Jonathan Swift.

Jonathan Swift, afterward the celebrated dean of St. Patrick's, was born on the 30th of November 1667, in Hoey's court, Dublin. When he was but a year old, he was, without the knowledge of his mother or relations, stolen away by his nurse, and carried to Whitehaven; which place she was under a necessity of visiting, on account of the illness of a relation, from whom she expected a legacy; and, as is usual among Irish nurses, she bore such an affection to the child, that she could not think of going without him. There he continued for almost three years; and she took such care of him, that he had learned to spell, and could read any chapter in the Bible before he was five years oId.

At the age of fix he was sent to the school of Kilkenny; and at fourteen admitted into the university of Dublin. The expense of his education being defrayed by his uncle Godwin Swift, the eldest of the brothers who had settled in Ireland. He was a lawyer of great eminence, and had made considerable sums of money, which were for the most part squandered away in idle projects. By means of which, soon after his nephew had entered the college, he found himself involved in great difficulties; and being father of a numerous offspring by four wives, he was under a necessity of reducing the stipend allowed to his nephew for his support at the university, as low as possible.

Engraver: James Basire (London, 1730 - 1802) also known as James Basire Sr. He is the most significant of a family of engravers, and noted for his apprenticing of the young William Blake. His father, Isaac Basire (1704-68) was a map maker, his son (1769-1822) and grandson (1796-1869) were also named James; these four generations of Basires were all engravers. Their overlapping careers has led to difficulties in attribution of some works. Title: The works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, D.D., Dean of St. Patrick's, Dublin The Works of the Rev. Jonathan Swift, D.D., Dean of St. Patrick's, Dublin, Jonathan Swift. Authors: Jonathan Swift, Thomas Sheridan, John Nichols.

Publisher: Printed for J. Johnson, J. Nichols, R. Baldwin, Otridge and Son, J. Sewell, F. and C. Rivington, T. Payne, R. Faulder, G. and J. Robinson, R. Lea, J. Nunn, W. Cuthell, T. Egerton, ... [and 12 others], 1801. Original from: Oxford University. Digitized: Oct 8, 2007. Subjects: Literary Criticism / European / English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh. Export Citation: BiBTeX EndNote.

The real situation of Godwin's affairs not being then known to the world, and as he was looked upon to be much the richest of the family, Swift's other relations seemed at that time to think that their aid was not at all necessary; so that he was obliged to make the best shift he could, with the wretched allowance that his uncle gave him. Thus was one of the most aspiring and liberal minds in the world, early checked and confined, by the narrowness of his circumstances;

This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired.

This applies to the United States, where Works published prior to 1978 were copyright protected for a maximum of 75 years. See Circular 1 "COPYRIGHT BASICS" PDF. Works published before 1923, in this case 1801, are now in the public domain.

and also in countries that figure copyright from the date of death of the artist (post mortem auctoris) in this case (James Basire (London, 1730 - 1802) and that most commonly run for a period of 50 to 70 years from december 31 of that date.

Gulliver's travels Two Rats

While I lay there in this state of mind, two rats crept up and ran back and forth on the bed. One ran up so near my face that I drew out my sword to ward him off. These dread brutes were so brave that they came at me on both sides, and one of them put his fore feet on my neck, but I had the good luck to give him a stout blow ere he could hurt me. He fell at my feet, and his mate made his way off, but not till I had dealt him a good wound on the back, which I gave him as he fled.

These rats were the size of a large dog, but much more quick and fierce; so that if I had not slept with my sword at my side, I have no doubt they would have torn me to pieces, and thus made an end of me. I took the length of the dead rat's tail, and found it to be two yards long, but could not have the nerve to draw it off the bed, where it lay, still in its blood. I saw that it was not yet dead, but with a strong slash on its neck, I put an end to its life.

When the dame came in and saw the blood on my clothes she ran and took me up in her hands to see if I was hurt. With a smile, I made a sign, that she might see the dead rats, and know no harm had come to me. At this she was glad, and bade her maid come in and take up the dead rats with a pair of tongs, and throw them out of the house.

Title: Gulliver's travels into several remote regions of the world: In words of one syllable. Authors: J. C. G., Jonathan Swift. Publisher: A.L.Burt, 1895. Original from: the University of Michigan. Digitized: Jul 2, 2009. Length: 92 pages. This image (or other media file) is in the public domain because its copyright has expired. This applies to the United States, where Works published prior to 1978 were copyright protected for a maximum of 75 years. See Circular 1 "COPYRIGHT BASICS" PDF. Works published before 1923, in this case 1895, are now in the public domain.

and also in countries that figure copyright from the date of death of the artist (post mortem auctoris) in this case (William James Linton December 7, 1812 - December 29, 1897) and that most commonly run for a period of 50 to 70 years from december 31 of that date.