tte, and
pensioner. He says that he always "preferred the state of his mind to
that of his fortune"; but his mental state was often fickle, and too
much dependent on bodily luxuries, though he was patriotic enough to
sacrifice his personal fortune for what he considered his country's
interest.

We find Addison a frequent contributor to _The Tatler_ after its
seventeenth number. Steele says: "I fared like a distressed prince who
calls in a powerful neighbor to his aid; I was undone by my auxiliary;
when I had once called him in, I could not subsist without dependence
on him."

_The Tatler_ was discontinued in 1711, and Steele projected the more
famous _Spectator_ two months later. Addison wrote the first number,
but the second issue, which came from Steele's pen, contains sketches
of those characters which have become famous in the _Sir Roger de
Coverley Papers_. Steele's first outline of Sir Roger is a creation of
sweetness and light:--

"His tenants grow rich, his servants look satisfied, all the young
women profess to love him, and the young men are glad of his
company. When he comes into a house he calls the servants by their
names, and talks all the way upstairs to a visit."

The influence of such a character must have been especially wholesome
on the readers of the eighteenth century. Without the suggestive
originality of Steele, we might never have had those essays of
Addison, which we read most to-day; but while Steele should have full
credit for the first bold sketches, the finished portraits in the De
Coverley gallery are due to Addison. Steele says of his associate, "I
claim to myself the merit of having extorted excellent productions
from a person of the greatest abilities, who would not have let them
appear by any other means."

It is well, however, to remember that Steele did much more work than
is popularly supposed. Beginning with March 1, 1711, there were 555
issues of _The Spectator_ published on succeeding week days. To these
were added 80 more numbers at irregular intervals. Of these 635
numbers, Steele wrote 236 and Addison 274.

In many respects each seemed to be the complement of the other.
Steele's writings have not the polish or delicate humor of Addison's,
but they have more strength and pathos. Addison had the greater
genius, and he was also more willing to spend time in polishing his
prose and making it artistic. From the far greater interest now shown
in Addison, the student