274 Proceeding a of the Royal Irish Academtj. 



lie asked for a plate and sent me a pluvyer w'^'' meat himself liked 

 best, a favoui' (as I am told) lie never imparted to any chaplaine before. 

 And was not this (think yon) worth coming into Ireland for, and 

 enough to conntervaile y^ trouble of a voyage out of England and y"" 

 extraordinary charges attending it ? Besides the Archbishop of Dublin 

 hath bin very kind to me & often invited me to dinner in consideration 

 of y^ ranke that I sustaine as Chaplaine to y^ Great Lord Lieutenant, and 

 my friendship with Dr. l^eedham (or Heedham) his old fellow Collegiet. 

 My Ld of Tuam carried me 5 or 6 weeks agoe to y"* Lord Primate 

 of Ireland, who made me this dry complement, that I came over with 

 My Ld Lieutenant & therefore it was in vaine for him to promise me 

 anything. But y*^ greatest honnour of all was a personall visit from y*^ 

 Archbishop of Tuam (as his Grace assured me that he once did in my 

 absence) & I have y* charity to believe so Great a Prelate, because he 

 used me with a great deale of Ceremony when I went to see him. 

 These would be fine things to talke of, in this vaine world, if I were a 

 meer novice and unacquainted with y" impertinence of mankind. I 

 wish ye Duke of Ormond doth not show himself a Corn-tier in y^ worse 

 sense of all that after he hath levelled me with Common Clergymen, 

 he doth not leave me where he found me ; & so much y" worse for 

 coming into Ireland to seek a billet (?) & departing y" same Country 

 pastor as I came. But as I have no strong hopes of making my fortune 

 here, so neither do I despaire : who am 



your affectionate humble servant 



George Berkeley. 



My service & kind love to yoiu" good wife. 



Por Robert Nelson, Esq., at his lodgings in St. James-street where 

 y'' Lord Brunkard formerly lived, in London. 



Struck by certain similarities between the two letters, Dr. Lorenz 

 concluded that they must be closely connected in time. It is to be 

 noted that in the dating of both letters, though the month and day of 

 the month are given, the year is omitted. This affords an object lesson 

 as to the importance of fully dating our letters ; for had such been 

 done in this case, no doubt or controversy could have arisen. Dr. 

 Lorenz then began to question whether these letters were written by 

 George Berkeley the philosopher ; he ultimately arrived at a decisive 

 negative. His principal arguments are two in number : 



Both letters mention a duke as Lord Lieutenant, but it is in the 

 Academy letter alone that the name appears, the Duke of Ormonde. 

 Now in the early l700's the viceroyalty was on two occasions conferred 



