es in a night.

Addison had written his "Cato" several years before, but no one had seen
it. He carried the manuscript about with him, as Goethe did his "Faust,"
for years, and added to it, or erased, all according to the moods that
came to him. And we have reason to believe that the sublime soliloquy in
"Cato" was written by Addison when the blankness of his prospects and the
blackness of the future had forced the question of self-destruction upon
him.

Cato made a great mistake in committing suicide--he did the deed right on
the eve of success--he should have waited. Addison waited.

At this time Lord Godolphin, who had the happiness to have a great
racehorse named after him, occupied the chief place in the Ministry.
Marlborough had just fought the battle of Blenheim, and it was Godolphin's
wish to have the victory sung in adequate verse, for history's sake and
for the sake of the political party. But he could not think of a poet who
was equal to the task; so in his dilemma he called in Lord Halifax, who
had a reputation for knowing good things in a literary way.

Lord Halifax was unfortunate in having his portrait transmitted by two
poets who hated him thoroughly, each for the amply sufficient reason that
he failed to confer the favors that were much desired. Swift calls Halifax
"a would-be Maecenas"; and Pope refers to him as "penurious, mean and
chicken-hearted," satirizing him in the well-known character of Bufo.

Do not take the poets too seriously: all good men have had mud-balls
thrown at them--sometimes bricks--and Halifax was not a bad man by any
means. Let the poets make copy of their thwarted hopes.

In reply to Lord Godolphin's inquiries, Halifax said he did indeed know
the man who could celebrate the victory in verse, and in fact there was
only one man in England who could do the task justice. He, however,
refused to divulge his man's identity until a suitable reward for the poet
was fixed upon.

Godolphin finally thought of an office in the Excise, worth three hundred
pounds a year or more.

Halifax then stipulated that the negotiations must be carried on directly
between the Government and the poet, otherwise the poet's pride would
rebel. Godolphin agreed to shield Halifax from all mention in the matter,
and the name and address of Joseph Addison were then taken down.

Godolphin had never heard of Addison, but relying on Halifax, he sent
Boyle, Chancellor of the Exchequer, to the address named,