The Prose Works of Jonathan Swift, D.D., Vol. X.

The Prose Works of Jonathan
Swift, Vol. X.

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Vol. X.
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Title: The Prose Works of Jonathan Swift, Vol. X.
Author: Jonathan Swift
Release Date: July 28, 2004 [EBook #13040]
Language: English
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BOHN'S STANDARD LIBRARY
THE PROSE WORKS OF JONATHAN SWIFT
VOL. X
[Illustration: _Jonathan Swift on the bust by Rouldiac in Trinity
College Dublin]
THE PROSE WORKS
OF

JONATHAN SWIFT, D.D.
EDITED BY
TEMPLE SCOTT
VOL. X
HISTORICAL WRITINGS
1902

INTRODUCTION
Of late years, that is to say, within the last thirty odd years, there has
existed a certain amount of doubt as to whether or no the work known
to us as "The History of the Four Last Years of the Queen," was really
the product of Swift's pen. That a work of this nature had occupied
Swift during his retirement at Windsor in 1713, is undoubted. That the
work here reprinted from the edition given to the world in 1758, "by an
anonymous editor from a copy surreptitiously taken by an anonymous
friend" (to use Mr. Churton Collins's summary), is the actual work
upon which Swift was engaged at Windsor, is not so certain. Let us for
a moment trace the history of what is known of what Swift did write,
and then we shall be in a better position to judge of the authenticity of
what we have before us.
All that we know of this work is gathered from Swift's correspondence,
as published by Sir Walter Scott in his edition of Swift's Works issued
in 1824. The first reference there made is in a note from Dr. William
King to Mrs. Whiteway, from which we gather that Swift, towards the
end of the year 1736, was meditating the publication of what he had
written in 1713. "As to the History," writes King, "the Dean may be
assured I will take care to supply the dates that are wanting, and which
can easily be done in an hour or two. The tracts, if he pleases, may be
printed by way of appendix. This will be indeed less trouble than the
interweaving them in the body of the history, and will do the author as
much honour, and answer the purpose full as well."
This was written from Paris, under date November 9th, O.S., 1736. It
can easily be gathered from this that the tracts referred to are the tracts
on the same period which Swift wrote at the time in defence of the
Oxford ministry. They are given in the fifth volume of this edition.
On December 7th, 1736, King was in London, and he immediately
writes to Swift himself on the matter of the History. "I arrived here

yesterday," he says, "and I am now ready to obey your commands. I
hope you are come to a positive resolution concerning the History. You
need not hesitate about the dates, or the references which are to be
made to any public papers; for I can supply them without the least
trouble. As well as I remember, there is but one of those public pieces
which you determined should be inserted at length; I mean Sir Thomas
Hanmer's Representation; this I have now by me. If you incline to
publish the two tracts as an Appendix to the History, you will be
pleased to see if the character given of the Earl of Oxford in the
pamphlet of 1715 agrees with the character given of the same person in
the History.[1] Perhaps on a review you may think proper to leave one
of them quite out. You have (I think) barely mentioned the attempt of
Guiscard, and the quarrel between Rechteren and Mesnager. But as
these are facts which are probably now forgot or unknown, it would not
be amiss if they were related at large in the notes; which may be done
from the gazettes, or any other newspapers of those times. This is all I
have to offer to your consideration...."
[Footnote 1: See note on page 95 of this volume.]
There is thus no doubt left as to which were the tracts referred to by
King, and as to the desire of Swift to include Sir Thomas Hanmer's
Representation--two points that are important as evidence for the
authenticity of the edition issued by Lucas in 1758.
Towards the middle of 1737, it must