Page:The Poetical Works of Thomas Parnell (1833).djvu/54

6 of Pope seems to prove that he was admitted as a favourite companion to the convivial hours of the minister; and that even the business of office was delayed, when the treasurer wished to indulge in the delight of the poet's conversation.

While Parnell remained in London, he often preached in the different churches of the metropolis; Johnson speaks of this as arising from his vanity or ambition; did he, a sincere and zealous churchman, forget that preaching was one of the chief duties of Parnell's profession; and that he imparted moral advice and religious instruction, through the only channel which was open to one who possessed no parish of his own. Parnell preached to attentive audiences chiefly in the city and about Southwark, and his eloquence and knowledge made him popular. The queen's death however precluded any hopes of preferment from the interest of his Tory friends; and Johnson