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Harington man of the world, and it also contains many curious particulars about Elizabeth, which show that it was not intended for publication during her lifetime. Probably Harington wrote it to be in readiness in case of emergency, but the ease of James's accession rendered its publication unnecessary. The manuscript found its way into the hands of Toby Matthew, archbishop of York, and lay unnoticed in the chapter library of York till it was edited by Mr. Clements Markham for the Roxburghe Club in 1880.

In spite of his efforts and good intentions Harington obtained nothing from James I, and he returned disconsolately to Kelston, whence he wrote imploring letters to his friends at court to bespeak their kind offices with the king. He was a man of extravagant habits, and had probably spent a good deal of money in Ireland. In 1604 he was involved in a lawsuit with Sir John Skinner, which led him to part with one of his estates, and even brought him for a time into prison (Nugæ Antiquæ, i. 346). The state of his fortunes and his ill-success at court seem to have suggested to him the idea that he might begin a new career in Ireland. By the death of Archbishop Loftus in 1605 the office of chancellor of Ireland was vacant, and Harington wrote to Cecil not only asking for that post, but also offering himself as a successor to Loftus in the archbishopric. This amazing proposal was defended by historical examples, by arguments about the desirability of combining the spiritual and temporal power, and also by a statement of his own views about the condition of Irish affairs. Of course no heed was paid to the application, and Harington's memoir lay neglected till it was published from a Bodleian manuscript by the Rev. W. D. Macray, under the title of 'A View of the State of Ireland in 1605' (Oxford, 1879). Here, as in his other notices of Ireland, Harington shows that he took a more generous and larger-minded view of the Irish people than did most of his contemporaries. He says with some truth: 'I think my very genius doth in a sort lead me to that country,' and he sketches with a good deal of shrewdness the outlines of a conciliatory policy. He still stayed on at court, dissatisfied with the new order of things, and mourning over the lack of order since the death of Elizabeth. A letter of his is the stock quotation for the intemperance of the court of James I (ib. i. 348-52). He managed, however, at last to commend himself to the king as a man of learning, and undertook some part of the education of Prince Henry. By way of instructing the young prince in his future duties, and counteracting the influence of the puritans on his mind, Harington recommended to him the work of Bishop Godwin, 'De Præsulibus Angliæ,' which had been published in 1601; and to make it more interesting he appended to it some remarks of his own upon the characters of the Elizabethan bishops. This document is full of gossip, and contains many good stories and much shrewd observation. It was written for the private use of the prince, but was published by a grandson of Harington, John Chetwind, in the interest of the puritans in 1653, under the title 'A briefe View of the Church of England as it stood in Q. Elizabeth's and King James his Reigne.' For the remainder of his life Harington seems to have been on friendly terms with Prince Henry, and to have been a person of some consideration at court. His health, however, began to give way, and he died at Kelston on 20 Nov. 1612, aged 51. His wife survived him till 1634. He had nine children, two of whom died in infancy. The estate of Kelston remained in the hands of his descendants till 1776; Henry Harington [q. v.] and Edward Charles Harington [q. v.] were descendants. A portrait of Sir John Harington, from a miniature in the possession of the Duke of Buccleuch, is engraved in Markham's 'Tract on the Succession.' An engraved portrait is prefixed to the 1591 edition of Harington's 'Orlando Furioso.'

Besides the works mentioned above Harington published in 1609 'The Englishman's Doctor, or the Schoole of Salerne,' a treatise upon health, chiefly founded upon the precepts of Cardan. After his death a few of his 'Epigrams' were appended to 'Alcilia,' a poem by J. C. issued in 1613. A volume containing 116 of them appeared in 1615. This collection formed the fourth book of the complete edition of Harington's 'Epigrams' issued in 1618 and reprinted in 1625, 1633, and again with his 'Orlando Furioso,' 1634. But the writings which Harington himself committed to the press and the epigrams on which his reputation as a wit was founded were soon forgotten, and copies of them are now very rare. The 'Apologie for Poetrie' has been reprinted in Haslewood's 'Ancient Critical Essays,' ii. 119, &c. It is by his letters and his miscellaneous writings that Harington is remembered. These were first published in 1769 by a descendant, the Rev. Henry Harington, D.D. [q. v.], under the title of 'Nugæ Antiquæ, being a Miscellaneous Collection of Original Papers in Prose and Verse, by Sir John Harington, Knight, and others who lived in those times.' This passed through three editions, 1779, 1792, and