reluctance, and on the express condition of being left to act according to his own judgment; and he frequently and loudly complained of the unhandsome treatment which he received on the occasion from some of Dr. Johnson's friends. Several times he was on the point of withdrawing his inscription wholly; and, indeed, he certainly would have done so but for the interposition of Sir William Scott (the present Lord Stowell), whose name Dr. Parr always pronounced with unusual veneration, and whom he considered as one of the most distinguished characters in Europe, for depth of understanding, correctness of taste, and integrity of principle. In speaking of Johnson as a poet, the doctor had used the words " probabili poetæ," and had congratulated himself, not merely on the propriety, but on the felicity of the expression, but neither the strength of his own conviction, nor the erudition with which he supported it by various passages from classical writers, was sufficient to overcome the prejudice of some of Johnson's admirers, who seem neither to have understood the propriety, nor to have felt the beauty of the expression. The Doctor at length substituted a passage which, however satisfactory to those gentlemen, and however splendid in itself, was supposed by the best critics to mar the whole composition. At the request of Lord Sheffield, Dr. Parr also wrote an epitaph on Mr. Gibbon; but, conscious of the danger to which an ecclesiastic must be exposed in attempting to do justice to the literary and intellectual merits of that celebrated infidel, he called in the advice of his friends Mr. Fox, and the learned Dr. Routh, upon his choice both of topics and of phraseology. Dr. Parr likewise wrote epitaphs on Richard Porson, Charles Fox, Edmund Burke, and William Pitt, which are said to be full of vigour and beauty, but which have not hitherto been presented to the public. Connected with this subject is an anecdote, which has been related of Dr. Parr and Lord Erskine. It is said, that at a dinner some years since, Dr. Parr, in ecstacies with the conversational powers of Lord Erskine, called out to him (though his "Dr. junior), "My Lord, I mean to write your epitaph!" Parr," replied the noble lawyer, "it is a temptation to commit suicide!" Of Dr. Parr's lapidary compositions we insert the two following; because they afford specimens of very different and almost opposite styles; and because they serve to show the real state of his feelings in the important relations both of pupil and of preceptor. H. S. P. Robertus Sumner, S. T. P. Coll. Regal. apud Cantab. olim Socius. Fuit huic præstantissimo Viro Nemo enim Aut in reconditis sapientiæ Studiis illo Aut in humanioribus literis limatior Insuper accedebant In Sententiis, vera ac perfecta eloquentia, Et gravitati aspersa urbanitas; Vitæ denique Ratio constans sibi, et ad Severeque exacta, Omnibus qui vel amico essent eo Doctrinæ, Ingenii, Virtutis justum Subite, eheu, atque immatura morte correptus, Prid. Id. Septemb. Anno Domini M,DCC,LXXI. Æt. suæ 41. P Α ΧΩ Joanni. Smitheman Qui. vix. Ann. xv. Mens. vIII. Dieb. Joannes. et. Margareta. Smitheman Unico. et. charissimo. filio Contra. Votum. posuerunt. His Dr. Parr's library, which he built on going to reside at Hatton, is a large and well-proportioned room. But as it was no longer capable of holding all his books, many of them have for a long time been distributed among other apartments. The doctor was always anxious to have it understood, that he never aspired to the character of a collector, and that in his purchase of books he was uniformly attentive to their use, rather than to their rarity; and to the importance of their contents, rather than to the elegance of their binding and of their type. For the best editions of classical writers, for the most useful and learned works in philosophy, metaphysics, and biblical criticism, for general taste in selection, and wide range of literature, a more valuable collection has probably never been made by any single scholar. manuscripts are said to be very numerous, and upon various subjects of verbal criticism, theology, and metaphysics. He often declared during his lifetime, that they were not in a state fit for publication; that many of them were illegible even to himself; and that he had most peremptorily desired his executors to destroy them after his death, without distinction, and even without inspection. Fortunately, however, Dr. Parr seems to have re-considered this subject; for he has left written directions for the positive publication of some, and the discretionary publication of other parts of his works; a duty which his executors will no doubt undertake with all the care and fidelity which the case requires. It is understood, that some of his manuscripts are already in the hands of his most confidential and judicious friends, with a view to this selection; which is likely to be rich, varied, and extensive, beyond general expectation. In the earlier part of his life he intended to publish an edition of Sophocles, and the matter which he prepared for that purpose was the result of his enquiries for many years. It was written in four volumes octavo, interleaved, and three volumes quarto; all crowded with observations; and containing, not only explanations of particular words and phrases, but general remarks on the Greek drama; on the style and metre of Sophocles, as distinguished from those of Eschylus and Euripides; and of the causes, progress, and variations of the dialects employed by the Greek tragedians. We hope this work, which occupied so much of Dr. Parr's time, will not be lost to the world. Of Dr. Parr's intended publications another is thus described in a letter to Mr. Nichols, dated April 16, 1786: "Henry Stephens's Treatise on the Dialects' is become exceedingly scarce and dear; it can be bought only with the glossary, and generally costs two guineas. Now, the great excellence and great utility of this work would, I am confident, procure very numerous purchasers, and the re-publication of it would be considered as a very high and important service to the literary world. In this opinion my learned friend Mr. Burgess concurs, and I have reason to think that our first luminary in Greek learning, Mr. Porson, is of the same opinion with us. "Will you undertake to re-publish it in an octavo form? My idea is, that it should be adapted not only to the use of scholars, but of schoolboys, and if you choose to undertake the work, I will write a small Latin preface, to recommend the publication, and to explain the purposes for which it is attempted. Of its rapid and extensive sale I am myself conC fident; and the only difficulty that ever hung on my mind was how to find a judicious, learned, and public-spirited printer? The successor of Mr. Bowyer is, on all accounts, the fittest person to pay this tribute to the learning and genius of Stephens. "I need not tell you how necessary it is for the press to be most carefully corrected. I am ready for my own part to revise once; and I will ask Mr. Burgess next week, at Oxford, to undertake the second revisal. The sheets can easily be conveyed by franks, I suppose; and if they can, I have many parliamentary friends on whose ready assistance I can depend. I should suppose that Burney would not refuse some aid; and my opinion is, that it is better to give two or three scholars a share in the business and credit of the work, than to conduct it in the usual way. "To-morrow I go to Oxford; and I proceed on Saturday to Hatton, in Warwickshire, where any letters you may favour me with, will reach me. I had thoughts of procuring some additions from later critics; but the work would swell to an enormous bulk. "I am, Sir, &c. "S. PARR. "If you write while I stay at Oxford, pray direct to me at Professor White's, Wadham College." In this letter Dr. Parr's learned ardour, and liberality towards other scholars are alike displayed. The proposal which he made was readily accepted: and on the 28th of May, the Doctor thus wrote from Hatton : "On receiving your last favour, which, from the slowness and irregularity of village conveyance, did not reach me for two or three days after its arrival at Warwick, I wrote to my learned friend Mr. Windham. Last night I returned from Hinckley, where I have been visiting some relations; I found there his letter, in which he is so good as to give us all pos sible assistance. "I expect Professor White next week to help me in putting up my books. "I yet have ordered no paper; but, as I am a staunch Foxite, I mean to order the English Chronicle. "I honour your spirit, and shall exert myself in making it known to every scholar in this kingdom by some means or other. "S. PARR." |