tending to promote sedition, be burnt by the hands of the common hangman, in New Palace-Yard.” Our unfortunate author's political sins were now all mustered in array against him, and a tremendous catalogue they made. He had been the favourite and panegyrist of William; he had fought for Monmouth, and opposed James; he had vindicated the Revolution, and defended the rights of the people; he had bantered, insulted, and offended, the whole Tory leaders of the Commons; and, after all, he could not be quiet, but must republish his most offensive productions. Thus overpowered, De Foe was obliged to secrete himself; and we are indebted to a very disagreeable circumstance for the following accurate description of his person. A proclamation was issued by the secretaries of state, in January, 1703, in the following terms: "St James's, Jan. 10, 1702-3. "Whereas Daniel De Foe, alias De Fooe, is charged with writing a scandalous and seditious pamphlet, entitled, The Shortest Way with the Dissenters; he is a middle-sized spare man, about forty years old, of a brown complexion, and darkbrown coloured hair, but wears a wig, a hooked nose, a sharp chin, grey eyes, and a large mole near his mouth; was born in London, and for many years was a hose-factor, in Freeman's Yard, in Cornhill, and now is owner of the brick and pantile works near Tilbury-fort, in Essex; whoever shall discover the said Daniel De Foe to one of her majesty's principal secretaries of state, or any of her majesty's justices of peace, so as he may be apprehended, shall have a reward of £50, which her majesty has ordered immediately to be paid upon such discovery." 66 He was shortly after caught, fined, pilloried, and imprisoned. Thus," says he, "was I a second time ruined; for by this affair I lost above £3500 sterling." While he was confined in Newgate, he occupied his time in correcting for the press a collection of his own writings, which was published in the course of the year; and he even amused himself by writing an Ode to the Pillory; of which he had so lately been made the unwilling acquaintance. Hence Pope's insulting verse, which classes De Foe with his Tory rival : Earless on high stood unabash'd De Foe, His Hymn to the Pillory, in rough and harsh iambics, has, like the True-born Englishman, and indeed all De Foe's poetry, a strong fund of manly satire, and we are mistaken if, in the lines which follow, the author does not successfully retort upon his prosecutors the shame at least of the punishment to which he had been subjected. They are in the spirit, though without the eloquence, of the gallant old cavalier, Lovelace. Stone walls do not a prison make, Nor iron bars a cage; Minds innocent and quiet take That for a hermitage. The hymn of De Foe commences thus: Hail! Hi'roglyphick State Machine, Men, that are men, can in thee feel no pain, Contempt, that false new word for shame, A shadow to amuse mankind, But never frights the wise or well-fix'd mind; Exalted on thy stool of state, What prospect do I see of future fate? Differ from our contracted sense; Hereby the errors of the town, That fools look out, and knaves look on. Not satisfied with this unpleasant subject for iambics, De Foe afterwards wrote a Hymn to the Gallows. But the chief object to which the author directed his mind, was the projection of The Review. The publication of this periodical work commenced in 4to, on the 19th February, 1704, and continued at the rate of two numbers a-week, till March, 1705, when an additional weekly number was published, and it was continued every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday, till May, 1713, forming in whole nine thick volumes. De Foe was the sole writer. This work treats of foreign and domestic intelligence, politics, and trade; but as our author foresaw that it was not likely to become popular unless amusing, he discusses various other topics, under the head of a Scandal Club; Love, Marriage, Poetry, Language, and the prevailing tastes and habits of the times. Neither did these occupations find sufficient employment for his active mind. While he was still in Newgate, (1704,) he published The Storm; or a collection of the most remarkable casualties which happened in the tempest, 26th November, 1703. Nor was this work a dry detail of disasters only, De Foe having taken the occasion, with his usual felicity, to inculcate the truths of religion, and the superintendency of Providence.* *The following account of this tremendous visitation is extracted from the records of the period. " November 26. About midnight began the most terrible About the end of 1704, when, as our author tells us, he lay ruined and friendless in Newgate, without hopes of deliverance, Sir Robert Harley, then Secretary of State, of whom De Foe had no previous personal knowledge, sent a verbal message to him, desiring to know "what he could do for him.” Our author, no doubt, made a suitable reply; in consequence of which, Sir Robert took an opportunity to represent to the Queen his present misery, and unmerited sufferings. Anne, however, did not immediately consent to his liberation, but storm that had been known in England; the wind W.S.W. attended with flashes of lightning. It uncovered the roofs of many houses and churches, blew down the spires of several steeples and chimneys, tore whole groves of trees up by the roots. The leads of some churches were rolled up like scrolls of parchment, and several vessels, boats, and barges, were sunk in the river of Thames; but the royal navy sustained the greatest damage, being just returned from the Straits; four third-rates, one secondrate, four fourth-rates, and many others of less force, were cast away upon the coast of England, and above fifteen hundred seamen lost, besides those that were cast away in merchant ships. The loss that London alone sustained was computed at one million sterling, and the city of Bristol lost to the amount of two hundred thousand pounds. Among the persons who were drowned was Rear-Admiral Beaumont. Upon this calamity the Commons addressed her Majesty, that she would give directions for rebuilding and repairing the royal navy; and that she would make some provision for the families of those seamen that perished in the storm, with which her Majesty complied." |