the fruitful and ufeful
olive to the barren laurel.
To tell you my mind freely, I am not of
a difpofition to bear the arrogance of men of
rank, to which poets and men of letters are fo
often obliged to fubmit. Accept this friendly
reply to your friendly expoftulation, and be-
lieve my affurances, that I entertain the high-
eft value for your efteem, of which I have re-
ceived fo many proofs. I moft anxioufly ex-
220
pec"l your' differtation. May the Almighty
proiper your labours, and particularly your
laborious talk of Meidani ! May the moft
learned Scheidius perfevere with refolution in
completing the gigantic work, which he
meditates ! 1 admire his molt laudable in-
duftry ; but after the fate of Meninfki, (I do
not fpeak of his works, but of his fortunes)
no prudent man (for he that is not wife to
himfelf, is wife to no crA) will venture to ex-
pofe his veffel to the perils of ihipwreck in
fo uncertain a fea. The work is worthy of a
king, but the expenfe of it will require the
revenue of a king.
My mother and lifter cordially unite with
me in congratulations on your marriage, and
I beg you to make my compliments to your
amiable confort, and moil refpedlable father.
I thank you for your invitation to Amfler-
dam, and allure you that I ihould be moft
happy to avail myfelf of it. I n your focicty,
I ihould prefer a winter in Holland to the
gardens of the Hefperides, nor indulge a wifli
for the vales of Teinpc, but my legal occu-
221
pations make the fummer more convenient
for travelling. 1 promife you therefore to
pafs fome time with you in the July, or Au-
guft, of the next or following year.
I rejoice to find you pleafcd with Jofepb
the Syrian, and equally fo that he means to
travel through Germany. His hiftory is
fomewhat long. ]f I had not exerted myfelf
in my application to fome men of rank in
London, who have accefs to the King, he
muft have paffed a life of mifery here, or have
died mod wretchedly.
The bookfeller keeps for you the books
which you defired to purchafe. You cannot
as yet have received a fhort letter which I
wrote to you in July, and fent by a young
gentleman of the name of Campbell. The
fon of the king of Spain, Prince Gabriel, did
me the honour to fend me a mod fplendid
copy of his Salluft, for which 1 returned my
grateful acknowledgments.
You have doubtlefs heard of the travels of
Mr. Bruce, a native of Scotland, into Syria,
Arabia, Abyfiinia, Nubia,_ and Egypt. He is
222
as well acquainted with the coaft of the Red
Sea, and the fources of the Nile, as with his
own houfe. He has brought with him fome
iEthiopic raanufcripts, and amongft them the
Prophecies of Enoch, an ancient book, but to
be ranked only with the Sibylline oracles.
Whilft I was writing this letter, a perfon
called upon me with a manufcript, which he
had received at Venice from Mr. Montague,
a man of family. I immediately perceived it
to be a moft beautiful and correct copy of
Motanabbi, with a letter addrefled to myfelf
in Arabic verfe, from fome perfon. named Ab-
durrahman, whom Mr. Montague had pro-
bably feen in Afia. I owe great obligations
to the politenefs of the learned Arab, but I
by no means think myfelf worthy of his ex-
aggerated encomiums; — but you know the
pompous ftyle of the Orientals. Do not fup-
pofe that I have any prefent intention of read-
ing the poems of Motanabbi ; that muft be
referved for Oxford, when I have leifure to
attend to this, and my other treafures of the
fame kind. Believe my aflurance, that I
223
entertain the higheft efteem for you, and that
nothing will give me greater pleafure than to
hear from you frequently and at length. Take
care of your health, and continue your regard
for me.
Mr. HOWARD to Mr. JONES.
^ 1R » Paris, September l'l, 1774.
As my ftay here may be con-
fiderably longer than I at firft propofed, it is
a duty incumbent on me to acquit myfelf of
a charge committed to my care in the month
of June laft by Mr. Montague, at Venice, by
tranfmitting to you the manufcript which ac-
companies this letter. I mould indeed have
fent it to you much fooner, but the hopes I
had of an earlier return to England, was the
caufe of my poftponing it, that I might myfelf
have had the pleafure of delivering it, w T hich
I flattered myfelf might have ferved as an in-
troduction to the honour of your acquaint-
ance, a happinefs which, without compliment,
I have long been very ambitious of. But as
my affairs are likely to detain me fome time
224
longer in this city, I cannot with any pro-
priety prefer my own intereft to a more ma-
terial one ; nor ought I longer to injure the
public, by depriving them of the pleafure and
advantage they may reap from this manu-
fcript's coming to your hands. Mr. Mon-
tague loaded me with compliments to you,
meant as real teftimonies of the efteem he has
for you, which I am very unfortunate in not
having the pleafure of delivering.
I have the honour to be, &c.
Mid. Howard.
Mr. JONES to Mr. HOWARD.
Sir, Oct. 4, 1774.
I cannot exprefs how much I
am flattered by the kind attention, with which
you honour me. I have juft received your
moft obliging letter, with a line Arabic ma-
nufcript, containing the works of a celebrated
poet, with whom I have been long acquaint-
ed j this teftimony of Mr. Montague's regard
is extremely pleafmg to me, and I have a
moll grateful fenfe of his kindnefs. I am.
225
confcious how little I have deferved the many-
honours I have lately received from the learned
in Europe and Afia; I can afcribe their polite-
nefs to nothing but their candour and bene-
volence. I fear they will think me ftill lefs
deferving, when they know that I have de-
fer ted, or rather fufpended, all literary purfuits
whatever, and am wholly engaged in the ftudy
of a profeffion, for which I was always in-
tended. As the law is a jealous fcience, and
will not have any partnerfhip with the Eaftern
mufes, I muft abfolutely renounce their ac-
quaintance for ten or twelve years to come.
This manufcript however is highly accept-
able to me, and mall be preferved among
my choiceft treafures, till I have leifure to
give it an attentive perufal. There is a com-
pliment to me written in Arabic verfe in the
firft leaf of the book, and figned Abdurrah-
man Beg ; the verfes are very fine, but fo
full of Oriental panegyric, that I could not
read them without blufbing. The prefent
feems to come from the learned Arabian ;
but as he has not inferted my name in his
life— V. I. Q
2'26
vcrfes, and fpeaks of Oxford, he muft have
heard me mentioned by Mr. Montague, to
whom therefore I am equally indebted for
the prefent. If I knew Mr. Montague's
direction, I would fend him a letter of thanks
for his indulgence to me, and would alfo re-
turn my compliments in Arabic to his Afia-
tic friend, who feems to have fent the book.
Before your return to England, I mall pro-
bably be removed to the Temple, where I
fliall wait impatiently for the pleafure of fee-
ing you.
I am, 8zc.
William Jones.
Mr. WADDILOVE to Mr. JONES.
SlR, St. Ildefonso,Aug. l, 1774.
Upon my arrival at Madrid, I
delivered your prefent of your Aiiatic Com-
mentaries to my friend Dr. F co Perez Bayer ;
he defires me to return you his compliments
and thanks for your politenefs to him, and
begs your acceptance of a copy of the Infant
Don Gabriel's Sail lift, which he accordingly
£27
fent to me the night before we left Madrid.
As we fhall not be there again till next Chrift-
mas, I ihall have no opportunity of forward-
ing it to you very foon ; whenever any one
offers, you may depend upon receiving it,
but as this probably will not be before next
fpring, I hope you will not defer acknowledg-
ing the favour till then. If you mould wifh
to fee the Salluft before you write again to
Mr. Bayer, you will find a copy in the Mu-
feum. If you have had any time to examine
the DiflTertation upon the Phoenician Lan-
guage, &c., Dr. F. P. Bayer will be glad of
any remarks upon it, as a new edition of it
in Latin will foon be printed. He has a
curious collection of Samaritan coins, and is
now employed upon that fubjecl ; and if he
could be prevailed upon to publifh more of
his enquiries into the antiquities of this and
other countries, the learned world would be
much indebted to him. Cafiri is engaged at
prefent in deciphering Moorifh infcriptions,
which have been found in different parts of
Spain. Some are already engraved, but not
Q_2
228
yet publifhed. He reduces firft the characters
to the modern Arabic, and then gives a trans-
lation and comment in Latin. Your Sallufl
is unbound, and you have already the differ-
tation to add to it.
I am, &c.
R. D. Waddilove,
* Mr, JONES to F. P. BAYER.
Oct. 4, 1774.
I can fcarceiy find words to ex-
press my thanks for your obliging prefent of
a moft beautiful and fplendid copy of Salluft,
with an elegant Spanifh tranflation. You
have beftowed upon me, a private untitled in-
dividual, an honour which heretofore has
only been conferred upon great monarchs,
and illuftrious univerfities. I really was at a
lols to decide, whether I fhould begin my let-
ter by congratulating you on having fo ex-
cellent a tranflator, or by thanking you for
this agreeable proof of your remembrance. I
look forward to the increafing fplendour,
* Appendix, No. C'T
229
which the aits and fciences mud attain in a
country, where the fon of the king pofTefles
genius and erudition, capable of tranflating
and illuftrating with learned notes, the firft of
the Roman hiftorians; howfewyouths amongft
the nobility in other countries pofTefs the re-
quifite ability or inclination for fuch a tafk !
The hiftory of Sallufl is a performance of
great depth, wifdom, and dignity: to under-
ftand it well, is no fmall praife ; to explain it
properly, is {till more commendable ; but to
tranflate it elegantly, excites admiration. If
all this had been accomplished by a private
individual, he would have merited applaufe ;
if by a youth, he would have had a claim to
literary honours; but when to the title of
youth, that of prince is added, we cannot too
highly extol, or too loudly applaud, his dif-
tinguilhed merit.
Many years are elapfed fince I applied my-
felf to the ftudy of your learned language,
but I well remember to have read in it with
great delight the heroic poem of Alonzo, the
odes of GarcilaiTo, and the humorous (lories
230
of Cervantes : but I moll: finccrely declare,
that I never perufed a more elegant or polifhed
compofition than the tranflation of Salluft,
and I readily fubfcribe to the opinion of the
learned author in his preface, that the Spanifh
language approaches very nearly to the dig-
nity of the Latin.
May the accomplished youth continue to
deferve w°ll of his country and mankind, and
eftablifh his claim to diftinction above all the
princes of the age ! If I may be allowed to
offer my fentiments, I would advife him to
fludy moft diligently the divine works of
Cicero, which no man, in my opinion, ever
perufed without improving in eloquence and
wifdom. The epiftle which he wrote to his
brother Quintus, on the government of a pro-
vince, deferves to be daily repeated by every
fovereign in the world ; his books on offices,
on moral ends, and the Tufculan queftions,
merit a hundred perufals ; and his orations,
nearly fixty in number, deferve to be tranf-
latcd into every European language ; nor do
I fcruple to affirm, that his fixteen books of
251
letters to Atticus, are fuperior to almoft all
hiftories, that of Salluft excepted. With re-
fpecl to your own compofitions, I have read
with great attention, and will again read,
your moft agreeable book. I am informed
that you propofe giving a Latin tranflation of
it, and I hope you will do it for the benefit
of foreigners. I fee nothing in it which re-
quires alteration, — nothing which is not en-
titled to praife. I much wifh that you would
publifh more of your treatifes on the an-
tiquities of Afia and Africa. I am confident
they would be moft acceptable to iuch as ftudy
thofe fubjecls. I have only for the prefent
to conclude by bidding you farewell in my
own name, and that of the republic of letters.
— Farewell.
* Mr. JONES to G. S. MICHAELIS.
Noreynbcr 1774.
I beg you will do me the juftice
to believe that I have read vour books with
great attention. I neither entirely admit, nor
* Appendix, No. 28.
232
reject your opinion on the fables of the He-
brews ; but until the fubject. be better known
and explored, I am unwilling to depart from
the received opinions concerning them. Your
approbation of my Commentaries gives me
fincere pleafure. Nothing is more true than
that I have renounced the Afiatic mufes and
polite literature, and that for twenty years
at leaft I have determined neither to write
nor think about them. The Forum is my
lot, and the Law engrofTes all my attention.
Be allured, however, that I fTiall ever retain
my efteem both for yourfelf and your works.
i — Farewell.
Mr. JONES to Lady SPENCER.
MADAM, Duke Street.
I take the liberty to prefent
your Ladyfhip with a copy of my poems,
and cannot refrain from acquainting you
with a plain truth, that the firft of them,
called Solima, would never have been written,
if I had never had the honour of knowing
your Ladyfhip,
233
* # #
I am juft come from Harrow, where it
gave me inexpreflible happinefs to fee Lord
Althorp perfectly well, extremely improved,
and defervedly beloved by all, as much as
by his real friend, and
Your Ladyfhip's
Moll obedient and faithful fervant,
William Jones.
Lady SPENCER to Mr. JONES.
SlR, Althorp, Jan. 10, 1775.
The continual hurry occafion-
ed by having a houfe full of company, added
to my not having been quite well, has pre-
vented my thanking you fooner for your
letter ; you cannot doubt of my being much
flattered, at your thinking you find any re-
femblance between my character and that of
Solima, and ftill more at your telling the
world you do : I fhall always look upon that
poem, as a model you have fet up for my
imitation, and fhall only be forry I do not
approach nearer to it, efpecially after you
234
have called upon me in fo public a manner,
to improve myfelf in the ways of virtue and
benevolence. I muft decline your fecond re-
queft, of criticifing, as I have neither time
nor talents for fuch an office, nor do I think
your works require it.
I am delighted with your invention of the
Andrometer, and wifh every body would
form one for themfelves ; it would be of
infinite ufe to numbers of people, who, from
indolence and diffipation, rather go back-
wards than forwards in every ufeful attain-
ment.
I am, Sir, with great efteem,
Your faithful friend and
humble fervant,
G. Spencer.
* H. A. SCHULTENS to Mr. JONES.
jlmsterdam, Jan. 6, 111~>.
Although the inceffant and
extraordinary occupations in which I am at
this time engaged, do not allow me to think
* Appendix, No. 29.
253
even of writing to my friends, I cannot re-
fufe a few lines to the molt learned Bjorn-
ftahl, both for the purpofe of introducing
him to you, and to fhew that I have not
forgotten you. You will find our Philarabic
Swede, a moll agreeable companion ; he has
not only travelled much, but is deeply vcrfed
in Oriental literature, of which he is very
fond. I think I may venture to promife
that the fociety of a perfon, who loves what
you JIM delight in, (for I will not with you
fay, what you once delighted in) will be
moft acceptable to you. * * * * * *
* Mr. JONES to C. REVICZKI.
London, February 1775.
Do not fuppofe that I have
forgotten you, becaufe I write to you {q
feldom ; I have not met with any perfon to
whom I could entruft my packet, and I have
no inclination to rifk my familiar letters by
the poft. I doubt if this will ever reach you,
and I fear therefore to write to you on any
* Appendix, No. 30.
236
fubject with my ufual freedom, as your lafl
letter of January, from Warfaw, was deliver-
ed to me opened : it is probable that you will
receive this in the fame manner. I am fo
conftantly occupied with law and politics,
that I have no leifure for literature. I have
published two books, and only want a fafe
opportunity to fend them to you. Write to
me, I befeech you, for your friendfhip is
my greater! delight. How much I wifh that
you were in England, or I in Germany, that
we might live together !
After all, I could not think of accepting
the Turkifh embafTy. I will live in my own
country, which cannot eafily fpare good fub-
jects : it is fcarcely yet free from commo-
tion. — Oh ! how I mould rejoice if I could
fee you here in a diplomatic character : I
mould not then envy the monarchs of Eu-
rope or Alia.- — Farewell again and again.
CO i
* C. REVICZKI to Mr. JONES.
If you are fully fenfible of the
very great regard 1 entertain for you, you
will then conceive how much pleafure I felt
at the receipt of your highly valued letter.
IncefTantly occupied for a long time, I have
been compelled to forego the pleafure of cor-
refponding with you, and I the more readily
acknowledge your kindnefs in writing to me,
when I could have no expectation of hearing
from you. Though I think it more prudent
not to fay any thing, the difclofure of which
might be attended with unpleafant confe-
quences, I impute the opening of my letter
which you mention, rather to accident than
defign. Your bufinefs as a lawyer muft ne-
ceflarily engage your clofeft attention ; t can-
not therefore afk you to write to me often,
but thus much I wifh you to know, that I
ihall feon have more leifure for correfpond-
ing with you, as the late clofe of the Diet,
which Lifted for two years (in my eftimation
* Appendix, No. 31.
2cn
a century) has almoft left me at liberty. So
much for the affairs of this part of the world.
Of what is doing in your country, your let-
ter gives me no information ; but I hear from
other quarters, of the agitations amongft you*
in confequence of the commotions in the co-
lonies, which I confider worfe than a foreign
war. For my own part, I confefs to you
that I am tired both of my fituation and my
office, not fo much on account of their diffi-
culty as their unpleafantnefs, and all the con-
folation I feel arifes from the hope that my
prefent troublefome occupation will not Lift
more than a year.
I heartily wifh I were in London, and at
liberty to lit feriouily down to the compofi-
tion of fome political work on the fubjeft of
our republic ; the tafk would be no lefs ufe-
ful than agreeable, indeed I can conceive no-
thing more pleafant than fuch an employ-
ment.
If, contrary to my expectations, my wifh.
fhould be gratified, I hope to find you there,
and to enjoy as formerly your fociety and
23g
converiation. I am anxious to have your
laft publication, (the fubjecl: of which you do
not mention,) and doubt not that the pcrufal
of it will afford me great pleafure. Farewell,
and think of me always with affeclion.
k- * * * # *
The preceding correfpondence proves the
high degree of eflirnation in which the learn-
ing and abilities of Mr. Jones were holden
by the literati of Europe ; and. we find that
his reputation had extended into Alia, From
the manner in which he mentions his renun-
ciation of the embaffy to Conitantinople, it is
evident that his attention was ftrongly fixed
upon the political date of his own country.
The Andrometer> mentioned by Lady
Spencer to have been invented by Mr.
[ones, affords a linking ipecimen of the
extent of his views, in the acquifition of
intellectual excellence. It may be defined,
A fcale of human attainments and enjoyment ;
he affumcs feventy years, as the limit of ex-
ertion or enjoyment ; and with a view to
progreffive improvement, each year is appro-
240
priated to a particular fludy or occupation.
The arrangement of what was to be learned,
or practifed, during this period, admits of a
fourfold divifion.
The firft, comprifing thirty years, is af-
figned to the acquifition of knowledge as
preparatory to active occupation.
The fecond, of twenty years, is dedicated
principally to public and profeflional employ-
ment.
Of the third, which contains ten years, the
firft live are allotted to literary and fcientific
compofition, and the remainder to the con-
tinuation of former purfuits.
The laft ten, conltituting the fourth divi-
fion, which begins with the fixty-firft year,
are devoted to the enjoyment of the fruits of
his labours ; and the conclusion of the whole
is fpecilied to be a preparation for eternity.
The Andrometer is to be confidered as a
mere fketch, never intended for publication.
In the conftruclion of it, Mr. Jones probably
had a view to thofe objects, the attainment of
which he then meditated. We are not to
f J41
conclude, that the preparation for eternity.
which ftands at the top of the feale, was to
be deferred until the feventieth year ; it is
rather to be confidered as the object to which
he was perpetually to look, during the whole
courfe of his life, and which was exclnjively
to engrofs the attention of his latter years.
He was too well convinced of the precarious
tenure of human exiftence, to allow himfelf
to reft the momentous concern of his eternal
welfare, on the fallacious expectation of a
protracted life ; he knew moreover too well
the power of habit, to admit a fuppofition,
that It could be effectually refifted or changed
at the dole of life. Neither are we to fup-
pofe, that moral and religious leifons which
conftitute the occupation of the eighth year,
werQ v from that period to be difcontinued,
although they are not afterwards mentioned ;
but the meaning of Mr. Jones probably was,
that they fhould be ferioufly and regularly
inculcated at an age, when the intellectual
faculties had acquired ftrength and expanfion
by preceding exercifes. That the order of
Life—V. J. R
242
arrangement in the Andrometer, could never
be ftri&ly adhered to in the application of our
time, and cultivation of our talents (if it
were intended) is evident ; but to thofe who
from their fituation are enabled to avail them-
felves of the fuggeftions which it furnifhes,
it will fupply ufeful hints for improvement,
and ferve as a ftandard of comparifon for
their progrefs. With refpect to Mr. Jones
himfelf, if his own acquisitions in his thir-
tieth year, when he conftructed the Andro-
meter, be compared with it, they will be
found to rife to a higher degree in the fcale.
With thefe explanations, I preient it to
the reader; reverfing, for the fake of con-
venience, the order of the fcale.
34:3
o
a 1 6 | o |
10
}5
201
-
50
ANDROMETER.
12
— Ideas received through the senses.
— Speaking and pronunciation.
— Letters and spelling.
— Ideas retained in the memory.
— Reading and repeating.
— Grammar of his own language.
— Memory exercised.
— Moral and religious lessons.
— Natural history and experiments.
— Dancing, music, drawing, exerci.es
— History of his own country.
— Latin.
■ Greek.
— French and Italian.
• Translations.
— Compositions in verse and pfose.
- Rhetoric and declamation.
— ■ History and law.
— Logic and mathematics.
— Rhetorical exercises.
— Philosophy and politics.
— Compositions in his own language
— Declamations continued.
— Ancient orators studied.
— Travel and conversation.
— Speeches at the bar or in parliament.
— State affairs.
— Historical studies continued.
— Law and eloquence.
— Public life.
— Private and social virtues.
— Habits of eloquence improved.
— > Philosophy resumed at leisure.
R2
Oration?
2U
40
45
50
55
eo:
65
■o
— Orations published.
— Exertions in state and parliament.
— Civil knowledge- mature.
— Eloquence perfect.
— National rights defended.
— The learned protected.
— The virtuous assisted.
— Compositions published.
Science improved.
— Parliamentary affairs*
— Laws enacted and supported.
