of any civil employment, and he complained that he wanted even money to buy books *.

He therefore refolved to try how far the favour of the publick extended, by soliciting a fubfcription to a verfion of the Iliad, with large notes.

To print by subscription was, for fome time, a practice peculiar to the English. The first confiderable work for which this expedient was employed is faid to have been Dryden's Virgil; and it had been tried again with great fuccefs when the Tatlers were collected into volumes.

There was reason to believe that Pope's attempt would be fuccefsful. He was in the full bloom of reputation, and was perfonally known to almost all whom dignity of employment or splendour of reputation had made eminent; he converfed indifferently with both parties, and never difturbed the publick with his political opinions; and it might be naturally expected, as each faction then boasted its literary zeal, that the great men, who on

other occafions practised all the violence of oppofition, would emulate each other in their encouragement of a poet who had delighted all, and by whom none had been offended.

With those hopes, he offered an English Iliad to fubfcribers, in fix volumes in quarto, for fix guineas; a fum, according to the value of money at that time, by no means inconfiderable, and greater than I believe to have been ever afked before. His proposal, however, was very favourably received, and the patrons of literature were bufy to recommend his undertaking, and promote his interest. Lord Oxford, indeed, lamented that fuch a genius fhould be wasted upon a work not original; but propofed no means by which he might live without it: Addison recommended caution and moderation, and advised him not to be content with the praise of half the nation, when he might be univerfally favoured.

The greatness of the defign, the popularity of the author, and the attention of the literary world, naturally raised fuch expectations of

the

the future fale, that the bookfellers made their offers with great eagerness; but the highest bidder was Bernard Lintot, who became proprietor on condition of fupplying, at his own expence, all the copies which were to be delivered to fubfcribers, or prefented to friends, and paying two hundred pounds for every

volume.

Of the Quartos it was, I believe, ftipulated that none should be printed but for the author, that the fubfcription might not be depreciated; but Lintot impreffed the fame pages upon a small Folio, and paper perhaps a little thinner; and fold exactly at half the price, for half a guinea each volume, books fo little inferior to the Quartos, that, by a fraud of trade, thofe Folios, being afterwards fhortened by cutting away the top and bottom, were fold as copies printed for the subfcribers,

Lintot printed fome on royal paper in Fofio for two guineas a volume; but of this experiment he repented, and his fon fold copies of the first volume with all their extent of margin for two fhillings,

It is unpleasant to relate that the bookfeller, after all his hopes and all his liberality, was, by a very unjust and illegal action, defrauded of his profit. An edition of the English Iliad was printed in Holland in Duodecimo, and imported clandeftinely for the gratification of those who were impatient to read what they could not yet afford to buy. This fraud could only be counteracted by an edition equally cheap and more commodious; and Lintot was compelled to contract his Folio at once into a Duodecimo, and lofe the advantage of an intermediate gradation. The notes, which in the Dutch copies were placed at the end of each book, as they had been in the large volumes, were now fubjoined to the text in the fame page, and are therefore more eafily confulted. Of this edition the fale was doubtless very numerous; but indeed great numbers were neceffary to produce confiderable profit.

Pope, having now emitted his proposals, and engaged not only his own reputation, but in fome degree that of his friends who patronifed his fubfcription, began to be frighted

at

at his own undertaking; and finding himself at first embarraffed with difficulties, which retarded and oppreffed him, he was for a time timorous and uneafy; had his nights disturbed by dreams of long journeys through unknown ways, and wished, as he said, that fomebody would hang him*.

This mifery, however, was not of long continuance; he grew by degrees more acquainted with Homer's images and expreffions, and practice increased his facility of verfification. In a fhort time he represents himself as dispatching regularly fifty verses a day, which would fhew him by an easy computation the termination of his labour,

His own diffidence was not his only vexation. He that asks a subscription soon finds that he has enemies, All who do not en-. courage him defame him. He that wants money will rather be thought angry than poor, and he that wishes to fave his money conceals his avarice by his malice. Addifon had hinted his fufpicion that Pope was too much a Tory; and fome of the Tories fuf