WASHINGTON IRVING OLIVER GOLDSMITH 2008 – All rights reserved Non commercial use permitted OLIVER GOLDSMITH A Biography by Washington Irving PREFACE I. Birth and Parentage--Characteristics of the Goldsmith Race--Poetical Birthplace--Goblin House--Scenes of Boyhood--Lissoy--Picture of a Country Parson--Goldsmith's Schoolmistress--Byrne, the Village Schoolmaster-- Goldsmith's Hornpipe and Epigram--Uncle Contarine--School Studies and School Sports--Mistakes of a Night II. Improvident Marriages in the Goldsmith Family--Goldsmith at the University--Situation of a Sizer--Tyranny of Wilder, the Tutor--Pecuniary Straits--Street Ballads--College Riot--Gallows Walsh--College Prize--A Dance Interrupted III. Goldsmith rejected by the Bishop--Second Sally to see the World--Takes Passage for America--Ship sails without him--Return on Fiddleback--A Hospitable Friend--The Counselor IV. Sallies forth as a Law Student--Stumbles at the Outset--Cousin Jane and the Valentine--A Family Oracle--Sallies forth as a Student of Medicine--Hocus-pocus of a Boarding-house--Transformations of a Leg of Mutton--The Mock Ghost--Sketches of Scotland--Trials of Toryism--A Poet's Purse for a Continental Tour V. The agreeable Fellow-passengers--Risks from Friends picked up by the Wayside--Sketches of Holland and the Dutch--Shifts while a Poor Student at Leyden--The Tulip Speculation--The Provident Flute--Sojourn at Paris-- Sketch of Voltaire--Traveling Shifts of a Philosophic Vagabond VI. Landing In England--Shifts of a Man without Money--The Pestle and Mortar--Theatricals in a Barn--Launch upon London--A City Night Scene--Struggles with Penury--Miseries of a Tutor--A Doctor in the Suburb--Poor Practice and Second-hand Finery--A Tragedy in Embryo--Project of the Written Mountains VII. Life as a Pedagogue--Kindness to Schoolboys--Pertness In Return--Expensive Charities--The Griffiths and the "Monthly Review"--Toils of a Literary Hack--Rupture with the Griffiths VIII. Newbery, of Picture-book Memory--How to keep up Appearances--Miseries of Authorship--A Poor Relation--Letter to Hodson IX. Hackney Authorship--Thoughts of Literary Suicide--Return to Peckham-- Oriental Projects--Literary Enterprise to raise Funds--Letter to Edward Wells--To Robert Bryanton--Death of Uncle Contarine--Letter to Cousin Jane X. Oriental Appointment, and Disappointment--Examination at the College of Surgeons--How to procure a Suit of Clothes--Fresh Disappointment--A Tale of Distress--The Suit of Clothes in Pawn--Punishment for doing an act of Charity--Gayeties of Green-Arbor Court--Letter to his Brother--Life of Voltaire--Scroggins, an attempt at Hock Heroic Poetry XI. Publication of "The Inquiry"--Attacked by Griffith's "Review"--Kenrick, the Literary Ishmaelite--Periodical Literature--Goldsmith's Essays--Garrick as a Manager--Smollett and his Schemes--Change of Lodgings--The Robin Hood Club XII. New Lodgings--Visits of Ceremony--Hangers-on--Pilkington and the White Mouse--Introduction to Dr. Johnson--Davies and his Bookshop--Pretty Mrs. Davies--Foote and his Projects--Criticism of the Cudgel XIII. Oriental Projects--Literary Jobs--The Cherokee Chiefs--Merry Islington and the White Conduit House--Letters on the History of England--James Boswell--Dinner of Davies--Anecdotes of Johnson and Goldsmith XIV. Hogarth a Visitor at Islington--His Character--Street Studies--Sympathies between Authors and Painters--Sir Joshua Reynolds--His Character--His Dinners--The Literary Club--Its Members--Johnson's Revels with Lanky and Beau--Goldsmith at the Club XV. Johnson a Monitor to Goldsmith--Finds him in Distress with his Landlady--Relieved by the Vicar of Wakefield--The Oratorio--Poem of The Traveler--The Poet and his Dog--Success of the Poem--Astonishment of the Club--Observations on the Poem XVI. New Lodgings--Johnson's Compliment--A Titled Patron--The Poet at Northumberland House--His Independence of the Great--The Countess of Northumberland--Edwin and Angelina--Gosford and Lord Clare--Publication of Essays--Evils of a rising Reputation--Hangers-on--Job Writing--Goody Two-shoes--A Medical Campaign--Mrs. Sidebotham XVII. Publication of the Vicar of Wakefield--Opinions concerning it--Of Dr. Johnson--Of Rogers the Poet--Of Goethe--Its Merits--Exquisite Extract--Attack by Kenrick--Reply--Book-building--Project of a Comedy XVIII. Social Condition of Goldsmith--His Colloquial Contests with Johnson--Anecdotes and Illustrations XIX. Social Resorts--The Shilling Whist Club--A Practical Joke--The Wednesday Club--The "Ton of Man"--The Pig Butcher--Tom King--Hugh Kelly--Glover and his Characteristics XX. The Great Cham of Literature and the King--Scene at Sir Joshua Reynolds's--Goldsmith accused of Jealousy--Negotiations with Garrick--The Author and the Actor--Their Correspondence XXI. More Hack Authorship--Tom Davies and the Roman History--Canonbury Castle--Political Authorship--Pecuniary Temptation--Death of Newbery the elder XXII. Theatrical Maneuvering--The Comedy of False Delicacy--First Performance of The Good-Natured Man--Conduct of Johnson--Conduct of the Author--Intermeddling of the Press XXIII. Burning the Candle at both Ends--Fine