— Fine arts patronized.
— Government of his family.
— Education of his children.
— Vigilance as a magistrate.
• Firmness as a patriot.
— Virtue as a citizen.
— Historical works.
— Oratorical works.
— Philosophical works.
— Political works.
— Mathematical works.
— ( Continuation of former pursuits.
(
— Fruits of his labours enjoyed.
— A glorious retirement.
— An amiable family.
- Universal respect.
- Consciousness of a virtuous 1'if?.
J
I
— Preparation for eternity.
Perfection of earthly happiness..
5245
I have mentioned that Mr. Jones was
called to the bar in 1774, but he declined
practice; from this period however he feems
to have been fully fenfible of the neceflity of
devoting himfelf exclufively to his legal Itu-
dips. The ambition of obtaining diflinction
in his profeflion could not fail to animate a
mind always ardent in the purfuit of the ob-
jects which it had in view, nor was he of a
temper to be fatisfied with mediocrity, where
perfection was attainable. His refearches and
ftudies were not confined to any one branch
of jurifprudence, but embraced the whole in
its fullcft extent. He compared the doctrines
and principles of ancient legislators with the
later improvements in the fcience of law ; he
collated the various codes of the different
itates of Europe, and collected profeflional
knowledge wherever it was to be found. If
the reader recollects the enthufiafm difplayed
by Mr. Jones in the profecudon of his
Oriental ftudies, the extent and depth of his
attainments in the literature of Afia, and the
high reputation which he had acquired from
246
them, he will readily applaud his refolution
and perfeverance in renouncing his favourite
purfuits. That he acted wifely, will be ad-
mitted, but the facrifice of inclination to
duty, affords an example of too great ufe and
importance to pafs without particular ob ■
fervation.
In 1775, for the firft time, he attended
the fpring circuit and fefhons at Oxford, but
whether as a fpeclator, or actor, on that oc-
cafion, 1 am not informed. In the follow-
ing year, he was regular in his attendance at
WeftminfteivHall.
The only part of his correfpondence of
this year which I polfefs, is a letter to his
friend Schultens, and I infert it as a memo-
rial of an incident in his life.
* Mr. JONES to H. A. SCHULTENS.
December, \116.
Behold me now no longer a
free man; me, who ever confidered perfect
liberty fuperior to every thing ! Under the
* Appendix, No, 32.
247
impreflion of the mo/t eager defire to fee
you, I promifed to vifit Amflerdam this year,
but I am detained in London by various and
important occupations. The fact is, that I
am appointed one of the fixty commiilioners
of bankrupts. It is an office of great ufe,
but little emolument; it confines me how-
ever to London during the greateft part of
the year. Add to this, my neceflary ftudies,
my practice at the bar, and the duty of giv-
ing opinions on legal cafes fubmitted by
clients. However, I read the Grecian ora-
tors again and again, and have tranflated into
Englifh the molt ufeful orations of Ifams,
How go on Meidani and Hariri ? Continue,
I befeech you, your labours upon them, with
due regard however to your health.
******
Notwithstanding the increafing application
of Mr. Jones to the duties and ftudies of his
profeflion, and his attention to political trans-
actions, the philofophical difcoveries of the
times did not efcape his obfervation. The
hopes and fears of the nation were at this
243
period anxiouily engaged in the event of the
unfortunate contelt, which had taken place
between the mother country and her colonies,
and whilft the juflice of the war, and the
expectation of a fuceefsful conclufion of it,
were maintained by one party, by another
their fentiments were oppofed, and their
rneafures arraigned and condemned. But it
is no part of my plan to invade the province
of the hiflorian by difcuffing the queftions of
thofe times. Thefe curfory remarks are
chiefly introduced as preliminary to the in-
fertion of two letters from Mr. Jones to Lord
Althorp, with whom he continued to culti-
vate that friendfhip which had fo naturally
been formed between the tutor and the pupil.
I add alio a lhort letter to Schultcns, in an-
fwer to one which Mr. Jones had received
from him, requeuing him to aflift by his own
contributions a new publication, then on foot
in Holland, and complaining of his finances
in a flyle calculated to confole his friend for
renouncing the haunts of the Mufes, for the
thorny but more productive Held of the law,
9
249
Mr. JONES to Lord ALTFIORP.
Temple •, JVbf. 13.
As I have a few minutes of
leifure this evening, can I employ them bet-
ter than in writing to my friend ? I haften,
my dear Lord, to impart to you the pleafure
I received to-day, from feeing a feries of
experiments exhibited by Mr. Walfh on the
American eel, by which he clearly proved
that the animal has a fenlation wholly dif-
tinct from any of the five fenfes. When he
announced the proportion to be demon-
itrated, I thought it might poflibly be true,
but could not conceive how a new fenfe
could be made perceptible to any fenfe of
mine, as I imagined it would be like talking
to a deaf man of harmonic founds, or to
one who had no palate, of nectarines and
pine-apples ; but he produced the fuileft con-
viction in me, that his pofition was in a de-
gree juft. His firft experiment was by fixing
four wires, about two inches in the water
where the fifh was fwimming, one in each
2j()
quarter of the elliptical trough ; each of thefe
wires communicated with a large gtafs of
water placed on a table at a little distance,
though the diitance fignified nothing, for the
experiment, had the wires been long enough,
might have been conducted in another room ;
while the four glaffes remained feparatc, the
gvmnotus (for that is his technical name) was
perfe&ly infeniible of the wires, but in the
very inftant when a communication was
made bv an inftrument between any two of
the glafles, he feemed to ftart, and fwam
directly to the wires which were thus joined,
paying no attention to the others, till a junc-
tion was made between them alfo. This
could not be fight, becaufe he did not fee the
wires while they were infulated, though they
were equally confpicuous ; it could not be
feeling (at lead not like our feeling) becaufe
the water was not in the leaft agitated ; ftill
lefs could it be hearing, and leaft of all fmell,
or tafle. It was therefore a diitinct electrical
feni'c of feeling, or power of conceiving any
ftronger conductor than the water around
251
him, tor which reafon he did not perceive
the wires till their junction, becaufe they
were at the extremities of the tub, and
fo little in the water, that they were lefs
powerful conductors. Several other experi-
ments were exhibited with equal fuccefs ; one
of them only I will mention. A triangular
inftrument of brafs was held over the tub,
and one of the legs placed gently in the
water, to which the fiih was wholly inatten-
tive, though he fwam clofe to it ; but when
the other leg was immerfed to complete the
circulation, he inflantly ftarted. It is by
this faculty that the wonderful animal has
notice of his prey, and of his enemies.
Thefe are pleafant amufements, and objects
of a jufl curiofity when they fall occafionally
in our way ; but fuch experiments might
have been exhibited at Paris, Madrid, or
Peterfburgh, where the philofophers, who are
difcovering new fenfes in other animals, are
not permitted to ufe their own freely ; and
believe me, my dear Lord, it is not by elec-
trical experiments, nor by triangular inltru-
-<J-i
ments, nor by condu&ors of wire, that wc
ihall be able to avert the black florin which
hangs over us. LeL you and me, therefore,
be philofophers now and then, but citizens
always -, let us fometimes obferve with eager-
nefs the fatellites of Jupiter, but let us incef-
fantly watch with jealoufy the fatellites of
the King. Do you hear any certain intelli-
gence concerning America ? Mr. Owen
Cambridge has jufl informed me, that a New
York Gazette is brought over, in which the
late uncertain accounts are confirmed in their
full extent, with this important addition, that
three counties of Maryland have offered not
only fubmiflion, but aiTiftance to General
Howe. This may, or may not be true.—
Farewell.
Mr. JONES to Lord ALTHORP.
November 22.
i rejoice, my dear friend, that
vou have acquired that ingenuous diftrufh
which Epicharmus calls a-finew ofwifdom. It
is certain that doubt impels us to enquire,
253
and enquiry often ends in conviction. You
will be able when you come to London, to
examine with the minuteft fcrupulojity, as
Johnfon would call it, the properties of that
fingular animal, who is in the rivers of South
America, what Jupiter was feigned to be
among the gods, a darter of lightnings and
fhould be named drpcnrrKpfyos, inftead of gym-
notus, He certainly has (if an academic
may venture to affirm any thing) a mode of
perception peculiar to himfelf ; but whether
that perception can properly be called a new
finfe^ I leave you to determine : it is a modi-
fication indeed of feeling, but are not all our
lenfes fo ? I defire however, that in this and
in every thing, you will form your own
judgment. As to the TsctKxyUnvU of our noble
Conftitution, which has happily prefented it-
felf to your imagination, the very idea fixes
me with rapture. No, my dear Lord, never
believe that any thing is impoflible to virtue ;
no, if ten fuch as you conceive fuch fenti-
ments as your letter contains, and exprefs
them as forcibly, if you retain thefe fenti-
2/>4
ments, as you certainly will, when you take
your place in parliament, I will not defpair
of feeing the moft glorious of fights, a nation
freely governed by its own laws. This I pro-
mife, that, if fuch a decemvirate mould ever
attempt to reftore our conftitutional liberty
by conftitutional means, I would exert in
their caufe, fuch talents as I have, and, even
if I were oppreffed with ficknefs, and torn
with pain, would ftart from my couch, and
exclaim with Trebonius, " If you mean to
" act worthily, O Romans ! I am well."
The fpeech, you find, was compofed and
delivered without my news about Maryland,
It IS ' Xoyos y.ce.\x y-ovxpyj-.ioq mxi r/JaTiwnxof, and
breathes a deliberate firmnefs. Lord Chat-
ham fpoke with a noble vigour for a veteran
orator, and your bifhop pronounced an ele-
gant harangue r I wifh Lord Granby had
more courage as a public fpeaker ; all men
fpeak highly of him, but he will never be
eloquent, till he is lefs modeft. Charles Fox
poured forth with amazing rapidity a conti-
* Too despotic and military.
!255
rmed inveclive againil Lord G. Gennainc,
and Burke was fo pathetic, that many declare
they faw him fhed tears. The miniitcrs in
both houfes were fullen and referved, but
Lord Sandwich boldly contradicted the Duke
of Richmond on the ftate of the navy. I
grieve that our fenate is dwindled into a
fchool of rhetoric, where men rife to difplay
their abilities rather than to deliberate, and
wiih to be admired without hoping to con-
vince. Adieu, my dear Lord ; I fteal thefe
few moments from a dry legal inveftigation ;
but I could not defer the pleafure of anfwer-
ing a letter, which gave me inex^veflible
delight.
* H. A. SCHULTENS to Mr. JONES.
May 177".
I know not how to exprefs
^y delight at the receipt of your fhort, but
very friendly and obliging letter. I take
ihame to myfelf at having fo long delayed
the acknowledgement of it, and you might
* Appendix, No. 33.
$56
indeed juftly cenfure me, for an apparent,
forgetfulnefs of your kindnefs towards me,
This would indeed be a mod ferious accusa-
tion, which I cannot in any degree admit ;
I wim I could as fairly exculpate myfelf from,
the charge of negligence. You have now,
my friend, my confefTion, but you will par-
don me in confideration of my promife to be
more attentive in future. I may indeed plead
occupations fo incefTant, that they fcarcely
allow me time to breathe, and have often
compelled me to defer waiting to you, when
I moll ferioufly intended it; you will the
more readily admit this apology, when I tell
you, that for five months I have never once
thought of Meidanj.
I have now a little refpite, and mean foon
to refume my work, which has been fo long
interrupted ; the lingular kindnefs of the
fuperintendants of the library at Leyden, by
permitting me to take home for my ufe, and
retain as long as I pleafe, not only the manu-
fcript of Meidani, but any others which I
may want, will much diminifh the weight of
257
my labour. With this aiTiftance, I fhall pro-
ceed as faft as my other employments allow-
to copy the manufcript, finifh the indexes
(which are abfolutely necefTary to fuch a
work), and add whatever is wanted to ren-
der it as elegant and complete as poffible ; —
it gradually advances. I moft heartily wifh
it were in my power to beftow upon this fa-
vourite occupation, thofe hours which I am
obliged moft reluctantly to give to my various
public and private ledures; but I forefee that
it will flill require three or four years of hard
labour to collect fuch an ample flock of ma-
terials, as will enable me to deliver my lec-
tures fluently without much previous ftudy,
or " to make them out of a bag," as the
phrafe is, In the mean time, Hariri lies un-
touched, the Arabic poets are neglected, and
the foft and elegant literature of Perfia, which
above all I fincerely regret, remains unex-
plored ; fuch however is the ardour with
which you have infpired me, that I am de-
termined, if I enjoy life and health, at all
hazards, and at the rifk of fingularity, to
Life—V. L S
258
devote rnyfelf to the acquifition of it. I
almoft however defpair of publifhing Ha-
riri. I had determined to give the text only
from the belt procurable manufcripts, annex-
ing to it the translation of my grandfather,
which is complete. This I mould be able to
accomplish with little facrifice of time; and
without neglecting other bufinefs, I could
give the public an ufeful work. But there
are fome, to whofe judgment as well as in-
clination I owe much deference, who difap-
prove of this plan, and advife me not to
publifh the work, without extracts from
Tebrizi and other grammarians, nor even
without my own annotations. Though I da-
not agree with them, I muft fubmit to their
authority, at the neceffity of protracling the
publication, till I can give it as they wifh.
Scheidius has lately publifhed the firft
part of Jaohari's Lexicon, eonfifting of
about two hundred pages. He calculates
that the whole work will not be comprifed
In lefs than ten volumes, of a thoufand pages
each. Opinions about it are various. He
259
himfelf forefecs fo little impediment in com-
pleting this immenfe undertaking, that he
even talks of publishing Phiruzbadi, &c. ;
but others confider the obftacles fo infuper-
able, that they think it never will be fmifhed,
unlefs it mould rain gold upon him. This
is all relating to the Arabic that is now going
on amongft us, excepting a glofTary to Ha-
riri, Arab Shah, and the Coran, which Mr.
Wilmot, a young, but learned theologian has
undertaken. It will be very ufeful to be-
ginners, who from the difficulty and expenfe
of procuring Golius, are deterred from the
fludy of the language. Latin and Greek li-
terature receive more encouragement here.
This neither excites my envy nor furprife ;
but I mould be ftill more reconciled to it, if
fome fmall part of this patronage were to
overflow upon the Orientalifts. Ruhnkenius
is at work upon Velleius Paterculus, Burman
en Propertius, Wyttenbach on Plutarch,
Tollius upon the Homeric Lexicon of Apol-
lonius, an edition of which has been pub-
li ftied by Villoifon in France. The epiflles
S 2 '
260
of Phalaris, reflecting the author of which
your countrymen, Boyle and Bentley, had
fuch a controverfy, will foon be publifhed.
Have you feen the very elegant EfTay of
Ruhnkenius on the Life and Writings of
Longinus? Many copies have been fent to
England ; — if you wifh to have one, I will
take an opportunity of procuring it for you.
In the courfe of a few weeks, a critical mif-
cellany will appear, and it is intended to
publifh two or three numbers of it annually.
This publication has a double view ; to no-
tice the bell new books on every fubject
which relate to learned antiquity, and to in-
troduce occafionally new and unpublifhed
compofitions. The authors are unknown,
or, rather, wifh to be fo ; for fome of them
will certainly be difcovered by their fuperior
erudition, and uncommon elegance of flyle.
I am fufficiently acquainted with them, to
affirm confidently that the work will pleafe
you. With fome of the perfons concerned
in it, I am intimately connected, and they
have requefted me to recommend to them
2Gl
fome London bookfeller, to whom a few co»
pies may be fent for fale. For this purpofe
I have thought of Elmfley, who will pro-
bably have no objection to try the fuccefs of
the work in England, by taking twenty or
even fewer copies. I wifh however in the
firft place to mention the bufinefs to you,
that Elmfley, or fome other by your intereft,
may be the more readily induced to under-
take it. There is alfo another favour of
more importance, which my friends, through
my agency, anxioufly hope to obtain from
you ; the circumftance is this : upon their
expreffing a wifh that their mifcellany mould
contain extracts from Oriental authors, par-
ticularly Perfic and Arabic, I recommended
to them, as there are but few works of this
nature, and ftill fewer worthy of notice, that
they mould leave a fpace for fhort differta-
tions, under the heads of tracts, or effays, or
any other title, by which they may be com-
municated, as a means of promoting thefe
ftudies. I promifed, for my own part, to
contribute fome biographical memoirs from
Eben Chali Khan, if they fhould have no-
thing better to infert. They approved my
advice, and earneftly entreated me to prevail
upon you to furnifh them with fome efTays
of this kind ; adding, that they would prove
the greateft ornament and recommendation
of this part of the work, and that if I really
enjoyed your friendfhip, which I was per-
petually afTerting, I could not fail of obtain-
ing this favour from you. You fee, my
friend, to what I have been led, by boafting
of your regard for me. I have yielded the
more readily to their felicitations, in the
hopes of retrieving by it, in fome degree,
the heavy lofs which we fuftained in you. I
therefore moft earneftly entreat and befeech
you, by your ancient love of the Oriental
mufes, who fo feelingly and fondly regret
you, not to omit any convenient opportunity
of gratifying our wifhes. Examine your
fhelves ;- — you will find many things ready,
and fufficiently perfect for publication. What-
ever you fend, will be moft acceptable, and
it fhall appear in our mifcellany with or with-
5263
out your name, as you may think proper.
If you have any thing in Englifh, and want
time to turn it into Latin, I will readily un-
dertake the tranflation of it, and fubmit it to
the examination of others who are better
fcholars than myfelf, that your reputation
may fufFer no impeachment from it. Nothing
(hall be added, omitted, or changed ; but it
fhall appear exactly as you fend it ; to this
if you think it neceffary, I will pledge my
word. I hope it will not be inconvenient to
you to favour me with an early reply to this
letter, and I rely upon your obliging acqui-
escence in our requeft.
I congratulate you upon your new office,
as an introduction to fomething more ho-
nourable and lucrative ; and as to the lofs
of your liberty, I regret it rather on my ac-
count, than on yours. No one, not even an
Englishman, can object to fervice for the
public good, which is the juft recompence of
virtue and merit. To me, however, your
confinement is grievous ; for, if I was dis-
appointed in the expectation of feeing you,
264
when you were your own matter, I can
fcarcely now indulge a diftant hope of that
pleafure. Do not however leave me in
defpair : you have fifty-nine affociates ; fome
interval of leifure may occur, and if it
mould, do not neglect it, hut run over and
make us happy by the enjoyment of your
company and converfation. It is not from
want of inclination that I do not pay you
another vifit ; the recollection of the pleafure
I had in your fociety, is fo ftrongly imprefled
upon me, that I have nothing more anxi-
oufly at heart, than to fly over to you with
all fpeed, that I may again enjoy it. Neither
is it want of time, that detains me ; for my
office, which exclufively occupies me for
nine months, leaves me at liberty the re-
maining three. What is it then ? I will tell
you the truth, nor blufh to reveal to my
friend, " that, when my purfe is heavier, I
u fhall find the journey to you lighter*."
The foil of Oriental literature in Holland,
* An Arabic proverb, adapted to the situation of the
writer.
200
as elfewhere, is barren ; it produces only the
mere conveniences of life, but no fuperflui-
ties whatever. I muft therefore defer all
hope of accomplishing a journey to England,
without fome unexpected improvement of
my circumftances. I fhall however bear my
lot, whatever it may be, with patience.
Having mentioned this fubjecl to you, I
will add fomething in which you may efTen-
tially ferve me. With a view to improving
my fortune, and procuring that affluence,
which, though it may be difpenfed with,
is moft acceptable to thofe who poffefs it, I
have determined to undertake the charge of
a pupil, to receive him into my houfe, and
fuperintend his morals and education. I am
particularly anxious, however, that he mould
be of your country, not only becaufe the
fyftem of private education is little known or
followed here, but becaufe it would be more
agreeable to me to part with my liberty to an
Englishman, (you fee how openly I fpeak,)
from whom I might expect a more fubftan-
tial recompence. My paper will not allow
266
me to fay much more. Oblige me with a
few lines in reply ; I am certain you will
willingly aflift me as far as you can, and you
may depend upon the ftricteft attention on
my part, to any requeft from you which I
can poiiibly execute. My wife fends her ben:
compliments to your excellent mother and
filler. Farewell, my dear Jones; and con-
tinue to honour me with your efteem.
H. A. SchultEns.
******
At an interval of more than twenty-five
years from the date of this letter, I cannot
but acknowledge a difpofition to fympathize
with the feelings of the learned writer, and
participate the regret which he exprefTes, at
the deprivation of the fociety of his friend*
from his want of means to defray the ex-
pence of a journey to England. At this pe-
riod, Schultens enjoyed an extenfive repu-
tation, and was perhaps the object of envy
to many, who, without any claim to diftinc-
tion, pofTeiTed that opulence, which, with
all his indefatigable labours in cultivating and
267
promoting literature, he had not been able to
procure. We feel the more for him, becaufe
his complaints, (if the confidential commu-
nication of his eircumftances authorize the
expreffion,) are neither deficient in dignity,
nor refignation. In truth, the tract of lite-
rature which he had chofen to cultivate, was
more calculated to produce a harveft of cele-
brity than profit.
* Mr. JONES to H. A. SCHULTENS.
July 1777.
I mould have great pleafure
in complying with your kind and friendly
requeft, by furnifhing my contribution *o
the new work which is foon to appear
amongft you, and would exert myfelf for
this purpofe, but the abfolute want of leifure
makes it impoffible. My law employments,
attendance in the courts, inceflant fludies,
the arrangement of pleadings, trials of caufes,
and opinions to clients, fcarcely allow me a
few moments for eating and fleeping. I
thank you fmcerely for your very entertain-
* Appendix, No. 3-1.
268
ing account of your own occupations, and of
what is going on in your country. If I
fhould hear of any wealthy Englifh gentle-
man, who wifhes to fend his fon as a pupil
to Holland, to fludy literature, you may rely
upon my recommendation of your merits,
as well as upon my afliftance on all occafions.
