Poetical and Dramatic Works Author:Oliver Goldsmith General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1786 Notes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edition of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million book... more »s for free. Excerpt: THE FOLLOWING ADDRESSED TO THE Printer Of The St. James's Chronicle, APPEARED IN THAT PAPER, IN JUNE, M DCC LXVII. S I R, S there is nothing I diflike fo much as newspaper controverfy, particularly upon trifles, permit me to be as concife as poffible in informing a cor- refpondent of yours, that I recommended Blain- ville's Travels, becaufe I thought the book was a good one ; and I think fo ftill. I faid, I was told by the bookfeller that it was then firft publifhed; but in that, it feems, I was mif-informed, and my reading was not extenfive enough to fet me right. Another correfpondent of yours accufes me of . having taken a ballad, I publifhed fome time ago, Vol. i. C fromfrom one by the ingenious Mr. Percy. I do not think there is any great refemblance between the two pieces in queflion. If there be any, his ballad is taken from mine. I read it to Mr. Percy, fome years ago ; and he (as we both confidered thefe things as trifles at bell) told me with his ufual good humour, the next time I faw him, that he had taken my plan to form the fragments of Shakefpeare into a ballad of his own. He then read me his little Cento, if I may fo call it, and I highly approved it. Such petty anecdotes as thefe are fcarce worth printing : and, were it not for the faufy difpofition of fome of your correfpondents, the public mould never have known that he owes me the hint of his ballad, or that I am obliged to his friendfhip and learning for communications of a much more important nature. I am, Sir, Yours,« less