Richard Steele

Now and again maybe he would muse on the stirring deeds of his youth, and more often he would put away the memory of action to delight in the masterpiece which made him immortal.

He would recall with pleasure, no doubt, the ready praise of Richard Steele, his most appreciative critic, and smile contemptuously at the baseness of his friend and successor, Captain Charles Johnson.

Now this ingenious writer was wont to boast, when the ale of Fleet Street had impurpled his nose, that he was the most intrepid highwayman of them all.

Once upon a time, he would shout with an arrogant gesture, I was known from Blackheath to Hounslow, from Ware to Shooter's Hill.

2.

A Cruising Voyage Round the World, begun in 1708 and finished 1711. containing an account of Alexander Selkirk's living alone four years and four months in an island, etc., by Captain Woods Rogers, Commander, London, 1712. three a voyage to the south sea and round the world wherein an account is given of mr alexander selkirk his manner of living and taming wild beasts during the four years and four months he lived upon the uninhabited island of juan fernandez By Captain Edward cook two volumes London 1712 These two works contained the principal incidents of his life from the time that he was left in the island until his return to England in 1711 the memoirs of literature for April 14 and June 30 1712 make large extracts from the volumes of cook relating to Selkirk four the englishman being the sequel to the guardian by sir richard steele number twenty six dated third december seventeen thirteen relates wholly to alexander selcraig five providence displayed or a surprising account of one alexander selkirk master of a merchantman called the cinque ports who dreaming that the ship would soon after be lost he desired to be left on a desolate island in the south seas where he lived four years and four months without seeing the face of man the ship being afterwards cast away as he dreamed as also how he came afterwards to be miraculously preserved and redeemed from that fatal place by two bristol privateers called the duke and duchess that took the rich acapulco ship with one hundred tons of gold and brought it to england to which is added an account of his birth and education his description of the island where he was cast how he subsisted the several strange things he saw and how he used to spend his time with some pious ejaculations that he used composed during his melancholy residence there written by his own hand, and attested by most of the eminent merchants upon the royal exchange.

This impudent catch-penny is a quarto of twelve pages, and is preserved in the Harleian Miscellany.

So far as it is correct, it is evidently a transcript from the voyages, and it is past a doubt from the mistakes in the other parts that Alexander Selkirk had no hand in any portion of the work.

After relating what is engrossed in the body of the work, he continues, This may suffice as to him being the whole material truth, and sufficient on such an account.

There can be little doubt that Daniel Defoe must have read the above passage in Edward Cook's second volume, and if his active and vigorous imagination required any hint to produce the adventures of Robinson Crusoe, the merit belongs to Cook, and not to any papers he got from Alexander Selkirk.

It is evident, from the curiosity so publicly expressed, that, had he had any papers, Sir Richard Steele must have seen or heard of them from himself.

The Voyage was published in 1712, The Englishman the year after, and the romance of Daniel Defoe not until 1719, seven years later, during all which time the other works were before the public.

2.

A Cruising Voyage Round the World, begun in 1708 and finished 1711. containing an account of Alexander Selkirk's living alone four years and four months in an island, etc., by Captain Woods Rogers, Commander, London, 1712. three a voyage to the south sea and round the world wherein an account is given of mr alexander selkirk his manner of living and taming wild beasts during the four years and four months he lived upon the uninhabited island of juan fernandez By Captain Edward cook two volumes London 1712 These two works contained the principal incidents of his life from the time that he was left in the island until his return to England in 1711 the memoirs of literature for April 14 and June 30 1712 make large extracts from the volumes of cook relating to Selkirk four the englishman being the sequel to the guardian by sir richard steele number twenty six dated third december seventeen thirteen relates wholly to alexander selcraig five providence displayed or a surprising account of one alexander selkirk master of a merchantman called the cinque ports who dreaming that the ship would soon after be lost he desired to be left on a desolate island in the south seas where he lived four years and four months without seeing the face of man the ship being afterwards cast away as he dreamed as also how he came afterwards to be miraculously preserved and redeemed from that fatal place by two bristol privateers called the duke and duchess that took the rich acapulco ship with one hundred tons of gold and brought it to england to which is added an account of his birth and education his description of the island where he was cast how he subsisted the several strange things he saw and how he used to spend his time with some pious ejaculations that he used composed during his melancholy residence there written by his own hand, and attested by most of the eminent merchants upon the royal exchange.

This impudent catchpenny is a quarto of twelve pages, and is preserved in the Harleian Miscellany.

So far as it is correct, it is evidently a transcript from the voyages, and it is past a doubt from the mistakes in the other parts that Alexander Selkirk had no hand in any portion of the work.

After relating what is engrossed in the body of the work, he continues, This may suffice as to him being the whole material truth, and sufficient on such an account.

There can be little doubt that Daniel Defoe must have read the above passage in Edward Cook's second volume, and if his active and vigorous imagination required any hint to produce the adventures of Robinson Crusoe, the merit belongs to Cook, and not to any papers he got from Alexander Selkirk.

It is evident from the curiosity so publicly expressed that, had he had any papers, Sir Richard Steele must have seen or heard of them from himself.

