[‘The Sublimest Rat Upon Record’]

First published Edinburgh Saturday Post, 2 February 1828, p. 308. Never reprinted. A short horizontal line divides this article from the piece on ‘[The King’s Speech]’ (above, pp. 252–4). This article has ‘between’ rather than ‘betwixt’, and apt allusions to Othello and Hamlet. It continues the informed discussion of London politics and ‘the London press’, which seems to have been De Quincey’s regular task. The sarcastic and at times witty fencing with London newspapers certainly suggests De Quincey, while recalling specific articles like ‘Professor Wilson and the London Sun and Standard’ (above, pp. 76–8). Other evidence includes the italicization of ‘that’, and favourite words like ‘rat’, ‘ratting’, ‘ratted’, and ‘apostacy’.