Books from Old Dominion University

[??] M. Burton

London April 1850

Mrs Fynes Webber

With the Author's kind regards

Lynn Thorndike. 19 April 1926

Easter Sunday 1731. Dover Street.

Dr. Terry of Xt. Church told my Ld. Oxford, Ld. Dupplin Thos. Harley, Mr. Wootton & me, that he was employed at Westminster School by Bp. Sprat about 1693 to read the MSS. of the History of the Earl of Clarendon; the 1st Vol. writt.n by the Earl in a bad hand, but all the Volumes were fair written by his Secretary; the MSS. was carried to Oxford, where the Bp. Dr. Aldrich, Mr. Smalbridge, Atterbury & Stratford prepared it for the Press, & did not alter any thing, only particles & parentheses, & E. of Rochester added about 14 lines of [Kg.s?] Escape from Spaniards to Breda out of his father's Manuscript; & there was omitted by the family about Queen's Government, where there is a text, "Wo to women &c. [dagger] he had given an Account of the Queen's asking at a Play, who that fat Man was, pointing to Hyde; the Kg. said, "it was he that did all the mischief."

[dagger] Sclater Bacon Esq.

[dagger] Vol. 3 p. 513.

In his preface says "our Saviour writ." L.

[A?] picture of Thos. Sclater Bacon [E----?] 1736/7 [at?] [Lock's?] auction room [C--?] Garden

Noble Authors . 2.16. - As an Historian [Ld?] Clarendon's majesty & eloquence, his power of painting characters, his knowledge of his Subject, rank him in the first class of writers - - - yet he has both great & little faults. Of the latter, his stories of Ghosts & omens are not to be defended by supposing He did not believe them himself: There can be no other reason for inserting them, nor is there any medium between believing and laughing at them. Perhaps even [his?] favourite character of Ld. Falkland takes too considerable a share in his history: one loves indeed the heart that believed till He made his friend the Hero of his Epic. His capital fault is, his whole work being a labored justification of King Charles. No Man ever delivered so much truth with so little sincerity. If He relate[d?] faults, some palliating epithet always slides in; & He has the art of breaking his darkest Shades with gleams of light that take off all impression of Horror. - - - - One may pronounce on D Clarendon is his double Capacity of Statesman & Historian, that he acted for Liberty, but wrote for Prerogative.

Mr Villiers told a Gentleman of my Acquaintance that Ld. Cornbury had left orders for no publication of the womanising part of Ld. Clarendon's down to his Banishment. The money that arose from the Sale of the Copy, to go towards building a riding School at Oxford, if agreeable to the

Heads of the Colleges.	Ld. Cornbury used to

'till he read his Ancestor's posthumous work above mentioned, but that he was quite of another Opinion then. 1753.

Walpole's Noble Authors V. 2. p. 19. Published of his Clarendon Ldship^ writing - "History of the Rebellion & Civil Wars in Ireland". Lond. [1725?] [Fol.?]

"History of the Rebellion." The first volume was printed at Oxford in Folio 1702; the 2d. 1703. 3d. 1704. It has been [sevl?] times reprinted since in 6 vols Octo. A French Translation was printed at the Hague in 1704 [?] 1709, Twelves.

His Ldship left besides in Mss. a 2d. part of his History. a performance long detained from (Tho' eagerly [advized?] by) and at last bequeathed to the Public by his Ldship's aimable Descendant & Heir of his Integrity, the late Ld. Hyde & Cornbury. Yet this important work has not yet seen the Light.

The University of Oxford [had?s?] accepted in full Convocation the remainder of this History, on condition to apply the profits arising from its publication to the establish[?]. of a [manage?] in the Univeristy. Dr. Bla[ck?]stone [?] Oct. 1758.

and the subject have been the [?] like [sentiment?]. [???]

x intemperabely denominated by L. C. [eut?] Tory writers C. T. Troy

NB to C[?] Character [?]ess, elegance, time [?] hav[?] [you?] this, [witrend?] them superior [?] all of the same [?]