Author: [WAGSTAFFE (William)]
Title: A Letter from the Facetious Dr. Andrew Tripe at Bath, to his Loving Brother the Profound Greshamite [John Woodward], shewing, That the Scribendi Cacoethes is a Distemper arising from a Redundancy of Biliose Salts, and not to be Eradicated, but by a Diurnal Course of Oyls and Vomits. With an Appendix of Socrates his Clyster, and The Use of Clean Linnen in Controversy.
Description: London: Printed for J. Morphew, 1719. First edition,48pp., small stain on title, slight browning of the text, uncut, disbound. "This Letter is an attack on John Woodward, Professor of Physic at Gresham College, who repeatedly came into conflict, on scientific subjects, with members of Tory circles. It is the only one of the pieces printed in Wagstaffe's 'Miscellaneous Works', 1725, of which the authorship is undisputed." - Rothschild. ***** Some of Dr. Wagstaffe's writings have such literary merit, that Charles Wentworth Dilke conjectures that this work was written by Swift, whilst Sir Henry Craik in his 'Life of Swift' said the hypothesis was almost irresistible. Wagstaffe was a physician at St. Bartholomew's Hospital, whether he was also an original satirist influenced by Swift is open to question, but he certainly must have met him quite frequently at the house of his father-in-law, Charles Bernard. Rothschild, 2473 (second edition).

Keywords: ENGLISH LITERATURE EPISTOLARY FICTION JONATHAN SWIFT SWIFTIANA