Essays, Moral, Political, and Literary - Faculty of Social Sciences

70 IFISTORY OF THE EDITIONS. IIldTORY OF TIIE Ei>l'l'IONS. 7 1the common convictions of mankind, raised an apprehensionof the contents from the very title of these pieces. But thecelebrity of the author's name, renders them, notwithstanding,in some degree objects of great curiosity.' Owing to this circunlstance, a few copies have been clandestinelycirculated, at a large price, for some time, butwithout any comment. The very mystery attending thismode of selling them, made them more an object of requestthan they would otherwise have been.' The present publication comes abroad under no such restraint,and possesses very superior advantages. The hTotesannexed are intended to expose the sophistry contained illthe original Essays, and niay show how little we have to fearfrom the adversaries of these great truths, from the pitifulfigure which even Mr. Hume makes in thus violently exhaustinghis last strength in an abortive attempt to traduceor discredit them.'The two very masterly Letters from the Eloisa of Rosseauon the subject of Suicide, have been much celebrated,and we hope will be considered as materially increasing thevalue of this curious collection.' The admirers of Mr. Hme will be pleased with seeing theremains of a favourite author rescued in this manner fromthat oblivion, to which the prejudices of his countrymen had,in all appearance, consigned them ; and even the religiouspart of mankind have some reason of triumph, from thestriking instance here given of truth's superiority to error,even when error has all the advantage of an elegant genius,and a great literary reputation to recommend it.'The third paragraph probably alludes to copies of -the originalproof-sheets ; but the statement of the title-page, thatthe Essays had not previously been printed, is untrue. Theyhad been published in 1777, without the printer's name. Acopy in the British Museum has for title-page : 'TwoEssays. London. M.DCC.LXVI1. Price Five Shillings.'There is no preface, note, or comment. The Essays areword for word the same with those of 1784. It is possiblethat this is the Edition, printed in Holland, to which thewriter in the ' Gentleman's Magazine ' referred : but, if so, hehad not seen the book, for he only knows the subject of oneof the Essays.These ' tracts,' as they appear in these two editiolls, hadgenerally been accepted as genuine, partly on the evidenceof style, and partly because of the silence of Hume's friends,who were challenged to disavow them. Bat no direct evidencewas known to exist, until the Advocates' Librarybecame possessed of a bound copy of proof-sheets of the originalvolun~e ; corrected, it appears, by Hume, and containing oneof the Essays in question. The book has the following note :'This book contains a piece of Mr. D. Hume's, of whichthere is, I believe, but another copy existing. Having printedthe volume as it here stands, Mr. Hume was advised by afriend, to suppress the Dissertation upon Suicide ; whichhe accordingly did. A copy, however, had somehow got inti,the hands of Mr. Muirhead, a man of letters, who had madea very valuable collection of books. Mr. Huine, after thedeath of Mr. Muirhead, employed me to beg that copy froinhis nephew, who very politely delivered it up. Upon thisMr. Hume gave me leave to keep the present copy, which liehad lent me : I promising not to show it to any body.' A. R.'These are believed to be the initials of Allan Ramsay.There is no title-page ; but at the beginning there is written,perhaps in Hume's handwriting : ' Five Dissertations, towit, The Natural History of Religion. Of the Passions. OfTragedy. Of Suicide. Of the Ilnmortality of the Soul.'In this copy tile Essay on Suicide has been cut out; butthe companion Essay remains in its entirety. Allan Ramsay'snote informs us, that it was the former of these whichHume's friend called in question :-andhis phrase confirmsthe belief that the writers in the ' Gentleman's Magazine 'blundered in stating that the book was published and suppressedby public authority; but he leaves it doubtfillwhether the copy, when Hume gave it him, contained bothEssays, or not; and when and by whom the Dissertation onSuicide was cut out. However this may be, as the Essayon the Immortality of the Soul in this copy is identicalwith that which was published under the same title, first in1777, and then again in 1783, there can be no reasonabledoubt that the Essay on Suicide, which was printed withit on both occasions, is also genuine.As has been said, the ' Four Dissertations ' is a volume,which shows signs of mmltilation : and, in brief, its history