HUME. 209 



man and sectary, freethinker and religionist, patriot 

 and courtier, united against the man who had pre- 

 sumed to shed a generous tear for the fate of Charles I. 

 and the Earl of Strafford." But the singularity of 

 the case, and the great mortification of the author, 

 was this : that with all the universal clamour, all the 

 storm did not save him from neglect ; it subsided 

 as quickly as it had been raised, and the ' History' sunk 

 into oblivion. In a year's time, only five and forty 

 copies were sold, at least in London ; and although he 

 tells us in another letter, that " at Edinburgh no 

 book was ever more bought, or furnished more 

 subject of conversation," yet in London it was other- 

 wise. The author's discouragement was great; he 

 was disgusted with belonging to a country so subject 

 to the tyranny of faction and the clamours of the mob, 

 while it boasted so constantly, and blustered so loud- 

 ly, about its liberties : he even entertained serious 

 thoughts of leaving it for ever, changing his name, 

 and passing the rest of his days in some French pro- 

 vincial town, far from those braggarts and intolerant 

 brawlers. Nor does he appear to have been deterred 

 from this project, excepting by the obstacles to its 

 execution which the war, breaking out immediately 

 after, interposed. The only encouragement which 

 he received under his disappointment was from the 

 two Primates, Herring and Stone, who approved of 

 the book, and sent him messages, bidding him not to 

 be cast down by the temporary failure. 



During the interval between the first and second 

 volume appeared his * Natural History of Religion/ 

 which so far attracted notice, that Bishop Hurd wrote 



p 



