fure ftep by step, requires at once vigour and caution. By what method he proceeded in this work, may be known from his preface and his notes. Some of his first thoughts were retracted in the fubfequent editions: but Dr. Pearce has generally pleased the public, though he found it difficult to please himself.

When the church of St. Martin's was rebuilt, Dr. Pearce preached a fermon at the confecration, which he afterwards printed, and accom panied with an Effay on the Origin and Progrefs of Temples, traced from the rude ftones, which were first used for altars, to the noble ftructure of Solomon, which he confiders, as the first temple completely covered. In this differtation he declares his conviction of the genuineness of the relation attributed to Sanchoniatho; and clears the difficulties which embar. rafs his opinion, by folutions drawn from the Newtonian chronology, of which only an abstract had been then published. Yet he does not think Sanchoniatho of much authority; but imputes his inaccuracy and barreness to misinformation, and want of materials, and regards his book, as one of the venerable reliques of rude antiquity, and the work of one, who had miffed the truth, rather than concealed it.

His obfervations on that build. ing, which is called the temple of Dagon, removes part of the difficulty which prefents itself in the narration of the manner in which Samfon deftroyed it.

In 1725, the Earl refigned the great feal, which refignation was foon followed with an impeachment by the house of commons fent up to the lords, The ground of

this impeachment, according to Dr. Pearce, was as follows: In the South Sea year, the money of the fuitors in chancery was, by ancient custom, ordered by the lord chancellor to be paid to the mafter in chancery, in court. Mr. Dormer, one of the mafters, had trafficked with the fuitors money in 'ChangeAlley, and, dying foon after, his accounts were found to be deficient 60,000l. This raised a violent commotion againit Lord Maccles field, efpecially among fome who had perfonal refentments. The late king was then Prince of Wales, had lived feparately from his father, as he had been ordered to do, and the education of his children had been detained from him, upon an opinion then given by ten of the twelve judges, called together, at his majesty's command, by Lord Macclesfield, upon this question: Whether the education of the grandchildren did belong to their grandfather, as fovereign, or to the Prince of Wales as father? The answer of the judges not being pleafing to the prince, he bore it with refentment; and when the house of commons took the affair of the fuitors money into confideration, all the members who paid their court at Leicester Houfe joined in the outcry, and came into the impeachment. Lord Macclesfield was tried by the houfe of lords, was declared guilty, and received a fe vere judgment. He was fined 30,000l. (though he had before paid 10,000l. into chancery) upon an unrepealed ancient ftatute, and directed to be confined in the Tower till the money fhould be paid; which was foon done. The king, fully fenfible of the hardship of the fentence, and that it had

been incurred chiefly on his account, informed Lord Macclesfield, that he intended to repay the fum out of his privy purfe, as fast as he could fpare the money. Within twelve months his lord hip received 1000!. and the next year a meflage from Sir Robert Walpole informed him, that he might fend for 2000l. more; but the king's death happening before his lordship fent for the latter fum, the former was all he ever received from the intended bounty of his gracious master.

Lord Macclesfield lived to the year 1732, and then died of a fuppreffion of urine. Upon his afking if his phyfician was gone, and being told that he was, he replied, And I am going too, but I will clofe my eye-lids myfelf, which he did, and in a few moments expired. After feveral difappointments, the deanry of Winchester becoming vacant, Dr. Pearce was appointed dean in 1739, and in the year 1744 he was elected prolocutor of the lower house of convocation for the province of Canterbury. His friends now began to think of him for the epifcopal dignity, but Mr. Dean's language rather declined it. However, after feveral difficulties had been started and removed, he confented to accept the bishoprick

of Bangor, and promised Lord Hardwicke to "do it with a good grace." He accordingly made proper acknowledgments of the royal goodness, and was confecrated Feb. 12, 1748. Upon the declining ftate of health of Dr. Wilcocks, Bifhop of Rochefter, the Bishop of Bangor was feveral times applied to by Archbishop Herring to accept of Rochester, and the deanry of Westminster, in exchange for Bangor, but the bishop then firft fignified his defire to obtain leave to refign and retire to a private life. His lordship, however, upon being preffed, fuffered himself to be prevailed upon :

" My Lord, (faid he to the Duke of Newcastle,) your grace offers thefe dignities to me in fo generous and friendly a manner, that I promife you to accept them." Upon the death of Bishop Wilcocks he was accordingly promoted to the fee of Rochester, and deanry of Westminster, in 1756. Bishop Sherlock died in 1761, and Lord Bath offered his intereft for getting the Bishop of Rochefter appointed to fucceed him in the diocese of London, but the bishop told his lordship, that he had determined never to be Bishop of London, or Archbishop of Canterbury.

