Immediately after this a heavy blow fell on F. in the death of
his wife. The next few years were occupied with writing his
_Miscellanies_, which contained, along with some essays and poems, two
important works, _A Journey from this World to the Next_, and _The
History of Jonathan Wild the Great_, a grave satire; and he also
conducted two papers in support of the Government, _The True Patriot_ and
_The Jacobite Journal_, in consideration of which he was appointed
Justice of the Peace for Middlesex and Westminster, and had a pension
conferred upon him. In 1746 he set convention at defiance by marrying
Mary MacDaniel, who had been his first wife's maid, and the nurse of his
children, and who proved a faithful and affectionate companion. F. showed
himself an upright, diligent, and efficient magistrate, and his _Inquiry
into the Increase of Robbers_ (1751), with suggested remedies, led to
beneficial results. By this time, however, the publication of his great
masterpiece, _The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling_ (1749), had given
him a place among the immortals. All critics are agreed that this book
contains passages offensive to delicacy, and some say to morality.
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