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diff --git a/42844-0.txt b/42844-0.txt index b4861df..c3ce006 100644 --- a/42844-0.txt +++ b/42844-0.txt @@ -1,38 +1,4 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Life and Correspondence of David Hume, -Volume II (of 2), by John Hill Burton - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Life and Correspondence of David Hume, Volume II (of 2) - -Author: John Hill Burton - -Release Date: May 30, 2013 [EBook #42844] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DAVID HUME, VOLUME II *** - - - - -Produced by Adrian Mastronardi, Michael Zeug, Lisa Reigel, -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images -generously made available by The Internet Archive/Canadian -Libraries) - - - - - - +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 42844 *** Transcriber's Notes: Variations in spelling and hyphenation have been left as in the original. Words in italics in the original are surrounded @@ -20870,362 +20836,4 @@ Punctuation has been standardized in the Index. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Life and Correspondence of David Hume, Volume II (of 2) - -Author: John Hill Burton - -Release Date: May 30, 2013 [EBook #42844] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DAVID HUME, VOLUME II *** - - - - -Produced by Adrian Mastronardi, Michael Zeug, Lisa Reigel, -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images -generously made available by The Internet Archive/Canadian -Libraries) - - - - - - - -Transcriber's Notes: Variations in spelling and hyphenation have been -left as in the original. Greek words have been transliterated and placed -between +plus signs+. Words in italics in the original are surrounded by -_underscores_. A row of asterisks represents a thought break. Letters -superscripted in the original are surrounded by {braces}. Ellipses match -the original. A complete list of corrections follows the text. - -The original has two different kinds of blockquotes: one uses a smaller -font than the main text, and the other has wider margins. In this text, -the blockquotes in a smaller font have wider margins, and the other -blockquotes have two blank lines before and after the quotation. An -explanation of the different kinds of quotations can be found at the end -of this text. - -The original uses side by side columns for comparisons. This text has -the contents of the right column indented five spaces below the contents -of the left column. - - - - - LIFE AND - - CORRESPONDENCE OF - - DAVID HUME. - - - [Illustration: Portrait of Hume from a Bust] - - - - - LIFE - - AND - - CORRESPONDENCE - - OF - - DAVID HUME. - - - FROM THE PAPERS BEQUEATHED BY HIS NEPHEW TO THE - ROYAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH; AND OTHER - ORIGINAL SOURCES. - - - BY JOHN HILL BURTON, ESQ. - ADVOCATE. - - - VOLUME II. - - - EDINBURGH: - WILLIAM TAIT, 107, PRINCE'S STREET. - MDCCCXLVI. - - - - - EDINBURGH: - Printed by WILLIAM TAIT, 107, Prince's Street. - - - - -CONTENTS OF VOLUME SECOND. - - -ILLUSTRATIONS TO VOL. II. - - Portrait of Hume from a Bust, _Frontispiece_. - - Fac simile of a page of the History of England, Page 79 - - Fac simile of a letter from Rousseau, 326 - - -CHAPTER X. - -1756-1759. ÆT. 45-48. - - The second volume of the History of the Stuarts--His Apologies - for his Treatment of Religion--The Four Dissertations--The Two - Suppressed Dissertations--Resigns his Office of Librarian-- - Home's Douglas--Commences the History of the Tudors-- - Wilkie's Epigoniad--Hume's Nationalism--Warburton--Colonel - Edmondstoune--Dr. Robertson--Negotiations as to Ferguson's - Chair--Hume goes to London--Writes Letters of Fictitious and - Extravagant News--Smith's Theory of Moral Sentiments-- - Publication of the History of the House of Tudor--General View - of the Constitutional Principles of the History. 1 - - -CHAPTER XI. - -1760-1762. ÆT. 49-51. - - Alterations of the History in the direction of despotic - Principles--Specimens--Alterations in Style--Specimens--His - Elaboration--Ossian's Poems--Labours at the early part of the - History--Ferguson's "Sister Peg"--Acquaintance with Madame de - Boufflers--Account of that lady--First intercourse with - Rousseau--Rousseau's position--The exiled Earl Marischal-- - Campbell and his Dissertation on Miracles. 73 - - -CHAPTER XII. - -1762-1763. ÆT. 51-52. - - The Publication of the History anterior to the Accession of - the Tudors--Completion of the History--Inquiry how far it is a - complete History--Hume's Intention to write an Ecclesiastical - History--Opinions of Townsend and others on his History-- - Appreciation of the Fine Arts--Hume's House in James's Court-- - Its subsequent occupation by Boswell and Johnson--Conduct - of David Mallet--Hume's Projects--The Douglas Cause-- - Correspondence with Reid. 120 - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -1763-1764. ÆT. 52-53. - - Lord Hertford's appointment to the French Embassy, and - invitation to Hume to accompany him--Correspondence on the - occasion--Residence in London, and remarks on the Political - Movements of 1763--State of his reputation in France--His - Arrival--Letters to friends at home about his flattering - reception--The young French princes--Observations on eminent - French people--His recommendations to a Clergyman-- - Introductions of Fellow Countrymen. 156 - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -1764-1765. ÆT. 53-54. - - The French and English Society of Hume's day--Reasons of his - warm reception in France--Society in which he moved--Mixture - of lettered men with the Aristocracy--Madame Geoffrin--Madame - Du Page de Boccage--Madame Du Deffand--Mademoiselle De - L'Espinasse--D'Alembert--Turgot--The Prince of Conti--Notices - of Hume among the Parisians--Walpole in Paris--Resumption of - the Correspondence--Hume undertakes the management of Elliot's - sons--Reminiscences of home--Mrs. Cockburn--Adam Smith--Madame - De Boufflers and the Prince of Conti--Correspondence with Lord - Elibank. 207 - - -CHAPTER XIV.[vi:A] - -1765-1766. ÆT. 54-55. - - Hume's Sentiments as to the Popularity of his works--A letter - to the Scottish Clergy--Correspondence with Elliot continued-- - Sir Robert Liston--Mallet--Hume appointed Secretary of - Legation--Chargé d' Affaires at Paris--Proposal to appoint him - Secretary for Ireland--Reasons of the Failure of the Project-- - Lord Hertford--Resumption of Communication with Rousseau-- - Rousseau in Paris--Notices of his History and Character-- - Hume's Solicitude for his welfare--Return to Britain--Disposal - of Rousseau--Death of Jardine. 263 - - -CHAPTER XV. - -1766-1767. ÆT. 55-56. - - Rousseau at Wooton--Mr. Davenport--Negotiations as to - Rousseau's pension--Origin and rise of his excitement against - Hume--Proper method of viewing the dispute--Incidents - illustrative of Rousseau's state of mind--His charges against - Hume--Smith's opinion--Opinion of the French friends--Hume's - conduct in the publication of the papers--Voltaire--Rousseau's - flight and wanderings--Hume's subsequent conduct to him. 319 - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -1766-1770. ÆT. 55-59. - - Hume Under Secretary of State--Church Politics--Official - abilities--Conduct as to Ferguson's book--Quarrel with - Oswald--Baron Mure's sons--Project of continuing the History-- - Ministerial convulsions--Hume's conduct to his Family--His - Brother--His Nephews--Baron Hume--Blacklock--Smollett--Church - Patronage--Gibbon--Robertson--Elliot--Gilbert Stuart--The - Douglas Cause--Andrew Stewart--Morellet--Return to Scotland. 382 - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -1771-1776. ÆT. 60-65. - - Hume's social character--His conversation--His disposition-- - Traditional anecdotes regarding him--Correspondence--Letter - about the Pretender--Gilbert Stuart's quarrel with Dr. Henry-- - Commercial State of Scotland--Letter to his nephew on - Republicanism--Smith's "Wealth of Nations"--Hume's illness-- - His Will--Smith appointed Literary Executor--Strahan - substituted--His journey to England with Home--Prospects of - Death--Communications with his Friends and Relations--His - Death--General view of his influence on Thought and Action. 437 - -INDEX. 523 - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[vi:A] By mistake two chapters have been numbered XIV. - - - - -THE LIFE - -OF - -DAVID HUME. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -1756-1759. ÆT. 45-48. - - The second volume of the History of the Stuarts--His Apologies - for his Treatment of Religion--The Four Dissertations--The Two - Suppressed Dissertations--Resigns his Office of Librarian-- - Home's Douglas--Commences the History of the Tudors--Wilkie's - Epigoniad--Hume's Nationalism--Warburton--Colonel Edmondstoune-- - Dr. Robertson--Negotiations as to Ferguson's Chair--Hume goes - to London--Writes letters of Fictitious and Extravagant News-- - Smith's Theory of Moral Sentiments--Publication of the History - of the House of Tudor--General View of the Constitutional - Principles of the History. - - -We have now followed the personal history of David Hume through nearly -twenty years of authorship. We have seen him approach the tribunal of -public opinion with the strongest internal assurance of success, and in -a form so different from that of his predecessors, as a high reliance on -his own powers could alone have prompted. Baffled in the first, and in -the second, and in the third attempt, he still persevered; and while the -coldness of each reception showed him that his last effort had proved a -failure, it never extinguished the fire of literary ardour which he felt -burning within him, or quenched the hope, that it would one day blaze -forth before the world. It is only towards the termination of this long -period of laborious authorship that we find the philosopher's early -visions of intellectual greatness beginning to be fulfilled. At the -period at which we have now arrived, his name was famous over Europe. It -was a fame that, once spread abroad, was not soon to die; for those to -whom his name was first made known in his new popular work, speedily -discovered that, in his earliest neglected effort, he had laid the -foundation of a still surer claim on their admiration, and justified the -sagacity with which, in the pride and strength of youthful genius, he -had thrown its first fruits before the world unaided and unadvised. - -The year 1756 seems to have been in a great measure devoted by Hume to -the printing of the second volume of his History, to which the following -letters to Millar refer. A great part of the correspondence with this -sagacious publisher relates to minute business arrangements. It is -presumed, that the reader may wish to see some specimens of the manner -in which Hume transacted such matters, but that he will not care to have -the whole of the arrangements between the author and publisher laid -before him. A few specimens of the business part of the letters are -accordingly selected, while those portions which have any general -interest, literary, philosophical, or political, are given in full. The -reader will see, perhaps, with some surprise, that he was very anxious -to subject his style to the critical eye of Mallet. We shall hereafter -have to disclose some curious features of his literary intercourse with -this extraordinary person. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 22d September, 1756._ - -"Mr. Strahan, in a few days, will have finished the printing this -volume; and I hope you will find leisure, before the hurry of winter, -to peruse it, and to write me your remarks on it. I fancy you will -publish about the middle of November. I must desire you to take the -trouble of distributing a few copies to my friends in London, and of -sending me a few copies here. The whole will be fifteen copies. - -"Notwithstanding Mr. Mallet's impertinence in not answering my letter, -(for it deserves no better a name,) if you can engage him from yourself -to mark on the perusal such slips of language as he thinks I have fallen -into in this volume, it will be a great obligation to me: I mean that I -shall lie under an obligation to you; for I would not willingly owe any -to him. I am, dear sir, your most humble servant."[3:1] - - -"_Edinburgh, 4th December, 1756._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I have two of yours before me, and should have answered them -sooner, had not Mr. Dalrymple told me that he would come to a -resolution, in a few days, about the method of printing his volume. As -soon as he does so, I shall write you. - -"I am certainly very well satisfied with your sale, which I hope -continues. Lord Lyttelton's objection is not well grounded; I have not -contradicted that story betwixt Shaftesbury and Clifford: I have only -omitted it. It stands only on Burnet's authority, who is very careless -and inaccurate. I believe I could convince both you and him that it was -without foundation. I am very glad that Mr. Mallet has marked those -expressions which appeared Scotticisms. You could not do me a greater -pleasure than to procure me a list of them. I beg of you to employ all -your interest with him to that purpose. I am very anxious to see them -soon, that I may examine them at leisure, and correct them in all my -writings. A very little time would suffice for him to take down the page -and the line and the expression. If counting the line were too -troublesome, he would oblige me by only marking the page and the -expression; I would easily find it. - -"I had a conversation, yesterday, with Messrs. Kincaid and Donaldson, -when I made them a proposal, which, I hope, will be for both your -advantage. They told me that you had only about four hundred complete -sets of my philosophical writings. I am extremely desirous to have these -four volumes, with that which you will publish this winter, brought into -a quarto volume. They said that the small size was rather more proper -for their sale; and, therefore, they would gladly take, at present, two -hundred sets of the four volumes, to be paid for by so many of their -shares in the quarto edition as would be an equivalent; that is, if the -quarto volume were sold at the same price with the four volumes, then -set for set: if at more, then such allowance to be made as, upon -calculation, would appear to be an equivalent. If the History meet with -success, it will certainly quicken the sale of the philosophical -writings; and the taking two hundred sets from you, leaves you so small -a number on hand, as gives you a certain prospect of coming soon to a -new edition. Though some odd copies of particular volumes remain on -hand, there is no great matter, as they may be disposed of with a small -discount. If you agree to this proposal, they empowered me to desire you -to put the two hundred copies on board a ship with the first occasion, -and to write them a letter, by which they may be sure that there is no -mistake in the conditions. The bringing these scattered pieces into one -volume will, of itself, quicken the sale; and every new edition has -naturally that effect. - -"I again recommend to you, very earnestly, the procuring me that favour -from Mr. Mallet. It is not possible that he can refuse you. I wish I had -desired you to ask the same favour of Mr. Reid, to whom please to make -my compliments. I am, dear sir, your most obedient servant."[5:1] - - -The second volume of the History, bringing down the narrative to the -Revolution, was published in 1756. "This performance," says Hume in his -"own life," alluding to the previous volume, "happened to give less -displeasure to the Whigs, and was better received. It not only rose -itself, but helped to buoy up its unfortunate brother." - -The manner in which he had characterized the different religious bodies, -whose conduct he had to describe, gave offence to many readers, and was -afterwards matter of regret to himself. The toleration which forbids us -to punish our neighbour on account of his creed, he had fully learned. -That still higher toleration, which forbids us to treat our neighbour's -religious creed with disrespect, he had not yet acquired. He always -speaks of the extreme Independents and Presbyterians as enthusiasts. -With this term, not in itself opprobrious, because, though it implies -excess, it does not imply the excess of a bad quality, he, on some -occasions, associates the word fanaticism, and other expressions having -a like sarcastic, or at least slighting tendency. To the Roman Catholic -religion he was still less respectful, generally speaking of it -as "the Catholic superstition."[5:2] In his "Natural History -of Religion," published in 1757, he used the same offensive -expressions, and spoke of the ceremonies and essential doctrines -of the church of Rome, in a tone which no sincere member of that -church can encounter without painful feelings. In this respect he -certainly did not act up to the character of a true philosopher, -though his expressions are no doubt in harmony with the general -tone of his mind. He certainly had no wish to insult any man's -creed, but he never dreamed that, among his readers, there might -be some who sympathized deeply with the catholic spirit of the -gothic ages, or with the independent temper of the covenanters. -One whose mind revolted so nervously against whatever was not -stamped with the character of profound philosophy, or of brilliant -intellect, could see nothing to admire in the adaptation of the -catholic system to the dark ages in which it flourished; and would -have little respect for such achievements as it gained in the war -with barbarous minds and brutal passions.[6:1] - -In Scotland, the Episcopal Church was at that time barely tolerated; and -many an outcry against this toleration, as one of the sins of the time, -made its adherents daily fear that their freedom of conscience might be -made still more narrow. For the Roman Catholics there was no toleration -in the proper acceptation of the term. Had their priesthood mingled in -the ordinary society of Edinburgh, and had Hume become acquainted with -them as he afterwards was with the clergy of France, he would perhaps -have blushed to write as he did, of the creed of learned and -accomplished men. In his subsequent editions, he carefully cleansed his -History of these offensive expressions, substituting in general the word -"creed" or "religion," instead of superstition. - -The coincidence of his metaphysical opinions, with those of a -considerable portion of the Presbyterians, has already been noticed; and -his desire to strip religion of all forms and symbols, would seem to -point out the Presbyterian system as that with which he should naturally -have had the greatest sympathy. But he disliked enthusiasm or zeal, -whatever were the opinions of the zealots; and therefore he invariably -marks with censure the extreme views of that religious party. In the -English church, on the other hand, he met with a larger proportion of -learned, accomplished, and gentlemanlike men. Among persons, too, many -of whom were tempted to assume the sacerdotal character by its -emoluments, not by its duties, he found a tolerable portion of that -philosophical indifference, which it is to be feared he looked upon as -no blemish in a clergyman's character. In the Church of England, his -sympathies were thus with the insincere.[9:1] Where there was sincere -belief, but not to the extent of enthusiasm, the clergy of the Church of -Scotland would have the largest share of his confidence. Accordingly, we -find that he had formed a warm intimacy with many of the members of the -"moderate" party in that church. His own good taste and sense of -colloquial politeness, would suggest to him the propriety of avoiding, -whether in correspondence or conversation, all forms of expression or -enunciations of opinion, such as it would be unbecoming in a clergyman -to hear without reproving. On the other hand, his correspondence with -the clergy bears traces of his having made it part of the understanding -on which their intercourse was to be based, that they were not to make -him a subject for the exercise of their calling; and that they were to -abstain from all efforts of conversion, and all discussion of religious -subjects. Hence, although there are many observations on church politics -in his correspondence with his reverend friends, religion is a matter -never mentioned. - -Before he published his second volume, Hume felt conscious of the -impropriety of the tone he had adopted in the first, towards religious -creeds. In a letter to Dr. Clephane, he says,--"I am convinced that -whatever I have said of religion should have received some more -softenings. There is no passage in the History which strikes in the -least at revelation. But as I run over all the sects successively, and -speak of each of them with some mark of disregard, the reader, putting -the whole together, concludes that I am of no sect; which to him will -appear the same thing as the being of no religion. With regard to -politics and the character of princes and great men, I think I am very -moderate. My views of _things_ are more conformable to Whig principles; -my representations of _persons_ to Tory prejudices. Nothing can so much -prove that men commonly regard more persons than things, as to find that -I am commonly numbered among the Tories."[11:1] - -The following paper is evidently a draft of a preface, which, in the -consciousness that some apology was called for in connexion with this -subject, he intended to prefix to the second volume. He afterwards -published a great part of the substance of it in a note towards the end -of the volume: but there is sufficient difference in the contents of the -two papers to make the following a distinct object of interest. - - -PREFACE. - - It ought to be no matter of offence, that in this volume, as - well as in the foregoing, the mischiefs which arise from the - abuses of religion are so often mentioned, while so little in - comparison is said of the salutary consequences which result - from true and genuine piety. The proper office of religion is - to reform men's lives, to purify their hearts, to enforce all - moral duties, and to secure obedience to the laws and civil - magistrate. While it pursues these useful purposes, its - operations, though infinitely valuable, are secret and silent, - and seldom come under the cognisance of history. That - adulterate species of it alone, which inflames faction, - animates sedition, and prompts rebellion, distinguishes itself - in the open theatre of the world. Those, therefore, who - attempt to draw inferences disadvantageous to religion from - the abuses of it mentioned by historians, proceed upon a very - gross, and a very obvious fallacy; for, besides that every - thing is liable to abuse, and the best things the most so, the - beneficent influence of religion is not to be sought for in - history. That principle is always the more pure and genuine, - the less figure it makes in the annals of war, politics, - intrigues, and revolutions, quarrels, and convulsions; which - it is the business of an historian to record and transmit to - posterity. - - It ought as little to be matter of offence, that no religious - sect is mentioned in this work without being exposed sometimes - to some note of blame and disapprobation. The frailties of - our nature mingle themselves with every thing in which we - are employed, and no human institutions will ever reach - perfection, the idea of an infinite mind. The author of the - universe seems at first sight to require a worship absolutely - pure, simple, unadorned, without rites, institutions, - ceremonies; even without temples, priests, or verbal prayer - and supplication. Yet has this species of devotion been often - found to degenerate into the most dangerous fanaticism. When - we have recourse to the aid of the senses and imagination, in - order to adapt our religion in some degree to human infirmity, - it is very difficult, and almost impossible, to prevent - altogether the intrusion of superstition, or keep men from - laying too great stress on the ceremonial and ornamental parts - of their worship. Of all the sects into which Christians have - been divided, the Church of England seems to have chosen the - most happy medium; yet it will undoubtedly be allowed, that - during the age of which these volumes treat, there was a - tincture of superstition in the partisans of the hierarchy, as - well as a strong mixture of enthusiasm in their antagonists. - But it is the nature of the latter principle soon to evaporate - and decay. A spirit of moderation usually succeeds in a little - to the fervours of zeal; and it must be acknowledged, to the - honour of the present Presbyterians, Independents, and other - sectaries of this island, that they resemble in little more - than in name their predecessors, who flourished during the - civil wars, and who were the authors of such disorders. It - would appear ridiculous in the eyes of the judicious part of - mankind, to pretend that even the first reformers, in most - countries of Europe, did not carry matters to a most violent - extreme, and were not on many occasions liable to the - imputation of fanaticism. Not to mention that uncharitable - spirit which accompanies zealots of all kinds, and which led - the early reformers, almost universally, to inflict upon the - Catholics, and on all who differed from them, the same rigours - of which they themselves so loudly complained. - - These hints, however obvious, the author thought proper to - suggest, with regard to the free and impartial manner in which - he has treated religious controversy. As to the civil and - political part of his performance, he scorns to suggest any - apology, where he thinks himself entitled to approbation. To - be above the temptation of interest is a species of virtue, - which we do not find by experience to be very common; but to - neglect at the same time all popular and vulgar applause, is - an enterprise much more rare and arduous. Whoever, in a - factious nation, pays court to neither party, must expect that - justice will be done him by time only, perhaps only by a - distant posterity.[13:1] - -The "Natural History of Religion" above referred to, remarkable even -among its author's other works, for the breadth of its research, and its -apt union of philosophy with historical detail, was published in 1757, -along with three other essays;[13:2] and a curious incident connected -with this publication has now to be revealed. In 1783, a work was -published in London, called "Essays on Suicide and the Immortality of -the Soul, ascribed to the late David Hume, Esq., never before published; -with remarks, intended as an antidote to the poison contained in these -performances, by the Editor." The editor and his antidote are now both -forgotten: but the style of Hume and his method of thinking were at once -recognised in these essays, and they have been incorporated with the -general edition of his works. If any doubt attached to the authorship, -it would be cleared up by some allusions in his subsequent -correspondence, where we shall find him naturally expressing alarm at -the circumstance of Wilkes having, through the negligence of Millar, had -possession of a copy containing the two suppressed essays. Many copies, -indeed, of the first edition of the dissertations bear marks of having -been mutilated.[14:1] That Hume wrote these essays, and intended to -publish them, is thus an incident in his life which ought not to be -passed over; but it is also part of his history, that he repented of the -act at the last available moment, and suppressed the publication. - -That after the ghastly scene which he witnessed twenty years -earlier,[14:2] he should have written on suicide with his usual -philosophical indifference, and contempt for the prevalent sentiments -and feelings of mankind, is a remarkable proof how little he was liable -to ordinary imaginative impressions; how completely he was free of -subjection to those - - "lords of the visionary eye, whose lid - Once raised remains aghast, and will not fall." - -It may safely be pronounced, that had he widened the circle of his -utilitarian theory, and embraced within it, as he might have done, -Hutcheson's theory of universal benevolence, he never would have -palliated self-slaughter. He looked at it only in relation to the person -who perpetrates the act. The utilitarian principle, however, should have -suggested to him the misery caused to surviving relatives by one such -deed, the horrible uncertainty that must pervade any society where it is -common; and he would have felt that no single life can be so dreadful a -burden to the owner as to justify him in causing such an amount of evil -to the rest of the world, as he would produce by casting it away. The -result of modern reading and inquiry into vital statistics, is to show -that the desire of longevity, which the author of our being has -implanted in all bosoms, is an adaptation to universal utility; because -it is from premature deaths, produced by violence or disease, that -communities are burdened with those unproductive members of society, -which in a healthy and long-lived community, receive domestic support -from the productive members.[15:1] - -The reasonings of an enthusiast have generally more plausibility than -those of a philosopher who has gone astray from his own theory; for the -straying philosopher speaks like one who has misgivings; while the -enthusiast never doubts that he is in the right, and urges his opinions -with a corresponding confidence and sincerity. Thus the justification of -suicide which Rousseau puts into a letter from St. Preux to Lord Edward -Bomston, is a far more attractive vindication than that which Hume had -intended to publish. - -This was not the only suppression connected with the publication of the -Dissertations. As at first printed, they were preceded by an -affectionate and laudatory dedication to John Home. Before the edition -was published, this dedication was suppressed; because Hume thought it -might injure his friend, in the estimation of his brethren of the -church. Before the edition was sold, however, Hume desired the -dedication to be restored. This step was probably owing to Home having -intimated to him his design of resigning his charge as minister of -Athelstaneford, which he did in June, 1757. This not only removed the -objection to the dedication, but as it severed the dramatic martyr from -his professional brethren, it made him more dependant on the sympathy -and suffrages of other friends, and rendered Hume's testimony to his -merits more valuable. - -He thus writes on this subject to Smith. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -[16:1]"DEAR SMITH,--The dedication to John Home, you have probably seen; -for I find it has been inserted in some of the weekly papers, both here -and in London. Some of my friends thought it was indiscreet in me to -make myself responsible to the public, for the productions of another. -But the author had lain under such singular and unaccountable -obstructions in his road to fame, that I thought it incumbent on his -wellwishers to go as much out of the common road to assist him. I -believe the composition of the dedication will be esteemed very prudent, -and not inelegant. - -"I can now give you the satisfaction of hearing that the play, though -not near so well acted in Covent Garden as in this place, is likely to -be very successful. Its great intrinsic merit breaks through all -obstacles. When it shall be printed, (which will be soon,) I am -persuaded it will be esteemed the best, and by French critics the only -tragedy of our language! This encouragement will no doubt engage the -author to go on in the same career. He meets with great countenance in -London, and, I hope, will soon be rendered independent in his fortune. - -"Did you ever hear of such madness and folly as our clergy have lately -fallen into? For my part, I expect that the next Assembly will very -solemnly pronounce the sentence of excommunication against me; but I do -not apprehend it to be a matter of any consequence; what do you think? - -"I am somewhat idle at present, and somewhat undetermined as to my next -undertaking. Shall I go backwards or forwards in my History? I think you -used to tell me, that you approved more of my going backwards. The other -would be the more popular subject; but I am afraid that I shall not find -materials sufficient to ascertain the truth--at least, without settling -in London, which, I own, I have some reluctance to. I am settled here -very much to my mind; and would not wish, at my years, to change the -place of my abode. - -"I have just now received a copy of 'Douglas' from London; it will -instantly be put in the press. I hope to be able to send you a copy in -the same parcel with the dedication."[18:1] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 20th January, 1757._ - -"DEAR SIR,--The dedication of my Dissertations to Mr. Hume[18:2] was -shown to some of his friends here, men of very good sense, who were -seized with an apprehension that it would hurt that party in the church, -with which he had always been connected, and would involve him, and them -of consequence, in the suspicion of infidelity. Neither he nor I were in -the least affected with their panic; but to satisfy them, we agreed to -stand by the arbitration of one person, of great rank and of known -prudence; and I promised them to write to you to suspend the publication -for one post, in case you should have resolved to publish it presently. -Next post you shall be sure to hear from me; and if we be obliged to -suppress it, you'll be pleased to place the charges of print and paper -to my account. I indorse this day your two bills to Mr. Alexander -Cunningham. I am," &c. - - -Early in 1757, Hume resigned his office of librarian of the Advocates' -Library. As a verbal intimation of his wishing to leave this situation -was not considered satisfactory, he favoured his learned employers with -the following laconic letter:-- - - -"_Edinburgh, January 8, 1757._ - -"SIR,--A few days ago, I sent the Faculty a verbal resignation; but as I -am told that it is expected I should give a resignation under my hand, -and as I am very desirous to deliver over the charge of the library as -soon as possible, I have been induced to write you at present, and beg -of you to inform the Faculty, that they may choose me a successor -whenever they think proper. I am, sir, your most humble servant.[19:1] - -"_To Mr. Charles Binning, -Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Advocates._" - - -HUME _to_ WILLIAM MURE _of Caldwell_. - -"DEAR MURE,--I hope you do not think yourself obliged, by saying civil -things, to make atonement for the too homely truths, which you told me -formerly. I will not believe so. I take for granted, that you are -equally sincere in both: though I must own that I think my first volume -a great deal better than the second. The subject admitted of more -eloquence, and of greater nicety of reasoning, and more acute -distinctions. The opposition, I may say the rage, with which it was -received by the public, I must confess, did not a little surprise me. -Whatever knowledge I pretend to in history, and human affairs, I had not -so bad an opinion of men as to expect that candour, disinterestedness, -and humanity, could entitle me to that treatment. Yet such was my fate. -After a long interval, I at last collected so much courage, as to renew -my application to the second volume, though with infinite disgust and -reluctance; and I am sensible that, in many passages of it, there are -great signs of that disposition, and that my usual fire does not every -where appear. At other times, I excited myself, and perhaps succeeded -better. - - Exul eram; requiesque mihi, non fama, petita est; - Mens intenta suis, ne foret usque malis. - Nam simul ac mea caluerant pectora musae, - Altior humano spiritus ille malo est.[20:1] - -"I leave you to judge whether your letter came in a very seasonable -time. I own that I had the weakness to be affected by it, when I found -that a person, whose judgment I very much valued, could tell me, though -I was not asking his opinion----But I will not proceed any farther. The -matter gave me uneasiness at the time, though without the least -resentment. At present the uneasiness is gone; and all my usual -friendship, confirmed by years and long acquaintance, still remains. - -"Pray, whether do you pity or blame me most, with regard to this -dedication of my Dissertations to my friend, the poet? I am sure I never -executed any thing which was either more elegant in the composition, or -more generous in the intention; yet such an alarm seized some fools -here, (men of very good sense, but fools in that particular,) that they -assailed both him and me with the utmost violence; and engaged us to -change our intention. I wrote to Millar to suppress that dedication; two -posts after, I retracted that order. Can any thing be more unlucky than -that, in the interval of these four days, he should have opened his -sale, and disposed of eight hundred copies, without that dedication, -whence, I imagined, my friend would reap some advantage, and myself so -much honour? I have not been so heartily vexed at any accident of a long -time. However, I have insisted that the dedication shall still be -published. - -"I am a little uncertain what work I shall next undertake; for I do not -care to be long idle. I think you seem to approve of my going forward: -and I am sensible that the subject is much more interesting to us, and -even will be so to posterity, than any other I could choose: but can I -hope that there are materials for composing a just and sure history of -it? I am afraid not. However, I shall examine the matter. I fancy it -will be requisite for me to take a journey to London, and settle there -for some time, in order to gather such materials as are not to be found -in print. But, if I should go backwards, and write the History of -England from the accession of Henry the Seventh, I might remain where I -am; and I own to you, at my time of life, these changes of habitation -are not agreeable, even though the place be better to which one removes. - -"I am sorry my fair cousin does not find London so agreeable as, -perhaps, she expected. She must not judge by one winter. It will improve -against next winter, and appear still better the winter after that. -Please make my compliments to her, and tell her that she must not be -discouraged. By the by, Mrs. Binnie tells me that she writes her a very -different account of matters, so that I find my cousin is a hypocrite. - -"I shall make use of your criticisms, and wish there had been more of -them. That practice of doubling the genitive is certainly very -barbarous, and I carefully avoided it in the first volume; but I find it -so universal a practice, both in writing and speaking, that I thought it -better to comply with it, and have even changed all the passages in the -first volume, in conformity to use. All languages contain solecisms of -that kind. - -"Please make my compliments to Sir Harry Erskine, and tell him that I -have executed what I proposed. I am," &c.[22:1] - - -The following letter shows that he did not long remain idle, or -undecided in his historical projects:-- - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 20th May, 1757._ - -"I have already begun, and am a little advanced in a third volume of -History. I do not preclude myself from the view of going forward to the -period after the Revolution; but, at present, I begin with the reign of -Henry the Seventh. It is properly at that period modern history -commences. America was discovered; commerce extended; the arts -cultivated; printing invented; religion reformed, and all the -governments of Europe almost changed. I wish, therefore, I had begun -here at first. I should have obviated many objections that were made to -the other volumes. I shall be considerably advanced in this volume -before I be in London. - -"I come now to speak to you of an affair which gives me uneasiness, and -which I mention with reluctance. I am told that one Dr. Brown has -published a book in London, where there is a note containing personal -reflections on me, for which he quotes a letter I wrote to you.[23:1] -What sort of behaviour this is, to make use of a private letter, without -the permission of the person to whom it was addressed, is easily -conceived; but how he came to see any of my letters, I cannot imagine; -nor what I wrote, that could give him any handle for his calumny. All I -can recollect of the matter is this, that above two years ago, when -Bailie Hamilton was in London, he wrote me, that the stop in the sale of -my History proceeded from some strokes of irreligion, which had raised -the cry of the clergy against me. This gave me occasion to remark to -you, that the Bailie's complaint must have proceeded from his own -misconduct; that the cause he assigned could never have produced that -effect; that it was rather likely to increase the sale, according to all -past experience; that you had offered (as I heard) a large sum for -Bolingbroke's Works, trusting to this consequence; and that the strokes -complained of were so few, and of such small importance, that, if any -ill effects could have been apprehended from them, they might easily -have been retrenched. As far as I can recollect, this was the purport of -my letter;[24:1] but I must beg you, that you would cause it to be -transcribed, and send me a copy of it, for I find by John Hume that you -have it still by you. I doubt not but I could easily refute Dr. Brown; -but as I had taken a resolution never to have the least altercation with -these fellows, I shall not readily be brought to pay any attention to -him; and I cannot but be displeased that your inadvertence or -indiscretion (for I cannot give it a better name) should have brought me -to this dilemma. I fancy Brown will find it a difficult matter to -persuade the public that I do not speak my sentiments in every subject I -handle, and that I have any view to any interest whatsoever. I leave -that to him and his gang: for he is a flatterer, as I am told, of that -low fellow, Warburton; and any thing so low as Warburton, or his -flatterers, I should certainly be ashamed to engage with. I am, &c. - -"P.S. Since you are acquainted with Dr. Brown, I must beg of you to read -this letter to him; for it is probably, or indeed certainly, all the -answer I shall ever deign to give him."[25:1] - - -The reader will feel interested in the sketch, by the pen of Hume, of an -eminent contemporary--his friend Wilkie--in the following letter. - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Edinburgh, 3d July, 1757._ - -"DEAR SIR,--To show you that I am not such an affecter of singularity as -to entertain prejudices against ministers of state,[25:2] I am resolved -to congratulate you on your return to power, and to express my wishes, -that, both for your sake and the public's, your ministry, and that of -your friends, may be more durable than it was before. We even hope it -will, though the strange motley composition which it consists of, gives -us some apprehensions. However, we are glad to find, from past -experience, that you can neither rise nor fall, without credit and -reputation. You know that, according to the whimsical way in this -country, it is more difficult to rise than fall with reputation. - -"I suppose that, by this time, you have undoubtedly read and admired the -wonderful production of the Epigoniad, and that you have so much love -for arts, and for your native country, as to be very industrious in -propagating the fame of it. It is certainly a most singular production, -full of sublimity and genius, adorned by a noble, harmonious, forcible, -and even correct versification. We generally think the story deficient -and uninteresting; but perhaps the new fancy of crossing the invention -of all modern romance-writers may make some atonement, and even bestow -an air of novelty on the imitation of Homer. As I cannot but hope that -this work will soon become the subject of conversation in London, I -shall take this opportunity of supplying you with some anecdotes with -regard to the author, besides such as you already know,--of his being a -very worthy and a very entertaining man, adorned with all that -simplicity of manners, so common to great men, and even with some of -that rusticity and negligence which serve to abate that envy to which -they are so much exposed. - -"You know he is a farmer's son, in the neighbourhood of this town, where -there are a great number of pigeon-houses. The farmers are very much -infested with the pigeons, and Wilkie's father planted him often as a -scarecrow (an office for which he is well qualified) in the midst of his -fields of wheat. It was in this situation that he confessed he first -conceived the design of his epic poem, and even executed part of it. He -carried out his Homer with him, together with a table, and pen and ink, -and a great rusty gun. He composed and wrote two or three lines, till a -flock of pigeons settled in the field, then rose up, ran towards them, -and fired at them; returned again to his former station, and added a -rhyme or two more, till he met with a fresh interruption. - -"Two or three years ago, Jemmy Russel put a very pleasant trick on an -English physician, one Dr. Roebuck, who was travelling in this country. -Russel carried him out one day on horseback to see the outlets of the -town, and purposely led him by Wilkie's farm. He saw the bard at a -small distance, sowing his corn, with a sheet about him, all besmeared -with dirt and sweat, with a coat and visage entirely proportioned to his -occupation. Russel says to his companion, 'Here is a fellow, a peasant, -with whom I have some business: let us call him.' He made a sign, and -Wilkie came to them: some questions were asked him with regard to the -season, to his farm and husbandry, which he readily answered; but soon -took an opportunity of digressing to the Greek poets, and enlarging on -that branch of literature. Dr. Roebuck, who had scarce understood his -rustic English, or rather his broad Scotch, immediately comprehended -him, for his Greek was admirable; and on leaving him, he could not -forbear expressing the highest admiration to Russel, that a clown, a -rustic, a mere hind, such as he saw this fellow was, should be possessed -of so much erudition. 'Is it usual,' says he, 'for your peasants in -Scotland to read the Greek poets?'--'O Yes,' replies Russel, very -coolly, 'we have long winter evenings; and in what can they employ -themselves better, than in reading the Greek poets?' Roebuck left the -country in a full persuasion that there are at least a dozen farmers in -every parish who read Homer, Hesiod, and Sophocles, every -winter-evening, to their families; and, if ever he writes an account of -his travels, it is likely he will not omit so curious a circumstance. - -"Wilkie is now a settled minister at Ratho, within four miles of the -town.[27:1] He possesses about £80 or £90 a-year, which he esteems -exorbitant riches. Formerly, when he had only £20, as helper, he said -that he could not conceive what article, either of human convenience or -pleasure he was deficient in, nor what any man could mean by desiring -more money. He possesses several branches of erudition, besides the -Greek poetry; and, particularly, is a very profound geometrician, a -science commonly very incompatible with the lively imagination of a -poet. He has even made some new discoveries in that science; and he told -me, that, when a young man, he threw cross and pile, whether he should -devote himself chiefly to mathematics or to poetry, and fears that -rather he crossed the bent of his genius in taking to the latter. Yet -this man, who has composed the second epic poem in our language! -understands so little of orthography, that, regularly through the whole -poem, he spelled the word yield in this manner, 'ealde;' and I had great -difficulty to convince him of his mistake. - -"I fancy our friend, Robertson, will be able to publish his History next -winter. You are sufficiently acquainted with the merit of this work; and -really it is admirable how many men of genius this country produces at -present. Is it not strange that, at a time when we have lost our -princes, our parliaments, our independent government,--even the presence -of our chief nobility; are unhappy, in our accent and pronunciation; -speak a very corrupt dialect of the tongue we make use of,--is it not -strange, I say, that, in these circumstances, we should really be the -people most distinguished for literature in Europe? - -"Having spoke so much to Mr. Elliot, the man of letters, you must now -allow me to say a few words to Mr. Elliot, the lord of the admiralty. -There is a cousin-german of mine, Alexander Edgar, who is midshipman in -the Vestal, off Harwich, and has passed his trials, above four months -ago, for a lieutenantcy. He always behaved well in all his service, -which has been very long; and, almost from his infancy, he has had the -good-will, and even friendship, of all his captains; is modest, sober, -frugal, and attentive, and very deserving of promotion. I recommended -him to Mr. Oswald, who always protected him, but can no longer be of -service to him. He is of a very good family, though his father spent his -estate and died a bankrupt; and the poor lad has now scarce any other -friends than what I can procure him: permit me the freedom of -recommending him to your protection. If I did not think him worthy of -it, I should not venture to do so, notwithstanding his near relationship -to me. I think I ought to make some apologies for this liberty I use -with you; but I think it would be wronging our friendship to make too -many. I am, dear sir, your most obedient humble servant."[29:1] - - -Wilkie's Epigoniad, of which few ordinary readers now know more than the -name, if even that be very generally remembered south of the Tweed, -inspired many zealous Scotsmen of the day, with the belief that their -country had, at last, produced a great epic poet: but the national -feeling was not responded to in England.[29:2] - -Finding that the Epigoniad was attacked by the English critics, Hume -was determined to be the champion of his countryman's fame against all -comers; and accordingly addressed a letter to the editor of _The -Critical Review_, containing a long complimentary criticism, in which he -says,-- - - There remained a tradition among the Greeks, that Homer had - taken this second siege of Thebes for the subject of a poem, - which is lost; and our author seems to have pleased himself - with the thoughts of reviving the work, as well as of treading - in the footsteps of his favourite author. The actors are - mostly the same with those of the Iliad; Diomede is the hero; - Ulysses, Agamemnon, Menelaus, Nestor, Idomeneus, Merion, even - Thersites, all appear in different passages of the poem; and - act parts suitable to the lively characters drawn of them by - that great master. The whole turn of this new poem would - almost lead us to imagine, that the Scottish bard had found - the lost manuscript of that father of poetry, and had made a - faithful translation of it into English. Longinus imagines, - that the Odyssey was executed by Homer in his old age; we - shall allow the Iliad to be the work of his middle age; and we - shall suppose that the Epigoniad was the essay of his youth, - where his noble and sublime genius breaks forth by frequent - intervals, and gives strong symptoms of that constant flame - which distinguished its meridian. . . . - - The story of a poem, whatever may be imagined, is the least - essential part of it; the force of the versification, the - vivacity of the images, the justness of the descriptions, the - natural play of the passions, are the chief circumstances - which distinguish the great poet from the prosaic novelist, - and give him so high a rank among the heroes in literature; - and I will venture to affirm, that all these advantages, - especially the three former, are to be found, in an eminent - degree, in the Epigoniad. The author, inspired with the true - genius of Greece, and smit with the most profound veneration - for Homer, disdains all frivolous ornaments; and relying - entirely on his sublime imagination, and his nervous and - harmonious expression, has ventured to present to his reader - the naked beauties of nature, and challenges for his partisans - all the admirers of genuine antiquity.[31:1] - -In his conduct on this occasion, Hume exhibited strong national -partiality. It may seem at first sight at variance with some of his -other characteristics; but it is undoubtedly true, that Hume was imbued -with an intense spirit of nationality. It was a nationality, however, of -a peculiar and restricted character. He cared little about the heroism -of his country, or even its struggles for independence: Wallace, Bruce, -and the Black Douglas, were, in his eyes, less interesting than Ulysses -or Æneas, - - ----carent quia vate sacro. - -But in that arena which he thought the greatest, in the theatre where -intellect exhibits her might, he panted to see his country first and -greatest. No Scotsman could write a book of respectable talent without -calling forth his loud and warm eulogiums. Wilkie was to be the Homer, -Blacklock the Pindar, and Home the Shakspere, or something still -greater, of his country. On those who were even his rivals in his own -peculiar walks--Adam Smith, Robertson, Ferguson, and Henry, he heaped -the same honest, hearty commendation. He urged them to write; he raised -the spirit of literary ambition in their breasts; he found publishers -for their works; and, when these were completed, he trumpeted the -praises of the authors through society. - -The following letter shows how accidentally Hume became acquainted with -a matter, which, according to modern notions, should have formed part of -his systematic studies, before he began to write a history of England. - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Edinburgh, 9th Aug. 1757._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I can easily perceive that your friends were no lawyers, who -said that there was no statute in Henry the Seventh's reign, which -facilitated the alienation of lands, and broke the ancient entails: it -is 4 Hen. VII. cap. 24; but a man may read that passage fifty times, and -not find any thing that seems, in the least, to point that way. I should -certainly have overlooked the meaning of it, had I not been guided by -Lord Kames. You must know that it was a practice in the courts of -justice, before Henry the Seventh's time, to break entails by a device -which seems very ridiculous, but which is continued to this day, and -first received the sanction of law during the reign of that prince. You -have an entailed estate, I suppose, and want to break the entail. You -agree with me that I am to claim the estate by a sham title, prior to -the first entailer; you confess in court that my title is good and -valid; the judges, upon this confession of the party, adjudge the estate -to me; upon which I immediately restore the estate to you, free and -unencumbered; and by this hocus-pocus the entail is broke.--Such was the -practice, pretty common before Henry the Seventh. All that the -parliament then did, was to regulate the method of proceeding in this -fine device, and to determine that the titles of minors, and femmes -couvert, were not to be injured by it. As to other people, who had an -interest to preserve an entail, and who had any good reason to plead in -their own favour, they would naturally appear for themselves. This -practice is called a fine, and a recovery: fine, from the Latin word -finis; because it forecloses all parties, and puts a final issue to -their claims and pretensions: a recovery, because a man thereby recovers -his estate, without the encumbrance of an entail. - -"By the bye, I am told, that there are many of these practices still -continued in the law of England; which are as foolish, juvenile, and -ridiculous, as are to be met with in ---- I mean in ---- I would be -understood to mean in ---- any craft or profession of the world.[33:1] - -"I am writing the History of England, from the accession of Henry the -Seventh, and am some years advanced in Henry the Eighth. I undertook -this work because I was tired of idleness, and found reading alone, -after I had often perused all good books, (which I think is soon done,) -somewhat a languid occupation. As to the approbation or esteem of those -blockheads who call themselves the public, and whom a bookseller, a -lord, a priest, or a party can guide, I do most heartily despise it. I -shall be able, I think, to make a tolerable smooth, well-told tale of -the history of England during that period; but I own I have not yet been -able to throw much new light into it. I begin the Reformation to-morrow. - -"I find the public, with you, have rejected the Epigoniad, for the -present. They may do so if they please; but it has a great deal of -merit, much more than any one of them is capable of throwing into a -work. - -"I disapprove very much of Ferguson's scruples, with regard to entering -into Lord Bute's family, with the inspection of more than one boy; but I -hope Lord Bute will conform himself to his delicacy, at least if he -wants to have a man of sense, knowledge, taste, elegance, and morals, -for a tutor to his son.[34:1] - -"I am obliged to you for your good intentions, with regard to my cousin; -but you must express yourself otherwise, than by saying that you will -concur with the rest of my friends in endeavouring to promote him; for -now that Oswald is out of court, whom have I besides to apply to? Dear -Sir, your most obedient humble servant."[34:2] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 3d September, 1757._ - -"As to my opinions, you know I defend none of them positively; I only -propose my doubts where I am so unhappy as not to receive the same -conviction with the rest of mankind. It surprises me much to see any -body who pretends to be a man of letters, discover anger on that -account; since it is certain, by the experience of all ages, that -nothing contributes more to the progress of learning than such disputes -and novelties. - -"Apropos to anger; I am positively assured, that Dr. Warburton wrote -that letter to himself, which you sent me; and indeed the style -discovers him sufficiently.[35:1] I should answer him; but he attacks so -small a corner of my building, that I can abandon it without drawing -great consequences after it. If he would come into the field and dispute -concerning the principal topics of my philosophy, I should probably -accept the challenge: at present nothing could tempt me to take the pen -in hand but anger, of which I feel myself incapable, even upon this -provocation. - -"I have finished the Index to the new collection of my pieces; this -Index cost me more trouble than I was aware of when I began it. I am -obliged to Mr. Strahan, for the uncommon pains he has taken in making it -correct. The Errata which I have given, consist mostly of small -alterations in the style, which I made myself. You know I always expect -half-a-dozen of copies on each new edition. I would wish that Mr. -Strahan would accept of one, as a proof of the sense which I have of his -care on this occasion. Please keep one by you, which I fancy I shall -have occasion to send abroad; and be so good as to send the other four, -with any other parcel you are sending hither. I am very assiduous in -writing a new volume of History, and am now pretty well advanced. I find -the whole will be comprised in one volume, though somewhat more bulky -than any of the former. The period of time is a great deal longer than -that of either of the former, but is not near so full of interesting -matter; and as the original historians are much fewer, there are not so -many circumstances transmitted to us. I am pretty certain, that I shall -be able to deliver to you the manuscript about a twelvemonth hence, and -shall certainly be in London myself for that purpose. You seemed -desirous that we should mutually enter into articles about this volume; -which I declined, till I should be so much advanced as to be sure of my -resolution of executing it, and could judge with some certainty of the -bulk. Now that I am satisfied in both these particulars, I am willing to -engage with you for the same price, viz. seven hundred pounds, payable -three months after the publication. If you approve of this proposal, -please write me a letter for that purpose; and I shall also, in return, -send you an obligatory letter. I think this justice is due to you, that -you may see I do not intend, on account of any success, to screw up the -price, or ask beyond what you have already allowed me, which, I own, was -very reasonable. - -"Mr. Dalrymple has paid me twenty pounds and a crown. I can never meet -with Mr. Wright, though I call often at his shop. Mr. Balfour does not -name any day. - -"I am glad of the approbation which Mr. Dalrymple's book meets with; I -think it really deserves it.[37:1] - -"Nothing surprises me more than the ill usage which the Epigoniad has -received. Every body here likes it extremely. The plan and story is not -so much admired, as the poetry and versification; but your critics seem -willing to allow it no merit at all. I fancy it has not been enough -dispersed; and that your engaging on it, would extremely forward its -success. The whole edition is out. There were five hundred and fifty -disposed of here; two hundred sent to London. As the author is my very -good friend and acquaintance, I should be much pleased to bring you to -an understanding together. If the bad success on the first edition has -not discouraged you, I would engage him to make you proposals for that -purpose. He will correct all the blemishes remarked. I should not be -displeased that you read to Dr. Warburton, the paragraph in the first -page of my letter, with regard to himself. The hopes of getting an -answer, might probably engage him to give us something farther of the -same kind; which, at least, saves you the expense of advertising. I see -the doctor likes a literary squabble. - -"I would be glad to know, how near you think you are to a new edition of -my History, and whether you intend a duodecimo edition of these -philosophical pieces. I am," &c.[38:1] - - -DAVID HUME _to_ DR. CLEPHANE. - -"_Edinburgh, 3d Sept. 1757._ - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--I am charmed to find you so punctual a correspondent. I -always knew you to be a good friend, though I was afraid that I had lost -you, and that you had joined that great multitude who abused me, and -reproached me with Paganism, and Jacobitism, and many other wretched -isms, of which I am only guilty of a part. - -"I believe a man, when he is once an author, is an author for life; for -I am now very busily engaged in writing another volume of history, and -have crept backwards to the reign of Henry the Seventh. I wish indeed -that I had begun there; for, by that means, I should have been able, -without making any digression, by the plain course of the narration, to -have shown how absolute the authority was which the English kings then -possessed, and that the Stuarts did little or nothing more than continue -matters in the former track, which the people were determined no longer -to admit. By this means I should have escaped the reproach of the most -terrible ism of them all, that of Jacobitism. I shall certainly be in -London next summer; and probably to remain there during life; at least, -if I can settle myself to my mind, which I beg you to have an eye to. A -room in a sober, discreet family, who would not be averse to admit a -sober, discreet, virtuous, frugal, regular, quiet, good-natured man of a -bad character,--such a room, I say, would suit me extremely, especially -if I could take most of my meals in the family; and more especially -still, if it was not far distant from Dr. Clephane's. I shall then be -able, dear doctor, to spend £150 a-year, which is the sum upon which, I -remember, you formerly undertook me. But I would not have you reckon -upon _probabilities_, as you then called them, for I am resolved to -write no more. I shall read and correct, and chat and be idle, the rest -of my life. - -"I must now make room for Sir Harry, who smiles at the sum at which I -have set up my rest. I am," &c.[39:1] - - -Among the officers of the Scottish Royal Regiment who served in the -expedition to Port L'Orient, and afterwards continued in terms of -familiar acquaintance with Hume, was captain, afterwards Colonel -Edmondstoune, of Newton in Perthshire. His letters, which were preserved -by Hume, and will occasionally be cited in these pages, show that he -was a man of wit and learning. Frequent allusions to him, under the name -of Guidelianus, have already occurred in Hume's letters to mutual -friends. The following, graceful and thoroughly amiable as it is, is -apparently the earliest of Hume's letters to him which has been -preserved. - - -HUME _to_ CAPTAIN EDMONDSTOUNE. - -"_Edinburgh, 29th Sept. 1757._ - -"DEAR EDMONDSTOUNE,--I believe it is a rule in law, that any summons -prevents prescription; and in like manner, that the wakening a process -keeps one's rank in the lords' row.[40:1] It is with some such view that -I now write to you; not to send you a formal letter, which would require -a formal answer, and would therefore get no answer at all: but just to -take a shake of your hand, and ask you how you do, and speak a little -nonsense to you as usual, and then fall into s[ilence] without giving -myself the trouble of supporting the conversation any lon[ger]; and, in -a word, keep you from forgetting that you have some such friend in the -world as myself. - -"But pray, why did you not write me as you promised and give me your -direction? Was you afraid I should write to you? You see I can find out -a method of directing to you without your information. - -"Tell me about the Epigoniad. Was there ever so much fine versification -bestowed on so indifferent a story? Has it had any success in Ireland? I -fancy not; for the criticklings in Dublin depend on the criticklings in -London, who depend on the booksellers, who depend on their interest, -which depends on their printing a book themselves. This is the cause why -Wilkie's book is at present neglected, or damned, as they call it: but I -am much mistaken if it end so. Pray what says the primate of it? I hear -he has the generosity to support damned books till the resurrection, and -that he is one of the saints who pray them out of purgatory. I hope he -is an honest fellow and one of [us.] Captain Masterton told me, that he -was not quite of my opinion with regard to the 'Douglas,' and that he -blamed my dedicatory address to the author. But I persist still, and -will prove in spite of him and you, and of every man who [wears eit]her -black or scarlet, that it is an admirable tragedy, comparable [to the -exce]llent pieces of the good age of Louis Quatorze. The author is here -at present, and is refitting his 'Agis' for the theatre, which I hope -will have justice done it. _Il est le mieux renté de touts les beaux -esprits._ He has a pension from his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, -as you have probably heard. - -"I hear sometimes from the Doctor, who desires me to tell him something -about you. But I am no necromancer; only, as the ancients -said,--_prudentia est quædam divinatio_. I conjecture that you are -lounging, and reading, and playing at whist, and blaming yourself for -not writing letters, and yet persisting in the neglect of your -duty."[41:1] - - -The following is the second letter in which we find Hume appreciating -the merits of his friend and rival, Robertson. There is no passage in -literary history, perhaps, more truly dignified, than the perfect -cordiality and sincere interchange of services between two men, whose -claims on the admiration of the world came in so close competition with -each other. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 6th April, 1758._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I am very glad that Mr. Robertson is entering on terms with -you. It was indeed my advice to him, when he set out for London, that he -should think of no other body; and I ventured to assure him that he -would find your way of dealing frank, and open, and generous. He read me -part of his History, and I had an opportunity of reading another part of -it in manuscript above a twelvemonth ago. Upon the whole, my -expectations, both from what I saw, and from my knowledge of the author, -were very much raised, and I consider it as a work of uncommon merit. I -know that he has employed himself with great diligence and care in -collecting the facts: his style is lively and entertaining; and he -judges with temper and candour. He is a man generally known and esteemed -in this country: and we look upon him very deservedly as inferior to -nobody in capacity and learning. Hamilton and Balfour have offered him a -very unusual price; no less than five hundred pounds for one edition of -two thousand; but I own, that I should be better pleased to see him in -your hands. I only inform you of this fact, that you may see how high -the general expectations are of Mr. Robertson's performance. It will -have a quick sale in this country, from the character of the author; and -in England, from the merit of the work, as soon as it is known. - -"Some part of his subject is common with mine; but as his work is a -History of Scotland, mine of England, we do not interfere; and it will -rather be an amusement to the reader to compare our method of treating -the same subject. I give you thanks, however, for your attention in -asking my opinion."[43:1] - - -The following is from another letter on the same subject. - - -"_Edinburgh, 20th June, 1758._ - -"I send enclosed a letter from Mr. Robertson. He wishes it were -practicable to send him more than one sheet every post. I am afraid, if -this be not done, our publications will interfere, which would be -disagreeable to you as well as to both of us. - -"I have read a small pamphlet called 'Sketches,' which, from the style, -I take to be Dr. Armstrong's, though the public voice gives it to Allan -Ramsay.[43:2] I find the ingenious author, whoever he be, ridicules the -new method of spelling, as he calls it; but that method of spelling -_honor_, instead of _honour_, was Lord Bolingbroke's, Dr. Middleton's, -and Mr. Pope's; besides many other eminent writers'. However, to tell -truth, I hate to be any way particular in a trifle; and therefore, if -Mr. Strahan has not printed off above ten or twelve sheets, I should not -be displeased if you told him to follow the usual, that is, his own way -of spelling throughout; we shall make the other volumes conformable to -it: if he be advanced farther, there is no great matter."[43:3] - - -A letter to Elliot, after some farther recommendations of Hume's -nephew, young Edgar, to his attention, thus proceeds:-- - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Edinburgh, 11th May, 1758._ - -"I have the prospect of paying my respects to you this autumn, in -London. I am now come within sight of land, and am drawing near to a -period of that volume which I had undertaken. I find the subject -curious; and I believe that this volume will contain some novelty, as -well as greater accuracy of composition, than is employed by our -ordinary historians. I could add, greater than is requisite to please -the taste of the public,--at least if we may judge by the vast success -of Dr. Smollett's history. _Vanitas vanitatum, atque omnia vanitas_, -says the Preacher; the great object of us authors, and of you orators -and statesmen, is to gain applause; and you see at what rate it is to be -purchased. I fancy there is a future state, to give poets, historians, -and philosophers their due reward, and to distribute to them those -recompenses which are so strangely shared out in this life. It is of -little consequence that posterity does them justice, if they are for -ever to be ignorant of it, and are to remain in perpetual slumber in -their literary paradise. However, it is some comfort, that virtue is its -own reward, and that a man cannot employ himself in the cultivation of -letters without reaping a real present satisfaction from his industry. I -am, dear sir, your most obliged humble servant. - -"P.S.