In the year 1763, his lordship being feventy-three years old, and finding himself lefs fit for the bufinefs of his ftations as bishop and dean, informed his friend, Lord Bath, of his intention to refign both, and live in a retired manner upon his private fortune. Lord Bath undertook to acquaint his majefty, who named a day and hour, when the bishop was admitted alone into the closet. He told the king, that he wished to have fome interval between the fatigues of bufinefs and eternity, and defired his majefty to confult proper perfons about the propriety and legality of his refignation. In about two months the king informed him, that Lord Mansfield faw no objection, and that Lord Northington, who had been doubtful, on farther confideration, thought that the request might be complied with. Unfortunately for the bishop, Lord Bath applied for Bishop Newton to fucceed. This alarmed the miniftry, who thought that no dignities fhould be obtained but through their hands. They, therefore, oppofed the refignation, and his majekty was informed that the bishops difliked the defign. His majefty fent to him again, and at a third audience told him, that he muft think no more of refigning. The bishop replied, Sir, I am all duty and fubmiffion," and then retired.*

In 1768 he obtained leave to refign, the deanry; in 1773 he loft his lady, and after fome months of lingering decay, he died at Little Ealing, June 29, 1774. Being afked one day how he could live with fo little nutriment? I live faid he, upon the recollection of an innocent and well-fpent life, which is my only fuftenance.

This eminent prelate distinguished himself in every part of his life by the virtues proper to his ftation. His literary abilities, and applica. tion to facred and philological learning, will appear by the following catalogue of his works. A Thanksgiving Sermon for Prefervation from the Plague, before the Lord-Mayor and Aldermen, 1723.-A Farewell Sermon, on quitting the Rectory of St. Bartho lomew's, 1723-4.-A Sermon at the Confecration of St. Martin's Church, O&. 20, 1726.-A Sermon on the Propagation of the Gospel, 1729-30.-A Sermon on Self-Murder, 1734-A Sermon on the Subject of Charity-Schools, 1735.-Concio ad Synodum Cleri, in Provincia Cant. habita, 1741.A Spittal Sermon, at St. Bride's, 1743.-A Sermon before the Lords, Jan. 30, 1748-9.-A Faft Sermon before the Lords in Westminster Abbey, March 14, 1760.-A Jubilee Sermon, in ditto, June 3, 1760.-Three Letters in the Guar dian and Spectator, mentioned.

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above. Cicero de Oratore, 1716, 1732, 1746, 1771.-Longinus de Sublimitate, 1724, 1732, 1733, 1752, 1762, 1773.-Cicero de Officiis, 1745, 1761.-An Account of Trinity College, Cambridge, pamph. 1720. Epitole due de editione N. T. à Bentleio fufceptá, de corruptis epiftolarum N. T. locis, &c. 1721.-A Letter to the clergy of the Church of England, on occafion of the Bishop of Ro. chefter's commitment to the Tower, 2d ed. 1772.-The fame in French. -Miracles of Jefus vindicated, 1727 and 1728.-A Review of the Text of Milton, 1733.--Two Letters against Dr. Middleton, occafioned by the doctor's letter to Waterland, on the publication of his treatife, intitled Scripture Vindicated, 3d edit. 1752.

Since his death a commentary with notes on the four Evangelifts and the Acts of the Apoftles; together with a new tranflation of St. Paul's firft Epiftle to the Corinthians, with a paraphrafe and notes, have been published, with his life prefixed, from original MOS. in 2 vol. 4to. by his Lordhip's chaplain, John Derby, A.M.

