LETTER XCVII.

Mr. BINGHAM to Dr. CHARLETT.

HOND. SIR,

"Ecclesiastical Antiquities.

I SENT you the 2d. part of the Scholast. Hist. of Lay Baptism, which I desire

Yet he escaped into France, where he resided for some time under the assumed name of Philips. Whatever Carte's political principles and conduct may have been, during his stay in France, he seems to have devoted himself entirely to literary pursuits, gaining access to all public and private libraries, in order to collect materials for a new edition of THUANUS, as well as to transcribe all papers of value and authenticity relative to the history of Great Britain, In the mean time Queen Caroline, hearing a favourable report of Carte's pursuits and abilities, exerted herself to pro cure his safe return, which she effected much to the advantage of our English history, for in 1735 and 1736 he published his Life of the Duke of Ormonde, in three folio volumes, and two years after (1738) issued proposals for a History of England, in which he was supported by several persons of consideration as well as some few public bodies. The first volume of this valuable work appeared in 1747, the second in 1750, the third in 1751, and the fourth, reaching to the year 1654, in 1755 (after the author's death.) It was his intention to have continued it to the Restoration, had not his death, which happened April 2, 1754, at Caldecot house, near Abingdon, prevented the design. He was buried April 11, at Yattenden in Berkshire.

Carte's diligence in collecting materials for his History, and

you to accept as a testimony of my respect though the subject should happen to be disagreeable to your opinion. I still preserve my old friends and their favour, the Bishop of Rochester, &c. though we differ in our sentiments upon this point; and though I meet with some rebukes, as you find in the preface, from rude persons, yet they are trifles to me who am conscious of nothing but defending the Churches practice. My last journey to London proved very successful. successful. I waited upon my Lord Treasurer, without any other introduction but my book in my hand. He received me very kindly, and invited me to dine with him the next day, when he surprised me before dinner with a present of a bank bill of an 1001. as an encouragement to go on with the Antiquities of the Church, with which he expresses himself very much pleased, I believe I am obliged to the kind offices of Dr,

his accuracy in transmitting them to posterity, cannot be too highly spoken of. His work will always stand high in the estimation of those who understand the subject, on account of the authorities he has adduced for every fact he narrates, or opinion he offers. Party prejudice ran high against the author and his book, but the real value of the History and the high abilities of the man will stand the test of future ages, and render it a work of infinite value to such as prefer facts to fiction, and who rather desire to know what our ancestors actually did do, than what they ought to have done. When the above letter was written, Carte was reader at the Abbey Church, in Bath.

Arbuthnot, who has been very friendly in recom mending me to my Lord upon his personal acquaintance, and I beg of you when you see him next, to give him thanks in my name for his kind remembrance of me. I desire you also to give my service to the Dean of Ch. Church and Dr. Potter when you see them. My respects to all the society. I am,

Your affect. Fr. and humble servt.

Winton, Nov. 9, 1713.

Jos. BINGHAM.*

LETTER XCVIII.

Dr. HICKES to Dr. CHARLETT.

Hickes's Thesaurus.

St. Innocent's, 1713.

DEAR SIR,

I GIVE you all hearty thanks for the great and seasonable kindness you have done me in getting 5 copies of my Thesaurus taken off my hands, and I pray you to give my respective thanks and acknowledgments to those very kind and obliging gentlemen, who are my friends so much, as to take them for their

* See page 207,

College Libraries.

Were I able, I would go

with the remainder of my copies to Paris, where they are much wanted. Monsr. L'Abbé Gautier made me hope, that he would get them put into all the libraries of the French Monasteries, but he hath failed me, and I wrote almost 3 months ago to Sir Andrew Fountain at Paris, who sent me word that they wanted my book there, but I have not heard from him. I shall in a little time write again to you. In the mean time I subscribe, as I shall ever be, Dear Sir,

Your most obliged humble Servt.

GEO. HICKES.

LETTER XCIX.

From the same to the same.

Hickes's Thesaurus.-Vindication of the Old Abbots.

Dec, 29, 1713.

DEAR SIR,

I NOW give my own and my wife's most hearty thanks for the noble present you sent last Saturday indeed it was a present fit for a prince, and such a one as I never saw of the kind before.

By this time I hope you have received the five books. They are indeed of the lesser paper, but may very well pass for those in the greater, if

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not compared together. The public Libraries throughout the nation, except the Bodleian,* have no other. Those in the greater having been sold for the libraries of princes, and the private libraries of great men, and others who had a mind to them. Of the six which I told Mr. Bishop I had in the great paper, one is reserved for my Lord Treasurer, another for the Spanish Embassador at his return, to be put in the Escurial Library, and a third I reserve for myself; but if any of your friends will have any of the other three at the price viz, five guineas, they may. When Palthenius, the learned German, saw the book in the less paper, he cried out with admiration to Mr. Thwaites, who shewed it him, Per Deum, nihil Gallia sub auspiciis Ludovici Magni magnificentius aut augustius edidit.

I desired Mr. Bishop to tell you, that the common price of my book in the lesser paper was three guineas; but I never set any price to Colleges or other Societies.

I think myself very much obliged to those worthy persons, who remembered me with so much kindness at your lodgings, and I pray give my humble service to them all. I am glad of the daily additions which are sent in for the vindica

* The Bodleian Library possesses a very fine copy of this valuable book, on the large paper. It was given by the author, and stands at F. 1. 10, 11; Th.