--I am sorry to hear that the bill for the importation of Irish -cattle is rejected. Besides other arguments for it, I remember a strong -argument which was used in Charles II.'s time against the prohibition, -when it was first laid on: it was affirmed that the shipping employed in -that commerce was nearly equal to that which served for the carriage of -coal from Newcastle to London. It is not improbable that this argument -has, at present, escaped all the reasoners on that subject; and I -thought it a proper one to be suggested to a lord of the Admiralty. It -is to be found, if my memory do not deceive me, in Carte's Ormond, and -was employed by that duke."[45:1] - - -In the year 1759, Adam Ferguson was appointed professor of natural -philosophy in the university of Edinburgh. From the following -correspondence, it appears that Hume and others were desirous that Smith -should occupy a chair in Edinburgh, and, apparently, the same that was -obtained by Ferguson,[45:2] and that Ferguson should succeed Smith in -Glasgow. The singular terms on which the Edinburgh professorship appears -to have been disposed of, were, probably, not such as Smith would accede -to; and we afterwards find Hume conducting a negotiation for Ferguson -alone. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_8th June, 1758._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I sit down to write to you along with Johnstone; and as we -have been talking over the matter, it is probable we shall employ the -same arguments. As he is the younger lawyer, I leave him to open the -case, and, suppose that you have read his letter first. We are certain -that the settlement of you here, and of Ferguson at Glasgow, would be -perfectly easy, by Lord Milton's interest. The prospect of prevailing -with Abercromby is also very good; for the same statesman, by his -influence over the town council, could oblige him either to attend, -which he never would do, or dispose of the office for the money which he -gave for it. The only real difficulty is, then, with you. Pray, then, -consider that this is, perhaps, the only opportunity we shall ever have -of getting you to town. I dare swear that you think the difference of -place is worth paying something for; and yet it will really cost you -nothing. You made above £100 a-year, by your class, when in this place, -though you had not the character of professor. We cannot suppose that it -will be less than £130 after you are settled. John Stevenson; and it is -John Stevenson, makes near £150, as we were informed upon inquiry.[46:1] -Here is £100 a-year for eight years' purchase; which is a cheap -purchase, even considered as the way of a bargain. We flatter ourselves -that you rate our company at something; and the prospect of settling -Ferguson will be an additional inducement. For, though we think of -making him take up the project if you refuse it, yet it is uncertain -whether he will consent; and it is attended, in his case, with many very -obvious objections. I beseech you, therefore, to weigh all these motives -over again. The alteration of these circumstances merit that you should -put the matter again in deliberation. I had a letter from Miss Hepburn, -where she regrets very much that you are settled at Glasgow, and that we -had the chance of seeing you so seldom. I am," &c. - -"P.S.--Lord Milton can, with his finger, stop the foul mouths of all the -roarers against heresy."[47:1] - - -HUME _to the_ REV. JOHN JARDINE.[47:2] - -"REV. SIR,--I am informed, by the late Rev. Mr. John Home, that the -still Rev. Adam Ferguson's affair is so far on a good footing, that it -is agreed to refer the matter to the Justice Clerk, whether more shall -be paid to Mr. Abercromby than he himself gave for that professorship. -Now, as it is obvious that, in these kinds of references, where the -question is not of law and justice, the circumstances of the person are -to be considered, I beg of you to inform my Lord of the true state of -the case. Ferguson must borrow almost the whole sum which he pays for -this office. If any more, therefore, be asked than £1000, it would be -the most ruinous thing in the world for him to accept of the office. I -am even of opinion that if any other method of subsistence offered, it -were preferable to this scheme of paying the length of £1000; at least -such would be my sentiments, if the case were mine. - -"If the Justice Clerk considers the matter aright, he will never agree -to so unreasonable a demand as that of paying more; and I hope you will -second these arguments with all your usual eloquence, by which you so -successfully confound the devices of Satan, and bring sinners to -repentance. I am, Rev. Sir, your most obsequious humble servant."[47:3] - - -Towards the end of the year 1758, but at what particular time is not -more minutely known, Hume went to London, and resided in Lisle Street, -Leicester Fields. His object probably was to superintend the printing -of the "History of the House of Tudor;" but he was able at the same time -to perform essential services to his friend Dr. Robertson, whose -"History of Scotland" was then going through the press in London. Of -Hume's letters to Dr. Robertson, several have been published, though -only in a fragmentary form, in Dugald Stewart's "Life of -Robertson."[48:1] The portions thus preserved, are naturally those which -have most relation to the person to whom they are addressed; but of the -letters themselves, which doubtless, like many others from the same -hand, contained some curious particulars of their author's habits and -passing thoughts, no trace has been found.[48:2] Several of these -letters, written while Robertson's work was at press, have relation to -minor historical questions, which have subsequently been settled. The -following extracts are given, from the parts which have least reference -to these details. - - -HUME _to_ DR. ROBERTSON. - -(_Extracts._) - - I am afraid that you, as well as myself, have drawn Mary's - character with too great softenings. She was, undoubtedly, a - violent woman at all times. You will see in _Murden_ proofs of - the utmost rancour against her innocent, good-natured, dutiful - son. She certainly disinherited him. What think you of a - conspiracy for kidnapping him, and delivering him a prisoner - to the King of Spain, never to recover his liberty till he - should turn Catholic? Tell Goodall, that if he can but give me - up Queen Mary, I hope to satisfy him in every thing else; and - he will have the pleasure of seeing John Knox and the - Reformers made very ridiculous. . . . - - You have very good cause to be satisfied with the success of - your History, as far as it can be judged of from a few weeks' - publication. I have not heard of one who does not praise it - warmly; and were I to enumerate all those whose suffrages I - have either heard in its favour, or been told of, I should - fill my letter with a list of names. Mallet told me that he - was sure there was no Englishman capable of composing such a - work. The town will have it that you was educated at Oxford, - thinking it impossible for a mere untravelled Scotsman to - produce such language. In short, you may depend on the success - of your work, and that your name is known very much to your - advantage. - - I am diverting myself with the notion how much you will profit - by the applause of my enemies in Scotland. Had you and I been - such fools as to have given way to jealousy, to have - entertained animosity and malignity against each other, and to - have rent all our acquaintance into parties, what a noble - amusement we should have exhibited to the blockheads, which - now they are likely to be disappointed of. All the people - whose friendship or judgment either of us value, are friends - to both, and will be pleased with the success of both, as we - will be with that of each other. I declare to you I have not - of a long time had a more sensible pleasure than the good - reception of your History has given me within this fortnight. - - - _25th January, 1759._ - - I am nearly printed out, and shall be sure to send you a copy - by the stage-coach, or some other conveyance. I beg of you to - make remarks as you go along. It would have been much better - had we communicated before printing, which was always my - desire, and was most suitable to the friendship which always - did, and I hope always will, subsist between us. I speak this - chiefly on my own account. For though I had the perusal of - your sheets before I printed, I was not able to derive - sufficient benefits from them, or indeed to make any - alteration by their assistance. There still remain, I fear, - many errors, of which you could have convinced me, if we had - canvassed the matter in conversation. Perhaps I might also - have been sometimes no less fortunate with you. Particularly - I could almost undertake to convince you, that the Earl of - Murray's conduct with the Duke of Norfolk was no way - dishonourable. . . . - - Dr. Blair tells me that Prince Edward is reading you, and is - charmed. I hear the same of the Princess and Prince of Wales. - But what will really give you pleasure, I lent my copy to - Elliot during the holidays, who thinks it one of the finest - performances he ever read; and though he expected much, he - finds more. He remarked, however, (which is also my opinion,) - that in the beginning, before your pen was sufficiently - accustomed to the historic style, you employed too many - digressions and reflections. This was also somewhat my own - case, which I have corrected in my new edition. - - Millar was proposing to publish me about the middle of March; - but I shall communicate to him your desire, even though I - think it entirely groundless, as you will likewise think, - after you have read my volume. He has very needlessly delayed - your publication till the 1st of February, at the desire of - the Edinburgh booksellers, who could no way be affected by a - publication in London. I was exceedingly sorry not to be able - to comply with your desire, when you expressed your wish that - I should not write this period. I could not write downward. - For when you find occasion, by new discoveries, to correct - your opinion with regard to facts which passed in Queen - Elizabeth's days, who, that has not the best opportunities of - informing himself, could venture to relate any recent - transactions? I must, therefore, have abandoned altogether - this scheme of the English history, in which I had proceeded - so far, if I had not acted as I did. You will see what light - and force this History of the Tudors bestows on that of the - Stuarts. Had I been prudent, I should have begun with it. I - care not to boast, but I will venture to say, that I have now - effectually stopped the mouths of all those villanous Whigs - who railed at me. - - You are so kind as to ask me about my coming down. I can yet - answer nothing. I have the strangest reluctance to change - places. I lived several years happy with my brother at - Ninewells; and had not his marriage changed a little the state - of the family, I believe I should have lived and died there. I - used every expedient to evade this journey to London; yet it - is now uncertain whether I shall ever leave it. I have had - some invitations, and some intentions, of taking a trip to - Paris; but I believe it will be safer for me not to go - thither, for I might probably settle there for life. No one - was ever endowed with so great a portion of the _vis - inertiae_. But as I live here very privately, and avoid as - much as possible (and it is easily possible) all connexion - with the great, I believe I should be better in Edinburgh. . . . . - - - _London, 8th February, 1759._ - - . . . . As to the "Age of Leo the Tenth," it was Warton - himself who intended to write it; but he has not wrote it, and - probably never will. If I understand your hint, I should - conjecture, that you had some thoughts of taking up the - subject. But how can you acquire knowledge of the great works - of sculpture, architecture, and painting, by which that age - was chiefly distinguished? Are you versed in all the anecdotes - of the Italian literature? These questions I heard proposed in - a company of literati, when I inquired concerning this design - of Warton. They applied their remarks to that gentleman, who - yet, they say, has travelled. I wish they do not, all of them, - fall more fully on you. However, you must not be idle. May I - venture to suggest to you the Ancient History, particularly - that of Greece? I think Rollin's success might encourage you; - nor need you be in the least intimidated by his merit. That - author has no other merit but a certain facility and sweetness - of narration; but has loaded his work with silly - puerilities. . . . . - - * * * * * - - I forgot to tell you, that two days ago I was in the House of - Commons, where an English gentleman came to me, and told me - that he had lately sent to a grocer's shop for a pound of - raisins, which he received wrapped up in a paper that he - showed me. How would you have turned pale at the sight! It was - a leaf of your History, and the very character of Queen - Elizabeth, which you had laboured so finely, little thinking - it would so soon come to so disgraceful an end. I happened a - little after to see Millar, and told him the story; - consulting him, to be sure, on the fate of his new boasted - historian, of whom he was so fond. But the story proves more - serious than I apprehended: for he told Strahan, who thence - suspects villany among his apprentices and journeymen; and has - sent me very earnestly to know the gentleman's name, that he - may find out the grocer, and trace the matter to the bottom. - In vain did I remonstrate that this was sooner or later the - fate of all authors, _serius, ocyus, sors exitura_. He will - not be satisfied; and begs me to keep my jokes for another - occasion. But that I am resolved not to do; and, therefore, - being repulsed by his passion and seriousness, I direct them - against you. - - Next week I am published; and then I expect a constant - comparison will be made between Dr. Robertson and Mr. Hume. I - shall tell you in a few weeks which of these heroes is likely - to prevail. Meanwhile, I can inform both of them for their - comforts, that their combat is not likely to make half so much - noise as that between Broughton and the one-eyed coachman. - _Vanitas vanitatum, atque omnia vanitas._ I shall still - except, however, the friendship and good opinion of worthy - men. I am, &c. - - - _London, 12th March, 1759._ - - MY DEAR SIR,--I believe I mentioned to you a French gentleman, - Monsieur Helvetius, whose book, "De l'Esprit," was making a - great noise in Europe. He is a very fine genius, and has the - character of a very worthy man. My name is mentioned several - times in his work with marks of esteem; and he has made me an - offer, if I would translate his work into English, to - translate anew all my philosophical writings into French. He - says that none of them are well done, except that on the - "Natural History of Religion," by Monsieur Martigny,[52:1] a - counsellor of state. He added, that the Abbé Prevôt, - celebrated for the _Memoires d'un homme d'Honneur_, and other - entertaining works,[52:2] was just now translating my - History. This account of Helvetius engaged me to send him over - the new editions of all my writings; and I have added your - History, which, I told him, was here published with great - applause; adding, that the subject was interesting, and the - execution masterly; and that it was probable some man of - letters at Paris may think that a translation of it would be - agreeable to the public. I thought that this was the best - method of executing your intentions. I could not expect that - any Frenchman here would be equal to the work. There is one - Carraccioli, who came to me and spoke something of translating - my new volume of History; but as he also mentioned his - intentions of translating Smollett, I gave him no - encouragement to proceed. The same reason would make me averse - to see you in his hands. - - But though I have given this character of your work to - Monsieur Helvetius, I warn you, that this is the last time - that, either to Frenchman or Englishman, I shall ever speak - the least good of it. A plague take you! Here I sat near the - historical summit of Parnassus, immediately under Dr. - Smollett; and you have the impudence to squeeze yourself by - me, and place yourself directly under his feet. Do you imagine - that this can be agreeable to me? And must not I be guilty of - great simplicity, to contribute, by my endeavours, to your - thrusting me out of my place in Paris as well as at London? - But I give you warning that you will find the matter somewhat - difficult, at least in the former city. A friend of mine, who - is there, writes home to his father, the strangest accounts on - that head, which my modesty will not permit me to repeat, but - which it allowed me very deliciously to swallow. - - I have got a good reason or pretence for excusing me to - Monsieur Helvetius, with regard to the translating his work. A - translation of it was previously advertised here. - - - _---- 20th, 1759._ - - I am afraid that my letters will be tedious and disagreeable - to you by their uniformity. Nothing but continued and - unvaried accounts of the same thing must in the end prove - disgusting. Yet since you will hear me speak on this subject, - I cannot help it, and must fatigue your ears as much as ours - are in this place, by endless and repeated, and noisy praises - of the "History of Scotland." Dr. Douglas told me yesterday, - that he had seen the Bishop of Norwich, who had just bought - the book, from the high commendations he heard of it from Mr. - Legge. Mallet told me that Lord Mansfield is at a loss whether - he shall most esteem the matter or the style. Elliot told me, - that being in company with George Grenville, that gentleman - was speaking loud in the same key. Our friend pretended - ignorance; said he knew the author, and if he thought the book - good for any thing, would send for it and read it. "Send for - it, by all means," said Mr. Grenville; "you have not read a - better book of a long time."--"But," said Elliot, "I suppose, - although the matter may be tolerable, as the author was never - on this side the Tweed till he wrote it, it must be very - barbarous in the expression." "By no means," cried Mr. - Grenville. "Had the author lived all his life in London, and - in the best company, he could not have expressed himself with - greater elegance and purity." Lord Lyttelton seems to think - that, since the time of St. Paul, there scarce has been a - better writer than Dr. Robertson. Mr. Walpole triumphs in the - success of his favourites the Scotch, &c. &c. &c. - - . . . . . The great success of your book, beside its real - merit, is forwarded by its prudence, and by the deference paid - to established opinions. It gains also by its being your first - performance, and by its surprising the public, who are not - upon their guard against it. By reason of these two - circumstances, justice is more readily done to its merit; - which, however, is really so great, that I believe there is - scarce another instance of a first performance being so near - perfection. - - - _London, 29th May, 1759._ - - MY DEAR SIR,--I had a letter from Helvetius lately, wrote - before your book arrived at Paris. He tells me, that the Abbé - Prevôt, who had just finished the translation of my History, - paroit très-disposé à traduire l'Histoire d'Ecosse que vient - de faire Monsieur Robertson. If he be engaged by my - persuasion, I shall have the satisfaction of doing you a real - credit and pleasure; for he is one of the best pens in - Paris.[55:1] . . . . . . - - Our friend Smith[55:2] is very successful here, and - Gerard[55:3] is very well received. The Epigoniad I cannot so - much promise for, though I have done all in my power to - forward it, particularly by writing a letter to _The Critical - Review_, which you may peruse. I find, however, some good - judges profess a great esteem for it: but _habent et sua fata - libelli_: however, if you want a little flattery to the - author, (which I own is very refreshing to an author) you may - tell him that Lord Chesterfield said to me he was a great - poet. I imagine that Wilkie will be very much elevated by - praise from an English Earl, and a knight of the Garter, and - an ambassador, and a secretary of state, and a man of so great - reputation. For I observe that the greatest rustics are - commonly most affected with such circumstances. - - Ferguson's book[55:4] has a great deal of genius and fine - writing, and will appear in time. . . . . - -In 1759, Adam Smith published his "Theory of Moral Sentiments." The -following letters embody Hume's appreciation of that work. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - - _London, April 12, 1759._ - - DEAR SIR,--I give you thanks for the agreeable present of your - Theory. Wedderburn and I made presents of our copies to such - of our acquaintances as we thought good judges, and proper to - spread the reputation of the book. I sent one to the Duke of - Argyle, to Lord Lyttelton, Horace Walpole, Soame Jenyns, and - Burke an Irish gentleman, who wrote lately a very pretty - Treatise on the Sublime. Millar desired my permission to send - one in your name to Dr. Warburton. - - I have delayed writing to you, till I could tell you something - of the success of the book, and could prognosticate, with some - probability, whether it should be finally damned to oblivion, - or should be registered in the temple of immortality. Though - it has been published only a few weeks, I think there appear - already such strong symptoms, that I can almost venture to - foretell its fate. It is, in short, this---- - - But I have been interrupted in my letter by a foolish - impertinent visit of one who has lately come from Scotland. He - tells me that the University of Glasgow intend to declare - Rouet's office vacant, upon his going abroad with Lord Hope. I - question not but you will have our friend Ferguson in your - eye, in case another project for procuring him a place in the - University of Edinburgh should fail. Ferguson has very much - polished and improved his Treatise on Refinement;[56:1] and - with some amendments it will make an admirable book, and - discovers an elegant and a singular genius. The Epigoniad, I - hope, will do; but it is somewhat up-hill work. As I doubt not - but you consult the Reviews sometimes at present, you will see - in _The Critical Review_ a letter upon that poem; and I desire - you to employ your conjectures in finding out the author. Let - me see a sample of your skill in knowing hands by your - guessing at the person.[56:2] - - I am afraid of Kames' "Law Tracts." A man might as well think - of making a fine sauce by a mixture of wormwood and aloes, as - an agreeable composition by joining metaphysics and Scottish - law. However, the book, I believe, has merit; though few - people will take the pains of inquiring into it. But to return - to your book, and its success in this town, I must tell - you---- - - A plague of interruptions! I ordered myself to be denied; and - yet here is one that has broke in upon me again. He is a man - of letters, and we have had a good deal of literary - conversation. You told me, that you was curious of literary - anecdotes, and therefore I shall inform you of a few that - have come to my knowledge. I believe I have mentioned to you - already, Helvetius's book "De l'Esprit." It is worth your - reading, not for its philosophy, which I do not highly value, - but for its agreeable composition. I had a letter from him a - few days ago, wherein he tells me that my name was much - oftener in the manuscript, but that the censor of books at - Paris obliged him to strike it out. - - Voltaire has lately published a small work called _Candide, - ou, l'Optimisme_. I shall give you a detail of it. But what is - all this to my book, say you? My dear Mr. Smith, have - patience: compose yourself to tranquillity; show yourself a - philosopher in practice as well as profession: think on the - emptiness, and rashness, and futility of the common judgments - of men; how little they are regulated by reason in any - subject, much more in philosophical subjects, which so far - exceed the comprehension of the vulgar. - - ----Non si quid turbida Roma, - Elevet, accedas: examenve improbum in illâ - Castiges trutinâ: nec te quaesiveris extra. - - A wise man's kingdom is his own breast; or, if he ever looks - farther, it will only be to the judgment of a select few, who - are free from prejudices, and capable of examining his work. - Nothing, indeed, can be a stronger presumption of falsehood - than the approbation of the multitude; and Phocion, you know, - always suspected himself of some blunder, when he was attended - with the applauses of the populace. - - Supposing, therefore, that you have duly prepared yourself for - the worst by all these reflections, I proceed to tell you the - melancholy news, that your book has been very unfortunate; for - the public seem disposed to applaud it extremely. It was - looked for by the foolish people with some impatience; and the - mob of literati are beginning already to be very loud in its - praises. Three bishops called yesterday at Millar's shop in - order to buy copies, and to ask questions about the author. - The Bishop of Peterborough said, he had passed the evening in - a company where he heard it extolled above all books in the - world. The Duke of Argyle is more decisive than he used to be - in its favour. I suppose he either considers it as an exotic, - or thinks the author will be serviceable to him in the - Glasgow elections. Lord Lyttelton says that Robertson, and - Smith, and Bower,[58:1] are the glories of English literature. - Oswald protests he does not know whether he has reaped more - instruction or entertainment from it. But you may easily judge - what reliance can be put on his judgment, who has been engaged - all his life in public business, and who never sees any faults - in his friends. Millar exults and brags that two-thirds of the - edition are already sold, and that he is now sure of success. - You see what a son of the earth that is, to value books only - by the profit they bring him. In that view, I believe it may - prove a very good book. - - Charles Townsend, who passes for the cleverest fellow in - England, is so taken with the performance, that he said to - Oswald he would put the Duke of Buccleuch under the author's - care, and would make it worth his while to accept of that - charge. As soon as I heard this, I called on him twice, with a - view of talking with him about the matter, and of convincing - him of the propriety of sending that young nobleman to - Glasgow: for I could not hope, that he could offer you any - terms which would tempt you to renounce your professorship; - but I missed him. Mr. Townsend passes for being a little - uncertain in his resolutions; so perhaps you need not build - much on his sally. - - In recompense for so many mortifying things, which nothing but - truth could have extorted from me, and which I could easily - have multiplied to a greater number, I doubt not but you are - so good a Christian as to return good for evil; and to flatter - my vanity by telling me, that all the godly in Scotland abuse - me for my account of John Knox and the Reformation. I suppose - you are glad to see my paper end, and that I am obliged to - conclude with--Your humble servant.[58:2] - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - - _London, 28th July, 1759._ - - DEAR SIR,--Your friend, Mr. Wilson,[59:1] called on me two - three days ago when I was abroad, and he left your letter. I - did not see him till to-day. He seems a very modest, sensible, - ingenious man. Before I saw him, I spoke to Mr. A. Millar - about him, and found him very much disposed to serve him. I - proposed particularly to Mr. Millar, that it was worthy of so - eminent a bookseller as he, to make a complete elegant set of - the classics, which might set up his name equal to the - Alduses, Stevenses, or Elzevirs; and that Mr. Wilson was the - properest person in the world to assist him in such a project. - He confessed to me that he had sometimes thought of it; but - that his great difficulty was to find a man of letters, who - could correct the press. I mentioned the matter to Wilson, who - said he had a man of letters in his eye: one Lyon, a nonjuring - clergyman at Glasgow. He is probably known to you, or at least - may be so; I would desire your opinion of him. - - Mr. Wilson told me of his machines, which seem very ingenious, - and deserve much encouragement. I shall soon see them. - - I am very well acquainted with Bourke, who was much taken with - your book. He got your direction from me, with a view of - writing to you, and thanking you for your present; for I made - it pass in your name. I wonder he has not done it: he is now - in Ireland. I am not acquainted with Jenyns; but he spoke very - highly of the book to Oswald, who is his brother in the board - of trade. Millar showed me, a few days ago, a letter from Lord - Fitzmaurice; where he tells him, that he has carried over a - few copies to the Hague, for presents. Mr. York was very much - taken with it, as well as several others who had read it. - - I am told that you are preparing a new edition, and propose to - make some additions and alterations, in order to obviate - objections. I shall use the freedom to propose one; which, if - it appears to be of any weight, you may have in your eye. I - wish you had more particularly and fully proved that all kinds - of sympathy are necessarily agreeable. This is the hinge of - your system, and yet you only mention the matter cursorily, in - p. 20. Now, it would appear that there is a disagreeable - sympathy, as well as an agreeable. And, indeed, as the - sympathetic passion is a reflex image of the principal, it - must partake of its qualities, and be painful where that is - so. Indeed, _when we converse with a man with whom we can - entirely sympathize_, that is, where there is a warm and - intimate friendship, the cordial openness of such a commerce - overpowers the pain of a disagreeable sympathy, and renders - the whole movement agreeable. But, in ordinary cases, this - cannot have place. An ill-humoured fellow; a man tired and - disgusted with every thing, always _ennuié_, sickly, - complaining, embarrassed; such a one throws an evident damp on - company, which I suppose would be accounted for by sympathy, - and yet is disagreeable. - - It is always thought a difficult problem to account for the - pleasure received from the tears, and grief, and sympathy of - tragedy, which would not be the case if all sympathy was - agreeable. An hospital would be a more entertaining place than - a ball. I am afraid that, in p. 99, and 111, this proposition - has escaped you, or, rather, is interwoven with your - reasonings in that place. You say expressly, "It is painful to - go along with grief, and we always enter into it with - reluctance." It will probably be requisite for you to modify - or explain this sentiment, and reconcile it to your system. - - My dear Mr. Smith, you must not be so much engrossed with your - own book as never to mention mine. The Whigs, I am told, are - anew in a rage against me, though they know not how to vent - themselves; for they are constrained to allow all my facts. - You have, probably, seen Hurd's abuse of me. He is of the - Warburtonian school; and, consequently, very insolent and very - scurrilous; but I shall never reply a word to him. If my past - writings do not sufficiently prove me to be no Jacobite, ten - volumes in folio never would. - - I signed, yesterday, an agreement with Mr. Millar; where I - mention that I proposed to write the History of England, from - the beginning till the accession of Henry VII.; and he engages - to give me £1400 for the copy. This is the first previous - agreement ever I made with a bookseller.[61:1] I shall execute - this work at leisure, without fatiguing myself by such ardent - application as I have hitherto employed. It is chiefly as a - resource against idleness that I shall undertake this work; - for, as to money, I have enough; and as to reputation, what I - have wrote already will be sufficient, if it be good; if not, - it is not likely I shall now write better. I found it - impracticable (at least fancied so) to write the History since - the Revolution. I am in doubt whether I shall stay here and - execute the work; or return to Scotland, and only come up here - to consult the manuscripts. I have several inducements on both - sides. Scotland suits my fortune best, and is the seat of my - principal friendships; but it is too narrow a place for me; - and it mortifies me that I sometimes hurt my friends. Pray - write me your judgment soon. Are the bigots much in arms on - account of this last volume? Robertson's book has great merit; - but it was visible that he profited here by the animosity - against me. I suppose the case was the same with you. I am, - dear Smith, yours sincerely.[61:2] - -In 1758 and 1759, much alarm was caused throughout Britain by a -threatened invasion from France. Hume seems to have "improved" this -state of matters, in the following letters, imparting wild and -exaggerated news. His writing in such a tone, at such a juncture, is an -example of his entertaining the same contempt for panics as for popular -feeling in other forms. There is no address on the first of the letters. -The second would reach its destination nearly at the same time with the -account of Rodney's destruction of the flat-bottomed boats intended for -the invasion. - - -"_15th May, [1759.]_ - -"DEAR SIR,--If you pass by Edinburgh, please bring me two pounds of -rapee, such as Peggy Elliot uses to take. You will get it at Gillespy's -near the Cross. - -"Mrs. Mallet has her compliments to you, and begs you to procure her a -collection of Scotch pebbles. I assured her that I should inform you of -her desire, and also that you would not fail to execute it. - -"We hear that you are to be expelled the university with disgrace. Even -the most partial of your friends here are obliged to allow that you -deserve it. - -"We expect over forty thousand French, with the first fair wind. They -will probably settle the ministry; for, at present, the Pitts and the -Legges, and the Grenvilles, are all going by the ears. - -"We live in hopes of seeing you soon. My compliments to Smith, whose -book is in a very good way. - -"Dr. Warburton presents his compliments to you. Yours sincerely," -&c.[62:1] - - -HUME _to_ MR. RUAT.[62:2] - -"_6th July [1739.]_ - -"DEAR RUAT,--I am very much obliged to you for the desire you express to -Miss Elliot of hearing from me; and particularly your wishing to be -informed, by me, of any news that pass. As soon as I knew, certainly, -how to direct to you, I have sat down to write; and, though the -occurrences are no way extraordinary which I can communicate, they -shall all be strictly, and literally, and certainly true; and you may -venture to tell them as such to all the idle people that frequent -Buxton. - -"This morning, there arrived an express from Admiral Hawke's fleet, -giving an account that the French fleet had sallied out of Brest, with -twenty-four ships of the line, and had engaged the English fleet, in a -desperate and bloody battle, from morning to night, which ended in a -total victory on our side. There are seven of the French ships sunk and -burnt, and four taken. There are two of our capital ships sunk, and the -admiral's ship was blown up, with its whole company, not one of whom is -saved. Prince Edward, in the Phoenix, behaved to admiration; but, -towards the end of the engagement, an unlucky cannon ball carried away -both his legs, by which it is feared we shall loose that promising young -prince. Our friend, poor Dr. Blair, would not go below deck, but stood -by the prince's side during the whole engagement, till his head was -carried off by a double-headed shot. - -"About three hours after the arrival of this express, there arrived -another from the west, giving an account of the landing of the French in -Torbay, to the number of twenty thousand foot, and five thousand horse. -They believe already, in London, that they are sixty thousand strong. -The panic is inconceivable. The people in the country are hurrying up to -town; those in the town are hurrying down to the country. Nobody thinks -of resistance. Every one believes the French, Popery, and the Pretender, -to be at their heels. - -"What adds to our general confusion is, the discovery of treachery in -our councils. Mr. Pitt is sent to the Tower, for holding a secret -correspondence with the French:--his ciphers and letters are taken. Mr. -Wood, our friend, (if he can be said to deserve that name,) is thrown -into a dungeon; and there will be certain proofs to convict him of that -treachery. - -"In order to prepare the way for this blow, the perfidious French had -employed somebody to blow up the magazine in the Tower. I heard the -explosion this morning about five o'clock. All London is covered with -rubbish, and stones and brick, and broken arms. There fell into our back -court a shattered musket, and the bloody leg of a man. I thought the day -of judgment was come when I first heard the explosion, and began -seriously to think of my sins. - -"These events will, all of them, make a figure in future historians; and -it is happy for these gentlemen, who are, or ought to be, very -scrupulous with regard to matters of fact, that they can so well -reconcile the true and the marvellous. - -"As to private news, there is little stirring; only Dr. Warburton turned -Mahometan, and was circumcised last week. They say he is to write a -book, in order to prove the divine legation of Mahomet; and it is not -doubted but he will succeed as well as in proving that of Moses. I saw -him yesterday in the Mall with his turban; which really becomes him very -well. - -"Poor Andrew Millar is declared bankrupt; his debts amount to above -£40,000, and it is said his creditors will not get above three shillings -in the pound. All the world allow him to have been diligent and -industrious; but his misfortunes are ascribed to the extravagance of his -wife, a very ordinary case in this city. - -"Miss ----, yesterday morning declared her marriage with Dr. Armstrong; -but we were surprised in the afternoon to find Mr. Short the optician, -come in and challenge her for his wife. It seems she has been married -privately for some time to both of them. Her sister has been much more -prudent, whom we find to have confined herself entirely to gallantry, -and to have privately entertained a correspondence with three gallants. -I am, dear Ruat, with great truth, your most sincere friend and humble -servant."[65:1] - - -About the commencement of November, Hume returned to Scotland, for he -writes to Millar on 18th December that he has been six weeks in -Edinburgh. He states, that he is correcting his "History of the -Stuarts;" and says, "I fancy that I shall be able to put my account of -that period of English history beyond controversy. As soon as this task -is finished, I undertake the ancient English history. I find the -Advocates' Library very well provided with books, in this period: but -before I finish, I shall pass a considerable time in London, to peruse -the manuscripts in the Museum."[65:2] - -On his return he left behind him, to be published in London, the two -volumes of his "History of England, under the House of Tudor," of which -he says in his "own life,"--"The clamour against this performance was -almost equal to that against the History of the two first Stuarts. The -reign of Elizabeth was particularly obnoxious." - -He had now published the whole of that department of his History, from -which his opinions on the later progress of the British constitution can -be derived; and the epoch of this publication calls for some notice of -the manner in which subsequent inquirers have found that he performed -his task.[65:3] He was not like such writers as Clarendon and Brady, -the interested or prejudiced advocate of the crown against the people; -and we must look for the causes of his erroneous views in what he did -not know, or did not believe, rather than in what he wilfully -misrepresented. In his "Essay on Commerce," published in 1752, we find -him thus foreshadowing the principle on which he was to treat the -History of Britain:--"Lord Bacon, accounting for the great advantages -obtained by the English in their wars with France, ascribes them chiefly -to the superior ease and plenty of the common people among the former; -_yet the government of the two kingdoms was at that time pretty much -alike_." This assertion has been satisfactorily proved to be erroneous. -The spirit of credulity in historical inquiry makes out every thing -ancient to be better and greater than its modern representative. The -spirit of scepticism questions whatever is said in favour of antiquity. -The sceptic cannot throw doubt on the existing wonders of modern times. -If one nation is far beyond another in arts, arms, civilization, or -wealth, the facts cannot be denied; but when he looks back into past -ages, the pliability of the evidence admits the influence of the -levelling principle of scepticism, the tendency of which is to make all -mankind seem much alike; and Hume, who would not have ventured to say -that in his own day the constitutions of France and England were very -much alike, considered it but a piece of proper caution to discard as -fallacious the evidence that there was any great difference between them -in former times. - -Unquestionably the doubting or inquiring spirit is a valuable quality in -a historian; for the narratives of human affairs are full of -falsehoods, which it is the philosophical historian's function to -discard. But the sifting will not be satisfactory, if the materials -subjected to it have not been largely and laboriously collected; and the -charge against Hume is, that he applied it to imperfect data. Where the -data are insufficient, credulity and scepticism are merely the -counterparts of each other, and produce erroneous results nearly alike. -Those who proclaimed Bruce, the Abyssinian traveller, to be a liar, for -statements which have now been authenticated, believed in the account -given of a fictitious people, in an impudent forgery, called -Psalmanazer's Formosa, which would not now impose for a moment on any -educated person. Our enlarged knowledge of the matters to be subjected -to sceptical analysis, has now, in both cases, brought us to the right -conclusion. - -An inquirer into the structure of the earth, who should know nothing of -its crust but the sandy plains of Germany, would, were he of a sceptical -spirit, discredit all those geological wonders which the most sceptical -of scientific men now believe.[68:1] In relation to some parts of the -British constitution, Hume was in the position of such an investigator. -His early prejudice against the study of the law, prevented him from -being fully acquainted with a science, the knowledge of which is -essential to any man who would clearly develop the progress of our -constitution,--the common law of England. He did not understand its -stubborn immovable nature, its solid impregnable masonry, against which -the ambitious violence of monarchs, and the fury of popular tumults -raged in vain. From the day when Gascoigne committed Henry V. to prison, -to that when surly tyrannical old Sir Edward Coke argued face to face -with King James against the interference of the prerogative with the -independent authority of his court, those who were the honest -administrators of the common law held that they were no man's servants, -and no man's masters, but the sworn expounders of a settled rule of -action, which no power within the realm could sway. It might be full of -strange conceits, of passages hard to determine, of unreasonable and -often cruel rules: but what this oracle bade them, that were they bound -to do, be the consequences what they might. - -To a mere onlooker, this system appeared to be clumsy and barbarous, and -unendowed with that philosophical symmetry which characterized the rival -system of the civil law. It required that one should have a full -knowledge of its massive structure, and passive power of resistance, to -appreciate its value in a country where king, nobles, and common people, -were alike characterized by party spirit, courage, and restless -activity. A philosopher, indulging in a distant contemplation, would at -once prefer the nice philosophical adaptation to the wants of a state, -and the fine logical structure, with which a despotic power, able to -manipulate the laws at its own will, had endowed the system of -Justinian; and if he found that the administrators of the rude common -law waged a determined war against this philosophical code, his -contempt for the one, and his admiration of the other, would be likely -to be increased. But there is no doubt that the advocates of the common -law were right in resisting the introduction of the pliant principles of -the civilians. If it be true that the common law, and the constitution -which grew along with it, embodied no philosophical principle of -liberty, it is also true that they embodied no philosophical principle -of despotism, such as that which was ready made in the Justinian -legislation. The theories of passive obedience, and the sacredness of -the monarchical character, were strangers to it; and these doctrines, so -attractive to those who profit by them, were introduced by the -civilians. In presence of the unbending operation of the common law, and -dependent on a surly suspicious parliament, the sovereign might yet, if -he were a man of talent and courage, be very powerful and very -tyrannical: but he had none of those attributes through which the -ingenuity of the civilians had divested him of all the moral failings, -so far as they were accompanied with the moral responsibilities of a -human being. He was often a "most dread sovereign:" but it was for these -novel doctrines, the fruit of the reading of the clergy and the -ecclesiastical lawyers, to invest him with the attributes of "sacred -majesty." - -The supporters of the common law, and of the old popular rights, strove -to keep the law above the king. Those who drew their constitutional -principles from the civilians and canonists, desired to place the king -above the law. They accomplished their object in name, but not in fact, -by incorporating with the constitutional law those fictions, that the -king never dies, is not responsible, does not require to appear by his -attorney, suffers no laches, &c. But in reality the old principles which -made the king merely the head of a community, all of whom were subjected -to the law, substantially held its ground; for, in so far as the monarch -was exempted from responsibilities, in the same proportion was he -deprived of any powers which he could exercise otherwise than through a -responsible minister. - -There was in Hume a like want of appreciation of the value of -parliamentary forms and privileges, and a corresponding indifference -about their violation. He had not sufficiently studied the Journals of -the Commons, and did not trace the rise and development of that system -of procedure which has protected our own liberties, and afforded a model -for the legislative assemblies of all free nations.[71:1] It was in the -Long Parliament, and under the eye of the able men of business who then -held the lead, that this noble system was brought to perfection; but the -reader whose historical information is derived solely from Hume, knows -little of its value. Thus unconscious of the practical importance of the -rights and privileges of the English people, he did not sympathize with -those who expected alarming consequences from their infringement. He -involved those who put the protection of their legal rights to the issue -of the sword, in the same contemptuous estimate with the fanatics whom -he charged with convulsing the state about religious differences of no -essential moment. In either case the event at issue was of so little -importance in his estimation, that he had small charity for those who -made it a vitally important concern.[72:1] But in all these matters we -look back on Hume with the light of later times. To appreciate his -services to constitutional history, we must, while we keep in view the -successful labours of later inquirers, remember how little had been done -by his predecessors. The old chroniclers, such as Hall and Holingshed, -scarcely ever deign to descend from the pride, pomp, and circumstance of -glorious war, to mention constitutional matters; and perhaps, in an -impartial estimate, it will be admitted that in the gradual progress -towards a better appreciation of what is truly valuable in British -history, no one writer has taken so great a stride as Hume. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[3:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[5:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[5:2] In a small book, called "Letters on Mr. Hume's History of Great -Britain," Edinburgh, 1756, known to have been written by Daniel -Macqueen, D.D., the chief object is to prove that Hume has not treated -the Roman Catholic religion with sufficient severity, and to supply this -defect in his History. In a few remarks at the end, however, Dr. -Macqueen had the merit of suggesting many of the constitutional -criticisms on Hume, which were afterwards followed out. - -[6:1] A sketch of Hume's character and habits, in _The Edinburgh -Magazine_ for 1802, professing to be by one who was personally -acquainted with him, is discredited, by its containing a statement that -he had joined the Roman Catholic Church when he was in France. The -reader will remember that, almost from the moment of his setting foot on -foreign soil, he censures the Roman Catholics, in his letters to his -friends; and nothing could be mentioned more at variance with a known -character, than this writer's assertion, which seems to rest on some -imaginative parallel between the personal history of Hume and that of -Gibbon. As the reader may desire to read the sketch thus condemned, and -to judge for himself of its applicability to Hume, it is here given. - - -"ANECDOTES OF DAVID HUME, ESQ. - -"_By one who personally knew him._ - - "David Hume was a man of parts, natural and acquired, far - superior to most of mankind; of a benevolent heart, a - friendly, kind disposition, and a real affection for all his - connexions. No man is without his failings; and his great - views of being singular, and a vanity to show himself superior - to most people, led him to advance many axioms that were - dissonant to the opinions of others, and led him into - sceptical doctrines only to show how minute and puzzling they - were to other folk; in so far, that I have often seen him (in - various companies, according as he saw some enthusiastic - person there) combat either their religious or political - principles; nay, after he had struck them dumb, take up the - argument on their side with equal good humour, wit, and - jocoseness, all to show his pre-eminency. For the justness of - these observations, I appeal to his life, wrote by himself, - and published by his friend and admirer, Adam Smith, where you - see he was so chagrined at no notice of, or answer being made - to, his Essays, and was so disappointed, that he proposed to - retire to Saumure, or some other part of France, to be lost to - the unheeding world; and, in short, be a perfect hermit. But, - on being answered by a bishop, on some of his dogmas, and - other favourable circumstances flattering him that he would at - last be conspicuous, he gave up the project, and was first a - companion, for some time, to the Marquis of Annandale; then - librarian to the Advocates here; after that, secretary to - General Sinclair at Turin (who was, under pretence of an - ambassador to his Sardinian Majesty, a spy, as his conduct was - dubious to the allies, against Louis XV.;) afterwards, by - General Conway's interest, secretary to Lord Hertford at - Paris; left there chargé d'affairs; and, finally, one of the - under secretaries of state for about half a year. After which - he settled in Edinburgh for life, and made all his friends and - connexions happy by the possession of so worthy a man.--Thus - far I have given my real sentiments of the man, and can only - now regret that he was so weak as to write his life in the - style he did. - - "I must add, that he was a cheerful and most agreeable - companion, well informed, and who accommodated himself to the - company; and, for all his abstruse learning, was never happier - than in a select company of ladies and friends, and fond to - engage in a party at whist, of which game he was a complete - adept, and, of consequence, successful. He never played deep; - never above a shilling, one, two, or three; and I have known - him come into Edinburgh for some weeks, pay his residence - there, and get a recruit of clothes and necessaries out of his - gains; nay, sometimes to have a pound or two to give in - assistance to a necessitous relation; and carry back to his - brother's house, at Ninewells, the cash he brought with him - from that place, in order to defray the expenses of his visit - to the metropolis. General Scott of Balcomie, who was a good - judge in these matters, was so convinced of his superior skill - at whist, that I was assured he offered David his purse to - gamble at London; and that he would give him £1000 a-year if - he would communicate his winnings. This he refused with - disdain, saying, he played for his amusement; and though - General Scott would give him ten times more per annum, he - would be accessary to no such fraudulent doings. - - "It was very remarkable, that, though from study and reading - the purest authors in the English language he learnt to write - in a correct and elegant style, yet, in conversing, he spoke - with the tone, idiom, and vulgar voice of the commonalty in - the Merse or Berwickshire. This, I presume, arose from his - having been greatly, in his early years, about his brother's - house, conversing with servants, &c.; and having no ear - (though a foreign or even a dead language, which he acquired - by grammar and rules, he wrote pointedly,) it was impossible - for him to attain, in speaking, any other dialect of the Scots - than that he caught in his childhood: besides, he had but a - creeping voice, rather effeminate than manly. - - "I could give you several anecdotes with regard to him; I - shall content myself with one. One day when he was advancing - some irreligious maxims in a sarcastical style, I said to him, - 'L----, David, ye are much altered in your sentiments since - you professed yourself a sincere Roman Catholic, confessed - yourself to the priests, declared yourself a sincere penitent, - got absolution, and even extreme unction.' He was much - offended at this, as he believed none knew, in this country, - that all this had happened to him at Nice. He answered in a - huff, 'I was in a high fever then, and did not know what I - said, or they did with me.' I replied, 'You put me in mind of - Patie Birnie's answer to the minister of Kinghorn, who, - stumbling o'er him in a passage dead drunk, said, 'Ah! Patie, - is this your promise that you would never be fu' again, if the - Lord spared you?'--'Wow,' quo' Pate, 'I wonder to hear ane of - your honour's sense mind what ony body says in a red raving - fever; I kent naithing of what was ga'en.' David and I, for - years after, were tolerable good friends, but never so cordial - as before. G. N." [These initials are supposed to be those of - George Nichol, M. P.] - -[9:1] Hume was inclined to admire the polity of the Church of England, -on grounds peculiar to himself. The tendency of his remarks on the -wealth and dignity of that establishment, is to hold that heaping riches -and honours on a clergy, by occupying their minds in pomps and vanities, -diverts a certain portion of the spirit of priestcraft from its natural -propensity to subdue or annoy the rest of the community, and is on the -whole a judicious investment of a considerable proportion of the wealth -and honours which may happen to be at the command of a state. Adam -Smith's opinion, on the other hand, was, that the people are best -protected against the influence of priestcraft, by allowing no sect to -have a superiority over others, and by leaving the clergy of different -denominations to expend their zeal in fighting with each other. - -[11:1] Original at Kilravock. - -[13:1] Scroll in Hume's handwriting, Minto MSS. - -[13:2] Four Dissertations: The Natural History of Religion; Of the -Passions; Of Tragedy; Of the Standard of Taste. 8vo, A. Millar. Hume, in -his "own life," says they were published in the interval between the -first and second volumes of his History. - -[14:1] In a copy which I possess, after p. 200, the end of the third -dissertation, there are four strips of paper, the remains of half a -sheet cut away. This occurs in signature K, and signature L begins with -the fourth dissertation. - -[14:2] Vol. i. p. 246. - -[15:1] A simple example tells at once the whole philosophy of this view. -In an unhealthy community, a workman dies after he has been ten years -married, and leaves a widow and children dependant on the public. In a -healthy community, he lives for twenty years after his marriage, and -leaves children grown up and able to provide for themselves. - -In general, the aim of all remarks on Hume's writings in the present -work is expository, not controversial. The reader desirous of having -every light thrown on Hume's opinions, will care nothing about mine; but -where, as in the present case, he seems to have gone astray from his own -leading principles, it appeared to be right to notice the aberration. - -[16:1] This letter is not dated. - -[18:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[18:2] He persisted in spelling the poet's name thus. - -[19:1] MS. Advocates' Library. A good example of the same thing being -done in two ways, is afforded by comparing Hume's resignation with that -of his venerable predecessor, Ruddiman. The latter is a document of -considerable length, and ends in the following strain:--"But though I -can be no longer serviceable to the honourable Faculty in that my former -capacity, yet there is one duty still in my power, and which can never -be dispensed with; and that is, that from the deep and most grateful -sense which I shall always retain of your great and manifold favours, I -should earnestly pray to Almighty God for the honour, prosperity, and -flourishing state of your most learned and useful society; that ye may -continue a great ornament to those high courts, of which you are -members; and that in them, and every where else, ye may shine forth with -that splendour and dignity, that unblemished character for justice and -probity, and the faithful discharge of all those duties your honourable -profession has laid upon you, for which you are so remarkable; and which -the superior name and rank you bear in the world, give your country just -ground to expect of you. - -"This is the last best testimony and assurance I can give, of my most -sincere gratitude, warm affection, and high regard to the honourable -Faculty; and that I am, now, and always, my much honoured patrons and -masters, your most obliged, most humble, and most dutiful servant,-- - - Dum memor ipse mei, dum spiritus hos regit artus - - "T. RUDDIMAN." - -[20:1] These two distichs are taken from separate parts of the fourth -book of Ovid's "Tristia." The first is accurate, but the second is -evidently a variation of the following: - - Sic ubi mota calent viridi mea pectora Thyrso - Altior humano spiritus ille malo est. - -[22:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 636. MS. R.S.E. - -[23:1] In a work by Dr. John Brown, called, "An Estimate of the Manners -and Principles of the Times," 1757, there is the following passage:--"A -certain historian, of our own times, bent upon _popularity_ and _gain_, -published a large volume, and omitted no opportunity that offered to -disgrace religion. A large impression was published, and a small part -sold. The author being asked why he had so larded his work with -irreligion, his answer implied:--'He had done it that his book might -sell.' It was whispered him, that he had totally mistaken the spirit of -the times;--that no allurements could engage the _fashionable_ infidel -world to travel through a large quarto; and that, as the few readers of -quartos that yet remain lie mostly among the serious part of mankind, he -had offended his best customers, and ruined the sale of his book. This -information had a notable effect; for a second volume, as large and -instructive as the first, hath appeared; not a smack of irreligion is to -be found in it; and an apology for the first concludes the whole."--P. -57. - -Dr. Brown's book is said to have been very popular, and to have run to a -seventh edition in a few months. It is rather singular that the edition -marked as the seventh, has precisely the same matter in each page, and -the same number of pages as the first. - -[24:1] The letter does not appear to have been preserved. - -[25:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[25:2] Elliot had been made a Lord of the Admiralty in 1756. - -[27:1] Viz. of Edinburgh. - -[29:1] Minto MSS. - -[29:2] The title of the Epigoniad does not, unfortunately, convey any -associations to the general English reader, who requires to be told that -it is derived from +Epigonoi+, or descendants, in allusion to those of -the warriors who had been slain at the first siege of Thebes; and the -main incident of the poem is the subsequent sacking of that city. It is -not difficult for the reader of the better parts of the Epigoniad to -imagine, that he is perusing Pope's translation of Homer. When an -approach was thus made to a model so famous, all was supposed to have -been gained; and it was thought that a work had been produced which -would stand beside the Iliad and the Odyssey. It is hardly necessary, at -the present day, to ask, whether the highest genius will produce an -immortal poem out of the machinery of another age and nation, and -appealing to sentiments which have no response in the habits or feelings -of the people to whom its author appeals? We read the great national -poems of other countries in their own language, because we thus endow -ourselves, as far as it is possible, with the feeling and ideas of those -to whom the poem was addressed. We read spirited translations, because -they are an attempt to represent to us, in our own tongue, that which is -grand in another language; and our interest is like that with which we -view the portrait of a great man. We thus encounter Ulysses, Agamemnon, -and Menelaus in the Iliad, with the interest of excited curiosity; and -those who cannot read the original, are content to make acquaintance -with persons whom a great genius has made so famous, even through a rude -translation. But few cared to meet them reappearing in Wilkie's -imitation; nor, however forcible may be his expressions, or flowing his -versification, do we feel very vividly the horrors of Cacus' den, and -the destructive ire of the Cyclops, or sympathize in the torments of -Hercules, from the Centaur's poisoned robe, when they are described in -the Epigoniad. - -[31:1] The paper is reprinted from _The Critical Review_, in the -Appendix to Ritchie's Life of Hume. - -[33:1] These fictions were to a considerable extent superseded by an -act, so late as the year 1833; 3 & 4 Will. IV. c. 74. - -[34:1] In 1757 Adam Ferguson became tutor to the family of Lord Bute. - -[34:2] Minto MSS. - -[35:1] Warburton writes as follows to Hurd:--"As to Hume, I had laid it -aside ever since you was here; I will now, however, finish my skeleton. -It will be hardly that. If, then, you think any thing can be made of it, -and will give yourself the trouble, we may, perhaps, between us, do a -little good, which, I dare say, we shall both think worth a little -pains. If I have any force in the first rude beating out of the mass, -you are best able to give it the elegance of form and splendour of -polish. This will answer my purpose; to labour together in a joint work -to do a little good. I will tell you fairly, it is no more the thing it -should be, and will be, if you undertake it, than the Dantzic iron at -the forge is the gilt and painted ware at Birmingham. It will make no -more than a pamphlet; but you shall take your own time, and make it your -summer's amusement, if you will. I propose it to bear something like -this title:--'_Remarks on Mr. Hume's late Essay, called The Natural -History of Religion; by a Gentleman of Cambridge, in a Letter to the -Rev. Dr. W._' I propose the address should be with the dryness and -reserve of a stranger, who likes the method of the letters on -Bolingbroke's Philosophy, and follows it here against the same sort of -writer, inculcating the same impiety, naturalism, and employing the same -kind of arguments. The address will remove it from me; the author, a -gentleman of Cambridge, from you; and the secrecy in printing from us -both."--_Letters from a late Eminent Prelate to one of his Friends_, p. -240. In the immediately preceding letter, we find him saying, "I will -trim the rogue's jacket, at least sit upon his skirts, as you will see -when you come hither, and find his margins scribbled over." - -Thus were concocted the "Remarks on Mr. David Hume's Essay on the -Natural History of Religion, addressed to the Rev. Dr. Warburton," -(1757) wherein the candid author, in pursuance of his instructions, -says, "Of my _person_, indeed, I must have leave to make no discovery; -and to tell you the truth, I have taken such effectual precautions, as -to that particular, that I will venture to say you will never know more -of me than you do at present." The original notes are to be found in the -quarto edition of Warburton's works. Hume says, in his "own life," of -the Natural History of Religion, "Its public entry was rather obscure, -except only that Dr. Hurd wrote a pamphlet against it, with all the -illiberal petulance, arrogance, and scurrility which distinguish the -Warburtonian school. This pamphlet gave me some consolation for the -otherwise indifferent reception of my performance." - -[37:1] Probably "An Essay towards a General History of Feudal Property -in Great Britain, under several heads," 1757-8, by Mr. afterwards Sir -John Dalrymple. - -[38:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[39:1] _Scots Magazine_ for 1802, p. 978. - -[40:1] These analogies are taken from the technicalities of Scots law. -The southern reader may as well be informed, that Prescription stands -for "The Statute of Limitations" in Scotland; that a summons is the writ -by which the plaintiff brings the defendant into court; and that "the -lords' row," is the roll of cases in the Court of Session. - -[41:1] Original in the possession of the Cambusmore family. - -[43:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[43:2] The Painter. The "Sketches and Essays on various subjects," were -written by Armstrong. - -[43:3] MS. R.S.E. - -[45:1] Minto MSS. - -[45:2] It appears, however, from a letter to Smith, farther on, that an -attempt had been made to procure a chair for Ferguson, in Edinburgh, -which had failed. - -[46:1] John Stevenson was appointed professor of logic and metaphysics -in 1730. - -[47:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[47:2] Without date. - -[47:3] Original in possession of Sir Henry Jardine. - -[48:1] Note B. - -[48:2] It is also remarkable, that there is not one letter from -Robertson among the MSS. R.S.E., or in any known collection. - -[52:1] Perhaps this may be a mistake for M. Mérian, the name of the -author of a translation of this essay, published in 1759. - -[52:2] See above, p. 408. See the letters of Helvetius in the Appendix. -He does not seem to have translated any of Hume's works, his proposed -reciprocity treaty not having been concluded. He appears to have had -considerably more at heart the being chosen a member of the Royal -Society of London, as a means of restoring his lost popularity at home. - -[55:1] A translation was published in 1764, by Besset de la Chapelle. - -[55:2] Theory of Moral Sentiments. - -[55:3] Essay on Taste. - -[55:4] See next page. - -[56:1] Stewart says this is the work subsequently published under the -title of "An Essay on the History of Civil Society." But this may be -doubted: see Hume's Remarks on it at the time of publication. - -[56:2] See above, p. 30. - -[58:1] This association of names is evidently intended as a sarcasm on -Lord Lyttelton's taste. - -[58:2] Stewart's Life of Smith. - -[59:1] Probably Mr. Wilson, type-founder, Glasgow; the father of the art -in Scotland. - -[61:1] He did not consider his agreement about the Treatise of Human -Nature a "previous" one, as the book was written. See vol. i. p. 65. - -[61:2] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 665. Original MS. R.S.E. - -[62:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[62:2] See this gentleman, who was a professor in Glasgow, mentioned -above, p. 59, where his name is spelt Rouat. - -[65:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[65:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[65:3] An account of all the books in which the constitutional -principles of the history have been ably impugned, would only be -reminding the reader of many works with which he is probably already -familiar. But among the marked productions of this series, if he desire -to have a calm appreciation of the merits of Hume's historical -criticism, by those who have gone over the same ground, he will peruse -the historical works of Hallam, and the treatises of Dr. Allen, -including his articles in _The Edinburgh Review_, and his "Inquiry into -the Rise and Growth of the Royal Prerogative." If, however, he wish to -have all Hume's tergiversations sifted and exposed with forensic -acuteness, and the zeal of an able and vigilant prosecutor,--to have -before him, in short, the whole "case" of the British constitution -against Hume, let him read Brodie's "History of the British Empire." It -will gratify all the admirers of his book to know, that Mr. Brodie is -occupied in the preparation of a new edition of his great work, which -will, no doubt, be marked by all the same qualities which distinguished -the first, increased by farther study and enthusiastic research. It is a -singular incident in literary history, that immediately after the -appearance of the first edition, filled as it is with a prodigious array -of notes and references, the subject was gone over by Godwin in his -"History of the Commonwealth," with but slight reference to Mr. Brodie's -book; but in such a manner, from the structure of his narrative and -otherwise, as to show that he had scarcely any other book before him. - -This is not the place for a discussion of Mr. Brodie's charges against -Hume: they are honestly supported by references, and will stand or fall -on their own merits. But there is one instance in which Mr. Brodie's -acuteness has led him farther than every one can follow him. Thus, -speaking of a particular passage of Hume, he says, "he has given the -very words of Perinchief, whom he yet durst not quote; and his -pencil-marks are still at the place in the copy belonging to the -Advocates' Library." This statement, to the effect that there exists -evidence of Hume having read passages which he has designedly avoided -citing, is frequently repeated; and if one would absolutely assure -himself that Hume had read the passages, by reference to the copies of -the books in the Advocates' Library, he finds one or two scores drawn -across the margin with a pencil! The distinguished historical critic, -who has noticed this circumstance, must make some allowance for the -inferior acumen of ordinary readers, if they should fail to discover why -this simple score must of necessity be David Hume--his mark. - -Mr. Brodie's book is particularly valuable as a criticism on Hume's -notions of the old prerogative in relation to the Star Chamber, the -Court of High Commission, Martial Law, Impressments, and Forced Loans. - -[68:1] Locke gives an admirable illustration of the sceptical spirit -working on imperfect data, in the following anecdote. "It happened to a -Dutch ambassador, who, entertaining the King of Siam with the -particularities of Holland, which he was inquisitive after, amongst -other things, told him, that the water in his country would sometimes, -in cold weather, be so hard, that men walked upon it, and that it would -bear an elephant if he were there. To which the king replied, 'Hitherto -I have believed the strange things which you have told me, because I -look upon you as a sober fair man: but now I am sure you lie.'"