I muft however at the fame time tell you,
that an opportunity of this nature is very
uncertain.
Mr. JONES to Lord ALTHORP.
MY DEAR LORD, Bath, Dec. 28, 1777.
I told you, when I had the
pleafure of feeing you in London, that it
was doubtful whether I fhould pafs my vaca-
tion at Amfterdam or at Bath ; the naiads of
the hot fprings have prevailed, you fee, over
the nymphs of the lakes, and I have been
drinking the waters for a month, with no
Iefs pleafure than advantage to my health ;
the improvement of which I afcribe, how-
ever, in great meafure, to my regular exer-
cife on the downs, and to abflinence from
any fludy that requires too much exertion of
the mind. I fhould have fcated indeed in
269
Holland from town to town, and a little
voyage would have diflipated my bile, if I
had any : but that fcheme I rauft poftpone
till another winter, and have fent an excufe
to my Dutch friend who expected me.
As I came hither entirely for the purpofe
of recreating my exhaufted fpirits and
ftrengthening my ftomach, I have abftained
with fome reluctance from dancing, an
amufement which I am as fond of as ever,
but which would be too heating for a water-
drinker ; and as for the idler diverfions of a
public place, they have not the recommend-
ation of novelty, without which they cannot
long pleafe. You, my dear friend, are in
the mean time relaxing yourfelf, from the
feverer purfuits of fcience and civil know-
ledge, with the healthy and manly exercife
of the field, from which you will return
with a keener appetite to the noble feaft
which the Mufes are again preparing for
you at Cambridge. And here, by way of
parenthefis, I mult tell you that I joined a
fmall party of hunters the other morning,
270
and was in at the death of a hare ; but I
muft confefs, that I think hare- hunting a
very dull exercife, and fit rather for a hun-
trefs than a mighty hunter, rather for Diana
than Orion. Had I the tafte and vigour of
Action, without his indifcreet curiofity, my
game would be the flag or the fox, and I
mould leave the hare in peace, without fend-
ing her to her many friends. This herefy of
mine may arife from my fondnefs for every
thing vaft, and my difdain for every thing
little, and for the fame reafon I mould prefer
the more violent fport of the Afiatics, who
inclofe a whole diftrict with toils, and then
attack the tigers and leopards with javelins,
to the found of trumpets and clarions. Of
mufic, I conclude, you have as much at A1-
thorp, as your heart can defire ; I might here
have more than my ears could bear, or my
mind conceive, for we have with us La
Motte, Fifcher, Rauzzini; but as I live in
the houfe of my old matter, Evans, whom
you remember, I am fatisfied with his harp,
which 1 prefer to the Theban lyre, as much
271
as I prefer Wales to ancient or modern
Egypt.
I was this morning with Wilkes, who
fhewed me a letter lately written to him from
Paris, by Diderot; as I have you know a
quick memory, I brought away the fubftance
of it, and give it to you in a translation al-
moft literal: — " Friend Wilkes, it delights
{l me to hear that you ftill have fufficient
** employment for your active mind, without
*' which you cannot long be happy. I have
" juft read the feveral fpeeches which you
** have delivered on the fubjecl: of your pre-
" fent war againft the provincials ; they are
" full of eloquence, force, and dignity. I
" too have compofed a fpeech on the fame
* l fubject, which I would deliver in your fe-
*' nate, had I a feat in it. I will wave for
rt the prefent, my countrymen, all confider-
*' ation of the juftice or injuftice of the mea-
*' fures you are purfuing ; I well know that
*' to be an improper topic at the time when
* ; the public welfare is immediately concerned.
'.' I will not even queftion at prefent your
" power to reduce an exafperated and defpe-
" rate people ; but confider, I entreat you,
u that you are furrounded by nations by
"whom you are detefted ; and fay, for
u Heaven's fake, how long you will give
" them reafon to laugh at the ridiculous
a figure you are making. This is my ha-
" rangue ; it is fhort in words, but extenfive
" in meaning." — So far, my dear Lord, we
have no reafon to cenfure the thoughts or ex-
preflions of the learned Encyclopedift ; what
follows is fo profligate, that I would not
tranferibe it, if I were not fare, that you
would join with me in condemning it. " As
" to yourfelf, (he adds,) be cheerful, drink
•' the beft wines, keep the gayefl company,
** and mould you be inclined to a tender
" paffion, addrefs yourfelf to fuch women as
<l make the lead refiftance ; they are as
" amufing and as interefting as others. One
" lives with them without anxiety, and quits
" them without regret." — I want words, Di-
derot, to exprefs the bafenefs, the folly, the
brutality of this fentiment. I am no cynic,
TVS
but as fend as anv man at Paris of cheerful
4
company, and of fuch pleafures as a man of
virtue need not blufh to enjoy; but if the
philofophy of the French academicians be
comprifed in your advice to your friend
Wilkes, keep it to yourfelf, and to fuch as
you. I am of a different fed. He con-
cludes his letter with fome profeffions of re-
gard, and with a recommendation of a young
Frenchman, who told Wilkes fome fpeeches
of Diderot, to the Emprefs of Ruffia, which
you fhall hear at fome other time. I am in-
terrupted, and muft leave you with reluc-
tance till the morning.
******
An apology, I truft, will not be thought
neceffary for introducing that paffage in Di-
derot's letter, which Mr. Jones reprobates hi
terms of afperity and indignation fuitable to
the rectitude of his own mind. His remarks
jfcpon it will ferve to explain, if it be at all
neceffary, certain expreflions in his letters,
which may be thought to border upon a
levity, that never entered into the compe-
ls— V. l. T
274
fition of his character. His mind was never
tainted with vice, nor w r as the morality of
his conduct ever impeached. He valued the
pleafures of fociety, and enjoyed them as
long as they were innocent, whilft he de-
tefted the principles and practice of the de-
bauchee and fenfualift, and, like his favourite
Hafez, could amufe his leifure hours with
poetical compofitions in praife of love or
beauty, without facrificing his health, his
time, or his virtue. His cenfure of Diderot
is equally a proof of his own abhorrence of
vice, and of his anxiety to imprefs it ftrongly
on the mind of his friend and late pupil *,
* Of Diderot, thus casually introduced to the notice
of the reader, it may not be irrelevant to give a short
account. His works I have never read, nor, from the
character of the man, have any wish to peruse them.
Diderot (I take my information from the Abbe Earruel)
was one of the gang of conspirators against the Christian
Religion. He not only professed Atheism, but made a
boast of it, and inculcated it in his writings. He was
invited to Russia, by the Empress Catharine, who atJirst
admired his genius, but soon found sufficient reason in
his conduct and principles to send him back to France.
There were moments in which this professed friend
and admirer of Voltaire, r 'withstanding his avowed
impiety, seems to have been compelled by the force of
2/o
In 1773, Mr. Jones publifhed a tranflatiort
of the fpeeches of Ifreus, in caufes concern-
ing the law of fucceffion to property at
Athens, with a prefatory difcourfe, notes
critical and hiftorical, and a commentary.
The works of Ifaeus had long been neglect-
ed ; the fubject of them was dry, and his
technical language, as Mr. Jones obferves,
was unintelligible to the herd of gramma-
rians and philologers, by whom the old mo-
numents of Grecian learning were fared
truth to pay homage to the New Testament. An ac-
quaintance found him one day explaining a chapter of it
to his daughter, with all the apparent seriousness and
energy of a believer. On expressing his surprise, Dide-
rot replied, " I understand your meaning ; but after all,
" where is it possible to find better lessons for her in-
" struction ?" The devils believe, and tremWe.
At the close of a life of profligacy and impie f y, con-
sistent with the sentiments expressed in his letter to
Wilkes, Diderot shewed some signs of contrition, and
even went so far as to declare an intention of publicly
recanting his errors. But the barbarity of his philosophic
friends interfered to prevent it, and they resolved as far
as they could, that he should die without reDentanee.
Under the pretence that a change of air would promote
his restoration to health, they secretly removed him into
the country, and never left him until he expired, ia
Julv 178 1.
T 2
276
from dertrudtion. To refcue them from ob-
fcurity, and to prefent them to the Undent of
our Englifn laws in his native language, was
a talk which required the united qualifica-
tions of claiTical erudition and legal know-
ledge, and which he difcharged with equal
pleafure and fuccefs.
44 There is no branch of learning, from
44 which a ftudent of the law may receive
44 a more rational pleafure, or which feems
" more likely to prevent his being difgufted
44 with the dry elements of a very compli-
44 cated fcience, than the hiltory of the rules
*' and ordinances by which nations, eminent
* 4 for wifdom, and illuftrious in arts, have
44 regulated their civil polity : nor is this the
14 only fruit that he may expect to reap from
46 a general knowledge of foreign laws, both
44 ancient and modern ; for whilft he indulges
* f the liberal curionty of a fcholar in examin-
vC ing the cuftoms and inftitutions of men,
" whofe works have yielded hirn the higheft
4i delight, and whole actions have raifc-d his
i( admiration, he will feel the fatisfaiftion of
277
" a patriot, in obferving the preference due
4t in moft inftances to the laws of his own
" country above thofe of all other ftates ; or,
" if his juft profpects in life give him hopes
" of becoming a legiflator, he may colled
11 many ufeful hints, for the improvement
" even of that fabric, which his anceftors have
" erected with infinite exertions of virtue and
" genius, but which, like all human fyftems,
" will ever advance nearer to perfection, and
" ever fall fhort of it. 1 *
I quote the preceding obfervations from
his prefatory difcourfe, which is written with
uncommon elegance, and particularly intereft-
ing, not only from the information which
it contains refpecting the author whofe works
he illuftrated, but for its critical remarks on
the comparative merits of the Grecian ora-
tors, and for his difTertation on the Attic
laws of fucceffion, and the forms of pleading
in the Athenian courts. It was no fmall
credit to Mr. Jones to have fuccefsfully ac-
complifhed what Sir Mathew Hale, " to
■• whofe learning and diligence the prefent
278
" age is no lefs indebted, than his contempo-
tf raries were to his wifdom and virtue,"
had unfuccefsfully attempted.
The works of Ifseus are dedicated to Earl
Bathurft ; and Mr. Jones takes occafion in
the epiftle dedicatory to inform the public,
that, although he had received many fignal
marks of friendfhip from a number of illuf-
trious perfons, Lord Bathurft had been his
greateft, his only benefaclor; that, without
any fblicitation, or even requeft on his part,
his Lordfhip gave him a fubflantial and per-
manent token of regard, rendered ftili more
valuable by the obliging manner of giving it,
and literally the fole fruit which he had ga-
thered from an inceilant courfe of very pain-
ful labour. He adds his further acknow-
ledgements for the more extended intentions
of his Lordfhip, although he had not then
derived any benefit from them.
This was the only publication of Mr.
Jones, in 1778; which, however it might
tend to increafe his reputation, did not per-
haps much advance his profeihonal fuccefs.
279
He had however every reafon to be fatisfied
with the proportion of bufinefs that fell to
his mare, during the circuits which he re-
gularly attended.
Mr. Jones had tranfmitted a copy of his
tranflation to Edmund Burke ; and the fol-
lowing letter contains his acknowledgement
of the favour. The opinion of a great orator
on any fubject connected with that of his
conftant meditations, will not be read with-
out intereft.
MY DEAR SIR, March 12, 1779.
I give you many thanks for
your moil obliging and valuable prefent, and
feel myfelf extremely honoured by this mark
of your friendship. My firft leifure will be
employed in an attentive perufal of an author,
who had merit enough to fill up a part of
yours, and whom you have made accefhble
to me with an eafe and advantage, which one
fo many years difufed to Greek literature as
I have been, could not otherwife have.
Ifx-us is an author of whom I know nothing
280
but by fame ; I am fure that any idea I had
from thence conceived of him, will not be at
all leflened by feeing him in your tranflation.
I do not know how it has happened, that
orators have hitherto fared worfe in the hands
of the tranflators, than even the poets ; I
never could bear to read a tranflation of
Cicero. Demofthenes fuffers I think fome-
what lefs; — but he fuffers greatly; fo much,
that I muft fay, that no Engliih. reader could
well conceive from whence he had acquired
the reputation of the firft of orators. I am
fatisfled that there is now an eminent excep-
tion to this rule, and I fmcerely congratulate
the public on that acquifition. I am, with
the greateft truth and regard, my dear Sir,
Your molt faithful and obliged
humble fervant,
Edmund Burke.
Of the incidents in the life of Mr. Jones
daring the years 1778 and 1779, I have no
particular information ; we may fuppofe his
time and attention to have been principally
281
engrofTed by his profeffional duties and ilu-
dies, and the political circumftances of the
times. His own letters, always interefting,
and often inftruclive, with thofe of his cor-
refpondents, contain all that I know of him
during this period ; the latter afford addi-
tional evidence of the efteem in which his
learning, abilities, and principles were held
by men of high reputation in the rank of
literature.
Mr. SWINNEY to Mr. JONES.
Per a of Constantinople, January 1, 1178.
SIR ;
So high an opinion do I en-
tertain of your humanity and politenefs, as
to perfuade myielf you will readily pardon
the liberty I have taken, of fending you a
Perfian and Grecian manufcript. If, on pe~
rufal of one or the other book, you mail
meet with a fingle paiTage that may contri-
bute either to your inftru&ion or amufemenf,
my purpofe will be fully anfwered.
Among the real curiofities I have feen at
282
Conftantinople, is a public mufeum, erected
at the fole expend: cf a mod learned Grand
Vifir, whofe name and title was Rajib Pacha.
This collection contains about two thoufand
Arabian, Perilan, and Turkifh manufcripts,
which, the learned fay, contain vaft ftores of
erudition. It is not improbable but I may be
able, on fome favourable occaiion, to procure
you a copy cf the catalogue; and then, mould
you be difpofed to have any of the manu-
fcripts copied, I intreat you will confer the
honour upon me, of executing the commif-
iion. People affure me, but I dare not fay
whether with good authority or no, that the
entire Decades of Livy, and the complete
Hiflory of Curtius, are contained in that very
precious repofitory: if fo, who knows but
majefty itfelf (lb fuperlatively happy are we
in a monarch who favours the arts and
fciences!; may graciouily condefcend to com-
mand a copy of them?
Be pleafed to accept of my warmeft willies
for your health, profperity, and very long
life: and believe me to be (what I fmcerely
233
am) a lading admirer of your abilities; and at
the fame time, dear Sir, &c.
Sidney Swinney.
Dr. STUART to Mr. JONES.
MY DEAR SIR; 3d October, 1778.
I have to acknowledge the re-
ceipt of your moft obliging letter. It is im-
poffible for me to exprefs the value in which
I hold the favourable fentiments you have
conveyed to me; and above all, th atftrain of
cordiality and friendfhip which accompany
them. The lofs of that long letter, or difler-
tation, into which my performance was about
to entice you, is a matter of infinite regret to
me: but I hope that the object which then
engaged more particularly your attention,
and which was fo worthy of it, is now within
your reach ; that the fates are to comply with
your defires, and to place you in a fcene
where fo much honour and fo many lai rels
are to be won and gathered.
It affects me with a lively pleafure, that
your tafte has turned with a peculiar fondnefs
284
to the fludies of law and government on the
great fcale of hiftory and manners. They have
been too long in the management of en -
quirers, who were merely metaphyficians, or
merely the retainers of courts. Their gene-
rous and liberal nature has been wounded and
debafed by the minutenefs of an acute but
ufelefs philofophy, and by a mean and fluvifli
appetite for praClice and wealth. It is now fit
that we fhould have lawyers who are orators,
philofopliers, and hillorians.
But while I entreat you to accept my bed
thanks foryour excellent letter,and exprefs my
approbation of thofe liucU.es of which you are
enamoured, permit me, at the fame time, to
embrace the opportunity of making known to
you the bearer of thefe lines. Dr. Gillies,
of whom you may have heard as the tranf-
lator of Lyfias, has been long my warm
friend: and i have to recommend him to you
as the pofTefTor of qualities which are ftill
more to his honour than extend ve learning
and real genius. Men who leave their com-
patriots behind them in the purfuits of fcience
283
and true ambition, are of the fame familv*
and ought to be known to one another.
Do me the favour, my dear Sir, to con-
tinue to afford me a place in your memory,
and believe me that I ihall always hear of
your profperity, your reputation, and your
ftudiet, with a peculiar and entire fatisfac-
tion.
I am now, and ever, yours, &c.
Gilb. Stuart.
P. S. In January or February, I am to
fend into the world a new work, in which I
treat of the pthUc law, and the Co?iftiiutiona}
Hjftory ^'Scotland. And, wherever you
are, I am to tranfmic you one of the firft
copies, by Mr. Murray, cf Fleet-Street.
Dean TUCKER to Mr. JONES. .
DEAR SIR ;
GIoucc %ter s Sept em her 21, 1773.
When you firft honoured me
with your acquaintance, perhaps you was not
aware what a troublefome correfpondence
you was bringing yourfdf into. Be that as
286
it may, I will now beg leave to avail myfelf
of the permiflion which you kindly granted
me of confulting you on fome points. Se-
veral copies of my laft tract have been in the
Univerfity upwards of a fortnight ; and it is
probable that by this time fome have vouch-
fafed to read it. What therefore I wifh to
know is, whether, in the judgment of thofe
who have given it a perufal, I have confuted
Mr. Locke's fyftem in fuch a manner, that
they are convinced his muft be wrong, what-
ever elfe may happen to be right. If this is
not the, cafe, that is, if I have not totally
confuted Mr. Locke, I need proceed no far-
ther, for mine can have no chance to be true,
if his is ftill fuppofed to be the only true
one ; and I mall very willingly give up the
purfuit. But, if I have demolifhed his
fcheme, I have fo far cleared the way to
make room for my own ; and, in that cafe,
I have one or two points to confult you
about.
I am,
J. Tucker.
o
87
•r. JONES to Lord ALTKORP.
Tc'wp'c, Oct. 13, 1773.
My dear Lord, captain, and
friend, (of all which titles no man entertains
a jiifter idea than yourfelf,) how ihall I ex-
prefs tlie delight which your letter from
W arley camp has given me ? I cannot fuf-
ficiently regret, that I was fo long deprived
of that pleafure ; for, intending to be in Lon-
don foon after the circuit, I had neglected
to leave any directions here about my letters;
fo that yours has lain almofl a month moon
my table, w T here I found it yefterday on my
return from the country. I ought indeed to
have written firft to you, becaufe I was a
rambler, you itaticnary: and becaufe the pen
has been my peculiar inftrument, as the
fword has been yours this fummer : but the
agitation of forenfic bufmefs, and the fort of
fociety in which I have been forced to live,
afforded me few moments of leifure, except
thofe in which nature calls for perfect repofe,
■ and the fpirits exhauftod with fatigue require
2E8
immediate reparation. I rejoice to fee that
you are a votary, as Archilocus fays of him-
felf, both of the Mufes and of Mars ; nor
do I believe that a letter full of more manly
fentiments, or written with more unaffected
elegance, than yours, has often been fent
from a camp. You know I have fet my
mind on your being a fine fpeaker in next
parliament, in the caufe of true conflitutional
liberty, and your letters convince me that
I fhall not be diiappointed. To this great
object, both for your own glory and your
country's good, your prefent military ftation
will contribute not a little : for, a foldier's
life naturally infpires a certain fpirit and con-
fidence, without which the fineft elocution
will not have a full effect. Not to mention
Pericles, Xenophon, Ccefar, and a hundred
other eloquent foldiers among the ancients,
I am perfuaded that Pitt (whom by the way
I am far from comparing to Pericles) acquir-
ed his forcible manner in the field where he
carried the colours. This I mention in ad-
dition to the advantages of your prefent fitu-
289
atlon, which you very juftly point out : nor
can I think your fummer in any refpect
uielefsly fpent, fince our conftitution has
a good defence in a well-regulated militia,
officered by men who love their country:
and a militia fo regulated, may in due
time be the means of thinning the formid-
able ftanding army, if not of extinguifhing
it. Captain * * * is one of the worthier!:,
as well as talleft men in the kingdom ; but
he, and his Socrates, Dr. Johnfon, have fuch
prejudices in politics, that one muft be upon
one's guard in their company, if one wifhes
to preferve their good opinion. By the way,
the Dean of Gloucefter has printed a work,
which he thinks a full confutation of Locke's
Theory of Government ; and his fecond vo-
lume will contain a new Theory of his own :
of this, when we meet. The difappointment
to which you allude, and concerning which
you fay fo many friendly things to me, is
not yet certain. My competitor is not yet
nominated : many doubt whether he will be;
I think he will not, unlefs the Chancellor
life—V. i u
290
fhould prefs it ftrongly. It is ftill the opi-
nion and wifh of the bar, that I fhould be
the mam I believe, the minifter hardly
knows his own mind. I cannot legally be
appointed till January, or next month at
fooneft, becaufe I am not a barrifter of five
years ftanding till that time : now many
believe that they keep the place open for me
till I am qualified. I certainly wifh. to have
it, becaufe I wifh to have twenty thoufand
pounds in my pocket before I am eight-and-
thirty years old ; and then I might contribute
in fome little degree towards the fervice of
my country in Parliament, as well as at the
Bar, without felling my liberty to a patron,
as too many of my profeflion are not afham-
ed of doing ; and I might be a Speaker in the
Houfe of Commons in the full vigour and
maturity of my age; whereas, in the flow
career of Weftminfter-Hajl, I fhould not
perhaps, even with the beft fuccefs, acquire
the fame independent ftation, till the age at
which Cicero was killed. But be affured,
my dear lord, that if the minifter be offended
291
at the ftyle in which I have fpoken, do
ipeak, and will fpeak, of public affairs, and
on that account fhould refufe to give me the
judgefhip, I mall not be at all mortified,
having already a very decent competence,
without a debt, or a care of any kind. I
will not break in upon you at Warley unex-
pectedly; but whenever you find it moft
convenient, let me know, and I will be with
you in lefs than two hours.
