The greatest genius of his age;
That matchless pen let me supply,
Whose living lines will never die!"
"I grant your suit," the god replied,
And here he left me to reside.

VERSES BY SWIFT, ON THE OCCASION.

A paper Book is sent by _Boyle,_
Too neatly gilt for me to soil:
Delany sends a Silver Standish,
When I no more a pen can brandish.
Let both around my tomb be placed,
As trophies of a muse deceas'd:
And let the friendly lines they writ,
In praise of long departed wit,
Be graved on either side in columns,
More to my praise than all my volumes;
To burst with envy, spite, and rage,
The Vandals of the present age.

THE DEAN'S CONTRIBUTORY DINNER.

Dean Swift once invited to dinner several of the first noblemen and
gentlemen in Dublin. A servant announced the dinner, and the Dean led
the way to the dining-room. To each chair was a servant, a bottle of
wine, a roll, and an inverted plate. On taking his seat, the Dean
desired the guests to arrange themselves according to their own ideas of
precedence, and fall to. The company were astonished to find the table
without a dish or any provisions. The Lord Chancellor, who was present,
said, "Mr. Dean, we do not see the joke." "Then I will show it you,"
answered the Dean, turning up his plate, under which was half-a-crown
and a bill of fare from a neighboring tavern. "Here, sir," said he, to
his servant, "bring me a plate of goose." The company caught the idea,
and each man sent his plate and half-a-crown. Covers, with everything
that the appetites of the moment dictated, soon appeared. The novelty,
the peculiarity of the manner, and the unexpected circumstances,
altogether excited the plaudits of the noble guests, who declared
themselves particularly gratified by the Dean's entertainment. "Well,"
said the Dean, "gentlemen, if you have dined, I will order _dessert_." A
large roll of paper, presenting the particulars of a splendid dinner,
was produced, with an estimate of expense. The Dean requested the
accountant-general to deduct the half-crowns from the amount, observing,
"that as his noble guests were pleased to express their satisfaction
with the dinner, he begged their advice and assistance in disposing of
the _fragments_ and _crumbs_," as he termed the balance mentioned by the
accountant-general--which was two hundred and fifty pounds. The company
said, that no person was capable of instructing