--_On the -Understanding_, book iv. chap. 15, § 5. - -[71:1] The forms of voting and coming to a decision in the British -Parliament have been adopted by other countries, not from any partiality -towards our systems, but because in this we seem to have approached -abstract perfection; and the framers of codes, after all endeavours to -make forms of like excellence, are obliged to have recourse to those -which have been followed for centuries in St. Stephen's. In the French -Assemblies, ingenuity was frequently exercised in vain to devise some -plan by which, after a series of proposals had been made, and debated -upon, the sense of the meeting in regard to them might be ascertained -and recorded without the record being liable to be questioned as -inaccurate. In the English system, the matter is at once solved. Each -proposed resolution is made and put on record before the discussion -begins, and however many different proposals there may be in relation to -the subject of debate, they must be all put in writing, and each one -must be singly, and without intermixture with the others, adopted or -rejected by a vote of the house. - -[72:1] He seems to have afterwards soothed himself with the reflection -that his historical speculations were in favour of the stability of a -fixed government, and opposed to innovating principles. In a letter to -Madame de Boufflers, dated 23d Dec. 1768, he says:-- - -"Indeed, the prospect of affairs here is so strange and melancholy, as -would make any one desirous of withdrawing from the country at any rate. -Licentiousness, or rather the frenzy of liberty, has taken possession of -us, and is throwing every thing into confusion. How happy do I esteem -it, that in all my writings I have always kept at a proper distance from -that tempting extreme, and have maintained a due regard to magistracy -and established government, suitably to the character of an historian -and a philosopher! I find, on that account, my authority growing daily; -and indeed have now no reason to complain of the public, though your -partiality to me made you think so formerly. Add to this, that the -king's bounty puts me in a very opulent situation. I must, however, -expect that, if any great public convulsion happen, my appointments will -cease, and reduce me to my own revenue: but this will be sufficient for -a man of letters, who surely needs less money both for his entertainment -and credit, than other people."--_Private Correspondence_, p. 266. - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -1760-1762. Æt. 49-51. - - Alterations of the History in the direction of Despotic - Principles--Specimens--Alterations in Style--Specimens--His - Elaboration--Ossian's Poems--Labours at the early part of the - History--Ferguson's "Sister Peg"--Acquaintance with Madame de - Boufflers--Account of that lady--First intercourse with - Rousseau--Rousseau's position--The exiled Earl Marishal-- - Campbell and his Dissertation on Miracles. - - -We have seen, from various indications in Hume's letters to his friends, -that he employed himself occasionally in corrections and alterations of -the published volumes of his History. In these revisals, and especially -in that of the "History of the Stuarts," his alterations were not -limited to the style. He tells us, with a sort of scornful candour, in -his "own life," "Though I had been taught by experience that the Whig -party were in possession of bestowing all places, both in the state and -in literature, I was so little inclined to yield to their senseless -clamour, that in above a hundred alterations which farther study, -reading, or reflection engaged me to make in the reigns of the two first -Stuarts, I have made all of them invariably to the Tory side. It is -ridiculous to consider the English constitution, before that period, as -a regular plan of liberty." - -It was part of his nature, when popular clamour called for the adoption -of a particular course, to turn his steps for that reason the more -distinctly in the opposite direction. He has not exaggerated the extent -or character of his alterations; for an inspection of the various -editions of his History which came under his own revision, shows him, by -turns of expression, structure of narrative, and other gentle -alterations, approaching closer and closer to despotic principles. The -democratic opinions contained in his early essays, have already been -alluded to; and their suppression in subsequent editions, harmonizes -with these variations of the opinions expressed in his History.[74:1] - -There are, however, a very few alterations in an opposite spirit. Thus, -in the following sentence relative to the proceedings of the House of -Commons regarding the militia, the part in italics is suppressed in the -later editions. "He [the king] issued proclamations against this -manifest usurpation; _the most precipitant and most enormous of which -there is any instance in the English history_." - -On one incident of some importance in history, he was obliged materially -to change his ground of argument, yet would not alter his original -opinion. During the fervour of the civil wars in 1646, Lord Glamorgan -had in the name of Charles I. concluded a treaty with the confederated -Irish Catholics, by which, on the condition of their aiding the king, -besides other concessions, the Roman Catholic religion was to be -restored to its old supremacy through a great part of Ireland. Ormond, -the lord lieutenant, charged Glamorgan with high treason: but he -produced two commissions from the king. The king disowned the -commissions: but the parliament believed in their genuineness.--It was -in this shape that the matter appeared in the first instance before -Hume. In his first edition he accordingly maintained that the -commissions were forgeries; and a long note, explanatory of the grounds -of this belief, is a remarkable instance of a plausible fabric of -historical reasoning, doomed afterwards to fall to pieces by the removal -of its foundation. Before he published his second edition, he received a -letter from the Rev. John Douglas, afterwards Bishop of Carlisle,[78:1] -who was intrusted with the editing of the Clarendon Papers. In this -communication, the reverend gentleman regrets that he cannot send to -Hume a letter written by Glamorgan, describing the method in which the -commissions were actually prepared, and its object; but he gives an -account of the contents of the letter.[78:2] Hume could no longer hold -that the commissions were not genuine: but he still maintained Charles -to be guiltless; and though they were unknown to the lord lieutenant, -and bore no attestation of having passed through the proper offices, he -still argued that Glamorgan, in treating with the Irish, though he was -within the letter of his very wide powers, must have exceeded his -instructions; and ingeniously pointed to his work, "The century of -Inventions," in connexion with which Lord Glamorgan is better known, by -his subsequent title of Marquis of Worcester, as the production of a man -who never could have been trusted with powers so extensive as those -which he arrogated. - -Besides the variations in political opinion, there were in the -subsequent editions of Hume's History other alterations suggested by -other influences. His opinions were self-formed, and he jealously -protected them in their formation from the influence of other minds; but -in the cultivation of his style he sought assistance with avidity -from all who could afford it. Hence he appears to have earnestly -solicited the aid of Lyttelton, Mallet, and others, whose experience of -English composition might enable them to detect Scotticisms. - -[Illustration: SPECIMEN OF THE M.S. OF HUME'S HISTORY. - -REIGN OF HENRY II. PUBLISHED IN 1762.] - -Before they went to press, his compositions underwent a minute and -rigorous correction. His manuscripts, as the small fac-simile engraved -for these volumes shows, were subjected to a painful revisal. We -sometimes find him, after he has adopted a form of expression, scoring -it out and substituting another; but again, on a comparison of their -mutual merits, restoring the rejected form, and perhaps again discarding -it when he has lighted on a happier collocation of words.[79:1] It is -worthy of remark, that his most brilliant passages are those which bear -the least appearance of being amended. It is not thence to be inferred -that these passages sprang from his mind in their full symmetry and -beauty: but rather that they had been elaborated, and made ready for -insertion in their proper place, before they were put in writing. - -We now resume the correspondence; which will be found to have reference, -among other topics, to the preparation of the History anterior to the -accession of the Tudors. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 22d March, 1760._ - -"DEAR SIR,--You gave me a very sensible pleasure in informing me so -early of the success of 'The Siege of Aquileia'[81:1] on its first -representation. I hope it sustained its reputation after it came into -print. I showed Mr. Kincaid your letter; and he has published an -edition here, of a thousand, which go off very well. As he had published -a pamphlet, this winter, which he got from you, I told him that I -fancied you would be satisfied with the same terms, which he then agreed -to. - -"I am very busy, and am making some progress; but find that this part of -English History is a work of infinite labour and study; which, however, -I do not grudge; for I have nothing better nor more agreeable to employ -me. I have sent you a short catalogue of books, which either are not in -the Advocates' Library, or are not to be found at present. I must beg of -you to procure them for me, and to send them down with the first ship. -Send me also the prices; for I shall be able to engage the curators of -the library to take from me such as they want at the price. - -"Dr. Birch, (to whom make my compliments,) will be so good as to give -you his advice about buying these books; and will tell you if several of -them are collected in volumes, as is often the case with the old English -historians. - -"I hope Lord Lyttelton and Mr. Mallet are as busy as I; if so, we may -expect to see their history soon. Please to inform me what you hear of -them. We are informed that Lord Lyttelton is soon to appear. I wish very -much to have the benefit of his work before I go to the press. Donaldson -told me, that Strahan has, at last, finished the small edition of my -Essays, and that you have shipped his and Kincaid's number. They are -resolved, I find, to dispose of them all in this place. I hope you have -not forgot to send me half a dozen of copies in sheets, the number which -we agreed to on any new edition. - -"Your press, in London, has been somewhat barren this winter. We have -had nothing from you but a good pamphlet or two, and have, I think, -paid the same in kind. Our militia pamphlet was certainly wrote with -spirit; and has been twice reprinted, as I hear, in London.[83:1] I beg -to be remembered to Mrs. Millar; and please tell her that I am very -sorry we shall not have the pleasure of seeing her here this summer. I -could wish her just as much sickness as to make her sensible that -travelling is good for her. My compliments to Dr. Douglas and Strahan, -and to Friend Cummin, who, I hope, sees now a better prospect of -overcoming all his difficulties. I am," &c. - - -The following letter, though it must be already familiar to many -readers, is so clear an exposition of the writer's views on some -branches of historical and biographical literature, that it ought not to -be omitted. - - -HUME _to_ DR. ROBERTSON. - - I have frequently thought, and talked with our common friends - upon the subject of your letter. There always occurred to us - several difficulties with regard to every subject we could - propose. The ancient Greek history has several - recommendations, particularly the good authors from which it - must be drawn: but this same circumstance becomes an - objection, when more narrowly considered; for what can you do - in most places with these authors but transcribe and translate - them? no letters or state papers from which you could correct - their errors, or authenticate their narration, or supply - their defects. Besides, Rollin is so well wrote with respect - to style, that with superficial people it passes for - sufficient. There is one Dr. Lelland, who has lately wrote the - life of Philip of Macedon, which is one of the best periods. - The book, they tell me, is perfectly well wrote; yet it has - had such small sale, and has so little excited the attention - of the public, that the author has reason to think his labour - thrown away. I have not read the book; but by the size, I - should judge it to be too particular. It is a pretty large - quarto. I think a book of that size sufficient for the whole - History of Greece till the death of Philip: and I doubt not - but such a work would be successful, notwithstanding all these - discouraging circumstances. The subject is noble, and Rollin - is by no means equal to it. - - I own, I like still less your project of the age of Charles - the Fifth. That subject is disjointed; and your hero, who is - the sole connexion, is not very interesting. A competent - knowledge at least is required of the state and constitution - of the empire; of the several kingdoms of Spain, of Italy, of - the Low Countries, which it would be the work of half a life - to acquire; and, though some parts of the story may be - entertaining, there would be many dry and barren; and the - whole seems not to have any great charms. - - But I would not willingly start objections to these schemes, - unless I had something to propose, which would be plausible; - and I shall mention to you an idea which has sometimes pleased - me, and which I had once entertained thoughts of - attempting.[84:1] You may observe that, among modern readers, - Plutarch is, in every translation, the chief favourite of the - ancients. Numberless translations and numberless editions have - been made of him in all languages; and no translation has been - so ill done as not to be successful. Though those who read the - originals never put him in comparison either with Thucydides - or Xenophon, he always attaches more the reader in the - translation; a proof that the idea and execution of his work - is, in the main, happy. Now, I would have you think of writing - modern lives, somewhat after that manner: not to enter into a - detail of the actions, but to mark the manners of the great - personages, by domestic stories, by remarkable sayings, and by - a general sketch of their lives and adventures. You see that - in Plutarch the life of Cæsar may be read in half an hour. - Were you to write the life of Henry the Fourth of France after - that model, you might pillage all the pretty stories in Sully, - and speak more of his mistresses than of his battles. In - short, you might gather the flower of all modern history in - this manner: the remarkable Popes, the Kings of Sweden, the - great discoverers and conquerors of the New World; even the - eminent men of letters, might furnish you with matter, and the - quick despatch of every different work would encourage you to - begin a new one. If one volume were successful, you might - compose another at your leisure, and the field is - inexhaustible. There are persons whom you might meet with in - the corners of history, so to speak, who would be a subject of - entertainment quite unexpected; and as long as you live, you - might give and receive amusement by such a work; even your - son, if he had a talent for history, would succeed to the - subject, and his son to him. I shall insist no farther on this - idea; because, if it strikes your fancy, you will easily - perceive all its advantages, and, by farther thought, all its - difficulties.[85:1] - -In 1760, Macpherson published those "Fragments of Ancient Poetry, -collected in the Highlands of Scotland, and translated from the Gaelic -or Erse language," which, afterwards enlarged, became the celebrated -"Ossian's Poems." Hume took an early interest in this professed -resuscitation of early national literature. He at first doubted the -truth of assertions so unprecedented in literary history, as those by -which the genuineness of the poems was maintained. But there was nothing -to which his heart would have responded with a warmer enthusiasm than -the discovery, that his ancestors, generally reputed to be but late -accessions to civilization, could look back upon a literature as rich -and great as that which had crowned Greece with the literary supremacy -of the world. Hence, he seems to have, after some time, willingly -yielded to a belief in the genuineness of these poems. His good sense -and sceptical spirit, however, resumed the supremacy, and he afterwards -wrote a very searching though short "Essay on the Authenticity of -Ossian's Poems." It is printed in the Appendix; and thither the whole -correspondence on the subject is transferred, that the reader may peruse -the various pieces in a series. It is probable that the sole reason why -Hume never published this detection, was a kindly feeling to his friend -Dr. Blair, against whom he might not wish to appear in a controversy, -where the critical powers of the latter would be so severely tested. And -yet they stood on perfectly fair ground. Neither Hume nor Blair had any -knowledge of the archæological merits of the question. Each of them -discussed the probable genuineness of the poems on grounds as purely -critical as if they had been brought from Central Africa, instead of -being the alleged literature of a people who are supposed to have at one -time occupied the ground on which Edinburgh is built; and at the time of -that controversy, as at the present day, might be visited on a journey -of fifty miles. In such a state of knowledge, it required great freedom -and decision in criticism to pronounce the poems forgeries. Then, as -now, every genuine Celt protested that he had heard them over and over -again in Gaelic with his own ears; and with this only difference from -the translation, that there were peculiar delicate beauties in the -native Gaelic, which neither Macpherson, nor any other man, was capable -of expressing in English. In such an unequal controversy, between the -internal evidence of criticism, and the external evidence of broad -assertion, it is singular that no one should have attempted to solve the -question through the faint light which the chronicles of the surrounding -tribes throw on the history of the Celts in Scotland. That knowledge has -now been pretty widely extended; and hence "Ossian's Poems" have been -estimated at their true value, as an embossment of poetical language and -imagery, on the surface of such barren metrical narratives as all -uncivilized and warlike people possess; it has been found that the -structure of the narratives, the characteristic names, the events of -history, and the manners of the times, have been treated with no more -deference, when an alteration was found to suit the purpose of the -"translator."[87:1] - -Intensely occupied with his History anterior to the accession of the -Tudors, we thus find Hume writing to Millar on 27th October:-- - - -"I have been very busy ever since I came down; and if I keep my health, -shall be able to publish the winter after the next, or at farthest in -the subsequent spring; which I fancy will serve your purpose well -enough. At any rate, this is not a matter which I can hurry on faster -than I am able to satisfy myself in the execution. - -"I am very much pleased with what you tell me, that the Clarendon Papers -have fallen into Dr. Douglas's hands, especially as Dr. Robertson tells -me he intends to publish them. What my sentiments are on the question -you mention, you may learn from my letter to the Doctor, which I have -sent you open, and which I beg you to take the trouble of sending; for I -do not know how to direct it." - - -Hume wished to amuse himself with mystifying his friends about the -pamphlet above alluded to, called Sister Peg. The circumstance which -suggested to him the following letter, is said to have been his being -kept in ignorance that his friend Ferguson was the author of the piece. - - -HUME _to_ DR. CARLYLE. - -"_Edinburgh, 3d February, 1761._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I am informed that you have received a letter from London, -by which you learn that the manuscript of Sister Peg has been traced to -the printer's, and has been found to be, in many places, interlined and -corrected in my handwriting. I could have wished that you had not -published this piece of intelligence before you told me of it. The truth -is, after I had composed that trifling performance, and thought I had -made it as correct as I could, I gave it to a sure hand to be -transcribed, that in case any of the London printers had known my hand, -they might not be able to discover me. But as it lay by me some weeks -afterwards, I could not forbear reviewing it; and not having my -amanuensis at hand, I was obliged in several places to correct it -myself, rather than allow it to go to the press with inaccuracies of -which I was sensible. I little dreamed that this small want of -precaution would have betrayed me so soon; but as you know that I am -very indifferent about princes or presidents, ministers of the gospel or -ministers of state, kings or keysars, and set at defiance all powers, -human or infernal, I had no other reason for concealing myself, but in -order to try the taste of the public; whom, though I also set in some -degree at defiance, I cannot sometimes forbear paying a little regard -to. I find that frivolous composition has been better received than I -had any reason to expect, and therefore cannot much complain of the -injury you have done me by revealing my secret, and obliging me to -acknowledge it more early than I intended. The only reason of my writing -to you is, to know the printer's name, who has so far broke his -engagements as to show the manuscript; for the bookseller assured my -friend to whom I intrusted it, that we might depend upon an absolute -secrecy. I beg my compliments to Mrs. Carlyle, and am, dear sir," -&c.[89:1] - - -We see by the date of the following letter, that Hume varied his city -life with an occasional residence with his brother in Berwickshire. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Ninewells, 29th June, 1761._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--As your professorship of Hebrew is vacant, I have been -applied to in behalf of young Mr. Cummin; and you are the person with -whom I am supposed to have some interest. But as I imagine you will not -put this election on the footing of interest, I shall say nothing on -that head; but shall speak much more to the purpose by informing you, -that I have known Mr. Cummin for some time, and have esteemed him a -young man of exceeding good capacity, and of a turn towards literature. -He tells me that he has made the oriental tongues, and particularly the -Hebrew, a part of his study, and has made some proficiency in them. But -of this fact, craving his pardon, I must be allowed to entertain some -doubt; for if Hebrew roots, as Cowley says, thrive best in barren -soil,[90:1] he has a small chance of producing any great crop of them. -But as you commonly regard the professorship of Hebrew as a step towards -other professorships, in which a good capacity can better display -itself, you will permit me to give it as my opinion, that you will find -it difficult to pitch on a young man, who is more likely to be a credit -to your college, by his knowledge and industry. - -"I am so far on my road to London, where I hope to see you this season. -I shall lodge in Miss Elliot's, Lisle Street, Leicester Fields; and I -beg it of you to let me hear from you the moment of your arrival."[90:2] - - -In 1761, commenced Hume's acquaintance with Madame de Boufflers. It -afterwards ripened into a friendship, of which we cannot fully estimate -the nature, without looking not only at the character and position of -the parties, but at some conventional notions of morality, to which Hume -had been, previously, a stranger. Hyppolyte de Saujon, Comtesse de -Boufflers-Rouvel, is not to be confounded with her contemporary the -Marquise de Boufflers-Rémencourt, mother of the witty Chevalier de -Boufflers. The prominent difference between them is but too startlingly -characteristic of the moral atmosphere in which they both lived--that -the former was mistress of the Prince of Conti, while the latter is -supposed to have held the same relation to Prince Stanislaus Augustus of -Poland, of whose court she was the great ornament and attraction. A -friendship between a respectable Scotsman of letters and a person in -Madame de Boufflers' position, is apt to excite a smile or a frown, -according to the habits or temper of the reader. Hume himself was not -likely to take the most austere view of the matter; and must have felt, -at any rate, that the scandal and even the blame of such connexions must -be greatly affected by the countenance they receive from the society to -which the parties belong. On the vileness of this code of organized -immorality, it would be superfluous, at this hour, to enlarge; but there -is a great difference between those who act up to the standard of a low -social system and those who do the same acts in breach of a higher code. -A Mahomedan who keeps a harem in Constantinople is inferior in his tone -of morality to an English gentleman, of good domestic conduct; but he is -infinitely superior to an Englishman with a harem in Piccadilly. - -The lady in question undoubtedly held a very high station in the best -society of Paris; and at that time, and in that country, it is certain -that such attachments, if permanent and decorous, and in a very high -class of society, acquired a more than tolerated respectability. In -1769, Madame de Boufflers speaks of her attachment as one of twenty -years' duration. Early in life, and soon after her marriage, she had -been placed at the court of the Duchess of Orleans: but quarrelling with -that princess, she came under the protection of the Prince of Conti. Of -course, her correspondence bears no mark of her having been subjected to -slights, or of her dreading them; or indeed of any suspicion that there -was any thing in her position to prevent her from being rigid in her -ideas of virtue, and a teacher of social duties. On her visit to -England, she was well received by the British aristocracy, and was even -honoured by a laudatory growl from Johnson. We find her exchanging -visits with the Marchioness of Hertford, the wife of the English -ambassador, one of the purest of that portion of the English female -aristocracy which had not suffered taint. In one of her letters to Hume, -she describes the death-bed of the prince's mother; speaks of her -displaying the heroism of a grand-daughter of the great Condé; and talks -with tearful gratitude of the early kindness of that princess to -herself, and of her attempts to pay the debt by solacing her old age, -and performing to her the last duties which the living receive from each -other. It is in all its spirit the letter of a daughter-in-law. - -The prince, though a generous and kind-hearted man, could not be -prevailed on to make her his wife on her husband's death; but when he -died in 1776, he had raised no princess over her head. We shall find -that she made Hume the confidant in her griefs and disappointments, and -the adviser in her difficulties. There is a great air of earnestness and -solicitude in these appeals; and though we cannot help presuming, that a -woman so full in her disclosures to a foreigner, living among a people -of totally different habits and morals, must have distributed a still -larger portion of her confidential revelations nearer home; yet it is -evident that she had much reliance on Hume's counsel, and perhaps he was -not ill fitted for a father-confessor to such a penitent. - -The letters of Hume to the countess, have already been for some time -before the English reader.[92:1] On the present occasion some -characteristic extracts will be interwoven with the letters which form -the other side of the correspondence. It is difficult for a native of -this country, with the fullest allowance for the redundancy of the -French laudatory and amicable vocabulary, to estimate at its true value -the ardour of these letters, or to adjust the amount of solid truth and -friendliness represented by such a blaze of ardent expressions. The -correspondence was of the lady's seeking and pursuing. Frequently, when -there is a pause, an impassioned letter from her rouses up the -philosopher; who starts into a sort of artificial excitement, and, when -it is over, sinks into lethargy again. Yet it must be admitted that Hume -acted his part pretty well, and that the fat philosopher was not far -behind the vivacious Frenchwoman. But with him it is visibly all acting; -and there is a total absence of the playful ease which adorns those -letters to his own chosen friends, with whom he was in heart and habits -at ease. In some instances, perhaps, he studied a formal and measured -style, as being more intelligible to a foreigner; and occasionally we -find him offering his correspondent facilities by the adoption of idioms -more French than English; as where he says, "I am truly ashamed, dear -madam, of your having _prevented_ me in breaking our long silence; but -you have _prevented_ me only a few days."[93:1] - -The letter with which the countess opens the correspondence, seems to -have been forwarded to Hume by Lord Elibank's brother, Alexander Murray, -who was then mixing with the Jacobites abroad, and who appears to have -enjoyed a very wide and much varied circle of acquaintance in France. He -says, in a letter of the 18th May, 1761:-- - - -"MY DEAR SIR,--It would appear great presumption in me to make you any -compliments upon your History of England, after having read the -enclosed; which with infinite pleasure I send you, as it procures you a -correspondence with the most amiable and accomplished lady of this -kingdom, or indeed any other. If after the peace you take a trip to this -polite and elegant country, you are sure, by the means of your new -female correspondent, of being made acquainted in a very short time with -all the wits in this part of the world. It is true your most -incomparable productions justly entitle you to that distinction. -However, being took by the hand by Madame de Boufflers, won't diminish -your intrinsic value, even among the most profound philosophers. In case -I can't return to England, and you take the resolution of coming here . -. . . . . I beg leave to assure you that I am, with as much esteem and -veneration as human creature can be, my dear sir, your most obedient and -most humble servant, and avowed friend, - - "A. MURRAY. - -"When you answer the enclosed, I beg it may be in English, as the lady -is quite mistress of that language."[94:1] - - -The letter forwarded to Hume was as follows: - - -MADAME DE BOUFFLERS _to_ HUME. - -(_Translation._) - - For a long time, sir, I have struggled with conflicting - sentiments. The admiration which your sublime work has - awakened in me, and the esteem with which it has inspired me - for your person, your talents, and your virtue, have often - aroused the desire of writing to you, that I might express - those sentiments towards you with which I am so deeply - penetrated. - - On the other hand, keeping in view the little value you can - have for my opinion, your want of personal acquaintance with - me, and the reserve and privacy, even, which are suitable to - my sex, I fear being accused of presumption, and of making - myself be known, to my own disadvantage, by a man whose good - opinion I shall always regard as the most flattering, and the - most precious of benefits. Nevertheless, although the - reflections I have made on this subject appeared to have much - force, an irresistible inclination rendered them unavailing; - and I come to add one to the thousand other instances, to - justify the truth of that remark which I have read in your - "History of the House of Stuart,"--"Men's views of things are - the result of their understanding alone: their conduct is - regulated by their understanding, their temper, and their - passions." Thus, when my reason tells me I ought to be silent, - my enthusiasm prevents me from regarding its voice. - - Although a woman, and of no very advanced age, despite the - dissipation attendant on the life one leads in this country, - having always loved reading, there are few good books in any - language, or of any kind, that I have not read, either in the - original, or in translations; and I can assure you, sir, with - a sincerity which cannot be questioned, that I have found none - which, to my judgment, unites so many perfections as your own. - I know no terms capable of expressing what I felt in reading - this work. I was moved, transported: and the emotion which it - caused me is, in some measure, painful by its continuance. It - elevates the soul; it fills the heart with sentiments of - humanity and benevolence; it enlightens the intellect, by - showing that true happiness is closely connected with virtue; - and discovers, by the same light, what is the end, and the - sole end, of every reasonable being. In the midst of the - calamities which, on all sides, surrounded Charles the First, - we see peace and security shining in their brightness, and - accompanying him to the scaffold; whilst trouble and remorse, - the inseparable companions of crime, follow the steps of - Cromwell, even to the throne. - - Your book also teaches how the best of things are liable to - abuse; and the reflections which are made on this subject - ought to augment our caution and distrust of ourselves. It - animates with a noble emulation; it inspires love of liberty; - and teaches, at the same time, submission to the government - under which we are obliged to live. In a word, it is a _terra - fecunda_ of morals and instruction, presented in colours so - bright, that we believe we see them for the first time. - - The clearness, the majesty, the touching simplicity of your - style delight me. Its beauties are so striking, that, - notwithstanding my ignorance of the English language, they - cannot escape me. You are, sir, an admirable painter: your - pictures have a grace, a nature, an energy, which surpass even - what the imagination can portray. - - But how shall I be able to express the effect produced upon me - by your divine impartiality? I would that I had, on this - occasion, your own eloquence in which to express my thought! - In truth, I believed I had before my eyes the work of some - celestial being, free from the passions of humanity, who, for - the benefit of the human race, has deigned to write the events - of these latter times. - - I dare only add, that in all which issues from your pen, you - show yourself a perfect philosopher, a statesman, a historian - full of genius, an enlightened politician, a genuine patriot. - All these sublime qualities are so far above the understanding - of a woman, that it is fitting I should say little on the - subject; and I have already great need of your indulgence for - the faults I have committed against discretion and decorum, by - the excess of my veneration for your merit. I entreat this of - you, sir, and, at the same time, the greatest secrecy. The - step I have taken is rather extraordinary. I fear it may - attract blame: and I would be grieved if the sentiment which - has constrained me to it should be misunderstood. - - I have the honour to be, sir, your very humble and very - obedient servant, - - HYPPOLYTE DE SAUJON, COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - - They tell me, sir, you have some idea of coming to France--to - Paris. I earnestly wish you would execute this resolution, - and that I may be able to assist in rendering your sojourn - agreeable. - - PARIS, _15th March, 1761_.[97:1] - -Hume must have been the more than mortal being which his new friend -describes, if he had resisted such an appeal; and he thus wrote in -answer:-- - - -HUME _to the_ COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - - _Edinburgh, 15th May, 1761._ - - MADAM,--It is not easy for your ladyship to imagine the - pleasure I received from the letter, with which you have so - unexpectedly honoured me, nor the agreeable visions of vanity, - in which, upon that occasion, I indulged myself. I concluded, - and, as I fancied, with certainty, that a person, who could - write so well herself, must certainly be a good judge of - writing in others; and that an author, who could please a lady - of your distinction, educated in the court of France, and - familiarized with every thing elegant and polite, might - reasonably pretend to some degree of merit, and might presume - to take his rank above the middling historians. But, madam, it - is but fair, that I, who have pretended, in so long a work, to - do justice to all parties and persons, should also do some to - myself; and should not feed my vanity with chimeras, which, I - am sensible, in my cooler moments, can have no foundation in - reason. When I had the pleasure of passing some time in - France, I had the agreeable experience of the polite - hospitality, by which your nation is distinguished; and I now - find, that the same favourable indulgence has appeared in your - ladyship's judgment of my writings. And, perhaps, your esteem - for the entire impartiality which I aim at, and which, to tell - the truth, is so unusual in English historians, has made your - ladyship overlook many defects, into which the want of art or - genius has betrayed me. - - In this particular, madam, I must own, that I am inclined to - take your civilities in their full latitude, and to hope that - I have not fallen much short of my intentions. The spirit of - faction, which prevails in this country, and which is a - natural attendant on civil liberty, carries every thing to - extremes on the one side, as well as on the other; and I have - the satisfaction to find, that my performance has alternately - given displeasure to both parties. I could not reasonably hope - to please both: such success is impossible from the nature of - things; and next to your ladyship's approbation, who, as a - foreigner, must necessarily be a candid judge, I shall always - regard the anger of both as the surest warrant of my - impartiality. - - As I find that you are pleased to employ your leisure hours in - the perusal of history, I shall presume to recommend to your - ladyship a late work of this kind, wrote by my friend and - countryman, Dr. Robertson, which has met with the highest - approbation from all good judges. - - It is the "History of Scotland" during the age of the - unfortunate Queen Mary; and it is wrote in an elegant, - agreeable, and interesting manner, and far exceeding, I shall - venture to say, any performance of that kind that has appeared - in English. The failings of that princess are not covered - over; but her singular catastrophe is rendered truly - lamentable and tragical; and the reader cannot forbear - shedding tears for her fate, at the same time that he blames - her conduct. There are few historical productions, where both - the subject and execution have appeared so happy. - - Some prospect is now given us, that this miserable war between - the two nations is drawing towards a period, and that the - former intercourse between them will again be renewed. If this - happy event take place, I have entertained hopes that my - affairs will permit me to take a journey to Paris; and the - obliging offer, which you are pleased to make me, of allowing - me to pay my respects to you, will prove a new and very - powerful inducement to make me hasten the execution of my - purpose. - - But I give your ladyship warning, that I shall, on many - accounts, stand in need of your indulgence. I passed a few - years in France during my early youth; but I lived in a - provincial town, where I enjoyed the advantages of leisure for - study, and an opportunity of learning the language: what I had - imperfectly learned, long disuse, I am afraid, has made me - forget. I have rusted amid books and study; have been little - engaged in the active, and not much in the pleasurable scenes - of life; and am more accustomed to a select society than to - general companies. - - But all these disadvantages, and much greater, will be - abundantly compensated by the honour of your ladyship's - protection; and I hope that my profound sense of your obliging - favours will render me not altogether unworthy of it. - - I have the honour to be, with the greatest respect, madam, - your ladyship's most obedient and most humble servant.[101:1] - -In return, Madame De Boufflers reiterates her compliments, vouches for -her sincerity, and if Hume should fulfil his intention of visiting -France, offers him the use of apartments, saying, that if he accept the -offer it will be an infinite obligation to her; if he refuse it, she -will be vexed but not offended. She will introduce him to her circle of -friends, and do every thing that can tend to make his visit -agreeable.[101:2] In answer to this, Hume finds that the warlike aspect -of affairs will preclude him, in the meantime, from enjoying the society -"of a person so celebrated for her accomplishments by all who have any -knowledge of the court of France."[101:3] - -Mr. Murray's praise of Madame de Boufflers' knowledge of the English -language was not misapplied; as the following short letter, and another -of greater length, which will be found a few pages farther on, show. -With a few inaccuracies, they afford a very remarkable instance of -idiomatic acquaintance with our tongue. - - -"I have received, sir, by an unknown hand, the continuation of your -admirable performance. Some little perhaps of the pride so common in my -sex, but much more the desire to contract an obligation with a man of -your merit, and to obtain from him so valuable a favour, have persuaded -me I was indebted to you for it. 'Tis natural to bend our thoughts -towards what is most advantageous for us, however elevated it may be. -The wrong should be only to believe we deserve it. Then, sir, I think, -that in wishing such a proof of your kindness, and confessing in the -same time I have no right to pretend to it, I prove my just opinion of -both. I am, sir, your humble servant. - -"_Paris, May 29, 1762._" - - -On this, Hume, after observing with ingenious courtesy, that a fairy, a -sylph, or a good genius, who knew his inmost thoughts, must have -anticipated him in sending the copy of his History, continues:--"But, -madam, what new wonder is this which your letter presents to me? I not -only find a lady, who, in the bloom of beauty and height of reputation, -can withdraw herself from the pleasures of a gay court, and find leisure -to cultivate the sciences; but deigns to support a correspondence with a -man of letters in a remote country, and to reward his labours by a -suffrage the most agreeable of all others, to a man who has any spark of -generous sentiments or taste for true glory. Besides these unusual -circumstances, I find a lady, who, without any other advantages than her -own talents, has made herself mistress of a language commonly esteemed -very difficult to strangers, and possesses it to such a degree as might -give jealousy to us who have made it the business of our lives to -acquire and cultivate it. - -"I cannot but congratulate my country on this incident, which marks the -progress made by its literature and reputation in foreign countries." - - * * * * * - -Nearly contemporary with the Comtesse de Boufflers, comes on the scene a -person with whom we shall hereafter have much concern, Jean Jacques -Rousseau. He had been living under the protection of the Maréchal de -Luxembourg, in the celebrated hermitage near the castle of Montmorency, -when he published his "Emile." Highly as he was supported, the wrath of -the clergy prevailed; and a writ of _prise de corps_ was issued for his -apprehension. It appears that in those strange times of intolerance and -infidelity, there would have been no cause of wonder, if the proceedings -had ended in a capital conviction. With the aid of his friends, the -Luxembourgs and Choiseuls, Rousseau fled the kingdom. On this occasion -he seems to have been thoroughly frightened; and his conduct was -occasioned neither by ostentation, nor perverse discontent. His first -place of refuge was Neufchâtel, one of the Swiss Cantons, of which the -sovereignty was in the house of Brandenburg. Rousseau was thus for a -time one of the illustrious literary men under the protection of -Frederick the Great, though distant from his philosophical capital. - -He appealed, however, to a warmer heart than ever beat in the breast of -the conqueror of Prague. The exiled Earl Marischal of Scotland--a valued -friend of Hume, as of all who became acquainted with him--was then -Governor of Neufchâtel. Subsequently to his flight from his native -country, for his concern in the rebellion of 1715, when he was a mere -youth, he had suffered a long series of hardships, privations, and -uncertainties; until Frederick saw his value, and purchased his services -at such a rate as a friendless exile might not refuse. Adversity, which -too often hardens the selfishness, and debases the propensities of an -aristocracy driven from home by internal convulsions, had but taught him -how much men are dependent on each other, and had opened his heart to a -wider sympathy with his fellow creatures. His opinions were as tolerant -as his nature was kind; and the fugitive could not have sought an asylum -where he would be more sincerely welcomed. The power of the king of -Prussia's representative, was, however, not sufficient to protect him -from the people,--or from himself; and from the time of his flight from -France, those who believed that he sincerely desired a retreat where he -would be safe from all molestation, looked towards Britain. The -following letters from the forfeited earl, at a few months' interval -from each other, chiefly relate to Rousseau. The earl appears to have -been so thoroughly imbued with foreign habits, that he wrote English -with difficulty: most of his letters to Hume are in French, and when he -commences in English, he generally relapses into French. Though so long -employed by the Prussian court, he seems to have been ignorant of -German. It may be observed, however, that French is the vernacular -language of Neufchâtel. - - -THE FORFEITED EARL MARISCHAL _to_ HUME. - - _April 29._ - - In answer to your question, the Donquixotisme you mention - never entered into my head. I wish I could see you, to answer - honestly all your questions; for though I had my share of - folly with others, yet as my intentions were at bottom honest, - I should open to you my whole budget, and let you know many - things which are perhaps ill-represented, I mean not truly. I - remember to have recommended to your acquaintance Mr. Floyd, - son to old David Floyd, at St. Germains, as a man of good - sense, honour, and honesty. I fear he is dead: he would have - been of great service to you in a part of your History since - 1688. Apropos of History, when you see Helvetius, tell I - desired you to inquire of him concerning a certain History. I - fancy he will answer you with his usual frankness. I do - believe Mr. Rousseau will find it impossible to live where he - finds nobody who understands a word of what he says; there - occurs so often occasion, even of trifling things necessary, - that it is a vexation not to understand the language of the - country. I feel it often, though I understand many words of - German, such as kleigh, nigh, nogh, ter migh, ter - Teyfel,[105:1] and others, high sounding as here pronounced, - and of which the Ter Tunder would, I believe, put to flight - the delicate ears of the whole town of Sienna. - - I hear you are going to France this summer. If you will come - to Frankfort on Main, I will meet you there the end of July, - and stay with you a fortnight. Bon jour. - - N.B.--You have better roads than I, you are strong as a giant, - and I am growing ten years older every month; so I think my - offer fair. - - - _Oct. 2, 1762._ - - Jean Jacques Rousseau, persecuted for having writ what he - thinks good, or rather, as some folks think, for having - displeased persons in great power, who attributed to him what - he never meant, came here to seek retreat, which I readily - granted; and the king of Prussia not only approved of my so - doing, but gave me orders to furnish him his small - necessaries, if he would accept them; and though that king's - philosophy be very different from that of Jean Jacques, yet he - does not think that a man of an irreproachable life is to be - persecuted because his sentiments are singular. He designs to - build him a hermitage with a little garden, which I find he - will not accept, nor perhaps the rest which I have not yet - offered to him. He is gay in company, polite, and what the - French call _aimable_, and gains ground daily in the opinion - of even the clergy here. His enemies elsewhere continue to - persecute him: he is pestered with anonymous letters. This is - not a country for him: his attachment and love to his native - town is a strong tie to its neighbourhood. The liberty of - England, and the character of my good and honoured friend, D. - Hume, F----i D----r, (perhaps more singular than that of J. - Jacques, for I take him to be the only historian impartial,) - draws his inclinations to be near to the F----i D----r. For my - part, though it be to me a very great pleasure to converse - with the honest savage, yet I advise him to go to England, - where he will enjoy - - ----placidam sub libertate quietem. - - He wishes to know, if he can print all his works, and make - some profit, merely to live, from such an edition. I entreat - you will let me know your thoughts on this, and if you can be - of use to him in finding him a bookseller to undertake the - work: you know he is not interested, and little will content - him. If he goes to Britain, he will be a treasure to you, and - you to him, and perhaps both to me (if I were not so old.) I - have offered him lodging in Keith-hall. I am ever, with the - greatest regard, your most obedient servant, - - M----. - -At the same time Madame de Boufflers wrote as follows:-- - - -MADAME DE BOUFFLERS _to_ HUME. - -(_Translation._) - - _Paris, 16th June, 1762._ - - Jean Jacques Rousseau, citizen of Geneva, and the author of - many works with which you are probably acquainted, has - composed a Treatise on Education, in four volumes, in which he - sets forth many principles contrary to ours, both in politics - and religion. As we do not enjoy here the liberty of the - press, the Parliament, by a decree, just, (if it is, as I - doubt not, conformable to the laws of the kingdom,) but - nevertheless rigorous, has decreed the _prise de corps_; and - it is said that, if he had not taken to flight, he would have - been condemned to death. I can scarcely think they could have - proceeded so far against him as a stranger; but, be that as it - may, it would have been imprudent in him to remain in France - under such circumstances. He has therefore departed, uncertain - what asylum he will choose. I have advised him to go to - England, promising him letters of recommendation to you, and - other friends. I fulfil my promise, and I cannot, in my - opinion, choose for him, in all Europe, a protector more - respectable by his position, and more to be commended for his - humanity. M. Rousseau is known to the greater part of the - people in this country for an eccentric man. This epithet, - according to its true signification, is most justly applied to - him; for he differs, in many respects, in his modes of acting - and thinking, from the men of his day. He has an upright - heart, a noble and disinterested soul. He dreads every - species of dependence, and consequently would have preferred - being in France, gaining his subsistence by copying music, to - receiving benefits even from his best friends, who are anxious - to make up for his misfortunes. This delicacy may appear - excessive, but it is not criminal, and it even augurs elevated - sentiments. He flies from intercourse with the world; he feels - pleasure only in solitude. This partiality for retirement has - made him enemies. The self-love of those who court him is - wounded by his rebuffs; but notwithstanding such apparent - misanthropy, I do not believe you will find any where, a man - more gentle, more humane, more compassionate to the sorrows of - others, and more patient under his own. In short, his virtue - appears so pure, so contented, so equal, that, until now, - those who hated him could find only in their own heart reasons - for suspecting him. As for me, with appearances so much in his - favour, I would rather be deceived than doubt his sincerity. - - From the opinion that I have of him, sir, he has been judged - worthy of being known to you; and in procuring him this - honour, I believe I give the most marked proof of my - consideration for him.[107:1] - -To this Hume made answer in the postscript of the letter cited above. - - -"P.S.--So far I had wrote in answer to your ladyship's of the 29th of -May, when I was again honoured with yours of the 14th of June. Good God! -madam, how much I regret my being absent from London on this occasion, -which deprives me of the opportunity of showing in person my regard for -your recommendation, and my esteem, I had almost said veneration, for -the virtue and genius of M. Rousseau. I assure your ladyship there is no -man in Europe of whom I have entertained a higher idea, and whom I would -be prouder to serve; and as I find his reputation very high in England, -I hope every one will endeavour to make him sensible of it by -civilities, and by services, as far as he will accept of them. I revere -his greatness of mind, which makes him fly obligations and dependence; -and I have the vanity to think, that through the course of my life I -have endeavoured to resemble him in those maxims. - -"But as I have some connexions with men of rank in London, I shall -instantly write to them, and endeavour to make them sensible of the -honour M. Rousseau has done us in choosing an asylum in England. We are -happy at present in a king who has a taste for literature; and I hope M. -Rousseau will find the advantage of it, and that he will not disdain to -receive benefits from a great monarch, who is sensible of his merit. I -am only afraid that your friend will find his abode in England not so -agreeable as may be wished, if he does not possess the language, which I -am afraid is the case: for I never could observe in his writings any -marks of his acquaintance with the English tongue."[109:1] - - -From these communications, Hume derived the notion that Rousseau had -immediately proceeded to London. The following paragraph, in a letter -from Elliot, indicates the nature of the inquiries pursued under this -supposition. - - DEAR SIR,--As soon as I received your letter, I applied to Mr. - Home, who had also heard from you by the same post, and - desired him to make all possible inquiry after M. Rousseau. If - he be in London we shall certainly find him out; and I need - not assure you, that both on account of his own merit, and - your recommendation, I shall not fail to show him all the - attention in my power. I should doubt, from the known - character of the man, whether he would accept a pension if it - could be procured for him; and should rather apprehend that, - though this government will protect and tolerate the boldness - of his pen, yet it will hardly reward it. Rousseau is not the - only man of genius, the singularity of whose opinions has - intercepted the rewards due to the superiority of his talents. - -In the supposition that he had passed over to England, Hume addressed a -letter to Rousseau, as then in London, which was answered by the Chien -de Diogène, as Voltaire called him, from his retreat in Neufchâtel, on -19th February, 1763. He says he has just received the letter, regrets -that he should have made the mistake of trusting himself among his own -countrymen, who have treated him with insult and outrage, instead of -seeking the hospitable shores of Britain. He does something like justice -to the kindness of Lord Marischal, in the midst of his general mordacity -and discontent; and he praises the wide views, the wonderful -impartiality, the genius of Hume, which would raise him so far above the -rest of his kind, did not the goodness of his heart bring him nearer to -their level.[110:1] - -The following letter from Madame de Boufflers, written in English, had -been received in the meantime. - - -MADAME DE BOUFFLERS _to_ HUME. - - _July 30._ - - How difficult it is, sir, for one very far from being - insensible to reputation, to refuse the praises of a man, - whose sincerity and admirable talents render them so valuable. - But in regard to veracity, and perhaps more to my true - interest, I am obliged to acknowledge, I stand a great - distance, for internal or external accomplishments, from the - favourable opinion you have taken of me, whether, in - consulting the noble sentiments which ever inspire you with - sublime ideas, whether in hearkening to some of your - countrymen, disposed to indulgence towards me, by my - well-known inclination for their country. - - Perhaps, sir, I confess it with ingenuity, had I been doomed - to be never personally acquainted with you, I should not have - generosity enough to correct your judgment of me. But in this - particular occasion, as in all other, according to my humble - opinion, right and good are closely united. What a shame - indeed for me, and disappointment for you, in place of the - object your imagination has adorned with such shining - qualifications, to find a person to whom Nature has granted - but indifferent ones. A great part of my youth is over. Some - delicacy in features, mildness and decency in countenance, are - the only exterior advantages I can boast of; and as for - interior, common sense, improved a little by early good - reading, are all I possess. My knowledge of the English - language also is confined, as you can easily perceive. I have, - indeed, acquired without assistance that which I know of it; - but if I am entitled to some elegancy, I owe it to the - repeated readings of your admirable works. - - After this true picture of myself, in which I have struggled - to exert the noble impartiality and candour which shine in all - your writings, my first care is, sir, to acknowledge the - infinite obligations you have conferred upon me by your kind - letter. I have translated the P. S. to send it to my friend. - The esteem of such a man must be the best balm for his wounded - heart. But I am afraid he will not accept the glorious support - you are so good as to offer him. I fear that the weight of his - calamities has impaired his health, and he cannot sustain the - fatigues of a long journey. In his last letter to me, he - expresses a resolution never to see England upon that account. - Nevertheless, I am informed since, that new persecutions may - possibly determine him to alter his mind. An irregular trial - has deprived him of the natural rights in his own country. The - commonwealth of Berne, from the example of Geneva and France, - has burnt his book, and he has been reduced to leave in a - hurry the asylum that a friend had proffered him there. Such - are the grievous misfortunes of this virtuous and unhappy man. - I pity, I love him, and wish earnestly to sooth the sorrows - under which he labours. Nevertheless, sir, I would fain also - vindicate the honour of my nation in the eyes of so good a - judge as you are. The reflection you cast upon it gives - uneasiness; but mistrusting greatly my capacity, I fear to - betray the cause I would defend by an enterprise so unequal to - my force. I dare only to say, that your happy country has not - attained in a moment the perfect constitution which gives us - admiration. All convenient and well-calculated laws are not - framed at once; and those most exceptionable, while they - stand, deserve obedience and respect. - - Is it possible, sir, that this late unhappy event could - deprive of the honour of your presence, a country filled with - your fervent admirers, and where every one will endeavour to - outdo each other in expressing the veneration and regard you - so justly deserve? I hope you will not keep this severe - resolution. If we want a liberty you think an advantage, 'tis - a reason to pity, and not to punish us. Besides, your case and - that of M. Rousseau, though both foreigners in France, are - quite different. Few days before I received your letter, I - heard that it was a friend of mine who has favoured me with - your last performance. I am infinitely obliged to him for this - gracious gift, and to you, sir, for your good intention. - - But what strange a creature will you think me, to venture to - point a mistake in a work so perfect? In several parts of the - first volume our countryman Godefroy of Bouillon is named - Godefroy de Boulogne. You have reasons, perhaps, for the - alteration, and I am ready to submit to them. I would only - express my doubts: I hope you will excuse this freedom. - - Since I have gone so far, permit me, sir, to ask your opinion - upon the last book of M. Rousseau. I should be very glad to - have my judgment of it confirmed or mended by yours. Nothing - would be wanting to my satisfaction, if in the same letter, - where you could grant me the favour I wish for, I was assured - you had renewed the project to come here, and that you would - speedily execute it. I am, sir, with esteem, gratitude, and, - permit me to add, friendship, your most humble servant. - -In answer to this letter, Hume says that he had at first regarded it as -a sort of challenge to answer it in French, but that he had given up the -attempt as an unequal contest with "the sole instance of a foreigner, -not habituated to our tongue, who has, from reading alone, become so -entirely mistress of it." He then gives an account of the letter he had -received from Lord Marischal, and says of Rousseau's refusal of the -kindnesses proferred to him,--"Rousseau, with his usual dignity, refused -all these gratuities, though at the same time he desired my lord to -learn from me, whether it were possible for him to gain from the London -booksellers as much money as would suffice for his maintenance; and this -recompense, being the fruit of his own industry, he would have no -scruple to accept of. I think this instance of conduct a kind of -phenomenon in the republic of letters, and one very honourable for M. -Rousseau. One is only apt to wish that he could practise this virtue -with less hardship and difficulty; though we must also confess, that the -difficulty adds to the lustre of it. I have heard, that the circumstance -which deterred him from coming over to England, as he first intended, -was a harsh reflection, which he threw out on the people in his -'Treatise of Education:' if this was his motive, I am persuaded that he -would find it a vain fear, and that every one would rather have been -anxious to show respect to his merit."[113:1] - -He then obeys the mandate to criticise the "Emile." - - You deign, madam, to ask my opinion of the new performance of - M. Rousseau. I know that it becomes me better to form my - judgment upon yours; but in compliance with your commands, I - shall not make a secret of my sentiments. All the writings of - that author appear to me admirable, particularly on the head - of eloquence; and if I be not much mistaken, he gives to the - French tongue an energy, which it scarce seems to have reached - in any other hands. But as his enemies have objected, that - with this domineering force of genius there is always - intermingled some degree of extravagance, it is impossible for - his friends altogether to deny the charge; and were it not for - his frequent and earnest protestations to the contrary, one - would be apt to suspect, that he chooses his topics less from - persuasion, than from the pleasure of showing his invention, - and surprising the reader by his paradoxes. The "Treatise of - Education," as it possesses much of the merit, seems also - exposed to the faults of his other performances; and as he - indulges his love of the marvellous even in so serious and - important a subject, he has given a pledge to the public that - he was in earnest in all his other topics. If I dared to - object any thing to M. Rousseau's eloquence, which is the - shining side of his character, I should say, that it was not - wholly free from the defect sometimes found in that of the - Roman orator; and that their great talent for expression was - apt to produce a prolixity in both. This last performance - chiefly is exposed to this objection; and I own, that though - it abounds in noble and shining passages, it gave me rather - less pleasure than his former writings. However, it carries - still the stamp of a great genius; and, what enhances its - beauty, the stamp of a very particular genius. The noble pride - and spleen and indignation of the author bursts out with - freedom in a hundred places, and serves fully to characterize - the lofty spirit of the man. - - When I came to peruse that passage of Mons. Rousseau's - Treatise, which has occasioned all the persecution against - him, I was not in the least surprised that it gave offence. - He has not had the precaution to throw any veil over his - sentiments; and as he scorns to dissemble his contempt of - established opinions, he could not wonder that all the zealots - were in arms against him. The liberty of the press is not so - secured in any country, scarce even in this, as not to render - such an open attack of popular prejudices somewhat - dangerous.[115:1] - -In 1761, Dr. Blair communicated to Hume the sermon by Dr. Campbell, -which, when subsequently expanded, became the "Dissertation on -Miracles," already referred to.[115:2] On this occasion, Hume wrote in -the following terms to Dr. Blair:-- - - -"DEAR SIR,--I have perused the ingenious performance, which you was so -obliging as to put into my hands, with all the attention possible; -though not perhaps with all the seriousness and gravity which you have -so frequently recommended to me. But the fault lies not in the piece, -which is certainly very acute; but in the subject. I know you will say, -it lies in neither, but in myself alone. If that be so, I am sorry to -say that I believe it is incurable. - -"I could wish that your friend had not chosen to appear as a -controversial writer, but had endeavoured to establish his principles in -general, without any reference to a particular book or person; though I -own he does me a great deal of honour, in thinking that any thing I have -wrote deserves his attention. For besides many inconveniences which -attend that kind of writing, I see it is almost impossible to preserve -decency and good manners in it. This author, for instance, says -sometimes obliging things of me, much beyond what I can presume to -deserve, and I thence conclude that in general he did not mean to insult -me; yet I meet with some other passages, more worthy of Warburton and -his followers, than of so ingenious an author. - -"But as I am not apt to lose my temper, and would still less incline to -do so with a friend of yours, I shall calmly communicate to you some -remarks on the argument, since you seem to desire it. I shall employ -very few words, since a hint will suffice to a gentleman of this -author's penetration." - - -This is followed by a particular examination of some parts of Dr. -Campbell's work, which may be perused to most advantage in conjunction -with the Dissertation itself, along with which the letter is generally -printed. He then says,-- - - -"I could wish your friend had not denominated me an infidel writer, on -account of ten or twelve pages, which seem to him to have that tendency, -while I have wrote so many volumes on history, literature, politics, -trade, morals, which, in that particular at least, are entirely -inoffensive. Is a man to be called a drunkard, because he has been seen -fuddled once in his lifetime?"[116:1] - - -The letter terminates with a recommendation which accounts for the -absence of all observations on religious topics in the correspondence -between Blair and Hume: while it shows that their intercourse had not -always excluded discussions of such a character. - - -"Having said so much to your friend, who is certainly a very ingenious -man, though a little too zealous for a philosopher, permit me also the -freedom of saying a word to yourself. Whenever I have had the pleasure -to be in your company, if the discourse turned upon any common subject -of literature, or reasoning, I always parted from you both entertained -and instructed. But when the conversation was diverted by you from this -channel towards the subject of your profession; though I doubt not but -your intentions were very friendly towards me, I own I never received -the same satisfaction: I was apt to be tired, and you to be angry. I -would therefore wish, for the future, whenever my good fortune throws me -in your way, that these topics should be forborne between us. I have -long since done with all inquiries on such subjects, and am become -incapable of instruction; though I own no one is more capable of -conveying it than yourself. After having given you the liberty of -communicating to your friend what part of this letter you think proper, -I remain, sir," &c. - - -Hume afterwards wrote the following letter on the same subject:-- - - -HUME _to_ DR. CAMPBELL. - -"_January 7, 1762._ - -"DEAR SIR,--It has so seldom happened that controversies in philosophy, -much more in theology, have been carried on without producing a personal -quarrel between the parties, that I must regard my present situation as -somewhat extraordinary, who have reason to give you thanks for the civil -and obliging manner in which you have conducted the dispute against me, -on so interesting a subject as that of miracles. Any little symptoms of -vehemence, of which I formerly used the freedom to complain, when you -favoured me with a sight of the manuscript, are either removed or -explained away, or atoned for by civilities, which are far beyond what I -have any title to pretend to. It will be natural for you to imagine, -that I will fall upon some shift to evade the force of your arguments, -and to retain my former opinion in the point controverted between us; -but it is impossible for me not to see the ingenuity of your -performance, and the great learning which you have displayed against me. - -"I consider myself as very much honoured in being thought worthy of an -answer by a person of so much merit; and as I find that the public does -you justice with regard to the ingenuity and good composition of your -piece, I hope you will have no reason to repent engaging with an -antagonist, whom, perhaps, in strictness, you might have ventured to -neglect. I own to you, that I never felt so violent an inclination to -defend myself as at present, when I am thus fairly challenged by you, -and I think I could find something specious at least to urge in my -defence; but as I had fixed a resolution, in the beginning of my life, -always to leave the public to judge between my adversaries and me, -without making any reply, I must adhere inviolably to this resolution, -otherwise my silence on any future occasion would be construed an -inability to answer, and would be matter of triumph against me."