continued it without intermission on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, until May 19th, when the final number, No. 330, was issued.  The date 1711 was first used on March 31st.  Meanwhile, on January 13th, A. Baldwin issued a No. 1 of a “Tatler,” in which the public were informed that Isaac Bickerstaff had had no intention to discontinue the paper, but would continue to publish it every Tuesday and Saturday.  This was the new “Tatler” in which Swift was interesting himself on behalf of William Harrison.  Writing to Stella, under date January 11th, he says:  “I am setting up a new ‘Tatler,’ little Harrison, whom I have mentioned to you.  Others have put him on it, and I encourage him; and he was with me this morning and evening, showing me his first, which comes out on Saturday.  I doubt he will not succeed, for I do not much approve his manner; but the scheme is Mr. Secretary St. John’s and mine, and would have done well enough in good hands.”  When the paper came out he wrote again:  “There is not much in it, but I hope he will mend.  You must understand that, upon Steele’s leaving off, there were two or three scrub Tatlers came out, and one of them holds on still, and to-day it advertised against Harrison’s; and so there must be disputes which are genuine, like the strops for razors.  I am afraid the little toad has not the true vein for it.”  Apparently, he hadn’t, for later, referring to another number, Swift writes:  “The jackanapes wants a right taste:  I doubt he won’t do.”

With all Swift’s assistance, Harrison did not hold out.  He quarrelled with Baldwin, and went to Morphew and Lillie, the publishers of the original “Tatler.”  Only six numbers bear Baldwin’s imprint, namely, Nos. 1-6, dated respectively, January 13th, January 16th, January 20th, January 23rd, January 27th, and February 1st.  Harrison’s first number, under Morphew, was called No. 285 (February 3rd).  For a very exhaustive and careful research into the publications of “The Tatler” and its imitators the reader is referred to Aitken’s “Life of Sir Richard Steele” (2 vols., 1889).

William Harrison (1685-1713) was educated at Winchester College and New College, Oxford.  He obtained Addison’s favour by his acquaintance with “polite literature,” and was introduced by him to Swift.  Swift took to him very kindly, spoke of the young fellow “we are all fond of,” thought him “a pretty little fellow, with a great deal of wit, good sense, and good nature,” and interested himself in him to the extent that through him St. John got Lord Raby to take him to The Hague as his secretary.  He returned with the Barrier Treaty, but without a penny.  He had not been paid any of his salary.  Swift heard of this, and immediately went about collecting a sum of money for his assistance.  When, however, he called with the money, at Harrison’s lodgings in Knightsbridge, he found the poor fellow had died an hour before.

These contributions to the new “Tatler” are printed from the original periodical issue with the exception of No. 5, which is taken from the second edition of the reprint (1720), as no copy of the original issue has been met with.