Apartments--Fine Furniture--Fine Clothes--Fine Acquaintances--Shoemaker's Holiday and Jolly Pigeon Associates--Peter Barlow, Glover, and the Hampstead Hoax--Poor Friends among Great Acquaintances XXIV. Reduced again to Book-building--Rural Retreat at Shoemaker's Paradise--Death of Henry Goldsmith--Tributes to his memory in The Deserted Village XXV. Dinner at Bickerstaff's--Hiffernan and his Impecuniosity--Kenrick's Epigram--Johnson's Consolation--Goldsmith's Toilet--The bloom-colored Coat--New Acquaintances--The Hornecks--A touch of Poetry and Passion--The Jessamy Bride XXVI. Goldsmith in the Temple--Judge Day and Grattan--Labor and Dissipation--Publication of the Roman History--Opinions of it--History of Animated Nature--Temple Rooker--Anecdotes of a Spider XXVII. Honors at the Royal Academy--Letter to his brother Maurice--Family Fortunes--Jane Contarine and the Miniature--Portraits and Engravings--School Associations--Johnson and Goldsmith in Westminster Abbey XXVIII. Publication of the Deserted Village--Notices and Illustrations of it XXIX. The Poet among the Ladies--Description of his Person and Manners-- Expedition to Paris with the Horneck Family--The Traveler of Twenty and the Traveler of Forty--Hickey, the Special Attorney--An Unlucky Exploit XXX. Death of Goldsmith's Mother--Biography of Parnell--Agreement with Davies for the History of Rome--Life of Bolingbroke--The Haunch of Venison XXXI. Dinner at the Royal Academy--The Rowley Controversy--Horace Walpole's Conduct to Chatterton--Johnson at Redcliffe Church--Goldsmith's History of England--Davies's Criticism--Letter to Bennet Langton XXXII. Marriage of Little Comedy--Goldsmith at Barton--Practical Jokes at the Expense of his Toilet--Amusements at Barton--Aquatic Misadventure XXXIII. Dinner at General Oglethorpe's--Anecdotes of the General--Dispute about Dueling--Ghost Stories XXXIV. Mr. Joseph Cradock--An Author's Confidings--An Amanuensis--Life at Edgeware--Goldsmith Conjuring--George Colman--The Fantoccini XXXV. Broken Health--Dissipation and Debts--The Irish Widow--Practical Jokes--Scrub--A Misquoted Pun--Malagrida--Goldsmith proved to be a Fool--Distressed Ballad-Singers--The Poet at Ranelagh XXXVI. Invitation to Christmas--The Spring-velvet Coat--The Haymaking Wig --The Mischances of Loo--The fair Culprit--A dance with the Jessamy Bride XXXVII. Theatrical delays--Negotiations with Colman--Letter to Garrick--Croaking of the Manager--Naming of the Play--She Stoops to Conquer--Foote's Primitive Puppet Show, Piety on Pattens--First Performance of the Comedy--Agitation of the Author--Success--Colman Squibbed out of Town XXXVIII. A Newspaper Attack--The Evans Affray--Johnson's Comment XXXIX. Boswell in Holy-Week--Dinner at Oglethorpe's--Dinner at Paoli's--The policy of Truth--Goldsmith affects Independence of Royalty--Paoli's Compliment--Johnson's Eulogium on the Fiddle--Question about Suicide--Boswell's Subserviency XL. Changes in the Literary Club--Johnson's objection to Garrick--Election of Boswell XLI. Dinner at Dilly's--Conversations on Natural History--Intermeddling of Boswell--Dispute about Toleration--Johnson's Rebuff to Goldsmith--His Apology--Man-worship--Doctors Major and Minor--A Farewell Visit XLII. Project of a Dictionary of Arts and Sciences--Disappointment--Negligent Authorship--Application for a Pension--Beattie's Essay on Truth--Public Adulation--A high-minded Rebuke XLIII. Toil without Hope--The Poet in the Green-room--In the Flower Garden--At Vauxhall--Dissipation without Gayety--Cradock in Town--Friendly Sympathy--A Parting Scene--An Invitation to Pleasure XLIV. A return to Drudgery--Forced Gayety--Retreat to the Country--The Poem of Retaliation--Portrait of Garrick--Of Goldsmith--of Reynolds--Illness of the Poet--His Death--Grief of his Friends--A last Word respecting the Jessamy Bride XLV. The Funeral--The Monument--The Epitaph--Concluding Reflections PREFACE In the course of a revised edition of my works I have come to a biographical sketch of Goldsmith, published several years since. It was written hastily, as introductory to a selection from his writings; and, though the facts contained in it were collected from various sources, I was chiefly indebted for them to the voluminous work of Mr. James Prior, who had collected and collated the most minute particulars of the poet's history with unwearied research and scrupulous fidelity; but had rendered them, as I thought, in a form too cumbrous and overlaid with details and disquisitions, and matters uninteresting to the general reader. When I was about of late to revise my biographical sketch, preparatory to republication, a volume was put into my hands, recently given to the public by Mr. John Forster, of the Inner Temple, who, likewise availing himself of the labors of the indefatigable Prior, and of a few new lights since evolved, has produced a biography of the poet, executed with a spirit, a feeling, a grace and an eloquence, that leave nothing to be desired. Indeed it would have been presumption in me to undertake the subject after it had been thus felicitously treated, did I not stand committed by my previous sketch.