[119:1] - - -He then, in the passage already cited,[119:2] describes the occasion on -which the "Theory of Miracles" was suggested to him. - -In answer to this, there is a letter by Campbell, in which he endeavours -to rival his opponent in candour, politeness, and gentlemanlike feeling. -The happy courtesy with which he apologizes for the occasionally -irascible tone of his essay, shows that the retired northern divine -possessed in no small degree the qualities that might have adorned a -more showy station. - - -DR. CAMPBELL _to_ HUME. - - _25th June, 1762._ - - The testimony you are pleased to give in favour of my - performance, is an honour of which I should be entirely - unworthy, were I not sensible of the uncommon generosity you - have shown in giving it. Ever since I was acquainted with your - works, your talents as a writer have, notwithstanding some - differences in abstract principles, extorted from me the - highest veneration. But I could scarce have thought that, in - spite of differences of a more interesting nature, even such - as regard morals and religion, you could ever force me to love - and honour you as a man. Yet no religious prejudices (as you - would probably term them,) can hinder me from doing justice to - that goodness and candour, which appear in every line of your - letter. - - It would be in vain to dissemble the pleasure which it gives - me, that I am thought to have acquitted myself tolerably in a - dispute with an author of such acknowledged merit. At the same - time, it gives me real pain, that any symptoms of vehemence - (which are not so easily avoided in disputation as one would - imagine,) should give so generous an adversary the least - ground of complaint. You have (if I remember right, for I have - not the book here,) in the appendix to the third volume of - your "Treatise on Human Nature," apologized for using - sometimes the expressions--'Tis certain, 'Tis evident, and the - like. These, you observe, were in a manner forced from you by - the strong, though transient light in which a particular - object then appeared, and are therefore not to be considered - as at all inconsistent with the general principles of - scepticism which are maintained in the Treatise. My apology is - somewhat similar. There is in all controversy a struggle for - victory, which I may say compels one to take every fair - advantage that either the sentiments or the words of an - antagonist present him with. But the appearances of asperity - or raillery, which one will be thereby necessarily drawn into, - ought not to be constructed as in the least affecting the - habitual good opinion, or even the high esteem, which the - writer may nevertheless entertain of his adversary. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[74:1] The following contrasted extracts represent some of the -variations above alluded to. The passages on the one side will be found -in the first, and those in the other in the last corrected edition of -the "History of the Stuarts." - -_First edition._ - - _Later editions._ - -_King James_ inculcated those monarchical tenets with which he was so -much infatuated. P. 54. - - Inculcated those monarchical tenets which he had so strongly - imbibed. - -_Divine right._ And though these doctrines were perhaps more openly -inculcated and more strenuously insisted on during the reign of the -Stuarts, they were not then invented. P. 120. - - And though it is pretended that these doctrines were more - openly inculcated, and more strenuously insisted on, during - the reign of the Stuarts, they were not then invented. - -_America._ The seeds of many a noble state have been sown in climates -kept desolate by the wild manners of the ancient inhabitants; and an -asylum secured in that solitary world for liberty and science, if ever -the spreading of unlimited empire, or the inroad of barbarous nations, -should again extinguish them in this turbulent and restless hemisphere. -P. 134. - - Expunged. - -_Charles I._ However moderate his temper, the natural illusions of -self-love, joined to his education under James, and to the flattery of -courtiers and churchmen, had represented his political tenets as certain -and uncontroverted. P. 148. - - However moderate his temper, the natural and unavoidable - prepossessions of self-love, joined to the late uniform - precedents in favour of prerogative, had made him regard his - political tenets as certain and uncontroverted. - -Loans were by privy seal required of several: to others the way of -benevolence was proposed; methods supported by precedents, condemned by -positive laws, and always invidious even to times more submissive and -compliant. In the most despotic governments, such expedients would be -regarded as irregular and disorderly. P. 159. - - Of some, loans were required: to others, the way of - benevolence was proposed: methods supported by precedent, but - always invidious even in times more submissive and compliant. - In the most absolute governments, such expedients would be - regarded as irregular and unequal. - -The new counsels which Charles had mentioned to the parliament, were now -to be tried in order to supply his necessities. Had he possessed any -military force on which he could depend, 'tis likely that he had at once -taken off the mask, and governed without any regard to the ancient laws -and constitution: so high an idea had he imbibed of kingly prerogative, -and so contemptible a notion of the privileges of those popular -assemblies, from which he thought he had met with such ill usage. But -his army was new levied, ill-paid, and worse disciplined; no way -superior to the militia, who were much more numerous, and who were in a -great measure under the influence of the country gentlemen. It behoved -him therefore to proceed cautiously, and to cover his enterprises under -pretext of ancient precedents. P. 158. - - The new counsels which Charles had mentioned to the - parliament, were now to be tried, in order to supply his - necessities. Had he possessed any military force on which he - could rely, it is not improbable that he had at once taken off - the mask, and governed without any regard to parliamentary - privileges: so high an idea had he received of kingly - prerogative, and so contemptible a notion of the rights of - those popular assemblies, from which he very naturally thought - he had met with such ill-usage. But his army was new levied, - ill-paid, and worse disciplined; nowise superior to the - militia, who were much more numerous, and who were in a great - measure under the influence of the country gentlemen. It - behoved him therefore to proceed cautiously, and to cover his - enterprises under pretence of ancient precedents, which, - considering the great authority commonly enjoyed by his - predecessors, could not be wanting to himself. - -In most national debates, though the reasons may not be equally -balanced, yet are there commonly some plausible topics, which may be -pleaded even in favour of the weaker side; so complicated are all human -affairs, and so uncertain the consequences of every public measure. But -it must be confessed, that in the present case, nothing of weight can be -thrown into the opposite scale. The imposition of ship-money, is -apparently the most avowed and most dangerous invasion of national -privileges, not only which Charles was ever guilty of, but which the -most arbitrary princes in England, since any liberty had been -ascertained to the people, had ever ventured upon. P. 218. - - Expunged. - -Perhaps the King, who dreaded above all things the House of Commons, and -who never sufficiently respected the constitution, thought, that, in his -present urgent distresses, he might be enabled to levy subsidies, by the -authority of the peers alone. But the employing so long a plea of -necessity, which was evidently false, and ill grounded, rendered it -impossible for him to avail himself of a necessity which was now at last -become real and inevitable. P. 247. - - Perhaps the King, who dreaded above all things the House of - Commons, and who expected no supply from them on any - reasonable terms, thought, that in his present distresses, he - might be enabled to levy supplies by the authority of the - peers alone. But the employing so long the plea of a - necessity, which appeared distant and doubtful, rendered it - impossible for him to avail himself of a necessity which was - now at last become real, urgent, and inevitable. - - -_The attempt to seize the Five Members._ - -This strange resolution, so incompatible with the majesty of a king, so -improper even for the dignity of any great magistrate, was discovered to -the Countess of Carlisle, sister to Northumberland, a lady of great -spirit, wit, and intrigue. P. 318. - - This resolution was discovered to the Countess of Carlisle, - sister to Northumberland, a lady of spirit, wit, and intrigue. - -[78:1] In the MSS. R.S.E. - -[78:2] See the letter itself in the Clarendon Papers, ii. 201-3. - -[79:1] The following are some instances of the alterations made on the -first edition of his History. The collection of these instances has been -facilitated by the use of a copy of the first edition of the Histories -of the Houses of Stuart and Tudor, in the possession of a friend, on -which the alterations embodied in the subsequent editions are written in -red ink. - -_In the first edition._ - - _As altered._ - -Scotch. - - Scottish. - -Such was the terror, respectable and rare in a monarch. - - So great was the terror, respectable as well as rare, in a - monarch. - -May be esteemed a great reflection on his memory. - - May be deemed a great reflection on his memory. - -Betwixt. - - Between. - -We come now to relate. - - We are now to relate. - -Under pretext of a hunting match. - - On pretence of a hunting match. - -Making account that. - - Thinking himself assured that. - -Their concurrence became requisite. - - Their concurrence became necessary. - -Along with. - - Together with. - -Esteemed impartial. - - Deemed impartial. - -To a pitch beyond what had ever been known since. - - To a height beyond what had been known since. - -Entirely requisite for their future safety. - - Absolutely necessary for their future safety. - -When the exception really occurs, even though it be not precedently -expected. - - When the exception really occurs, even though it be not - previously expected. - -Any way displeased at the, &c. - - Any-wise displeased at the, &c. - -Monarchical tenets with which he was so much infatuated. - - Monarchical tenets which he had so strongly imbibed. - -Graced with ecclesiastical titles. - - Endowed with ecclesiastical titles. - -Inflicting this sentence. - - Pronouncing this sentence. - -Confined in the Tower. - - Confined to the Tower. - -Debarred from such sports. - - Debarred such sports. - -Raleigh pretended not. - - Raleigh did not pretend. - -War with the Spaniards. - - War against the Spaniards. - -As to the circumstance of the narration. - - As to the circumstance of the narrative. - -Would have had a most just cause. - - Would have had a just cause. - -Such as together with. - - Such as along with. - -Interposal in the wars. - - Interposition in the wars. - -Effectuate a marriage. - - Effect a marriage. - -He was utterly devoid. - - He was utterly destitute. - -Headlong in his passions. - - Headstrong in his passions. - -Obtained at last. - - Obtained at length. - -A bill declarative. - - A bill declaratory. - -Forced into a breach. - - Constrained to make a breach. - -Had sat. - - Had sitten. - -However little inclined. - - How little soever inclined. - -Besides being a most atrocious violence. - - Besides its being a most atrocious act of violence. - -Precedent to Strafford's trial. - - Previous to Strafford's trial. - -Afraid that. - - Afraid lest. - -Was ordinarily lodged in. - - Was commonly lodged in. - -Was the person who introduced. - - Was the person that introduced. - -During all the time when. - - During the time that. - -Reduced to shifts. - - Reduced to extremities. - -The Star Chamber, who were sitting. - - The Star Chamber, which was sitting. - -A story which, as it marks the genius of parties, may be worth reciting. - - A story which, as it discovers the genius of parties, may be - worth relating. - -Contempt entertained towards. - - Contempt entertained for. - -Could such an attempt be interpreted treason. - - Could such an attempt be considered as treason. - -Lay great weight upon. - - Lay great stress upon. - -Devoid of temporal sanction. - - Destitute of temporal sanction. - -Parliament designed to levy war. - - Parliament intended to levy war. - -It would ascertain the devoted obedience. - - It would ensure the devoted obedience. - -His dignity was exempted from pride. - - His dignity was free from pride. - -When the exception really occurs, even though it be not precedently -expected. - - When the exception really occurs, even though it be not - previously expected. - -To those effects which were operated. - - To those effects which were wrought. - -[81:1] A tragedy by John Home. - -[83:1] The militia of England had, owing to the unpopularity of the -foreign mercenaries in British pay, been strengthened and enlarged. A -proposal was entertained, to extend the system to Scotland: but it was -not executed till many years afterwards. There were several pamphlets on -the subject. Probably the one here referred to is the well known -"History of the Proceedings in the case of Margaret, commonly called -Peg, only lawful Sister of John Bull, Esq.;" attributed to Adam -Ferguson, which will have to be mentioned farther on. - -[84:1] Hume seems to have himself commenced a translation of Plutarch. -See above, vol. i. p. 417. - -[85:1] Stewart's Life of Robertson. - -[87:1] It will be observed, that Hume's strongest argument from internal -criticism is, that the state of society and feeling exhibited in these -poems was that of the middle ages, and involved the spirit of chivalry -peculiar to that period. - -[89:1] Mackenzie's Account of Home, p. 155. The original is in the MSS. -R.S.E. Mr. Mackenzie says, "I could not read this letter without being -confirmed in an observation which I have often ventured to make, on the -uncertainty of the evidence arising from _letters_, when the writers are -dead, and the motives of their correspondence cannot be known." - -[90:1] It is not Cowley but Butler who makes this sarcasm. - - For Hebrew roots although they're found - To flourish most in barren ground. - -[90:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[92:1] Private Correspondence of David Hume with several distinguished -persons, between the years 1761 and 1776. London, 1820, 4to. - -[93:1] Private Correspondence, p. 269. - -[94:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[97:1] Depuis long-tems, Monsieur, je suis combattue par des sentimens -contraires. L'admiration que me cause votre sublime ouvrage, et l'estime -qu'il m'inspire pour votre personne, vos talents, et votre vertu, m'ont -fait naître souvent le désir de vous écrire, pour vous exprimer les -sentimens dont je suis profondément pénétrée. D'un autre côté, -considérant que je vous suis inconnue, le peu de prix que doit avoir mon -suffrage, la réserve et l'obscurité même qui convient à mon sexe: j'ai -craint d'être accusée de présomption, et de me faire connoître à mon -désavantage, d'un homme de qui je regarderai toujours la bonne opinion -comme le bien le plus flatteur et le plus précieux. Néanmoins, puisque -les réflexions que j'ai faites à cet égard ne paroissent avoir beaucoup -de force, un penchant irrésistible les rend infructueuses, et je vais -ajouter mon exemple à mille autres, pour justifier la vérité de cette -remarque que j'ai lue dans votre histoire de la Maison de -Stuard,--"Men's views of things are the result of their understanding -alone; their conduct is regulated by their understanding, their temper, -and their passions,"--puisque quand ma raison me dit que je devrais me -tenir dans le silence, l'enthousiasme, où je suis, m'empêche de le -pouvoir garder. - -Quoique femme, et dans un âge qui n'est pas encore avancé, et malgré la -dissipation de la vie qu'on tient dans ce pays, ayant toujours aimé la -lecture, il est peu de bons livres, en quelque langue et en quelque -genre que ce soit, que je n'ai lus, ou dans l'original, ou dans les -traductions; et je puis vous assurer, monsieur, avec une sincérité qui -ne doit pas vous être suspecte, que je n'ai trouvé aucun qui réunit à -mon jugement, autant de perfections que le vôtre. Je ne sais point de -termes qui puissent vous rendre ce que j'aprouve en lisant cet ouvrage. -Je me suis attendrie, transportée, et l'émotion qu'il me cause est en -quelque façon pénible par sa continuité. Il élève l'âme, il remplit le -coeur de sentimens d'humanité et bienfaisance. Il éclaire l'esprit, et -en lui montrant la véritable félicité intimement liée à la vertu, il lui -découvre par le même rayon le seul et unique but de tout être -raisonnable. Au milieu des calamités qui environnent de toutes parts le -Roi Charles Premier, l'on voit la paix et la sérénité briller avec éclat -et l'accompagner sur l'échafaud; tandis que le trouble et les remords, -cortége inséparable du crime, suivent les pas de Cromwell et s'asseyent -sur le trône avec lui. Votre livre apprend encore combien l'abus est -voisin des meilleures choses, et les réflexions qu'il fait faire à ce -sujet, doit [doivent] augmenter la vigilance et la défiance de soi-même. -Il anime d'une noble émulation, il inspire l'amour de la liberté, et -instruit en même tems à la soumettre au gouvernement sous lequel on est -obligé de vivre. En un mot c'est un _terra fecunda_ de morale et -d'instructions présentées avec des couleurs si vives qu'on croit les -voir pour la première fois. - -La clarté, la majesté, la simplicité touchante de votre style, me ravit. -Les beautés sont si frappantes, que malgré mon ignorance dans la langue -Angloise, elles n'ont pu m'échapper. Vous êtes, Monsieur, un peintre -admirable. Vos tableaux ont une grâce, un naturel, une énergie, qui -surpasse ce que l'imagination même peut attendre. - -Mais quelles expressions employerai-je pour vous faire connoitre l'effet -que produit sur moi votre divine impartialité? J'avois besoin en cette -occasion de votre propre éloquence, pour bien rendre ma pensée. En -vérité je crois avoir devant les yeux l'ouvrage de quelque substance -céleste, dégagé des passions, qui pour l'utilité a daigné écrire les -évènemens de ces derniers tems. - -Je n'ose ajouter, que dans tout ce qui sort de votre plume vous vous -montrez un philosophe parfait, un homme d'état, un historien plein de -génie, un politique éclairé, un vrai patriote, toutes ces sublimes -qualités sont si fort au dessus des connoissances d'une femme, qu'il me -convient peu d'en parler; et j'ai déjà grand besoin de votre indulgence -pour les fautes que j'ai commises centre la discrétion et la bienséance -par l'excès de ma vénération pour votre mérite. Je vous la demande, -Monsieur, et en même tems le plus profond secret. La démarche que je -fais a quelque chose d'extraordinaire. Je craindrois qu'elle ne -m'attirât le blâme, et je serois fâchée que le sentiment qui me l'a -dictée pût être inconnu. J'ai l'honneur d'être, Monsieur, votre très -humble et très obéissante servante, - -HYPPOLYTE DE SAUJON, COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - -On me dit, Monsieur, que vous avez en vue de venir en France, à Paris. -Je souhaite bien vivement que vous exécutiez cette résolution, et -pouvoir contribuer à vous en rendre le séjour agréable. - -Ce 15 Mars, 1761. A Paris.[97:A] - - [97:A] MS. R.S.E. - -[101:1] Private Correspondence, &c. 1-4. - -[101:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[101:3] Private Correspondence, 5. - -[105:1] It will be observed that this is an attempt to spell those -expressions according to the pronunciation. - -[107:1] - -_A Paris, 16 Juin, 1762._ - -Jean Jacques Rousseau, citoyen de Genève, et auteur de plusieurs écrits -qui vous sont vraisemblablement connus, vient de composer un Traité sur -l'Education, en quatre volumes, où il expose plusieurs principes -contraires aux nôtres, tant sur la politique, que sur la religion. Comme -nous ne jouissons pas ici de la liberté de la presse, le Parlement par -un arrêt, juste, s'il est comme je n'en doute pas conforme aux lois du -royaume, mais néanmoins rigoureux, l'a décrété de prise de corps, et -l'on prétend que s'il n'avoit pas pris la fuite, il auroit été condamné -à la mort. J'ai de la peine à croire qu'on eût pu aller si loin sur la -qualité d'étranger. Mais quoi qu'il en soit, il eut été imprudent de -lui, de rester en France dans de pareilles circonstances. Il est donc -parti, incertain quel asile il choisiroit. Je lui ai conseillé de se -retirer en Angleterre, lui promettant des lettres de recommendation pour -vous, Monsieur, et pour d'autres personnes de mes amis. Je m'acquitte de -ma promesse, et je ne puis pas à mon avis lui choisir dans tout -l'Europe, un protecteur plus respectable par ses liaisons, et plus -recommendable par son humanité. M. Rousseau passe chez la plupart des -gens en ce pays pour un homme singulier. A prendre cette épithète selon -la vraie signification, elle lui est justement donnée, car il diffère, a -beaucoup d'égards, de la façon d'agir et de penser des hommes du jour. -Il a le coeur droit, l'âme noble et désintéressée. Il craint toute -espèce de dépendance, et par cette raison il a mieux aimé, étant en -France, gagner sa vie en copiant de la musique, que de recevoir les -bienfaits de ses meilleurs amis, qui s'empressoient de réparer sa -mauvaise fortune. Cette délicatesse peut paroître excessive, mais elle -n'a rien de criminelle, et même elle suppose des sentimens élevés. Il -fuit le commerce du monde, il ne se plaît que dans la solitude, ce goût -pour la retraite lui a fait des ennemis. L'amour propre de ceux qui -l'ont recherché s'est trouvé blessé de ses refus. Mais malgré sa -misanthropie apparente, je ne crois pas qu'il y ait nulle part, un homme -plus doux, plus humain, plus compâtissant aux peines des autres, et plus -patient dans les siennes, en un mot, sa vertu paroît si pure, si -contente, si uniforme, que, jusqu'à, présent, ceux qui le haïssent, -n'ont pas trouvé que dans leur propre coeur des raisons pour le -soupçonner. Pour moi, avec des apparences aussi avantageuses, j'aimerois -mieux en être trompé que de me défier de sa sincérité. - -D'après l'opinion que j'en ai monsieur, je l'ai jugé digne d'être connu -de vous, et en lui procurant cet honneur, je crois lui donner la preuve -la plus marquée du cas que je fais de lui.[107:A] - - [107:A] MS. R.S.E. - -[109:1] Private Correspondence, &c. pp. 8, 9. - -[110:1] This letter is printed in the Private Correspondence, p. 58. -There are two duplicate originals of it among the MSS. R.S.E. - -[113:1] Private Correspondence, &c. p. 54. - -[115:1] Private Correspondence, p. 54. - -[115:2] Vol. i. p. 283. - -[116:1] The following anecdote of Hume, by Lord Charlemont, seems -appropriate to this passage. "He never failed, in the midst of any -controversy, to give its due praise to every thing tolerable that was -either said or written against him. One day that he visited me in -London, he came into my room laughing and apparently well pleased. 'What -has put you into this good humour, Hume?' said I. 'Why man,' replied he, -'I have just now had the best thing said to me I ever heard. I was -complaining in a company where I spent the morning, that I was very ill -treated by the world, and that the censures put upon me were hard and -unreasonable. That I had written many volumes, throughout the whole of -which there were but a few pages that contained any reprehensible -matter, and yet that for those few pages, I was abused and torn to -pieces.' 'You put me in mind,' said an honest fellow in the company, -whose name I did not know, 'of an acquaintance of mine, a notary public, -who having been condemned to be hanged for forgery, lamented the -hardship of his case; that after having written many thousand -inoffensive sheets, he should be hanged for one line.'" _Hardy's Memoirs -of Charlemont_, p. 121. - -[119:1] _European Magazine_, 1785, p. 250. - -[119:2] Vol. i. p. 57. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -1762-1763. Æt. 51-52. - - The Publication of the History anterior to the Accession of - the Tudors--Completion of the History--Inquiry how far it is a - complete History--Hume's Intention to write an Ecclesiastical - History--Opinions of Townsend and others on his History-- - Appreciation of the Fine Arts--Hume's House in James's Court-- - Its subsequent occupation by Boswell and Johnson--Conduct - of David Mallet--Hume's Projects--The Douglas Cause-- - Correspondence with Reid. - - -In 1762 there was published, in two quarto volumes, the "History of -England, from the Invasion of Julius Cæsar, to the Accession of Henry -VII." The farther back we proceed from those periods of which a full -narrative of historical events is preserved by contemporary chroniclers, -into those more obscure ages when even the lines of kings are hardly -preserved, and fragments of laws, or of long obsolete literature, and -antiquarian relics, are the historian's only guide, the less -satisfactory is Hume's history, when compared with other historical -works. The earliest part is thus the least valuable. He had here, -however, to encounter difficulties which we are only at this day able to -estimate, in the absence of those materials which the industry of -antiquaries has lately brought to light, to so great an extent, as -almost necessarily to supersede Hume's "History of England" during the -early ages, as a source of historical knowledge.[121:1] - -But both in this and the other departments of his work, we are bound to -estimate Hume, as we do great workmen in all departments of mental -labour, not by the state of his science at the present day, but by that -in which he found it. To comprehend how far it may be practicable for -any one mind to create a full and satisfactory history of the island of -Great Britain, without having the advantage of the previous labours of -many minds, occupied in elucidating the details of the various branches -of knowledge with which he has to deal, let us cast a casual glance at -the prominent topics which must be fully discussed in such a History, if -it be a satisfactory work. - -The historian should be master of every scrap of information contained -in Greek or Roman authors, about the connexion of the people of the -ancient world with our island. In the works of Cæsar and Tacitus this -will be a simple matter; but scattered about among the productions of -the Panegyrists, and in other such obscure quarters, there are many -important incidental notices, which will not be so easily found or so -satisfactorily interpreted. To this the investigator must add more -recondite stores of knowledge, collected from etymological -investigations among the roots of languages--Celtic and Teutonic. He -must study Strabo, Ptolemy, and the other geographers; and interpreting -the information collected from them, and the incidents derived from the -other sources above alluded to, with his etymological inquiries, he must -endeavour to solve the vexed questions about the migration of -races--whether the Cimbri were pure Celts? whether the Welsh are the -descendants of that race? whether the Caledonii, with whom Agricola -fought, were Celts? who and what were those mysterious people, called -the Picts? - -There must be some criticism, however unsatisfactory it may be, on the -worship anterior to the introduction of Christianity, and on the -vestiges of that and of other early customs supposed to be supplied by -the remnants of ancient masonry and engineering, with which our island -abounds. The historian must next be able to show what is truly known, -and what is not, regarding the inroads of the Teutonic tribes, and must -be able to fathom the learning of the German antiquaries on this -department of history. Here the early literature of Ireland, of which so -much has lately been printed by O'Conor and others, and the relics of -Scandinavian metrical histories, will widen the inquiry, while they -render it more satisfactory. - -Having got these settlers from the Teutonic tribes, the Saxons as they -are generally called, established in the island, the peculiar internal -policy, national character, and literature of Britain, begin to assume -a shape under the eye of the historian, and to gather round them their -distinctive attributes as he proceeds. He will soon have to deal with -the birth of laws and customs, which, modelled to the progress of an -increasing population and civilisation, are still in daily practice. - -From this epoch downwards, he has to watch the changes of the national -literature. Observing it in its purely Anglo-Saxon period, he must -estimate the extent to which it was altered by the adoption of -Norman-French as a court language, while Anglo-Saxon still continued to -be the tongue of the common people; and mark the continued existence of -this fundamental Teutonic speech, and its action upon the language of -the court, until the former became the established literary language of -the day, the latter merely imparting to it one of its characteristic -features. Thus tracing these elements from their respective sources down -to the days of Chaucer, the influence of the revival of classical -learning upon modern language and thought must find a place, and English -literature must be described in its progress towards and arrival at full -manhood. Along with this inquiry, there should be an ancillary -investigation into the causes why the language and literature of the -Scottish lowlands have so long differed from those of England, though -both springing from the same root. - -Returning to the Anglo-Saxon period, another and more laborious inquiry -opens in the department of the laws and public institutions. There must -be a search after those which were peculiar to the Anglo-Saxons; and in -dealing with authorities posterior to the conquest, the historian must -carefully sift them, that he may ascertain the extent to which any law -or custom was undoubtedly Anglo-Saxon. After having ascertained how -much of the spirit of feudal institutions had tinged the purely Saxon -usages, he must next follow the progress of feudalism abroad, and fully -explain the effect produced on Britain by its full grown importation at -the era of the Conquest. In conjunction with this large inquiry, the -jurisprudence of Rome must be kept in view; first, as some relics of it -in municipal institutions, and otherwise, may have been associated with -the very earliest forms of internal organization in modern Europe; and -secondly, after its letter had been buried for centuries, as it was -resuscitated by the civilians and canonists, and brought in array -against the common law of England, and amalgamated with the feudal -system in Scotland. From these elements the history of Parliament and of -municipal bodies, the prerogatives of the crown, and the rights and -privileges of the subject, together with the practical administration of -the law, ought all to be developed in their origin and growth. The state -of knowledge and of opinion among the people at large, on political -matters, and particularly on the manner in which they are governed, -should form a part of this constitutional inquiry. - -The history of religion should occupy a conspicuous place in the -historian's studies. In the folios of the Bollandists, no inconsiderable -portion of the scanty records of the civil history of the period are to -be found. A full and patient study of the Roman Catholic creed and -polity in their rise and development, is necessary for the effectual -employment of the knowledge thus acquired; and it is needless to say how -many other creeds and systems must be studied by the historian of -Britain. By observing its mere results on the outward history of a -people, the inquirer will never know the real influence of any system of -religious tenets. A brief survey shows us the outward demonstrations. -But to be acquainted with the character of the internal impulses of any -religious creed, to see how the fire glows and radiates within the bosom -of the votary, we must study the vital elements of the creed itself with -industry and with zeal. - -The language and literature of the country have already been alluded to. -The state of the arts at different times must be carefully watched and -explained. To accomplish this task, the historian should possess a wide -knowledge of the principles and practice of art: not that conventional -knowledge which teaches him how to distinguish from all that are below -them those efforts which are entitled to the approbation of the -fastidious, but the catholic spirit, which enables the mind fully to -estimate progress before perfection is reached. - -All the departments of the historian's knowledge are more or less -blended with each other. From the sixth century downwards, for several -ages, the coinage of the realm only marks the state of the arts or -serves to adjust disputed chronologies: gradually, however, the -historian feels it becoming involved with more complex elements -connected with the state of society, and at last the great question of -the currency and the monetary system of the country has to be grappled -with. Here the whole field of political economy is opened up. It is -needless to say, that the historian, especially he who treats of a -people in any degree civilized, must be thoroughly imbued with political -economy. - -The state of manufactures and of the sciences should not be neglected. A -history of Britain during the nineteenth century, containing no account -of the triumphs of the steam engine, or of the progress of railway -engineering, would give a very imperfect view of the living progress of -the nation. The history of the early period would be more satisfactory, -if it informed us when the pump and the potter's wheel were first used -in Britain. Closely akin to this subject is the progress of agriculture, -which, however, is a matter simpler and more easy of attainment than -many of the historian's other objects of inquiry. - -In truth, it may be safely said, that every circumstance that can be -discovered concerning the particular country, and every thing, whether -animate or inanimate that is on its surface, comes within the compass of -its history, using that word in the sense of merely civil -history,--unless in so far as it belongs to what is natural history. And -yet even from this science civil history has many lights to receive. -Human physiology is intimately connected with the elucidations of the -historian; and it would appear that, in regard to the influence of -political institutions on the physical as well as the moral state of -races of men, we are still only on the threshold of knowledge. Here the -physiologist, and the recorder of political events, who heretofore have -travelled on different roads, may some day or other find a common object -of exertion, and may tell us, by their united labours, why the race that -inhabited ancient Egypt, from being the most inventive, should have been -among the most supine of people; why the Chinese should have passed -through an epoch of active discovery, and should have thenceforth, -unlike the rest of the world, neither forgotten nor improved the fruits -of their original enterprise; why the Celts, once the nurses of European -learning, should, at a later time, have appeared as if doomed to retire -before the ardent genius of the Teutonic race; and why this race, after -being long inferior to other branches of the Caucasian family, should -appear, with British enterprise and German thought, likely to absorb -the faculties of the rest of mankind. - -The historian must not wholly neglect other natural productions. The -inferior animals and the vegetable kingdom are intimately connected with -the fate of the human beings who are the immediate object of his -labours. With geology he may appear to have comparatively little -concern; yet the marble of Greece, and the coal and iron of Britain, -have had no little influence on the destinies of these nations. - -Hume did so much towards the completion of that circle of knowledge with -which the historian has to deal, that he was the first to add to a mere -narrative of events, an inquiry into the progress of the people, and of -their arts, literature, manners, and general social condition. This -attempt was so original, that, as it embodied in some measure the theory -developed in Voltaire's "Essai sur les Moeurs," first published in 1756, -when the first volume of the "History of the Stuarts" had been two years -before the public, it was supposed that Hume might have borrowed the -idea from some fragments of that work which had been surreptitiously -printed with the title "Abrégé de l'Histoire Universelle." There seems -to be no room, however, for such a supposition. Hume's own "Political -Discourses" are as close an approach to this method of inquiry as the -work of Voltaire; and if we look for such productions of other writers -as may have led him into this train of thought, it would be more just to -name Bacon and Montesquieu.[129:1] The works of such authors as Guizot -and Hallam may teach us that much had to be added to Hume's system of -historical composition, to render it perfect; but they do so in the same -manner as the last steam engine shows us how many improvements have been -made on the inventions of Watt. - - * * * * * - -We now resume the correspondence with Millar. The letter immediately -following, puts beyond a doubt, what had only been partially believed, -that Hume had, at one time, expressed an intention of writing an -ecclesiastical history. Of the manner in which he would have executed -such a task, opinions will widely vary. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 15th March, 1762._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I am very glad that you are in so good a way, and that you -think so soon of making a new edition. I am running over both the -ancient history and the Tudors, and shall send you them up by the wagon -as soon as they are corrected. Please tell Mr. Strahan, to keep -carefully this copy I send up, as well as that which I left of the -Stuarts; for if you intend to print an octavo edition next summer, it -will be better to do it from these copies which are corrected, than from -the new edition, where there will necessarily be some errors of the -press. - -"I give you full authority to contradict the report, that I am writing -or intend to write an ecclesiastical history; I have no such intention; -and I believe never shall. I am beginning to love peace very much, and -resolve to be more cautious than formerly in creating myself enemies. -But in contradicting this report, you will be so good as not to impeach -Mr. Mallet's veracity; for 'tis certain I said to Lord Chesterfield -(from whom Mr. Mallet first had it) that I had entertained such a -thought; but my saying so proceeded less from any serious purpose, than -from a view of trying how far such an idea would be relished by his -lordship. - -"I have not laid aside thoughts of continuing my History to the period -after the Revolution. It is not amiss to be idle a little time; but it -is probable I shall tire of that kind of life: and if I then find that -the public desires to see more of me, and that the great will not shut -up their papers from me, I shall set to work in earnest. - -"I never thought that Lord Kames' Elements would be a popular book; but -I hoped, that, as you engage for no copy money, it would certainly -defray the charge of paper and print; and on that footing alone I -recommended it to you. I find the author's expectations raised up to a -vast pitch, and indeed there are some parts of the work ingenious and -curious; but it is too abtruse and crabbed ever to take with the public. -As to the advice you desire me to give him, it is certainly very -salutary; but I fancy neither I nor any other of his friends will ever -venture to mention it. The admonitions, which come from you, are -commonly the most effectual; and if this book do not sell, I think it -were not amiss, that you tell him the plain truth without disguise or -circumlocution. I find the booksellers here have sold off all their -share of my Essays, and are desirous of another edition, which, however, -I told them, I believed you was not ready for. I desire to be informed -two or three months before you put it to the press: because I intend to -make some considerable alterations on some parts of them. - -"I hope Mrs. Millar intends to pay us a visit next summer, and that you -will be of the party. Please make my most sincere respects to her. I am, -dear Sir," &c.[132:1] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_8th April, 1762._ - -"I shall answer your story of Charles Townsend very fully, by another -story of the same gentleman. Three years ago, when I was in London, I -was told by a friend, that Mr. Townsend said, that my History of the -Stuarts (the only one then published,) was full of gross blunders in the -facts: he had consulted all the authentic documents, particularly the -journals of the House of Commons, and found it so. When I made light of -this information, as knowing somewhat of Mr. Townsend's hasty manner of -speaking, my friend said, that I ought not so much to neglect the -matter; because Mr. Townsend had told him that Mr. Dyson, clerk to the -House of Commons, a man of knowledge and solidity, had made to him the -same observation. I was a little surprised and alarmed at this; and I -went to Mr. Elliot, whom I desired to speak to Mr. Dyson, and to tell -him that there was nothing in the world I desired so much as to be -informed of my errors, and that he would oblige me extremely by pointing -out those mistakes. Mr. Dyson replied, that he had never in his life -spoke of the matter to Mr. Townsend; and that though he differed from me -in my reasonings and views of the constitution, he had observed no -blunders in facts, except one with regard to the dispensing power: -which, by the bye, was the one also remarked to me by the Speaker, and -which I corrected in the second edition. It was not an error with regard -to the reign of James Second, but with regard to that of King William, -which I had not sufficiently examined. I assure you there is not a -quotation that I did not see with mine own eyes, except two or three at -most, which I took from Tyrrel or Brady, because I had not the books -referred to. That there is no mistake in such a number of references, -would be rash or even absurd to affirm: that the printer also has not -sometimes made mistakes in the name of the author or in the number of -the page quoted, is what I dare not aver: for I only compared the sheet -now and then with my manuscript, and was contented to be as correct as -possible in the text. I knew that these mistakes could neither be -frequent nor material. But if people, finding a few here and there, -point them out, and give them as a specimen of the whole, I know no -remedy for this malice, but to allow them to go on. Men of candour will -judge otherwise without scrutiny: and men of diligence and industry will -find that the case is otherwise, upon scrutiny.[133:1] - -"I have heard of Charles Townsend's extolling and decrying me -alternately, according as the humour bites; and all the world knows this -to be his character. He is perhaps angry with me at present, because I -did not wait of him when I was in London. It is strange, that great men -in England should slight and neglect men of letters when they pay court -to them, and rail at them when they do not. I have a regard to Mr. -Townsend as a man of parts, I believe of very great parts; but I attach -myself to no great man, and visit none of them but such as happen to be -my friends, and particular acquaintance. I wish they would consider me -as equally independent with themselves, or more so. However, there is no -necessity of enraging Mr. Townsend farther by the story I told you in -the first paragraph; and therefore I would not have you communicate it -to any body, except a very particular friend whom you can trust. You may -read the second paragraph to every body."[134:1] - - -In the following letter to Millar, we find him professing his ignorance -of the practical application of the fine arts in engraving. Although he -has written on the philosophy of taste, we find no traces in his -writings of what the Germans have denominated the aesthetic; no sense of -an internal emotion arising from the contemplation of works of art. In -his travels, he had an opportunity of seeing many fine pictures, but he -never mentions one; and it does not appear, from any incident in his -life, or allusion in his letters, which I can remember, that he had ever -really admired a picture or a statue.[134:2] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 17th May, 1762._ - -"I like much better your publishing in volumes than in numbers. Though -this last method has been often practised, it has somewhat of a quackish -air, which you have always avoided, as well as myself. I know not what -to do for frontispieces; I have no manner of skill myself in designing, -and am not able to point out the most proper subjects, nor the method of -executing them. On the whole, I think it an expense which may be spared; -but if you continue in the resolution of having some such ornament, I -could write a letter to Allan Ramsay, who, I hope, would take the pains -of directing the engraver. As to my head, I think that also a -superfluous expense; and as there is no picture of me in London, I know -not how it can be executed: with submission to you, would it not be -better to throw these charges on the paper and print? I do not imagine, -because these ornaments have helped off the sale of Smollett's History, -that mine would be the better for them.[135:1] These arts are seldom -practised twice with the same success. - -"I do not lose view of my design to continue my History, at least for -two reigns more; but I question whether party prejudices with regard to -me, are as yet sufficiently subsided, to enable me to carry on that -work, without meeting with repulses and disgusts from those who have the -materials in their power, which must serve for the foundation of my -narrative: a little farther time will, I hope, operate that -effect."[135:2] - - -He concludes this letter by saying, "I remove my house this week to -James's Court." - -Entering a low gateway which pierces the line of lofty houses along the -Lawnmarket, one finds oneself in a square court, surrounded by houses, -which have now evidently fallen to the lot of humbler inhabitants than -those for whom they were erected. These spaces, walled off by the -intervening houses from the main street, were in the Scottish -metropolis, like the similar edifices of the French nobility, frequently -designed with the view of protecting those who dwelt within the gate -from the unwelcome intrusion of either legal or illegal force. But it is -probable that James's Court scarcely dates back to times so lawless, and -that it was built early in the eighteenth century. The plan of a closed -court was, perhaps, adopted as a means of enabling a small community to -have the civic functions of lighting and cleaning performed more -accurately than they were then administered to the inhabitants at large. - -Entering one of the doors opposite the main entrance, the stranger is -sometimes led by a friend, wishing to afford him an agreeable surprise, -down flight after flight of the steps of a stone staircase, and when he -imagines he is descending so far into the bowels of the earth, he -emerges on the edge of a cheerful crowded thoroughfare, connecting -together the Old and New Town; the latter of which lies spread before -him, a contrast to the gloom from which he has emerged. When he looks up -to the building containing the upright street through which he has -descended, he sees that vast pile of tall houses standing at the head of -the Mound, which creates astonishment in every visiter of Edinburgh. -This vast fabric is built on the declivity of a hill, and thus one -entering on the level of the Lawnmarket, is at the height of several -stories from the ground on the side next the New Town. In Hume's day, a -lake lay not many yards from the base of the building; and the whole -space now occupied by the streets and squares of the New Town, was open -ground, covered with woodland in those places where it did not consist -of agricultural ground or barren heath. A full view of the surrounding -country must have been possessed by every floor in this mass of -buildings. I have ascertained that by ascending the western of the two -stairs facing the entry of James's Court, to the height of three -stories, we arrive at the door of David Hume's house, which, of the two -doors on that landing-place, is the one towards the left.[137:1] - -Of the first impression made on a stranger, at that period, when -entering such a house, a vivid description is given by Sir Walter Scott -in "Guy Mannering;" and in Counsellor Pleydell's library, with its -collection of books and the prospect from the window, we have probably -an accurate picture of the room in which Hume spent his studious hours -when he was in his own house in Edinburgh. - -When Boswell describes the veritable locality of the house in which he -did actually receive the illustrious Dr. Johnson, he tells us at the -same time that it was in James's Court. Hume had then left his house, -and it appears that James Boswell became his tenant.[137:2] One cannot -therefore resist the conclusion, that the house thus consecrated, was -the very one which had been occupied by Hume. Would Boswell communicate -such a fact, or tell what manner of man was the landlord of the -habitation into which he had, under the guise of hospitality, entrapped -the arch-intolerant?[138:1] Who shall appreciate the mental conflict -which Boswell may have experienced on this occasion! On the one side he -would have to consider, whether it would not be more candid to let the -appalling truth be known. But would Johnson have been able to "sleep o' -nights" in such a house? The dilemma might not have been so easily -solved as the dinner with Wilkes. - -Hume's house was, during his absence in France, occupied by Dr. Blair; -so that the old flat, three stories up from the entrance in James's -Court, had in its day sheltered inmates of no common eminence. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 22d Nov. 1762._ - -"DEAR SIR,--As yours of the 16th of last month did not require any -immediate reply, I have used the freedom to delay answering it. I am -glad to find your two new editions so well advanced: I hope they will be -successful. Some people tell me, that, as the two volumes last published -do not shock any party prejudices, they have been better received than -the former, and procure a good reception for the whole. If I should see -them make any farther progress, it would be the best encouragement for -me to proceed in writing the more recent history. I am far from losing -sight of that project; but it is better not to begin it, till matters -are more ripe for the execution, and till I find, that every one would -frankly concur in opening their cabinets, and allowing me the use of all -papers which may be necessary for my purpose. I had a letter from Mr. -Mallet lately, by which I find, that he will no longer be an obstacle in -my way; for he tells me that his History of the Duke of Marlborough is -ready for the press; which is more than I or most people expected. - -"Lord Marischal wrote me lately, that the celebrated Rousseau had taken -shelter with him at Neufchâtel; but that he had thoughts of coming to -England, and desired to know of me, if he could make an edition of his -works by which he could gain a little money for his subsistence, as he -was not interested. He wished also, that I could recommend him to a -bookseller. You have told me, that you do not care to deal in French -books; but if he should publish any new work, might he not have a -translation of it ready to be published at the same time with the -original? And would not you be willing to deal with him in that shape? I -should think him very fortunate, if he were in your hands. I beg my -compliments to Mrs. Millar, who, I hope, is at Bath, more for her -amusement than her health. I am, dear sir, yours sincerely. - -"P.S.--As your edition on royal paper is not numerous, I shall only -desire three copies of it to be sent me, and shall reserve the other -three for the octavo edition. Be so good therefore as to embark three -copies in any parcel you send to Edinburgh. The peace will now make the -intercourse of trade more open between us. The mention of peace reminds -me to thank you for your assistance in making out my subscription last -year, which is likely to turn out so much to my advantage. The stocks -are now very high; but I suppose will not come to their full height this -twelvemonth, and till then I fancy you will not think it prudent in me -to sell out."[140:1] - - -That Mallet had his History of the Duke of Marlborough ready for press, -was, as Hume gently says, more than he or most people expected. However, -Mallet seems to have convinced him that it really was the case; and his -success in carrying conviction to the prince of sceptics, is a brilliant -instance of that mingled cunning and impudence by which he had made -himself a great man. The literary history of the life of Marlborough is -well known. The duchess had left £1000 to Glover and Mallet, as a fee -for a life to be written by them jointly. Glover gave up his share of -the labour and its reward, and Mallet obtained the £1000. The service he -gave in return, consisted entirely in the labour of convincing the -world, by hints and skilfully mysterious announcements, that he had made -considerable progress in the work, though he died without having -commenced it; and if this systematic deception had been the service for -which he was paid, it would have been admitted that he had done his -duty.[141:1] The following letter is a memorable instance of the manner -in which Mallet conducted his operations; and it shows at the same time -his infinitely lofty notion of his own position. He had managed to be a -great author among the aristocracy, and to be a great aristocrat among -authors; and the air of calm superiority which he adopts towards Hume -is not the least remarkable feature in the production. - - -DAVID MALLET _to_ HUME.[142:1] - - DEAR SIR,--I have done at last, what nothing but the greatest - regard for the writer, and the truest friendship for the man, - could have made me submit to; I have gone over both your - volumes again, with the eye and attention of a mere - grammarian. The task of looking after verbal mistakes, or - errors against the idiom of a tongue, though not unnecessary, - is trivial, and disgusting in the greatest decree; but your - work, and you, deserved it of me: and I could not have - forgiven myself had I not treated yours as I hope and expect - you will do mine. - - I have not been idle; though I give no account of my progress - to one in a hundred I converse with; as it contains several - particulars of the reigns of the two brothers, Charles and - James, the most interesting though the least known parts of - King William's, and embraces the whole of Queen Anne's reign, - together with some anecdotes relative to her successor,--it - will swell into two quarto volumes. I am resolved, too, that - the translation, which will be done here by an excellent hand - under my own eye, shall appear at the same time the original - does. These are some of the causes that occasion the - complaints I have been teased with: and there are many others, - that would make no figure on paper, though they are - unavoidable and consume much irretrievable time. But what is - well done is done soon; and, as I have not you in my way, I - should not feel the least uneasiness, if all our other - complete historians should write the same period twenty times - over. My work, both in matter and form, would still be new. If - you are upon the undertaking, which you desired might remain a - secret, I dare assure you, that besides the merit of accuracy - and impartiality, it will have all the charm of novelty; for - such a work, on a rational and philosophical plan, is a - thing, as Milton has it, unattempted yet in prose or rhime. - Adieu. I am, dear sir, most faithfully yours. - - D. MALLET.[143:1] - -The following letter is a not less curious revelation of Mallet's -proceedings. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 21st April, 1763._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I had a letter from Mr. Mallett, in which he tells me, that -he has run over carefully the two volumes of my History last published, -and has wrote all his remarks, as well on the language as matter, on the -margin. He said, that he would find an opportunity to send them to me. I -replied to him, that I was extremely obliged to him, (as I certainly -am,) and that if he sent them to you, you would soon find an opportunity -of conveying them to me. I wish you would speak to him on that subject, -as you have occasion to meet with him, and would send the books -carefully to me by the first parcel you send to Edinburgh. I should -desire you also to give him a new copy in place of this which he has -sacrificed; but if there be only a word here and there, I can efface -them, after transcribing them into my own copy, and can afterwards -restore the book as good as ever. - -"In the same letter, he complains much of a report, that I was writing -the English History since the revolution: which he says he cannot -believe, because it would be a very invidious task to him. I answered -him, that by his former letter I imagined his History was just ready for -the press; that I had not wrote a line of the History of that period; -but if I undertake it, one great inducement would be the hopes of -seeing his volumes published before me; by which means, I could hope -for much light and great materials; that as he was near twenty years -advanced before me, it was ridiculous to fear that I could overtake him; -and that I was glad of the report he mentioned, if it would prove a spur -to his industry. I find Mr. Mallet would fain be like the dog in the -manger, neither eat himself nor allow others to eat. I should have a -breach with him, and might expect all ill offices from him, if I pursue -my plan; but this would be a frivolous consideration, where his anger -would be so ill-founded. As soon as the octavo edition of my History is -finished, please send me a copy of it. I should be pleased to run it -over; and make an errata to it. I am," &c.[144:1] - - -The following letter to Elliot shows the zeal with which Hume carried on -that systematic removal from his works of all passages tending to favour -popular rights, which has been already alluded to. - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Edinburgh, 12th March, 1763._ - -"DEAR SIR,--In this new edition I have corrected several mistakes and -oversights, which had chiefly proceeded from the plaguy prejudices of -Whiggism, with which I was too much infected when I began this work. I -corrected some of these mistakes in a former edition; but being resolved -to add to this edition the quotations of authorities for the reigns of -James I. and Charles I., I was obliged to run over again the most -considerable authors who had treated of these reigns; and I happily -discovered some more mistakes, which I have now corrected. As I began -the History with these two reigns, I now find that they, above all the -rest, have been corrupted with Whig rancour, and that I really deserved -the name of a party writer, and boasted without any foundation of my -impartiality: but if you now do me the honour to give this part of my -work a second perusal, I am persuaded that you will no longer throw on -me this reproachful epithet, and will acquit me of all propensity to -Whiggism. If you still continue to upbraid me, I shall be obliged to -retaliate on you, and cry, _Whig vous même_. - -"In page 33, vol. v. you will find a full justification of the -impositions laid on by James I. without authority of parliament: in p. -113, 114, 389, a justification of persecuting the Puritans: in p. 180, a -justification of Charles I. for levying tonnage and poundage without -consent of parliament: in p. 100, I acquit James I. of prevarication, -with which I had before rashly charged him. This last mistake indeed was -innocent, and I can easily account for it. I had read Buckingham's -narrative in Rushworth and Franklyn, the two opposite collectors: I saw -what I thought the same paper in the Parliamentary History; but I did -not attend to a line at the bottom, in which it is said, that the paper -is taken from the records more full, than in the preceding collection: -when I read it lately, I found the article here quoted, so that this -blunder proceeded not from any spirit of Whiggery. - -"I now justify James II. more explicitly in his exercise of the -dispensing power, which was intimately interwoven with the constitution -and monarchy--see vol. vi. p. 393-394, 395-400. In vol. iv. p. 322-323, -I mention a very remarkable vein of tyranny, or exertion of arbitrary -power, practised in that period,[146:1] and which came to my knowledge -since the first publication of that volume. - -"There are many other improvements and alterations throughout the whole; -and I am glad that Millar has of himself made you an offer of this -edition. Without flattering you I must say, that there is nobody whom I -more desire to see my writings as correct as I can make them; and I was -thinking to desire Mr. Millar to make you this offer. - -"But there is no end of correcting. In this new edition, vol. v. p. 205, -I have inserted a pretty curious story of Sir George Markham, which I -took from Lord Lansdowne, whom I esteemed safe authority for a Whig -story: but I have since been shown Hobart's Reports, which is infinitely -more authentic than Lord Lansdowne; and the story is there told so -entirely, as to justify the King and the Star-chamber, so that you may -still reproach me that the villanous leaven is not entirely purged -off.[146:2] - -"I am engaged in no work at present; but if I tire of idleness, or more -properly speaking, of reading for amusement, I may probably continue my -History. My only discouragement is, that I cannot hope to finish this -work in my closet, but must apply to the great for papers and -intelligence, a thing I mortally abhor. - -"Is it not hard and tyrannical in you, more hard and tyrannical than -any act of the Stuarts, not to allow me to publish my Dialogues? Pray, -do you not think that a proper dedication may atone for what is -exceptionable in them? I am become much of my friend Corbyn Morrice's -mind, who says, that he writes all his books for the sake of the -dedications. - -"I am very glad to hear from Lord Minto, that you intend to pass a great -part of the ensuing summer in this country. Though you be now become a -great man, I doubt not but I should receive very much satisfaction from -your society and conversation; that is, if I be not jostled out by -suitors who press in upon me. - -"Meanwhile, I am, dear sir, your affectionate friend and -servant."[147:1] - - -He writes to Millar, on 10th March, 1763, "I am in a good measure idle -at present: but if I tire of this way of life, I shall certainly -continue my History, and have no thoughts of any other work. But in this -state of affairs, I suppose your people of rank and quality would throw -the door in my face, because I am a Scotsman."[147:2] - -And again at a later date: - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 28th March, 1763._ - -"I never lose view of the project of continuing my History. I may -perhaps very soon gather silently together the books which will enable -me to sketch out the reigns of King William and Queen Anne, and shall -finish them afterwards, together with that of George I., in London. But -to tell you the truth, I have an aversion to appear in that capital -till I see that more justice is done to me with regard to the preceding -volumes. The languishing sale of this edition makes me conjecture that -the time is not yet come; and the general rage against the Scots is an -additional discouragement. I think the Scotch minister is obliged to -make me some compensation for this. - -"I am told that Mr. Ralph is dead, who had certainly made a large -collection of books and pamphlets for his work. I should be glad to know -into whose hands they are fallen, and would purchase them if they could -be got at a reasonable price. - -"I hear Dr. Armstrong has sent you over a most violent renunciation of -Wilkes's friendship.[148:1] Wilkes is indeed very blamable in indulging -himself so much in national reflections; which are low, vulgar, and -ungenerous, and come with a bad grace from him, who conversed so much -with our countrymen. My compliments to Mrs. Millar, who, I hope, will -favour me with a visit this summer. I am, dear sir, yours -sincerely."[148:2] - - -On the same day he writes to Adam Smith: - -"I set up a chaise in May next, which will give me the liberty of -travelling about; and you may be sure a journey to Glasgow will be one -of the first I shall undertake. I intend to require, with great -strictness, an account how you have been employing your leisure, and I -desire you to be ready for that purpose. Wo be to you if the balance be -against you! Your friends here will also expect that I should bring you -with me."[149:1] - -A few letters written at this time to his friends, on the subject of the -arrears of half-pay due for his services as judge-advocate,[149:2] -afford the following passages of general interest. To Oswald he says, on -3d April-- - -"I shall add, that it is the only thing in my life I ever asked, it is -the only thing I ever shall ask, and consequently, it is the only thing -I ever shall obtain. Those who assist me in procuring it do me a great -favour, and I very willingly stand obliged to my friends for their good -offices: but of the government and ministry, I ask it as my due. I -imagined that after Lord Bute's consent was obtained, all difficulties -had been surmounted."[149:3] - -To another correspondent he says,-- - -"To tell you the truth, dear Crawford, I made it a rule from the -beginning of my life never to seek a favour of any man; and this humour, -which, if you be very indulgent to me, you will call modesty, if less -so, pride, I was unwilling to relinquish, after having maintained it -through my youth, and during more difficult circumstances than those in -which I am at present placed."[149:4] - -Hume, like every Scotsman of his day, who concerned himself with any -thing beyond his own domestic circle, took a deep interest in the -progress of the Douglas cause. It is difficult, at the present day, to -conceive the excitement which this litigation between private parties -occasioned in the public mind. Men about to meet each other in company, -used to lay an injunction on themselves not to open their lips on the -subject, so fruitful was it in debates and brawls; and yet too often -found that their prudence was no match for their enthusiasm. Hume -adopted the view that the alleged children of Lady Jane Douglas were -spurious. The Court of Session decided in favour of this opinion by a -majority of one; but their decision was afterwards reversed by the House -of Lords. The reversal occasioned many severe animadversions on Lord -Mansfield, both by Hume and his friends. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Edinburgh, 21st July, 1763._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--To-day is the grand question decided by our judges, -whether they will admit of any farther proof with regard to the Douglas -affair, or whether they will rest contented with the proofs already -produced. Their partiality is palpable and astonishing; yet few people -think that they will dare to refuse inquiring into facts so remarkable -and so strongly attested. They are at present sitting, but I hope to -tell you the issue in a postscript. Our friend Johnstone[150:1] has -wrote the most super-excellentest paper in the world, which he has -promised to send to you this evening in franks. Please to deliver the -enclosed to Colonel Barré. I am," &c.[150:2] - - -We have already found one distinguished fellow-countryman of Hume -controversially attacking his works. But another and greater critic was -soon to appear. Dr. Thomas Reid was preparing for the press his "Inquiry -into the Human Mind," which he published in 1764. His was the greatest -mind which set itself in opposition to Hume's system, in British -literature; and he was great, because he examined the works of the -sceptical philosopher, not in the temper of a wrangler or partisan, but -in the honest spirit of an investigator, who is bound either to believe -in the arguments he is examining, or to set against them a system which -will satisfy his own mind, and the minds of other honest thinkers. Reid -was born in 1710, and he was exactly a year older than Hume, for the -birth-day of both was on the 26th of April.[151:1] The philosopher of -common sense, thus brought the accumulated thought and learning of -advanced years to bear on a series of works which the sceptic had -commenced in early youth. There is something in Reid's method of laying -down his principles, and explaining their application, that disinclines -the reader to allow him the palm of original genius, and suggests the -idea that he is a personification of the natural sagacity and useful -industry of his countrymen. But this feeling arises more from his hatred -of such apparent paradoxes as Hume loved, from his courting rather than -avoiding what is familiar and intelligible, and from the titles he gave -to his books, than from deficiency of true originality. Whether his -merit lay in his genius or his industry, he raised a new fabric of -philosophy out of part of those fragments to which the sceptic had -reduced previous systems. The term "common sense," which he used to -characterize his system, had been long employed in philosophy; and if -_bon sens_ may be held its equivalent, it is to be found in the -preliminary dissertation of a French translation of Hume's miscellaneous -essays, published in the same year as Reid's Inquiry.[152:1] Here, and -occasionally by Reid, it is used in its popular sense, expressing -philosophical opinions derived from the general notions of mankind. In -this sense it is an application of induction to mental operations. It -views the opinions of men at large as so many experimental facts, which, -as in the case of the physical operations of nature, may be subjected to -the rules of induction. Hume himself held that mental phenomena are as -regular, and as capable of having laws of nature applied to them, as -physical phenomena. But even if he were right, there is a disturbing -influence at force in the circumstance, that, as the operation of -induction is itself a phenomenon of the same class with those professed -to be subjected to its observation, the philosopher is apt to embody in -his writings the intuitions, if they may be so termed, of his own mind, -instead of giving such an accurate transcript of the results of external -observation as the physical inquirer is generally enabled to present. - -Indeed, it is in promulgating the convictions of his own mind as a -metaphysical thinker, more than in his avowed project of inducting from -the common phenomena of the every-day world, that Reid's writings are -most valuable. In the one case he has told us how far Hume's philosophy -is at variance with the general opinions of mankind; in which he is met -by the comprehensive argument, that Hume may, nevertheless, be right, -and the rest of mankind wrong. But in travelling beyond his avowed -object he certainly has anticipated many of those metaphysical -arguments, on which the basis of the sceptical philosophy has been -attacked; and the world has, perhaps, yet to learn how far the great -system of the German philosophers is under obligations to this powerful -thinker.