MILTON.

HE Life of Milton has been al

TH

ready written in fo many forms, with fuch minute enquiry, that I might perhaps more properly have contented myfelf with the addition of a few notes to Mr. Fenton's elegant Abridgement, but that a new narrative was thought neceffary to the uniformity of this edi

tion.

JOHN MILTON was by birth a gentleman, defcended from the proprietors

b

prietors of Milton near Thame in Oxfordshire, one of whom forfeited his eftate in the times of York and Lancafter. Which fide he took I know not; his defcendant inherited no veneration for the White Rofe.

His grandfather John was keeper of the forest of Shotover, a zealous papist, who difinherited his fon, because he had forfaken the religion of his ancestors.

His father, John, who was the fon difinherited, had recourfe for his fupport to the profeffion of a fcrivener. He was a man eminent for his fkill in mufick, many of his compofitions being ftill to be found; and his reputation in his profeffion was fuch, that he grew rich, and retired to an estate. He had pro

bably

bably more than common literature, as his fon addreffes him in one of his moft elaborate Latin poems. He married a gentlewoman of the name of Cafton, a Welsh family, by whom he had two fons, John the poet, and Chriftopher who studied the law, and adhered, as the law taught him, to the king's party, for which he was awhile perfecuted, but having, by his brother's interest, obtained permiffion to live in quiet, he fupported himself by chamber practice, till, foon after the acceffion of king James, he was knighted and made a judge; but, his conftitution being too weak for business, he retired before any difreputable compliances became necef

fary.

He had likewife a daughter Anne, whom he married with a confiderable

fortune to Edward Philips, who came

from Shrewsbury, and rofe in the Crownoffice to be fecondary: by him she had two fons, John and Edward, who were educated by the poet, and from whom is derived the only authentick account of his domeftick manners.

John, the poet, was born in his father's house, at the Spread-Eagle in Bread-street, Dec. 9, 1608, between fix and feven in the morning. His father appears to have been very folicitous about his education; for he was inftructed at first by private tuition under the care of Thomas Young, who was afterwards chaplain to the English mer

chants