Dean TUCKER to Mr. JONES.
DEAR SIR Gloucester, December 31, 1778.
I have the pleafure to acquaint
you, that your packet and letter arrived fafe
laft night; for both which, I am very much
obliged to you. I cannot fay that your re-
marks have wrought much conviction in
me, (in fome places they have,) but they have
had what 1 efteem a better effect, that is,
they will make me more cautious and circum-
fpect in fome of my expreffions; and they
will oblige me to bring more proofs and illuf.
trations of fome points than I thought were
U 2
293
needful. In all thefe refpeds, your friendly
remarks have done me much greater fervice
than unmeaning compliments; and as to
your differing fo widely in opinion from me,
your frank declaration of this difference
proves you the honefter man, and the more
to be efteemed. I am, &c.
ADAM PRINCE CZARTORYSKI to
Mr. JONES.
SIR J Warsaw, Xov. 26, 1778.
It is the fate of thofe who,
tike you, are an ornament to the literary
world, to be known to thofe who are per-
fectly unknown to them; each is entitled to
call to them for light, and this I hope will be
a fufficient apology for my intruding upon
you, and interrupting thofe ftudious hours
which you confecrate with fo much fuccefs to
the inftruction of your readers.
I was happy enough of late to hit upon
your Effay on the Poetry of the Eaftern na-
tions, and your Hiftory of the Perfian Ian*
293
guage. I found that you had made up in
thefe two works a quarrel of a very old ftand-
ing between erudition and tafle; you have
brought them to meet together in fuch a
friendly manner, that one who had never
read but your writings, would be apt to think
they always went hand in hand.
I have been applying myfelf fince a few
years to the ftudy of Eaftern languages;
though I cannot flatter myfelf with having
made as yet any confiderable progrefs in that
branch of learning. Your mofl excellent
Grammar of the Perfian language, which
gave birth to Mr. Rjchardfon's one of the
Arabic, executed upon the fame plan, are the
agreeable guides which I follow in that diffi-
cult journey; to them I owe to be refcued
out of the hands of Erpenius, Guadagnola,
and the reft of thofe unmerciful gentlemen
who never took the leaft trouble about clear-
ing the road, or plucking out one fingle thorn
from the many with which the paths of the
ftudy of Eaftern languages are covered.
Give me leave to be ftill more beholden to
294
you j and as you learned men are the leading
ftars of the unlearned, I beg you'll beftow a
few moments of your leifure upon anfwering
fome queftions which may perhaps appear
very trifling in the eyes of a man of your
extenfive knowledge.
I have always been at a lofs to form any
conjecture upon the following fubject, which
is, by what chance fo many words from
other European languages, or at leaft ufed in
our European languages, are got into the
Perfian: as for inftance, jivan, pudder,
mader*, the Engliih, bad y the German, doch-
ter, der, bend, together with a deal of our
Sclavonian, efpecially in the arithmetical
numbers, which, even in the manner of pro-
nouncing them, are exactly the fame, fuch as
pendfed, fchefied\, &c. I mould be greatly
obliged to you likewife, if by your means I
could be informed, whether the Dictionary
of Meninfki, propofed to be reprinted at Ox-
ford, is already come out; whether it con-
tains a great many additions which are not
* Youth, father, mother. •(• 500 and 600.
2.9j
to be found in the edition of 1680; laftly,
whether Mr. Richardfon has publifhed the
fecond volume, Englifh and Arabic, of his
Dictionary. As to our poor countryman,
Meninlki, he has not met with the reward
which he had a right to expert*; after
having wafted his health and fortune in the
finifhing of his work, he died unnoticed at
Vienna ; and his daughter ended her life in
the fame city a few years ago, very ill ufed
by thofe who had advanced money to her fa-
ther, for the publifhing of his work. You
live in a country where fuch a fin would be
* From the short account given of Meninski in the
Biographical Dictionary, it appears, that he was no less
distinguished for his extensive erudition and profound
knowledge of languages, particularly Oriental, than by
the propriety of conduct, and abilities displayed by hi-m
in various official situations to which he had risen by his
merit. His first station was that of first interpreter to
the Polish embassy at the Porte, and from this he was
gradually advanced to the rank of a counsellor of war to
the Emperor at Vienna, and first interpreter of Oriental
languages. He died at Vienna at the age of 75, in 1698,
eighteen years after the publication of his famous and
useful work, the Oriental Thesaurus. The compilers of
this account do not notice the circumstances mentioned
by Prince Czartoryski.
296
ranked among the mortal ones. Baron Re-
viczki, fojuftlyand honourably mentioned in
your works, has been refjding here for feveral
years, as minifter of the Court of Vienna;
we have often made the wiih, that fomething
could tempt you to take our part of the
world in your way. Jf that mould ever
happen, I would confider it as a moft agreea-
ble circumftance for me, if you could be pre-
vailed upon to accept of my houfe during
your ftay, and confider it as your own. I
know what advantages we might reap from
fo ufeful and agreeable an intereourfe, and
would make it our bufinefs not to let time lay
heavy upon your hands. I mufl (before I
end) exprefs to you the fenfe of pleafure
which I felt as a Pole, in reading that paflage
of your preface which concerns our country:
it bears the Itamp of humanity and fpirit.
Now, after having repeated my excufes for
having been fo forward, and perhaps fo tedious,,
I am, with all poflible regard, &c.
Adam Prince Czartoryski,
General of Podolia.
!97
Mr. JONES to PRINCE ADAM
CZARTORYSKI.
Lamb's Buildings, Tempi?, London, Feb. 17, 1119.
Nothing could be more honour-
able to me than your letter, nothing more
flattering than the fentiments which you ex-
prefs in it; but I am fo little ufed to con-
yerfe or correfpond with Princes, and have fo
long been accuftomed to the plainnefs of the
ancients, that I mould addrefs your Highnefs
with more facility in Latin than in any mo-
dern idiom. Yet as you not only perfectly
underftand my native language, but even
write it (I ipeak fincerely) with elegance, I
will try to anfwer you in Englifh, with Ro-
man fimplicity.
It gives me great pleafure, that my juvenile
compofitions have been at all ufeful or enter-
taining to you. What higher reward can a
writer defire, than the approbation of fuch a
reader? In fuppofing, however, that you in-
terrupt my ftudious hours which I am confe-
crating to literature, allow me to fay, that,
293
unhappily for me, you are a little miftaken.
My laft four years have been fpent in forenfic
labours, which, however arduous, are no lefs
pleafing than reputable, and would be per-
fectly congenial with my temper and difpofi-
tion, if they did not wholly preclude me from
refuming my former ftudies. It is poffible,
however, that I may foon fucceed to a high
judicial office in Bengal, where the vacations
will give me leifure to renew my acquaint-
ance, which I now am obliged to intermit,
with the Perfian and Arabian claffics.
Should my appointment take place, I mall fet
a high value on your correfpondence, and
will not fail to fend both your Highnefs, and
my friend, Baron Reviczki, (to whom I will
write very foon,) fome wreaths of flowers
from the banks of the Ganges.
In anfwer to your queftions, I muft in-
form your Highnefs, that the project of re-
printing Meninfki here is entirely dropt ; but
Richardfon is indefatigable, and advances as
expeditioufly as poffible with the fecond part
of his dictionary. How fo many European
L 299
words crept into the Perfian language, I
know not with certainty. Procopiui', I
think, mentions the great intercourie, both
in war and peace, between the Perfians and
the nations in the north of Europe and Afia,
whom the ancients knew by the general name
of Scythians. Many learned inveftigators
of antiquity are fully perfuaded, that a very
old and almoft primaeval language was in ufe
among thefe northern nations, from which
not only the Celtic diale&s, but even the
Greek and Latin, are derived ; in fact we
find vrotTyf and ^t^ in Perfian, nor is $vy turfy
fo far removed from dockter, or even ©j^*
and nomen from nam, as to make it ridi-
culous to luppofe, that they fprang from the
fame root. We muft confefs that thefe re-
fearches are very obfcure and uncertain ; and
you will allow, not fo agreeable as an ode of
Hafez, or an elegy of Amr'alkeis. How
happy mould I be, my dear Prince, if on
my return from India, I could vifit Poland,
accept the kind invitation of your Highnefs,
and enjoy the promifed pleafure of your con-
300
verfation and friendship. My good genius
forbids me wholly to defpair of that happi-
nefs ; and the fperata voluptas fuavis amici-
tice, which enabled Lucretius to endure any
toil, and to fpend the ftarry nights, as he
fays, in contemplation, mail have a fimilar
effect on, &c,
William Jones.
Dr. STUART to Mr. JONES.
$1Y DEAR SIR, Ftb. 12, 1779.
I beg you to accept my new
work, as a mark of my beft observance. The
fubjects are very important, very curious, and
very new, but the materials upon which I
was to operate were very imperfect. Indeed*
1 fear much, that a propriety of intention is
all my merit, and from that, I think, I am
to draw little glory; for it is common to me
with writers who are the weakeit, and moll
trifling. Yet, if your eye can trace any evi-
dence in this trifle to oppofe my apprehenr-
lions, I mail be very happy. All the humi-
lity of my doubts will go away. In two re-
fpects, I expofe myfelf very much to cerifure.
301
I have attacked the nobile ojfichtm of the court
of feflion ; and I have vindicated the freedom
of the Scottifh government from the mif-
reprefentations of Dr. Robertfon, the hiflo-
riographer of Scotland. With a thoufand
people, thefe things are the greateft of all
crimes. It is in England, and not in this
country, that I am to find thofe readers who
will be perfectly impartial. I entreat you to
accept my moll fincere wifhes for your pro-
fperity, and that you will believe me, with
the moll entire refpecl:, my dear Sir, &c.
Gjlb. Stuart,
Dr. STUART to Mr. JONES.
Dr. Stuart prefents his bell com-
pliments to Mr. Jones.
I beg to have the pleafure to fubmit to
your infpecYion a fmall Treatife, which I
have publilhed a few years ago, as an intro-
duction to an extenfive work on the laws
and conftitution of England, which I have
long meditated, and have in part executed.
If you like my ideas, I {hall account myfeJf
302
extremely fortunate. If they do not ftrike
you as of importance and interefting, I fhall
think that I have employed my leifure with-
out advantage. Your line of ftudy has led
you to enquire into the hiftory of Englifh
manners and jurifprudence. The little work
which accompanies this note, is perfectly
within this line; and as I have the moft en-
tire confidence in your penetration and can-
dour, I mould be happy to know your opinion
of it. I fhould then be in a ftate to form a
refolution, whether I ought to give order and
method to the materials I have collected in
the view of profecuting a fubjecl, which I
may perhaps have undertaken without having
properly confulted my forces. You will do
me the favour to excufe this trouble.
* C. REVICZKI to Mr. JONES.
Warsaw, March I 7, 1779.
I lately received through
Mr. your two laft learned publica-
tions ; a moft agreeable and convincing proof
* Appendix, No. 35.
303 <
of your affectionate remembrance of me.
The fingular erudition with which your
works abound, not only delighted me ex-
ceedingly, but almoft excited my inclination
to refume thofe ftudies which I had almoft
forgotten. Prince Adam Czartoryfki, who
has cultivated Oriental literature not unluc-
cefsfully, had already afforded me an oppor-
tunity of perilling your life of Nadir Shah,
He particularly pointed out the paffages in
the diflertation, in which you make fuch
honourable mention of me, and for which I
am indebted to your partiality alone. I re-
gret the lofs which the republic of letters
muff fuffer from your defertion, and determin-
ation to devote yourfelf to the altar of The-
mis: but I truft that Melpomene, under
whofe aufpices you were born, will com-
pel you to return to your allegiance. I
am heartily tired with a reiidence of feven
years on the banks of the Viflula: but the ter-
mination of the German war will, I hope, re-
ftore me to a more pleafing fituation. How
much more agreeable would it be to me, if
504
fortune would allow me to gratify my incline
ations, by palling my days in England, near
you ! But to whatever place my deftiny may
lead me, my affection for you will continue
unabated. Farewell.
Mr. JONES to Lord ALTHORP.
Temple, Feb. 4, 1780.
The public piety having given
me this afternoon what I rarely can obtain, a
ihort intermiflion of bufinefs ; can I employ
my leifure more agreeably than in writing to
my friend ? I fhall fend my letter at random,
not knowing whether you are at Althorp or
at Buckingham, but perfuading myfelf that it
will find you without much delay. May I
congratulate you and our country on your
entrance upon the great career of public life ?
If there ever was a time when men of fpirit,
fenfe, and virtue, ought to ftand forth, it is
the prefent. I am informed, that you have
attended fome country meetings, and are on
fome committees. Did you find it neceflary
or convenient to fpeak on the ftate of the
305
nation ? It is a noble fubjecl:, and with your
knowledge as well as judgment, you will
eafily acquire habits of eloquence ; but habits
they are, no lefs than playing on a mufical
inftrument, or handling a pencil : and as the
beft muficians and fineft painters began with
playing fometimes out of tune and drawing
out of proportion, fo the greater}, orators muft
begin with leaving fome periods unfinished,
and perhaps with fitting down in the middle
of a fentence. It is only by continued ufe
that a fpeaker learns to exprefs his ideas with
precifion and foundnefs, and to provide at
the beginning of a period for the conclufion
of it ; but to this facility of fpeaking, the
habit of writing rapidly contributes in a won-
derful degree. 1 would particularly imprefs
this truth upon your mind, my dear friend,
becaufe I am fully convinced that an English-
man's real importance in his country, will
always be in a compound ratio of his virtue,
his knowledge, and his eloquence ; without
all of which qualities little real utility can re-
iult from either of them apart ; and 1 am no
L'jc—V. I, X
506
lefs perfuaded, that a virtuous and knowing
man, who has no natural impediment, may
by habit acquire perfect eloquence, as cer-
tainly as a healthy man who has the ufe of
his mufcles, may learn to fwim or to fcate.
When fhall we meet, and where, v that we
may talk over thefe and other matters ? There
are fome topics which will be more properly
tlifcuffed in converfation than upon paper, I
mean on account of their copioufnefs; for
believe me I mould not be concerned, if all
that I write were copied at the port-office,
and read before the King in council. * * *
* * * At the fame time I folemnly declare,
that I will not enlift under the banners of a
party ; a declaration which is I believe ufe-
lefs, becaufe no party would receive a man,
determined as I am, to think for himfelf. To
you alone, my friend, and to your interefts,
I am firmly attached, both from early habit
and from mature reafon, from ancient affec-
tion unchanged for a fingle moment, and
from a full conviction that fuch affection was
well placed. The views and wifhes of all
307
other men, I will analyze and weigh with
that fufpicion and flownefs of belief, which
my experience, fuch as it is, has taught me ;
and to be more particular, although I will
be jealous of the regal part of our conftitu-
tion, and always lend an arm towards re-
training its proud waves within due limits,
yet my moft vigilant and ftrenuous efforts
fhall be directed againft any oligarchy that
may arife ; being convinced, that on the po-
pular part of every government depends its
real force, the obligation of its laws, its wel-
fare, its fecurity, its permanence. I have
been led infeniibly to write more ferioufly
than I had intended ; my letters fhall not
always be fo dull ; but with fo many public
caufes of grief or of refentment, who can at
all times be gay ?
******
In the memoirs of Mr. Jones, the year
feventeen-hundred-and-eighty forms an in-
terefting aera, in which his occupations were
diverfified, his profpecls extended, and his
hopes expanded, more than at any former
X 2
308
period of his life. His profeiftonal practice
had greatly increafed, and fuggefted the fair-
eft hopes of progrefiive enlargement, and
augmented profit : but as his views were
more particularly directed to the vacant feat
on the bench of Fort William, in Bengal,
and as, from the kindnefs of Lord North,
he was authorized to expect the early attain-
ment of it, he was lefs folicitous to procure
an augmentation of bufinefs, which, in the
event of fuccefs in his India purfuits, he mult
altogether abandon. In this ftate of fufpenfe,
the political events of the times, received a
more than ordinary fhare of his attention :
he did not however enrol himfelf with any
party; but looking up to the conftitution and
liberty of his country, as the objects of his
political adoration, he cultivated an extenfive
acquaintance with men of all parties, and of
the firft rank and talents, without any facriiice
of principle or opinion. No man had ever
more right to apply to himlelf the cha-
racter of " nuliius addictus jurare in verba
u magiltri." With refpeft to the American
309
war, he early adopted fentiments upon it un-
favourable to the juftice of the Britiih caufc,
and this opinion, once formed, would natu-
rally acquire ftrength from the protraction of
the conteft, which he lamented with the feel-
ings of a true patriot and friend to humanity.
Thefe reflections dictated a very animated
and claflical Ode to Liberty, which he com-
pofed in Latin, and printed in March ; it
ftrongly difplays his genius, erudition, feel-
ings, and political principles *.
Sir Roger Newdigate having declared his
intention of vacating his feat in parliament, as
reprefentative of the Univerfity of Oxford,
Mr. Jones was induced by a laudable ambi-
tion, and the encouragement of many refpect-
able friends, to come forward as a candidate.
The following letters will explain his hopes,
his conduct, and difappointment on this oc-
cafion .
* Works, vol. x. p. 393. This ode was published
under the title of Julii Melesigoni ad libertatem. The
assumed name is formed by a transposition of the letters
of Gulielmus Jonesius.
310
Mr. GARTWRIGHT to Mr. JONES.
Sir; May s, nso.
It is with pleafure I obferve
the public papers mention you as one of the
candidates to reprefent the Univerfity of
Oxford at the enfuing election. As a literary
fociety, the rank you hold in the republic of
letters ought certainly to point you out as one
of the firft objects of her choice. But it is
not merely upon this principle that I feel my-
felf interefled in your fuccefs: exclufive of
that veneration with which I look up to fu-
perior talents, I have an additional motive
(which indeed ought to fuperfede every
other) in the very high opinion I have formed
of your integrity. If in this opinion I mould
be miftaken, your own writings have greatly
contributed to miflead me. You will per-
ceive, Sir, my reafon for troubling you with
this letter is to defire that when you make out
a lift of your friends upon this occafion, my
name may be admitted into the number. I
311
am, Sir, with truth, your very fincere well-
wifher, &c.
Edmund Cartwright.
l Mr. JONES to the Rev. E. CART-
WRIGHT.
Lamb's Building?, Temple, A fay 16, 1780.
DEAR SIR;
Since my friends have de-
clared me a candidate for the very honourable
feat which Sir Roger Newdigate intends to
vacate, 1 have received many flattering tefti-
monies of regard from feveral reipeclable
perfons; but your letter, dated May 8th,
which I did not receive till this morning, is,
without a compliment, the faireft and moll
pleafing fruit of the competition in which I
am engaged. The rule of the Univerfity,
which is a very noble one, forbidding me to
folicit votes for myfelf, I have not been at
liberty even to apply to many perlbns whom
it is both a pleafure and honour to know.
Your unsolicited approbation is a great re-
ward of my paft toil in my literary career,
512
and no (mall incentive to future exertions.
As to my integrity, of which you are pleafed
to exprefs a good opinion, it has not yet been
tried by any very flrong temptations ; I hope
it will refift them if any be thrown in my way.
This only I may fay (and I think without a
boaft) that my ambition was always very much
bounded, and that my views are already at-
tained by profeflional fuccefs adequate to my
higheft expectations. Perhaps I fhall not be
thought very unambitious, if 1 add, that my
great object of imitation is Mr. Selden, and
that if I could obtain the fame honour which
was conferred on him, I fhould, like him, de-
vote the reft of my life to the fervice of my
conftituents and my country, to the practice
of an ufeful profeffion, and to the unremitted
ftudy of our Englifh laws, hiftory and litera-
ture. To be approved by you, and fuch men
as you (if many fuch could be found), would
be a fufficient reward to, &c.
William Jones.
Permit me to add an ode printed (but not
publimed) before the prefent competition,
313
and at a time when I fhould have been cer-
tainly made a judge in India, by the kindnefs
of Lord North, if any appointment had taken
place. It proves fufficiently that no views or
connections can prevent me from declaring
my honeft fentiments when I think they may
be ufeful to my country.
Mr. BURROWS to Mr. JONES.
Iladhy, near Barnct, May 23, 1780.
Sir,
For the firft time I am forry I did
not take all my degrees. I fhould have been
happy to have given the teftimony of an in-
dividual to a merit, which I have long con-
fidered as the reproach, as well as ornament
of this age and country: I mini add, it
would have given me particular pleafure to
have expreffed my gratitude to one who has
fo much contributed to my inftruclion and
amufement.
* # $ # % #
I moil heartily wifh you fuccefs, as the
republic feems in danger of taking fome
314
harm from the weaknefs of her friends, and
the vigour of her foes, and never in any time
of her life flood in more need of the attract-
ing and repelling powers of men of abi-
lity. I mull own too, I have an additional
reafon for wifhing you feated in the Britifh
parliament, as I fhall take great fatisfa&ion
in feeing the dull of all denominations con-
vinced, that men of wit and learning are as
capable of excelling in public bufmefs, as
they call it, as the moft illiterate of them all.
I am, &c.
J. Burrows.
Mr. JONES to Dr. MILMAN.
g IR May 30, 1780.
Although I have not yet the
honour, to which 1 have long afpired, of
your acquaintance and friendfhip, yet I am
perfuaded that the bond which ought in this
crifis to unite all honeft men is, idem fenfire
de republica-y and my friend, Mr. Milles,
having imparted to me the contents of your
yefterday's note, I beg leave to afiure you,
Old
that I never imagined it poflible, in this me-
tropolis, at the bufieft time of the year, for
profeffional men to attend a committee of
canvaffers, and never thought of foliating
the attendance or exertions of my friends,
any farther than might be confident with
their engagements and avocations. Accept,
Sir, my very warm and very fincere thanks
(and when I have the honour of being
known to you, you will find that my warmth
and my fincerity are perfectly undiffembled)
for the fentiments which you exprefs to Mr.
