EUSTACE, Esq.** an ingenious and polite writer, was the son of Gilbert Budgell, doctor of divinity; and was born at St Thomas, near Exeter, about the year 1685. He was educated at Christchurch college, Oxford; from which he removed to the Inner Temple, London: but instead of studying the law, for which his father intended him, he applied to polite literature; kept company with the gentlest persons in town; and particularly contracted a strict intimacy with the ingenious Mr Addison, who was first cousin to his mother, and who, on his being made secretary to Lord Wharton lord lieutenant of Ireland, took him with him as one of the clerks of his office. Mr Budgell, who was about 20 years of age, and had read the classics, and the works of the best English, French, and Italian authors, now became concerned with Sir Richard Steele and Mr Addison in writing the Tatler, as he had, soon after, a share in writing the Spectators, where all the papers written by him are marked with an X; and when that work was completed, he had likewise a hand in the Guardian, where his performances are marked with an asterisk. He was afterwards made under secretary to Mr Addison, chief secretary to the lords justices of Ireland, and deputy clerk of the council. Soon after, he was chosen a member of the Irish parliament; and in 1717, Mr Addison, having become principal secretary of state in England, procured him the place of accountant and comptroller general of the revenue in Ireland. But the next year, the duke of Bolton being appointed lord-lieutenant, Mr Budgell wrote a lampoon against Mr Webster, his secretary, in which his grace himself was not spared; and upon all occasions treated that gentleman with the utmost contempt. This imprudent step was the primary cause of his ruin: for the duke of Bolton, in support of his secretary, got him removed from the post of accountant-general; upon which, returning to England, he, contrary to the advice of Mr Addison, published his case in a pamphlet, entitled, "A letter to the lord ***," from Eustace Budgell, Esq. accountant-general," &c. Mr Addison had now resigned the seals, and was retired into the country for the sake of his health: Mr Budgell Budgell had also lost several other powerful friends, who had been taken off by death; particularly the lord Halifax and the earl of Sunderland; he, however, made several attempts to succeed at court, but was constantly kept down by the duke of Bolton. In the year 1720 he lost 20,000l. by the South-sea scheme, and afterwards spent 5000l. more in unsuccessful attempts to get into parliament. This completed his ruin. He at length employed himself in writing pamphlets against the ministry, and wrote many papers in the Craftsman. In 1733, he began a weekly pamphlet, called The Bee; which he continued for above 100 numbers, printed in eight volumes 8vo. During the progress of this work, Dr Tindal's death happened, by whose will Mr Budgell had 2000l. left him; and the world being surprised at such a gift from a man entirely unrelated to him, to the exclusion of the next heir, a nephew, and the continuator of Rapin's history of England, immediately imputed it to his making the will himself. Thus the satire:

Let Budgell charge low Grub-street on my quill, And write whate'er he please except my will.

It was thought he had some hand in publishing Dr Tindal's Christianity as old as the Creation; for he often talked of another additional volume on the same subject, but never published it. After the cessation of the Bee, Mr Budgell became so involved in law-suits, that he was reduced to a very unhappy situation. He got himself called to the bar, and attended for some time in the courts of law; but finding himself unable to make any progress, and being difficult to the utmost, he determined at length to make away with himself. Accordingly, in the year 1736, he took a boat at Somerset-stairs, after filling his pockets with stones; ordered the waterman to shoot the bridge; and, while the boat was going under, threw himself into the river. He had several days before been visibly distracted in his mind. Upon his bureau was found a slip of paper, on which were these words:

What Cato did, and Addison approved, Cannot be wrong.

Besides the above works, he wrote a Translation of Theophrastus's Characters. He was never married; but left one natural daughter, who afterwards assumed his name, and became an actress in Drury-lane.