Author: Edward Gibbon

Publisher: Forgotten Books

Published: 2017-01-09

Total Pages: 364

ISBN-13: 9781334321818

Excerpt from The Autobiography and Correspondence of Edward Gibbon, the Historian Such are the hopes of authors l In the failure of those hopes John Gibbon has not been the first of his profession, and very possibly may not be the last of his name. His brother Matthew Gibbon, the draper, had one daughter and two sons - my grandfather Edward, who was born in the year 1666, and Thomas, afterwards Dean of Carlisle. According to the mercantile creed, that the best book is a profitable ledger, the writings of John the herald would be much less precious than those of his nephew Edward but an author professes at least to write for the public benefit; and the slow balance of trade can be pleasing to those persons only, to whom it is advantageous. The suc cessful industry 0 my grandfather raised him above the level of his immediate ancestors; he appears to have launched into various and extensive dealings even his 0 inions were subordinate to his interest; and I find him in Flanders c othing King William's troops, while he would have contracted with more pleasure, though not perhaps at a cheaper rate, for the service of King James. During his residence abroad, his concerns at home were managed by his mother Hester, an active and notable woman. Her second husband was awidower of the name of Acton: they united the children of their first nuptials. After his marriage with the daughter of Richard Acton, goldsmith in Leadeno hall-street, he gave his own sister to Sir Whitmore Acton, of Aldenham; and I am thus connected, by a triple alliance, with that ancient and loyal family of Shro shire baronets. It consisted about that time of seven brothers, all 0 gigantic stature; one of whom, a pigmy of six feet two inches, confessed himself the last and least of the seven; add ing, in the true spirit of party, that such men were not born since the Revolution. Under the Tory administration of the four last years of Queen Anne (1710 - 1714) Mr. Edward Gibbon was appointed one of the Commissioners of the Customs he sat at that Board with Prior; but the merchant was better qualified for his station than the poet; since Lord Bolingbroke has been heard to declare, that he had never conversed with a man, who more clearly understood the commerce and finances of England. In the year 1716 he was elected one of the Directors of the South Sea Com any; and his books exhibited the proof that, before his acceptance 0 this fatal office, he had acquired an independent fortune of sixty thousand pounds. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.