Extracts from the Life of David

Hume, Efq; written by himself.

Thefe Memoirs, as we are told in an Advertisement by the Editor, were written by Mr. Hume, a few Months before his Death, and in a Codicil to his Will they are order ed to be prefixed to the next Edition of bis Works. We flatter ourselves therefore that they will not be unacceptable to our Readers, as well

on account of the Source from which they are derived, as forming an authentic Supplement to the Account ave gave of the Author in our laft Volume.*

T

is difficult for a man to speak long of himself without vanity; therefore, I thall be fhort. It may be thought an inftance of vanity that I pretend at all to write my life; but this narrative hall contain little more than the history of my writings; as, indeed, almoft all my life has been spent in lite rary purfuits and occupations. The first fuccefs of most of my writings was not fuch as to be an object of vanity.

I was born the 26th of April 1711, old ftyle, at Edinburgh.1 paffed through the ordinary courfe of education with fuccefs, and was feized very carly with a paffion for literature, which has been the rul ing paffion of my life, and the great fource of my enjoyments. My ftudious difpofition, my fobriety, and my induftry, gave my family a notion that the law was a proper profeffion for me; but I found an unfurmountable averfion to every thing but the purfuits of philofophy and general learning; and while they fancied I was poring upon Voet and Vinnius, Cicero and Virgil were the authors which I was fecretly devouring.

My very flender fortune, however, being unfuitable to this plan of life, and my health being a little broken by my ardent application, I was tempted or rather forced, to make a very feeble trial for entering into a more active fcene of life. In 1734, I went to Briftol, with fome recommen

dations

dations to eminent merchants, but in a few months found that fcene totally unfuitable to me. I went over to France with a view of profecuting my ftudies in a country retreat; and I there laid that plan of life, which I have steadily and fuccefsfully pursued.

During my retreat in France, firft at Reims, but chiefly at La Fleche, in Anjou, I compofed my Treatife of Human Nature. After paffing three years very agreeably in that country, I came over to London in 1737. In the end of 1738, I published my Treatife, and immediately went down to my mother and my brother, who lived at his country-house, and was employing himself very judiciously and fuccefsfully in the improvement of his fortune.

Never literary attempt was more unfortunate than my Treatife of Human Nature. It fell dead-born from the prefs, without reaching fuch diftinction as even to excite a murmur among the zealots. But being naturally of a cheerful and fanguine temper, I very foon recovered the blow, and profecuted with great ardour my ftudies in the country. In 1742, I printed at Edinburgh the first part of my Effays: the work was favourably received, and foon made me entirely forget my former difappoint

ment.

In 1745, I received a letter from the Marquis of Annandale, invit ing me to come and live with him in England; I found alfo, that the friends and family of that young nobleman were defirous of putting him under my care and direction, for the ftate of his mind and health required it. I lived with him a twelvemonth. My appointments

during that time made a confiderable acceffion to my fmall fortune. I then received an invitation from General St. Clair to attend him as a fecretary to his expedition, which was at firft meant against Canada, but ended in an incurfion on the coast of France. Next year, to wit, 1747, I received an invitation from the General to attend him in the fame flation in his military embaffy to the courts of Vienna and Turin. I then wore the uniform of an officer, and was introduced at thefe courts as aidde-camp to the General, along with Sir Harry Erkine and Captain Grant, now General Grant.

I had always entertained a notion that my want of fuccefs in publishing the Treatife of Human Nature, had proceeded more from the manner than the matter, and that I had been guilty of a very ufual indifcretion, in going to the prefs too early. I, therefore, caft the first part of that work anew in the Enquiry concerning Human Understanding, which was published while I was at Turin. But this piece was at first little more fuccefsful than the Treatife of Human Nature. On my return from Italy, I had the mortification to find all England in a ferment, on account of Dr. Middleton's Free Enquiry, while my performance was entirely overlooked and neglected. A new edition, which had been published at London of my Effays, moral and political, met not with a much better reception.

Such is the force of natural temper, that thefe difappointments made little or no impreffion on me. I went down in 1749, and lived two years with my brother at his country-houfe, for my mother was

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