"Remove me from this land of slaves,
Where all are fools, and all are knaves,
Where every fool and knave is bought,
Yet kindly sells himself for nought."
(From Swift's note-book, written while detained at Holyhead in September, 1727.) [T. S.]
[136] All these are proposals advocated, of course, by Swift himself, in previous pamphlets and papers. [T. S.]
[137] So that there would be no danger of an objection from England that the English were suffering from Irish competition. [T. S.]
[138] This was the celebrated periodical founded by Pulteney, after he had separated himself from Walpole, to which Bolingbroke contributed his famous letters of an Occasional Writer. The journal carried on a political war against Walpole's administration, and endeavoured to bring about the establishment of a new party, to consist of Tories and the Whigs who could not agree with Walpole's methods. Caleb D'Anvers was a mere name for a Grub Street hack who was supposed to be the writer. But Walpole had no difficulty in recognizing the hand of Bolingbroke, and his reply to the first number of the Occasional Writer made Bolingbroke wince. [T. S.]
[139] The "Modest Proposal." See page 207. [T. S.]
[140] Referring to the silks, laces, and dress of the extravagant women. See pp. 139, 198, 199.
[T. S.]
[141] The chief source of income in Ireland came from the pasture lands on which cattle were bred. The cattle were imported to England. The English landlords, however, taking alarm, discovered to the Crown that this importation of Irish cattle was lowering English rents. Two Acts passed in 1665 and 1680 fully met the wishes of the landlords, and ruined absolutely the Irish cattle trade. Prevented thus from breeding cattle, the Irish turned to the breeding of sheep, and established, in a very short time, an excellent trade in wool. How England ruined this industry also may be seen from note on p. 158. [T. S.]
[142] Alluding to the facilities afforded for the recruiting of the French army in Ireland. [T. S.]