Public-domain ebook
by Henry Carey
Language: en2,356 downloads on Project Gutenberg
Subjects
Public-domain ebook sourced from Project Gutenberg #28105.
This work is a pair of eighteenth‑century satirical pamphlets, A Learned Dissertation on Dumpling (1726) and its companion, Pudding and Dumpling Burnt to Pot (1727). The introduction opens with a lengthy list of university scholars who have edited the text, then launches into a mock‑solemn dedication to “Mr Braund,” praising his lineage and urging him to sample the author’s “little Fricassee” of political commentary. From the outset the pamphlet adopts the conceit of a culinary treatise, using dumplings and pudding as allegorical stand‑ins for corruption, bribery, and the patronage networks of Walpole, Marlborough and even Swift. The opening pages already reveal a dense web of contemporary allusions, theatrical references, and footnote‑heavy scholarship that situates the work firmly in the pamphlet culture of the 1720s.
The voice is exuberantly baroque, blending mock‑heroic rhetoric with the sharp wit of a Whig‑leaning satirist. Its prose is riddled with Latin mottos, mock‑Latin verses, and elaborate rhetorical flourishes that echo the style of Alexander Pope and the burlesques of Henry Carey himself. Readers who enjoy the intricate wordplay of early‑modern satire, the political lampooning of figures like Walpole and Swift, and the playful conflation of food and corruption will find this text rewarding. It especially appeals to scholars of 18th‑century literature, historians of pamphlet politics, and anyone fascinated by the flamboyant, allusive humor that characterises the period’s public discourse.
The opening · free to read
O BRAUND, my Patron! my Pleasure! my Pride! disdain not to grace my Labours with a kind Perusal. Suspend a-while your more momentous Cares, and condescend to taste this little Fricassee of Mine.
I write not this, to Bite you by the Ear, (i.e.) flatter you out of a Brace or two of Guinea's: No; as I am a true Dumpling Eater, my Views are purely Epicurean, and my utmost Hopes center'd in partaking of some elegant Quelque Chose tost up by your judicious Hand. I regard Money but as a Ticket which admits me to your Delicate Entertainments; to me much more Agreeable than all the Monkey-Tricks of Rival Harlequins, or Puppet-Show Finery of Contending Theatres.
The Plague and fatigue of Dependance and Attendance, which call me so often to the Court-end of the Town, were insupportable, but for the Relief I find at AUSTIN's, your Ingenious and Grateful Disciple, who has adorn'd New Bond-street with your Graceful Effigies. Nor can he fail of Custom who has hung out a Sign so Alluring to all true Dumpling-Eaters. Many a time and oft have I gaz'd with Pleasure on your Features, and trac'd in them the exact Lineaments of your glorious Ancestor Sir JOHN BRAND, vulgarly call'd Sir JOHN PUDDING.
Tho' the Corruption of our English Orthography indulges some appearance of Distinction between BRAND and BRAUND, yet in Effect they are one and the same thing. The ancient Manor of BRAND's, alias BRAUND's, near Kilburn in Middlesex, was the very Manor-House of Sir JOHN BRAND, and is call'd BRAND's to this Day, altho' at present it be in the Possession of the Family of MARSH.
What Honours are therefore due to One who is in a Direct Male Line, an Immediate Descendant from the Loins of that Great Man! Let this teach You to value your Self; this remind the World, how much they owe to the Family of the BRAUNDS; more particularly to YOU, who inherit not only the Name, but the Virtues of your Illustrious Ancestor. I am,
The book keeps going
Reading is free forever. Sign up and watch scenes appear while you read.
Scenes Storieta drew for other classics.
New illustrated classics
Once or twice a month: the latest books to get full character casts, scene art, and free comic editions. No account needed.