[153:1] - -Before he put his "Inquiry into the Human Mind," to press, Reid desired, -through Blair's interposition, to subject the manuscript to Hume's -inspection. Fearing that this work might too closely follow the -Warburton school, Hume met the application with the rather petulant -remark: "I wish that the parsons would confine themselves to their old -occupation of worrying one another, and leave philosophers to argue with -temper, moderation, and good manners." But, after inspecting the -manuscript, he thus addressed its author: - - By Dr. Blair's means, I have been favoured with the perusal of - your performance, which I have read with great pleasure and - attention. It is certainly very rare that a piece so deeply - philosophical is wrote with so much spirit, and affords so - much entertainment to the reader; though I must still regret - the disadvantages under which I read it, as I never had the - whole performance at once before me, and could not be able - fully to compare one part with another. To this reason, - chiefly, I ascribed some obscurities, which, in spite of your - short analysis, or abstract, still seem to hang over your - system; for I must do you the justice to own that, when I - enter into your ideas, no man appears to express himself with - greater perspicuity than you do; a talent which, above all - others, is requisite in that species of literature which you - have cultivated. There are some objections, which I would - willingly propose, to the chapter "Of sight," did I not - suspect that they proceed from my not sufficiently - understanding it; and I am the more confirmed in this - suspicion, as Dr. Blair tells me that the former objections I - made, had been derived chiefly from that cause. I shall - therefore forbear till the whole can be before me, and shall - not at present propose any further difficulties to your - reasonings. I shall only say that, if you have been able to - clear up these abstruse and important subjects, instead of - being mortified, I shall be so vain as to pretend to a share - of the praise; and shall think that my errors, by having at - least some coherence, had led you to make a more strict review - of my principles, which were the common ones, and to perceive - their futility. - - As I was desirous to be of some use to you, I kept a watchful - eye all along over your style; but it is really so correct, - and so good English, that I found not any thing worth the - remarking. There is only one passage in this chapter, where - you make use of the phrase, _hinder to do_, instead of _hinder - from doing_, which is the English one; but I could not find - the passage when I sought for it. You may judge how - unexceptionable the whole appeared to me, when I could remark - so small a blemish. I beg my compliments to my friendly - adversaries, Dr. Campbell, and Dr. Gerard, and also to Dr. - Gregory, whom I suspect to be of the same disposition, though - he has not openly declared himself such.[154:1] - -This letter called forth the following answer, valuable as an -acknowledgment of the services which the Scottish school of philosophy -owed to Hume. - - -DR. REID _to_ HUME. - - _King's College, 18th March, 1763._ - - SIR,--On Monday last, Mr. John Farquhar brought me your letter - of February 25th, enclosed in one from Dr. Blair. I thought - myself very happy in having the means of obtaining at - second-hand, through the friendship of Dr. Blair, your opinion - of my performance: and you have been pleased to communicate - it directly in so polite and friendly a manner, as merits - great acknowledgments on my part. Your keeping a watchful eye - over my style, with a view to be of use to me, is an instance - of candour and generosity to an antagonist, which would affect - me very sensibly, although I had no personal concern in it, - and I shall always be proud to follow so amiable an example. - Your judgment of the style, indeed, gives me great - consolation, as I was very diffident of myself in regard to - English, and have been indebted to Drs. Campbell and Gerard - for many corrections of that kind. - - In attempting to throw some new light upon these abstruse - subjects, I wish to preserve the due mean betwixt confidence - and despair. But whether I have any success in this attempt or - not, I shall always avow myself your disciple in metaphysics. - I have learned more from your writings in this kind, than from - all others put together. Your system appears to me not only - coherent in all its parts, but likewise justly deduced from - principles commonly received among philosophers; principles - which I never thought of calling in question, until the - conclusions you draw from them in the "Treatise of Human - Nature" made me suspect them. If these principles are solid, - your system must stand; and whether they are or not, can - better be judged after you have brought to light the whole - system that grows out of them, than when the greater part of - it was wrapped up in clouds and darkness. I agree with you, - therefore, that if this system shall ever be demolished, you - have a just claim to a great share of the praise, both because - you have made it a distinct and determinate mark to be aimed - at, and have furnished proper artillery for the purpose. - - When you have seen the whole of my performance, I shall take - it as a very great favour to have your opinion upon it, from - which I make no doubt of receiving light, whether I receive - conviction or no. Your friendly adversaries, Drs. Campbell and - Gerard, as well as Dr. Gregory, return their compliments to - you respectfully. A little philosophical society here, of - which all the three are members, is much indebted to you for - its entertainment. Your company would, although we are all - good Christians, be more acceptable than that of St. - Athanasius; and since we cannot have you upon the bench, you - are brought oftener than any other man to the bar, accused and - defended with great zeal, but without bitterness. If you write - no more in morals, politics, or metaphysics, I am afraid we - shall be at a loss for subjects. I am, respectfully, sir, your - most obliged humble servant. - - THOMAS REID.[156:1] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[121:1] The works prepared by the Record Commission, whether it be true -or not that it has failed to fulfil the services expected from so large -an expenditure of the public money, present the sources of British -history on a very different scale from that in which they appeared -before Hume; and if he had lived in the present day, he would not have -attempted to write the history of the first fourteen centuries in less -than three years; or, attempting it, would have palpably overlooked -materials which, in his own time, he could not have found access to. -Among such sources may be viewed, Domesday Book, the Rotuli Hundredorum, -the many records of the various courts of justice, the "Parliamentary -writs, or writs of military summons, together with the records and -muniments relating to the suit and service due and performed to the -king's high court of parliament and the councils of the realm, as -affording evidence of attendance given at parliaments and councils;" the -remains of Anglo-Saxon legislation, collected under the name of "Ancient -laws and institutions of England," and the "Ancient laws and institutes -of Wales." - -To these must be added the many antiquarian labours of private -individuals or societies, such as the county histories, the works -circulated by the numerous book clubs, and the inquiries into the early -ecclesiastical history, which the controversies on church polity, for -which this age is becoming peculiar, have excited. The publication of -charters and other documents connected with private rights has opened a -means of becoming acquainted with contemporary habits and institutions, -slow certainly but sure. Besides his labours in the Record Commission, -Sir Francis Palgrave has excavated much curious but not attractive -matter, of which the world will never know the value till some Hume -shall arise to give it shape and symmetry. - -It has been a usual practice to rank those who, by such critical -inquiries, ascertain the truth regarding minute historical propositions, -in the category of "harmless drudges." But perhaps the character has -been applied to the really useful workers in this field, as inaptly as -it was appropriated by Dr. Johnson to the race of Lexicographers, in a -moment of bitter cynicism. Antiquarianism, archæology, palæology, or -whatever name it may receive, is a field in which there are many paltry -workers; and these are sometimes, from adventitious circumstances, -conspicuous enough to give a tone in popular estimation to the science. -Dates are but one, and perhaps an inferior branch, of the subject; yet -the labours of Petau, of Antine Durand and Clemencet the authors of the -"Art de vérifier les dates," of Newton, Hailes, and Nicolas, would be -enough to vindicate the dignity of this species of inquiry. It is, -indeed, an essential one to history; and where it has been vaguely or -unscientifically applied, the foundations of historical speculation are -rotten. The prevalent failing of antiquaries is the inability to -distinguish the important from the trifling; to perceive that the labour -which might be necessary to fix the era of the restoration of the study -of the civil law in Europe, would be ill bestowed on an inquiry into the -foundation of some inconsiderable rectorship, or the birth of some -undistinguished landed proprietor. But there is perhaps as much -worthless historical Speculation as trifling Antiquarianism extant in -literature. But it does not follow in either case, from the defects of -the injudicious, that the able and accomplished followers of the subject -were ill employed. A late and signal instance may be adduced of the -intimate connexion of the speculative and the minute departments of -history. Dr. Allen, in his "Inquiry into the rise and progress of the -royal prerogative," maintaining that the older kings of England did not -perform public acts until they had taken the coronation oath of fidelity -to the people, found that there was just one exception, in the case of -Richard II. which disconcerted his theory. It was subsequently shown by -Sir Harris Nicolas, in his "Chronology of History," that in "Rymer's -Foedera," and other public documents, the regnal years of that reign had -been by mistake antedated a year. - -But while it does not follow that the one occupation is less dignified -than the other, it is pretty clear that they cannot, to any great -extent, be both followed by the same person. The limits of human -capacity, and the shortness of human life, seem to forbid such an union; -for literature has produced no one who unites the qualities of a Camden, -a Mabillon, and a Montfouçon, with those of a Hume and a Montesquieu, -though Gibbon and Niebuhr have perhaps come nearest to the union. Mr. -D'Israeli says, (Curiosities of Literature, ii. 182,) "The time has -perhaps arrived, when antiquaries may begin to be philosophers, and -philosophers antiquaries. The unhappy separation of erudition from -philosophy, and of philosophy from erudition, has hitherto thrown -impediments in the progress of the human mind, and the history of man." -But unless that author has himself achieved the united title, by showing -that James I. was a man of great mind, and by characterizing political -economy as a mere "confusion of words," the combination appears not to -have yet been accomplished; and indeed the simple physical impossibility -of the same person who brings the fabric to perfection, having time to -produce the raw materials, seems to render it necessary that in all such -histories as that which Hume undertook, the antiquary shall precede the -historian. - -[129:1] It does not appear that even the surreptitious fragments of -Voltaire's work were printed earlier than the year in which the first -volume of the "History of the Stuarts" was published--1754. In the -Essai, Voltaire thus contrasts Hume's sagacity as an historian with the -propagators of monkish legends. "Les moines Frédegaire et Aimoin le -disent: mais ces moines, sont-ils des De Thou et des Humes?" Edit. 1785, -vol. i. p. 235. - -[132:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[133:1] It must be observed, that this method of referring to -authorities and collating them, is, even by Hume's account of it, one -which a scrupulous investigator would call slovenly. The admission of -any authorities at second hand is, to the extent to which it may be -carried, a breach of the historian's duty. To make sure that he had -rightly estimated their meaning on a first perusal, he should have -collated all his references in proof. - -[134:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[134:2] In a letter to Millar, dated 8th October, 1763, he says, on the -occasion of receiving a copy of a series of engravings, which have not -yet been surpassed, "I have been obliged to Mr. Strange for a present of -all his prints. He is a very worthy man, whom I value much, and -therefore I desire you would send him a copy of this new edition of my -History." - -[135:1] In a letter to Millar, of 6th April, 1758, (MS. R.S.E.) he thus -alludes to Smollett's work: "I am afraid the extraordinary run upon Dr. -Smollett, has a little hurt your sales; but these things are only -temporary." - -[135:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[137:1] Information communicated by Joseph Grant, Esq. - -[137:2] This is shown by a paper of no great importance in itself, among -the MSS. R.S.E. It is simply a document of instructions for defending an -action against Hume, by a builder for repairs. It is in his own hand, -and begins,-- - -"At Whitsunday last, Mr. Boswell, advocate, left Mr. Hume's house in -James's Court; and Lady Wallace, dowager, came to it. Mrs. Boswell at -that time sent for Adam Gillies, mason, to repair some plaister which -was broken. Having by this means got access to the house, he went about -and teased Lady Wallace, by telling her that many other things needed -repairs. She frequently bid him let her alone, for she saw no occasion -to trouble the landlord for any thing. Notwithstanding this, he came to -Mr. Hume, and told him that the stone pavement in the kitchen, under the -coal bunker, was all shattered, and must be repaired; and that he was -sent by Lady Wallace to tell him so. Mr. Hume having entire trust in -Lady Wallace's discretion, gave him orders to repair that pavement of -the bunker. Gillies brought him in an account for many other repairs on -the pavement of the kitchen. Mr. Hume told him that he had exceeded his -orders; and that he would not pay him till he should see Lady Wallace, -who was at that time in the country. When she came to town, she told Mr. -Hume the fact, and that Gillies had come to him, not only without her -orders but contrary to them. At the same time, Mrs. Boswell, who had -lived two years in the house, told him, that when she left it, she saw -nothing in the kitchen pavement which needed repairs. Mr. Hume therefore -refused to pay Gillies for any thing, except for the plaister, and also -for whitening the kitchen, for which he had orders. This is the cause -before the court." - -[138:1] It is supposed to have been of Hume that, when some one, in Mrs. -Piozzi's presence, observed, that he had the _lumières_, Johnson said, -"Just enough to light him to hell." Boswell mentions his having uttered -a remark about Hume, too gross to be committed to paper. It is said -that, when in Hume's presence, a mutual friend offered to make Johnson -acquainted with him, the author of the "Rambler" roared out, "No, sir." - -[140:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[141:1] It is pretty well known, that he managed to persuade Garrick -that a niche would be found, in the life of the first commander of his -day, for the first dramatist of the succeeding generation. The manager -immediately asked if Mallet had given up writing for the stage: -fortunately he discovered that he had not; he had a manuscript play in -his pocket. - -With Mrs. Mallet, who was in all respects worthy of her husband, Hume -had some acquaintance; but he does not appear to have had much respect -for her. Lord Charlemont says, "I never saw him so much displeased, or -so much disconcerted, as by the petulance of Mrs. Mallet, the conceited -wife of Bolingbroke's editor. This lady, who was not acquainted with -Hume, meeting him one night at an assembly, boldly accosted him in these -words, 'Mr. Hume, give me leave to introduce myself to you; we Deists -ought to know each other.' 'Madam,' replied he, 'I am no Deist; I do not -style myself so, neither do I desire to be known by that -appellation.'"--_Hardy's Memoir of Charlemont_, p. 122. - -[142:1] This letter is not dated. It may be questioned whether it be -either the one referred to in the preceding, or in the following letter -by Hume. - -[143:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[144:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[146:1] The alteration of the customs duties by the authority of the -crown. - -[146:2] The case of Sir George Markham, who was fined £10,000 in the -Star-chamber, for rudeness to a peer, is not stated in the first -edition. In the latest editions, the case is stated as it had been set -down on Lansdowne's authority, and there is merely a note mentioning -that Hobart gives a different account of it. See Hobart, p. 120. - -[147:1] Minto MSS. - -[147:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[148:1] The quarrel between Wilkes and Armstrong excited much interest. -They had been close friends, and Wilkes had advanced money to Armstrong -in his need. The latter had ventured to pass a slight sarcasm on -Churchill, who returned it ten-fold, taking Wilkes to his assistance, -who abused Armstrong among the other Scots, in some letters in _The -Public Advertiser_. A very amusing and dramatic dialogue between them -will be found in _The Gentleman's Magazine_ for 1782. - -[148:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[149:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[149:2] See Vol. I. p. 221. - -[149:3] Memorials of Oswald, p. 79. - -[149:4] Scroll MS. R.S.E. - -[150:1] William Johnstone of Westerhall, afterwards Sir William -Pulteney. - -[150:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[151:1] Stewart's Life of Reid. It is not stated whether the date is -estimated by the old or the new style. Hume's birth-day is old style. - -[152:1] Oeuvres Philosophiques de M. D. Hume, &c., 4 vols. 12mo, 1764. - -[153:1] When are the public to be in possession of Sir William -Hamilton's edition of Reid? I have had the privilege of seeing the proof -sheets of this work, so far as it had proceeded, before ill health had, -for a time, interrupted the labours of the professor of logic. The -quantity of learning and deep thought concentrated in the commentary, is -such as, perhaps, but one man in this country could have brought -together; and the natural feeling suggested on the perusal was, regret -that so much of these qualities had been expended in notes and -illustrative essays, instead of being published in a separate work. - -[154:1] Stewart's Life of Reid. - -[156:1] MS. R.S.E. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -1763-1764. Æt. 52-53. - - Lord Hertford's appointment to the French Embassy, and - invitation to Hume to accompany him--Correspondence on the - occasion--Residence in London, and remarks on the Political - Movements of 1763--State of his reputation in France--His - Arrival--Letters to friends at home about his flattering - reception--The young French princes--Observations on eminent - French people--His recommendations to a Clergyman-- - Introductions of Fellow Countrymen. - - -On the conclusion of the treaty of 1763, the Marquis of Hertford was -appointed ambassador to the court of France. He invited Hume to attend -him as secretary; and there is no reason to believe that the selection -was owing to any other motive than the desire to place an able and -honest man in office. The Marquis was a man of high moral character, and -his religious opinions appear to have been considered by some of his -contemporaries as too zealous and exclusive. The intercourse thus -occasioned, was the commencement of a lasting friendship, in which the -English Marquis and the Scottish philosopher, however separated by -nominal difference of rank, had too genuine a respect for each other to -be affected by such inequalities. The intimacy extended to General -Seymour Conway, the brother of the Marquis; and Hume's intercourse with -them both, tends to confirm the impression which the portraits of the -two brothers convey to the present generation, of dispositions open, -kind, and artless. In reference to this event, Hume says, in his "own -life," "I retired to my native country of Scotland, determined never -more to set my foot out of it; and retaining the satisfaction of never -having preferred a request to one great man, or even making advances of -friendship to any of them. As I was now turned of fifty, I thought of -passing all the rest of my life in this philosophical manner, when I -received, in 1763, an invitation from the Earl of Hertford, with whom I -was not in the least acquainted, to attend him on his embassy to Paris, -with a near prospect of being appointed secretary to the embassy, and, -in the meanwhile, of performing the functions of that office. This -offer, however inviting, I at first declined, both because I was -reluctant to begin connexions with the great, and because I was afraid -that the civilities and gay company of Paris, would prove disagreeable -to a person of my age and humour: but on his lordship's repeating the -invitation, I accepted of it. I have every reason, both of pleasure and -interest, to think myself happy in my connexions with that nobleman, as -well as afterwards with his brother, General Conway." - -We have, in his familiar correspondence, a fuller account of his -feelings on the occasion. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Edinburgh, 9th August, 1763._ - -"MY DEAR FRIEND,--I have got an invitation, accompanied with great -prospects and expectations, from Lord Hertford, if I would accompany -him, though at first without any character, in his embassy to Paris. I -hesitated much on the acceptance of this offer, though in appearance -very inviting: and I thought it ridiculous at my years, to be entering -on a new scene, and to put myself in the lists as a candidate of -fortune. But I reflected that I had in a manner abjured all literary -occupations; that I resolved to give up my future life entirely to -amusements; that there could not be a better pastime than such a -journey, especially with a man of Lord Hertford's character; and that it -would be easy to prevent my acceptance from having the least appearance -of dependance. For these reasons, and by the advice of every friend whom -I consulted, I at last agreed to accompany his lordship, and I set out -to-morrow for London. I am a little hurried in my preparations; but I -could not depart without bidding you adieu, my good friend, and without -acquainting you with the reasons of so sudden a movement. I have not -great expectations of revisiting this country soon; but I hope it will -not be impossible but we may meet abroad, which will be a great -satisfaction to me. I am," &c.[158:1] - - -HUME _to_ BARON MURE. - -"_Lisle St. 1st Sept. 1763._ - -"MY DEAR BARON,--As I am not sure where you are, nor whether this -direction be right, I am obliged to speak to you with reserve, both of -public affairs and of my own. Of the latter, I shall only say, that -notwithstanding of my first reluctance, I am entirely reconciled to my -present situation, and have a great prepossession, or rather, indeed, a -great esteem and affection for the person and family whom I am to -accompany to France. The prospect of my being secretary to the embassy -is neither very distant nor is it immediate; but Lord Hertford will -certainly, before our departure, obtain a settlement for me for life; -which at any events will improve my fortune, and is a great pledge of -his friendship and regard. - -"I have insulted [consulted] Elliot, Sir Harry, Oswald, and all our -friends of that administration. The former said to me, that my situation -was, taking all its circumstances, the most wonderful event in the -world. I was now a person clean and white as the driven snow; and that -were I to be proposed for the see of Lambeth, no objection could -henceforth be made to me. What makes the matter more extraordinary, is, -that the idea first came into my patron's head, without the suggestion -of any one mortal.[159:1] - -"You must have heard of the late most astonishing events with regard to -public affairs.[159:2] Yesterday Lord Bute had a pretty large company -dining with him, to whom he gave an account of the whole transactions, -and desired them to publish it. - -"One of them, a friend of mine, as soon as he went home, took it down in -writing, of which he gave me a copy, and which I transmit to you. He is -a military man, and his style is not elegant; but I am sure, from -another certain authority, that the account is in the main just; only I -have reason to think that Lord Halifax was proscribed along with the -rest; at least he said so yesterday to a friend of mine. I wish this -high spirit of his M. may be supported. But _femme qui écoute et ville -qui parle sont bientôt rendues_. Lord Bute goes abroad very soon. Some -pretend that the present administration is more enraged against him than -is the opposition, on account of his taking this important step without -consulting them. Never in any history was there so curious a scene; nor -was there ever so formidable a demagogue as this man. Lord Sandwich, it -is said, will be secretary for some weeks; our friend Wood is so at -present. Many of the leading men in the opposition were left out on Mr. -Pitt's plan; which, it is thought, will breed dissensions among them. - -"I dined yesterday with Lord Chesterfield, along with Colonel Irvine. -The Colonel made an apology for our arriving so late, on account of his -being detained at court. 'At court?' said my lord: 'I should be glad to -know what place that is.' Dear Mure, yours."[160:1] - - -In an earlier part of this work, we have found Hume narrating events of -contemporary military history. In the following, as in the preceding -letter, he gives his version of a celebrated ministerial revolution, of -which the public is as yet possessed of no account which is not liable -to doubt. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Lisle St. 13th Sept. 1763._ - -"MY DEAR SMITH,--The settlement which I had made in Scotland was so much -to my mind, I had indeed struck root so heartily, that it was with the -utmost reluctance I could think of transplanting myself, and I began to -approach towards that age in which these experiments became no longer -practicable with safety. I own that, on my arrival in London, I found -every circumstance more inviting than I had reason to expect; -particularly the characters of Lord and Lady Hertford, who are allowed -to be the two persons the most unexceptionable among all the English -nobility. Even that circumstance of Lord Hertford's character, his great -piety, ought to make my connexions with him more agreeable, both because -it is not attended with any thing sour and rigid, and because I draw the -more honour from his choice, while he overlooked so many seeming -objections which lay against me on that head. My fortune also receives a -great addition during life from this connexion; besides many openings to -ambition, were I so simple as to be exposed to temptation from that -passion. - -"But, notwithstanding all these considerations, shall I tell you the -truth? I repine at my loss of ease and leisure, and retirement and -independence; and it is not without a sigh I look backwards, nor without -reluctance that I cast my eye forwards. Is this sentiment an instinct -which admonishes me of the situation most proper and suitable to me? Or -is it a momentary disgust, the effect of low spirits, which company and -amusement, and a better state of health, will soon dissipate and remove? -I must wait with patience till I see the decision of this question. - -"I find that one view of Lord Hertford in engaging me to go along with -him is, that he thinks I may be useful to Lord Beauchamp in his studies. -That young nobleman is generally spoke of as very amiable and very -promising; but I remember, though faintly, to have heard from you -something to the contrary, which you had heard from that severe critic, -Mr. Herbert: I should be obliged to you for informing me of it. I have -not yet seen my Lord Beauchamp, who is at this time in Paris. We shall -not leave London these three weeks. - -"You have, no doubt, heard of the strange jumble among our ministers, -and of the negotiation opened with Mr. Pitt. Never story was told with -such contrary circumstances as that of his secret conference with the -king, and of the terms demanded by that popular leader. The general -outlines of the whole story seem to be these: - -"Lord Bute, disgusted with the ministers, who had almost universally -conspired to neglect him, and suspecting their bottom to be too narrow, -had, before Lord Egremont's death, opened a negotiation with Mr. Pitt, -by means of Lord Shelburne, who employed Calcraft the agent. Mr. Pitt -says, that he always declared it highly improper that he should be -brought to the king, before all terms were settled on such a footing as -to render it impossible for them to separate without agreeing. He -accordingly thought they were settled. His first conference with the -king confirmed him in that opinion, and he wrote to the Duke of -Devonshire to come to town, in order to place himself at the head of the -treasury. The Duke of Newcastle said, at his table on Sunday was a -fortnight, that the ministry was settled. But when Mr. Pitt came to the -king that afternoon, he found him entirely changed, and every thing was -retracted that had been agreed on. This is his story. The other party -says, that he rose in his terms, and wanted to impose the most -exorbitant conditions on his sovereign. I suppose that the first -conference passed chiefly in generals, and that Mr. Pitt would then be -extremely humble, and submissive, and polite, and dutiful in his -expressions. But when he came to particulars, they did not seem to -correspond with these appearances. At least, this is the best account I -can devise of the matter, consistent with the honour of both parties. - -"You would see the present ministry by the papers. It is pretended that -they are enraged against Lord Bute, for negotiating without their -knowledge or consent; and that the other party are no less displeased -with him for not finishing the treaty with them. That nobleman declared -his resolution of going abroad a week or two ago. Now he is determined -to pass the winter in London. Our countrymen are visibly hurt in this -justle of parties, which I believe to be far from the intentions of Lord -Bute. Lord Shelburne resigned, because he found himself obnoxious on -account of his share in the negotiation. I see you are much displeased -with that nobleman, but he always speaks of you with regard. I hear that -your pupil, Mr. Fitzmaurice, makes a very good figure at Paris. - -"It is generally thought that Mr. Pitt has gained credit and force by -this negotiation. It turns the eyes of the public towards him. It shows -that the king can overlook personal resentment against him and Lord -Temple. It gains him the confidence of his own party, who see that he -was negotiating for the whole of them; and puts people in mind of the -French rhyme,--_ville qui parle et femme qui écoute_. - -"You would hear that the case of the Douglas is now made clear, even in -the eyes the most blinded and most prejudiced, which I am glad of on -account of our friends. I am," &c.[163:1] - - -The following notice, by one who has unfortunately left nothing behind -to show posterity the grounds on which his reputation rested, the Rev. -Dr. Carlyle, will be read with interest. - - Robertson has managed with great address: he is principal, - chaplain, minister, historiographer, and historian; that is to - say, he has £50 a-year and a house, certain, besides what he - can make by his books. It was taken for granted that he was to - resign his charge on being appointed historiographer with £200 - salary; but that he will do at his leisure. It is also - supposed by his patrons, that he is to write the History of - Britain in ten volumes quarto; that also, I presume, (dreadful - task,) he will execute at his leisure. - - Honest David Home, [Hume,] with the heart of all others that - rejoices most at the prosperity of his friends, was certainly - a little hurt with this last honour conferred on Robertson. A - lucky accident has given him relief. The Earl of Hertford is - appointed ambassador to France: not very capable himself, they - have loaded him with an insignificant secretary, one Charles - Bunbury, who, for the sake of pleasure, more than the thousand - a-year, solicited for the office. Hertford knew David, and - some good genius prompted him to ask him to go along and - manage the business. It is an honourable character: he will - see his friends in France. If he tires, he can return when he - pleases. Bunbury will probably tire first, and then David will - become secretary.[164:1] - -The following letter, without address, appears to have been written to -Dr. Carlyle. - - -"_Lisle Street, 15th Sept. 1763._ - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--The case of poor Blacklock gives me great distress; and -so much the more, as I am afraid it is not in the power of any human -being to relieve him.[165:1] His unhappiness seems to proceed from the -infirmity of his body, and the delicacy, not to say weakness, of his -mind. He has wrote to me letters full of the bitterest anguish, on -account of the treatment he meets with from his parishioners. I believe -it is not good; but it is impossible not to think it exaggerated by his -imagination: and I am of your opinion that the same persecution, partly -real, partly imaginary, would follow him in every other settlement. I -had concerted with Baron Mure a very likely scheme for his removal; but -to what purpose would this serve, if the same complaints must return in -his new situation? I agree with you, that a small pension, could it be -obtained, might bestow on him some degree of tranquillity; but how to -obtain it I profess I do not know, as I suppose you will readily -believe. That door was never very wide for men of letters; and is become -still narrower than ever." - - -He proceeds, in terms similar to those already recorded, to state his -satisfaction in the connexion with Lord Hertford, and continues:-- - - -"I go to a place of the world which I have always admired the most; and -it is not easy to imagine a reception better than I have reason to -expect. What, then, can be wanting to my happiness? I hope, nothing; or -if any thing, it will only be an age and temper better adapted to vanity -and dissipation. I beg of you to embrace Mrs. Carlisle in my name, and -to assure her of my sincere respects. - -"I write no politics, having now become a politician. Please address -yourself to John Hume for information on that head. Let him explain to -you his patron's situation!!!! Pray, is there any body such an idiot at -present as to be a partisan of the Douglas?" - - -To obtain literary distinction in France at that time, was to be -received at court. The star of Germany had not yet risen in the horizon -of literature, and the great monarch and warrior of the Teutonic tribes -treated his native tongue as the speech of boors, tried to distinguish -himself in French literature, and was ambitious of being received into -equal companionship with the popular authors of France. Britain, -notwithstanding her series of illustrious names, had not yet quite -shaken off an air of provincialism. Shakspere was a strange wild genius, -full of barbarisms and abominable galimatias: Voltaire had said it, and -it was a judgment, not an opinion. Some discontented Frerons or Arnauds, -might cavil against it: but this was rebellion, not controversy. The -greatness of our masters in science and philosophy was fully admitted; -but they were viewed as citizens of the great world of letters, -accidentally born in one of its more barren districts; and they were -scarcely more closely identified with the national literature of their -country, than Linnæus might be with that of Sweden, or Tycho Brahe with -that of Denmark. In truth, the apparent interregnum, following the -decline of the Latin as the literary language of the world, appeared -likely to end in the establishment of the French as its successor. Such -expectations gave to the literature of France a metropolitan air, with -which no other could cope; and communicated to those natives of other -places, whose name was honoured in the French circles of letters, a -corresponding elevation.[167:1] Hume would have been impervious to the -most conclusive evidence on the subject, if he had failed to know how -greatly he was honoured among all the literary circles of the continent, -and particularly in those of the metropolis of literature. Lord Elibank, -writing from Paris, on 11th May, 1763, says to him, "No author ever yet -attained to that degree of reputation in his own lifetime that you are -now in possession of at Paris;"[167:2] and the extent of his fame was -abundantly attested by others.[167:3] - -Hume arrived in France on the 14th day of October, 1763. Of his -reception, his own letters will give the best account. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Fontainbleau, 26th Oct. 1763._ - -"MY DEAR SMITH,--I have been three days at Paris, and two at -Fontainbleau, and have every where met with the most extraordinary -honours, which the most exorbitant vanity could wish or desire. The -compliments of dukes and marischals of France, and foreign ambassadors, -go for nothing with me at present: I retain a relish for no kind of -flattery but that which comes from the ladies. All the courtiers, who -stood around when I was introduced to Madame de Pompadour, assured me -that she was never heard to say so much to any man; and her brother, to -whom she introduced me,----[169:1] But I forget already, that I am to -scorn all the civilities of men. However, even Madame Pompadour's -civilities were, if possible, exceeded by those of the Duchesse de -Choiseul, the wife of the favourite and Prime Minister, and one of the -ladies of the most distinguished merit in France. Not contented with the -many obliging things she said to me on my first introduction, she sent -to call me from the other end of the room, in order to repeat them, and -to enter into a short conversation with me: and not contented with that, -she sent the Danish ambassador after me, to assure me, that what she -said was not from politeness, but that she seriously desired to be in -friendship and correspondence with me. There is not a courtier in -France, who would not have been transported with joy, to have had the -half of these obliging things said to him by either of these great -ladies; but what may appear more extraordinary, both of them, as far as -I could conjecture, have read with some care all my writings that have -been translated into French,--that is, almost all my writings. The king -said nothing particular to me, when I was introduced to him; and (can -you imagine it) I was become so silly, as to be a little mortified by -it, till they told me, that he never says any thing to any body the -first time he sees them. The Dauphin, as I am told from all hands, -declares himself on every occasion very strongly in my favour; and many -people assure me, that I have reason to be proud of his judgment, even -were he an individual. I have scarce seen any of the geniuses of Paris, -who, I think, have in general great merit, as men of letters. But every -body is forward to tell me the high panegyrics I receive from them; and -you may believe that ----[170:1] approbation which has procured me all -these civilities from the courtiers. - -"I know you are ready to ask me, my dear friend, if all this does not -make me very happy: No, I feel little or no difference. As this is the -first letter I write to my friends at home, I have amused myself, (and I -hope I have amused you,) by giving you a very abridged account of these -transactions. But can I ever forget, that it is the very same species, -that would scarce show me common civilities a very few years ago at -Edinburgh, who now receive me with such applauses at Paris? I assure -you, I reap more internal satisfaction from the very amiable manners -and character of the family in which I live, (I mean Lord and Lady -Hertford, and Lord Beauchamp,) than from all these external vanities; -and it is that domestic enjoyment which must be considered as the -agreeable circumstance in my situation. During the two last days, in -particular, that I have been at Fontainbleau I have _suffered_ (the -expression is not improper) as much flattery as almost any man has ever -done in the same time. But there are few days in my life, when I have -been in good health, that I would not rather pass over again. Mr. -Neville, our minister, an honest, worthy English gentleman, who carried -me about, was astonished at the civilities I met with; and has assured -me, that on his return, he will not fail to inform the king of England -and the English ministry of all these particulars. But enough of all -these follies. You see I trust to your friendship, that you will forgive -me; and to your discretion, that you will keep my secret. - -"I had almost forgot, in these effusions, shall I say of my misanthropy -or my vanity, to mention the subject which first put my pen in my hand. -The Baron d'Holbach, whom I saw at Paris, told me, that there was one -under his eye that was translating your 'Theory of Moral Sentiments;' -and desired me to inform you of it.[171:1] Mr. Fitzmaurice, your old -friend, interests himself strongly in this undertaking. Both of them -wish to know, if you propose to make any alterations on the work, and -desire you to inform me of your intentions in that particular. Please -direct to me under cover to the Earl of Hertford at Northumberland -House, London. Letters so directed will be sent to us at Paris. I desire -my compliments to all friends. I am, my dear Smith, yours -sincerely."[172:1] - - -HUME _to_ PROFESSOR FERGUSON. - -"_Fontainbleau, 9th Nov. 1763._ - -"DEAR FERGUSON,--I have now passed four days at Paris, and about a -fortnight in the court at Fontainbleau, amidst a people who, from the -royal family downwards, seem to have it much at heart to persuade me, by -every expression of esteem, that they consider me as one of the greatest -geniuses in the world. I am convinced that Louis XIV. never, in any -three weeks of his life, suffered so much flattery: I say suffered, for -it really confounds and embarrasses me, and makes me look sheepish. Lord -Hertford has told them they will chase me out of France, _à coup de -complimens et de louanges_. Our friend, General Clerk, came to this -place after I had passed a week in it; and the first thing he said to me -was, that he was sure I had never passed so many days with so little -satisfaction. I asked him how he had happened to guess so well. He said, -because he knew me, and knew the French. I really wish often for the -plain roughness of the _Poker_,[172:2] and particularly the sharpness of -Dr. Jardine, to correct and qualify so much lusciousness. However, I -meet sometimes with incidents that please me, because they contain no -mixture of French complaisance or exaggeration. Yesterday I dined at the -Duc de Praslin's, the secretary of state. After we had risen from -dinner, I went into a corner to converse with somebody; when I saw -enter the room, a tall gentleman, a little elderly, with a riband and -star, who immediately called out to the Duchesse de Praslin, 'Hé, Madame -la Duchesse, que je suis content, j'ai vu Monsieur Hume à la cour -aujourd'hui.' Upon inquiry, I was told he was a man of quality, esteemed -one of the cleverest and most sensible about the court. - -"In two or three days we return to Paris, where I hope to live more at -my ease, and shall pass my time with really great men; for there are -such at present amongst the literati of France. Certainly there is -something perverse, either in the structure of our mind, or in the -incidents of life. My present situation ought naturally to appear an -object of envy; for besides those circumstances of an universal good -reception from all ranks of people, nothing can be more amiable than the -character of the family with whom I live, and nothing can be more -friendly than their behaviour to me. My fortune has already received a -considerable increase by a pension procured me by Lord Hertford, and -settled as they tell me for life. Mr. Bunbury has been told that he must -not go to Paris, which my lord considers as a sure prelude to my being -soon secretary to the embassy; an office which will expose me to little -expense, and bring me a thousand a-year increase of revenue, and puts me -in the road to all the great foreign employments. Yet I am sensible that -I set out too late, and that I am misplaced; and I wish, twice or thrice -a-day, for my easy chair and my retreat in James's Court! Never think, -dear Ferguson, that as long as you are master of your own fireside and -your own time, you can be unhappy, or that any other circumstance can -make an addition to your enjoyment. - -"When I think of my own house, you may believe I often reflect on -Josey, who I am afraid will be more a loser by my absence, than ever I -shall be a gainer by it; I mean in point of his education. I beg of you -to have some inspection over him, and as often as my sister shall send -to you to ask your advice, that you will be sure to give it. I am afraid -that there occurs a difficulty at present about entering him to the -Greek. He is too far advanced by his learning for the class in the High -School to which he is put, and yet he is too young to go to the college: -for this reason I thought that he might learn something of the Greek -before he finished his Latin course, as is the practice in England; and, -accordingly, Murray in Musselburgh gave him some lessons in that -language. I propose that he should continue on the same footing in -Edinburgh; but I am at a loss how it may be done. A master to himself -alone, would not give him any emulation; and were he put to any other -school for this purpose, the hours would interfere with those of the -High School. Be so good as speak to Mathison, and then give your opinion -to my sister. - -"Please remember me to Mr. and Mrs. Adams.[174:1] I saw Willie a moment -at Fontainbleau: he had arrived a quarter of an hour after Jemmy left -it, whom I did not see. These two brothers have been hunting one another -in vain through all France; but I hope they have met at last in Paris. - -"When you favour me with a letter, put it under cover to the Earl of -Hertford, and direct it to him at Northumberland House, in the Strand; -letters so directed come to us with the greatest safety. Make my -compliments to Baron Mure, and Mrs. Mure, and all that family. I shall -write to the Baron soon. Tell Dr. Blair that I have conversed here twice -or thrice with the Duchesse D'Aiguillon, who has been amusing herself -with translating passages of Ossian; and I have assured her that the -authenticity of those poems is to be proved soon beyond all -contradiction. Andrew Stuart is here at present: I meet with nobody here -that doubts of the justice of his cause. I hope your fine judges will at -last be ashamed of their scandalous partiality. I should be glad to hear -of all friends. I am, dear Ferguson, with great sincerity and without -flattery, your affectionate friend and servant. - -"P.S.--I beg you to keep the follies of the above letter to yourself. I -had a letter from Lord Marischal to-day, who tells me that he is to pass -the winter at Edinburgh. Wait often on him; you will like him extremely: -carry all our friends to him, and endeavour to make him pass his time as -agreeably as possible."[175:1] - - -We shall have farther opportunities of observing the affectionate -anxiety with which Hume watched over the education of his nephews. Adam -Ferguson appears to have undertaken the task of noticing the progress of -Joseph, the elder nephew, during Hume's absence, to whom he writes, in -answer to the above:-- - - _Edinburgh, 26th Nov. 1763._ - - At present his journal, as he tells me, begins with getting up - at eight, taking his breakfast and going to school, where he - remains to eleven. Then to the High School Yard to play at - Englishman and Scotsman, or the hare and the dogs; of which I - take the merit, as I saved him from the writing-school at that - hour. He returns to school at twelve, and continues till two: - goes to writing between three and four; and spends his - evenings, as he tells me, in getting his school tasks, or in - reading amusing books,--such as his uncle's history. In short, - he is a very amiable boy, with quick parts, in my opinion as - well as yours; and there is no doubt but he will do well. I am - very glad of every thing that gives you pleasure,--even of - some things that give you pain. From all accounts, both before - and since you went to Paris, it might be foreseen that your - reception, even from sincere as well as affected admirers, - would amount to a degree of teasing. But all for the best, as - my fellow philosopher, Pangloss, says. I don't care if you are - "chassé de France à coups de complimens, et accablé en - Angleterre à coups de richesse," so as not to find any rest to - the soles of your feet out of Scotland. I would fain consider - every accession to your fortune as so many dishes added to the - future dinners in James's Court; and your eclat in France, as - the forerunner of much variety of chosen and excellent wines - from every quarter of that great kingdom. Meantime, though I - like to lounge at firesides in practice, I have not, in - speculation, that opinion you mention. I know nothing that is - necessary to happiness but cordiality and the talent of - finding diversion in all places. I remember, somewhere, a - man's being told that he was too nice, because he could not - dine on a ragout, and must have cold mutton. But I should not, - perhaps, contradict you so flatly, nor rub so hard, - considering how tender your sensibility will be grown after so - many lenient applications.[176:1] - - -HUME _to_ DR. ROBERTSON. - - _Paris, Dec. 1, 1763._ - - DEAR ROBERTSON,--Among other agreeable circumstances which - attend me at Paris, I must mention that of having a lady for a - translator; a woman of merit, the widow of an advocate.[176:2] - She was, before, very poor, and known but to few; but this - work has got her reputation, and procured her a pension from - the court, which sets her at ease. She tells me that she has - got a habit of industry; and would continue, if I could point - out to her any other English book she could undertake, without - running the risk of being anticipated by any other translator. - Your "History of Scotland" is translated, and is in the press; - but I recommended to her your "History of Charles V.," and - promised to write to you, in order to know when it would be - printed, and to desire you to send over the sheets from - London, as they come from the press; I should put them into - her hands, and she would, by that means, have the start of - every other translator.[177:1] My two volumes last published, - are, at present, in the press. She has a very easy natural - style: sometimes she mistakes the sense; but I now correct her - manuscript, and should be happy to render you the same - service, if my leisure permit me, as I hope it will. - - Do you ask me about my course of life? I can only say, that I - eat nothing but ambrosia, drink nothing but nectar, breathe - nothing but incense, and tread on nothing but flowers! Every - man I meet, and, still more, every lady, would think they were - wanting in the most indispensable duty, if they did not make a - long and elaborate harangue in my praise. What happened last - week, when I had the honour of being presented to the D----n's - children, at Versailles, is one of the most curious scenes I - have yet passed through. The Duc de B., the eldest, a boy of - ten years old, stepped forth, and told me how many friends - and admirers I had in this country, and that he reckoned - himself in the number, from the pleasure he had received from - the reading of many passages in my works. When he had - finished, his brother, the Count de P., who is two years - younger, began his discourse, and informed me, that I had been - long and impatiently expected in France; and that he himself - expected soon to have great satisfaction from the reading of - my fine History. But what is more curious; when I was carried - thence to the Count D'A., who is but four years of age, I - heard him mumble something which, though he had forgot in the - way, I conjectured, from some scattered words, to have been - also a panegyric dictated to him. Nothing could more surprise - my friends, the Parisian philosophers, than this incident. - - * * * * * - - It is conjectured that this honour was paid me by express - order from the D.[178:1], who, indeed, is not on any occasion - sparing in my praise. - - All this attention and panegyric was at first oppressive to - me; but now it sits more easy. I have recovered, in some - measure, the use of the language, and am falling into - friendships which are very agreeable; much more so than silly, - distant admiration. They now begin to banter me, and tell - droll stories of me, which they have either observed - themselves, or have heard from others; so that you see I am - beginning to be at home. It is probable that this place will - be long my home. I feel little inclination to the factious - barbarians of London; and have ever desired to remain in the - place where I am planted. How much more so, when it is the - best place in the world? I could here live in great abundance - on the half of my income; for there is no place where money is - so little requisite to a man who is distinguished, either by - his birth or by personal qualities. I could run out, you see, - in a panegyric on the people; but you would suspect that this - was a mutual convention between us. However, I cannot forbear - observing on what a different footing learning and the learned - are here, from what they are among the factious barbarians - abovementioned. - - I have here met with a prodigious historical curiosity, the - "Memoirs of King James II." in fourteen volumes, all wrote - with his own hand, and kept in the Scots College. I have - looked into it; and have made great discoveries.[179:1] It - will be all communicated to me: and I have had an offer of - access to the Secretary of State's office, if I want to know - the despatches of any French minister that resided in London. - But these matters are much out of my head. I beg of you to - visit Lord Marischal, who will be pleased with your company. I - have little paper remaining, and less time; and therefore - conclude abruptly by assuring you that I am, dear Doctor, - yours sincerely, &c.[179:2] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - - _Paris, 1st Dec. 1763._ - - DEAR SIR,--I have here fallen upon a great treasure, as I - believe, of historical knowledge; which is, fifteen volumes of - the late King James's Memoirs, wrote all with his own hand. I - shall be able to make use of them for improving and - correcting many passages of my History, in case of a new - edition; which, however, I fancy will not be soon. I am glad - to see public affairs likely to settle in favour of - government. Nobody ever led a more dissipated life than I do - here. Please send to Mr. Stewart, in Buckingham Street, six - copies of the new edition of my History; and two of the last - large paper quarto, all in sheets. Make them carefully up in a - parcel: he is to send them to me. I shall be your debtor for - the quartos. I should be glad to hear from you. My direction - is at the English ambassador's. Excuse my hurry. I beg my - compliments to Mrs. Millar. I am, very sincerely, dear sir, - your most humble servant. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR.[180:1] - - DEAR DOCTOR,--I write every thing in haste, except on public - affairs, which are the only serious matters I have leisure to - mind: so, excuse this letter, if it prove a scrawl. I approve - very much of your plan for ascertaining the authenticity of - Ossian's Poems; and I doubt not of your success. I do not - think you can publish all the letters you receive, which - nobody would read: a summary of them will do better; but - endeavour to be as particular as you can with regard to names - of persons and passages: for the force of your argument will - be there. I have met here with enthusiasts for Ossian's - poetry; but there are also several critics who are of my - opinion, that, though great beauties, they are also great - curiosities, and that they are a little tedious by reason of - their uniformity. - - You desire to know the particulars of my reception here, and - my course of life. I own I write little upon this subject, and - always with some degree of secrecy, both because I wish to - have such intelligence conveyed by others rather than myself, - and because I am somewhat indifferent whether it be conveyed - or not. However, I wrote some circumstances to Robertson, - which I allow him to communicate to you. I suppose this, like - all other violent modes, will pass; and, in the meanwhile, the - hurry and dissipation attending it, gives me more pain than - pleasure. Never was there a stronger instance of the vanity - of human wishes. But this embarrassment proceeds chiefly from - my own fault, and from a vain anxiety to give no offence nor - displeasure to any body. - - The men of letters here are really very agreeable: all of them - men of the world, living in entire, or almost entire harmony - among themselves, and quite irreproachable in their morals. It - would give you, and Jardine, and Robertson, great satisfaction - to find that there is not a single deist among them. Those - whose persons and conversation I like best, are D'Alembert, - Buffon, Marmontel, Diderot, Duclos, Helvetius, and old - President Henault, who, though now decaying, retains that - amiable character which made him once the delight of all - France. He had always the best cook and the best company in - Paris. But though I know you will laugh at me, as they do, I - must confess that I am more carried away from their society - than I should be, by the great ladies, with whom I became - acquainted at my first introduction to court, and whom my - connexions with the English ambassador will not allow me - entirely to drop. - - Nothing can be more easy and agreeable than my situation with - Lord Hertford, who is a man of strict honour, an amiable - temper, a good understanding, and an elegant person and - behaviour. He takes very much in this place. He has got an - opinion very well founded, that the more acquaintance I make, - and the greater intimacies I form with the French, the more I - am enabled to be of service to him: so he exacts no attendance - from me; and is well pleased to find me carried into all kinds - of company. He tells me, that if he did not meet me by chance - in third places, we should go out of acquaintance. Thus you - see my present plan of life sketched out; but it is unsuitable - to my age and temper; and I am determined to retrench and to - abandon the fine folks, before they abandon me.[181:1] - -During his absence, Hume's house was let to Blair. In this letter he -gives pretty minute instructions as to the most advantageous -distribution of the occupation of the apartments, which incidentally -illustrate his own domestic habits. Thus-- - - Never put a fire in the south room with the red paper. It is - so warm of itself, that all last winter, which was a very - severe one, I lay with a single blanket; and frequently upon - coming in at midnight, starving with cold, have sat down and - read for an hour, as if I had had a stove in the room. - - You think it inconvenient to take the house only for an - interval. Alas! my prospects of being home are very distant - and very uncertain: I am afraid I might say worse. My - connexions with Lord Hertford must probably last for some - years; after which, I shall be rich enough to live in Paris or - London as I please, or to retire to a provincial town in - France, or to Bath, or God knows whither. I like to keep my - house in case of accidents, and therefore neither choose to - sell it, nor let a lease of it; but there is no great chance - of your being disturbed in it for some time. I am, &c. - - P.S.--Pray, do you not all pay court to the Lord - Marischal?[182:1] Do you imagine that you ever saw so - excellent a man? or that you have any chance for seeing his - equal if he were gone? - - -HUME _to_ COLONEL EDMONDSTOUNE. - - _Paris, 9th January, 1764._ - - DEAR EDMONDSTOUNE,--I was fully settled, and, as I thought, - for life at Edinburgh; had bought a very pretty little house, - which I had repaired and furnished to my fancy; had purchased - a chaise, and fixed every thing about my family on such a - footing as to continue there the rest of my days. But while I - was in this situation, which was far from disagreeable, I - received a letter from my friend Mr. Wood, wrote by directions - from Lord Hertford, by which I was invited to attend his - lordship in his embassy to Paris, and to perform the - functions of secretary to the embassy. I had never seen Lord - Hertford, though I had heard an excellent character of him; - but as I thought myself too old to enter on a new scene of - life, and found myself settled to my mind, I at first refused - the invitation; but on its being urged more home to me, I came - up to London, where I found that Mr. Bunbury, a gentleman of - considerable fortune, and married to the Duke of Richmond's - sister, had already been appointed secretary; but was so - disagreeable to the ambassador, that he was resolved never to - see, or do business with his secretary, and therefore desired - I should attend him, in order to perform the functions. He - also thought himself certain that Bunbury could not possibly - continue in the situation; but in order to make me more - secure, he procured me a pension of £200 a-year for life, from - the king. As I became every day better acquainted with my - lord, I liked him every day better; and I do not believe there - is in the world a man of more probity or humanity, endowed - with a very good understanding, and adorned with very elegant - manners and behaviour. My lady is also a person of great - merit; and nothing can be more amiable than my Lord Beauchamp: - so that you see I have every domestic means of happiness; and - the good reception I have met with at Paris, particularly, as - you observe, by the ladies, renders my present course of life, - though somewhat too hurried and dissipated, as amusing as I - could wish. My lord appears zealously my friend, and has urged - the matter so home, in my favour, to the king and the - ministers, that he has obtained a promise, that I shall soon - have the appointments and commission of secretary to the - embassy, which is about £1000 a-year, added to what I already - possess: so that you see, dear Edmondstoune, I am in the high - road to riches; and as there is no instance of a secretary to - the embassy at Paris, that has not been advanced to the most - considerable employments, I am at the same time in the high - road to dignities. You must know, that Lord Hertford has so - high a character for piety, that his taking me by the hand is - a kind of regeneration to me, and all past offences are now - wiped off. But all these views are trifling to one of my age - and temper. The material point is (if any thing can be - material,) that I keep my health and humour as entire as I - possessed them at five and-twenty. I am sorry to hear, dear - Edmondstoune, that the case is not the same with you, at least - with regard to the former; and perhaps somewhat with regard to - the latter. Your situation is no doubt tiresome, and somewhat - disagreeable. What is the fancy of sending one of the first - noblemen in the kingdom to pass years in a country - town?[184:1] why do you not go forward to Italy, or back to - Paris? When I arrived here, all M. Voltaire's friends told me - of the regard he always expressed for me; that some advances - on my part were due to his age, and would be well taken. I - accordingly wrote him a letter, in which I expressed the - esteem which are[184:2] undoubtedly due to his talents; and - among other things I said, that if I were not confined to - Paris by public business, I should have a great ambition to - pay him a visit at Geneva. This is the foundation of the - report you mention; but I am absolutely confined to Paris and - the court, and cannot on any account leave them so much as for - three days. - -Some advice, given at this time by Hume to a young man who, though in -holy orders, had a tendency to scepticism, has already been before the -public, and has been severely criticised. His view, that there are -certain secrets which may be circulated among the learned in published -books, without any risk that the vulgar, to whom a knowledge of them -would be dangerous, should ever become acquainted with them, is one of -the most incomprehensible features of his character.[184:3] The -application of his own ethical system to the circumstances, might have -taught him that no good thing can connect itself with a lie; and that, -independently of all more sacred considerations, nothing can be more -desolating to human morality, than the discovery, that those who are -professing to teach solemn truths, do not themselves believe in the -opinions they promulgate. If, on the other hand, his counsel be a -legitimate deduction from his ethical principles, it is right that the -world should possess this test of their nature. - -The following is the correspondence on both sides. For obvious reasons -the name of the young clergyman is suppressed. It may be observed, that -Hume's letter has been made a ground for attributing infidel opinions to -the ministers of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. But justice -requires it to be kept in view, that it appears from the immediately -ensuing letter, that this individual belonged to the Church of -_England_. - - -COLONEL EDMONDSTOUNE _to_ HUME. - - _Geneva, 26th March._ - - MY DEAR SECRETARY,--I have delayed for some time answering - your letter, in expectation of being able to tell you what is - to become of me; whether I am to return home, or remain abroad - some years longer. Though I believe the latter will happen, I - cannot speak of it with certainty, as I left it to Lord B. to - determine for me; and he has not, as yet, given me any answer. - I write to you at present to consult you about an acquaintance - of yours, Mr. V----, who is here with Lord Abingdon, and who - thinks of returning to England, May next. You'll be so good as - to determine for him what character he is to assume on his - arrival, whether that of a clergyman or a layman. I suppose - you know he is in orders, but he is very very low church. To - speak plain language, I believe him to be a sort of disciple - of your own; and, though he does not carry matters quite so - far as you, yet you have given him notions not very consistent - with his priestly character; so that you see you are somewhat - bound to give him your best advice. V---- is a very - good-natured, sensible, honest follow, without any fortune. My - young man has a great liking for him, and has all the - inclination in the world to serve him; but he neither knows - what to ask for him, and is not sure if his father would ask - any thing at present. We are as much in the dark as to what - passes in England, as if we lived in Siberia. As you know - probably something of the matter, without entering into - politics, you may give us some hints to direct us in what - manner to act, and whether we may not be of more use to our - friend in acting as auxiliaries than principals. You'll - determine whether a man of probity can accept of a living, a - bishoprick, that does not believe all the Thirty-nine - Articles; for you only can fix him: he has been hitherto - irresolute. If [I am not] mistaken, he seems rather inclined - not to be a clergyman; but you know as well, and better than I - do, how difficult it is to get any tolerable civil employment. - I mean any patent place; while as soon as you can - conveniently, and if you should determine for his being a - clergyman, throw in something consolatory on his being obliged - to renounce white stockings the rest of his life. I wait with - impatience to hear of your being made secretary to the - embassy. Shall a descendant of Gospatrick, Earl of - Northumberland, remain in the character of under-secretary? I - hope not; though I am afraid our cursed politics at home will - occasion some delay. Lord Mount Stuart offers his compliments - to you, and thanks you for the pleasure your History gave him. - You scrub, do you think we have so little taste or curiosity - as not to have your History complete? We have two copies, one - to lend, and another for our own use; they were sent us - immediately on the publication; it is almost the only book he - takes pleasure in reading. He has read it once, and has got - through four volumes the second time. By the bye, what is this - M{c}Caulay history? I saw in the newspapers an extract of a - preface that seemed to me to be the rhapsody of a crazy head. - I hear it is in opposition to your History. We have her sister - here, who seems to be a good sort of woman, a Mrs. Buckingham. - I wish your time would allow you to come here: you have a - great many friends; among the rest a Madame Tronchin, wife to - the procureur-general, a virtuous, generous, charitable, good - woman. She has learned English since I have been here, and can - read your History with as much ease as her own language. Her - husband is a man of merit, a man of genius; but knows you only - by the translations of your works. Mallet, Professor - Bertrand, and many others, even ministers, are your friends; - even the Christians acknowledge your merit as an historian. - The Christians here are the friends of Rousseau: those that - are not, have been his persecutors; but it was not for his - religious principles. They were afraid of his breeding - disturbance in their state. I wish you could do something for - Rousseau without his knowing it. Print his works in England - for his benefit. You did not, I suppose, receive my letter on - that subject. I never received that from you, which you say - you enclosed to Sir Harry Erskine. Adieu, yours, - - J. E.