Page:Notes and Queries - Series 2 - Volume 1.djvu/193

 "d S. N 10., MAB. 8. '56.]

NOTES AND QUERIES.

185

LONDON, SATURDAY, MARCH 8, 1866.

WHO WAS JUNIUS ?

The following Notes are to be understood not as a report of all the speculations and discussions on this vexed subject which have from time to time appeared in the newspapers and magazines, and in Preliminary Essays and Introductions to the various editions of the Letters, but simply as a bibliographical account of the controversy.

The first substantive work, so far as I know, was,

" Anecdotes of Junius ; to which is prefixed the King's Reply. Southampton. 8vo."

This is a mere reprint of Anecdotes of the Author, prefixed to the edition of 1771, with " Piccadilly " in the title-page ; and the writer assumes that Edmund Burke was the author of the Letters.

In or about 1789 a pamphlet was published by Philip Thicknesse, entitled,

" Junius Discovered. By P. T. London : Fores."

in which he advocated the claims of Home Tooke.

I ought not, I presume, to include in this list the Miscellaneous Works of Hugh Boyd, 1800, al- though I doubt whether Boyd's Works would have been either collected or published, but that Mr. Campbell hoped in the memoir prefixed to prove that Boyd was Junius. Be this as it may, about the same time appeared as a separate pamphlet,

" An Appendix to the Supplemental Apology for the Believers in the supposititious Shakspeare Papers : being the Documents for the opinion that Hugh M c Aulay Boyd wrote Junius's Letters. By George Chalmers, F. B. 8. S. A. London : Thomas Egerton. 1800."

The next special publication, so far as I know, was not "Till 1807, when Dr. Girdlestone pub- lished,

" Reasons for rejecting the presumptive evidence of Mr. Almon, that Mr. Hugh Boyd was the writer of Junius, with passages selected to prove the real author of the Letters of Junius."

Mr. Almon's " presumptive evidence " was pre- fixed to his edition of Junius's Letters, published in 1806 ; and the " real author,'' according to Dr. Girdlestone, was General Lee. I have never seen this pamphlet, but it was, I believe, republished, with additional facts and arguments by Dr. Gir- dlestone in 1813. This was followed by

"Another Guess at Junius, and a Dialogue between Mi\ Pitt, father and son. London: Hookham. 1809." in which the claims of Chatham, as the writer, were enforced.

The edition of Junius in 1812, with the private letters to the printer, gave new life to the contro- versy, and amongst the earliest publications on the subject was,

"An Attempt to ascertain the Authors of the Letters

published under the signature of Junius. By the Rev. J. B. Blakeway, M.A., F.S.A. Shrewsbury : W. Eddowes. 1813."

To this " A Sequel" was published by Mr. Blakeway in 1815.

Mr. Blakeway concludes, rejoicingly, that he has " proved " that Home Tooke was the writer, " an historical fact which will not hereafter be dis- puted." The same year produced the following :

" The Life of the Author of the Letters of Junius, the Rev. James Wilmot, DiD., &c. By his niece, Olivia Wilmot Serres. London : Williams. 1813."

" Facts tending to prove that General Lee was never absent from this country, for any length of time, during the years 1767, 1768, 1769, 1770, 1771, 1772, and that he was the author of Junius. By Thomas Girdlestone, M.D. London : P. Martin. 1813."

" An Enquiry, concerning the Author of the Letters of Junius ; in which it is proved, by internal, as well as by direct and satisfactory evidence, that they were written by the late Right Hon. Edmund Burke. By John Roche, Esq. London: J. Carpenter. 1813."

" A Discovery of the Author of the Letters of Junius, founded on such evidence and illustrations as explain all the mysterious circumstances and apparent contradictions which have contributed to the concealment of this ' most important secret of our times.' London; Taylor and Hessey. 1813."

Here " all the mysterious circumstances and apparent contradictions " were explained by the assumption that Dr. Francis was " the author." The proofs, however, were not considered con- clusive by the public, and the pamphlet was soon followed by,

"An Enquiry concerning the Author of the Letters of Junius, with reference to the Memoirs by a celebrated literary and political Character. London : John Murray. 1814."

The intention was to show from the " Memoirs," that Glover, the author of Leonidas, was the writer. This was followed by,

" Arguments and Facts demonstrating that the Letters of Junius were written by John Lewis de Lolme, LL.D., Advocate. Accompanied with Memoirs of that ' most in- genious foreigner,' &c. By Thomas Busby, Mus. Doc., author of a translation of Lucretius. London : Sherwood & Co. 1816."

" Letters to a Nobleman, proving a late Prime Minister to have been Junius ; and developing the secret motives which induced him to write under that and other signa- tures. With an Appendix, containing a celebrated case, published by Almon in 17C8. London : Longman & Co. 1816."

The " late Prime Minister " was tho Duke of

Portland.

' The " distinguished living character " of the

next pamphlet was Sir Philip Francis :

" The Identity of Juniug with a distinguished living character established. London: printed for Taylor and Hessey, Fleet Street. 1816."

To this was subsequently added :

" A Supplement to Junius Identified, consisting of fac- similes of handwriting and other illustrations. Tavlor Ilessev: 1817. 8vo."