The 'Anti-Jacobin Review'
[3] is all very well, and not a bit worse than the 'Quarterly', and at
least less harmless. By the by, have you secured my books? I want all
the Reviews, at least the Critiques, quarterly, monthly, etc.,
Portuguese and English, extracted, and bound up in one volume for my
_old age_; and pray, sort my Romaic books, and get the volumes lent to
Mr. Hobhouse--he has had them now a long time. If any thing occurs, you
will favour me with a line, and in winter we shall be nearer neighbours.
Yours very truly,
BYRON.
P.S.--I was applied to to write the _Address_ for Drury Lane, but the
moment I heard of the contest, I gave up the idea of contending against
all Grub Street, and threw a few thoughts on the subject into the fire.
I did this out of respect to you, being sure you would have turned off
any of your authors who had entered the lists with such scurvy
competitors; to triumph would have been no glory, and to have been
defeated--'sdeath!--I would have choked myself, like Otway, with a
quartern loaf [4]; so, remember I had, and have, nothing to do with it,
upon _my Honour!_
[Footnote 1: Granville Penn (1761-1844) was the author of numerous works
on religious subjects. 'The Bioscope, or Dial of Life Explained'
appeared in 1812. The other work referred to by Byron is probably Penn's
'Christian's Survey of all the Primary Events and Periods of the World'
(1811), of which a second edition was published in 1812.
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