ORIGINAL LETTERS. 
BP. NICHOLSON f0 MR. HUMPHREY 
wanLey.—MS. Harl. in the Britifh 
Mujeurm. 
se Sir, ‘« Rofe, Auguft 20, 1705. 
Your kind letter found me not at 
home: hut had avery hearty welcome 
when we met. Next to what concerns 
the prefervation of our eftablithed religion 
and government, peace here and falva- 
tion hereafter, ] know nothing that has a 
greater fhare in my thoughts and defires 
than the promotion of Septentrional learn- 
ing. You have done much toward the 
advancement of this already ; and J am 
extremely pleafed to find that you are not 
weary of the work. After you have had 
the approbation of our great and worthy 
friend Dr. Hickes, in what you ate ndw 
defigning, you may eafily aflure yourfelf 
of the concurrence of my advice. I was 
well enough pleafed with the publifing 
of Cedmon, Beethius, and the Saxon Hep- 
tateuch, even without verfion and notes; 
becaufé I thought that a fure way to pre- 
ferve thefe pieces to potterity. But I 
never could hope that (in this naked con- 
dition) they’d have many readers, or ef- 
fetual'y propagate the knowledge of the 
Saxon tongue. Your obliging pains will 
. be of more general ufe ; and I hope, will 
not fail of meeting with a proper reward 
and acknowledgment from the public. 
I have little or nothing ta object againft 
the fcheme you have drawn for yourielf ; 
and I particularly approve the defign of 
intérmixing fome of the old pi€tures, for 
the reafons mentioned. 
I heve long willed for an accurate tran 
lation of Cadmon; and Mr. Dean* only 
is able (glad am I to hear that he is wil- 
ling) to undertake that part. Honeit Mr. 
Junius toid me there were three or four 
words in that poem which he did not un- 
derftand. This perhaps hindered him from 
attempting a complete iranflat'on; though 
I believe moft cf it is rendered piece-meal 
in the quctations he has made thence in 
his Saxon Di€tionary. I hope your tran- 
flator will oblige us with the reasons of 
his opinion (it he Mill continues in ir), 
that a good part of Milton’s Parad:fe 
was borrowed from Cadmon’s. I can 
hardly think thefe two poets under the 
direétion of the ae {pirit; and I never 
could find, (I think his introdu€tion to 
our Englifh Hiftory rather evinces the 
contrary) that Oliver’s Secretary was fo 
great a mafter of the Saxon language as to 
dat bye Hickes, Dean of Worcefter, 
Original Letters. 
fAug. I, 
be able to make Czdmon’s Paraphrafe his 
own. — ; 
°Tis a misfortune we have lof& fo many 
of thofe parts of the Old Teftament as were 
tranflated by Aflfric. May not thofe ho- 
milies on ithe Maccabees (and other por- 
tions of Scripture) which are {till extant, 
in a good meafure, fupply this defect? 
This, in my opinion, would be better 
than making up the lacune (as you pro- 
pofe) by the moft ancient Englifh tran- 
flations: for fuch a verfion coming any 
thing near the time of the Conqueft, will 
very well bear an entire edirion by itfelf ; 
efpecially after a while when the tafte of 
fuch curiofities is grown more general. 
You will alfo allow me (with fubmif- 
fion) to enter my diflent to your publith- 
ing your chapters according to the divi- 
fion of the vulgar Latin Bibles. ”’Twil 
be a greater eale to the Englifh reader to 
have them put into the modern form ; and 
this reafon will be your juft apology with 
Fcreigners. 
S ecimens of the hands wherein your 
feveral manuifcripts are penned, where the 
variety is confiderable by the great diffe- 
rence of their age, will be undoubtedly 
very uwleful and entertaining ; fince you 
are moft able to afcertain the proper times 
of cach of ‘em. A fheet of this kind is 
reckoned a very valuable ornament to Mr. 
Madox’s Formulare Anglicanum. 
l ai, Sirs 
Your very affetionate friend 
To ferve you, — 
W. CaRLIOL.” 
LETTER from DR. TUCKER fo DR. 
BIRCH, the Original of which was 
given to Lord Royfion, and a Copy pre- 
fer-ved among Dr. Birch’s Manufcripts, 
now in the Mufeum, No. 4291. 
Briftol, Aug. 23, 1756+ 
‘¢ Dear Sir, 
My firft duty is to exprefs my grati- 
tude in the fincereft and humbleft man- 
ner for the great honour my Lord Royften 
did me in your laft letter: and I hope I 
fhall ever retain a proper and refpeétful 
fenfe of the obligation, and ftudy every 
poflible means of fhewing it. My pre- 
fent living, which I hold from my Lord 
Caancellor’s bounty, is worth zool. with- 
out deduétions: and as I have now wea- 
thered the ftorms of party rage, and am 
enjoying the fucceeding calm, attended 
with fome degree of popular influence, 
(a popularity I got by an obftinate per- 
feverance in right meafur-s) the fo:mer 
inducements for quitting my prefent fta- 
ta 