Milles in regard to me. Whatever be the
event of the competition in which I am en-
gaged, I fhall certainly reap the moft pleafing
fruit from the kindnefs of many excellent
perfons, by whom it is an high honour to be
clteemed.
******
This only I can fay, that my friends hav-
ing nominated me, I have nothing to do but
to Jleer right onward^ as Milton fays, to a
poll. The voyage will probably laft a twelve-
month at lealt ; and though I began to fail
316
after the Monfoon, yet I am by no means in
defpair of reaching the port with flying pen-
nons, how unfavourably foever fome few
breezes may blow. Without an allegory, it
will necefflirily take up much time for my
friends to canvafs nine hundred voters, a
great majority of whom is difperfed in vari-
ous parts of the kingdom. As to my com-
petitors, I know them both, and refpect the
benevolence of Sir W. Dolben as much as I
admire the extenfive erudition and fine tafte
of Dr. Scott : but their political principles
are the reverfe of mine.
*H. A. SCHULTENS to Mr. JONES.
Leyden, June 2, 1780.
Although increafing, and, at
this particular time, incefTant occupation re-
luctantly compels me, in fome meafure, to
forego the pleafure of correfponding with my
friends, yet the fubjeet of your laft letter ap-
pears to me fo important, that I am deter-
mined to hazard an immediate anfwer to it in
three words, rather than, by waiting for a
* Appendix, No. 36.
317
more favourable opportunity, run the rifk of
exciting a fufpicion of any want of regard
and affection for you, by an apparent inat-
tention to your interefl. I mould be as hap-
py to promote it as my own, although I am
unfortunately deficient in the means of do-
ing it.
The fituation for which you are canvaffing,
my friend, is moft honourable and import-
ant ; and if it be attainable by merit, not
favour, I know no perfon more worthy of it
than yourfelf, none who has higher preten-
fions to genius, none who poffeffes a greater
extent of ufeful knowledge, nor a more pow-
erful and commanding eloquence, none who
exceeds you in love for liberty and your
country, none more capable of applying a re-
medy to the difaftrous fituation of affairs by
wife counfels, prudence, fortitude, and inte-
grity; none therefore to whofe care our alma
mater (allow me to evince my affection to the
Univerfity by this expreffion) can more fafely
trull her interefts and profperity.
Have you however no apprehenfion that
318
your enthufiafm for liberty, which is fo gene-
rally known, may, in thefe unpropitious
times, injure the fuccefs of your caufe? Will
thofe upon whofe votes your election depends,
allow the Univerfity to be reprefented in par-
liament by Julius Melefigonus ? My coun-
trymen have adopted an opinion, that, in the
prefent fituation of affairs, no man who pub-
licly avows his attachment to liberty, can be
employed in the adminiftration.
This you will fay is no concern of mine ;
be that as it may, no exertions on my
part fhail be wanting to promote your fuc-
cefs, and I wifh you would inform me how
they can be directed to your advantage,
Have I the power of fending a vote in your
favour? I much doubt it. Shall I apply to
any of my friends at Oxford who are well
difpofed towards me; for inftance, Meffrs.
Kennicot, White, and Winftanley? Write to
me without delay, and inform me what I
mall do, that I may convince you of my zeal
and fincerity to ferve you.
I am at prefent at Levden, having fuc-
319
ceeded my father, who died about fix months
ago, in the profefTorfhip of Oriental literature.
I have much to fay upon this fubje<£t, and
hope fhortly to write fully to you about it.
I long to know how you are, as well as that
beft of women your mother, and your fitter,
(to whofe friendfliip I am fo much obliged).
Prefent my affectionate regards to them.
Farewell, and remember me.
Some catalogues of my father's library,
which is to be fold in September, have been
forwarded, I think, to Elmfley, and I have
ordered one to be fent to you.
Mr. JONES to Dr. WHEELER.
MY DEAR SIR; September 2, 1780.
The Parliament being fuddenly
diflblved, I muft beg you, as one of my
beft and trueft friends, to make it known in
the Univerfity, that I decline giving the
learned body any further trouble, and am
heartily forry for that which has already been
given them. It is needlefs to add, what you
well know, that I fhould never have been
the flrft to have troubled them at all. I
320
always thought a delegation to parliament
from fo refpe&able a fuciety, a laudable objecT:
of true ambition ; but I confidered it as a dif-
tant object, as the reward of long labour and
meritorious fervice in our country; and I
conceived, that, had I filled a judge's feat in
India, with the approbation of my country-
men, I might on my return be fixed on as a
proper reprefentative of the Univerfity. Had
not that happened which you know, I mould
no more have thought of ftanding now, than
of afking for a peerage. As to principles
in politics, if my fuccefs at Oxford, at any
future time, depend upon a change of them,
my caufe is hopelefs : I cannot alter or con-
ceal them without abandoning either my
rcafon or my integrity ; the firft of which is
my only guide, and the fecond my chief
comfort in this paifage through life. Were
I inclined to boafl of any thing, I fhould
certainly boaft of making thofe principles
my rule of conduct, which I learned from
the beft of men in ancient and modern times;
and which, my reafon tells me, are condu-
cive to the happinefs of mankind. As to
321
inen, I am certainly not hoftile to the thinif*
ft'rs, from whom I have received obligations;
but I cannot in confcience approve their
nteafures.
Mr. JONES to Mr. CARTWRIGHT.
DEAR SIR, September 4, 1780.
Permit me again to exprefs
(what I can never exprefs too often, or too
warmly) my very fincere thanks for your
kind letter, dated May 8, and to aifure you,
as I may with the greateft truth, that I am
juft as much obliged to you as if your kind-
nefs had been attended with the moft bril-
liant fuccefs ; but as my ftrength in the great
elective body of our Univerfity, (which
ftrength, all circum fiances confidered, was
very refpectable,) lay chiefly among the non-
refident voters, it would be unpardcnably
ungrateful in me were I to give my friends
the trouble of taking long journevs, with-
out a higher probability of fuccefs than my
late enquiries have eft me room to expect.
I therefore decline giving any farther trouble
Life-V. I. Y
<aan
< j — ~j
to the learned body, and am heartily forry
for that which has already been given them,
though not originally by me or my friends.
I am perfectly confcious that had I been fo
fortunate as to fucceed at Oxford, I mould
not have advanced, nor wilhed to advance,
a fingle ftep in the career of ambition, but
mould cheerfully have facrificed my repofe
and peace of mind to fuch a courfe as I con-
ceived likely to promote the public good ;
and this confcioufnefs cannot but prevent me
from being in the leaft depreffed by my
failure of fuccefs. I mould never repent of
this little flruggle, if it had produced no
other fruit than the teftimony of your appro-
bation. The hurry of the general election
to a profeflional man, has obliged me to fuf-
pend till another long vacation, two little
works, which I hoped to finiih in the re-
mainder of this. The firft is a treatife On
the Maritime Juri/prudence of the Athenians ,
illuftrated by five fpeeches of Demofthenes in
commercial caufes ; and the fecond, a differ - x
tation On the Manners of the Arabians before
523
the Time of Mahomet, illuftrated by the feven
poems, which were written in letters of gold,
and fufpcnded in the temple at Mecca, about
the beginning of the fixth century. When
they are printed, I fhall be proud in fubmit-
ting them to your judgment, as their excel-
lence is well known.
Mr. JONES to Lord ALTHORP.
Sept. 4, 1780.
The intelligence which you fo
kindly fent me, my dear Lord, and which
was perfectly unexpected, has fufpended for
a ihort time my excurfion to PaiTy; for
though I have not received any pofitive re-
tainers for election bufinefs, yet there will be
fome contefts in Wales, where I may pojfibly
be employed ; and, though the whole fyftem
of election-laws, and of elections themfelves,
(I always except the Grenville judicature) is
quite repugnant to my ideas of the conftitu-
tion, yet it would be thought unprofeffional
to be abfent from England at fuch a time ;
nor ought indeed any Englifhman to be ab-
Y 2
324
fent when the queflion to be decided is,
" Whether his country fhall be free in form
" only, or in iubftance." I have therefore
poftponed my expedition for a fortnight at
leaft, in which time all the borough elections
will, I fuppofe, be over; and by that time, I
fhall be able to form a tolerable judgment of
the counties. In the feveral counties through
which I lately paiTed, I received (what I did
not afk or defire) much praife from many
worthy men for my plan to prevent the ne-
cejfity of making a Handing army perpetual ;
but the uniform objection which I heard
was, " the plan is legal and conflitutional,
" but this is not the time for it" Lord
Mansfield himfelf thought otherwife, when
he faid in the Houfe of Lords, that no time
was to be loft in giving ftrength to the civil
power; but let the obje&ors beware, left by
refufing to adopt fuch a plan while they are
able, becaufe they think the time improper,
they mould not, when the proper time fhall
come, be allowed to adopt it. We had fome
entertaining caufes on the circuit, particularly
325
a fingular indictment for alarming a village
on the coaft of Pembrokefhire, with a re-
port that a hoftile mip of war was approach-
ing. The profecutors were two magi fixates
(one of whom was an Indian ) who
were angry at having been made fools of, a
point however which they could not eaiily
have proved, inafmuch as they were fools al-
ready made. I defended the profecuted man
with fuccefs, and mingled in my fpeech many
bitter reflections on the ftate of this country
at the time of the alarm, and on the at-
tempt, becaufe the Englifh laws were not re-
limed in India, to import the Indian laws
into England, by imprifoning and indicting
an honeft man, who had done no more than
his duty, and whole only fault was fear, of
which both his profecutors were equally guilty.
On my return through Oxford, I was con-
vinced by undoubted authority, that although
I had been continually gaining ground, and
had collected no fewer than ten or twelve
votes on the circuit, yet I had no chance of
fuccefs againfr Sir W. D,, and any attempt
326
to make Mr. Page would have been not only
confummate rafhnefs, but even inconfiftent
with my repeated declarations.
Let me requeft you to give my very fin-
cere thanks to Dr. Preedy for his kind pro-
mife and afTiftance, affuring him (which is
very true) that I am juft as much obliged to
him, as if his kindnex r s had been attended
with fuccefs, and defiring him to thank his
friend Dr. Ruding in the fame terms, and
with the fame fincerity. Muft I add this
trouble to that which you have already taken ?
I will make no apologies after a friendfhip of
fifteen years, uninterrupted even for a fingle
moment. How lTiall I conclude ? by wish-
ing you profperity in the Greek, or health in
the Roman form ? No man, my dear Lord,
wifhes you both more ardently than I do.
Farewell.
Mr. JONES to Dr. WETHEREL.
Sir ; Sept. 6, 1780.
It having been fuggefted to
me by a moft refpe&able friend, that it
3 ( 37
would be proper, and was in fa£t the due form,
to apprife you and the Vice- Chancellor as
foon as pomble, of my being no longer a
candidate for the Univerfitv, I fent to the
houfes of thofe gentlemen who honoured me
with forming my committee, thinking it more
regular, that they mould make the declara-
tion of my having declined a poll ; but as
they are out of town, I am neceflitated to
trouble you with this letter. If Dr. Scott
mould ftand the poll, I am ready to perform
my promife of giving him my vote, as I am
no more his competitor. Since I have taken
up my pen (which it was by no means my
intention to do) I cannot help faying that the
conduct of fome of my friends in refpect of
me gives me furprife, and (for their fakes ra-
ther than my own) uneafinefs. If I have
not been able to prove my attachment to my
fellow-collegiates, it is becaufe they never
called for my fervice ; if they had, they
mould have found that no man would have
exerted himfelf with more aclivity to ferve
them ; nor was I deficient in zeal, I well re-
328
member, when you in particular required my
exertions. I am confcious of having deferved
very well of the college ; and if any of its
members are fo unkind as to think other-
wife, I will fhew my fenfe of their unkind-
nefs by perfifting till my laft hour in deferr-
ing well of them. After this, I mould little
have expected that my letters, couched in the
moft fincere and affectionate terms, and ab-
folutely unexceptionable, if they had been
fairly reprefented, would have been repeated
by detached fentences (which might have
made no fmall alteration in the fenfe) in fe-
veral companies in the Univerfity. Still lefs
fhould I have expected to find myfelf charged
with mijreprefenting (a ferious word!) facts,
of which 1 would, if neceiTary, make a de-
pofition, and with writing what it mull have
appeared from ftrong internal evidence, that
J could not have written ; becaufe it contain-
ed a miftake as to the number of our lay^
fellows, which I (who know and efteem Mr.
Ray) could never have made. Leaft of all
could I have expected to be accufed of wifh-
329
ing to overturn a conftitution, which I prize,
becaufe I underftand it, and which 1 would
facrince my life to preferve. All thefe charges,
God and my confcience enable me to bear
with the cooleft indifference, and with little
abatement of that refpeft with which I ever
have been, &c.
Mr. JONES to Mr. CARTWRIGHT.
PEAR SIR, Sept. 8, 1780.
Your laft favour I have this
inftant received, and am obliged to anfwer
it in the greateft hafte. I hope you have by
this time received my letter, in which I in-
formed you that I had declined a poll at
Oxford, but was as much obliged to you and
my other friends as if your kindnefs had
been attended with the moll brilliant fuccefs.
I faw an advertifement alfo in the paper, that
Dr. Scott had declined.
******
I have been told, that the very ode to
which you are fo indulgent, loft me near
530
twenty votes ; this, however, I am unwilling
to believe. I am, ccc.
William Jones.
The conduct of Mr, Jones, throughout
the bufinefs of the election, difplays his cha-
racteriftical integrity and manly principles.
To have fucceeded, would have been moil
honourable to him ; his failure was attended
with no difgrace. From the letters written
or received by him on this occafion, a much
larger felection might have been made, and
many perfons of the firft refpectability named,
as the unlblicited fupporters of Mr. Jones,
It was greatly to his credit, that with no
other influence than that of his character and
abilities, he fhould have been deemed worthy
of being nominated a candidate to reprefent
the Univerfity of Oxford, one of the moft
diftinguifhed in the world for fcience and
virtue. His affectionate attachment to this
feat of learning, and his refpeclful veneration
for it, were known and admitted, as well as
the fpirit of independence which at all times,
and under ail circumftanccs, marked his cha-
331
rafter. His opinion refpecting the effe£l of
his Ode to Liberty, on the difpofition of
fome of the voters, countenances the fufpi-
cions of his friend Schultens; it is certain,
however, that if he had fucceeded in his elec-
tion he would have employed all the fuperior
talents which Schultens juftly afcribes to him
with zeal and afliduity, in difcharging the
duties of a fenator. To obtain it was his
hieheft ambition, and he would have cheer-
fully facrificed to it (to repeat his own
words) " not only an Indian Judgelhip of fix
thoufand a year, but a Nabobfhip with as
many millions."
Notwithftanding the various occupations
attending the Oxford election, Mr. Jones
found time to publifh a fmall pamphlet, inti-
tled, An Enquiry into the legal Mode of fup-
prejjing Riots, with a conjlitutional Plan of
future Defence. This publication was fug-
gefted by the unfortunate neceffity of calling
in military affiftance to fupprefs the riots,
which, from the fecond to the eighth of June
of that year, had defolated the capital. He
332
had unhappily been, as he obferves, a vigilant
and indignant fpeclator of thofe abominable
enormities: he had alfo {een, with a mixed
fenfation of anguifh and joy, the vigorous
and triumphant exertions of the executive
power; and though he admitted the neceflity
of thofe exertions, he deplored it.
Impreffed with the fulled u conviction,
*' that the common ftatute laws of the realm
a then in force, give the civil ftate in every
" county a power, which, if it were perfect-
" ly underitood and continually prepared,
" would effectually quell any riot or infur-
^ rection> without affiftance from the milL-
" tary, and even without the modern Riot-
" Act," he undertook to demonftrate it ; and
the labour of lefs than a month, produced the
occafional tract which he published in July,
Of the plan which he then propofed, it is
fufficient to fay, that during late years the
principle of it has been advantageoufly
adopted; and that while the internal peace of
the country has been preferred, its defence
againft external aggreffion has been no lefs
33,1
confulted by the armed affociations which,
under different names, have been legally efta-
blilhed in every county of Great Britain.
On the ninth of September of this year,
Mr. Jones met the freeholders of Middlefex
affembled for the purpofe of nominating two
reprefentatives in the new parliament. The
circumftances of the meeting afforded him no
opportunity of addrefhng them on the general
ftate of the nation; but lie amufed himfelf
with drawing up a difcourfe, containing the
purport of what he would have fpoken, if an
opportunity for this purpofe had occurred.
This fpeech is ftrikingly characleriflic of
his principles and feelings ; he condemns in
unqualified terms the American war, and the
conduct of the late parliament, in fupporting
it. He takes a fummary review of the ftate
of the nation, and delivers his opinion upon
it without referve, in that ftrong language
which was fo often heard in the parlia-
mentary debates of 1780, and read in the
petitions from the aflbciated counties. I mall
felect from it two paffages only, which have
334
no reference to the political difcuflions of that
period ; one, in which Mr. Jones exprefTes
his fentiments on the African Have trade, and
the fecond containing an honourable declar-
ation of that conduct which he would have
purfued, if good fortune had placed him in
the Houfe of Commons.
" I pafs with hafte by the coaft of Africa,
" whence my mind turns with indignation at
"th e abominable traffic in the human fpe-
" cies, from which a part of our countrymen
a dare to derive their mod inaufpicious
*' wealth. Sugar, it has been faid, would be
46 dear if it were not worked by Blacks in the
" Weftern iflands; as if the moft laborious,
*' the moft dangerous works, were not carried
" on in every country, but chiefly in England,
" by free men ; in fact they are fo carried on
" with infinitely more advantage, for there is
" an alacrity in a confcioufnefs of freedom,
" and a gloomy fullen indolence in a con-
" fcioufnefs of flavery; but let fugar be as
Ct dear as it may, it is better to eat none, to
fl eat honey, if fweetnefs only be palatable ;
c> i> ~
u better to eat aloes or coloquintitla than vio-
" late a primary law of nature, imprefTed on
rt every heart not imbruted by avarice, than
" rob one human creature of thofe eternal
" rights, of which no law upon earth can
i( juftly deprive him.
" Had it been my good or bad fortune, to
" have delivered in the great affembly of re-
" prefentatives the fentiments which this
" bofom contains, I am fenhble that my pub-
" lie courfe of fpeaking and voting muft
" have clafhed in a variety of inftances with
" my private obligations ; and the conflicl: of
" interfering duties conftitutes, in my opi-
u nion, the nicer! part of morality, on which
" however I have completely formed my
" fyftem, and truft that no views of intereft
" will ever prevent my practice from coincid-
" ing with my theory."
Profeffions of this nature are fometimes
made and forgotten, when the end, which
they were meant to ferve, has been attained ;
but fmcerity was ever a prominent feature in
336"
the character of Mr. Jones, and he was more
difpofed to overftep the bounds of prudence
by adhering to it, than to violate what he al-
ways deemed a primary law of morality.
In the autumn of this year, 1 find Mr.
Jones at Paris. He had in the preceding
fummer made a fhort excurfion to that ca-
pital ; but the occurrences of thefe journeys
are not of fufficient importance to engage the
reader's attention. I recollect to have heard
him mention, in anfwer to a quefhon which
I once put to him, whether he had feen
Monfieur du Perron at Paris, that this gen-
tleman ftudioufly avoided meeting him dur-
ing his refidence there.
The following letters written by Mr. Jones
after his return to England are interefting, as
defcriptive of his occupations and fentiments,
and as announcing his intention of writing
an important hiftorical work, which he never
found time to execute.
r> o •*
Mr. JONES to Lord ALTHORP.
I thought myfelf peculiarly
unfortunate laft Friday in my way to London;
at Chatham, where I had the pleafure indeed
of feeing Lady Rothes reftored to perfect
health, I fought in vain for Mr. Langton
among the new ravelines and counterfcarps ;
and at Dartford I had the mortification to
find, that you, my dear Lord, were not in
camp, where I was not without hope of pafs-
ing an evening, which I am perfuaded would
have been equally agreeable to us both. After
a very tedious and uncomfortable paffage, I
arrived at Margate on Wednefday night,
having been out of England a month ex-
actly, half of which time I fpent at Paris.
In this interval I have feen, not indeed fo
many men or fo many cities as the hero of
the OdyfTey, but a fufficient number of both
to have enlarged very confidcrably the fphere
of my knowledge. I have heard much and
thought more; but the refult of all I have
heard and thought is, that the war, which I
Itfe—V. I. Z
338
have invariably and deliberately condemned
as no lefs unjuft than impolitic, will continue
very long to defolate the country of our
brethren, and exhauft our own.' The prin-
cipal object of my late excurfion has been
completely anfwered ; and I had more fuc-
eefs than I at fir ft expected in one or two
fubordinate purfuits, profeflional and literary.
I attended fome caufcs at the palals, and have
brought with me the works of a molt learned
lawyer, whofe name and merit I fhall have
the honour of making known to our coun-
trymen. I obtained accefs alfo to a fine ma-
nufcript in the royal library, which has given
me a more perfect acquaintance with the
manners of the ancient Arabians ; and how
little foever I may value mere philology, con-
fidered apart from the knowledge to which it
leads, yet I fhall ever fet a high price on
thofe branches of learning, which make us
acquainted with the human fpecies in all its
varieties. Paris itfelf, and all the roads to it
are' fo perfectly known to you, that an ac-
count of my journey would be fuperfluous -,
339
and as to politics, I would rather converfe
than write on a fubjecl: fo very ferious ; not
that 1 have any apprehenfions, as you well
know, of the leaft danger, or even inconve-
nience, to myfelf ; but many incidents hap-
pen to letters, and in times like thefe, the
poft is hardly to be trufted. This however
I will fay, that as it is my fixed defign, if I
live to fee a peace, to write an impartial hif-
tory of the war, I was defirous in France to
be acquainted with as many of the American
leaders as I could meet with ; and the fame
defire would have carried me to Amfterdam,
if the feafon had not been fo far advanced.