[187:1] - - -HUME _to_ COLONEL EDMONDSTOUNE. - -"DEAR EDMONDSTOUNE,--I was just projecting to write a long letter to -you, and another to Mr. V----, when your last obliging epistle came to -hand. I immediately put pen to paper, to assure you that the report is -entirely groundless, and that I have not lost, nor ever could have lost, -a shilling by Fairholm's bankruptcy. Poor John Adams is very deeply -engaged with him; but I had a letter last post from Dr. Blair, which -informs me that he will yet be able to save fifteen or sixteen thousand -pounds. I am glad to give you also this piece of intelligence. - -"What! do you know that Lord Bute is again all-powerful, or rather that -he was always so, but is now acknowledged for such by all the world? Let -this be a new motive for Mr. V---- to adhere to the ecclesiastical -profession, in which he may have so good a patron; for civil employments -for men of letters can scarcely be found: all is occupied by men of -business, or by parliamentary interest.[187:2] - -"It is putting too great a respect on the vulgar, and on their -superstitions, to pique one's self on sincerity with regard to them. -Did ever one make it a point of honour to speak truth to children or -madmen. If the thing were worthy being treated gravely, I should tell -him, that the Pythian oracle, with the approbation of Xenophon, advised -every one to worship the gods--+nomô poleôs+. I wish it were still in my -power to be a hypocrite in this particular. The common duties of society -usually require it; and the ecclesiastical profession only adds a little -more to an innocent dissimulation, or rather simulation, without which -it is impossible to pass through the world. Am I a liar, because I order -my servant to say, I am not at home, when I do not desire to see -company? - -"How could you imagine that I was under-secretary to Lord Hertford, or -that I could ever be prevailed on to accept of such a character? I am -not secretary at all, but do the business of secretary to the embassy -without any character. Bunbury has the commission and appointments: a -young man of three or four and twenty, somewhat vain and ignorant, whom -Lord Hertford refused to accept of, as thinking he would be of no use to -him. The king gave me a pension of £200 a-year for life, to engage me to -attend his lordship. My lord is very impatient to have me secretary to -the embassy; and writes very earnest letters to that purpose to the -ministers, and, among the rest, to Lord Bute. He engaged me, somewhat -against my will, to write also to such of my friends as had credit with -that favourite, Oswald, Elliot, Sir Harry, and John Hume. The king has -promised that my Lord Hertford shall soon be satisfied in this -particular; and yet, I know not how, I suspect that some obstacle will -yet interpose; though nothing can be more scandalous, than for a man to -enjoy the revenue of an office, which is exercised by another. Mr. -Bunbury has great interest, being married to a sister of the Duke of -Richmond, and sister-in-law to Lord Holland. The appointments of this -office are above £1000 a-year, and the expense attending it nothing; and -it leads to all the great employments. I wait the issue with patience, -and even with indifference. At my years, and with my fortune, a man with -a little common sense, without philosophy, may be indifferent about what -happens. I am, dear Edmondstoune, yours sincerely."[189:1] - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Paris, 27th March, 1764._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--I believe I need not inform you how little I have been -inclined to solicit the great, or even my own friends, for any thing -that regards my own fortune. I may venture to say, that, hitherto, I -have never once made any application of this nature: and you may wonder -that now, at my years, when the greatest part of life is past, and I may -esteem myself, in other respects, pretty much at my ease, I should -submit to prefer requests which I declined at an age when ambition ought -naturally to be stronger, and when my circumstances much more powerfully -called for assistance. But the step I take at present is at Lord -Hertford's desire; who, being determined to make it a point that I -should have the credentials and appointments of secretary to the -embassy, expressed his wish that I should apply to all my own friends on -the same subject. My obligations to him are so great, that, even were I -more reluctant, I could not have declined compliance; and surely I can -have but small reluctance to apply to you, one of my best friends, with -whom I have long lived in a course of intimacy and good correspondence. - -"I remember that the last time I had the pleasure of seeing you, you -said, that I no doubt wondered how it happened, that while the prime -minister and favourite, who inclined to be a Mæcenas, and who bore me no -ill will, was surrounded by all my most particular friends, I should -never have experienced any good effects from their credit. I own that I -never was surprised; not from any diffidence in them, but from some -obvious objections. Now all these objections are removed by Lord -Hertford's friendship. Nobody, henceforth, need be afraid to patronize -me, either as a Scotchman or a Deist. This circumstance encourages me in -my present application to my friends. - -"Surely it is impossible to give them a juster and more plausible cause -to support than mine. I do the functions here of secretary to the -embassy: Is it not scandalous that another should live in London and -draw the salary? - -"Is it for the credit of government, that such abuses should appear to -foreign nations? Is it good policy to send an ambassador to the most -important of all foreign employments, and yet declare that he has so -little credit at home, as not to have the choice of his own secretary. - -"I shall not say that the partiality I meet with here will make these -abuses more remarked, than if another person, less known, were -concerned. But surely the government puts me in a situation which ought -to render me entirely useless to my Lord Hertford, by refusing me a -character which should have appeared necessary, in order to gain me -admittance into company. - -"Allow me to inform you of another circumstance, which renders my -prevailing on this point the most material step to my future fortune. -When I came to London, and found, contrary to Lord Hertford's opinion, -that Mr. Bunbury was likely to keep his appointments, I declined going -abroad, unless something certain was fixed in my favour. My lord said, -that he would obtain me, from the public, a settlement of £200 a-year -for life, or would give me as much from his private fortune. He applied -to the king, who agreed; to Mr. Grenville, who also consented, two days -before we came off. My pension was fixed on the most precarious footing -of all pensions, by a simple order from the treasury to their secretary. -Yet Mr. Grenville told my lord, that this was equivalent to a settlement -for life. My lord believes so still; though I said nothing, perhaps from -a foolish delicacy, as the time of our departure so near approached, and -it was difficult then to correct the blunder. Were I to return to -England, on my present footing, I should regard this pension as -absolutely insignificant--not worth two years' purchase; and never could -form any plan on the supposition of its duration. But had I obtained the -rank and character of secretary to the embassy, there are certain -pensions annexed, by custom, to certain employments; and I believe I -might more depend upon it. - -"You see how materially my interests are concerned. I have wrote to -others of my friends, Sir Harry, Oswald, and John Hume, in the same -style, that an effort may be made, all at once, in my favour. I own -that, notwithstanding all the plausible appearances, my hopes of success -are but moderate. I have been accustomed to meet with nothing but -insults and indignities from my native country; but if it continue so, -'ingrata patria, ne ossa quidem habebis.' I am, my dear sir, yours -sincerely."[192:1] - - -When the fame of Hume's reception in Paris had reached Scotland, some of -his countrymen, who had not previously been very solicitous to court his -notice, discovered that an introduction to him would be a valuable -acquisition. The correspondence shows that the expectations of such -persons were very large, and that if their names connected them with the -aristocracy of Scotland, it could not fail that they should be at once -put at their ease in the midst of the brilliant circle in which Hume was -moving. The following may be taken as an instance of these attempts. On -the 6th April, 1764, Blair writes: - -"This letter will be presented to you by Colonel L----, brother to the -Earl of L----; who, going on a trip to Paris, is very ambitious of being -introduced to your acquaintance. You will find him a very honourable, -good-natured, well-behaved young man, of an amiable disposition and -character. As I have been much connected with the L---- family, who were -my first patrons in the ecclesiastical way, I was very glad to have it -in my power to do them this favour at their desire; and will reckon -myself much obliged to you for any civilities you show the -Colonel."[192:2] - -Blair was not the sole medium through whom this gentleman was -recommended. Wallace writes, on 3d April, with all due ceremony: "The -occasion of my writing at present this short letter, is a desire from -the friends of the family of L---- here, asking me to write you by this -night's post, and acquaint you that the Honourable Alexander L----, -Esquire, son to the late Earl of L----, lieutenant-colonel of Colonel -Carey's regiment of foot, is going to Paris, and will probably be in it -before this reaches you, and wishes you may be acquainted, before he -comes, who he is." Taking the effect of these imposing denominations for -granted, Mr. Wallace continues:--"I dare say you will introduce him to -the good company where you are, and will be ready to put him on the best -methods of enjoying and improving himself at Paris." - -In Hume's answer to this application, we may trace some desire to -reprove any notion that he was a person so insignificant as to feel -highly honoured by an acquaintance with an Honourable, and bound as a -matter of simple etiquette to receive his proffers with grateful -eagerness. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Paris, 26th April, 1764._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--Before I was favoured with yours, I had seen Colonel -L----, who waited on me, as is usual with the British who come to Paris. -I returned his visit, and introduced him to the ambassador, who asked -him to dinner among seven or eight of his countrymen. You will be -surprised, perhaps, when I tell you that this is the utmost of the -civilities which it will ever be possible for me to show Mr. L----. For -as to the ridiculous idea of foreigners, that I might introduce him to -the good company of Paris, nothing can be more impracticable. I know not -one family to which I could present such a man, silent, grave, awkward, -speaking ill the language, not distinguished by any exploit, or science, -or art. Were the French houses open to such people as these, they would -be very little agreeable, considering the immense concourse of strangers -to this place. But it is quite otherwise. The people are more scrupulous -of receiving persons unknown, and I should soon lose all credit with -them, were I to prostitute my recommendations of this nature. Your -recommendations have great weight with me; but if I am not mistaken, I -have often seen Colonel L----'s face in Edinburgh. It is a little late -he has bethought himself of being _ambitious_, as you say, of being -introduced to my acquaintance. The only favour I can do him, is to -advise him, as soon as he has seen Paris, to go to a provincial town -where people are less shy of admitting new acquaintance, and are less -delicate judges of behaviour. It is almost out of the memory of man, -that any British has been here on a footing of familiarity with the good -company except my Lord Holderness, who had a good stock of acquaintance -to begin with, speaks the language like a native, has very insinuating -manners, was presented under the character of an old secretary of state, -and spent, as is said, £10,000 this winter, to obtain that object of -vanity. Him, indeed, I met every where in the best company: but as to -others--lords, earls, marquises, and dukes--they went about to plays, -operas, and ----. Nobody minded them; they kept company with one -another; and it would have been ridiculous to think of bringing them -into French company. I may add General Clarke, who was liked and -esteemed by several people of merit, which he owed to his great -cleverness and ingenuity, and to his surprising courage in introducing -himself. I enter into this detail with you, that people with whom I am -much more connected than with the L. family, may not, at any time, be -surprised that I am able to do so little for them in this way, and may -not form false ideas of the hospitality of the French nation. But I -fancy there will not arrive at Paris many people who will have great -claims of past civilities to plead with me. - -"What you tell me of John Adams gives me great consolation. I had heard -of the alarming news of his connexions with Fairholm, and things were -put in the worst light. I was just ready to write to Ferguson to get -from him a just state of the case; but if he has £15,000, or £18,000 -remaining, his industry will recover him, and he may go on in his usual -way of beneficence and generosity. That family is one of the few to -whose civilities I have been much beholden, and I retain a lively sense -of them. - -"Our friend, I mean your friend, Lord Kames, had much provoked Voltaire, -who never forgives, and never thinks any enemy below his notice. He has -accordingly sent to the _Gazette Literaire_, an article with regard to -the 'Elements of Criticism,' which turns that book extremely into -ridicule, with a good deal of wit.[195:1] I tried to have it suppressed -before it was printed; but the authors of that Gazette told me, that -they durst neither suppress nor alter any thing that came from Voltaire. -I suppose his lordship holds that satiric wit as cheap, as he does all -the rest of the human race; and will not be in the least mortified by -his censure. - -"The taste for literature is neither decayed nor depraved here, as with -the barbarians who inhabit the banks of the Thames. Some people, who had -read your dissertation, affirmed to me, that it was the finest piece of -criticism, incomparably, to be found in the English tongue. I know not -if you have read the 'Poetique de Marmontel:' it is worth your perusal. -Voltaire has published an edition of Corneille, and his notes and -dissertations contain many fine things. There is a book published in -Holland, in two volumes octavo, called 'De la Nature.' It is prolix, and -in many parts whimsical; but contains some of the boldest reasonings to -be found in print. There is a miscellany in three volumes duodecimo -published here, where there are many good pieces. It is perhaps more -amusing to me, than it will be to you; as there is scarce a poem in it -whose author I do not know, or the person to whom it is addressed. - -"It is very silly to form distant schemes: but I am fixed at Paris for -some time, and, to judge by probabilities, for life. My income would -suffice me to live at ease, and a younger brother of the best family -would not think himself ill provided for, if he had such a revenue. -Lodgings, a coach, and clothes, are all I need; and though I have -entered late into this scene of life, I am almost as much at my ease, as -if I had been educated in it from my infancy. However, sickness, or the -infirmities of age, which I may soon expect, may probably make me think -of a retreat: But whether that will be better found in Paris or -elsewhere, time must determine. I forbid myself all resolution on that -head. - -"I shall indulge myself in a folly, which I hope you will make a -discreet use of: it is the telling you of an incident which may appear -silly, but which gave more pleasure than perhaps any other I had ever -met with. I was carried, about six weeks ago, to a masquerade, by Lord -Hertford. We went both unmasked; and we had scarce entered the room when -a lady, in mask, came up to me and exclaimed:--'_Ha! Monsr. Hume, vous -faites bien de venir ici a visage découvert. Que vous serez bien comblé -ce soir d'honnêtetés et de politesses! Vous verrez, par des preuves peu -équivoques, jusqu'à quel point vous êtes chéri en France._' This -prologue was not a little encouraging; but, as we advanced through the -hall, it is difficult to imagine the caresses, civilities, and -panegyrics which poured on me from all sides. You would have thought -that every one had taken advantage of his mask to speak his mind with -impunity. I could observe that the ladies were rather the most liberal -on this occasion. But what gave me chief pleasure was to find that most -of the eulogiums bestowed on me, turned on my personal character, my -naïvéte, and simplicity of manners, the candour and mildness of my -disposition, &c.--_Non sunt mihi cornea fibra._ I shall not deny that my -heart felt a sensible satisfaction from this general effusion of good -will; and Lord Hertford was much pleased, and even surprised, though he -said, he thought that he had known before upon what footing I stood with -the good company of Paris. - -"I allow you to communicate this story to Dr. Jardine. I hope it will -refute all his idle notions that I have no turn for gallantry and -gaiety,[197:1]--that I am on a bad footing with the ladies,--that my -turn of conversation can never be agreeable to them,--that I never can -have any pretensions to their favours, &c. &c. &c. A man in vogue will -always have something to pretend to with the fair sex. - -"Do you not think it happy for me to retain such a taste for idleness -and follies at my years; especially since I have come into a country -where the follies are so much more agreeable than elsewhere? I could -only wish that some of my old friends were to participate with me of -these amusements; though I know none of them that can, on occasion, be -so thoroughly idle as myself. - -"I am persuaded you will find great comfort in my house, which, in every -respect, is agreeable. I beg of you and Mrs. Blair, (to whom I desire my -compliments,) that you would sometimes pay some attention to my sister, -who is the person that suffers most by my absence. I am, dear sir, yours -very sincerely."[198:1] - - -Blair writes, on the 15th November, assuring Hume that he is fully -conscious of the unreasonableness of expecting him to introduce those -who are accredited to him, to the good company of Paris. He says, that -his own friend expressed himself as "very well satisfied" with Hume's -behaviour towards him; and perhaps he had a better reception than the -letter to Blair might seem to indicate. At all events, Blair seems not -to have been discouraged, for he immediately introduced the son of the -provost of Glasgow, travelling for his health, and Arthur Masson, a -teacher of languages, recommending them to such good offices as Hume -finds himself at liberty to bestow on them. It is clear, in short, that -he had not been successful in frightening his friends from requesting -him to perform offices of kindness and courtesy, or from trusting that -he would perform them. The following passage, in Blair's letter, is -evidence of the popularity of the Literary classes of the university of -Edinburgh, during the middle of last century. - - My class was, last season, in such reputation that I gave a - second course in summer, at the desire of a body of the - medical students. I am just about to open for this - winter--with what success I cannot tell; for I tremble for it - every season. Against next season I intend to print a synopsis - of my lectures. In the medical school, a revolution is at a - crisis, which is important to us. Dr. Rutherford wants to - demit in favour of Frank Hume; a measure pushed by Lord - Milton, Baron Mure, and John Home; the coalition of three - formidable powers: but which we college people dread as boding - us no good; and are much more inclined to another scheme, of - placing Cullen in Rutherford's chair, and bringing Dr. Black, - from Glasgow, into the chair of chemistry, which would greatly - promote the reputation of our college, and which has all the - popularity on its side at present. - - How unimportant these things seem to you now? I hear much, - from time to time, of your continuing, nay, increasing - celebrity and fame. You are just the high mode, they tell - us--the very delice of all the good company at Paris. - -In a letter to Millar, chiefly in reference to some English law books, -which Hume had engaged to obtain for a French lawyer, he recurs to the -Memoirs of King James. He seems to have indolently adopted the notion -that there were few chances of his having an opportunity of making -additions to his History of the Stuarts. He did live, however, to see -more than one new edition of it: but the references in them to the -treasure he had discovered at Paris, are extremely meagre. Another -letter immediately follows, in which we find that his anticipations of -new editions are already outrun by the demands: and we find in his, as -in many other cases, where permanent fame has been reached, that the -excitement of expectant authorship has declined long before its visions -are realized; and that their fulfilment comes at last on minds sobered -down to indifference. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Paris, 18th March, 1764._ - -"I have lived such a life of dissipation as not to be able to think of -any serious occupation. But I begin to tire of that course of life. I -have, however, run over King James's Memoirs, and have picked up some -curious passages, which it is needless to speak of till we have occasion -for a new edition, which I suppose is very distant." - - -"_Paris, 18th April, 1764._ - -"DEAR SIR,--All the discoveries I made in King James's Memoirs, make -against himself and his brother; and he is surely a good enough witness -on that side: but I believe him also a man of veracity, and I should -have put trust in any matter of fact that he told from his own -knowledge. But this it is needless for us to talk any more about; since, -I suppose, you have got copies enough of my History, already printed, to -last for your lifetime and mine. I shall certainly never think of adding -another line to it. I am too much your friend to think of it. . . . I -beg my sincere compliments to Mrs. Millar. I saw a few days ago Mrs. -Mallet, who seems to be going upon a strange project, of living alone, -in a hermitage, in the midst of the forest of Fontainbleau. I pass my -time very agreeably here; though somewhat too much dissipated for one of -my years and humour."[201:1] - - -"_Paris, 23d April, 1764._ - -"I was very much surprised with what you tell me, that you had made a -new edition in quarto, of my History of the Tudors, and might probably -do the same with that of the Stuarts. I imagined that the octavo edition -would for a long time supersede the necessity of any quarto edition; and -I wonder that of the ancient history did not first become requisite. You -were in the wrong to make any edition without informing me; because I -left in Scotland a copy very fully corrected, with a few alterations, -which ought to have been followed. I shall write to my sister to send it -you, and I desire you may follow it in all future editions, if there be -any such. I shall send you from here the alterations, which my perusal -of King James's Memoirs has occasioned; they are not many, but some of -them, one in particular, is of importance. I have some scruple of -inserting it, on your account, till the sale of the other editions be -pretty considerably advanced. You have not yet informed me how many you -may have upon hand. I suppose a very considerable number. Father Gordon -of the Scots College, who has an exact memory of King James's Memoirs, -was so kind as to peruse anew my History during the Commonwealth, and -the reigns of the two brothers; and he marked all the passages of fact, -where they differed from the Memoirs. They were surprisingly few; which -gave me some satisfaction; because as I told you, I take that prince's -authority for a plain fact to be very good. - -"I never see Mr. Wilkes here but at chapel, where he is a most regular, -and devout, and edifying, and pious attendant; I take him to be entirely -regenerate. He told me last Sunday, that you had given him a copy of my -Dissertations, with the two which I had suppressed;[202:1] and that he, -foreseeing danger, from the sale of his library, had wrote to you to -find out that copy, and to tear out the two obnoxious dissertations. -Pray how stands that fact? It was imprudent in you to intrust him with -that copy: it was very prudent in him to use that precaution. Yet I do -not naturally suspect you of imprudence, nor him of prudence. I must -hear a little farther before I pronounce."[202:2] - - -Millar, writing on 5th June, gives the following account of his conduct -as to the suppressed dissertations. - - "I take Mr. Wilkes to be the same man he was,--acting a part. - He has forgot the story of the _two_ dissertations. The fact - is, upon importunity, I lent to him the only copy I preserved, - and for years never could recollect he had it, till his books - came to be sold; upon this I went immediately to the gentleman - that directed the sale, told him the fact, and reclaimed the - two dissertations which were my property. Mr. Coates, who was - the person, immediately delivered me the volume; and so soon - as I got home, I tore them out and burnt them, that I might - not lend them to any for the future. Two days after, Mr. - Coates sent me a note for the volume, as Mr. Wilkes had - desired it should be sent to him to Paris; I returned the - volume, but told him the two dissertations, I had torn out of - the volume and burnt, being my property. This is the truth of - the matter, and nothing but the truth. It was certainly - imprudent for me to lend them to him." - -The interest taken by Hume, as by all his contemporary -fellow-countrymen, in the Douglas cause, has already been noticed. As -the inquiry which had taken place in France had not been long concluded, -and was the object of discussion in the Court of Session, the adherents -of the exiled royal house, and other Scottish families residing in -Paris, naturally took such a deep interest in the proceedings, as the -following letter explains. - - -HUME _to_ BARON MURE. - -"_Paris, 22d June, 1764._ - -"MY DEAR BARON,--A few days ago I dined with the Duchess of Perth, which -was the first time I had seen that venerable old lady, who is really a -very sensible woman. Part of our conversation was upon the Douglas -affair. - -"That lady, as well as all the company, as well as every body of common -sense here, shows her entire conviction of that imposture; and there was -present a gentleman, an old friend of yours, a person of very good -understanding and of undoubted honour, who laid open to us a scene of -such deliberate dishonesty on the part of her grace of Douglas and her -partisans, as was somewhat new and surprising. I suppose it is all known -to poor Andrew,[203:1] whom I heartily love and pity. 'Tis certain, that -the imposture is as well known to her grace and her friends, as to any -body; and Hay, the Pretender's old secretary, the only man of common -honesty among them, confessed to this gentleman, that he has frequently -been shocked with their practices, and has run away from them to keep -out of the way of such infamy; though he had afterwards the weakness to -yield to their solicitations. Carnegy knows the roguery as well as the -rest; though I did not hear any thing of his scruples. Lord Beauchamp -and Dr. Trail, our chaplain, passed four months last summer at Rheims, -where this affair was much the subject of conversation. Except one -curate, they did not meet with a person, that was not convinced of the -imposture. Mons. de Puysieuls,[204:1] whose country seat is in the -neighbourhood, told me the same thing. Can any thing be more scandalous -and more extraordinary than Frank Garden's behaviour?[204:2] Can any -thing be more scandalous and more ordinary than Burnet's. I am afraid, -that notwithstanding the palpable justice of your cause, it is yet -uncertain whether you will prevail. - -"I continue to live here in a manner amusing enough, and which gives me -no time to be tired of any scene. What between public business, the -company of the learned and that of the great, especially of the ladies, -I find all my time filled up, and have no time to open a book, except it -be some books newly published, which may be the subject of conversation. -I am well enough pleased with this change of life, and a satiety of -study had beforehand prepared the way for it: however, time runs off in -one course of life as well as another, and all things appear so much -alike, that I am afraid of falling into total Stoicism and indifference -about every thing. For instance, I am every moment to be touching on the -time when I am to receive my credential letters of secretary to the -embassy, with a thousand a-year of appointments. The king has promised -it, all the members have promised it; Lord Hertford earnestly solicits -it; the plainest common sense and justice seem to require [it]: yet have -I been in this condition above six months; and I never trouble my head -about the matter, and have rather laid my account that there is to be no -such thing. - -"Please to express my most profound respects to Mrs. Mure, and my sense -of the honour she did me. If I have leisure before the carrier goes off, -I shall write her, and give her some account of my adventures; but I -would not show her so little mark of my attention as to write her only -in a postscript. I am, dear Baron," &c.[205:1] - - -The correspondence with Madame de Boufflers was occasionally resumed, -when Hume or she was absent from Paris. How well the philosopher could -upon occasion accommodate himself to the taste of a French lady of the -court, the following may suffice to show. - - -HUME _to the_ COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - - _Compiegne, 6th July, 1764._ - - We live in a kind of solitude and retirement at Compiegne; at - least I do, who, having nothing but a few general acquaintance - at court, and not caring to make more, have given myself up - almost entirely to study and retreat. You cannot imagine, - madam, with what pleasure I return as it were to my natural - element, and what satisfaction I enjoy in reading, and musing, - and sauntering, amid the agreeable scenes that surround me. - But yes, you can easily enough imagine it; you have yourself - formed the same resolution; you are determined this summer to - tie the broken thread of your studies and literary amusements. - If you have been so happy as to execute your purpose, you are - almost in the same state as myself, and are at present - wandering along the banks of the same beautiful river, perhaps - with the same books in your hand, a Racine, I suppose, or a - Virgil, and despise all other pleasure and amusement. Alas! - why am I not so near you, that I could see you for half an - hour a day, and confer with you on these subjects? - - But this ejaculation, methinks, does not lead me directly in - my purposed road, of forgetting you. It is a short digression, - which is soon over: and that I may return to the right path, I - shall give you some account of the state of the court; I mean - the exterior face of it; for I know no more; and if I did, I - am become so great a politician, that nothing should make me - reveal it. The king divides his evenings every week after the - following manner: one he gives to the public, when he sups at - the grand convent;[206:1] two he passes with his own family; - two in a society of men; and, to make himself amends, two he - passes with ladies, Madame de Grammont, usually, Madame de - Mirepoix, and Madame de Beauveau. This last princess passed - three evenings in this manner at the Hermitage immediately - before her departure, which was on Monday last. I think her - absence a great loss to that society; I am so presumptuous as - to think it one to myself. I found her as obliging and as - friendly as if she had never conversed with kings, and never - were a politician. I really doubt much of her talent for - politics. Pray what is your opinion? Is she qualified, - otherwise than by having great sense and an agreeable - conversation, to make progress in the road to favour? and are - not these qualities rather an encumbrance to her? I have met - her once or twice, with another lady, in whose favour I am - much prepossessed; she seems agreeable, well behaved, - judicious, a great reader; speaks as if she had sentiment, and - was superior to the vulgar train of amusements. I should have - been willing, notwithstanding my present love of solitude, to - have cultivated an acquaintance with her, but she did not say - any thing so obliging to me as to give me encouragement. Would - you conjecture that I mean the Countess of Tessé? I know not - whether you are acquainted with that lady. But I shall never - have done with this idle train of conversation; and therefore, - to cut things short, I kiss your hands most humbly and - devoutly, and bid you adieu.[207:1] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[158:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[159:1] Walpole says, "The decorum and piety of Lord Hertford occasioned -men to wonder, when, in the room of Bunbury, he chose for his secretary -the celebrated freethinker, David Hume, totally unknown to him; but this -was the effect of recommendations from other Scots, who had much weight -with Lord and Lady Hertford." _Walpole's Memoirs of George III._ i. 264. - -[159:2] The change of ministry on which Lord Bute ceased to be minister, -and negotiations were held with Pitt. Hume does not appear to have had -any intercourse with Lord Bute while he was in office. In a letter to -Blair, of 6th October, which will be found in the Appendix on the -"Ossian Controversy," he says, "John Hume [Home] went to the country -yesterday with Lord Bute. I was introduced the other day to that noble -lord at his desire. I believe him a very good man; a better man than a -politician." - -[160:1] Copy R.S.E. The original is in possession of Colonel Mure. - -[163:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[164:1] Extract of a letter from Dr. Carlyle to the Rev. Thomas Hepburn, -dated 5th September, 1763, in Thorpe's Catalogue of Autographs, for -1833. It would be vain to inquire whither the original has now found its -way. - -[165:1] In 1762, Blacklock had received a presentation, as minister to -the parish of Kirkcudbright. His induction was opposed on the ground of -his blindness; and a bitter litigation ensued in the church courts, -while the parishioners, having taken up the matter as vital in a -religious view, persecuted him with all the savage and relentless -cruelty of fanaticism. "No liberal and cultivated mind," he says, in -reference to this dispute, "can entertain the least hesitation in -concluding that there is nothing, either in the nature of things, or -even in the positive institutions of genuine religion, repugnant to the -idea of a blind clergyman. But the novelty of the phenomenon, while it -astonishes vulgar and contracted understandings, inflames their zeal to -rage and madness." - -[167:1] Blair, writing to Hume on 29th September, says, "Horace need not -make you at all blush in your present expedition. If I mistake him not -very much, he paid more court to Mæcenas than ever you would have done -to any great man. His _principibus placuisse viris_ was a favourite -passion. Besides that, Horace understood human life too well to refuse -such an opening into high amusement as is now before you: and most -certainly, as you well observe, the farther we advance in life, we need -more to have the scene varied."--(MS. R.S.E.) - -[167:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[167:3] As a specimen of the flattering testimonials which Hume -occasionally received from France, the following letter from M. Trudaine -de Montigny, a young Frenchman who attained to considerable distinction, -is given: - - -(_Translation._) - - "_Paris, 16th May, 1759._ - - "I pass my time, both in town and country, in a circle of - gentlemen, of whom some are acquainted with English, others - not. They had been highly pleased with some portions of your - works, which had been translated; and among others with your - 'Political Discourses,' where they found the practical views - of a citizen, united with the profound reflections of a - politician, and the perspicacity of a philosopher. To put the - whole circle in a position to judge for themselves of the - merit of these works, I undertook, in the course of a country - jaunt which we took all together, to translate your 'Natural - History of Religion.' I chose this piece because it appeared - to me to contain a complete exposition of philosophy on this - subject. I was well rewarded for my pains, by the pleasure I - found I gave to all the world. Madame Dupré de St. Maur, who - has honoured me with the kindest friendship from my infancy, - told me she wished much that you were made acquainted with - this feeble effort. M. Steward, whom I met with M. Helvetius, - and who wished much to hear the perusal, promised to send it - to you." - -Madame Dupré de St. Maur writes, on 16th May, 1759, that Montigny had -received Hume's acknowledgment, which produced more effect on him than -any piece of good fortune he had hitherto experienced. "I partook," she -says, "of his joy the more sensibly, as I had in a great measure -inspired him with confidence to send you his translation, in the -persuasion that great men are the most indulgent."--MS. R.S.E. - -We find the tone of this letter frequently responded to in the -correspondence of Grimm with his German patrons, though the Baron does -not always coincide in the praises he has to record. Andrew Stuart, -known by his letters to Lord Mansfield, who before 1763 was much -employed in France in connexion with the Douglas cause, and appears to -have been admitted into the best company there, writes to Sir William -Johnstone on 16th December, 1762: "When you have occasion to see our -friend, David Hume, tell him that he is so much worshipped here, that he -must be void of all passions, if he does not immediately take post for -Paris. In most houses where I am acquainted here, one of the first -questions is, Do you know Mons{r}. Hume, whom we all admire so much? -I dined yesterday at Helvetius's, where this same Mons{r}. Hume -interrupted our conversation very much."--(MS. R.S.E.) - - * * * * * - -The following note, from the impetuous Alexander Murray, responds to the -same strain:-- - - "MY DEAR HUME,--The great desire that several French gentlemen - of my acquaintance have of being known to you, which happiness - I have promised to procure them, makes me ardently beg the - favour of you to do me the honour to dine with me any day next - week (Monday excepted,) that you please to appoint. Your - rencounters with the men, my dear friend, give me no sort of - pain; but I freely own to you I am under some uneasiness how - you will acquit yourself with the fair sex, whose impatience - of knowing you is not to be expressed. The day you dine with - me you will meet some folks who admire your productions as - much as any of your own countrymen, and perhaps comprehend - your sublime ideas as well as they do. I beg leave to assure - you that no body loves and admires you more than your most - sincere friend and humble servant."--(MS. R.S.E.) - - "_Saturday Morning._" - -[169:1] Some words obliterated. - -[170:1] A word or two obliterated. - -[171:1] A translation was published in 1764, by M. A. Eidous; there was -another in 1774, by Blavet. - -[172:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 648. Corrected from the original -MS. R.S.E. - -[172:2] The Poker Club, which had then existed for some time, and was -continued for some years after Hume's death. Its name is supposed to -have been bestowed on it, on account of its services in stirring the -intellectual energies of the members. - -[174:1] The name Adam used to be thus altered in the Scottish -vernacular. The person here alluded to is evidently John Adam the -architect, and the "Willie," his son William, who became Lord Chief -Commissioner of the Jury Court in Scotland, and died in 1839. - -[175:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1828, p. 683. - -[176:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[176:2] Madame Belot, whose translation of the "History of the House of -Tudor," was published in 1763, as "Histoire de la Maison de Tudor, &c. -par Madam B * * *." She published a translation of the earlier period of -the History, in 1765. Grimm charges Madame Belot with preposterous -blunders as a translator; and gives, as an instance, her rendering -Hume's allusion to the _Polish aristocracy_, by the words, _une -aristocratie polie_. Of this lady, a curious periodical work, called -"Mémoires Secrets, pour servir a l'Histoire de la République des lettres -en France," says, of date 26th May, 1764, that, after having lived a -life of wretched poverty, scantily supported by the produce of her -translations from the English, she was then living with the President -Mesnieres, whose taste is considered singular as "cette dame est peu -jeune: elle est laide, seche et d'un esprit triste et mélancolique." -Such were then the rewards of female authorship in France! - -[177:1] This hint was not adopted. Robertson's work was translated by -Suard. - -[178:1] There can have been no reason for this abbreviation of the title -of the Dauphin and his children, but the circumstance that the letter -was liable to be seen in France, and a full statement might be -considered disrespectful. The first-named was the Duc de Berri, -afterwards Louis XVI.; he was then nine years old. The Count de P. was -the Comte de Provence, afterwards Louis XVIII., born in 1755. The Count -D'A, was the Comte d'Artois, afterwards Charles X., who died in 1836. -Hume has underrated his age, which was six; he was born in 1757. Thus -were these children, who made their little speeches to the historian of -Charles I., all destined to be, successively, kings of France, and to -experience a too intimate acquaintance with such scenes as they found -depicted in his "fine history!" - -[179:1] These volumes were lost during the French Revolution. It is said -that an attempt was made to convey them to St. Omers; but having to be -committed, for some time, to the care of a Frenchman, his wife became -alarmed lest the regal emblems on the binding might expose the family to -danger from the Terrorists. The narrative proceeds to say, that she -first cut off the binding and buried the manuscripts, but that being -still haunted by fears, she exhumed and burned them. See the -introduction by Dr. Staniers Clarke, to "The Life of James II." believed -to be an abridgment of these manuscripts. Hume is not consistent as to -the number of volumes. - -[179:2] Stewart's Life of Robertson. - -[180:1] This letter is not dated. - -[181:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[182:1] Lord Marischal's attainder having been reversed, he had visited -Scotland, for the purpose of purchasing one of his estates. He thus -communicates the result to Hume in a letter of 23d February. - -"I thank you for forwarding my cousin's letter. I wish, now that I am -Laird of Inverury, that he were my son, and of my name. I bought my -estate farthest north. There was no bidder against any one; and great -applause of the spectators." MS. R.S.E. - -[184:1] Edmondstoune appears to have been residing at Geneva, as -guardian to Lord Mount-Stuart, Lord Bute's son. - -[184:2] Sic in MS. - -[184:3] See it noticed in vol. i. p. 405, in connexion with the right of -resistance. - -[187:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[187:2] Sic in MS. - -[189:1] Original in possession of the Cambusmore family. - -[192:1] Minto MSS. - -[192:2] The letter proceeds to say, "Our little society here continues -much on the footing you left it; only that we find frequent occasions of -regretting the blank you make amongst us. In our college we are making a -great improvement. In consequence of a bargain made with J. Russel, -Bruce, the Professor of the Law of Nature and Nations, goes out; Balfour -of Pilrig moves into his place; Ferguson into the chair of Moral -Philosophy; and Russel into that of Natural. Is not this clever?" He -then states, that "The taste for French literature grows more and more -amongst us," and hopes he will send any new publication which has merit. -He concludes with mentioning the bankruptcy of the Fairholms, and the -circumstance of Mr. Adam's involvement in it. - -[195:1] See Tytler's Life of Kames, vol. ii. p. 148. - -[197:1] See Vol. I. p. 232. - -[198:1] MS. R.S.E. The latter part of the letter is printed in the -_Literary Gazette_ for 1822, p. 712. - -[201:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[202:1] See above, p. 14. - -[202:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[203:1] Andrew Stuart, see above, p. 168. - -[204:1] Puisieux? - -[204:2] Francis Garden, afterwards a judge of the Court of Session, with -the title of Lord Gardenstone. He was senior, and James Burnet, -afterwards Lord Monboddo, was junior Scottish counsel for Mr. Douglas in -the Tournelle process in France. - -[205:1] Copy in R.S.E. The original is in possession of Colonel Mure. - -[206:1] Perhaps an error in transcribing _au grand couvert_? - -[207:1] Private Correspondence, p. 83-85. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -1764-1765. Æt. 53-54. - - The French and English Society of Hume's day--Reasons of his - warm reception in France--Society in which he moved--Mixture - of lettered men with the Aristocracy--Madame Geoffrin--Madame - Du Page de Boccage--Madame Du Deffand--Mademoiselle De - L'Espinasse--D'Alembert--Turgot--The Prince of Conti--Notices - of Hume among the Parisians--Walpole in Paris--Resumption of - the Correspondence--Hume undertakes the management of Elliot's - sons--Reminiscences of home--Mrs. Cockburn--Adam Smith--Madame - De Boufflers and the Prince of Conti--Correspondence with Lord - Elibank. - - -There were many things to make the social position he obtained in France -infinitely gratifying to Hume. Even his good birth was no claim to -admission on a position of liberal familiarity with the higher -aristocracy of England. His descent from a line of Scottish lairds would -be insufficient in the eyes of the Walpoles, Russels, and Seymours, to -distinguish him from the common herd of men who could put on a laced -waistcoat and powdered wig, and command decent treatment from the -lackeys in their ante-chambers. His claims rested on his Literary rank; -and the extent to which such claims might be admitted was fixed by -Hereditary rank at its own discretion. It might cordially receive them -one day, and repel them with cold disdain on another. In this doubtful -and partial recognition, Hume would find himself in the motley crowd of -those who force themselves, or are partly welcomed, into these high -places--dissipated men of genius, underbred men of riches, hardworking, -pertinacious politicians; persons with whom his finely trained mind, his -reserve, and his habit of mixing in a refined though small society of -Scotsmen, would not easily harmonize. - -In France matters were widely different; there he was at once warmly and -affectionately received into the bosom of a society to which many of the -supercilious English aristocracy would have sought for admission in -vain. In England no distinct palpable barrier surrounded the -distinguished group. The multitude clamorously asserted an equality. In -default of other qualities, impudence and perseverance were sometimes -sufficient to force admission. In these circumstances, each member of -the privileged classes guarded his own portion of the arena as well as -he might, and the intruder had to fight battle after battle, and contest -every inch of ground he gained. - -It seems as if in France the very rigidness with which the select circle -was fortified was the reason why those admitted within it were placed so -thoroughly at their ease. The aristocracy could open the door, look -about them, and invite an individual to enter, without fearing to -encounter a general rush for admission. There was much evil of every -kind in that circle; we have not to deal here with its inward morality, -but its outward form, and it certainly deserves to be remembered as one -of the most memorable instances in which, on any large scale, the -aristocracy of rank and wealth has met the aristocracy of letters -without restraint. The quality of shining in conversation was not to be -despised by the greatest in wealth, or the highest in the peerage; and -their efforts were measured with those of the first wits of the time. To -an aristocracy which could thus amuse itself, it was a great luxury to -be surrounded by men of thought and learning. The courtier who could -open his salon to the wits and philosophers of Paris, was far more -dependant on their presence than they were on the privilege of -admission. If a Barthélemi, a Marmontel, a Condillac, saw cause to -desert the suppers of D'Holbach, they would be received at those of the -Duc de Praslin or de Choiseul, the Prince of Conti, and Madame du -Deffand; but how were such departed stars to be replaced?[209:1] - -There is perhaps no more striking type of the character and condition -of the Parisian coteries than one of Hume's most intimate friends, -Madame Geoffrin. In this country, were an uneducated woman to frame and -lead a social party, including the first in rank and in talent of the -day, to which no one under royalty was too great not to deem admission a -privilege; were she to be absolute in her admissions and exclusions, -bold in her sarcasms, free and blunt often to rudeness in her -observations and opinions, and severe or kind to all by turns as her own -choice or caprice suggested, it would be at once pronounced that the -reddest blood and the highest rank could alone produce such an anomaly. -A very small number of eminent duchesses have perhaps occupied such a -position in this country. Yet Madame Geoffrin, who acted this part to -the full among the fastidious aristocracy of France before the -revolution, was the daughter of a valet-de-chambre and the widow of a -glass manufacturer. The foundation of her influence was her success in -making herself the centre of a circle of artists and men of letters. She -was much in the confidence of Madame De Tencin, and on that lady's death -succeeded in transferring to herself what remained of her distinguished -society, dimmed as it was by the departure of Montesquieu and -Fontenelle. Madame Geoffrin by activity and energy widened the circle. -She never made visits herself, and those who had the privilege of -entering her dining-room on her public days, found there assembled -D'Alembert, Helvétius, Raynal, Marmontel, Caraccioli, Holbach, Galliani, -and the artist Vanloo. During the British embassy, David Hume, the great -philosopher from the far North, might there be met; and when all other -attempts had perhaps failed, some chance of encountering such an erratic -meteor as Rousseau still remained in attending Madame Geoffrin's -Wednesday dinner. Having once, by her signal wit and wisdom, gained her -position, no obtrusive rivals from her own deserted class could push -near enough to drive her from it. It is not the least admirable feature -of this remarkable woman, that far from assuming the subdued and -cautious tone of one of her own rank, who must be more wary than a -denizen of committing breaches of the social rules of her new cast, a -simplicity and freedom seems to have accompanied all her actions and -ideas; a courageous adoption of what seemed good to her in place of what -might be fit. Her letters, in their severe diction, give some notion of -the writer's character, but cannot convey so full an impression as when -they are presented in the bold, irregular, and most "unlady-like" hand -in which they are scribbled.[211:1] - -The pleasant retailers of the literary chit-chat of that time, -Marmontel, Grimm, Bauchemont, and others, are full of details of Madame -Geoffrin, who, if she was not quite as formally approached as Boufflers, -or Deffand, was as much respected, loved, and feared. The author of the -"Contes Moraux," tells us some of the weaknesses of this gifted lady; -and, according to his account, she had been actually convicted, living -as she was outwardly in the freest society in the world, of a turn for -secret devotion! "Elle avait un apartement dans un couvent de -religieuses et une tribune à l'Eglise des Capucins,--mais avec autant de -mystère que les femmes galantes de ce temps-là avaient des petites -maisons." The picture would be sufficiently ludicrous, were it not for -the darker features presented by a state of society, where no one should -venture to be pious except under pain of being exterminated with -ridicule. - -There was one matter as to which Madame Geoffrin was timid and cautious; -she never meddled with matters of state or unsafe political opinions, -and was induced to discountenance those who did so. Surrounded by -restless and inquiring spirits, she often dreaded being compromised by -their conduct; and was especially uneasy at any time when the Bastille -sheltered a more than usual number of those whose wit was wont to flash -round her board. But her guests have recorded, that if there was a -little saddened and earnest gravity in her deportment, when she received -them after such naughty affairs, she abated nothing of her old kindness. -Her good heart indeed was after all her noblest quality. She was one of -those who held the simple notion, that were it not for the judicious -distribution of favours by the rich, the poor, including artisans and -producers of all kinds, must necessarily die of starvation. She was thus -in the midst of an extensive distribution of charities, actively -occupied in the _encouragement_ of those who lived by the sweat of their -brow; and if she believed that she accomplished much more than she -actually did, it was a satisfaction not to be grudged to one who -occupied herself with the fortunes of the poor, in the midst of the -stony indifference of the French aristocracy of that day. - -Another lady, a friend and correspondent of Hume, Madame le Page du -Boccage, endeavoured to rival Madame Geoffrin as a centre of attraction; -but though she possessed, along with wealth, both rank and beauty, she -was unsuccessful, on account of the presence of a third -quality--authorship. The wits must praise her bad poetry if they -frequented her house, and where so many other doors were open without -such a condition, they abandoned it. "Elle était d'une figure aimable," -says Grimm, "elle est bonne femme; elle est riche; elle pouvait fixer -chez elle les gens d'esprit et de bonne compagnie, sans les mettre dans -l'embarras de lui parler avec peu de sincérité de sa _Colombiade_ ou de -ses _Amazones_."[213:1] - -Perhaps of all these eminent women, while Madame de Boufflers had the -greatest amount of elegance and accomplishment, Madame du Deffand had -the sharpest and most searching wit. She was the author of that -proverbial _bon mot_ about St. Denis carrying his head under his arm, -_il n'y a que le premier pas qui coûte_; a saying sufficient to make a -reputation in France. Madame du Deffand does not appear to have been a -correspondent of Hume, nor, though they occasionally met, does much -cordiality seem to have subsisted between them.[214:1] The aveugle -clairvoyante, as Voltaire aptly called her, in allusion to her blindness -and her wit, thought that she discovered in Hume a worshipper at another -shrine. She wrote to Walpole expressing her disgust of those who paid -court to Madame de Boufflers, at the same time, only just not stating, -in express terms, how much they were mistaken in not transferring their -obsequiousness to herself.[214:2] She, certainly an object of pity from -her blindness, was still more so in her own discontented spirit. The -days which tranquil ease and the attentions of kind friends might have -soothed, were disturbed by restless vanity, an intense desire to -interfere with the doings of that world which she could not see, -dissipation, and literary wrangles. - -One remarkable person, an offshoot of Madame du Deffand's circle, and -driven forth from it to raise an empire of her own, was Mademoiselle de -L'Espinasse. Hume and she met frequently in Paris, and they subsequently -corresponded together. She was an illegitimate child, who, having been -well educated, had been adopted by Madame du Deffand as her companion, -and the minister for supplying, as far as possible, her lost sense of -sight. Mademoiselle had to be present at those displays of intellect -which illuminated the table of her mistress. It soon began to transpire -that the humble drudge possessed a soul of fire; and taking part in the -conversation, her remarks rose as she acquired confidence and ease, into -an originality of thought, fulness of judgment, and rich eloquence of -language, which fascinated the senses of those veteran champions in the -arena of intellect. Thus many of those who went to offer their incense -to a woman old and blind, were constrained to bestow some of it on one -"young in years, but in sage counsel old," who had little more outward -claim on their admiration; for Mademoiselle de L'Espinasse was naturally -plain, and was deeply marked with smallpox. The patroness did not -present herself till six o'clock in the evening; to her who knew no -difference between light and darkness it was morning. She often found -that her protégée had been entertaining the guests for an hour, and that -they had come early to enjoy her conversation. This was treason--an -overt tampering with the allegiance of the followers; and the -subordinate was driven forth with contumely. - -It is not easy to decide which party, if either, was in the right; -though the memoir writers in general take the part of Mademoiselle de -L'Espinasse. Far from being made a homeless wanderer by the dismissal, -she was immediately supplied with a house and furniture by her friends, -who obtained for her a pension from the crown. On these means she -founded a rival establishment of her own; and surrounded herself with an -intellectual circle, which seems to have more than rivalled in -brilliancy that from which she was dismissed. D'Alembert was told that -if he countenanced the new idol, he must bid farewell to his former -patroness. He at once joined the party of the young aspirant. He became -dangerously ill, and Mademoiselle de L'Espinasse nursed him with the -untiring affection of a wife or a daughter. The philosopher, whose -humble dwelling was found to be on too sordid a scale to be consistent -with health, thenceforth took up his abode with his young friend. Hume -must have witnessed the rise of this new connexion, for it was during -his residence in Paris that D'Alembert's illness took place, and it is -the object of occasional anxious allusion by his Parisian -acquaintance.[216:1] - -Though the circumstances in which he passed his earlier days were not -likely to nourish such a taste, no man seems to have been more dependant -on the presence of an educated and intellectual female than the -secretary of the Academy. There is little doubt that the new attachment -was of a Platonic character; but it boded evil to both parties. The -lady, if she had some portion of the purer affections of the soul to -bestow upon the sage, had warmer feelings for likelier objects; and her -frame sunk before the consuming fires of more than one passion.[218:1] -She was carried to an early grave, and the mortifications, caused by her -alienation, followed by grief for her death, broke the spirit, and -imbittered and enfeebled the latter days of the philosopher. Hume seems -to have established a closer friendship with D'Alembert than with any of -his other contemporaries in France; and he left a memorial of his regard -for the encyclopediast in his will. Unlike, in many respects, they had -some features in common. D'Alembert's personal character, and the habits -of his life, had, like his philosophy, the dignity of simplicity. His -figure, and still more his voice, were the objects of much malicious -sarcasm; but cruel jests could not make his fragile body less the -tenement of a noble spirit; or his shrill puny voice less the instrument -of great and bold thoughts. His mind stands forth in strong relief from -the frippery of that age; while his writings contain no marks of that -reckless infidelity which distinguishes the productions of his fellow -labourers. In some of those follies, so prevalent that a man utterly -free of them, must have courted the charge of eccentricity, if not of -insanity, he partook; but moderately and reluctantly, as one suited for -a better time and a nobler sphere of exertion. In the quarrel with -Rousseau, he adopted the cause of Hume with honest zeal. He wrote many -letters to Hume, which are still preserved. They perhaps, in some -measure, exhibit the least amiable feature of his character--his -bitterness, it might be almost termed hatred, towards Madame du Deffand, -on account of her conduct to his own friend. - -It is unnecessary to discourse, at any length, on the distinguished -men--including the names of Buffon, Malesherbes, Diderot, Crébillon, -Morellet, Helvétius, Holbach, Hénault, Raynal, Suard, La Condamine, and -De Brosses, who courted Hume's company in France. Next to D'Alembert, -his closest friendship seems to have been with the honest and thoughtful -statesman, Turgot; who, in the midst of that reckless whirl of vanity, -was already looking far into the future, and predicting, from the -disorganized and menacing condition of the elements of French society, -the storm that was to come. He wrote many letters to Hume, containing -remarks on matters of statesmanship and political economy, which are of -great interest in a historical and economical view, especially in one -instance, where he notices the want of any common principle of -sympathies and interests connecting the aristocracy with the people, and -reflects on the dangerous consequences of such a state of matters to the -peace of Europe. - -There are many circumstances showing that much as he loved the social -ease, combined with learning and wit, for which his Parisian circle was -conspicuous, he disliked one prominent feature of that social -system--the scornful infidelity, the almost intolerance of any thing -like earnest belief, so often exhibited, both in speech and conduct. Sir -Samuel Romilly has preserved the following curious statement by -Diderot:--"He spoke of his acquaintance with Hume. 'Je vous dirai un -trait de lui, mais il vous sera un peu scandaleux peut-être, car vous -Anglais vous croyez _un peu_ en Dieu; pour nous autres nous n'y croyons -guères. Hume dîna avec une grande compagnie chez le Baron D'Holbach. Il -était assis à côté du Baron; on parla de la religion naturelle: 'Pour -les Athées,' disait Hume, 'je ne crois pas qu'il en existe; je n'en ai -jamais vu.' 'Vous avez été un peu malheureux,' répondit l'autre, 'vous -voici à table avec dix-sept pour la première fois.'"[220:1] - -The secretary's residence in the metropolis was occasionally varied by -official sojourns to Fontainbleau, or Compiègne, a visit to the Duchesse -de Barbantane at Villers Cotterets, or an excursion with Madame de -Boufflers and the Prince of Conti to L'Ile-Adam. That rural seat of -princely magnificence and hospitality is a familiar name in the memoirs -of the times; and particularly in those of Madame de Genlis. It is -singular, indeed, that this lady never mentions Hume, though she appears -to have been living in the castle at the time when he visited it. The -Prince of Conti was in every way possessed of the external -qualifications which, in the eyes of his countrymen, were then the -proper ornaments of his high station. He was brave, a distinguished -military leader, generous, extravagant, gallant, and a lover of -literature and the arts.[221:1] There was probably little in such a -character to rival a Turgot, or a D'Alembert in Hume's esteem; but -his intercourse with this prince, as with De Rohan, De Choiseul, and -others, would be of a more limited and formal character.[221:2] His -influence with courtiers and statesmen, however, appears to have been -considerable. In the letters addressed to him there are several -instances where French people solicit his interposition with the great: -thus, Madame Helvétius desires his good offices to procure an abbaye for -her friend and neighbour the Abbé "Macdonalt," of an illustrious Irish -family.[222:1] One lady, seeking ecclesiastical patronage, tells him -that the clergy will have more pleasure in doing him a favour than in -performing the functions of their office! - -Hume has thus recorded in his "own life" the impression left on him by -his reception in Paris:--"Those who have not seen the strange effects of -modes, will never imagine the reception I met with at Paris, from men -and women of all ranks and stations. The more I resiled from their -excessive civilities, the more I was loaded with them. There is, -however, a real satisfaction in living at Paris; from the great number -of sensible, knowing, and polite company with which that city abounds -above all places in the universe. I thought once of settling there for -life." If he thought that he could have taken up his residence in Paris, -and preserved for the remainder of his days the fresh bloom of his -reputation, he was undoubtedly mistaken; but, dazzled as he in some -measure was, we can see in his correspondence that he estimated the -sensation he made pretty nearly at its just value. In the circle of -toys, seized and discarded, by a giddy fashionable crowd, philosophy -will have its turn, as well as poodles, parrots, tulips, monkeys, cafés, -and black pages. It had been so a century earlier, when the most -abstruse works of Des Cartes had been the ornament of every fashionable -lady's toilette; and now the wheel had revolved and philosophy was again -in vogue. - -A second time we have Lord Charlemont affording us a passing sketch of -Hume. Having had an opportunity of witnessing the philosopher's -reception in France, he says:-- - - "From what has been already said of him, it is apparent that - his conversation to strangers, and particularly to Frenchmen, - could be little delightful, and still more particularly, one - would suppose, to French women: and yet no lady's toilette was - complete without Hume's attendance. At the opera his broad - unmeaning face was usually seen _entre deux jolis minois_. The - ladies in France gave the ton, and the ton was deism: a - species of philosophy ill suited to the softer sex, in whose - delicate frame weakness is interesting, and timidity a - charm. . . . . How my friend Hume was able to endure the - encounter of these French female Titans, I know not. In - England, either his philosophic pride or his conviction that - infidelity was ill suited to women, made him perfectly averse - from the initiation of ladies into the mysteries of his - doctrine."[223:1] - -The same characteristics are recorded by Grimm.[223:2] We have his -position still more vividly painted by Madame d'Epinay, according to -whom he must have undergone not a small portion of the martyrdom of -lionism. One of the "rages" of the day was the holding of cafés, or -giving entertainments in private houses, according to the arrangements -and etiquette of a public café. Among the amusements of the evening were -pantomimes, and acted tableaux. In these it was necessary that Hume -should take a _rôle_, and as he was always willing to conform to -established regulations, we find him seated as a sultan between two -obdurate beauties, intending to strike his bosom, but aiming the blows -at _le ventre_, and accompanying his acting with characteristic -exclamations.[224:1] - -Hume's popularity in Paris appears to have somewhat disturbed Horace -Walpole's equanimity. He was too good an artist to be very angry, or to -express himself in terms of aggravated bitterness; but it is clear from -occasional notices, that, notwithstanding his professed admiration of -Scotsmen, it displeased him to find Hume the Scotsman sitting at the -king's gate. Writing to Lady Hervey on 14th Sept. 1765, he says, "Mr. -Hume, that is _the mode_, asked much about your ladyship."[225:1] Then -to Montague, on the 22d of the same month, and in allusion to the -conversation of the dinner-table in Paris: - - For literature, it is very amusing when one has nothing else - to do. I think it rather pedantic in society: tiresome when - displayed professedly; and, besides, in this country, one is - sure it is only the fashion of the day. Their taste in it is - the worst of all; could one believe, that when they read our - authors, Richardson and Mr. Hume should be their favourites? - The latter is treated here with perfect veneration. His - History, so falsified in many points, so partial in as many, - so very unequal in its parts, is thought the standard of - writing.[225:2] - -Thus, and in the like strain, do the French suffer in his good opinion, -for their offence in making an idol of Hume. So, on the 3d October, when -writing to Mr. Chute,-- - - Their authors, who by the way are every where, are worse than - their own writings, which I don't mean as a compliment to - either. In general, the style of conversation is solemn, - pedantic, and seldom animated, but by a dispute. I was - expressing my aversion to disputes: Mr. Hume, who very - gratefully admires the tone of Paris, having never known any - other tone, said with great surprise, "Why, what do you like, - if you hate both disputes and whisk?"[225:3] - -Then, on the 19th of the same month, to Mr. Brand: - - I assure you, you may come hither very safely, and be in no - danger from mirth. Laughing is as much out of fashion as - pantins and bilboquets. Good folks, they have no time to - laugh. There is God and the king to be pulled down first; and - men and women, one and all, are devoutly employed in the - demolition. They think me quite profane for having any belief - left. But this is not my only crime; I have told them, and am - undone by it, that they have taken from us to admire the two - dullest things we had--Whisk and Richardson. It is very true - that they want nothing but George Grenville to make their - conversations, or rather dissertations, the most tiresome upon - earth. For Lord Lyttelton, if he would come hither, and turn - freethinker once more, he would be reckoned the most agreeable - man in France,--next to Mr. Hume, who is the only thing in the - world that they believe implicitly, which they must do, for I - defy them to understand any language that he speaks.[226:1] - -At this time Adam Smith was travelling in France, with his pupil, the -young Duke of Buccleuch. On 5th July, 1764, he writes from Toulouse, -requesting Hume to give him and his pupil introductions to distinguished -Frenchmen, the Duc de Richelieu, the Marquis de Lorges, &c. He says, -that Mr. Townsend had assured him of these and other introductions, from -the Duc de Choiseul, but that none had made their appearance in that -quarter. Smith seems to have been heartily tired of the glittering -bondage of his tutorship, and to have sighed for the academic -conviviality he had left behind him at Glasgow. He says:-- - -"The Duke is acquainted with no Frenchman whatever. I cannot cultivate -the acquaintance of the few with whom I am acquainted, as I cannot bring -them to our house, and am not always at liberty to go to theirs. The -life which I led at Glasgow, was a pleasureable dissipated life in -comparison of that which I lead here at present. I have begun to write a -book, in order to pass away the time. You may believe I have very little -to do. If Sir James would come and spend a month with us in his travels, -it would not only be a great satisfaction to me, but he might, by his -influence and example, be of great service to the Duke."