Goldsmith was under arrest, succeeded in getting for him at once 607., but which was not published until 1766. The "Traveller" appeared at the end of 1764 and, in the same year, his ballad of the "Hermit." In the meanwhile he had published his "Life of Beau Nash," "Letters from a Nobleman to his Son," and other hasty works and compilations, and done much other booksellers' work, for the purpose of immediate profit. His comedy of the "Good-natured Man," was brought out at Covent Garden in the beginning of 1768. It had been previously declined by Garrick, and did not meet with any decided success, though Dr. Johnson pronounced it to be the best comedy which had appeared since "The Provoked Husband." In 1770 he published his "Deserted Village," and in the same year entered into engagements for writing his histories of Rome, Greece, and England. On the establishment of the Royal Academy of Painting, in 1770, Goldsmith was appointed professor of ancient history in the institution. In 1773 he appeared a second time as a dramatic author, and now, with very great success. Dr. Johnson said of "She Stoops to Conquer," that "he knew of no comedy for many years that had so exhilarated an audience, that had answered so much the great end of comedy-making an audience merry." Its success was unequivocal, and it ran, without intermission, to the end of the season, and was resumed at the opening of the following one. One of his last publications was a History of the Earth and Animated Nature," which appeared in 1774, and in which he had been engaged for two or three years. For this work he received the large sum of 850l.; but Goldsmith's 'money was ever given or gambled away as soon as it was received, and very shortly after he was in as great embarrassment as before. In the spring of 1774 he was taken ill with a 66 fever, which, aggravated by mental distress consequent on poverty, and also by a wrong treatment, which his physician could not dissuade him from pursuing, terminated fatally on the 4th of April. He died at the age of forty-five. He was interred in the burial ground of the Temple Church; but no memorial was set up there to indicate the place of his burial, and it is now found to be impossible to identify the spot in which his remains were laid. His friends erected a monument to his memory in Westminster Abbey, for which a Latin inscription was written by Dr. Johnson; and in 1837 a marble slab, with an English inscription, was placed by the members of the Inner Temple in the Temple Church, to commemorate the fact of Goldsmith having died in the Temple, and been buried within the Temple churchyard; this slab now stands in the vestry. The preceding brief sketch of Goldsmith's life speaks plainly enough as to his character. He was weakness itself. Not without amiable dispositions; for, indeed, few men have possessed more benevolence or stronger family affections; he wanted the strength of purpose which can alone regulate them for good. At no period of his life did he resolutely pursue an object. Idle at the university, unwilling to settle down to any profession, and when he had made his choice, lazy and apathetic in its pursuit, he at last became an author, merely because authorship was necessary for subsistence, and wrote only as often and as much as the pressure of his wants required. He was ever ready to yield to the impulse of the moment, and a piteous tale would so work on his feelings, that for the relief of an applicant he often not only gave his all, but even involved himself in debt. His weakness also assumed, in a remarkable degree, the form of vanity, with instances of which failing the reader of Boswell's "Life of Johnson" will be acquainted. Of Goldsmith, the author, but little need be said. The humour of the "Vicar of Wakefield," the pathos of the "Traveller " and the "Deserted Village," and the wit of some of his smaller poems, are known and appreciated by all. His numerous compilations, which were only written for money, are not proper objects of criticism. The histories of Greece and Rome certainly possess no critical value of any kind; and yet they have long been read with pleasure by a large class, who feel the charm of the writer's easy and lucid style, without caring or troubling themselves about the accuracy of his statements. A life of Goldsmith was published not long after his death, by Bishop Percy; and a memoir of him is to be found in Sir Walter Scott's "Miscellaneous Prose Works." recently, three other lives of Goldsmith have appearedby Prior, Forster, and Washington Irving: the largest is that by Mr. Prior; the best is that by Mr. Forster. More PART II. I. ANALYSIS OF SENTENCES.' 66 1. A sentence is an assemblage of words, conveying a complete sense or thought, thus: Boys study," is a sentence because the meaning is complete. 2. There are two kinds of sentences; namely, simple and compound.3 3. A simple sentence consists of two parts,—the subject and the predicate. The subject is that of which something is affirmed ; as, Birds sing. The predicate is that which is affirmed of the subject; as, William reads. 4. A simple sentence has only one subject and one finite verb. Every part of a verb is called finite, except the participle and the infinitive mood. 5. A phrase is any collection of words not forming a proposition. In analysis the term is limited to the infinitive, a preposition and its object, &c.; as, Men of wisdom: To be angry is to be mad: For one to steal is base: Being angry is unwise: walking in the fields is good exercise. 4 For a complete treatise on this subject, see "Morell's Analysis of Sentences," - -a book that should be in the hands of every teacher. 2 From sententia, a thought. * Some make three kinds : simple, complex, and compound. 4 The words in italics form, in each case, a phrase. II. THE SIMPLE SUBJECT. 1. The subject of a sentence or a proposition is either grammatical or logical; or, as it is generally termed, simple or enlarged. 2. The simple subject is the person or thing spoken of, unlimited by other words. 3. The simple subject is, for the most part, a noun; but it may be any letter, character, syllable, word, or phrase, used as a noun. Ex. 1. A noun. Snow falls. 2. A pronoun. He reads. 3. A letter. A is a vowel. 4. A character. + is the sign of addition. 5. An adjective. Many came to see the exhibition. 6. An infinitive verb. To steal is base. 7. An infinitive verb modified by an adverb. To read well is no easy matter. 8. A clause. That one should steal is base. 9. A participle. Stealing is base. 4. In imperative sentences, the subject is always thou, or you, or ye, and is often understood. Ex. 1. Come (thou) forth. III. THE LOGICAL OR ENLARGED SUBJECT. 1. A subject may be modified, limited, or described in various ways. |