All the intelligence that I collected, and all
the obfervations that I made, you mould
have heard on Friday evening had you been
in camp, and fhall hear in the courfe of con-
version when we meet. I rejoice to hear
fince my return, that Lord Spencer is much
better. Farewell, my dear Lord, you are
more fully allured than formal words can ex-
prefs, how fincerely I am, &c.
z 2
340
Mr. JONES to Mr. CARTWRIGHT.
DEAR SIR, NffV. 12, 1780.
You have fo fully proved the
favourable opinion, which you do me the
honour to entertain of me, that I am per-
fuaded you acquit me of any culpable neglect
in delaying for more than two months to an-
fwer your very obliging letter. The truth
is, that I had but juft received it when I
found myfelf obliged to leave England on
very prefEng bufinefs ; and I have not long
been returned from Paris. The hurry of
preparing myfelf for fo long a journey at
fuch a feafon, left me no time for giving you
my hearty thanks, which I now mo ft fin-
cerely requeft you to accept, both for your
kind letter, and for the very elegant fonnet*,
* SONNET.
To Sir William Jones,
On his being a candidate to represent the University of
Oxford in Parliament, 1780.
In Learning's field, diversified and wide,
The narrow beaten track is all we trace :
How few, like thee, of that unmeasur'd space
Can boast, and justly boast, no part untried !
341
with which vou have rewarded me abund-
antly for my humble labours in the field of
literature. I give you my word that your
letters and verfes have greatly encouraged me
in proceeding as expeditioufly as I am able,
to fend abroad my/even Arabia?! poets ; and
I propofe to fpend next month at Cambridge,
in order to finifh my little work, and to
make ufe of a rare manufcript in the library
of Trinity College ; my own manufcript,
which was copied for me at Aleppo, is very
beautiful, but unfortunately not very correct.
You may depend on receiving a copy as foon
as it can be printed.
How happy I mail be if I mould be able
Yet rest not here alone thy honest pride,
The pride that prompts thy literary chace ;
With unremitting strength and rapid pace
'Tis thine to run, and scorn to be denied!
Thy early Genius, spurning Time's controul,
Had reach'd, ere others start, the distant goal.
Marking the bright career that thou hast run,
With due regard thy toils may Oxford see,
And, justly proud of her superior son,
Repay the honour that she boasts in thee.
Poems by Edmund Cartwright, M. A. 1803. p. 111.
342
to wait upon you in Leicefterfhire, or to fee
you in London, and affure you in perfon
that I am,
With the greateft fincerity, &c.
W. Jones,
From the public occurrences in which Mr.
Jones was engaged, I now turn to a domeftic
calamity, the death of his mother, which in-
volved him in the deepeft affliction. If, as a
parent, fhe had the ftrongeft claims upon the
gratitude and affection of her fon, the obliga-
tions of filial duty were never more cheerfully
and zealoufly difcharged than by Mr. Jones.
To her able inftruction he was indebted for
the firft rudiments of literature; fhe di-
rected his early ftudies, formed his habits
and his tafte; and, by the clofeft atten-
tion to economy, was enabled to promote his
progrefs in learning by fupplying the funds
for this purpofe. From the period of his
obtaining a fellowfhip, he had declined re-
ceiving any afliftance from her purie ; and
as his profeflional profits increafed, his own
343
was ever at her difpofal. During his refi-
dence at Oxford, the time which he did not
employ in ftudy or college duties, was de-
voted to her: his attention was equally the
remit of principle and affection. She was
the confidant of his plans, hopes, and occu-
pations, and he invariably confulted her on
all occafions, where his more important in-
terefts were concerned. The kindnefs, as
well as the fincerity of his affection, was
(hewn in numberlefs inllances, which never
failed to attract; the obfervation of his friends
and aflbciates, although they are too minute
to be particularized, and the fatisfaction which
he derived from the diftinction to which his
abilities had raifed him, was redoubled from
the confideration that his mother participated
in it. I regret that none of his letters to his
mother have been preferved, as they would
have exhibited an amiable and linking part
of his character *.
I transcribe the following memorandum from the
hand-writing of Mr. Jones:
Anno uEtat: 33.
Resoh
344
The remaining correfpondence of this vear
OX j
between Mr. Jones and his friends, is not
important : I felect from it only two letters,
which cannot fail to pleafe, although they
may not be particularly interefting.
Resolved to learn no more rudiments of any kind, but
to perfect myself in,
First, 12 languages, as the means of acquiring accurate
knowledge of the
I. HISTORY
of
] . Man. 2. Nature.
II. ARTS.
l.Rhetorick. 2. Poetry. 3. Fainting. 4. Music.
III. SCIENCES.
1. Law. 2. Mathematics. o. Dialectic.
N. B. Every species of human knowledge may be re-
duced to one or other of these divisions. Even law be-
longs partly to the History of Man, partly as a science,
to dialectic.
The 12 languages are,
Greek,
Latin,
Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese,
Hebrew, Arabic,
Persian,
Turkish,
German, English
1780
345
Mr. JONES to the Bifhop of St, ASAPH.
my lord, November <2S, 17 SO.
Had I not been prevented by
particular bufinefs from writing to your lord-
iliip on Tuefday evening and yefterday, . I
would have informed you before, that we
had done ourfelves the honour (and a very
great one we mall ever efteem it) of electing
your lordfhip a member of our club *. The
election was of courfe unanimous, and it was
carried with the fmcere approbation and ea-
gernefs of all prefent. I am forry to add,
that Lord Camden and the Bifliop of Chefter
were rejected. When Bifhops and Chan-
cellors honour us with offering to dine with
us at a tavern, it feems very extraordinary
that we fhould ever reject fuch an offer ; but
* Generally known by the name of the Turk'' s- Head
Club, held in Gerrard Street, Soho. The establishment
of this club was first proposed by Sir Joshua Reynolds to
Burke and Johnson, and the original members of it were
the friends of these 'three. The number of members
was gradually increased to forty, comprehending men of
the most distinguished characters, and eminent for their
Learning, talent::-, and abilities.
346
there is no reafoning on the caprice of men.
Of our club I will only fay, that there is no
branch of human knowledge, on which fome
of our members are not capable of giving in-
formation, and I trufr, that as the honour
will be ours, fo your lordfliip will receive
fome pleafure from the company once a fort-
night, of fome of our firft writers and critics,
as well as our moil: virtuous fenators and ac-
complifhed men. I think myfelf highly
honoured in having been a member of this
fociety near ten years, and chiefly in having
contributed to add fuch names to the number
of our friends as thofe of your lordfliip and
lord Althorp. I fpoke yefterday in Weft-
minfter-Hall for two hours and a half, on a
knotty point of lav/, and this morning for
above an hour, on a very interesting public
queftion; to-morrow I mult argue a great
caufe, and am therefore obliged to conclude
with alluring
Your lordfliip, that I am,
With the higheit, &c.
W. Jones.
347"
The Bifhop of St. ASAPH to Mr.
JONES.
DEAR SIR, November 27.
You was prevented by Sir
Joihua Reynolds in your kind intentions of
giving me the earlieft notice of the honour
you have done me. I believe Mr. Fox will
allow me to fay, that the honour of being
elected into the TurkVHead Club is not in-
ferior to that of being the reprefentative of
V/eftminfter or Surry. The electors are cer-
tainly more difinterefted, and I mould fay
they were much better judges of merit, if
they had not rejected Lord Camden and
chofeft me. I flatter myfelf with the hopes
of great pleafure and improvement in fuch
a fociety as you defcribe, which indeed is the
only club of which I ever wifhed myfelf a
member.
Though I am much flattered with hearing
from you, I was delighted with the caufe of
your delaying to write. Your talents have
found means, by their own weight, to open
348
the way to public notice and employment,
which could not long be flint againft them.
Your pleadings for the nephew againft the
daughter promife fomething very curious in
the particulars of the cafe, which feems to
call for great abilities to defend it.
I would not neglect the firft opportunity
of anfwering your very obliging letter,
though it being early poft day, I am forced
to write in a greater hurry than I could
wifh.
I am, &c.
J. St. A.
After an interval of fix years, we find
Mr. Jones retracing his favourite haunts with
the Arabian mufes. He devoted the leifure
hours of the winter of 17 80-1 to complete
his tranflation of {even ancient poems of the
higheft repute in Arabia*. Literature, po-
: At the beginning of the seventh century, the Ara-
bic language was brought to a high degree of perfection,
by a sort of poetical academy, that used to assemble at
stated times in a place called Ocadh, where every poet
produced his best composition, and was sure to meet
with the appl.' erved : the most excellent of
these poems were transcribed in characters of gold upon
349
litics, profefiional fludics and practice, ail
had a fhare of his attention ; but the princi-
pal object of his hopes and ambition was the
vacant feat on the bench in India, to which
he looked forward with increafing anxiety.
The marriage of Lord Althorp with Mifs
Bingham, daughter of Lord Lucan, was too
interesting an event to pafs unnoticed by Mr.
Egyptian paper, and hung up in the Temple of Mecca,
whence they were named Mozahebat, or golden, and
Moallakat, or suspended: the poems of this sort were
called Casseidas or Eclogues, seven of which are pre-
served in our libraries, and are considered as the finest,
that were written before the time of Mohammed.
Essay on the Poetry of the Eastern nations.
"Works, vol. x. p. S41.
It may be satisfactory to the reader who does not pos-
sess the works of Sir Win. Jones, to read his metrical
imitation of a passage in the 4th Eclogue.
But ah ! thou knpw'st not in what youthful play,
Our nights, beguil'd with pleasure, swam away ;
Gay songs, and cheerful tales, deceiv'd the time,
And circling goblets made a tuneful chime;
Sweet was the draught, and sweet the blooming maid,
Who touch' cl her lyre beneath the fragrant shade ;
We sipp'd till morning purpled every plain ;
The damsels slumber'd, but we sipp'd again ;
The waking birds, that sung on every tree
Their early notes, were not so blythe as w •
550
Jones ; and he celebrated the nuptials of his
friend in a very poetical ode, under the title
of the Mufe recalled*. This composition,
the dictate of friendfhip, and offspring of
genius, was written in the courfe of a few
hours. His poetic talents were alfo exerted
in a caufe ever nearer! to his heart, that of
liberty : he reftrung the lyre of Alcseus, and
produced a ihort odef in the genuine fpirit
of the patriot and poet, whom he imitated.
Thefe were his amufements. The remit of
his profefTional ftudies was an Effay on the
Law of Bailments. He divided and treated
the fubject under the diftinct heads of ana-
lyfis, hiftory, and synthefis ; and intimates
an intention, if the method ufed in this tract
mould be approved, and on the fuppofition
of future leifure, to difcufs in the fame form
every branch of Englifh law, civil and cri-
minal, private and public ; and he concludes
the Effay with the following juft and elegant
reflections.
* Works, vol. x. p. 3S1. f Works, vol. x. p. 389.
351
" The great fyftem of jurisprudence, like
that of the Univerfe, conlifts of many fub-
ordinate fy Items, all of which are con-
nected by nice links and beautiful depen-
dencies ; and each of them, as I have fully
perfuadcd myfelf, is reducible to a few
plain elements, either the wife jnaxims of
national policy and general convenience,
or the pojitroe rules of our forefathers,
which are fcldom deficient in wifdom or
utility; if law be a fcience, and really
deferve fo fublime a name, it mud be
founded on principle, and claim an ex-
alted rank in the empire of reafon ; but if
it be merely an unconnected feries of de-
crees and ordinances, its life may remain,
though its dignity be lefTened ; and he will
become the greateft lawyer who has the
ftrongeft habitual, or artificial memory. In
practice, law certainly employs two of the
mental faculties ; reafon in the primary
inveftigation of points entirely new, and
memory, in tranfmitting the reafon of fage
and learned men, to which our own ou^ht
352
* c invariably to yield, if not from a becoming
" modefty, at leaft from a juft attention to
" that object, for which all laws are framed,
" and all focieties inftituted, the good of
u MANKIND."
Nothing can more ftrongly evince the pre-
dilection of Mr. Jones for his profeffional
ftudies, and his anxiety to acquire a know-
ledge of the general principles and practice
of law, than a work which he undertook
about this period, the tranflation of an Ara-
bian poem on the Mohammedan law of fuc-
ceflion to the property of inteftates*. The
fubject of the original is dry, the diction ob-
fcure ; it exhibits no rhetorical flowers, no
poetical ornament ; and even the partiality of
Mr. Jones for Eaftern literature could never
have induced him to engage in a work of
this nature, if he had not thought it con-
nected with objecls of information and uti-
lity. In the expectation of obtaining the
fituation of an Indian judge, this law tract
probably recommended itfelf to his notice,
* Works, vol. viii. p. 183.
353
as he could not but forefee that a knowledge
of Mohammedan law would be eflential to
the performance of the. duties of that fta-
tion.
The reader will recoiled: how much the
public attention was occupied in the year
1782, with the attempts to procure, by con-
ftitutional means, a reformation of parliament.
It would have been furprifing if Mr. Jones had
remained an idle fpeclator on an occafion,
which of all others was moil interefting to
his feelings. Led by his profeflional ftudies
to an enthufiaftic veneration for the princi°
pies of the conftitution of his country, he
was anxious that the form of it mould in all
refpecls correfpond with them ; " but, as the
" form in a courfe of years is apt to deviate
" widely from the fpirit, it became (in his
" opinion) expedient almoft every century
• ' to reftore its genuine purity and lovelinefs."
Thefe fentiments he expreffed in a fpeech to
the inhabitants of the counties of Middlefex
and Surry, the cities of London and Wefl-
minfter, and the borough of Southwark, af-
Life— V. I. A A
354
fembled at the London Tavern on the 28di
of May, 1782, to confider on the means
of procuring a reformation of parliament.
The firft refolution adopted by the meeting,
and in which he exprefTed his mod fincere
concurrence, was, that petitions ought to be
prepared for a more complete reprefentation
of the people; and the pofition which he
endeavoured to impreis upon the minds of
his audience was this, that the fpirit of our
constitution requires a reprefentation of the
people, nearly equal, and nearly univerfal.
This fpeech has long been before the public,
and I fhall therefore only notice his declara-
tion in the advertifement prefixed to it, that,
" what offence the publication might give,
" either in part, or in the whole, was the
" laft and leaft of his cares : his firft and
" greateft was to fpeak on all occafions what
st he conceived to be juft and true;" and
the conclufion, in which he tells his audience
that " the people of England can only expect
" to be happy, and mod glorious, while they
'* are the freeft, and can only become the
355
" freeft, when they fhall be the moil vir-
<l tuous and moft enlightened of nations."
It was about the fame period that he cora-
pofed a very fpirited ode, in imitation of Cal-
liftratus, which has appeared in a variety of
periodical publications, and is publifhed in
his works*.
In the fummer of this year, Mr. Jones
again vifited France, in the intention of pro-
ceeding thence to America. The object of
this journey was profeffional, to procure the
restitution of a very large eftate of a client
and friend, which had been attached by an
order of the States, who had threatened the
confifcation of the property, unlefs the owner
appeared in perfon to claim it. This object
is mentioned by Mr. Jones in his correfpond-
ence, and his own evidence will be conclu-
five againft fome furmifes and infinuations,
which were propagated refpecting the mo-
tives of his intended journey. The irrefolu-
tion of his friend, increafed by indifpofition,
prevented the execution of the plan ; and
* Vol. x. p. 391.
A A 2
356
Mr. Jones, after having p rocured a paiTport
from Franklin, the American minifter at the
court of France, returned to England through
Normandy and Holland.
For other details relating to his life, dur-
ing the years 178 1 and 1782, I refer to his
correfpondence.
Mr. JONES to Mr. CARTWRIGHT.
DEAR SIR, May 1, 178L
I take the liberty to fend you
(as my Arabian poets are not yet ready to
wait upon you) a paraphrafe of a Greek
fragment, which came into my head this
fpring in my way to Wales*. I make no
* In his journey through life, Mr. Jones seldom over-
looked the opportunities of gathering the flowers which
chance presented, or of displaying, for the entertainment
of his friends, the stores which he had collected. A
variety of poetical compositions was produced by him
during his circuits, to enliven the intervals of legal la-
bour. Of these a few have been preserved, and amongst
them the following elegant song, the offspring of genius
and innocent gaiety. It was written by Mr. Jones, some
years before the period of his life at which I am now
arrived, when he was a very young man, during one of
his first circuits, for the express purpose of being sung
357
<iloubt of your continuing to cultivate the
Mufes, by whom you are fo highly favoured,
at a kind of fete champetrc, which the barristers held on
the banks of the Wye.
Fair Tivy, how sweet are thy waves gently flowing,
Thy wild oaken woods, and green eglantine bow'rs,
Thy banks with the bmsh-rose and amaranth glowing,
While friendship and mirth claim these labourless hours !
Yet weak is our vaunt, while something we want,
More sweet than the pleasure which prospects can give ;
Come, smile, damsels of Cardigan,
Love can alone make it blissful to live.
How sweet is the odour of jasmine and roses,
That Zephyr around us so lavishly flings !
Perhaps for Bleanpant * fresh perfume he composes,
Or tidings from Bronwithf auspiciously brings;
Yet weak is our vaunt, while something we want,
More sweet than the pleasure which odours can give :
Come, smile, damsels of Cardigan,
Love can alone make it blissful to live.
How sweet was the strain that enliven'd the spirit,
And cheer'd us with numbers so frolic and free !
The poet is absent; be just to his merit;
Ah! may he in love be more happy than we;
For weak is our vaunt, while something we want,
More sweet than the pleasure the onuses can give :
Come, smile, damsels of Cardigan,
Love can alone make it blissful to live.
* The seat of W. Brigstocke, Esq,
f The seat of Thos. Lloyd, E$cj.
358
and hope you will from time to time trans-
mit the fruit of their favours to, &c.
William Jones.
How gay is the circle of friends round a table,
Where stately Kilgarran* o'erhangs the brown dale;
Where none are unwilling, and few are unable,
To sing a wild song, or repeat a wild tale !
Yet weak is our vaunt, while something we want,
More sweet than the pleasure that friendship can give:
Come, smile, damsels of Cardigan,
Love can alone make it blissful to live.
No longer then pore over dark gothic pages,
To cull a rude gibberish from Neatham or Brooke;
Leave year-books and parchments to grey-bearded sa^es ;
Be nature and love, and fair woman, our book;
For weak is our vaunt, while something we want,
More sweet than the pleasure that learning can give :
Come, smile, damsels of Cardigan,
Love can alone make it blissful to live.
Admit that our labours were crown'd with full measure^
And gold were the fruit of rhetorical flow'rs,
That India supplied us with long-hoarded treasure,
That Dinevorf, SlebeckJ, and Coidsmore|| were ours;
Yet weak is our vaunt, while something we want,
More sweet than the pleasure that riches can give:
Come, smile, damsels of Cardigan,
Love can alone make it blissful to live.
* A ruin of a castle on the banks of the Tivy.
f Seat of Lord Dinevor's, near Landclo, in Carmarthen.
.J Seat of Philips, Esq. near Haverford West-
|| Seat of Thomas Lloyd, Esq. near Cardigan.
359
From the Bifhop of St. ASAPH to
Mr. JONES.
DEAR SIR, May 2%, 1781.
You have my beft and ear-
lier!: thanks for your ode in the true Grecian
tafte and fpirit. I remember to have feen a
fragment of AIcgeus, but I cannot find it in
Arijftides, of whom I have only Cantern's
fmall edition. The feed you found there you
have quickened by the warmth of true genius
into a noble production. I cannot help ob-
ferving that Alcaeus, like other good poets
and patriots, was condemned for life to be
in the minority, I am, 6cc.
J. St. Asaph.
Or say, that, preferring fair Thames to fair Tivy,
We gain'd the bright ermine robes, purple and red ;
And peep'd thro' long perukes, like owlets thro' ivy,
Or say, that bright coronets blaz'd on our head j
Yet weak is our vaunt, while something we want,
More sweet than the pleasure that honours can give :
Come, smile, damsels of Cardigan,
Love can alone make it blissful to live.
360
I hope you will not forget, that when you
have leifure, your friends at Twyford will
be very happy to fee you.
Mr. BURKE to Mr. JONES.'
I do not know how I can
juftify myfelf in the liberty I take with
you, but confiding in your humanity and
condefcenfion, I beg, if you have leifure
for it, that you would be fo kind as to break-
fail; with me, and aflift me with your opinion
and advice on the conduct of the Bengal
Bill. The natives of the Eaft, to whofe li-
terature you have done fo much juftice, are
particularly under your protection for their
rights. I have the honour to be, with the
higheft efteem and regard, dear Sir,
Your moft faithful and obedient
humble fervant,
Edmund Burke,
361
* Mr. JONES to H. A, SCHULTENS.
June, 1781.
You are not ignorant of my
fentiments on this mod abominable war ; the
enclofed imitation of an ode of Alcxus will
clearly prove my deteftation of tyranny, my
zeal and exertions in the caufe of liberty.
Literature, which is, and ought to be, ever
connected with humanity, will never, I truft,
be degraded by a fratricidal war between the
learned, particularly thofe who puriue the
fame ftudies. Do you therefore, though a
native of Holland, preferve that affection for
me, which I, an Englishman, have, and
mail ever retain for you.
I have tranflated into Englifh, without the
omifiion of a fingle line, the feven Jufpended
poems of our Arabs, and mean to publifh
the whole with notes, and a differtation on
the ancient monuments of Arabia, in the
next fummer vacation.
I poflefs the Commentary of Tabrizi ; and
* Appendix, No. 37.
