TO
SIR
JOSHUA
REYNOLDS
.
DEAR
SIR
,
I
CAN
have
no
expectations
in
an
address
of
this
kind
,
either
to
add
to
your
reputation
,
or
to
es
tablish
my
own
.
You
can
gain
nothing
from
my
admiration
,
as
I
am
ignorant
of
that
art
in
which
you
are
said
to
excel
;
and
I
may
lose
much
by
the
severity
of
your
judgment
,
as
few
have
a
juster
taste
in
poetry
than
you
.
Setting
interest
therefore
aside
,
to
which
I
never
paid
much
attention
,
I
must
be
indulged
at
present
in
following
my
affections
.
The
only
dedication
I
ever
made
was
to
my
brother
,
because
I
loved
him
better
than
most
other
men
.
He
is
since
dead
.
Permit
me
to
inscribe
this
Poem
to
you
.
How
far
you
may
be
pleased
with
the
versi
cation
and
mere
mechanical
parts
of
this
at
tempt
,
I
don't
pretend
to
enquire
;
but
I
know
you
will
object
(
and
indeed
several
of
our
best
and
wisest
friends
concur
in
the
opinion
)
that
the
depopulation
it
deplores
is
no
where
to
be
seen
,
and
the
disorders
it
laments
are
only
to
be
found
in
the
poet's
own
imagination
.
To
this
I
can
scarce
make
any
other
answer
than
that
I
sincere
ly
believe
what
I
have
written
;
that
I
have
taken
all
possible
pains
,
in
my
country
excursions
,
for
these
four
or
five
years
past
,
to
be
certain
of
what
I
alledge
,
and
that
all
my
views
and
enquiries
have
led
me
to
believe
those
miseries
real
,
which
I
here
attempt
to
display
.
But
this
is
not
the
place
to
enter
into
an
enquiry
whether
the
country
be
depopulating
or
not
;
the
discussion
would
take
up
much
room
,
and
I
should
prove
myself
,
at
best
,
an
indifferent
politician
,
to
tire
the
reader
with
a
long
preface
,
when
I
want
his
unfatigued
attention
to
a
long
poem
.
In
regretting
the
depopulation
of
the
country
,
I
inveigh
against
the
increase
of
our
luxuries
;
and
here
also
I
expect
the
shout
of
modern
politi
cians
against
me
.
For
twenty
or
thirty
years
past
,
it
has
been
the
fashion
to
consider
luxury
as
one
of
the
greatest
national
advantages
;
and
all
the
wisdom
of
antiquity
in
that
particular
,
as
er
roneous
.
Still
,
however
,
I
must
remain
a
pro
fessed
ancient
on
that
head
,
and
continue
to
think
those
luxuries
prejudicial
to
states
,
by
which
so
many
vices
are
introduced
,
and
so
ma
ny
kingdoms
have
been
undone
.
Indeed
,
so
much
has
been
poured
out
of
late
on
the
other
side
of
the
question
,
that
,
merely
for
the
sake
of
novelty
and
variety
,
one
would
sometimes
wish
to
be
in
the
right
.
I
AM
,
DEAR
SIR
,
YOUR
SINCERE
FRIEND
,
AND
ARDENT
ADMIRER
,
OLIVER
GOLDSMITH
.