[228:1] - -There is little doubt that the book he had begun to write, was the -"Wealth of Nations:" and we have here probably the earliest announcement -of his employing himself in that work. On the 21st of October, he writes -from Toulouse, stating that the letters of introduction had reached -him, and that his noble pupil was well received. He says, "Our -expedition to Bourdeaux, and another we have made since to Bagneres, has -made a great change upon the Duke. He begins now to familiarize himself -to French company; and I flatter myself I shall spend the rest of the -time we are to live together, not only in peace and contentment, but in -great amusement." - -Amidst the multiplied attractions of Paris, Hume's thoughts were often -turned to his native city, and the circle of kind friends and admirers -he had there left behind him. Such reminiscences of home doings as are -contained in the following letters, would doubtless ensure his warm -attention. On 1st July, Blair writes: - - Robertson has, of late, had worse health than usual, which has - somewhat interrupted his studies. He talked once of a trip to - France this season; but his want of the language is so - discouraging, as seems to have made him lay aside thoughts of - it for the present. It will be a twelvemonth more, I suppose, - before his Charles V. shall see the light. - - I dined this day with Sir James Macdonald, on whose praises I - need not expatiate to you. Much conversation we had about you; - and a great deal I heard of your flourishing state. You write - concerning it yourself, like a philosopher and a man of sense. - The first splendour and eclat of such situations soon loses - its lustre, and often, as you found it, is burdensome. Ease - and agreeable society are the only things that last and - remain; and these, now that you are quite naturalized, and - have formed habits of life, I imagine you enjoy in a very - comfortable degree. The society at Paris, to one who has all - your advantages for enjoying it in its perfection, is, I am - fully convinced, from all that I have heard, the most - agreeable in the whole world. - - Our education here is at present in high reputation. The - Englishes are crowding down upon us every season, and I wish - may not come to hurt us at the last.[229:1] - -Jardine writes, on 1st August:-- - - I have attempted, four or five times, to write to you but this - poor church has, for some time past, been in such danger, that - I could never find time for it. She has employed all my - thoughts and care for these twelve months past. The enemy had - kindled such a flame, that the old burning bush was like to - have been consumed altogether. I know it will give you - pleasure to hear that my endeavours to preserve her have been - crowned with success. She begins to shine forth with her - ancient lustre; and will very soon be, not only fair as the - sun, but, to all her enemies, terrible as an army with - banners.[230:1] - -It is pleasing to find one whose name has been so much associated with -the later school of our national literature, as Mrs. Cockburn, the early -friend of Scott, enjoying the intimacy of the sages of the philosophical -age of Scottish letters. This accomplished lady, well known as the -authoress of one of the versions of "The Flowers of the Forest," was a -correspondent of Hume. A few of her letters have been preserved; and the -following are her free and animated remarks on Hume's flattering -reception in France,--remarks written in the full assurance that neither -adulation nor prosperity would diminish the regard of that simple manly -heart, for the chosen friends he had left in his native soil. - - From the bleak hills of the north, from the uncultured - daughter of Caledon, will the adored sage of France deign to - receive a few lines: they come from the _heart_ of a friend, - and will be delivered by the _hand_ of an enemy. Which, O man - of mode, is most indifferent to thee? Insensible thou art - alike to gratitude or resentment; fit for the country that - worships thee. Thou art equally insensible to love or hate. A - momentary applause, ill begot, and worse brought up,--an - abortion, a fame not founded on truth,--have bewitched thee, - and thou hast forgot those who, overlooking thy errors, saved - thy worth. Idol of Gaul, I worship thee not. The very cloven - foot, for which thou art worshipped, I despise: yet I remember - _thee_ with affection. I remember that, in spite of vain - philosophy, of dark doubts, of toilsome learning, God had - stamped his image of benignity so strong upon thy _heart_, - that not all the labours of thy head could efface it. Idol of - a foolish people, be not puffed up; it is easy to overturn the - faith of a multitude that is ready to do evil: an apostle of - less sense might bring to that giddy nation--libertinism; - liberty they are not born to. This will be sent to you by your - good friend, Mr. Burnet; who goes much such an errand as you - have given yourself through life, viz., in search of truth; - and I believe both are equally impartial in the search; - though, indeed, he has more visible interests for darkening it - than ever you had. - - _Castlehill, Baird's Close, Aug. 20th, 1764._[231:1] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Paris, 3d September, 1764._ - -"It is certain that nothing could be a greater inducement to me to -continue my History, than your desiring so earnestly I should do so. I -have so great reason to be satisfied with your conduct towards me, that -I wish very much to gratify you in every thing that is practicable; and -there want not other motives to make me embrace that resolution. For, -though I think I have reason to complain of the blindness of party, -which has made the public do justice to me very slowly, and with great -reluctance, yet I find that I obtain support from many impartial people; -and hope that I shall every day have more reason to be satisfied in that -particular. But, in my present situation, it is impossible for me to -undertake such a work; and I cannot break off from Lord Hertford, as -long as he is pleased to think me useful to him. I shall not, however, -lose sight of this object; and any materials that cast up, in this -country, shall be carefully collected by me. - -"I am glad you are satisfied with the publication of the new edition of -my Essays. I shall be obliged to you if you will inform yourself exactly -how many copies are now sold, both of that edition and of the octavo -edition of my History. I think both these editions very correct. I did -little more than see your friends, Mr. Buchanan and Mr. Wilson, at -Paris, and present them to Lord Hertford. We returned not from Compiegne -till a few days before they left Paris. . . . . . I think the Duchess of -Douglas has chosen well in making Mallet one of her commissioners. I -have no good opinion of that cause. Mrs. Mallet has retired into the -forest of Fontainbleau with a Macgregor. I fancy she is angry with me, -and thought herself neglected by me while in Paris. I heard of her -thrusting herself every where into companies, who endeavoured to avoid -her; and I was afraid she would have laid hold of me to enlarge her -acquaintance among the French. I have not yet executed your commission -with Mons{r}. le Roy, but shall not forget it. I am very glad that Mrs. -Millar is so good as to remember me. I shall regard it as one agreeable -circumstance attending my return to England, that you and she will have -leisure to give more of your company to your friends; and I shall always -be proud to be ranked in the number. - -"The lowness of stocks surely proceeds not from any apprehension of war: -never was a general peace established in Europe with more likelihood of -its continuance; but I fancy your stocks are become at last too -weighty, to the conviction of all the world. What must happen, if we go -on at the same rate during another war? I am, with great sincerity, dear -sir, your most obedient humble servant."[233:1] - - -The course of correspondence with Elliot, which commences with the next -following letter, relates, in a great measure, to the disposal of his -two sons at Paris, and to their future training and education.[233:2] -There could be no better evidence of the reliance placed in Hume's -honourable principles and knowledge of the world, by those friends who -were sufficiently intimate with him, fully to appreciate his character; -while his whole conduct in the transaction shows kindness of heart, with -a warm attachment to friends, and an earnest disposition to serve them. - - -GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto to_ HUME. - - MY DEAR SIR,--My departure from Paris was so very sudden, that - I was obliged to leave many of my little schemes uncompleted; - and, what was still more mortifying, to see the progress of - all my growing attachments cruelly interrupted. I reached this - place just in time, though not a little retarded by the - Russian chancellor and his forty horses. Had I but foreseen - this obstruction, I might as well have set out on Wednesday - morning at two o'clock; and in that case, my dear - philosopher, what a delicious evening should I have passed in - your company. - - Upon full deliberation I am determined to send you my boys, if - a tolerable place can be found for their reception. I did not - much like that talking professor, who undertakes so largely: - if nothing better can be done, pray take the trouble to renew - my negotiation with Madame Anson. Her house, though not just - what I could wish, is, however, not much amiss. I must not - lose this occasion of sending my children to France. I shall - never find any other so favourable. It will be no small - consolation to their mother, from whom they are now to be - separated for the first time, to know that we are not without - a friend in Paris, who will sometimes have an eye to their - conduct. If I am not too partial, I think you will find in - their character much native simplicity, and perhaps some - little elevation of mind. Send them back to me, my dear sir, - with the same qualities, tempered, if you will, but not - impaired by the acquisition of some few of those graces which - spread such an inexpressible charm through those societies - where even you are not ashamed to pass so many precious hours. - - If you should find no leisure to give them a moment's - instruction, tell them at least to look up to the conduct and - character of a young friend of ours at Paris.[234:1] There - they will find a model, which, without hoping to equal, it - will, however, become them to copy. But, after all, what am I - about? At Paris, to have children at all, is _de plus mauvais - ton de monde_, and I forgot to inform myself, when one happens - to have them, whether it be _permitted_ to take any thought - about them. I am impatient to hear from you at London. I shall - not be long there. I desire you would take this important - business into your hands and settle it for me entirely. I will - send them over the moment you desire me, and consigned to whom - you direct,--the sooner the better: you will settle all other - particulars as you find proper. Before I conclude, allow me in - friendship also to tell you, I think I see you at present upon - the very brink of a precipice. One cannot too much clear - their mind of all little prejudices, but partiality to one's - country is not a prejudice. Love the French as much as you - will. Many of the individuals are surely the proper objects of - affection; but, above all, continue still an Englishman. You - know, better than any body, that the active powers of our mind - are much too limited to be usefully employed in any pursuit - more general than the service of that portion of mankind which - we call our country. General benevolence and private - friendship will attend a generous mind and a feeling heart, - into every country; but political attachment confines itself - to one. - - Mon _fils_, sur les humains que ton ame attendrie, - Habite l'univers, mais aime sa patrie. - - I have not now leisure to trouble you with the few - observations my too short stay at Paris had but imperfectly - furnished me with. Irreconcileable to the principles of their - government, I am delighted with the amenity and gentleness of - their manners. I was even pleased to find that the severity - and rigour of our English climate had not rendered me - altogether insensible to the kind impressions of a milder sky. - May I trouble you with my most cordial and sincere respects to - Lord and Lady Hertford. Some French names, too, I could - mention, but I am not vain enough to imagine that I can, upon - so short an acquaintance, have a place in their remembrance. - Believe me, very dear sir, yours very sincerely, and most - affectionately, - - GILBERT ELLIOT.[235:1] - - (I set out this moment.) - - _Brussels, 15th September, 1764._ - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Paris, 22d Sept. 1764._ - -"As soon as I received yours from Brussels, I set on foot my inquiries. -I spoke to Abbé Hooke, to Père Gordon, to Clairaut, to Madame de Pri, -and to others, with a view of finding some proper settlement for your -young gentlemen. Every body told me, as _they_ did, of the difficulty of -succeeding in my scheme; and nothing yet has been offered me, that I -would advise you to accept of. I went to Madame Anson's, and found that -family a very decent, sensible kind of people. I came in upon them about -seven o'clock, and found a company of eight or nine persons assembled, -whose aspects pleased me very much. The only objection that occurred to -me with regard to this family, is the quarter of the town, which is not -only so unfashionable, that my coachman was astonished when I ordered -him to drive thither, but, what is worse, it is far from all walks and -places of exercise. However, it is near the university; and, -consequently, it is in that quarter where all the youth of France are -educated. If nothing better present itself, I shall conclude a bargain -with this family for a thousand crowns a-year, without firing or -washing, according to the terms proposed to you, which they said they -could not depart from. The misfortune is, that I must go to Fontainbleau -in about a fortnight, and, consequently, am straitened in my time of -inquiry; but, in all cases, I shall certainly conclude with somebody -before my departure. We stay six weeks at Fontainbleau, during which -time, if you send your sons to Paris, I shall take a journey thither to -receive them. In all cases, they must come immediately to the Hotel de -Brancas, where they will not want friends. - -"I do not like the talking man more than you do; and a flattering letter -I have since received from him, does not augment my good opinion. I went -to Monsieur Bastide, he who proposed the scheme for ten thousand livres -a-year. He seems to be a genteel, well-bred man; lives in a very good -house in an excellent quarter of the town; is well spoke of by -D'Alembert and others; and has with him two very agreeable boys, Russian -princes, who speak French very well. I should have given him the -preference, had it not been the price. He asks ten thousand livres -a-year for your two sons and their governor, without supplying them -either with clothes or masters. You know his ten thousand a-piece -included all expenses. If you can resolve to go so far in point of -expense, it is the best place that occurs, or is likely to occur. - -"Since I wrote the above, I went to see Mademoiselle L'Espinasse, -D'Alembert's mistress, who is really one of the most sensible women in -Paris. She told me that there could not be a worthier, honester, better -man, than Bastide. I told her that I had entertained the same opinion, -but was afraid his head-piece was none of the best. She owned that he -did not excel on that side; and a proof of it was, that he had wrote -several books, all of which were below middling. On my return home, I -found the enclosed letter from him.[237:1] I have promised him an answer -by the return of the post from England. On the whole, the chief -advantage, as it appears to me, which his house will have above Anson's, -consists in the air and situation. It lies on the skirts of the town, in -an open street near the rampart; but five thousand livres a-year is -paying too dear for the advantage. - -"I cannot imagine what you mean by saying I am on a precipice. I shall -foretell to you the result of my present situation almost with as great -certainty as it is possible to employ with regard to any future event. -As soon as Lord Hertford's embassy ends, which probably may not -continue long, some zealot, whom I never saw, and never could offend, -finding me without protection, will instanter fly, with alacrity, to -strike off that pension which the king and the ministry, before I would -consent to accept of my present situation, promised should be for life. -I shall be obliged to leave Paris, which I confess I shall turn my back -to with regret. I shall go to Thoulouse or Montauban, or some provincial -town in the south of France, where I shall spend, contented, the rest of -my life, with more money, under a finer sky, and in better company than -I was born to enjoy. - -"From what human motive or consideration can I prefer living in England -than in foreign countries? I believe, taking the continent of Europe, -from Petersburg to Lisbon, and from Bergen to Naples, there is not one -who ever heard of my name, who has not heard of it with advantage, both -in point of morals and genius. I do not believe there is one Englishman -in fifty, who, if he heard I had broke my neck to-night, would be sorry. -Some, because I am not a Whig; some because I am not a Christian; and -all because I am a Scotsman. Can you seriously talk of my continuing an -Englishman? Am I, or are you, an Englishman? Do they not treat with -derision our pretensions to that name, and with hatred our just -pretensions to surpass and govern them? I am a citizen of the world; but -if I were to adopt any country, it would be that in which I live at -present, and from which I am determined never to depart, unless a war -drives me into Switzerland or Italy. - -"I must now inform you what passed with regard to my affair at -L'ile-Adam.[238:1] My friend showed me a letter, which she had lately -received from Lord Tavistock, by which it appears he had fallen into -great friendship, and bore a great regard to Lady Sarah Bunbury. I -instantly forbade her to write to England a line about my affair. I bear -too great a respect to her, to expose her to ask a favour, where there -was so little probability of success: thus have vanished my best hopes -of obtaining justice in this point. Here is surely no new ground of -attachment to England."[239:1] - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Hotel de Brancas, 30th Sept. 1764._ - -"After acknowledging that I received both your letters, that from -Brussels, and that from Calais, I should be ashamed to appear before you -with so late a letter. This day fortnight, Lord March and Selwin -appointed to go off. I sent March a very long letter for you, and -enjoined him, as he lived next door to you, to deliver it the moment he -arrived; and having thus done my duty, I went very contentedly to -L'ile-Adam, where I remained for four days. On my return to Paris, I was -much surprised to hear that March, after his post-chaise was yoked, had -changed his mind, and was still in Paris. When I appeared alarmed at -this intelligence, I was told that he had sent off an express to London -with letters, which composed my mind. Next day I saw him, and he fairly -confessed, that from forgetfulness, he had not sent off my letter. I -begged him to send it to me; he promised it, delayed it, promised again, -and at last owns that he has lost it; which gives me great vexation, -both on your account, and my own, for I spoke to you with great freedom, -and am infinitely uneasy lest my letter should fall into bad -hands.[241:1] When I rail at March, I get no other reply than, 'God damn -you! if your letter was of consequence, why the devil did you trust it -to such a foolish fellow as me?' I am therefore obliged, in a great -hurry, to give you some imperfect account of what I have done. I went to -Ansons', who seem a discreet, sober set of people. I came in upon a -mixed company, whose looks pleased me: the only objection is the quarter -of the town, which is straitened; but it is near the University, and -consequently where all the youth of France are educated. I do not like -the talking man more than you; and a very flattering letter he wrote me, -helped further to disgust me. La Bastide, the 10,000 livres man, I went -to see: he seems an agreeable man, and is well spoke of; he lives in an -agreeable house, and in a good air, and has two young Russian princes -with him, who speak very good French; he offers to take your two boys -and preceptor for 8000 livres on the whole, but without paying either -clothes or master. I suppose you would not choose to pay 5000 livres -a-year, merely for the advantage of better air. I have heard a very good -character of one Eriot, professor of rhetoric in the Collège de -Beauvais, who offers to take them: they would live in the house with -him alone; but he proposes that they should go to all the classes of the -university, where they would make acquaintance with French boys, and -nobody would ever ask questions about their religion: But as I heard you -declare against their going to the university, (which yet I should -highly approve of,) I cannot make any bargain with Eriot. The misfortune -is, I go to Fontainbleau to-morrow se'ennight, and must conclude a -bargain without hearing from you, by this fine trick Lord March has -played me. It is probable, therefore, it will be with Anson, because you -yourself did not disapprove of that plan; and I should be afraid to -depart from it considerably, without your authority. If you give me -information in time, I shall come from Fontainbleau to settle your boys. -In any case make them come immediately to the Hotel de Brancas, where -they will not want friends if any of the family be in town. - -"Since I wrote the above, one of my numerous scouts came to me, and told -me, that within gunshot of the Hotel de Brancas, there was to be found -all I could wish, and more than I could have imagined. It is called La -Pension Militaire. I immediately went to see it. I found there an -excellent airy house, with an open garden belonging to it. It is the -best house but one in Paris; has a prospect and access into the large -open space of the Invalids, and from thence into the fields. The number -of boys is limited to thirty-five, whom I saw in the court, in a blue -uniform with a narrow silver lace. They left off their play, and made me -a bow with the best grace in the world, as I passed. I was carried to -their master the Abbé Choquart, who appeared to me a sensible, sedate, -judicious man, agreeable to the character I had received of him. He -carried me through the boys' apartments, which were cleanly, light, -spacious, and each lay in a small bed apart. I saw a large collection of -instruments for experimental philosophy. I saw an ingenious machine for -teaching chronology. There were plans of fortification. While I was -considering these, I heard a drum beat in the court. It was the hour for -assembling the boys for their military exercises. I went down. They had -now all got on their belts, and had their muskets in their hands. They -went through all the Prussian exercises with the best air and greatest -regularity imaginable. Almost all were about your son's age, a year or -two more or less. They are the youth of the best quality in France; -their air and manners seemed to bespeak it. The master asked only about -thirteen hundred livres a-year for each of your boys, five hundred for -the preceptor. He supplies them with all masters, except those of -dancing, music, and designing; for these they have masters that come in, -who take only eight livres a-month, though they require from others -three louis-d'ors. There is a riding master belonging to the house. Your -sons need never go to mass unless they please, and nobody shall ever -talk to them about religion; the master only requires, that you should -write him a letter, which he will read to every body, by which you -desire . . . ."[243:1] - - -The following short letter was addressed to Mr. Elliot on the same day -with the preceding one, for the reason which the letter itself states. -The anxious care with which Hume endeavoured not only to be punctual and -exact himself in the performance of the business he had undertaken, but -to remedy the consequences of the absence of these qualities in others, -may afford a useful reproof to those who demean themselves as above the -exercise of these homely virtues; and shows that the practice of them -has been, in one instance at least, considered not incompatible with the -design and achievement of intellectual greatness. - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Hotel de Brancas, 30th September, 1764._ - -"I have wrote you a long letter to London, a short one to Harrowgate, -and now I write to you to Minto. Not to lose time, you must have a -little implicit faith; without making further questions, give instantly -orders that your sons be sent to me, and that they come instantly to the -Hotel de Brancas. Within less than a gunshot of this, I have found a -place which has all advantages beyond what your imagination could -suggest; it is almost directly opposite to my friend the Marechale de -Mirepoix's, by whose advice I act. I tell you this, lest your opinion of -my discretion be not the highest in the world. There are there about -thirty boys of the best families in France. The house is spacious, airy, -clean, has a garden, opens into the fields; the board costs only -thirteen hundred livres a-year for each boy, five hundred for the tutor; -the boys have almost all masters for this sum. I have concluded the -bargain for a quarter; the payment runs on from the first of October, -because the course of studies begins then; there will be no question -about religion or the mass. I have been more particular in my letter to -London. Nothing was ever so fortunate for your purpose." - - -"_Hotel de Brancas, 9th October, 1764._ - -"I go to Fontainbleau to-day; my Lady and Lord Beauchamp go also. Mr. -Trail, the chaplain, and Mr. Larpent, my lord's secretary, follow in a -few days. All these arrangements are unexpected; but the consequence is, -that there will be nobody in the Hotel de Brancas for some weeks; but -this need not retard a moment your sending the young gentlemen. I have -spoke to the master of the academy, who says that the moment they arrive -they shall be settled as well as if all their kindred were there. I have -sent the enclosed letter to him, which the gentleman who attends them -may deliver immediately on his arrival in Paris. Vive valeque."[245:1] - - -In 1764, the Comte de Boufflers died, and his widow expected to be made -Princess of Conti. Hume seems to have seen from the first that this -expectation was likely to lead to manifold mortifications, and that it -was the duty of a true friend to prepare her mind for disappointment. -In this spirit he wrote her the following long and carefully considered -letters, in answer to some communications from her, full of hopes and -fears, and all a Frenchwoman's nervous agitations. - - -HUME _to the_ COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - - _Wednesday, 28th of November, 1764._ - - You may believe that, ever since my return to Paris, I have - kept my eyes and ears open with regard to every thing that - concerns your affair. I find it is the general opinion of all - those who think themselves the best informed, that a - resolution is taken in your favour; and that the resolution - will probably have place. But you do not expect surely, that - so great an event will pass without censure. It would ill - become my friendship to flatter you on this head. The envy and - jealousy of the world would alone account for a repugnance in - many. Nobody has been more generally known than you; both of - late and in your early youth. Will so numerous an acquaintance - be pleased to see you pass, from being their equal, to be so - much their superior? Will they bear your uniting the decisive - elevation of rank to the elevation of genius, which they feel, - and which they would in vain contest? Be assured, that she is - really and sincerely your friend, who can willingly yield you - so great advantages. - - But though I hear some murmurs of this kind, I have likewise - the consolation to meet with several who entertain opposite - sentiments. I was told of a man of superior sense, nowise - connected with you, who maintained in a public company, that, - if the report was true, nothing could give him a higher idea - of the laudable and noble principles of your friend. The - execution of his purpose, he said, could not only be - justified, but seemed a justice due to you. The capital point - is to interpose as few delays as possible. Time must create - obstacles, and can remove none. While the matter seems in - suspense, many will declare themselves with violence against - you, and will render themselves irreconcilable enemies by such - declarations. They might be the first to pay court to you, - had no leisure been allowed them to display their envy and - malignity. - - On the whole, I am fully persuaded, from what I hear and see, - that the matter will end as we wish. But in all cases, I - foresee, that, let the event be what it will, you will reap - from it much honour and much vexation. Alas! dear madam, the - former is never a compensation for the latter: especially to - you, whose delicate frame, already shaken by an incident of - much less importance surely, is ill calculated to bear such - violent agitations. Pardon these sentiments if you think them - mean. They are dictated by my friendship for you. I am indeed - so mean as to wish you alive and healthy and gay in any - fortune. A fine consolation for us truly, to see the epithet - of princess inscribed on your grave, while we reflect that it - contains what was the most amiable in the world? I propose to - pay my respects to you the beginning of next week. - - - _10th December, 1764._ - - It is needless to inform you, how much you employed my - thoughts in this great crisis of your fortune, of your health, - of your life itself. You could perceive, by undoubted signs, - that I partook sincerely of the violent anxieties, by which I - found you agitated; and that, after having endeavoured in vain - to appease the tumult of your passions, I was at last - necessitated myself to take part in your distress. My sympathy - is not abated by absence. I find myself incapable almost of - other occupation or amusement. - - You still recur to my memory. The chief relief I have is in - writing to you, and throwing together some thoughts, which - occur to me, on your subject. - - They are mostly the same which occurred in conversation, and - which I have already suggested to you. They will acquire no - additional authority at present in writing, except by - convincing you that they are the result of my most mature - reflections. - - Of all your friends, I, as a foreigner, am perhaps the least - capable of giving you advice on so delicate a subject: I only - challenge the preference, in the warmth of my affection and - esteem towards you; and I am, as a foreigner, the farther - removed from all suspicion of separate interests and regards. - - I cannot too often repeat, what I inculcated on you with great - earnestness, that, even if your friend should fix his - resolution on the side least favourable to you, you ought to - receive his determination without the least resentment. You - know that princes, more than other men, are born slaves to - prejudices, and that this tax is imposed on them, as a species - of retaliation by the public. This prince in particular is in - every view so eminent, that he owes some account of his - conduct to Europe in general, to France, and to his family, - the most illustrious in the world. It is expected, that men, - in his station, shall not be actuated by private regards. It - is expected, that with them friendship, affection, sympathy, - shall be absorbed in ambition, and in the desire of supporting - their rank in the world; and, if they fail in this duty, they - will meet with blame from a great part of the public. Can you - be surprised, that a person covetous of honour, should be - moved by these considerations? If he neglected them, would not - your grateful heart suggest to you, that he had taken an - extraordinary step in your favour? And can you, with any - grace, complain, that an extraordinary event has not happened, - merely because you wished for it, and found it desirable? - - I am fully sensible, madam, of the force of those arguments - which you urged, not to justify your resentment, [from] which - you declared you would ever be exempted, but to maintain the - reasonableness of your expectations. I am fully sensible of - the regard, the sacred regard, due to a long and sincere - attachment, which, passing from love to friendship, lost - nothing of its warmth, and acquired only the additional merit - of reason and constancy. This regard, I own, is really - honourable and virtuous; and may safely be opposed to the - maxims of an imaginary honour, which, depending upon modes and - prejudices, will always be regarded, by great minds, as a - secondary consideration. I shall add, what your modesty would - not allow you to surmise, or even, perhaps, to think, that an - extraordinary step, taken in favour of extraordinary merit, - will always justify itself; and will appear but an ordinary - tribute. Allow me to do you this justice in your present - melancholy situation. I know I am exempt from flattery: I - believe I am exempt from partiality. The zeal and fervour - which move me, are the effects, not the causes of my judgment. - - But, my dear friend, the consideration, which is the most - interesting, the most affecting, the most alarming, is the - immediate danger of your health and life, from the violent - situation into which fortune has now thrown you. You continued - long to live, with tolerable tranquillity, though exposed to - many vexations, in a state little befitting your worth and - merit; and you still comforted yourself by reflecting that you - could not change it, without withdrawing from a friendship - dearer to you than life itself. You still could flatter - yourself, that the person, for whose sake you made this - sacrifice, if he had it in his power, would, at any price, - repair your honour, and fortify his connexions with you. The - unexpected death of M. de Boufflers has put an end to these - illusions. It has at once brought you within reach of honour - and felicity: and has thrown a poison on your former state, by - rendering it still less honourable than before. - - You cannot say, madam, that I do not feel, and with the most - pungent sensation, the cruelty of your situation. I am - sensible too, that time will scarcely bring any remedy to this - evil. - - The loss of a friend, of a dignity, of fortune, admits of - consolation, if not from reason, at least from oblivion; and - these sorrows are not eternal. But while you maintain your - present connexions, your hopes, still kept alive, will still - enliven your natural desire of that state to which you aspire, - and your disgust towards that state in which you will find - yourself. I foresee that your lively passions, continually - agitated, will tear in pieces your tender frame: melancholy - and a broken constitution may then prove your lot, and the - remedy which could now preserve your health and peace of mind, - may come too late to restore them. - - What advice, then, can I give you, in a situation so - interesting? The measure which I recommend to you requires - courage, but I dread that nothing else will be able to prevent - the consequences, so justly apprehended. It is, in a word, - that after employing every gentle art to prevent a rupture, - you should gradually diminish your connexion with the Prince, - should be less assiduous in your visits, should make fewer and - shorter journeys to his country seats, and should betake - yourself to a private, and sociable, and independent life at - Paris. By this change in your plan of living, you cut off at - once the expectations of that dignity to which you aspire; you - are no longer agitated with hopes and fears; your temper - insensibly recovers its former tone; your health returns; your - relish for a simple and private life gains ground every day, - and you become sensible, at last, that you have made a good - exchange of tranquillity for grandeur. Even the dignity of - your character, in the eyes of the world, recovers its lustre, - while men see the just price you set upon your liberty; and - that, however the passions of youth may have seduced you, you - will not now sacrifice all your time, where you are not deemed - worthy of every honour. - - And why should you think with reluctance on a private life at - Paris? It is the situation for which I thought you best - fitted, ever since I had the happiness of your acquaintance. - The inexpressible and delicate graces of your character and - conversation, like the soft notes of a lute, are lost amid the - tumult of company, in which I commonly saw you engaged. A more - select society would know to set a juster value upon your - merit. Men of sense, and taste, and letters, would accustom - themselves to frequent your house. Every elegant society would - court your company. And though all great alterations in the - habits of living may, at first, appear disagreeable, the mind - is soon reconciled to its new situation, especially if more - congenial and natural to it. I should not dare to mention my - own resolutions on this occasion, if I did not flatter myself - that your friendship gives them some small importance in your - eyes. Being a foreigner, I dare less answer for my plans of - life, which may lead me far from this country; but if I could - dispose of my fate, nothing could be so much my choice as to - live where I might cultivate your friendship. Your taste for - travelling might also afford you a plausible pretence for - putting this plan in execution: a journey to Italy would - loosen your connexions here; and, if it were delayed some - time, I could, with some probability, expect to have the - felicity of attending you thither.[251:1] - -Hume had the happiness of Madame de Boufflers sincerely at heart; and we -find him, on 24th June, 1765, thus writing to his brother:-- - -"I had great hopes, all the winter, of seeing the Countess in a station -suitable to her merit, and of paying my respects to her as part of the -royal family. Several accidents have disappointed us; and the various -turns of this affair have more agitated me than almost any event in -which I was ever engaged." - -The following correspondence exhibits a feature in Hume's character, -which to many readers will be new, and perhaps unpleasing. It shows that -he was by no means exempt from the passion of anger, and that when under -its influence he was liable to be harsh and unreasonable. The general -notion formed of his character is, that he passed through life unmoved -and immovable, a placid mass of breathing flesh, on which the ordinary -impulses which rouse the human passions into life might expend -themselves in vain. We have seen that very early in life he had -undertaken the task of bringing his passions and propensities under the -yoke, and directing all his physical and mental energies to the -accomplishment of his early and never fading vision of literary renown. -From many indications which petty incidents in his life afford, it would -appear that the ardour of his nature, if thus regulated, was not -eradicated; and one cannot, in a general survey of his course and -character, reject the conclusion, that his early resolution not to enter -the lists as a controversial writer, mentioned in the following letter, -was suggested by a profound self-knowledge, and a consciousness of his -inability to preserve his temper as a controversialist. - -The person against whom all the wrath of the following letter is -directed, is the respectable author of the "Historical and Critical -Inquiry into the Evidence produced by the Earls Murray and Morton -against Mary Queen of Scots." That, assailed as he often was by attacks -so much more vehement and unscrupulous, Hume should have taken so deep -umbrage at this piece of free historical criticism, is a problem not -easily to be explained. It is not a little remarkable that the bitterest -remark on any contemporary contained in his published works, is a note -to his History, in which he has abbreviated the purport of the -letter.[252:1] - - -HUME _to_ LORD ELIBANK.[252:2] - -"MY LORD,--As I am told that Dr. Robertson has wrote a few remarks, -which he communicated to your lordship, as our common answer about the -affair of Queen Mary, and has endeavoured to show you that it was -contempt and not inability, which kept him from making a public reply; I -thought it would not be amiss for me to imitate his example; and I did -not indeed know a properer person, nor a more equal judge than your -lordship, to whom I could submit the cause. For if, on the one hand, -your lordship's regard to the memory of that princess might give you a -bias to that side, I know, that the ancient and constant friendship, -with which your lordship has always honoured me, both in public and -private, would give you a strong bias on my side; and there was a good -chance for your remaining neutral and impartial between these motives. - -"I shall confine my apology to the account which I have given of the -conference at Hampton court, as this is indeed the chief point, in which -the answerer has thought proper to find fault with me. - -"There are several places, in which I mention Mary's refusal to give any -reply to Murray's charge, and have commonly said, that she annexed as a -condition, her being admitted to Queen Elizabeth's presence; as in page -496, line 20; page 501, line 12, line 21.[253:1] I have not said that -this condition was an unreasonable one, (the words which the answerer -puts in my mouth,) but only that it was such a one as she did not expect -to be granted; and that because Queen Elizabeth had formerly refused it, -before any positive proofs of Mary's guilt were produced, merely from -the general rumour and opinion, which were unfavourable to her. Having -thus clearly expressed myself on this head, when I have occasion -afterwards, in the course of the narration, to mention the matter, I say -once or twice simply, that Mary refused to give any answer, without -expressing the condition annexed by her. My reasons were, that the -position was sufficiently qualified by the preceding narration; and -because a refusal, grounded on a condition which the person does not -expect to be gratified, and which is accordingly denied, is certainly -equivalent to a simple and absolute refusal. - -"That your lordship may judge of the unfairness of the answerer, he -picks out this simple and unqualified expression of mine, and omits the -others, which explain it to the readers of the meanest capacity; and he -opposes it by a passage cited with equal unfairness from Mr. Goodall's -appendix. He quotes a long passage from Goodall, p. 308, in which Queen -Mary demands copies of her letters, and offers positively to give an -answer without mentioning any conditions; and this detached passage he -opposes to the detached passage from me, in which I assert that she -absolutely refused to answer. He desires that this express contradiction -between my narration and the records may be remarked. But, in the first -place, the condition of being admitted to Queen Elizabeth, though not -mentioned in that paper, is not relinquished, and it is even clearly -implied; because Mary there refers to a former letter, which we find in -Goodall, p. 283, line 2, from the bottom, page 289, line 13, and where -it is positively insisted on. Secondly, we have in Goodall, page 184, -Queen Mary's commission to break up the conference, if that condition be -not granted. Thirdly, Queen Elizabeth understands her meaning very well, -as indeed it was very plain, and offers to her copies of the letters, if -she will promise to answer without any condition; see Goodall, page 311, -line 3, and this offer is not accepted of. Fourthly, in the very last -paper of all, which closes the whole, the Bishop of Ross still insists -on that condition; Goodall, page 390 about the middle. - -"You see, therefore, my lord, the double trick practised. A mangled -passage of my History is confronted with a mangled passage of Mr. -Goodall's papers, and by this gross fraud a contradiction is pretended -to be found between them. A single forgery would not do the business. - -"I believe it will divert your lordship to observe, that when the -answerer is employing these base artifices, this is the very moment he -chooses to call me liar and rascal. But that trick is so frequently -practised by thieves, pick-pockets, and controversial writers, -(gentlemen whose morality are pretty much upon a footing,) that all the -world has ceased to wonder, and wise men are tired of complaining of it. - -"I do not find that even this gentleman has ventured to assert, that -Queen Mary offered to answer Murray's accusation, though she should be -refused access to Queen Elizabeth. Where then is the difference between -us? He asserts, that she offered to answer, if admitted to that queen. I -say that she refused to answer unless she was admitted, which are -positive and negative propositions of the same import. - -"For a proof that Queen Mary's commission was finally revoked, I beg -your lordship to consult Goodall, p. 184, 311, 387, where it is plainly -asserted. The last quotation is from the concluding paper of the whole -collection. - -"I hope your lordship, as my friend, will congratulate me on the -resolution I took in the beginning of my life, that is, of my literary -life, never to reply to any body. Otherwise this gentleman, I mean this -author, might have insulted me on my silence. I am sure your lordship -would have disowned me for ever as a friend, if I had entered the lists -with such an antagonist. Mr. Goodall is no very calm or indifferent -advocate in this cause; yet he disowns him as an associate, and -confesses to me and all the world, that I am here right in my facts, and -am only wrong in my inferences. - -"There appear to me two infallible marks of our opposite parties, and as -we may say proof charges, which, if a man can stand, there is no fear -that any charge will ever burst him. A Whig who believes the popish -plot, and a Tory who asserts Queen Mary's innocence, are certainly -fitted to go all lengths with their party. I am happy to think that such -people are both equally my enemies; and still more happy, that I have no -animosity at either. - -"It is an old proverb, _Love me, love my dog_; but certainly it admits -of many exceptions. I am sure, at least, that I have a great respect for -your lordship, yet have none at all for this dog of yours. On the -contrary, I declare him to be a very mangy cur; entreat your lordship to -rid your hands of him as soon as possible, and think a sound beating, or -even a rope too good for him."[256:1] - - -Lord Elibank's answer does not appear to have been preserved. It can -scarcely be supposed that the foregoing letter, or any one written in a -like spirit, is the communication which Hume characterizes in the -following letter as written "in a spirit of cordiality and amity," and -containing "every pathetic, every engaging sentiment and expression;" -yet we afterwards find Lord Elibank sarcastically alluding to his -having been so stupid as to mistake the spirit thus described, for one -of a totally opposite tendency. - - -HUME _to_ LORD ELIBANK. - -"_Fontainbleau, 3d Nov. 1764._ - -"MY LORD,--In reply to the letter with which your lordship has honoured -me, I shall endeavour to be as clear and as concise as possible. Your -lordship should never have heard of the short and slight disgust between -your brother and me, had he not told Sir James Macdonald that you was in -such a passion against me, on account of my conduct towards him, that -you intended instantly to compose a pamphlet against me, on the subject -of Queen Mary, and to publish it as a full revenge upon me. You see that -he insinuates the same thing in his letter, and he says that you was -_formerly my friend_. But the whole story, I have now reason to see, was -without foundation, both from the tenor of your lordship's present -letter, and from a letter of yours delivered to me by Mons. Calvet, and -which is wrote in the usual friendly strain that had so long subsisted -between us. But not doubting at that time of Mr. Murray's story, I -dreaded the consequence of a pamphlet composed and published by one of -your lordship's temper in a fit of rage, on a subject where you are -naturally heated. I knew that it would be full of expressions of the -utmost acrimony, which you yourself could not forgive, even were I -disposed to do so; and I may now add, that this last letter proves you -to be an excellent proficient in that style. I wrote my letter in a -spirit of cordiality and amity, that I might prevent a rupture most -disagreeable to me. I have no objection to the publishing any thing in -opposition to my opinions. On the contrary, there is nothing I desire -more than these discussions. I was far from threatening your lordship -with the loss of my friendship, which I was sensible could never be of -any consequence to you: I only foretold with infinite regret, that if -you wrote against me in a heat, without allowing your temper to compose -itself, it would be impossible for us to be any longer friends. I -employed every pathetic, every engaging sentiment and expression to -induce your lordship to embrace this way of thinking. I shall venture to -say, that you have never in your life received a more friendly and more -obliging letter. I leave your lordship to judge of the return it has met -with. - -"I composed my letter with great care, because I set a value on your -lordship's friendship. I was so much satisfied with it myself, that I -read it to a friend, who told me, that it would be impossible for your -lordship to resist so many mollifying expressions, and that they would -certainly bring you back to our usual state of friendship. Under what -power of fascination have your eyes lain, when you could see every thing -in a light so directly opposite? - -"I come now to the other ground of your complaint, my indifference in -the case of Mr. Murray. When I arrived in Paris, the first question he -asked me was, whether Lord Bute or Mr. Stuart Mackenzie had recommended -him to Lord Hertford, that he might be received in the ambassador's -house like other British subjects. I asked my lord, who told me that -neither of these persons had ever mentioned Mr. Murray to him; he wished -they had; he desired to show all manner of civilities to Mr. Murray. But -he was afraid, that a person against whom a public proclamation had -been issued, and who had openly lived so many years with the Pretender, -could not be received in his house, unless he had previously received -some assurances, that the matter would give no offence. I told this to -Mr Murray. He was entirely satisfied. He only said that he would write -again to Mr. Stuart Mackenzie, who never wrote to Lord Hertford. In this -affair, then, Mr. Murray received all the favour which he either desired -or expected. - -"But perhaps your lordship means, that I ought to have befriended him in -his law-suit with Mrs. Blake,--I suppose, by taking his part in company. -But who told you that I did not? I have frequently desired people in -general to suspend their judgment; for as to any particular -justification of him, I was not capable of it, because I was and still -am ignorant of all particulars of his story. Whence could I learn them? -From himself, or from his antagonist, or from both? I assure your -lordship that I was otherwise employed, and more to my satisfaction, -than in unravelling an intricate story, which the Parliament of Paris -could not clear up in much less than two years, and which, it is -pretended, they have not cleared up at last. - -"But I need say no more on this head, since your brother a few days -after I wrote you sent me a letter, in which he asked pardon for his -former letter, acknowledged his error, and desired a return of my -friendship. His only ground of quarrel, indeed, was a small negligence -in returning his visits: an offence which, operating on a man of his -vanity, has engaged him to do all this mischief. - -"I have said that your lordship never received a letter more friendly -and obliging than my former letter: I hope you will also acknowledge -that this is wrote with sufficient temper and moderation. Adieu. - -"I have the honour to be, with the greatest regard and consideration, my -lord, your lordship's most obedient, and most humble servant."[260:1] - - -LORD ELIBANK _to_ HUME. - - _Balancrief, July 9th, 1765._ - - DEAR SIR,--I have the pleasure to understand, by yours of the - ----, that I have never been altogether in disgrace with you; - I choose rather to pass for dull as mad, and it would have - been the highest proof of the latter, if I had taken any thing - ill of you, that I had not thought ill meant. - - I own the compliment you say you intended me in your former - letter, was too refined for my genius. I really mistook it for - an intention to break with me; and as there is hardly any - thing I set a greater value on than your friendship, and I was - not conscious of having ever entertained a single idea - inconsistent with it, I could not resign it without pain and - resentment. Diffident of myself, I showed your letter to - several of our common friends, who all understood it as I did. - Had my affection for you been more moderate, my answer to - yours would have been cool in proportion. I am still mortified - to think you could suspect me of siding with my brother - against you. I know the distinction between relationship and - friendship. I have ever thought those connexions incompatible; - and if I was dull enough to mistake the meaning of your - letter, I have not more reason to blush, than you have for - suspecting, that any thing my brother could say, was capable - of influencing my sincere regard for a friend of thirty years' - standing, or that my zeal for the reputation of any prince, - dead or alive, could draw any sentiment or expression from me, - inconsistent with that admiration of your talents, as an - author, and merit as a man, I have constantly felt in myself, - and endeavoured to excite in others. I am, dear sir, your - sincerely obedient humble servant, - - ELIBANK.[260:2] - -In fear lest the two letters to Elliot, printed above,[261:1] might not -have reached their destination, Hume wrote to him again on 17th -November, repeating the substance of his engagement with the Abbé -Choquart. The remainder of the letter follows: - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"As soon as I came from Fontainbleau, I went to the Pension Militaire, -so it is called, where I had first a conversation with the Abbé. I found -him exceedingly pleased with your boys: he told me that whenever his two -young pupils arrived, he called together all the French gentlemen, who -are to the number of thirty or thirty-two, and he made them a harangue; -he then said to them, that they were all men of quality, to be educated -to the honourable profession of arms; that all their wars would probably -be with England; that France and that kingdom, were Rome and Carthage, -whose rivality more properly than animosity never allowed long intervals -of peace; that the chance of arms might make them prisoners of arms to -Messrs Elliot, in which case it would be a happiness to them to meet a -private friend in a public enemy; that he knew many instances of people -whose lives were saved by such fortunate events, and it therefore became -them, from views of prudence, and from the generosity for which the -French nation was so renowned, to give the best treatment to the young -strangers, whose friendship might probably endure, and be serviceable to -them through life: he added, that the effect of this harangue was such, -that, as soon as he presented your boys to their companions, they all -flew to them and embraced them, and have ever since continued to pay -them all courtship and regard, and to show them every mark of -preference. Every one is ambitious to acquire the friendship of the two -young Englishmen, who have already formed connexions more intimate than -ever I observed among his other pupils. '_Ce que j'admire_,' added he, -'_dans vos jeunes amis est qu'ils ont non seulement de l'esprit, mais de -l'âme. Ils sont véritablement attendris des témoinages d'amitié qu'on -leur rend. Ils méritent d'être aimés, parce qu'ils savent aimer._' - -"When I came next to converse with your boys, I found all this -representation exactly just: I believe they never passed fourteen days -in their life so happily as they did the last. What I find strikes them -much is the high titles of their companions: there is not one, says -Hugh, that is not a marquis, or count, or chevalier at least. They are -indeed all of them of the best families in France, a nephew of M. de -Choiseul, two nephews of M. de Beninghen, &c. &c. They are frequently -drawn out, and displayed after the Prussian manner. I saw them go -through their exercises with the greatest exactness and best air. The -Abbé remarked to me, that the marching, and wheeling, and moving under -arms, is better than all the dancing schools in the world to give a -noble carriage to youth. Gilbert is such a proficient, that the master -is thinking already of advancing him to the first rank, if not of making -him a corporal: all this is excellent for Hugh, and if Gilbert's head be -a little too full with military ideas, this inconvenience will easily be -corrected, as far as it ought to be corrected. - -"The Abbé tells me, that in the short time they have been with him, -their accent is sensibly corrected, and he is persuaded that, in three -months' time, it will not be possible to distinguish them from -Frenchmen. They are never to hear mass, but to attend at the -ambassador's chapel every Sunday. Such is the general account I have to -give you; their preceptor will be more particular, and I shall visit -them from time to time."[263:1] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[209:1] The confidence with which the great aristocracy of birth mingled -with whatever elements it thought fit, is perhaps the best evidence of -the security it felt in the haughty and arbitrary exercise of its -established privileges. With all this free equality of social -intercourse, however, there must have been something yet left to which -the mere guest was not admitted, and to which he never aspired. Without -this, it seems impossible that Actors,--menials by the etiquette of the -court, anathematized by the church, held incapable of giving evidence in -some courts of law as persons of infamous profession,--should have been -so much sought after and caressed. Thus the Le Kains, Fleurys, and -Prévilles, among the men; the Sophy Arnoulds, Dumesnils, Clairons, among -the women, many of them thorough profligates, are to be found haunting -places surrounded by the highest lustre of adventitious rank, busying -themselves with state secrets, mingling in family disputes, and always -with the easy assurance of their profession. This state of matters could -not have existed unless the aristocracy, notwithstanding the ease with -which they permitted themselves to be approached, were able effectually -to mark precisely the point where the advance was to stop, and could -feel themselves among persons, who, like old family servants, never -presume upon familiarity. In admitting to social intercourse, however, a -person of Hume's dignity of character and position in literature, there -could be no such reserves, and the intercourse must have been as really -on terms of familiarity as it appeared to be. - -[211:1] The following is a specimen, of a letter to Hume:-- - -[Illustration] - -Among other like distinctions, an author had offered to dedicate to her -his Italian Grammar. She answered, "A moi, Monsieur; la dédicace d'une -grammaire! à moi qui ne sais pas seulement l'orthographe." "C'était la -pure vérité," subjoins Marmontel. - -[213:1] This active lady visited Voltaire, and succeeded in getting -access to him. It is said that the patriarch laboured hard to compose a -quatrain in her praise, but that the muse would not attend for such a -purpose. He solved the difficulty very ingeniously, by twisting some -laurel twigs into a wreath, and placing it on her brow. - -She writes to Hume, on 27th September, 1764, "Je vous présente monsieur -un receuil de mes ouvrages nouvellement imprimé à Lyon, pour avoir -l'honneur d'être dans la bibliothèque d'un homme qui fait l'honneur de -notre siècle. Je vous supplie d'accepter ce faible don, et de vouloir -bien faire passer le paquet que vous trouverez c'y joint au Marquis -Caraccioli Ministre de Naples à Londres."--MS. R.S.E. - -[214:1] The following note shows that there was some intercourse between -them, though it was probably not very extensive. - -"Madame la D. de Choiseul a très bien reçu les compliments de Mr. Hume. -Elle se reproche de ne lui avoir point écrit. Elle m'a chargée de lui -dire que s'il vouloit la venir voir aujourd'hui sur le midi et demy une -heure[214:A] qu'il lui feroit beaucoup de plaisir. Madame du Deffand -l'exhorte de ne pas manquer à y aller, et elle le prie de faire souvenir -Madame de Choiseul de la promesse qu'elle lui a faite de la venir voir -avant la visite qu'elle veut rendre à Madame L'Ambassadrice."--MS. -R.S.E. - - [214:A] Sic in MS. - -[214:2] "Vous me faites un grand plaisir de m'apprendre que David Hume -va en Ecosse; je suis bien aise que vous ne soyez plus à portée de le -voir, et moi ravie de l'assurance de ne le revoir jamais. Vous me -demanderez ce qu'il m'a fait? Il m'a déplu. Haïssant les idoles je -déteste leurs prêtres et leurs adorateurs. Pour d'idoles, vous n'en -verrez pas chez moi: vous y pourrez voir quelquefois de leurs -adorateurs, mais qui sont plus hypocrites que dévots; leur culte est -extérieur; les pratiques, les cérémonies de cette religion sont des -soupers, des musiques, des opéras, des comédies, etc." Letters of the -Marquise du Deffand, vol. i. p. 331. - -[216:1] - - "C'est avec la plus grande joie que M. D'Angiviller a - l'honneur d'informer Monsr. Hume que la philosophie n'a plus - de larmes à répandre. D'Alembert est comme hors d'affaire. Il - a été transporté chez Watelet. Il s'en trouve fort bien: il - plaisante, il dit de bons mots et s'impatiente. Tout cela est - de bon augure. Duclos a dit assez plaisamment le jour que l'on - a transporté le malade chez Watelet. Voicy un jour - remarquable, c'est aujourd'huy que l'on a sevré D'Alembert; - nous sommes surs au moins qu'il n'y a pas de miracle à cette - guérison; les prêtres n'ont pas prié pour lui. Mr. - D'Angiviller a l'honneur d'assurer Monsieur Hume de - l'attachement profond et de la vénération dont il est pénétré - pour lui." - - "_Ce Mardi 30._" - -The Earl Marischal writes thus:-- - - "_Potsdam, 11th September, 1764._ - - "Le plaisir de votre lettre, et l'assurance d'amitié de Madame - Geoffrin et de Monsieur D'Alembert a été bien rabattu par ce - que vous me dites de l'état de la santé de M. D'Alembert. - Sobre comme il est à table--comment peut-il avoir des maux - d'estomac? Il faut qu'il travaille trop de la tête à des - calculs, ou qu'il allume sa chandelle par les deux bouts. - C'est cela sans doute. Renvoyez-le ici à mon hermitage. Je le - rendrai à sa, ou ses belles, frais, reposé, se portant à - merveille. - - "Apropos de mon hermitage dont M. de Malsan vous a fait la - description, il a voyagé avec Panurge, et a été chez _oui-dire - tenant école de temorgnerie_. Primo, ma petite maison ne - subsiste pas--par conséquence mon grand hôte ne pouvoit m'y - honorer de sa présence. 2do, Elle ne sera pas si petite, ayant - 89 pieds de façade avec deux ailes de 45 pieds de long. Le - jardin est petit, assez grand cependant pour moi, et j'ai une - clef pour entrer aux jardins de Sans-Souci. Il y aura une - belle salle avec un vestibule, et un cabinet assez grand pour - y mettre un lit, tout apart des autres apartements. Si - D'Alembert venoit, il pouroit y loger, et prendre les eaux; - mais il est peu-que probable, que le grand hôte me - disputeroit, et emporteroit cet avantage. En attendant son - arrivée, j'y logerai mon ancien ami Michel de Montaigne, - Ariosto, Voltaire, Swift, et quelques autres. - - "Dites à D'Alembert que j'ai une vache pour lui donner de bon - lait. Cela le contentera plus que les cent mille roubles qu'on - lui a offert. N'a pas bon lait qui veut, et vir sapiens non - abhorrebit eam, comme disoit Maître Janotus de ses chausses." - -[218:1] If we are to trust the story told by Marmontel, and repeated by -others who should be equally well informed, her conduct, put in plain -language, comes to this. That she had made up her mind to raise her -position by a distinguished marriage. That in this view, looking to one -object after another, she finally determined boldly to experiment on M. -Mora, the son of the Spanish ambassador. That as this young gentleman -had been recalled by his family to Spain, she fraudulently procured a -certificate from an eminent physician, to the effect that a return to -the climate of France was essential to his safety; and that he died on -his journey back. But not less singular than the tale itself, is the -good-humoured simplicity with which it is told, as something rather -commendable than otherwise. Marmontel tells it, not omitting to state -how he used to run to the post-office for M. Mora's letters, in the -midst of that amusing series of sketches, the leading charm of which is -their amiable author's utter unconsciousness that his narrative is ever -likely to be scrutinized by people so educated and trained, as to look -upon his pleasant frailties as detestable vices, and the whole system of -society, so loveable and interesting in his eyes, as hideous. These -things indeed are mysteries; and read and ponder as we may, we cannot -enter into their spirit, but must view them as strange, distant, and -unnatural objects. - -There is reason, however, to believe, that Marmontel's account of -L'Espinasse is far from being accurate. See the article on Deffand's and -L'Espinasse's letters, in _The Edinburgh Review_, vol. xv. p. 459, -where, as also in the article, vol. xvii. p. 290, a fuller view of the -character of the French literary circles of that day will be found than -any where else in the English language. The doubts of Marmontel's -accuracy in the former of these articles, are singularly confirmed by -the Memoires of Marmontel's uncle-in-law, Morellet, published in 1832, -see vol. ii. p. 276. - -[220:1] Memoirs of Romilly, i. 179. I have seen this anecdote in some -French book, but do not remember where. - -[221:1] Madame de Genlis has preserved an instance of the magnificent -gallantry of the prince. Madame Blot, the same lady probably who -occupies so curious a place in the Chesterfield correspondence, -expressed a wish to have a picture of her canary-bird set in a ring. The -prince desired to have the felicity of accomplishing her wish, and she -consented, provided the ring were of plain gold without ornament. The -ring when it made its appearance was plain indeed, but the portrait was -covered by a large diamond cut flat like glass. Madame Blot preserved -the ring and the picture, but returned the diamond. The prince pounded -the diamond to powder, and wrote the lady a letter strewed with the -diamond dust as drying sand. - -[221:2] The following specimen of the invitations which poured in upon -Hume during his sojourn in Paris, is a slight departure from the usual -received form of such documents, the functionary who had charge of the -despatches of the august entertainer having chosen to make it the -vehicle of his own good taste in literature, and knowledge of the -English language. - -"M. Le Prince Louis de Rohan prie M. Hume de lui faire l'honneur de -venir dîner chez lui. Mardi, 17 Janvier--" - -"M. L'Abbé Georgel fait un million de complimens à M. Hume. _He makes -great account of his works, admires her wit, and loves her person._" - -"Samedy, 14."--MS. R.S.E. - -[222:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[223:1] Hardy's Memoirs of Charlemont, p. 122. - -[223:2] "Ce qu'il y a encore de plaisant, c'est que toutes les jolies -femmes se le sont arraché, et que le gros philosophe Ecossais s'est plu -dans leur société. C'est un excellent homme, que David Hume; il est -naturellement serein, il entend finement, il dit quelquefois avec sel, -quoiqu'il parle peu; mais il est lourd, il n'a ni chaleur, ni grâce, ni -agrément dans l'esprit, ni rien qui soit propre à s'allier au ramage de -ces charmantes petites machines qu'on appelle jolies femmes. O que nous -sommes un drôle de peuple!"--Correspondance Littéraire, 1ière P. vol. v. -p. 125. - -[224:1] "Le célèbre David Hume, grand et gros historiographe -d'Angleterre, connu et estimé par ses écrits, n'a pas autant de talens -pour ce genre d'amusemens auquel toutes nos jolies femmes l'avoient -décidé propre. Il fit son début chez Madame de T----; on lui avoit -destiné le rôle d'un Sultan assis entre deux esclaves, employant toute -son éloquence pour s'en faire aimer; les trouvant inexorables, il devoit -chercher le sujet de leurs peines, et de leur résistance: on le place -sur un sopha entre les deux plus jolies femmes de Paris, il les regarde -attentivement, il se frappe le ventre et les genoux à plusieurs -reprises, et ne trouve jamais autre chose à leur dire que: '_Eh bien! -mes demoiselles...Eh bien! vous voilà donc...Eh bien! vous voilà...vous -voilà ici?_' Cette phrase dura un quart d'heure, sans qu'il pût en -sortir. Une d'elles se leva d'impatience: Ah! dit elle, je m'en étois -bien doutée, cet homme n'est bon qu'à manger du veau! Depuis ce temps il -est relégué au rôle de spectateur, et n'en est pas moins fêté et cajolé. -C'est en vérité une chose plaisante que le rôle qu'il joue ici; -malheureusement pour lui ou plutôt pour la dignité philosophique, car, -pour lui, il paroît s'accommoder fort de ce train de vie; il n'y avoit -aucune manie dominante dans ce pays lorsqu'il y est arrivé; on l'a -regardé comme une trouvaille dans cette circonstance, et l'effervescence -de nos jeunes têtes s'est tourné de son côté. Toutes les jolies femmes -s'en sont emparées; il est de tous les soupers fins, et il n'est point -de bonne fête sans lui; en un mot, il est pour nos agréables ce que les -Génevois sont pour moi."