Guardian
, which Steele was about to establish as the successor to the
Spectator
; and here we find him at work on the foundations of his new journal while the finishing strokes are being given to the
Spectator
. Pope in his reply to Steele said (Nov. 16):
'I shall be very ready and glad to contribute to any design that tends to the advantage of mankind, which, I am sure, all yours do. I wish I had but as much capacity as leisure, for I am perfectly idle (a sign I have not much capacity). If you will entertain the best opinion of me, be pleased to think me your friend. Assure Mr. Addison of my most faithful service; of every one's esteem he must be assured already.'
About a fortnight later, returning to the subject of Adrian's verses, Pope wrote to Steele in reply to subsequent private discussion of the subject (Nov. 29):
'I am sorry you published that notion about Adrian's verses as mine; had I imagined you would use my name, I should have expressed my sentiments with more modesty and diffidence. I only wrote to have your opinion, and not to publish my own, which I distrusted.'
Then after defending his view of the poem, and commenting upon the Latin diminutives, he adds,