Laud, who got him elected a fellow of All Souls. When the king retired to Oxford, on account of the troubles, Birkenhead began the Mercurius Aulicus, which so pleased the king that he got him appointed Reader or Professor of Moral Philosophy. Being turned out by the parliamentary ascendency, he went to London, where he was several times imprisoned, and lived by his wits, in helping young gentlemen out at dead lifts, in making poems, songs, and amorous epistles to their respective mistresses, &c. On the Restoration, times mended with him. He became successively Doctor of Civil Law, member of parliament, knight, a Master of Requests and of the Facul ties, and member of the Royal Society. He died in 1679.

Mercurius Britannicus, Mercurius Pragmaticus, and Mercurius Politicus, were all written by Marchmont Nedham, a native of Oxfordshire, who was educated at All Souls college, and afterwards went to London, where he officiated as a schoolmaster or usher at Merchant Tailors. He belonged subsequently to Gray's Inn, where he obtained a comfortable subsistence, until the commencement of the parliamentary war, when, soon siding, says the author, with the rout and scum of the people, he made them weekly sport by railing at all that was noble and intelligent, in his paper called Mercurius Britannicus; wherein his aim was to sacrifice some noble lord, or even the king himself, to the beast with many heads. This prodigy of editorial consistency, however, was either bribed or persecuted into loyalty, since he afterwards was introduced to king Charles, kneeled down, and begged his forgiveness, and had the honour to kiss his majesty's hand. He then attacked his old friends, the Presbyterians, in Mercurius Pragmaticus, for which he was caught, im

prisoned in Newgate, and escaped with his ears, through the interposition of Lenthall, the Speaker, and Bradshaw, President of the High Court, which brought Charles to the block. These obtained his pardon, I suppose, on condition of his once more changing sides. Accordingly, he commenced a new journal, under the title of Mercurius Politicus, in which he treated the cavaliers with as much severity as he had formerly done the Presbyterians. His writings had great influence on the popular feelings; for he was a good scholar, a poet, and a great wag, witty, humorous, and conceited. The royal party pitied him while he continued on their side, but afterwards, he was so much hated by them, that, according to our author, there were many, even in his time, who could not endure to hear Nedham's name mentioned. He died in 1678.

The Mercurius Britannicus was published once a week, on Monday, from 1643 to 1647, when the Mercurius Pragmaticus, for king Charles, was commenced and ended shortly afterwards, by Nedham again changing sides, and joining his old friends, the Presbyterians, or people. The next series, the Mercurius Politicus, it is said, contained many essays against monarchy, and in support of a free state; so much so, that the author was more than once stopped by the interference of the council of state. Their last order suppressed the paper for the future, in consequence of which, Muddiman and Dury began the publication of a semi-weekly paper, called the Parliamentary Intelligencer. To this succeeded the Mercurius Publicus, which was continued by Dury till 1663, when Roger L'Estrange took charge of it, and changed the title successively to the Public Intelligencer and The News. These continued till 1665, when L'Estrange gave them up, in consequence

of the publication of other and cheaper semi-weekly papers. These were the Oxford Gazette, by Henry Muddiman, afterwards called the London Gazette, when the court removed to London, and placed under the superintendence of Williamson, under-secretary of state, who employed Charles Perrot, A. M. to do the business under him, till the year 1671. From that time to the period of Wood's writing, they were, he says, constantly written by the under secretaries of state, and so continued.

As the progress of intelligence, and the reception of more free principles prepared the minds of the people to become interested in the affairs of government, newspapers and periodical journals continued to multiply, until it became impossible to keep an account of their successive appearance. Magazines, reviews, and political, and scientific, and literary, and philosophical journals multiplied apace, until the present time, when our daily opinions can scarcely be said to depend upon any other basis, than the varying interests and temporary supremacy of some one or other of these periodical or diurnal oracles. It is well for us, indeed, that those fundamental rules, those moral axioms, on which the relative duties of man to man, and man to society rest, are beyond the reach of the caprices of fashion, or the schemes of politicians; else we should be in danger of having no stationary land-marks, no God Terminus in morals, to designate either our rights or our duties.

I must not forget to tell you, there is no place in all Christendom, where they say their prayers so fast as at Oxford.

LETTER V.

London.

DEAR BROTHER,

IN In my last I believe I forgot to inform you of a curious fact recorded concerning Oxford, in the very tedious, particular, and prosing accounts of those various" Progresses" made by Queen Elizabeth, at various times, through different parts of England, by which she reaped such harvests of popularity, and, what pleased her quite as well, lived at free quarters. There is certainly something servile in the nature of civilized man. An Indian will turn his back on any thing which might be supposed to challenge his admiration among civilized people, because he considers it a sort of acknowledgment of his inferiority, to wonder. Only, however, let a great personage come among a refined people, and they will follow, and shout at his heels, and wonder, and be delighted beyond measure, whenever he smiles, bows, or exhibits any of those ordinary condescensions which gentleman usually pay to their inferiors. The good folks will pardon a hundred acts of oppression in consideration of a bow and a smile.

But to my story. It is recorded that Queen Elizabeth, sometime in 1556, visited Oxford, where she was royally feasted for a whole week. "The

day after," says the writer of the Progress," she took her leave, and was conducted by the heads

as far as Shotover Hill, when the Earl of Liecester gave her notice, that they had accompanied her to the limits of their jurisdiction. From hence, casting her eyes back upon Oxford with all possible marks of tenderness and affection, she bade them farewell. The Queen's countenance had such an effect upon the diligence of this learned body, that within a few years after, it produced more shining instances of real worth, than had ever been sent abroad, at the same time in any age whatsoever." This is one of the most marvellous effects of the Queen's countenance I remember; it shows how complaisant even genius and learning are, in countries where the people are brought up with a proper notion of the "divine right of kings." A mere visit to Oxford awakened all the Muses, and inspired not only learning, but "worth," in this ancient seminary of loyalty. Oxford, with all its beauties, is one of the dullest places I ever visited; and had not the Tailor given it some additional interest, I should have been heartily tired with the sameness of every thing I saw. In leaving it, I had a view of the village of Cumnor, which has lately become noted as the scene of part of the romance of Kenilworth. I did not visit it; the scenes described by the "Great Unknown" are not yet classical, and I do not think they ever will be.

From hence to Worcester, nothing particular occurred, and I shall reserve, till a future opportunity, my observations on what I saw, at the different places where I stopped occasionally, and spent from one to three days, in making inquiries on particular subjects. There were as usual several fine seats, and one in particular at Dickeley, where I was told were some valuable pictures; but knowing the price one must pay in money and patience for these treats, I avoided all