ls. He was at that time under
the care of a very celebrated schoolmaster, Mr. Samuel Whyte, who took
a deep interest in the precocious genius of his pupil, and had no small
share of honour in bringing him into notice. As early as fourteen years
of age he entered the Dublin University. He was scarcely more than a
year a pupil in the university when he published a paraphrase on the
fifth ode of Anacreon. This was so well received that he proceeded to
translate the remaining odes, which performance ultimately met with
a most encouraging reception. In his nineteenth year, he proceeded to
London in the hope of obtaining by subscription a sufficient amount to
secure the success of his "Anacreon," and also to enter as a student
the Middle Temple. The work did not appear until 1800, when, under the
patronage of the Earl of Moira, he was enabled to dedicate it to the
Prince of Wales. In 1802, he published a volume under the designation
of, "The Poetical Works of the Late Thomas Little." The moral tone of
these productions offended the public taste, and inflicted injury upon
the poet's reputation which his subsequent life did not remove, even
when the glory of his genius shed lustre upon his name and his country.
His more popular works are well known. In politics he was a whig
partizan, but was not at heart attached to any school of politics.
He was ostensibly a Roman Catholic, and was intolerant as a writer in
defence of Romanism, while in private he was most liberal on religious
subjects, and showed no earnest belief in any system of theology. He
was one of the most accomplished scholars of his day, but was not
a profound thinker, and was regarded as rather a lazy writer.
His imagination was not of the highest order, but it was rich and
diversified. His artistic taste and harmony as a poetical writer were
exquisite. His love of music and song was a deep passion. In society, he
held every circle as in a spell, so charming were his conversation and
manner, and so brilliant and vivacious was his wit. Lord Byron, who had
so happy a power of describing a notable character in a single sentence
or paragraph, said of him, "He is gentlemanly, gentle, and altogether
more pleasing than any individual with whom I am acquainted."

When Lord Melbourne was in office, in 1835, he counselled her majesty
to bestow a pension on the poet of L300 a-year. Moore had found it
difficult to realize this sum by his writings, as his prose works
did not me