S62
I have been obligingly furnifhed from Tri-
nity College, Cambridge, with the Para-
phrafd of Zouzini, and his ihort and excel-
lent notes. At Oxford, we have the notes
and Perfic verfion of Sadi, the Scholia of
Anfari-, and the fine edition of Obeidolla ;
but I am anxious to infpect all editions and
commentaries. Your illuftrious grandfather,
for whofe memory, as in duty bound, I pre-
ferve the greateft refpect, pronounces thefe
poems worthy of immortality, and fays, if
I do not mifiake, that he tranfcribed the ma-
nufcript of Nahafi, at Leyden, for his own
ufe. I alfo obferved in the copious catalogue
of the Schultenfian library, (one copy of
which I delivered to my friend Hunter)
thefe words, " 6990. The feven Moallakat
" Arabic, moft beautifully written." Has
this been purchafed by any one ? at what
price will it be difpofed of? I lament that I
did not buy it, but being tied up at that time
myfelf, by various important occupations, I
could not bellow a thought on the fufpended
poems.
363
Affift me, I bcfeech yon, in the name of
the Mufes, with materials for perfecting my
work ; collect from your ftores any notes, or
various readings which you may poffefs, and
communicate them to me. I have mentioned
in my preliminary difcourfe, your Philarabic
family*, and have more to fay about it both
* Albert Schultens the grandfather, and J. J. Schul-
tens, the father of the person to whom this letter is ad-
dressed, were both distinguished for their knowledge of
Oriental, particularly Arabic, literature. The former was
a German divine, born at Groningen, and taught He-
brew and the Oriental languages at Leyden, with great
reputation for many years before his death, which hap-
pened in 1 741 . He composed many works which shew
profound learning and just criticism. Biog. Brit. He
translated and explained the fifty dissertations of Hariri,
although he sent abroad but few of them, and published
Ancient Memorials of Arabia, which Sir William Jones
notices in an anniversary discourse delivered before the
Asiatic society, in Calcutta, as the most pleasing of all
his works. Of J. J. Schultens his son, I have little in-
formation. In Reiske's correspondence, published by his
widow, there is one letter from him dated Herborn, 1748,
which manifests no ordinary zeal in the writer for the
promotion of Arabic literature. I have no account of
any publications by him, excepting two academical dis-
sertations. The learning and labours of H. A. Schul-
tens, are sufficiently apparent from his own letters and
those of Mr. Jones.
364
true and honourable. I wifh particularly to
know whether any of the feven poems, ex-
cepting thofe of Amr'olkais and Tarafa, will
be publifhed in Holland. You fhall receive
my book, which will be elegantly bound by
Baumgarten.
My mother, whom I mod tenderly loved,
was ever in my opinion the beft of women;
I truil fhe is now the happieft. But my af-
fliction for her lofs is inconfolable. I fhall
be moft happy to hear that you and your
wife are well, and the early gratification of
my wifhes will be an additional pleafure.
Mr. JONES to Mr. GIBBON..
Lamb's Buildings, June 30th, 1781.
DEAR SIR,
I have more than once
fought, without having been fo fortunate as
to obtain, a proper opportunity of thanking
you very fincerely for the elegant compliment
which you pay me, in a work abounding in
elegance of all kinds.
My Seven Arabia?! Poets will fee the light
$65
before next winter, and be proud to wait
upon you in their Englifh drefs. Their wild
productions will, I flatter myfelf, be thought
interefting, and not venerable merely on ac-
count of their antiquity.
In the mean while, let me requeft you to
honour me with accepting a copy of a Law
Tract, which is not yet publifhed : the fu.b-
jecl is {o generally important, that I make
no apology for fending you a profeffional
work.
You mult pardon my inveterate hatred of
C. Octavianus, bafely furnamed Auguftus.
I feel myfelf unable to forgive the death of
Cicero, which, if he did not promote, he
might have prevented. Befides, even Mecae-
nas knew the cruelty of his difpofition, and
ventured to reproach him with it. In fhort,
I have not Chrijiian charity for him.
With regard to Afiatic letters, a neceffary at-
tention to my profeffion will compel me whol-
ly and eternally to abandon them, unlefs Lord
North (to whom I am already under no fmall
obligation) mould think me worthy to concur
566
in the improved adminiftration of juftice m
Bengal, and mould appoint me to fupply the
vacancy on the India Bench. Were that
appointment to take place this year, I mould
probably travel, for fpeed, through part of
Egypt and Arabia, and mould be able, in
my way, to procure many Eaftern tracts of
literature and jurifprudence. I might be-
come a good Mahomedan lawyer before I
reached Calcutta, and, in my vacations,
fhould find leifure to explain, in my native
language, whatever the Arabs, Perfians, and
Turks, have written on fcience, hiflory, and
the fine arts,
My happinefs by no means depends orx
obtaining this appointment, as I am in eafy
circumftances without my profefiion, and
have flattering profpecls in it; but if the pre-
fent fummer and the enfuing autumn elapfe
without my receiving any anfwer, favourable
or unfavourable, I mail be forced to confider
that filence as a polite refufal, and, having
given fincere thanks for pad favours, fhall
entirely drop all thoughts of Afia^ and ?
;3o7
i% deep as ever plummet founded, mail drown
" my Perjian books." If my politics have
given offence, it would be manly in minif-
ters to tell me fo. 1 mail never be personally
hoftile to them, nor enlift under party ban-
ners of any colour ; but 1 will never rcfign
my opinions for hiterejl, though I would
cheerfully abandon them on conviction. My
reafon, fuch as it is, can only be controlled
by better reafon, to which I am ever open.
As to my freedom of thought, fpeech, and
action, I fhall ever fay what Charles XII.
wrote under the map of Riga, " Dieu me
l'a donnee; le diable ne me Totera pas." But
the fair anfvver to this objection is, that my
fyftem is purely fpeculative, and has no rela-
tion to my feat on the bench in India, where
I fhould hardly think of inftructing the Gen-
toos in the maxims of the Athenians. I be-
lieve I mould not have troubled you with
this letter, if I did not fear that your attend-
ance in parliament might deprive me of the
pleafure of meeting you at the club next
Tuefday; and I fhall go to Oxford a few
368
days after. At all times, and in all places,
I mall ever be, with undiflembled regard,
dear Sir, your much obliged and faithful
fervant,
W. Jones.
The Bifhop of St. ASAPH to Mr.
JONES.
DEAR SIR ; Nov. 3, 1781,
A letter from you is always
welcome, come fooner or later; yet I cannot
help rejoicing at that ceafelefs hurry of bufi-
nefs, which occafioned your delay in writing,
and made me lofe a very valuable vifit.
Riches and reputation, after mewing a little
coynefs at firfl, are now making their ad-
vances at a very great rate, and will foon be
as lavifh of their charms as you could wifh >
yet I know you think too liberally, to let
either your friends or your liberty fuffer by
their engroffing you too much.
I thank you for the nuptial ode, which,
notwithstanding its incorrectnefs, which you
need not complain of, is the moft genuine
imitation of Pindar I have ever feen. I
don't know whether I can aflent to your cri-
ticifm on the word ?-eplete, that it is never
uied in a good fenfe. Were it left to me,
I would ufe it in no fenfe. It has but little
meaning. It was never naturalized in con-
vention, or in profe, and 1 think makes no
figure in verfe.
I have another prefent of value to thank
you for, — your eflay on the Law of Bail-
ments. To own the truth, your name to the
advertifement made me impatient, and I had
fent for it and read it before. It appears to
me to be clear, juft, and accurate, I mean as
clear as the fubjecl: will permit. My want
of law language, and perhaps of a legal un-
derftanding, made me feel great difficulty in
following you through your very ingenious
diftinctions and confequences, of which I
thought I could perceive the folidity. I fore-
tell that this will be your laft work. For the
future your bufinefs and the public will allow
vou to write no more,
4
Though I fear it will not be confident
Life—Y. I. £ B
370
with your employment in Weflminfler-Hall,
I cannot help telling you, that for as many
days as you can fpare between this time and
the meeting of parliament you will find a
warm bed, and a hearty welcome at Chilbol-
ton. Mrs. Shipley and her daughters de-
fire their compliments, and join in the invi-
tation. I am, &c.
J. St. Asaph.
Mr. JONES to Mr. CARTWRIGHT.
DEAR SIR; Dcc-20, 1781.
Since I received your obliging
letter an interval of fix months has elapfed,
but in all that interval, I have either been
deeply engaged in profeffional labours, or
confined by illnefs : I have enjoyed no reft.
At this moment I am flowly recovering from
a fevere inflammatory diforder ; yet your let-
ter and your fine fonnets have remained con-
stantly on my mind, and I now take up my
pen to thank you moll warmly for the plca-
fure which they have given me. I hope my
friend Watfon has fcen the noble wreath of
371
laurel which your animated mufe has woven
for him. I entreat you to fend me the two
others, which I long to fee. The few copies
which were printed of the Latin ode are fo
difperfed, that I have not one for myfelf,
and would print a few more, if a learned
friend of mine had not engaged to publifh it
with notes, hiftorical and critical, for want of
which, it is in fome parts obfeure. You may
depend on receiving one of the firft copies that
can fee the light, and my feven Arabian poets
will wait upon you as foon as the European
dreifes are finifhed. I take the liberty to en-
clofe an ode compofed without preparation,
and almoft without any premeditation : it is
the work of a few hours. In truth, when I
attended the wedding, I had no thought of
writing, but the young ladies would not
hear of an excufe : you muft therefore
make all due allowance for poetry by com-
pulfion.
I am, &c.
EB 3
372
Mr. JONES to Lord AL THORP.
January 5, 1782.
O la bella cofa il jar niente I This was
my exclamation, my dear Lord, on the 12th
of laft month, when I found myfelf, as I
thought, at liberty to be a rambler, or an
idler, or any thing T pleafed : but my mal di
go/a took ample revenge for my abufe and
contempt of it, when I wrote to you, by
confining me twelve days with a fever and
quinfey : and I am now fo cramped by the
approaching feiTion at Oxford, that I cannot
make any long excurfion. I enclofe my tra-
gical fong of " a iliepherdefs going," with
Mazzanti's mufic, of which my opinion at
prefent is, that the modulation is very artifi-
cial, and the harmony good, but that Pergo-
lefi (whom the modern Italians are iuch pup-
pies as to undervalue) would have made it
more pathetic and heart-rending^ if I may
compofe fuch a word. I long to hear it
fung by Mrs. Poyntz. Pray prefent the
enclofed, in my name, to Lady Althorp. I
5? 3
hope that I ihall in a fhort time he able to
think of you, when I read thefe charming
lines of Catullus* :
And soon to be completely blest,
Soon may a young Torquatus rise ;
"Who, hanging on his mother's breast,
To his known sire shall turn his eyes,
Out-stretch his infant arms awhile,
Half ope his little lips and smile.
(Prln ted Transla t ion .)
What a beautiful picture ! can Domini-
chino equal it ? How weak are all arts in
comparifon of poetry and rhetoric ! Inftead
however of Torquatus, I would read Spen-
cei'us. Do you not think that I have dis-
covered the true ufe of the fine arts, namely,
in relaxing the mind after toil ? Man was
born for labour, his configuration, his paf-
fions, his reftlefsnefs, all prove it ; but labour
would wear him out 9 and the purpofe of it
* The original is quoted by Mr. Jones : —
Torquatus volo parvulus,
Matris e gremio suie
Porrigens teneras manus,
Dulce rideat ad patrcm,
Semi-hiante labcllo.
374
be defeated, if he had not intervals of plea-
fure ; and unlefs that pleafure be innocent,
both he and fociety muft fuffer. Now what
pleafures are more harmlefs, if they be no-
thing elfe, than thofe afforded by polite arts
and polite literature ? Love was given us by
the Author of our being as the reward of
virtue, and the folace of care ; but the bafe
and fordid forms of artificial, (which I op-
pofe to natural^ fociety in which we live,
have encircled that heavenly rofe with fo
many thorns, that the w r ealthy alone can ga-
ther it with prudence. On the other hand,
mere pleafure, to which the idle are not juil-
ly entitled, foon fatiates, and leaves a vacuity
in the mind more unpleafant than actual
pain. A juft mixture, or interchange of la-
bour and pleafures, appears alone conducive
to fuch happinefs as this life affords. Fare-
well. I have no room to add my ulelefs
name, and fall more ufelefs profeflions of
friendfhip.
* * * * •#- -^
The fentiments expreffed in this letter do
375
credit to the heart and understanding of Mr.
Jones ; they exhibit the pure feelings of an
• uncorruptcd mind ; but in giving them to
the public, I deem it a duty to obferve, that
though a juft mixture of labours and plea-
fores, (fucli innocent pleafures as Mr. Jones
defcribes, and fuch only as he ever enjoyed,)
is greatly conducive to the happinefs of this
life, the true foundation of real happinefs
muft be fought in a higher fource. In the
unpremeditated effufions of friendly corre-
fpondence, expreflions are not to be fcrupu-
lo-ufly weighed, nor rigoroufly criticifed ;
but 1 feel a confidence, which the reader, if
he perufes the whole of thefe memoirs, will
participate with me, that Mr. Jones would
have himfelf approved the obfervation which
I have made upon his letter.
In March of this year, a propofal was
made to Mr. Jones, to become a member of
the fociety for conftitutional information, and
it appears from a letter which he wrote to the
Secretary of the fociety, in reply, that he
readily accepted it, To prove that he was
376
not regardlefs of the objects of the fociety's
inuitution, a fhort time afterwards he ad-
dreffed a fecond letter to the fecretary, for
the exprefs purpofe of confuting fome doc-
trines in the writings of the celebrated Field-
ing, which he thought dangerous to the con-
ftitution of England ; I infert both from a
periodical publication of 1787, in which
they have been preferved.
[Mr. JONES to Mr. THOMAS YEATES.
SIR* Lamb's Buildings, April 25, 1782,
It was not till within thefe very
few days that I received, on my return from
the circuit, your obliging letter, dated the
1 8th of March, which, had 1 been fo fortunate
as to receive earlier, I mould have made a
point of anfwering immediately. The lb-
ciety for conftitutional information, by elect-
ing me one of their members, will confer
upon me an honour which I am wholly un-
confeious of deferving, but which is fo flat-
tering to me, that I accept of their offer with
pleafure and gratitude. I mould indeed long
377
a^ro have teitified my regard for fo ufeful an
inftitution by an offer of my humble fervice
in promoting it, if I had not really defpair-
ed in my prcfent fituation of being able to
attend your meetings as often as I fhould ar-
dently wiih.
My future life mail certainly be devoted
to the fupport of that excellent conftitution,
which it is the object of your fociety to un-
fold and elucidate ; and from this refolution
long and deliberately made, no profpects, no
connections, no- ftation here or abroad, no
fear of danger, or hope of advantage to my-
felf, ftru.ll ever deter or allure me.
A form of government fo apparently con-
ducive to the true happinefs of the Commu-
nity, mull; be admired as foon as it is under-
stood, and if reafon and virtue have any
influence in human breads, ought to be pre-
ferved by any exertions, and at any hazard.
Cave mud now be taken, left by reducing
the regal power to its juit level, we raife the
ariilocratical to a dangerous height ; fince it
is from the people that we can deduce the
378
obligation of our laws, and the authority of
juagihrates.
On the people depend the welfare, the
fecurity, and the permanence of every legal
government ; in the people muft refide all
fubftantial power ; and to the people muft all
thofe, in whofe ability and knowledge we
fometimes wifely, often imprudently confide,
be always accountable for the due exercife of
that power with which they are for a time
entrufted.
If the properties of all good government
be confidered as duly diftributed in the dif-
ferent parts of our limited republic, good-
trefs ought to be the diftinguiihed attribute
of- the crown, wifdom of the ariftocracy, but
power and fortitude of the poople.
May juftice and humanity prevail in them
aH !
I am, Sir,
Your very faithful and obedient fervant,
W. Jones.
379
Mr. JONES to Mr. THOMAS YEATES.
Lanib's Buildings, Temple, June 1, 178 2
SIR,
I lately met with fome dan-
gerous doctrine concerning the conflitution
of England, in the works of an admired
Englifh writer ; the doclrine fo dangerous,
that an immediate confutation of it feems
highly neceffary, and the writer fo admired,
that his opinions, good or bad, muft natu-
rally have a very general influence. It was
the opinion, in fhort, of the late ingenious
Henry Fielding, that " the conflitution of this
" ifland was nothing fixed, but juft as vari-
" able as its weather," and he treats the con-
trary notion as a ridiculous error : now if
this doctrine be well founded, our fociety
will foon, I imagine, think it wife to diflblve
themfclves, fince it is hardly confident with
the gravity of fenhble men to collect: and
impart information like the makers of alma-
nacks, upon any thing fo uncertain as the
weather ; if on the other hand, the error be
palpably on the fide of Mr. Fielding, you
380
will not only proceed with affiduity in your
laudable defign of rendering our conftitution
univerfally known, but will be at leall equal
in ufefulnefs and true dignity to any fociety
that ever was formed. His words are thefe,
in the preface to his tract, fi On the Jncreafe
i4 of Robberies," dedicated to Lord Chan-
cellor Hardwicke : a There is nothing fo
" much talked of and fo little underftood in
" this country, as the conftitution. It is a
" word in the mouth of every man ; and
" yet when we come to difcourfe of the mat-
" ter, there is no fubject on which our ideas
<c are more confufed and perplexed. Some,
€ - when they fpeak of the conftitution, con-
" fine their notions to the law ; others to the
" legiilature ; others, again, to the govern-
u ing or executive part ; and many there
" are who jumble all thefe together in one
" idea. One error however is common to
u them all ; for all feem to have the concep-
4t tion of fomething uniform and permanent,
* as if the conftitution of England partook
" rather of the nature of the foil than of the
381
" climate, and was as fixed and conftant aS
" the former, not as changing and variable
" as the latter. Now in this word, the con-
" ftitution, are included the original and
" fundamental law of the kingdom, from
" whence all powers are derived, and by
" which they are circumfcribed ; all legifla-
<c tive and executive authority, all thofe mu-
l< nicipal provifions, which are commonly
t£ called laws ; and laftly, the cuftoms, man-
a ners, and habits of the people. Thefe
"joined together do, I apprehend, form the
" political, as the feveral members of the
rt body, the animal economy, with the hu-
" mours and habit, compofe that which is
" called the natural conRitutien."
He adds a paragraph or two of elegant,
but idle allufions to the Platonic philofophy,
as if we lived under the polity of Plato, not
in the days of William the Norman. Now
of all words eafy to be comprehended, the
eafieft, in my humble opinion, is the word
oonftitution ; it is the great fyfiem of public
in contra-diflincYiori to private and criminal
5S2
law, and comprifes all thofe articles which
Blackftone arranges in his firft volume, under
the rights of perfons, and of which he gives
a perfpicuous analyiis. Whatever then re-
lates to the rights of perfons, either abfolute
rights, as the enjoyment of liberty, fecurity,
and property, or relative, that is in the pub-
lic relations of magiftrates and people, makes
a part of that majeftic whole, which we pro-
perly call the conftitution. Of thofe magif-
trates fome are fubordinate, and fome fu~
preme ; as the legiilative or parliament, which
ought to confift of delegates from every inde-
pendent voice in the nation; and the execu-
tive or the king, whofe legal rights for the
general good are called prerogative. The
people are the aggregate body or community,
and are in an ecclefiaftical, civil, military, or
maritime ft ate.
This conftitutional or public law is partly
unwritten, and grounded upon immemorial
ufage, and partly written or enacted by the
legiilative power, but the unwritten or com-
mon law contains the true fpirit of our con-
JO./
flitution : the written lias often moft unjuf-
tifiably altered the form of it : the common
law is the collecled wifciom of many centu-
ries, having been ufed and approved by fuc-
ceiTive generations, but the ftatutes frequently
contain the whims of a few leadincr men ;
and fometimes of the mere individuals em-
ployed to draw them ; lailly, the unwritten
law is eminently favourable, and the written
generally hoftile to the abfolute rights of
perfons.
But though this ineflimable law be called
unwritten, yet the only evidence of it is in
writing preferved in the public records, judi-
cial, official, and parliamentary, and ex-
plained in works of acknowledged authority.
Pofitive acls of the legiflature may indeed
change the form of the conftitution ; but as
in the fyftem of private law, the narrow nefs
or rigour of our forenfic rules may be en-
* — J
larged or foftened by the intcrpofition of
parliament, (for our courts of equity are
wholly of a different nature,) fo all legislative
provifions, which oppofe the fpirit ef the
184
o<
constitution, may be corrected agreeable to
that very lpirit> by the people or nation at
large, who form as it were, the high court
of appeal in cafes of constitutional equity ;
and their fenfe muft be collected from the
petitions which they prefent, cxprefled with
moderation and refpecl, yet with all the
firmnefs which their caufe juilifies, and all
the dignity which truly becomes them.
I am, Sir,
Your very faithful humble fervant,
\V. Jones.
Mr. JONES to the Bimop of St. ASAPH.
Wimbledon Parky Sept. 13, 173 2.
MY LORD,
If your Lordfhip received my
letter from Calais, you will not be much
furprifed to fee the date of this, and the place
where I now am writing, while Lady Spen-
cer is making morning vifits. Mr. and Mrs.
Poyntz have this inftant left us. Lord Al-
thorp being in Northamptonshire, I muft
give myfelf fome confolation for my difap-
385
pointment in miffing him, by fcribbling a
few lines to him, as foon as I have finifhed
thefe with which I now trouble your lordfhip.
My excurfion to the United Provinces (which
has been the fubftitute for my intended ex-
pedition to the United States) was extremely
pleafing and improving to me. I returned
laft Monday, and finding all my friends dif-
perfed in various parts of England, am go-
ing for a few days into Buckinghamfhire,
whence I fhall go to Oxford, and muft con-
tinue there till the Seffions. Should your
lordfhip be in Hampfhire any time in Oc-
tober, and fhould it be in all refpects con-
venient to you, I will accept this year, with
great pleafure, the obliging invitation to
Chilbolton, which I was unfortunately pre-
vented from accepting laft year. I lament
the unhappy diffentions among our great
men, and clearly fee the vanity of my anxi-
ous wifh, that they would have played in
tune fome time longer in the political con-
cert.
