Appendix D - Materials from Miscellaneous Works (1720)

Summary

THE BOOKSELLERS ADVERTISEMENT ON THIS NEW EDITION

To give the curious Reader a just Idea of what he may expect in this Volume, I cannot do better than transcribe a part of a Letter sent me with the Copy, from an ingenious Gentleman of my acquaintance, whose advice I have followed exactly.

… … . You have here also according to your desire my Tale of a Tub, with all the Notes you have formerly seen, & several others I have added since. You may make what use you please of it, provided you return it me safe when you have done, & that you let no body see it, or know from whom you had it. You’l perhaps find some of these Notes of no great use, because you understand all without ‘em; but some Readers will be apt to wish there were more, to explain some other passages they may not perfectly understand.

I think it's almost needless to tell the Readers, they ought not to impute to the Author the sense given to his words in these Notes; especialy in those taken from his Adversarys, such as M. Wotton, one of the Heroes of the piece. Any one that reads the praises given him by our Author, will easily see his reasons for giving the worst turn imaginable to every thing he has written. I once hoped to have found a great many more curious Notes of this kind, in the Remarks made on this Book by D. Bentley the Author's principal Hero. I am told this is a Master-piece of modern Criticism, & that this Prince of Pedants has, with a vast deal of laborious learning, shewn that he can interpret almost nine passages of Antient Authors in a sense different from that which ourAuthor has given them; but particularly that he has most terribly maul’d this Author with those Arms he had so bountifully bestowed on him in the 160 page of this Treatise, &especially with that of his left hand, of which according to his custom he has been very liberal.