FAX AND MRS. CATHERINE BARTON.

Those who have written on the life of Newton have touched with the utmost
reserve upon the connexion which existed between his half-niece Catherine
Barton, and his friend Charles Montague, who died Earl of Halifax. They
seem as if they were afraid that, by going fairly into the matter, they
should find something they would rather not tell. The consequence is, that
when a writer at home or abroad, Voltaire or another, hints with a sneer
that a pretty niece had more to do with Newton's appointment to the Mint
than the theory of gravitation, those who would like to know as much as can
be known of the whole truth find nothing in any attainable biography except
either total silence or a very awkward and hesitating account of half
something.

On looking again into the matter, the juxtaposition of all the
circumstances induced in my mind a strong suspicion that Mrs. C. Barton was
_privately married_ to Lord Halifax, probably before his elevation to the
peerage, and that the marriage was no very great secret among their
friends. As yet I can but say that the hypothesis of a private marriage is,
to me, the most probable of those among which a choice must be made:
farther information may be obtained by publication of the case in "N. &
Q.," the most appropriate place of deposit for the provisional result of
unfinished inquiries.

Charles Montague (born April, 1661, died May 19, 1715) made acquaintance
with Newton when both were at Trinity College in 1680 and 1681. Newton was
nineteen years older than Montague, and had been twelve years Lucasian
professor. At the beginning of their friendship, the Lucasian professor
must be called the patron of the young undergraduate, who was looking for a
fellowship with the intention of taking orders, a design which he did not
find sufficient encouragement to abandon until after he had sat in the
Convention. By 1690, the rising politician had become the patron of the
author of the _Principia_, who in that {430} year or the next became an
aspirant for public employment. The friendship of Newton and Montague
lasted until the death of the latter, interrupted only by a coolness (on
Newton's side at least) in 1691, arising out of a suspicion in Newton's
mind that Montague was not sincere in his intentions towards his friend.

Catherine Barton (born 1680, died 1739) was the daughter of Robert Barton
and Newton's half-sister, Hannah Smith (Baily's _Flamsteed, Supplemen