The Voyage was published in 1712, The Englishman the year after, and the romance of Daniel Defoe not until 1719, seven years later, during all which time the other works were before the public.

The Memoirs of Literature, for April 14 and June 30, 1712, make large extracts from the volumes of Cook relating to Selkirk.

Four, The Englishman, being the sequel to The Guardian, by Sir Richard Steele, number 26, dated 3rd December, 1713, relates wholly to Alexander Selkirk.

Five, Providence Displayed, or a surprising account of one Alexander Selkirk, master of a merchantman called the Cinque Ports, who, dreaming that the ship would soon after be lost, he desired to be left on a desolate island in the South Seas, where he lived four years and four months without seeing the face of man, the ship being afterwards cast away as he dreamed.

As also how he came afterwards to be miraculously preserved and redeemed from that fatal place by two Bristol privateers called the Duke and Duchess, that took the rich Acapulco ship with one hundred tons of gold and brought it to England.

After relating what is engrossed in the body of the work, he continues, This may suffice as to him being the whole material truth and sufficient on such an account.

There can be little doubt that Daniel Defoe must have read the above passage in Edward Cook's second volume, and if his active and vigorous imagination required any hint to produce the adventures of Robinson Crusoe, the merit belongs to Cook and not to any papers he got from Alexander Selkirk.

It is evident from the curiosity so publicly expressed that had he had any papers, Sir Richard Steele must have seen or heard of them from himself.

The Voyage was published in 1712, The Englishman the year after, and the romance of Daniel Defoe not until 1719, seven years later, during all which time the other works were before the public.

Tis to be a savage to be a rebel, and they who have fallen from you have not so much forfeited their allegiance as lost their humanity.

And therefore, if it were only to preserve myself from the imputation of being amongst the insensible and abandoned, I would beg permission, in the most public manner possible, to profess myself, with the utmost sincerity and zeal, Sire, Your Majesty's most devoted subject and servant, Richard Steele.

The Preface This comedy has been received with universal acceptance, for it was in every part excellently performed, and there needs no other applause of the actors but that they excelled according to the dignity and difficulty of the character they represented.

But this great favour done to the work in acting renders the expectation still the greater from the author to keep up the spirit in the representation of the closet or any other circumstance of the reader, whether alone or in company.

2.

A Cruising Voyage Round the World, begun in 1708 and finished 1711. containing an account of Alexander Selkirk's living alone four years and four months in an island, etc., by Captain Woods Rogers, Commander, London, 1712. three a voyage to the south sea and round the world wherein an account is given of mr alexander selkirk his manner of living and taming wild beasts during the four years and four months he lived upon the uninhabited island of juan fernandez By Captain Edward cook two volumes London 1712 These two works contained the principal incidents of his life from the time that he was left in the island until his return to England in 1711 the memoirs of literature for April 14 and June 30 1712 make large extracts from the volumes of cook relating to Selkirk four the englishman being the sequel to the guardian by sir richard steele number twenty six dated third december seventeen thirteen relates wholly to alexander selcraig five providence displayed or a surprising account of one alexander selkirk master of a merchantman called the cinque ports who dreaming that the ship would soon after be lost he desired to be left on a desolate island in the south seas where he lived four years and four months without seeing the face of man the ship being afterwards cast away as he dreamed as also how he came afterwards to be miraculously preserved and redeemed from that fatal place by two bristol privateers called the duke and duchess that took the rich acapulco ship with one hundred tons of gold and brought it to england to which is added an account of his birth and education his description of the island where he was cast how he subsisted the several strange things he saw and how he used to spend his time with some pious ejaculations that he used composed during his melancholy residence there written by his own hand, and attested by most of the eminent merchants upon the royal exchange.

This impudent catch-penny is a quarto of twelve pages, and is preserved in the Harleian Miscellany.

So far as it is correct, it is evidently a transcript from the voyages, and it is past a doubt from the mistakes in the other parts that Alexander Selkirk had no hand in any portion of the work.

After relating what is engrossed in the body of the work, he continues, This may suffice as to him being the whole material truth, and sufficient on such an account.

There can be little doubt that Daniel Defoe must have read the above passage in Edward Cook's second volume, and if his active and vigorous imagination required any hint to produce the adventures of Robinson Crusoe, the merit belongs to Cook, and not to any papers he got from Alexander Selkirk.

It is evident from the curiosity so publicly expressed that, had he had any papers, Sir Richard Steele must have seen or heard of them from himself.

The Voyage was published in 1712, The Englishman the year after, and the romance of Daniel Defoe not until 1719, seven years later, during all which time the other works were before the public.

Oh, yeah.

Writers like Woods Rogers and the famous essayist Richard Steele published these wildly popular accounts of his survival.

He's the talk of the London coffee houses.

Yet despite all the wealth and the fame, he was deeply, profoundly unhappy.

Mocking fate has brought the wronged woman an exquisite revenge.

That delightful spendthrift and scapegrace Richard Steele has left a large number of whimsical letters addressed to the lady he married.

She might possibly object to their publication, but not Steele.

Indeed, she was a foolish woman to keep this letter.