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48S - 
Memoirs of James Elphinsion, esq. 
[Dec. 1, 
his habits had always been those of I flatcered myself that I was neither in- 
economy and temperance. 
Et was impossible fora man like Mr. 
Elphinston to live at Kensington, with- 
out adding to the number of bis friends, 
the great character who was then rector 
of the parish, Dr. Jertin, It has been 
always a boast of the writer_of this me- 
moir, that from his situation as a pupil of 
Mr. Elphinston’s, he had the honour of 
being presented to’ Dr. Jortin, Dr. 
Franklin, and Dr. Johnson, a triumvirate 
not easily matched. The death of Jor- 
tin, in 1770, was severely felt by Mr. 
Elphinston. 
Mr. Elphimston was always a ready 
champion in the cause of innocence. 
Among other occasions, one that hap- 
pened, while he resided at Kensington, 
“was of an extraordinary nature. During 
the mayoralty of the famous John Wilks, 
one William Gibbs, a parishioner of Ken- 
sington, being accused by a worthless fel- 
low of baving robbed him on the high- 
way, was tried at the Old Bailey, and 
found guilty. In spite of this, upon en- 
guiry made by the inhabitants of the pa- 
rish, the man was clearly found to be in- 
nocent, and to have been elsewhere at 
the time of the pretended robbery. in 
consequence of this, a petition was drawn 
up for bim, and signed by the inhabitants; 
but Mr. Elphinston, not satisfied with 
being among the subscribers of the peti- 
tion, wrote a letter to Wilks, in which 
he stated the grounds that manifested the 
aman’s innocence with convincing perspi- 
cuity. The letter is extant, and reflects 
the highest honour onthe writer. It was 
successful; but the man had_ lost his 
heaith in prison, and died soon after bis 
fiberation. 
In March, 1776, Mr. Elphinston gave 
up his school, but continued to reside in 
the same house in Kensington for some 
time longer, employing himseifina trans- 
lation of Martial, the proposals for pub- 
lishing which, he now began to circulate. 
He removed from Kensington in 1778, 
‘and in the same year lost his wife. His 
grief on that event was deep. “ Such a 
loss,” as Dr. Johnson wrote to him on 
the oceasion, ‘* lacerates the mind, and 
breaks the whole system of purposes and 
hopes. It leaves a dismal vacuity in 
life, that affords nothing on which the 
affections can fix, or to which endeavour 
may bedirected.” Itis remarkable, how 
ingenious grief is in starting accusations 
of deficiency towards a beloved object 
torn away from all future attentions, In 
a letter to his nephew, he says, “* though 
attentive, nor insensible to what I-en- 
joyed, various and poignaut are the re- 
grets I now feel, when I reflect how im- 
perfectly I promoted the happiness of 
her I certainly held dearest on earth, 
and how often, I rather intended, than 
administered, the numberless assidu:ties 
indispensable to the comfort of one who 
composed every comfort to me.” The 
consolation and affection be received — 
trom his friends, and the flowing in of 
subscriptions to his translation of Mar- 
tial, conspired to draw him from despond- 
ence; and, being advised to visit Scot- 
land, he gave up his residence in London, 
disposed of his furniture, and in a short 
time set out upon his journey. InScot- 
land, he received numberless civilicies, 
and there was a talk among his friends of 
the necessity of establishing a professor- 
ship of the English language at the Uni- 
versity of Edinburgh, with a wish that he 
should fill the chair. The idea had been 
suggested by Mr. (soon after Sir John) 
Sinclair, of Ulbster. The Lord Chief 
Baron Mongomery, Dr. Robertson the 
Historiographer of Scotland, the Earl of 
Dalhousie, who had been Mr. Elphin- 
ston’s pupil, Lord Elphinston, and 
others, consulted ‘on the subject; but it 
fell to the ground: and in the autumn of 
1779, he returned to London, having pre- 
viously given a course vf Lectures on the 
English language; first at Edinburgh, and 
then in the public hall of the University of 
Giasgow, ; 
He now published his system of or- 
thography, under the title of “ Propriety 
Ascertained in her Picture,” and deter- 
mined to support bis theory by practice ; 
to make an effort to change the whole 
system of etymology for that of analogy; 
to set derivation at defiance, and to cre- 
ate a revolution in favour of pronunciati- 
on; or, in his own-words, to make Ortho- 
graphy the Mirror of Orthoepy. From 
this time, for the rest of his hfe, what- 
ever he published or wrote, was commit- 
ted to paper in his new mode of spelling, 
Thougha bold, romantic, perhaps im-_ 
possible scheme, it is the Jess to be won- 
dered at, when it is considered that the 
early and great object of his philological 
‘pursuits, was to establish, on a settled 
basis, the orthoepy of the English lan- 
guage; am attempt, that could give but 
little hope of success, while the form, in 
which the sounds of words were printed, 
remained in its unsettled state, depend- 
‘ing neither eiitirely on etymology, nor 
analogy ; but tounded, as it certainly is, 
E on 