The delays about the India judgefhip have,
Life~V. I. C C
386
it is true, greatly injured me ; but with my
patience and afliduity, I could eafily recover
my loft ground. I muft however take the
liberty here to allude to a mod obliging let-
ter of your lordfhip from Chilbolton, which
I received fo long ago as laft November, but
was prevented from anfwering till you came
to town. It was inexpreflibly flattering to
me, but my intimate knowledge of the na-
ture of my profeflion, obliges me to affure
you, that it requires the whole man, and ad-
mits of no concurrent purluits ; that, confe-
quently, I muft either give it up, or it will
engrofs me fo much, that I fhall not for fome
years be able to enjoy thefociety of my friends,
or the fweets oj liberty. Whether it be a
wife part to live uncomfortably, in order to
die wealthy, is another queftion ; but this I
know by experience, and have heard old
practitioners make the fame obfervation, that
a lawyer who is in earneft, muft be chained
to his chambers and the bar for ten or twelve
years together* In regard to your lordfhip's
indulgent and flattering prediction, that my
587
Eflay on Bailment would be my laft work,
and that for the future, bufinefs and the pub-
lic would allow me to write no more, I doubt
whether it will be accomplished, whatever
may be my practice or fituation; for I have
already prepared many tracts on jurifpru-
dence; and when I fee the volumes written
by Lord Coke, whofe annual gains were
twelve or fourteen thoufand pounds, by Lord
Bacon, Sir Matthew Hale, and a number of
judges and chancellors, I cannot trunk that I
mould be hurt in my profeffional career, by
publifhing now and then a law tract upon
fome interefting branch of the fcience ; and
the fcience itfelf is indeed fo complex, that,
without writing, which is the chain of me-
mory -, it is impoffible to remember a thou-
fandth part of what we read or hear. Since
it is my wifh therefore to become in time as
great a lawyer as Sulpicius, I (hall probably
leave as many volumes of my works, as he
is faid to have written. As to politics, I
begin to think, that the natural propenfity
of men to diflent from one another, will pre-*
C C 2
388
vent them, in a corrupt age, from unking in
any laudable deiign ; and at prcfent I have
nothing to do but to reft on my oars, which
the Greek philosophers, I believe, called
\Tri<%iiv> a word which Cicero applies in one
of his letters to the fame fubjecT.
My beft refpects to the ladies, for whom
I would certainly have brought fome Vir-
ginia nightingales, if my weflern expedition
had taken place, fincc I was informed by the
captain, with whom I mould have failed,
that they might have been kept in the cabin
without any danger.
Mr. JONES to Mr. Baron EYRE.
.DEAR SIR, Oct. 2, 1782-
I have been in England about
a fortnight, and was made happy by learn-
ing in John Street, that you had long been
reftored to health from the illnefs which con-
fined you, to my inexpreiftble concern, at
the time when I fet out for the Continent.
The caufe of my return is, in few words,
this; I ought to have forefeen, what I never-
389
thelefs did not expect, that the fame timidity
or imbecility, which made my unhappy
friend declare, that he neither could nor
would go to Virginia without me, would
make him declare, when he law the fails and
the waves, that he neither would nor could
go at all. A dread of fome imaginary dan-
ger fo enervated him, that he kept his bed,
and wrote me word, that if he ftaid a week
longer at Nantes, he fhould lofe his reafon
or his life. My expostulations had fome
little effect, but there was no dependence, I
found, on a man who had none, he confefE-
ed, upon himfelf; and when I difcovered
that no fhip, with even tolerable accommo-
dation, would fail till September, fo that I
could not keep my word with my friends in
England, by returning from America before
the new year, I came back through Nor-
mandy about the middle of Auguft, and hav-
ing a few weeks to fpare, made a very plea-
fant and improving excurfion 'into Holland,
which I traverfed from South to North. The
detail of my expedition may not perhaps be
390
tmentertaxning to you, when I have the
pleafure of converfing with you at leifure ;
and I am not without hope of enjoying that
pleafure, if you continue at Rufcombe, be-
fore the term begins. I flay here till the
SeiTions are over, and would immediately
after take my chance of finding you in Berk-
ihire, but am called upon to keep an old
promife of vifiting the Bifhop of St. Afaph
near Andover, and mufl fpend a day or two
with my friend Poyntz. I can eafily con-
ceive how little time you can have to write
letters, yet if you could find a moment to
let me . know how long you propofe to re-
main in the country, 1 would not be in your
neighbourhood without paying my refpects
to you, and I would indeed have taken Ruf-
combe in my way to Oxford, if I had not
been engaged to make a vifit in Buckingham-
fhire. As to myfelf, I find fuch diflraction
among my political friends, that I fhould be
glad (if I had no other motive) to be fixed in
India, at the diftance of 16,000 miles from
all their animofities, but I am unhappily
391
more unfettled than ever; for **** writes
me word, that he has nothing more at heart
than to open fome fituation for me in India.
What this means I know not, but it looks
like fome new plan, which may probably
hang undecided from feflion to feflion. On
the whole I greatly fear, that it would have
been happy for me, and perhaps for millions,
if India had never exifted, or if we had
known as little of it as of Japan.
Mr. JONES to Lord ALTHORP.
MY DEAR LORD, Oct. 5, 1732.
Your friendly letter caught
me in Buckinghamshire, before I came to
college, where I have been for feme days fole
governor, and almoft fole inhabitant of Al-
fred's peaceful manfion, till Mr. Windham
furprifed me agreeably, by coming with a
defign of pafTing fome time in this acade-
mical retreat. You, in the mean while, are
taking healthful and pleafing exercife in Nor-
folk, where Mr. Fox, I underftand, is alfo
ihooting partridges ; and you are both ready.
592
no doubt, to turn your firelocks againft the
Dutch, fhould they make their appearance in
your fields : when I was in Zealand they ex-
pected us, and if they Hand upon the cere-
mony of the firft vifit, we fhall not, I ima-
gine, meet very foon.
In regard to my expectation of feeing a
little good attained for our miferable coun-
try, I am not apt to be fanguine, but rather
inclined to fear the worft than to expect the
beft. I rejoice, however, at the dijlrnjl con-
ceived by many honeft men of thofe now in
power j my opinion is, that power (hould always
be dijirujled, in whatever hands it is placed.
As to America, I know not what *****
thinks: but this I know, that the fturdy tranfat-
lantic yeomanry will neither be dragooned nor
bamboozled out of their liberty. His princi-
ples in regard to our internal government are,
imlefs I am deluded by his profeflions, fuch
as my reafon approves, and which is better,
fuch as I know to be approved in clear terms
by our recorded constitution. The friends of
##*#* w ere too monarchical, and thole of
393
**** far too ariftocratical for me; and if it
were poflible to fee an adminiftration too de-
mocratical, I mould equally diflike it. There
muft be a mixture of all the powers, in due
proportions weighed and meafured by the
laws, or the nation cannot exift without
mifery or fhame. I may write all this con-
fiftently with good manners and with friend-
fhip, becaufe I know the excellence of your
understanding and foundnefs of your prin-
ciples; and independently of my prefump-
tion that all your actions muft be wife and
juft, I fee and applaud the motive which
muft have induced you to reilgn an office,
which you were not at firft much inclined to
accept. I am confident alfo, that you would
as little endure a Swedifh monarchy, as a Ve-
netian ariflocracy. I enclofe a little jeu
d'efprit * which I wrote at Paris. It was
* The jeu d* esprit mentioned here, Is the dialogue
between a Farmer and Country Gentleman on the Prin-
ciples of Government. In Dr. lowers' Tract on the
Rights of Juriesi the following passage relating to it
occurs :
" Afrer a Bill of Indictment had been found against
lt the Dean of St. Asaph, for the publication of the
394
printed here by a fociety, who, if they
will fleer clear of party, will do more good
to Britain, than all the philofophers and an-
tiquaries of Somerfet Houfc. But to fpeak
the truth, I greatly doubt, whether they, or
any other men in this country, can do it fub-
ftantial good. The nation, as Demofthcnes
laid, will be fed like a confumptive patient,
with chicken-broth and panada, which will
neither fuffer him to expire, nor keep him
wholly alive. As to myfelf, if my friends
are refolved to aflail one another, inftead of
concurring in any great and laudable effort
for the general fafety, I have no courfe left,
but to adt, and fpeak rightly to the beft of my
underftanding ; but I have an additional
motive for wifhing to obtain an office in
India, where I might have fome profpeel: of
contributing to the happinefs of millions, or
* edition which was printed in Wales, Sir William
' Jones sent a letter to Lord Kenyon, then Chief Jus-
' tice of Chester, in which he avowed himself to be the
c author of the dialogue, and maintained that every po-
1 sition -in it was strictly conformable to the laws and
€ constitution of England." p. 117.
395
at leaft of alleviating their mifery, and ferv-
ing my country eflentially, whilft I benefited
my fellow-creatures.
When the feflions are over, I mail haften
to Chilbolton, and perform an old promifc
of paffing a few days with the beft of Bifhops;
after which I fhall take Midgham, and Baron
Eyre's at Rufcombe, in my way to London,
where I mud be at the beginning of the
term. A Perfian book is juft printed here,
faid to have been compofed by Tamerlane,
who confefTes, that he governed men by four
great arts, bribing, dividing, amufmg, and
keeping hifufpence. How far it may be an
object with modern Tamerlanes, or fultans
of India, to govern me, I cannot tell ; but
as I cannot be bribed, without lofing my
fenfes, nor divided, without lofing my life,
I will neither be ami/fed^ nor kept long in
fufpence ; and indeed, I have fo high an opi-
nion of Lord Afhburton, who never pro-
feffes more than he means, that I do not fuf-
pect any artifice in that buiinefs.
395
Mr. JONES to Lady SPENCER.
MADAM Chilbolton, Oct. 21, 1782.
Though I wrote fo lately to
your Ladyfhip, and cannot hope by any
thing I can now fay to make amends for the
dulnefs of my laft letter ; yet, as fome of the
ladies here are this moment writing to St.
James's Place, I cannot prevail on myfelf to
decline joining fo agreeable a party, efpe-
cially as the very favourable accounts which
were laft night received of Lord Spencer's
health have given me fpirits, and made me
eager to offer my fincere congratulations.
Yes ; I rejoice with the trueft fincerity, that
his Lordfhip's health is fo likely to be re-
eftabliihed, for I cannot name a man of rank
in the nation, in whofe health the public and
all mankind, as well as his family and friends,
are more truly interested. I have pafled my
time at Chilbolton fo agreeably, that ten
days have appeared like one ; and it gives me
concern that the near approach of the term
will oblige me to leave fo charming and im-
S97
proving a fociety at the end of this week :
after which I (hall hope to find my friends at
Midgham in perfect health; and then farewell,
a long farewell to all my rational and intereft-
ing pleafures, which mud be fucceeded by the
drudgery of drawing bills in equity, the toil
of anfwering cafes, the fquabbles of the bar,
and the more vexatious difTentions and con-
flicts of the political world, which I vainly
deprecated, and now as vainly deplore. How
happy would it be, if ftatefmen had more
mujic in their fouls, and could bring them-
felves to confider, that what harmony is in
a concert, fuch is union in a ftate j but in
the great orcheftra of politics, I find fo many
muficians out of humour, and inftruments
out of tune, that I am more tormented by
fuch diflbnance than the man in Hogarth's
print, and am more defirous than ever of
being traniported to the diftance of five
thoufand leagues from all this fatal difcord.
Without a metaphor, I lament with anguifh
the bitternefs and animofity with which
fome of my friends have been afTaiiing
598
others ; as if empty altercation could be th£
means of procuring any good to this afflicted
country. I find myfelf in more inftances
than one, like poor Petrarch, wifhing to pafs
my days
Fra* magnanimi pochi ; a chi '1 ben piace,
Di lor chi m' assecura ?
Io vo gridando pace, pace, pace.
t
— but I fhall not be heard, and muft confole
myfelf with the pleafmg hope, that your
Ladyfhip, and the few friends of virtue
and humanity, will agree in this fentiment
with, &c.
William Jones*
From the Duchefs of DEVONSHIRE to
Mr. JONES.
Plimtou, Qct. 28, 1782,
MY DEAR MR. JONES,
I am very happy that the
fear of lofing a privilege, which you are fo
good as to fay is precious to you, has induced
you to write to me, for I afllire you, that
your letters give me very great pleafure, and
599
that thev, as well as the few times in which
we meet, make me regret very much, that
the turn of your public engagements take
you fo much from focicties where you arc
wiihed for.
I agree with you, that the political world
is ftrangely torn. If you had been in par-
liament at this crifls, you would have felt
yourfelf in an uncomfortable fituation, I
confefs ; but I cannot think, that with the
good Whig principles you are bleffed with,
private friendfhips or connections would
have prevailed on you to remain filent or in-
active.
Chi vuol Catone amico,
Facilmente l'avra : Sia fkio a Roma.
This I think would have been the teft of
your political friendfhip.
I am rejoiced that there is a chance of
your returning to poetry. I had a very
valuable prefent made me by Dr. Blagden,
phyfician to the camp, of your ode in imi-
tation of Calliftratus. I wiih I underftood
Greek, that I might read fomething Mr. Pa-
400
radife lias written at the top of it. I "will
attempt to copy it ; and after the various
characters I have, in days of yore, feen you
decipher, I will not defpair of your making
out Greek, though written by me.
Z»iT8(r«t, \pvyyv tvpou l«noi>8 .
I mail expect to fee the poem fomething
fboner than the reft of your friends ; and I
allure you, the having fo feldom the pleafure
of meeting you, does not diminifh the fin-
cerity, with which I mall ever retain that
title. — If you are ftill at Chilholton, pray
give my love to the family there, and tell
Mifs Shipley to write to me.
My feal is a talifman, which if you can
fend me the explanation of, I mall be much
obliged to you.
* * * * & *
In the beginning of 1783, Mr. Jones pub-
limed his tranfiation of the feven Arabian
* The Graces, seeking a shrine that wouM never
decay, found the soul of Jones.
401
pOerrts, which he had finifhed in 178 1. It
was his intention to have prefixed to this
work, a difcourfe on the antiquity of the
Arabian language and characters, on the
manners of the Arabs in the age immediately
preceding that of Mohammed, and other in-
terefting information refpecting the poems,
and the lives of the authors, with a critical
hiftory of their works ; but he could not
command fufficient leifure for the execution
of it. Some of the fubjecls intended for
this difTertation, appeared in a difcourfe on
the Arabs, which he compofed fome years
afterwards, and from the manner in which it
was written, it is impoiTible not to regret the
irrecoverable lofs of the larger difcuiTion which
he originally propofed. The poems prefent
us with a curious fpecimen of the manners
of the natives of Arabia, and on this account,
muft be particularly interefting to thofe, who
confider the ftudy of human nature in all its
varieties, as an inftructive fubjecl: of contem-
plation. " They exhibit (to ufe the words
of Mr. Jones) u an exact picture of the vir-
Vfc—V. 1. DD
40 f 2
2
" tues and vices of the Arabs in the age of
" the feveiL poets, their wifdom and their
u folly, and fhew what may be conftantly
u expected from men of open hearts, and
" boiling pamons, with no law to control,
" and little religion to reftrain them."
The period was now arrived, when Mr.
Jones had the happincfs to gain the accom-
plifhment of his moft anxious wifhes. In
March 1783, during the adminiftration of
Lord Shelburne, he was appointed a judge
of the fupreme court of judicature at Fort-
william at Bengal, on which occafion the
honour of knighthood was conferred upon
him ; and, in the April following, he mar-
ried Anna Maria Shipley, the eldeft daughter
of the Bifhop of St.. Afaph. I have remarked
the early impreffion mad upon the affections
of Sir William Jones by this lady, and the
honourable determination which he formed
upon that occafion, and if I mould have fuc-
ceeded in imparting to my readers any por-
tion of that interefr, which I feel in his per-
fonal concerns, they will fee him with pleafure
403
receiving the rewards of principle and affec-
tion.
The Bifhop of St. Afaph, of whole re*
fpectable character and highly literary repu-
tation it is unneceflary to remind the public,
porTeffed too enlightened an understanding
not to appreciate the early diftinguiihed ta-
lents and virtues of Sir William Jones, and
their friendfhip was cemented by an union
of political principles, and the zealous admir-
ation each felt for the conftitution of their
country. The Bifhop, in the choice of a
fon-in-law, had every reafon to indulge the
pleafing hope that he had confulted, as far
as human forefight can extend, the happinefs
of his beloved daughter ; nor were his ex-
pectations difappointed.
For his appointment to India, Mr. Jones
was indebted to the friendfhip of Lord Afh-
burton : in October 1782, I find a letter
from his Lordihip to Mr. Jones, with the
following words : * You will give me creJit
" for not being indifferent about the import-
" ant ftake ftill left in India, or your parti-
D D 2
404
" cular interefl in it, in which I confider
" that of the public fo materially involved."
The intelligence of his fuccefs was commu-
nicated to Mr. Jones, in the following letter
of congratulation, to which I fubjoin one
from the celebrated Franklin on the fame oc-
cafion.
MY DEAR SIR, March 3, 1783.
It is with little lefs fatisfaction
to myfelf than it can give you, that I fend
you the inclofed, and I do afTure you there
are few events, in which I could have felt {o
fenfible a mortification, as in that of your
finally miffing this favourite object. The
weather fuggefls to me as no flight topic of
congratulation, your being relieved from fuch
a journey, and under fuch circumftances, as
your laft favour intimates you had in contem-
plation for Wednefday; but when I confider
this appointment as fecuring to you at once,
two of the firft objects of human purfuit,
thofe of ambition and love, I feel it a fub-
jeet of very ferious and cordial congratula-
405
tion, which I defire you to accept, and to
convey accordingly.
I am, with every good wifh, dear Sir,
Your faithful humble fervant,
Ashburton.
dear friend,
Passi/, March 17, 1783.
I duly received your obliging
letter of Nov. 15. You will have fince
learnt how much I was then and have been
continually engaged in public affairs, and
your goodnefs will excufe my not having an-
fwered it fooner. You announced your in-
tended marriage with my much refpected
friend Mifs Anna Maria, which I allure you
gave me great pleafure, as I cannot conceive
a match more likely to be happy, from the
amiable qualities each of you poffefs fo
plentifully. You mention its taking place as
foon as a prudent attention to worldly in-
terefts would permit. I juft now learn from
Mr. Hodgfon, that you are appointed to an
honourable and profitable place in the Indies ;
406
fo I expect now foon to hear of the wedding,
and to receive the profile. With the good
Bifliop's permiffion, I will join my bleffing
with his ; adding my wifhes that you may
return from that corrupting country, with a
great deal of money honefHy acquired, and
with full as much virtue as you carry out
with you.
The engraving of my medal, which you
know was projected before the peace, is but
juft finifhed. None are yet {truck in hard
metal, but will in a few days. In the mean
time, having this good opportunity by Mr.
Penn, I find you one of the Epreuves. You
will fee that I have profited by fome of your
ideas, and adopted the mottos you were fo
kind as to furnilh.
I am at prefent quite recovered from my
late illnefs, and flatter myfelf that I may in
the enfuing fummer be able to undertake a
trip to England, for the pleafure of feeing
once more my dear friends there, among
whom the Bifhop and his family ftand fore-
moft in my eftimation and affection.
407
I thank you for your good wifhes refpeft-
Ing me. Mine for your welfare and profpe-
rity are not lefs earneft and fmcere ; being
with great truth, dear Sir,
Your affectionate friend,
and moft obedient fervant,
Benjamin Franklin.
# * # * * *
I have mentioned the literary productions
of Sir William Jones in the order in which
they were publifhed. I obferve however
two compofitions which had efcaped my
attention; an abridged Hiftory of the Life
of Nadir Shah, in Englifh, and a Hiftory
of the Perfian Language, intended to be pre-
fixed to the firft edition of his Perfian
Grammar*.
* The reader will peruse with pleasure the following
lines from the Arabic, written by Sir William Jones, in
1783, and addressed to Lady Jones.
While sad suspense and chill delay
Bereave my wounded soul of rest,
New hopes, new fears, from day to day,
By turns assail my lab'ring breast.
408
A long lift might be formed of works
which he meditated at different periods. He
had projected a Treatife on Maritime Con-
tracts ; and with a view to the completion
of this work, he commiflioned a friend
to purchafe for him the Collections of Hei-
neccius, containing the DifTertations of Styp-
man and Kerrick, with any other works that
could be procured on the fame fubjec~t. It
was alfo his intention to republifh Lyttleton's
Treatife on Tenures, from the firffc edition
of 1482, with a new tranflation, explana-
tory notes, and a commentary ; and to pre-
fix an Introductory Difcourfe on the Laws of
My heart, which ardent love consumes,
Throbs with each agonizing thought ;
So flutters with entangled plumes,
The lark in wily meshes caught.
There she, with unavailing strain,
Pours thro' the night her warbled grief:
The gloom retires, but not her pain j
The dawn appears, but not relief.
Two younglings wait the parent bird,
Their thrilling sorrows to appease:
She comes — ah ! no : the sound they heard
Was but a whisper of the breeze.
409
England. He had made a confiderable pro-
grefs towards the completion of this work,
which ftili exifts, but not in a fuflicient de-
gree of advancement for publication.
I have remarked the extraordinary avidity
with which he availed himfelf of every op-
portunity to acquire knowledge : but I have
omitted to mention his attendance during a
courfe of anatomical lectures, by the cele-
brated Hunter: and amongft other fciences
which he diligently and fuccefsfully cultivat-
ed, I have ftill to mention the Mathematics,
in which he had advanced fo far, as to read
and underftand Newton's Principia,
The review of the various acquisitions of
Sir William Jones in fcience and literature,
will be introduced in another place ; and
having brought to a dole that portion of his
life, which was patted in England, I muft
now prepare the reader to tranfport himfelf
with him to Hinduftan.
j nIj 01 VOL. 1.
7
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