The artists repository and drawing magazine: exhibiting the principles of the polite arts in their various branches (4.1790)

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fucceeding fire of London, putting, for fome time, an
effectual (top to bufinefs, his affairs were fo much em-
barraffed, that he was never afterwards able to improve
his fortune. Stent, the printfeller, according to Vertue,
taking advantage of the poor man's neceility, caufed
him to draw and engrave the view of Greenwich, on
two large plates, for the paltry fum of thirty millings,
which, allowing for the difference of the value of money
at that time, muft have been worth, at leaft, five times
as much. But fuch, it feems, was the unconfcionable
rapacity of the Britifh dealer, and fuch the low eftate
of the diftreffed artift, whofe great ability and ufeful
labours furely merited a very different reward. Born in
all things to be unfortunate, when employed by govern-
ment to make a drawing of the towns and forts at
Tangiers, whither he went for that purpofc, he nar-
rowly efcaped being made a prifoner by the Turks, and
returning home with difficulty, inftead of being paid in
a liberal manner for his trouble, he received no more
than one hundred pounds. It is uncertain, when or
where he died ; but Vertue fays, he found in the regis-
ter of St. Margaret's, Weftminfter, that he was buried,
March 28, 1677. If this be true, he was 70 years of
age at the time of his death.

Mr. Grofe, from the information of Mr. Oldys,
Norroy King of Arms, has favoured me with the fol-
lowing anecdotes concerning this artift, of which Ver-
tue does not give us the leaft hint. He ufed to work
for the bookfellers at the rate of four-pence an hour ;
and always had an hour-glafs before him. He was fo
very fcrupuloufly exact, that, when obliged to attend the
32 I calls