and know whether his Defence be at Bristol; and would have his Collection of Poems, on account of the Preface;-The Plain-dealer *;'-all the Magazines that have any thing of his, or relating to him. "I thought my letter would be long; but it is now ended; and I am, sir, Yours, &c. SAM. JOHNSON. "The boy found me writing this almost in the dark, when I could not quite easily read yours. "I have read the Italian-nothing in it is well. "I had no notion of having any thing for the Inscription. I hope you do not think I kept it to extort a price. I could think of nothing, till today. If you could spare me another guinea for the History, I should take it very kindly, to-night; but if you do not, I shall not think it an injury.I am almost well again." 11. " SIR, [No date nor signature.] "You did not tell me your determination about the Soldier's Letter §,' which I am confident was never printed. I think it will not do by itself, or in any other place so well as the Magazine Extraordinary. If you will have it at all, I believe you do not think I set it high; and I will be glad if what you give, you will give quickly. on the author of Savage's Life. "How could that be?" says Harte: "none were present but you and I." Cave replied, "You might observe I sent a plate of victuals behind the skreen. There skulked the Biographer, one Johnson, whose dress was so shabby that he durst not make his appearance. He overheard our conversation; and your applauding his performance delighted him exceedingly." *Published in 1724, and containing some account of Savage. † Articles, perhaps, intended for the Magazine. This, Mr. Malone thinks, might perhaps have been the Runic Inscription, Gent. Mag. XII. 132. But I much doubt it, though unable to ascertain what it really was. § This must have been something of a friend of Johnson's, recommended by him to Cave. Had it been his own, he would not have said, "I am confident was never printed;" but what it was I know not, and suspect it was never printed at all. VOL. V. D * You "You need not be in care about something to print; for I have got the State Trials, and shall extract Layer, Atterbury, and Macclesfield, from them, and shall bring them to you in a fortnight; after which I will try to get the South Sea Report." In a conversation with Boswell, talking of Ghosts, Dr. Johnson said, "he knew one friend, who was an honest and a sensible man, who told him he had seen a Ghost-old Mr. Edward Cave, the printer at St. John's Gate." He said, "Mr. Cave did not like the talk of it, and seemed to be in great horrour whenever it was mentioned.”—B. "Pray, Sir, what does he say was the appearance?"-J. " Why, Sir, something of a shadowy being*." "His friend Edward Cave having been mentioned, he told us, Cave used to sell 10,000 of the Gentle man's Magazine; yet such was then his minute attention and anxiety that the sale should not suffer the smallest decrease, that he would name a particular person who he heard had talked of leaving off the Magazine, and would say, 'Let us have something good next month!"-Mr. Cave's attention to the Magazine may indeed truly be termed unremitting; for, as Dr. Johnson once observed to me, "he scarcely ever looked out of the window, but with a view to its improvement." Of Mr. Cave and his early associates, so singular a character has been drawn by Sir John Hawkins, that it would be injustice to blend it with these desultory Anecdotes; but it shall be given entire at the end of this article. A more amiable and certainly a more candid account of him is given in a recent publication : "Mr. Cave was much connected with the literary world; and his friendship for Mrs. Carter was the means of introducing her to many Authors and Scholars of note; among these was Mr. (afterwards Dr.) Johnson §." Boswell's Life of Johnson, vol. II. p. 175. + Ibid. vol. III. p. 344. ‡ See p. 49. By § Pennington's Life of Mrs. Carter, p. 26. By a letter from Mr. Cave to Dr. Birch, Nov. 28, 1739, we find that " Johnson advised Mrs. Carter to undertake a translation of Boethius de Consolatione,' because there is prose and verse; and to put her name to it when published *" In a letter to that lady, Jan. 14, 1756, Johnson says, "To every joy is appended a sorrow. The name of Mrs. Carter introduces the memory of Cave. Poor dear Cave! I owed him much: for to him I owed that I have known you. He died, I am afraid, unexpectedly to himself: yet surely unburthened with any great crime; and for the positive duties of Religion, I have no reason to condemn him for neglect." A poetical correspondence between Mr. Cave, Mr. Bowyer, and Mr. Richardson, has appeared in a former volume. Two other of Mr. Cave's attempts at verse are here given: The following billet was to a typographical friend: I hope you'll excuse, What favour is it? That me you will visit, Who cannot stir out of my room. * Boswell, vol. I. p. 113.-Since this was written, "The New Boethius," on a similar plan, has been published by the late Mr. Archdeacon Shepherd, in 1806. + Pennington, p. 27. See vol. II. p. 75. § Mr. John Hughs was for many years an eminent and worthy Printer; and ranked very high in his profession. From his press almost the whole of the valuable and numerous publications of the Dodsleys were produced, and by him was laid the foundation of a business since brought to a high degree of prosperity. After a life of singular industry, integrity, and benevolence, he died Sept. 30, 1771, at the age of 68; and was buried on the 7th of October, in the vault underneath St. Giles's church. He left a widow, with manners as placid as his own, who survived him several years; and an only son, who, after following the laudable example which had been set him, retired from the fatigues of business, possessed of a fortune very honourably acquired, at a period of life when he was capable of enjoying the benefits of it, and which it is the hearty wish of one of his oldest friends that he may long continue to enjoy. D2 I hope I hope you are stout, And therefore the favour I crave, The sooner the better: Thus ends a good letter From your humble, très humble, E. CAVE. Monday, Dec. 12, 1734, St. John's Gate." In a poetical epistle he thus also addressed another intimate friend, in October 1749: To Mr. MOSES BROWNE*. "Good Moses, say, what will you have And send your wife some fine fresh fish? Yours, EDWARD CAVE." * Of whom see some account in p. 50. This was certainly good eneouragement to a Poet. Mr. Mr. BROWNE's Answer. "Good Master Cave, my generous friend, How soon Heaven may reverse the scene; Before such pleasing prospects rise; I leave to Him who is all-wise, Who, sitting at the helm above, Works all things for our good-through love. And trusts to Him for clearer days. Unclouded may my exit be, Such be the end to thee and me! May this our mutual labours erown! So prays Your grateful MOSES BROWNE." It will not be foreign to the purport of this Memoir, if I transcribe two letters from the lately published "Correspondence of Mr. Richardson." "MR. CAVE, Aug. 9, 1750. "THOUGH I have constantly been a purchaser of the Ramblers* from the first five that you was so kind as to present me with, yet I have not had time to read any farther than those first five, till within these two or three day's past. But I can go no farther than the thirteenth, now before me, till I have acquainted you, that I am inexpressibly pleased with them. I remember not any thing in the Spectators, in those Spectators that I read, for I never found time (alas! my life has been a trifling busy one) to read them all, that half so much struck me; and yet I think of them highly. * The Rambler was undoubtedly "the paper" referred to in the undated letter in p. 25, of which Mr. Dodsley had so favourable an opinion. "I hope |