On the death of Queen Anne, in 1714, and the tri /mph of that party from which he had withdrawn, he lived in retirement till the year 1720, when he gave to the world a political pamphlet, relative to Ireland, entitled, " .1 Proposal for the universal use of Irish Linen." This work, while it gained him the enmity of the ministry, rendered him ex tremely popular in the eyes of his countrymen; and this popularity was further increased by his celebrated Letters, under the title of 111. B. Drapier, published in 1724, and written with a view of op posing the introduction of \Vood's copper coinage, the metal being so debased as to be worth only a third of its nominal value. " From this important era," says Johnson," he was the oracle of the tra ders, and the idol of the rabble. The Drapier was a sign; the Drapier was a health; and which way soever the eye or the ear was turned, some tokens were found of the nation's gratitude to the Drapier•" His political reputation and his political influence were now very high. But he had not meanwhile neglected other studies of an elegant or miscella neous nature; and, not to mention other publica tions, in 1727, appeared " Gulliver's Travels;" a production that was universally read and admired; and which does not seem to have lost any of the popularity which it so early obtained.
But amid his studies and his publications, another subject never ceased to engross a large share of his attention, and his name is connected in a most ex traordinary manner with the tender passion. The
story of Stella and Vanessa is known to every reader, and needs not to be repeated here. In this part of his life there is the same obstinacy and dis regard to the proprieties of society that marked his character in every other respect. Both these ladies predeceased him: events which successively made a deep impression on his mind, and had a ten dency to bring about that awful malady to which he had long been verging, and to which he at last fell a prey. The first stage of his disease was that of violent and furious lunacy. From this stage, ag gravated by severe bodily suffering, he passed to that of perfect idiotcy. During the course of three years he is known to have spoken only once or twice. At length he died without a struggle, on the 19th of October 1745, in the 78th year of his age.
Swift was a man of original genius, of varied but not profound learning, of fine taste, of great talents for wit and satire, capricious in his friendship, cha ritable to the poor, not mindful of favours, whim sical, obstinate, misanthropic, avaricious. The best edition of his works is that recently published by Sir W. Scott, with an excellent Life prefixed.
(T. lc)