CHARACTERS. 



779 



confidence from the minister, when 

 lie openly abandoned what they 

 deemed the great cause of their 

 country. The conduct of the ma- 

 jority, however, on these occasions, 

 is not without a parallel of a much 

 more recent date, in the treatment 

 experienced from several members 

 of the same university by an inge- 

 nious youth, when newly invested 

 vi^ith office, and when he had no 

 longer any share of the loaves and 

 fishes to dispense. 



But whilst others were thus roof- 

 ing for prefermentj Mr. Paley was en- 

 gaged in the composition of an im- 

 portant work, the general outlines 

 of which had been delivered to his 

 pupils at Christ's college. The 

 bishop of Clonfert, to whom the 

 merit of his friend's lectures was 

 well known, and who justly thought 

 that those on morals, in particular, 

 might be expanded into a most 

 useful treatiseforpublic instruption, 

 had strenuously urged their publi- 

 cation in an improved form. Mr. 

 Paley at first suggested, as an ob- 

 jection, the little attention usually 

 j>aid to such subjects, and the risk 

 of publishing a book which might 

 not sell ; but when he found himself 

 in possession of a competent income 

 from his patron's kindness, he no 

 longer hesitated to employ his lei- 

 sure in the execution of this great 

 design. 



When the manuscript was ready 

 f.)r the press, it was offered to Mr. 

 Faulder of Bond-street, when dining 

 at Rose Castle, for 100 guineas; 

 but he declined the risk of publish- 

 ing it on his own account. After 

 the success of the work was in some 

 measure ascertained, Mr. Paley 

 would again have sold it to him for 

 three hundred pounds, but he re- 



fused to give more than two hun- 

 dred and fifty. Whilst this treaty 

 was pending, a bookseller from 

 Carlisle, happening to call on an 

 eminent publisher in Paternoster- 

 row, was commissioned by him to 

 offer Mr. Paley one thousand 

 pounds for the copy-right of his 

 work. The bookseller on his re- 

 turn to Carlisle, duly executed the 

 commission, which was communi- 

 cated without delay to the bishop 

 of Clonfert ; who being at that time 

 in London, had undertaken the 

 management of the affair. " Ne- 

 ver did I suffer so much anxious 

 fear," said Mr. Paley, in relating 

 the circumstance, "as on this oc- 

 casion, lest my friend should have 

 concluded the bargain with Mr. 

 Faulder, before my letter could 

 reach him. Luckily he had not, 

 but on receiving the letter, went 

 immediately into Bond-street and 

 made this new demand. Mr. 

 Faulder, though in no small de- 

 gree surprised and astonished at 

 the advance, agreed for the sum 

 required before the bishop left the 

 house. "Little did I think," said 

 Mr. Paley, in allusion to this affair, 

 *' that I should ever make a thou- 

 sand pnunds bj' any book of mine ;" 

 a strong proof of unassuming merit ; 

 but, after the offer above-mention- 

 ed, he was authorized to have asked 

 a still larger sum. 



Soon after Dr. Paley 's arrival at 

 Bishop-Wearmouth, some of the 

 principal land-holders in that pa- 

 rish, wishing to remove all cause of 

 future dispute, offered to treat with 

 him, on the basis of an annual 

 compensation for the tithes. Af- 

 ter inspecting the accounts of his 

 predecessor, he demanded seven 



hundred 



