Animadversions on the Fellows of Trinity College

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Dublin Printed by Thomas Burnside for George Folingsby, No.59, Dame-Street 1794 (2)+192pp folding plate 210x125mm modern half leather with marbled boards. A good copy of this controversial work, with the scarce engraved folding allegorical frontispiece, which is often missing. Theophilus Swift, a relative of Jonathan Swift, was born in England and educated at Oxford. He moved to Ireland around 1783, on inheriting some property from his father. While living in Dublin he became involved in a number of controversies, including a dispute with the administration of Trinity College which led to the publication of this incendiary work. Swift felt that his son Deane "the cleverest lad in all Ireland" had been abused by the Fellows of the College by not being awarded any distinctions at his examinations. The resulting attack, which focused on the lack of both educational and moral standards at Trinity College, earned its author twelve months imprisonment for libel. Undaunted, he continued to pour out his private grievances in a variety of literary endeavours until his death in 1815. The engraved folding frontispiece measures 8 x 5 3/4 inches. It depicts two young students experiencing differing receptions beneath architectural allusions to Oxford University and Dublin University. It was produced by the Dublin engraver and print seller (Alexander) Ferguson. Pollard in her 'Dictionary of Members of the Dublin Book Trade', makes no mention of this plate in her entry on Ferguson and yet mentions the text in her entry on the publisher Folingsby, leading one to believe that she had not seen a copy with the scarce frontispiece. This copy has a contemporary ownership inscription of the Trinity College student, John Edw(ard) Gamble. N° de ref. del artículo 000099

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