2. Five Muscovites. This small print appears at the corner of one of the maps to the second volume of the foregoing work. It has no intelligible reference; but, in the English copy now before me, is the last plate but one, and is marked. C—T. II. In a former edition of the present catalogue, it was enumerated as a separate article, but must now be reckoned as one of the fifteen plates to Motraye's Travels.
To these I might add three plates more. If Hogarth engraved the Muscovites at the corner of the map already mentioned, he likewise furnished the figures in the corner of another, marked T. I.—B. And Plate T. I.—XVI. and T. I.—XXXVII. I have likewise reason to suppose were the works of our artist; eighteen plates in all; though the three latter being only conjectural, I have not ventured to set them down as indisputed performances. Of the Muscovites there is a modern copy.[1]
I have just been assured by a gentleman of undoubted veracity, that he was once possessed of a set of plates engraved by Hogarth for some treatise on mathematicks; but, considering them of little value, disposed of them at the price of the copper. As our artist could have displayed no marks of genius in representations of cycloids, diagrams, and equilateral triangles, the loss of these plates is not heavily to be lamented.
[1] Mr. Walpole enumerates only 12 plates.
1724.
1. Seven small prints to "The New Metamorphosis of Lucius Apuleius of Medaura. London, printed for Sam. Briscoe, 1724." 12mo. 2 vol. I. Frontispiece. II. Festivals of Gallantry, which the noblemen of Rome make in the churches for the entertainment of their mistresses. III. The banditti's bringing home a beautiful virgin, called Camilla, from her mother's arms, the night before she was to have been married. Vol. I. p. 113. No name to this plate. IV. Fantasio's arrival at the house of an old witch, who is afterwards changed into a beautiful young lady. V. The provincial of the Jesuits' recovery of his favourite dog from the cooper's wife. VI. Psyche's admission of her unknown husband in the dark, who always departed before the return of light. VII. Cardinal Ottoboni and his niece's visit to an Hermitage in the holy desart, called Camaldule; the Cardinal's discourse against solitude to the hermit, who had not been out of his cell, nor spoke a word, for forty years together. Plate IV. is the only one that has the least trait of character in it.
2. Masquerades and operas. Burlington-gate. W. Hogarth inv. & sculp. Of the three small figures in the center of this plate, the middle one is Lord Burlington, a man of considerable taste in Painting and Architecture, but who ranked Mr. Kent (an indifferent artist) above his merit. On one side of the peer is Mr. Campbell, the architect; on the other, his lordship's postilion. On a show-cloth in this plate is also supposed to be the portrait of King George II. who gave 1000 l. towards the masquerade; together with that of the Earl of Peterborough, who offers Cuzzoni, the Italian singer, 8000 l. and she spurns at him.[1] Mr. Heidegger, the regulator of the Masquerade, is also exhibited, looking out at a window, with the letter H. under him. The substance of the foregoing remarks is taken from a collection lately belonging to Captain Baillie,[2] where it is said that they were furnished by an eminent Connoisseur.[3] A board is likewise displayed, with the words—"Long Room. Fawks's dexterity of hand." It appears front the following advertisement in Mist's Weekly Journal for Saturday, December 25, 1725, that this artist was a man of great consequence in his profession. "Whereas the town hath lately been alarmed, that the famous Fawks was robbed and murdered, returning from performing at the Dutchess of Buckingham's house at Chelsea; which report being raised and printed by a person to gain money to himself, and prejudice the above mentioned Mr. Fawks, whose unparalleled performances have gained him so much applause from the greatest of quality, and most curious observers: We think, both in justice to the injured gentleman, and for the satisfaction of his admirers, that we cannot please our readers better than to acquaint them he is alive, and will not only perform his usual surprizing dexterity of hand, posture-master, and musical clock; but for the greater diversion of the quality and gentry, has agreed with the famous Powell of The Bath for the season, who has the largest, richest, and most natural figures, and finest machines in England, and whose former performances in Covent Garden were so engaging to the town, as to gain the approbation of the best judges, to show his puppet-plays along with him, beginning in the Christmas holidays next, at the old Tennis-court in James-Street, near The Haymarket; where any incredulous persons may be satisfied he has not left this world, if they please to believe their hands, though they can't believe their eyes."—May 25," indeed, "1731, died Mr. Fawkes, famous for his dexterity of hand, by which he had honestly acquired a fortune of above 10,000 l. being no more than he really deserved for his great ingenuity, by which he had surpassed all that ever pretended to that art." Political State, vol. XLI. p. 543.
This satirical performance of Hogarth, however, was thought to be invented and drawn at the mitigation of Sir James Thornhill, out of revenge, because Lord Burlington had preferred Mr. Kent before him to paint for the king at his palace at Kensington. Dr. Faustus was a pantomime performed to crowded houses throughout two seasons, to the utter neglect of plays, for which reason they are cried about in a wheel-barrow.[4] We may add that there are three prints of this small masquerade, &c. one a copy from the first. The originals have Hogarth's name within the frame of the plate, and the eight verses are different from those under the other. It is sometimes found without any lines at all; those in the first instance having been engraved on a separate piece of copper, so that they could either be retained, dismissed, or exchanged, at pleasure. In the first copy of this print, instead of Ben Jonson's name on a label, we have Pasquin, N° XI. This was a periodical paper published in 1722-3, and the number specified is particularly severe on operas, &c. The verses to the first impression of this plate, are,