--Mémoires et Correspondance de Madame d'Epinay, -vol. iii. p. 284. - -[225:1] Letters, collected edition, v. 69. - -[225:2] Ib. 73. - -[225:3] Ib. 77. - -[226:1] Ib. 90-91. He was not then aware that Hume's presence was -destined to afford him an opportunity of becoming "the mode" himself. -This he tells us was the effect of his jeu d'esprit on Rousseau, with -which we shall hereafter have concern; and he tells it in a manner which -shows that, however contemptible when set in the brow of David Hume, the -chaplet of fashionable renown was not felt to be unbecoming on his own. -Thus, he says to Mr. Conway, on 12th January, 1766, "I almost repent -having come hither, for I like the way of life and many of the people so -well, that I doubt I shall feel more regret at leaving Paris than I -expected. It would sound vain to tell you the honours and distinctions I -receive, and how much I am in fashion. Yet when they come from the -handsomest women in France, and the most respectable in point of -character, can one help being a little proud? If I was twenty years -younger, I should wish they were not quite so respectable. Madame de -Brionne, whom I have never seen, and who was to have met me at supper -last night, at the charming Madame D'Egmont's, sent me an invitation by -the latter for Wednesday next. I was engaged and hesitated: I was told, -'Comment! savez-vous que c'est qu'elle ne feroit pas pour toute La -France.' However, lest you should dread my returning a perfect old -swain, I study my wrinkles, compare myself and my limbs to every plate -of larks I see, and treat my understanding with at least as little -mercy. Yet, do you know, my present fame is owing to a very trifling -composition, but which has made incredible noise. I was one evening at -Madame Geoffrin's, joking on Rousseau's affectations and contradictions, -and said some things that diverted them. When I came home I put them -into a letter, and showed it next day to Helvetius, and the Duke de -Nivernois, who were so pleased with it, that, after telling me some -faults in the language, which you may be sure there were, they -encouraged me to let it be seen. As you know I willingly laugh at -mountebanks, political or literary, let their talents be ever so great, -I was not averse. The copies have spread like wildfire, _et me voici à -la mode_. I expect the end of my reign, at the end of the week, with -great composure." (Ib. 118-119.) - -One is tempted to give, as part of the whole picture of the visit of the -two Englishmen, a few of Walpole's notices of his own intense modesty. -Thus: "I had had my share of distresses in the morning, by going through -the operation of being presented to the royal family, down to the little -madame's pap dinner, and had behaved as sillily as you will easily -believe, hiding myself behind every mortal. The queen called me up to -her dressing-table, and seemed mightily disposed to gossip with me; but -instead of enjoying my glory like Madame de Sévigné, I slunk back into -the crowd after a few questions. She told Monsieur de Guerchy of it -afterwards, and that I had run away from her, but said she would have -her revenge at Fontainbleau; so I must go thither, which I did not -intend." Ib. 81-82. So when writing to Gray, after giving a description -of the effect which his wicked wit had produced on Madame de Boufflers -and the Prince of Conti, how she "with a tone of sentiment, and the -accents of lamenting humanity, abused me heartily, and then complained -to myself with the utmost softness," and how he "acted contrition, but -had like to have spoiled all, by growing dreadfully tired of a second -lecture from the Prince of Conti, who had taken up the tale;" he -concludes, "but when I left a triumphant party in England, I did not -come hither to be at the head of a fashion. However, I have been sent -for about like an African prince or a learned canary bird; and was, in -particular, carried by force to the Princess of Talmond, the queen's -cousin, who lives in a charitable apartment in the Luxembourg, and was -sitting on a small bed hung with saints and Sobieskis, in a corner of -one of those vast chambers, by two blinking tapers." (Ib. 130-131.) - -Hume's simple and self-satisfied account of the distinctions conferred -on him, and the gratification they afforded him, has met with -considerable ridicule. But the reader may judge for himself which is the -more honest, manly, and dignified: the plain acknowledgment of -distinctions conferred and appreciated, or this hollow profession of -contempt for unsolicited, unexpected, unenjoyed honours. - -[228:1] MS. R.S.E. The Sir James alludes to Sir James Macdonald. - -[229:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[230:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[231:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[233:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[233:2] The elder of the youths here mentioned, who became afterwards an -eminent statesman, was born in 1751. He was for some time attached to -the Fox party, and after the dissolution of the Fox and North coalition -ministry, he was twice unsuccessfully proposed as Speaker. In 1793, he -was selected for the delicate duty of negotiating with the French -Royalists. During the British sovereignty of Corsica, in 1794, he was -appointed viceroy or governor of the island. But the most brilliant and -the best known chapter in his political career, is his policy as -Governor-general of India, from 1807 to 1814. He was created Baron Minto -in 1797, and Earl of Minto in 1813. He died in 1814. - -[234:1] Probably either the young Comte de Boufflers, the son of the -lady who was Hume's correspondent, or Sir James Macdonald. - -[235:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[237:1] Among Hume's papers there is a letter signed "De Bastide, auteur -d'un Maison d'Éducation," thanking him for the favourable disposition -shown towards him, and desiring an interview. - -[238:1] In allusion to the interest taken by the Comtesse de Boufflers -in his being appointed secretary of legation. See _postea_. - -[239:1] Minto MSS. The tone of this letter extracted the following -criticism from Elliot. - -"So you did not permit your friend to write the long intended letter. -Your reason for this, I must own, is not to me a satisfactory one. If -the secretaryship were now actually vacant, it would of course devolve -upon you; nor would the interposition of your friends be necessary. It -is Mr. Bunbury's provision then, and not yours, which constitutes the -difficulty: he happens to be in possession; his alliance and his -connexions are considerable; and the difficulty of his re-election makes -it less easy than it would otherwise be to find an equivalent for him. -Yet if it could be found, it is impossible to conceive that he would not -willingly exchange a situation, the functions of which are performed by -another, and which he holds contrary to the inclination of his -principal. In such a state of things, I cannot help thinking, that a -lively representation of your case, from the warm and persuasive pen of -your friend, is the most likely circumstance to engage the active genius -of the D. of B. to rouse government from their indolence about finding -or creating some proper arrangement for Mr. Bunbury. Lord Holland will -probably join his influence, and Lord Tavistock, even on his new -friend's account, will most certainly concur. This joint operation, -supported by the justice of your claims, and the application of your -friends, seems to me the most infallible method to surmount the real -difficulty, which you have candour enough to admit stands in the way of -administration, though disposed to do you justice. If to all this you -object certain delicacies in your own mind, and a disdain to solicit -what ought to be bestowed, I can only answer, a British minister is at -all times so much the slave of those who are not his friends, that his -best friends are almost always obliged to extort justice to themselves -by methods often hostile, always indelicate. I write to you popularly, -not as a philosopher. I desire, therefore, that your objections to my -doctrine may be in the same tone; and, after all, why should you, like -the plaintive author of 'Emile,' indulge yourself in a pleasing kind of -indignation, as if your countrymen had some unaccountable satisfaction -in mortifying a man, who feels so very different treatment even from -strangers. Notwithstanding all you say, we are both Englishmen; that is, -true British subjects, entitled to every emolument and advantage that -our happy constitution can bestow. Do not you speak and write and -publish what you please? and though attacking favourite and popular -opinions, are you not in the confidential friendship of Lord Hertford, -and intrusted with the most important national concerns? Am not I, a -member of Parliament, as much at liberty to abuse ministers and -administration, as if I had been born in Wapping, or to support them if -I think proper? Had it not been for the clamour of _a Scott_, perhaps -indeed I might have been in some more active, but not more honourable or -lucrative situation. This clamour we all know is merely artificial and -occasional. It will in time give way to some other, equally absurd and -ill-founded, when you, if you will, may become a bishop, and I a -minister. In the mean time, let us make the best of our present -circumstances; I as treasurer of the chamber, you as the idol of -whatever is fair and learned at Paris. About the beginning of December I -will be at London, ready to assist your operations if you will follow my -advice. Yours," &c. MS. R.S.E. - -[241:1] It will be seen that the letter had arrived safely. - -[243:1] Minto MS. The remainder of the letter is wanting. - -[245:1] Minto MSS. On 19th October, Mr. Elliot writes,-- - - "I am too well acquainted with your friendly disposition to be - at all surprised at the trouble you have so successfully taken - about my boys. You will, however, allow me to admire your - punctuality in sending me three letters all differently - addressed. The short one for this place is the only one come - to hand. I am impatient, on every account but what regards the - establishment of the boys, for the long one sent to London. I - act with implicit faith upon your short mandate; and if I - could have entertained any doubt, the name of Madame Mirepoix, - you very well know, was more than sufficient to remove it." - -On 6th November, he is able to say,-- - - "I have at length received all your letters; the one intrusted - to Lord March, the other wrote on the supposition of its being - lost, and a third dated October 9th. They all came on the same - day, and so late as the 24th of October. The two boys and - their tutor, Mr. Liston, are now, I presume, settled at Paris. - They had a letter for you. I had luckily directed them, if - they found nobody at the Hotel de Brancas, to inquire for a - Pension opposite to the Maréchale de Mirepoix." (MS. R.S.E.) - -[251:1] Private Correspondence, p. 112, _et seq._ - -[252:1] "But there is a person that has written an "Inquiry, historical -and critical, into the evidence against Mary Queen of Scots;" and has -attempted to refute the foregoing narrative. He quotes a single passage -of the narrative, in which Mary is said simply to refuse answering; and -then a single passage from Goodall, in which she boasts simply that she -will answer; and he very civilly and almost directly, calls the author a -liar, on account of this pretended contradiction. The whole inquiry, -from beginning to end, is composed of such scandalous artifices; and, -from this instance, the reader may judge of the candour, fair dealing, -veracity, and good manners of the inquirer. There are, indeed, three -events in our history which may be regarded as the touchstone of party -men. An English Whig, who asserts the reality of the Popish plot; an -Irish Catholic, who denies the massacre in 1641: and a Scotch Jacobite, -who maintains the innocence of Queen Mary, must be considered as men -beyond the reach of argument or reason, and must be left to their -prejudices." - -[252:2] There is no address on the MS., but circumstances show the -letter to have been intended for Lord Elibank. - -[253:1] These references are to the first edition of the "History of the -House of Tudor." - -[256:1] Scroll MS. R.S.E. A faint line is drawn through the concluding -paragraph, and the passage may have been omitted in the letter as -transmitted. - -[260:1] Scroll, MS. R.S.E. - -[260:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[261:1] See pp. 240, 244. - -[263:1] Minto MSS. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -1765-1766. Æt. 54-55. - - Hume's Sentiments as to the Popularity of his works--A letter - to the Scottish Clergy--Correspondence with Elliot continued-- - Sir Robert Liston--Mallet--Hume appointed Secretary of - Legation--Chargé d'Affaires at Paris--Proposal to appoint him - Secretary for Ireland--Reasons of the Failure of the Project-- - Lord Hertford--Resumption of Communication with Rousseau-- - Rousseau in Paris--Notices of his History and Character-- - Hume's solicitude for his welfare--Return to Britain--Disposal - of Rousseau--Death of Jardine. - - -Allusion has occasionally been made to the difficulty of satisfying Hume -with any amount of literary success. His correspondence with Millar is a -long grumble about the prejudices he has had to encounter, and their -influence on the circulation of his works; while the bookseller, by the -most glowing pictures of their popularity, is only able to elicit a -partial gleam of content. The success of the History made worthy Mr. -Millar very anxious that it should be continued, and Hume for a time -acquiesced in the proposal. There is a letter from Millar on the 26th -October, enlarging on the great and rapid sales: about 2500 complete -sets of the quarto edition, and upwards of 3000 of the "History of the -Stuarts," had been sold, along with near 2000 of the 8vo. edition. In -continuation he says: - - The Essays, 8vo, were only published in May; what has been - sold of them, of all the different editions, I cannot - recollect. I was asked that question at St. James's the other - day, when I said, I considered your works as classics, that I - never numbered the editions, as I did in books we wished to - puff. This I said before many clergy. I am not a little - surprised to see one of your excellent understanding and merit - so anxious about the sale, when the booksellers entirely - concerned never complained, but on the contrary would be ready - to give you to your utmost wish any encouragement to proceed - in your History; and in truth, considering the number of - enemies, some particular Essays have risen from _interest_, - bigotry, folly, and knavery, not less than a one hundred - thousand, it is rather astonishing your works have sold so - much. While _men_ are _men_ this is to be expected, and you - are the last man I should ever thought could paid the least - attention to such things.[264:1] - -On this Hume says: - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Paris, 14th January, 1765._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I am much obliged to you for your last letter, which is very -friendly, and I shall not fail to pay the proper attention to it. The -truth is, as I intend to continue my History, I could not possibly have -taken a more proper step than to pay a visit to this country, and to -make acquaintance here; for as France and England are so intermixed in -all transactions since the Revolution, the history of one country must -throw light upon the other; and I am now in a situation to have access -to all the families which have papers relative to public affairs -transacted in the end of the last and beginning of this century. The -reason why I was anxious to know the sale of my History, was, that I -might judge whether I could expect equal access and information in -England. The rage and prejudice of parties frighten me; and above all, -this rage against the Scots, which is so dishonourable, and indeed so -infamous to the English nation. We hear that it increases every day -without the least appearance of provocation on our part. It has -frequently made me resolve never in my life to set foot on English -ground. I dread, if I should undertake a more modern history, the -impertinence and ill manners to which it would expose me; and I was -willing to know from you whether former prejudices had so far subsided -as to ensure me of a good reception."[265:1] - - -The following very characteristic paper, which appears to have been -enclosed to Dr. Blair, needs no introduction. - - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--I am in debt to all my friends in letters, and shall ever -be so. But what strikes me chiefly with remorse, are my great and -enormous debts to the clergy. By this my neglect of my Protestant -pastors, you will begin to suspect that I am turning Papist. But to -acquit myself at once, allow me to write you a common letter, and to -address a few words to every one of you. - - -DR. ROBERTSON. - -"Your History has been very very well translated here, better than mine, -as I am told. Its success has given me occasion to promise your -acquaintance to several persons of distinction; the Duc de Nivernois, -the Marquis de Puysieuls, President Hénault, Baron D'Holbach, &c. I wish -you could speak French tolerably; you would find this place agreeable. -The Marechal Broglio spoke of you to me with esteem the other day. - - -DR. CARLYLE. - -"I consulted with the Chevalier Macdonald, (who, by the bye, is here in -great vogue, not for his gallantries, like some others who shall be -nameless, but for his parts and knowledge;) I say I consulted with the -Chevalier about writing a common letter to Eglinton in favour of Wilson. -He told me it would be quite useless. Eglinton would give that kirk and -every thing else to the tenth cousin of the tenth cousin of a voter in -the shire of Ayr, rather than to the most intimate friend he has in the -world. Je baise les mains de Madame Carlyle avec tout l'empressement -possible. - - -DR. FERGUSON. - -"Who, by the bye, I believe is not a doctor, though highly worthy from -his piety and learning to be one; then Mr. Ferguson, I think I have -nothing in particular to say to you, except that I am glad of the change -of your class, because you desired it, and because it fitted Russell. -For otherwise I should have liked better the other science. The news of -your great success in teaching has reached me in Paris, and has given me -pleasure; but I fear for your health from all these sudden and violent -applications. Ah, that you could learn something, dear Ferguson, of the -courteous, and caressing, and open manners of this country. I should not -then have been to learn for the first time, (as I did lately from -General Clark,) that you have not been altogether ungrateful to me, and -that you bear me some good will, and that you sometimes regret my -absence. Why should your method of living with me have borne so little -the appearance of those sentiments? - - -DR. BLAIR. - -"Many people who read English have got your dissertation on Fingal, -which they admire extremely: a very good critic told me lately that it -was incomparably the best piece of criticism in the English language; a -self-evident truth to me. I met also with many admirers of Fingal; but -many also doubt of its authenticity. The Chevalier Macdonald is of use -to me in supporting the argument, from his personal knowledge of facts. -I cannot, however, but allow that the whole is strange, passing strange. - -"You seem to wish that I should give you some general accounts of this -country. Shall I begin with the points in which it most differs from -England, viz., the general regard paid to genius and learning; the -universal and professed, though decent, gallantry to the fair sex; or -the almost universal contempt of all religion among both sexes, and -among all ranks of men? Or shall I mention the points in which the -French begin to concur with the English,--their love of liberty, for -instance? Or shall I give you some remarkable anecdotes of the great men -who, at present, adorn French literature? Perhaps you would wish me to -run over all these topics successively. Alas! there is not one that -would not fill several sheets of paper with curious circumstances, and I -am the most lazy writer of letters in the world: however, I must say -something on these heads; and, first, of the first:-- - -"There is a very remarkable difference between London and Paris; of -which I gave warning to Helvétius, when he went over lately to England, -and of which he told me, on his return, he was fully sensible. If a man -have the misfortune, in the former place, to attach himself to letters, -even if he succeeds, I know not with whom he is to live, nor how he is -to pass his time in a suitable society. The little company there that is -worth conversing with, are cold and unsociable; or are warmed only by -faction and cabal; so that a man who plays no part in public affairs -becomes altogether insignificant; and, if he is not rich, he becomes -even contemptible. Hence that nation are relapsing fast into the deepest -stupidity and ignorance. But, in Paris, a man that distinguishes himself -in letters, meets immediately with regard and attention. I found, -immediately on my landing here, the effects of this disposition. Lord -Beauchamp told me that I must go instantly with him to the Duchess de la -Valieres.[268:1] When I excused myself, on account of dress, he told me -that he had her orders, though I were in boots. I accordingly went with -him in a travelling frock, where I saw a very fine lady reclining on a -sofa, who made me speeches and compliments without bounds. The style of -panegyric was then taken up by a fat gentleman, whom I cast my eyes -upon, and observed him to wear a star of the richest diamonds;--it was -the Duke of Orleans. The Duchess told me she was engaged to sup in -President Hénault's, but that she would not part with me;--I must go -along with her. The good president received me with open arms; and told -me, among other fine things, that, a few days before, the Dauphin said -to him, &c. &c. &c. Such instances of attention I found very frequent, -and even daily. You ask me, if they were not very agreeable? I -answer--no; neither in expectation, possession, nor recollection. I left -that fireside, where you probably sit at present, with the greatest -reluctance. After I came to London, my uneasiness, as I heard more of -the prepossessions of the French nation in my favour, increased; and -nothing would have given me greater joy than any accident that would -have broke off my engagements. When I came to Paris, I repented heartily -of having entered, at my years, on such a scene; and, as I found that -Lord Hertford had entertained a good opinion and good will for Andrew -Stuart, I spoke to Wedderburn, in order to contrive expedients for -substituting him in my place. Lord Hertford thought, for some time, that -I would lose all patience and would run away from him. But the faculty -of speaking French returned gradually to me. I formed many acquaintance -and some friendships. All the learned seemed to conspire in showing me -instances of regard. The great ladies were not wanting to a man so -highly in fashion: and, having now contracted the circle of my -acquaintance, I live tolerably at my ease. I have even thoughts of -settling at Paris for the rest of my life; but I am sometimes frightened -with the idea that it is not a scene suited to the languor of old age. I -then think of retiring to a provincial town, or returning to Edinburgh, -or ---- but it is not worth while to form projects about the matter. -D'Alembert and I talk very seriously of taking a journey to Italy -together; and, if Lord Hertford leave France soon, this journey may -probably have place. - -"I began this letter about two months ago; but so monstrously indolent -am I that I have not had time to finish it. I believe I had better send -it off as it is. Tell Robertson that La Chapelle, his translator, is -very much out of humour, and with reason, for never hearing from him. I -suppose some letter has miscarried. I am, &c.[270:1] - -"_Paris, 6th April, 1765._" - - -Mr. Elliot had expressed to Hume a fear lest the longer residence of his -sons in France might "render them too much Frenchmen," while, speaking -of their tutor, Mr. Liston,[270:2] he says, "I own I am more -apprehensive of the consequences of a Paris life upon a young man of his -age than upon the boys, who are too young to enter into the full -dissipation of a country, where, not to be dissipated, is hardly to have -any existence." On this Hume writes: - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Paris, 14th April, 1765._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--I have always had the pleasure of conversing, from time -to time, with your sons, with Mr. Liston, and with the Abbé Choquart, -and never found the least reason to alter the good opinion, which I had -at first conceived of that academy, and of the conduct of every one -concerned: but the tenor of your last letter made me apprehend, that you -had discovered some ground of suspicion; and the more so as Mr. Larpent -told me, that you had spoke to his father, to desire him to request of -his son, that he should keep a watchful eye over the conduct of your -sons, and of Mr. Liston, and inform him of all particulars. This it is -impossible for Larpent to do, and, indeed, impossible for me to do, -otherwise than by conversing with the Abbé Choquart and with your sons -apart. I have done this very carefully, and find Mr. Liston's conduct -not only irreproachable, but laudable. The Abbé tells me, that for the -first three or four months, he scarce ever stirred out of the house, but -conversed with him alone, and with the other masters, till he came to -such perfection in the language, as to be taken for a Languedocian, or a -Frenchman of some province. Since that time the Abbé tells me, he has -made a few acquaintances among his countrymen, and goes out sometimes; -but he uses this liberty with great moderation; and on the whole, the -Abbé praises him (and with great reason as appears to me) for his -reserve, his modesty, his good sense, his sobriety, and his virtue. As -to your sons, he assures me, that though he has been employed nineteen -years in instructing youth, he never knew any more happily formed, and -they are the favourites of the whole school. The boys themselves seem to -be extremely happy in their present situation. Gilbert speaks French -almost like a Parisian, and Hugh follows fast after him. This is an -advantage they have acquired, without interrupting the course of their -other studies. The sociableness of their disposition has been called -forth, by living among companions in a public school; and as they praise -very much the civility and good humour of their fellow students, they -may themselves be the more confirmed in their habits. But, pray, come -hither yourself and judge of the matter. - -"Two or three days ago, Lord Hertford wrote a very earnest letter to Mr. -Grenville in my favour. I know well that, if you find an opportunity, -you will second his application. The Saxon minister at the court, told -my lord, that Mr. Wroughton was soon to leave Dresden. My lord has -proposed that Bunbury be sent thither: if he refuses, it will be a proof -that he is resolved to undertake no public service, but scandalously to -live at home, and enjoy a large salary, which should belong to another. -Surely if Mr. Grenville bore me never so little good-will, as a supposed -Tory, he must allow this reasoning to be unanswerable. - -"You have now with you Sir James Macdonald, who is too good for you, for -I am afraid you will not know to value him. He leaves an universal -regret behind him at Paris, among all who were acquainted with him, and -in none more than myself. I am, dear sir, your faithful humble -servant."[272:1] - - -In the following letter to Millar, we find Mallet and the Life of -Marlborough, that had been promised and paid for, again the subject of -speculation. Hume, though he had at one time been induced to believe -that part of the work was written, seems to have on the whole indulged -himself in scepticism, which, in this case at least, was well founded. -The letter is dated 4th May. - - -"MY DEAR SIR,--As soon as I heard of poor Mallet's death,[273:1] my -curiosity was excited to know, whether he had really proceeded any -length in his work, or whether, as many people imagine, and as is -somewhat my opinion, he had never wrote a line nor taken a note with -regard to it. I beg you would make some inquiry upon that subject. The -widow will be able to inform you. I should be glad to know whether any -lights could be got from that quarter for the continuance of my -work."[273:2] - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Paris, 12th May, 1765._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I went, on Wednesday last, to be present at the examination -of the Abbé Choquart's school, with which I was very well satisfied; -especially for the part your young folks had in it. There were several -people present who came to hear their children and relations; and when -Gilbert was going through some demonstrations of geometry, with a very -good grace, I asked some who sat next me, whether they could perceive -him to be a foreigner? They all declared that they could not; and were -very much surprised when I told them that he had not yet been in the -country six months. Hugh retains still a little of a foreign accent, but -it is wearing out gradually. Mr. Liston speaks so well as to be able to -pass himself for a Gascon! - -"There was also one circumstance of your young gentlemen's behaviour -with which I was much pleased; but whether you will take the praise of -it to yourself, or ascribe it partly to the imitation of French manners, -I cannot determine. I arrived a little before the commencement of the -examination; and, walking into the garden, I took shelter, from the -heat, under some trees. Your young gentlemen, as soon as they saw me, -ran and brought me a chair, which they placed carefully in the most -shady spot they could find. I doubt this attention would not be very -common among mere English schoolboys. - -"Lord Hertford has received, from George Grenville, a final answer to a -very earnest, and very pressing letter he had wrote in my favour. Never -was any refusal so decisive, so cold, so positive, so determined; not -the least circumstance of apology, of good manners, or of regard: he -even gives it as a reason why I cannot be appointed, because Sir Charles -Bunbury has never yet desired to change his situation. In short, the -letter is so different from all letters usually wrote on such occasions, -and so different from those which Mr. Grenville was accustomed to write -to Lord Hertford, that my lord concludes there is some particular reason -of coldness, though he cannot conjecture what it is. But there are also, -in the letter, some expressions which mark extreme animosity against me. -Lord Hertford thinks, they will admit of another sense; and desires me -to write to you, in order to ask whether you have ever perceived such -sentiments in that gentleman. I know that I have affirmed, and, what is -worse, have proved, that Queen Elizabeth's maxims of government were -full as arbitrary as those of the Stuarts. I know that this proposition, -though now an undoubted and acknowledged truth, is contrary to the -principles of sound Whiggery. I know also, that Mr. Grenville, as a -sound Whig, bore me no good will on that account; but I did not really -think that his quarrel could have gone to such an extremity.[275:1] You -are sensible of the consequences which I apprehended, and which you did -not, last summer, think so dangerous as I imagined. I have now, for the -first time, explained to my lord the nature of my situation, which -somewhat surprised him, being so contrary to the assurances given him by -Mr. Grenville: but he told me that my interest was secure; for that he -thought himself obliged to make me reparation from his private fortune, -for any breach of faith which I might apprehend from the public. If this -point were fixed, it would probably stop the malignity of my enemies, -who will see that they can only do a small ill to Lord Hertford, instead -of a great one which they might intend against me. However, my lord -being desirous to know, from you, Mr. Grenville's sentiments, as far as -you can discover them, I am engaged to enter into this detail, which -otherwise I might have desired to avoid. I am, with great sincerity, my -dear sir, your most obedient servant."[275:2] - - -HUME _to_ MR. OSWALD. - -"_Paris, 2d June, 1765._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--There is a gentleman here, an Abbé, and a man of -letters, who is willing to enter into a commerce, or mutual exchange -with me, on every point of political and commercial knowledge.[276:1] He -has a great deal of very exact information, with regard to every thing -that concerns these subjects; has great freedom of thought and speech, -and has no connexions with any minister. As a sample, he has sent me the -enclosed questions, which I could not exactly answer, and is willing to -answer any of a like kind, which I could propose to him. I thought I -could not do better than transmit them to you; and as I know you will -also have questions to ask, I shall also transmit them to him, and you -may depend on his answer as just and solid. I have left the margin large -enough, to save you trouble. I know you are the most industrious and the -most indolent man of my acquaintance; the former in business, the latter -in ceremony. The present task I propose to you is of the former kind. - -"You will hear that Sir Charles Bunbury is appointed Secretary for -Ireland. Lord Hertford thinks it absolutely certain, that I am to -succeed him; and I, too, think it very probable. My lord throws up -immediately, if this demand is not complied with; yet, notwithstanding -these favourable circumstances, I shall not be wonderfully surprised, in -case of a disappointment. I know that I can depend on your good offices -with Lord Halifax, and with every other person on whom you have -influence. Lord Hertford writes this post to that noble lord. The -present advantages I possess are so great, that it seems almost -extravagant to doubt of success; and yet, in general, it appears to me -almost incomprehensible how it should happen, that I, a philosopher, a -man of letters, nowise a courtier, of the most independent spirit, who -has given offence to every sect and every party, that I, I say, such as -I have described myself, should obtain an employment of dignity, and a -thousand a-year. This event is in general so strange, that I fancy, in -the issue, it will not have place. I am, dear sir, yours -sincerely."[277:1] - - -Hume had come to the conclusion, and certainly justly, that as he -performed the functions of secretary of the embassy in France, he ought -to possess the rank and emoluments of that office. He appears, however, -to have been reluctant to take any steps personally for the -accomplishment of this object; and his correspondence with his friends -shows that some urgency was necessary to overcome his scruples.[278:1] -Having, however, finally decided on his course, he appears to have -pursued it with great energy and perseverance, and to have moved every -influence through which he was likely to accomplish his end. - -On 24th June, 1765, Hume writes to his brother that he "has now been -appointed secretary to the embassy, with the usual salary of £1200 -a-year." He says, "The English ministry had intended not to appoint -another secretary of the embassy, who they knew could not be received, -but to suppress that office altogether from views of frugality." For the -continuance of the office, and its bestowal on himself, he seems to have -relied very much on the intervention of a foreign lady, his friend -Madame de Boufflers; and, strange as it may seem to find such an -influence effective in the councils of a British cabinet, he appears to -have been convinced that, had the matter not been previously settled in -his favour, her application would have brought it to a conclusion. -Continuing his letter to his brother, he says, "Nobody can do more -justice to the merit of my friend the Comtesse de Boufflers, than the -Duke and Duchess of Bedford, who have indeed been essentially obliged to -her in their family concerns. She wrote the duke about a fortnight ago, -that the time was now come, and the only time that probably would ever -come, of his showing his friendship to her, by assisting me in my -applications; and she would rest on this sole circumstance all his -professions of regard to her. He received her letter while in the -country, but he wrote her back, that he would immediately hasten to -town, and if he had any credit with the king or ministry, her -solicitations should be complied with. He is not a man that ever makes -vain professions, nor does he ever take a refusal. He would find the -matter finished when he came to London; but it is a sensible pleasure to -me, that I owe so great an obligation, to a person whom I love and -esteem so sincerely as that lady."[279:1] - -In a letter to the Marquise de Barbantane, he gives the same account of -the matter. - - -"Have you heard of the share which Madame de Boufflers had in this -event? As soon as she heard that there was a vacancy, by means of the -promotion of Sir Charles Bunbury, my predecessor, she wrote to the Duke -of Bedford, entreating him, in the most earnest terms, to befriend me in -my pretensions, and setting all my claims in the most favourable light. -The duke answered her, that he would soon be in London; and if he had -any credit or authority with the ministry, her friend should not fail of -success. The duke is not a man that ever promises in vain, nor is he a -man that is ever to be refused; so that, from this interest alone, I was -sure to have prevailed. But happily the same post brought intelligence -to the ambassador, that the affair was already finished. But do you not -think, that I owe the same obligations to our friend? or will you tell -me, that I seek only a pretence for indulging my inclinations?"[280:1] - - -The statement is repeated in the following letter to Elliot. - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Paris, 3d June, 1765._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--Not finding your young gentlemen in church last Sunday, I -went to see them, when I found them both confined to the house with a -light fever, which has since turned out the measles in form, but with -all the most favourable symptoms. I find Mr. Liston very attentive and -very careful; the young gentlemen are attended by the physician of the -academy. I use the freedom to tell Lady Hertford the way in which they -are governed; she tells me she would not act otherwise in the case of -her own children; so that Mrs. Murray,[281:1] if you please to -communicate to her this intelligence, can have no reason for anxiety. -Gilbert has a greater quantity than Hugh, and greater strength to bear -them. - -"You know, I suppose, that I am appointed secretary to the embassy, -though I have not yet received my credential letter: the present -confusions in the court may perhaps retard them for some time; but Mr. -Grenville has informed the ambassador that the matter is concluded, and -the king has given his consent; so that in spite of Atheism and Deism, -of Whiggism and Toryism, of Scoticism and Philosophy, I am now possessed -of an office of credit, and of £1200 a-year: without dedication or -application, from the favour alone of a person, whom I can perfectly -love and respect. I find it has cost my lord a very hard pull; and when -I consider the matter alone, without viewing the steps that led to it, I -am sometimes inclined to be surprised how it has happened. - -"Shall I tell you another circumstance that is not disagreeable to me; a -certain lady, who is at present in London, hearing there was some delay, -wrote in the most earnest terms to the Duke of Bedford, desiring his -interest in my favour; he answered her he would soon be in London, and -if he then possessed any credit or authority, she might depend upon the -success of her friend. You know that he is not a man that makes vain -professions, nor is he a man easy to be refused. If you guess the lady, -you will conclude that it will not cost me a great effort to be -grateful. The share you have also been pleased to take is not forgot, -and strengthens our ancient friendship. I am, my dear sir, yours -sincerely."[282:1] - - -It is probable that this appointment was impeded by more difficulties -than Hume himself could see, or his friends make him aware of. His being -a Scotsman of itself made it then unpopular, and in his case there were -other reasons likely to weigh with statesmen who looked in the direction -of popularity. We are told that "the printers of the _London Evening -Post and Gazetteer_, were called before the House of Lords, on a -complaint made by the Earl of Marchmont, for printing a letter (written -by Wilkes,) reflecting on the Earl of Hertford, ambassador at Paris, for -employing David Hume the historian as his secretary, and representing -the embassy as totally of Scotch complexion."[282:2] - -No sooner had this appointment been completed, than Lord Hertford was -recalled, and Hume was left for a time chargé d'affaires at Paris. - -The ambassador had been appointed by Lord Bute, but had chiefly acted -during the administration of Grenville, with whom he and his connexions -were not, as Hume's correspondence has shown, on very friendly terms. In -July, 1765, the Rockingham administration was formed, in connexion with -which Lord Hertford became lord-lieutenant of Ireland, and his brother -secretary of state with the leadership of the House of Commons. Hume had -thus to perform the functions of British representative until the Duke -of Richmond arrived as ambassador in October. Of the manner in which he -performed the duties of his office, Lord Brougham says: - - By Lord Aberdeen's kindness I have been allowed to examine the - correspondence of the embassy with Marshal Conway during these - four months; and it is highly creditable to the philosopher's - business-like talents, and his capacity for affairs. The - negotiations of which he had the sole conduct related to the - important and interesting discussions of Canada; matters - arising out of the cession by the peace of Paris; and to the - demolition of the works at Dunkirk, also stipulated by that - treaty. His despatches, some of them of great length, most of - them in his own hand, are clearly and ably written. The course - which he describes himself as pursuing with the very slippery - and evasive ministers against whom he had to contend, - particularly the Duc de Praslin, appears to have been marked - by firmness and temper, as well as by quickness and sagacity. - His memorials, of which two or three are given, show a perfect - familiarity with diplomatic modes and habits, and they are - both well written and ably reasoned. His information must have - been correct; for he obtained a knowledge of the secret - proceedings of the assembly of clergy, which, though convoked - for the purpose of obtaining the usual _don gratuit_, chose to - enter upon the discussion of all the clerical grievances; - while they kept their deliberations carefully secret, and were - opposed by the parliament of Paris as soon as their - proceedings became known. Mr. Hume obtained a very early, - though somewhat exaggerated account of these things, through - two of the foreign ambassadors; and when he communicated it to - the Bishop of Senlis, he was treated with contempt, as if - nothing could be so wild, and as if some enemy of the church - had invented the fable to discredit her. Marshal Conway - appears by his despatches (which are also excellent) to have - rested his hopes of these differences passing off, on the - prevailing irreligious spirit in France, where "the Dauphin - alone," he says, "has any care for such matters; and he has of - late taken a military turn." In a short time the whole ferment - was allayed by the prudent and able conduct of Brienne, - Archbishop of Toulouse; the _don gratuit_ was voted; and the - assembly was prorogued to the following May. Mr. Hume praises - Brienne very highly on this, as indeed he did on all - occasions.[284:1] - -Hume's familiar letters make us fully acquainted with the feelings he -experienced at this juncture. - - -HUME _to his Brother_. - -"_Compiègne, 14th July, 1765._ - -"DEAR BROTHER,--There arrived yesterday a messenger from England with my -commission under the great seal. My appointments, as I told you, are -£1200 a-year. I have also £300 for my equipage, and three hundred ounces -of plate for my table. This is the fair side of the picture. The -misfortune is, that General Conway, the ambassador's brother, is -secretary of state. The Duke of Grafton, his nephew,[284:2] is the other -secretary. You still say, better and better. Not at all. My Lord -Hertford goes for England in a few days, and leaves the burden of the -embassy upon me. Still you say, where is the harm of all this? You are -come to years of discretion, and can govern yourself. Wait a little, -dear brother. Lord Hertford goes lord-lieutenant to Ireland, and there -is an end of the ambassador, and probably of the secretary. - -"It is true I can count upon Lord Hertford's friendship as much as any -man's in the world. One day last spring, he came into my room, and told -me that he heard of many people who endeavoured by their caresses to -persuade me that I ought to remain in France. But he hoped that I would -embrace no scheme of life which would ever separate him and me. He now -loved me as much as ever he esteemed me, and wished we might pass our -lives together. He had resolved several times to have opened his breast -so far to me; but being a man of few words and no professions, he had -still delayed it, and he now felt himself much relieved by this -declaration of his desires and intentions. I know that Lord Hertford -will not go to Ireland unless he be allowed to name the secretary for -that kingdom. Perhaps he may think his son, Lord Beauchamp, too young -for that office; in which case I may very probably expect it, and it is -an office of between £3000 and £4000 a-year, and stands next in dignity -to all the great offices of the state. In all cases the lord-lieutenant -for Ireland has many and great things to give, of which I should -certainly expect one. - -"Still you say, this is all better and better: Not at all! You know the -fluctuation of English politics. Perhaps, before you receive this, the -whole present system is overturned. Lord Hertford, who, while he -remained here, was a man of no party, is involved with his friends. All -is turned topsy-turvy: and before next winter, perhaps, I am at your -fireside without office or employment! Here, indeed, I allow you to say, -so much the better; for I never had much ambition, I mean for power and -dignities, and I am heartily cured of the little I had. I believe a -fireside and a book the best things in the world for my age and -disposition. I write in some hurry, therefore can only add, that if the -old ministry return, I can look upon the Duke of Bedford alone as my -friend, by means of the lady I mentioned to you. If the ministry stand, -I have, by Lord Hertford's means, many and great friends; and the king, -I have been well assured, honours me particularly with his good opinion. -In all cases it is a great point for me to have obtained this commission -to a place of so much trust and credit and silences all objections -against me, whether they arose from religion or politics. Direct your -letters to me as _Secrétaire d'Ambassade d'Angleterre à Paris_. I hate -any thing that disturbs so agreeable a settlement as I had obtained -before these great events. My compliments to Mrs. Home and to Katy. Keep -this letter to yourself, but write part of it to our sister."[286:1] - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Compiègne, 20th July, 1765._ - -"Tell Dr. Robertson that the Dauphin asked Mr. Hume several questions -the other day, about him and his History. That prince seems a reasonable -man, but would be the better of being _roasted_ sometimes in _The -Poker_.[286:2] If they will elect him a member, Mr. Hume will propose it -to him.[286:3] What does the doctor say at present to these great -folding doors opened to all the chimeras of ambition? Alas! they may be -thrown open much wider, if possible; none of these chimeras will enter. -Philosophy, with her severe brows, guards the passage; while Indolence, -in affright, is ready to throw herself out at the window. Mr. Hume -recommends himself to Ferguson and Jardine, and John Adams and Mrs. -Adams, and to all the Poker, and desires the prayers of the faithful -for him on this occasion." - - -Hume had now actually before him the prospect of filling the high office -of secretary to the lord-lieutenant of Ireland. Writing to his brother -on 4th August, 1765, he again states that Lord Hertford, before his -departure, had assured him that he would not accept of the -lord-lieutenancy, unless he were allowed the naming of the secretary; -and now adds, that the office is destined for himself, in conjunction -with Lord Hertford's son, Lord Beauchamp; and that his own salary is to -be about £2000 a-year. He continues: - -"Thus you see a splendid fortune awaits me: Yet you cannot imagine with -what regret I leave this country. It is like stepping out of light into -darkness, to exchange Paris for Dublin. The most agreeable circumstance -is the friendship and confidence of the lord-lieutenant; and if the -present credit of that family continue, as it is likely to do, I shall -probably have it in my power to do service to my friends--particularly -to your young folks; for as to you and myself, it is long since we -thought our fortunes entirely made."[287:1] - -He was not, however, destined to fill this office; and neither he -himself, nor his best friends, appear to have regretted the -circumstance; the fact being that he was but slenderly endowed with -either of the qualifications then indispensable to an Irish -statesman,--a capacity for hard drinking, and adroitness in bold -political intrigues. The exercise of an official function, among a -people where one sect of Christians enjoyed all offices, emoluments, and -honours, while another, following the national religion, were scarcely -allowed to live, must have shocked his sense of political justice; -while it may be questioned if he was a sufficiently bold politician to -have attempted any reform of this abuse. The project of his appointment, -however, was brought so near its consummation, as to elicit certain -applications for ecclesiastical preferment, in order that the reputation -he had achieved, in other places, for influence in this department of -patronage, might not be unacknowledged in Ireland.[288:1] - -In his letters to his friends, at this time, he describes these -vicissitudes of fortune; and indulges in a feeling to which he was very -prone,--an uncertainty as to his future projects, and an indolent -disinclination to make up his mind how to act. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Paris, 23d August, 1765._ - -"All the literati of my friends, who understand English, think your -Dissertation one of the finest performances in our language. A -gentleman, of my acquaintance, has translated it for his own -satisfaction. He could not publish it without publishing "Ossian" at the -same time. My scepticism extends no farther, nor ever did, than with -regard to the extreme antiquity of those poems; and it is no more than -scepticism. - -"You may, perhaps, have heard of the rapid whirl of my fortune -backwards and forwards of late. I had scarce received my commission, as -secretary to the embassy, when I knew that that situation, the most -agreeable in which I could have been placed, was not to last. Lord -Hertford must go to Ireland, and resolved to carry me over as secretary -to that kingdom, in conjoint commission with his son. On his arrival at -London, he found the cry so loud against the promotion of Scotsmen, that -he was obliged to give it up; which he did the more easily, as he knew -my great reluctance to that office and scene of life. He has now got a -pension of £400 a-year settled on me; and as he has prepared an -apartment for me in the castle of Dublin, I shall hurry thither as soon -as I leave France, and shall be afterwards free for the rest of my -life.[289:1] I have not determined where I shall pass my latter days. -This place should be the most agreeable to me; but a man who came late -thither, and who is not supported by family connexions, may, perhaps, -find himself misplaced, even in this centre of letters and good society. -I have a reluctance to think of living among the factious barbarians of -London; who will hate me because I am a Scotsman, and am not a Whig, and -despise me because I am a man of letters. My attachment to Edinburgh -revives as I turn my face towards it."[290:1] - - -HUME _to his Brother_. - -"DEAR BROTHER,--I am now to inform you of another pretty rapid change in -my fortune. Lord Hertford, on his arrival in London, found great -difficulty of executing his intentions in my favour. The cry is loud -against the Scots; and the present ministry are unwilling to support any -of our countrymen, lest they bear the reproach of being connected with -Lord Bute. For this reason, Lord Hertford departed from his project; -which he did the more readily, as he knew I had a great reluctance to -the office of secretary for Ireland; which requires a talent for -speaking in public, to which I was never accustomed. I must also have -kept a kind of open house, and have drunk and caroused with the Irish, a -course of living to which I am as little accustomed. The Duke of -Bedford, to whom I mentioned these objections, thought them very solid. -I think myself, at present, much better provided for, by a pension of -£400 a-year for life, which Lord Hertford has procured me. He also -writes me, that an apartment is fitting up for me in the castle of -Dublin. I shall go thither as soon as I can leave France; which will not -be till the end of October or beginning of November, on the arrival of -the Duke of Richmond. Meanwhile, I am _Chargé des affaires d'Angleterre -à la cour de France_, which is the title under which you must write to -me, if you favour me with a letter. - -"Lord Hertford had another additional project for my advantage, in -Ireland. The keeper of the black rod is a very genteel office, which -yields about £900 during the session. He proposed, as I cannot be -present on the opening of the parliament, to give that office to -another, who would officiate, and would be content with £300. But I -declined this offer; not as unjust, but as savouring of greediness and -rapacity.[291:1] - -"Please to write all these particulars to Katty, except the last, and -seal and send her the enclosed. I am charmed with the accounts I hear of -Josey, from all hands. Yours sincerely. - -"There was a kind of fray in London, as I am told, upon Lord Hertford's -declaring his intentions in my favour. The Princess Amelia said, that -she thought the affair might be easily accommodated: why may not Lord -Hertford give a bishopric to Mr. Hume?"[292:1] - - -Writing an account of these transactions to Smith, in nearly the same -words, on 5th November, he commences his letter with the observation, "I -have been whirled about lately in a strange manner; but, besides that -none of the revolutions have ever threatened me much, or been able to -give me a moment's anxiety, all has ended very happily, and to my mind." -He concludes thus:-- - -"As a new vexation to temper my good fortune, I am much in perplexity -about fixing the place of my future abode for life. Paris is the most -agreeable town in Europe, and suits me best; but it is a foreign -country. London is the capital of my own country; but it never pleased -me much. Letters are there held in no honour: Scotsmen are hated: -superstition and ignorance gain ground daily. Edinburgh has many -objections, and many allurements. My present mind, this forenoon, the -5th of September, is to return to France. I am much pressed here to -accept of offers, which would contribute to my agreeable living; but -might encroach on my independence, by making me enter into engagements -with princes, and great lords, and ladies. Pray give me your judgment. - -"I regret much I shall not see you. I have been looking for you every -day these three months. Your satisfaction in your pupil gives me equal -satisfaction."[293:1] - - -He writes to Blair, on 28th December:-- - - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--After great wavering and uncertainty, between Paris and -Edinburgh, (for I never allowed London to enter into the question,) I -have, at last, fixed my resolution to remain some time longer in Paris. -Perhaps I may take a trip to Rome next autumn. Had I returned to -Edinburgh, I was sensible that I shut myself up, in a manner, for life; -and I imagine that I am, even yet, too young and healthy, and in too -good spirits, to come to that determination. If you please, therefore, -you may continue in my house, which I am glad pleases you. If you leave -it, as you thought you would, Nairne may have it for £35, as we -agreed."[293:2] - - -We have now to return to Jean Jacques Rousseau, whom we left, in 1762, -seeking protection from the Earl Marischal at Neufchâtel. He finally -took up his abode at Motiers Travers, a village on one of the passes of -the Jura; where, now that some offensive associations connected with his -character and writings have died away, the fame of his genius still -lives, and has been no unprofitable commodity to the inhabitants. Here -he had a wild rocky district to wander over, where he was not liable to -encounter those dangerous impediments which beset the sojourners in the -Alps. He had, at the same time, what was more to his purpose, a zealous -priesthood and an intolerant populace surrounding him. That the outward -manifestations of a morality, odious to his new neighbours, might not be -wanting, he sent for his celebrated mistress, Thérèse la Vasseur, with -whom he continued openly to live; and that the populace, thus -exasperated, might be under no mistake as to the proper person to throw -stones at, he adopted the garb of an Armenian. - -It is much disputed whether he was really subjected to the attacks of -which he afterwards complained; and it is said, that whatever tangible -evidence of them was perceptible to other eyes than his own, was the -doing of Mademoiselle la Vasseur, to drive him from a neighbourhood -which she disliked. It will be found, however, that his story, as -reported by Hume in the letters which follow, substantially coincides -with the narrative in the "Confessions." This is in some measure a -testimony to the sincerity of Rousseau's own conviction, that those -hostile efforts were made against him; and indeed it would be useless to -question the sincerity of his belief in any thing indicative of the -malevolence of his fellow-beings. Having fled from Motiers, he lived for -some time on the island of St. Pierre, in the lake of Bienne; and, -driven from that asylum, he seems to have hesitated between England and -Prussia as a place of refuge. He left the State of Bienne at the date at -which his "Confessions" terminate, 29th October, 1765. He proceeded to -Strasburg, where, by wearing his Armenian dress in the country where he -had been proscribed, he certainly excited a considerable sensation. He -appears to have held a sort of levée during his residence in that city, -where his daily and hourly proceedings have been recorded with the -precision of a court journal.[295:1] - -It was here that he received Hume's letter, agreeing to aid him in -finding an asylum in England. The negotiation between them had been -brought to a conclusion by Madame de Verdelin, who had spent some time -with Rousseau at Motiers, and persuaded him to take advantage of the -impression which the Earl Marischal and Madame de Boufflers had made in -his favour.[295:2] - -Hume's heart was farther softened by a letter, full of miseries, which -Rousseau had written to M. Clairaut. "I must own," says Hume, "I felt on -this occasion an emotion of pity, mixed with indignation, to think a man -of letters of such eminent merit, should be reduced, in spite of the -simplicity of his manner of living, to such extreme indigence; and that -this unhappy state should be rendered more intolerable by sickness, by -the approach of old age, and the implacable rage of persecution." He was -inclined even to sympathize with Rousseau's petulant rejection of -proferred kindness; conceiving "that a noble pride, even though carried -to excess, merited some indulgence in a man of genius, who, borne up by -a sense of his own superiority, and a love of independence, should have -braved the storms of fortune and the insults of mankind."[296:1] - -Leaving Strasburg, the wanderer proceeded to Paris, where he went about -in his Armenian dress; was mobbed and stared at to his heart's content, -wrote to his friends, complaining with bitter eloquence that people -would allow him neither solitude nor rest, shut himself up, and went -forth again to the world. Before he could have ventured to appear so -publicly, in the capital where a writ had been issued for the seizure of -his person, he must have received very strong assurances of protection. -The arrêt of the Parliament, however, was not recalled; and his friends -must have felt somewhat provoked by his pertinacious courtship of -popular notice, accompanied by the pretence of a desire to avoid it, by -adopting only what was simple and natural--by wearing, for instance, so -simple a dress as the fur cap, caaftan, and vest of an Armenian, in the -streets of Paris! Hume, who seems really to have had faith in his -modesty, must still have felt it awkward that the representative of -Britain should be closely allied with a person so conducting himself; -and was anxious, whenever the state of public business might permit him, -to see his charge safely across the Channel. It was thought, in the -meantime, expedient to find for Rousseau an asylum within the -privileged area of the Temple, of which his friend, the Prince of -Conti, was Grand Prior. We must now allow Hume himself to describe his -new companion, and their intercourse. - -In continuation of the letter to Blair, of 20th December, above cited, -he says: - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"I must, however, be in London very soon, in order to give an account of -my commission; to thank the King for his goodness to me, and to settle -the celebrated Rousseau, who has rejected invitations from half of the -kings and princes of Europe, in order to put himself under my -protection. He has been at Paris about twelve days; and lives in an -apartment prepared for him by the Prince of Conti, which, he says, gives -him uneasiness, by reason of its magnificence. As he was outlawed by the -Parliament, it behoved him to have the King's passport, which was at -first offered him under a feigned name; but his friends refused it, -because they knew that he would not submit even to that falsehood. You -have heard that he was banished from Neufchâtel by preachers, who -excited the mob to stone him. - -"He told me that a trap was laid for him, with as much art as ever was -employed against a fox or a polecat. In the night-time a great enormous -stone was suspended above the door, in such a manner, that on opening it -in the morning, the stone must have fallen and have crushed him to -death.[297:1] A man passing by early, perceived it, and called in to him -at the window to be on his guard. He also told me, that last spring, -when he went about the mountains amusing himself with botany, he came to -a village at some distance from his own: a woman met him, who, surprised -at his Armenian dress--for he wears, and is resolved to wear that habit -during life--asked him what he was, and what was his name. On hearing it -she exclaimed, 'Are you that impious rascal, Rousseau? Had I known it, I -should have waited for you at the end of the wood, with a pistol, in -order to blow out your brains.' He added, that all the women in -Switzerland were in the same disposition, because the preachers had told -them that he had wrote books to prove that women had no souls. He then -turned to Madame de Boufflers, who was present, and said,--Is it not -strange that I, who have wrote so much to decry the morals and conduct -of the Parisian ladies, should yet be beloved by them; while the Swiss -women, whom I have so much extolled, would willingly cut my throat? 'We -are fond of you,' replied she, 'because we know that, however you might -rail, you are at bottom fond _of us_ to distraction. But the Swiss women -hate you, because they are conscious that they have not merit to deserve -your attention.' - -"On leaving Neufchâtel, he took shelter in a little island about half a -league in circumference, in the midst of a lake near Berne. There lived -in it only one German peasant, with his wife and sister. The council of -Berne, frightened for his neighbourhood, on account of his democratic -more than his religious principles, ordered him immediately to withdraw -from their state. He wrote the letter of which I send you a copy, as it -is very curious. The council, in answer, reiterated their orders for him -to begone. He then applied to me. I have made an agreement with a -French gardener in Fulham for boarding him. We set out together in a few -days. - -"It is impossible to express or imagine the enthusiasm of this nation in -his favour. As I am supposed to have him in my custody, all the world, -especially the great ladies, tease me to be introduced to him. I have -had rouleaus thrust into my hand, with earnest applications that I would -prevail on him to accept of them. I am persuaded that, were I to open -here a subscription with his consent, I should receive £50,000 in a -fortnight. The second day after his arrival, he slipped out early in the -morning to take a walk in the Luxembourg gardens. The thing was known -soon after. I am strongly solicited to prevail on him to take another -walk, and then to give warning to my friends. Were the public to be -informed, he could not fail to have many thousand spectators. People may -talk of ancient Greece as they please; but no nation was ever so fond of -genius as this, and no person ever so much engaged their attention as -Rousseau. Voltaire and every body else are quite eclipsed by him. - -"I am sensible that my connexions with him add to my importance at -present. Even his maid La Vasseur, who is very homely and very awkward, -is more talked of than the Princess of Morocco or the Countess of -Egmont, on account of her fidelity and attachment towards him. His very -dog, who is no better than a collie, has a name and reputation in the -world. As to my intercourse with him, I find him mild, and gentle, and -modest, and good humoured; and he has more the behaviour of a man of the -world, than any of the learned here, except M. de Buffon; who, in his -figure, and air, and deportment, answers your idea of a marechal of -France, rather than that of a philosopher. M. Rousseau is of a small -stature, and would rather be ugly, had he not the finest physiognomy in -the world: I mean the most expressive countenance. His modesty seems not -to be good manners, but ignorance of his own excellence. As he writes, -and speaks, and acts, from the impulse of genius, more than from the use -of his ordinary faculties, it is very likely that he forgets its force -whenever it is laid asleep. I am well assured that at times he believes -he has inspirations from an immediate communication with the Divinity. -He falls sometimes into ecstasies, which retain him in the same posture -for hours together. Does not this example solve the difficulty of -Socrates' genius, and of his ecstasies? I think Rousseau in many things -very much resembles Socrates. The philosopher of Geneva seems only to -have more genius than he of Athens, who never wrote any thing, and less -sociableness and temper. Both of them were of very amorous complexions; -but a comparison in this particular, turns out much to the advantage of -my friend. I call him such, for I hear, from all hands, that his -judgment and affections are as strongly biassed in my favour as mine are -in his. I shall much regret leaving him in England; but even if a pardon -could be procured for him here, he is resolved, as he tells me, never to -return; because he never will again be in the power of any man. I wish -he may live unmolested in England. I dread the bigotry and barbarism -which prevail there. - -"When he came to Paris, he seemed resolved to stay till the 6th or 7th -of next month. But at present the concourse about him gives him so much -uneasiness that he expresses the utmost impatience to be gone. Many -people here will have it that this solitary humour is all affectation, -in order to be more sought after; but I am sure that it is natural and -unsurmountable:[301:1] I know that two very agreeable ladies breaking in -upon him, discomposed him so much that he was not able to eat his dinner -afterwards. He is short-sighted; and I have often observed, that while -he was conversing with me in the utmost good-humour, (for he is -naturally gay,) if he heard the door open, the greatest agony appeared -on his countenance, from the apprehension of a visit; and his distress -did not leave him, unless the person was a particular friend. His -Armenian dress is not affectation. He has had an infirmity from his -infancy, which makes breeches inconvenient for him; and he told me, that -when he was chased into the mountains of Switzerland, he took up this -new dress, as it seemed indifferent what habit he there wore. I could -fill a volume with curious anecdotes regarding him, as I live in the -same society which he frequented while in Paris. But I must not exhaust -your patience. My kind compliments to Ferguson, Robertson, and all the -brethren. I am," &c. - -"_Paris, 28th Dec. 1765._" - -"P.S.--Be not surprised that I am going to say in my postscript, the -direct contrary to what I said in my letter. There are four days of -interval between my writing the one and the other; and on this subject -of my future abode, I have not these four months risen and gone to bed -in the same mind. When I meet with proofs of regard and affection from -those I love and esteem here, I swear to myself that I shall never quit -this place. An hour after, it occurs to me that I have then for ever -renounced my native country and all my ancient friends, and I start with -affright. I never yet left any place but with regret: judge what it is -natural for me to feel on leaving Paris, and so many amiable people with -whom I am intimately connected, while it is in my power to pass my life -in the midst of them. Were I not indispensably obliged to go to London, -I know that it would be impossible for me to leave this place. But it is -very probable that being once there, and fairly escaped from the cave of -Circe, I may reconcile myself again to the abode of Ithaca. I left -Edinburgh with great reluctance. To return to it, after having tripled -my revenue in less than three years, can be no hardship. I must, -therefore, fairly warn you to remove from my house at Whitsunday. I have -taken a house at Paris; but I will have one also in Edinburgh, and shall -deliberate in London which of them I shall occupy. I shall not go to -Ireland. The arrival of the Duke of Richmond was late; and this -engagement with M. Rousseau protracts my return so long, that it will -not be worth while to go to Dublin. Lord Hertford has been so good as to -excuse me. You have heard of the great fortune of Trail, who is, I -believe, your acquaintance, and a very honest fellow. Nothing is so -agreeable to an irresolute man, says the Cardinal de Retz, as a measure -which dispenses him from taking an immediate resolution. I am exactly in -the case. I hope your resigning my house will be no hardship to -you."[303:1] - - -Hume, Rousseau, and M. de Luze of Geneva, a friend of the fugitive, left -France early in January 1766. We have no account of their arrival, -except Rousseau's statement in a letter to Malesherbes, that whenever he -set foot on the land of liberty, he leaped on his illustrious friend's -neck, embraced him without uttering a word, and covered his face with -kisses and tears; a ceremony with which Hume would probably have -dispensed, in the presence of "the barbarians who inhabit the banks of -the Thames." The first notice of their sojourn in Britain, is in a -bulletin by Hume to Madame de Boufflers, dated London, 19th January, -1766. He says,-- - - My companion is very amiable, always polite, gay often, - commonly sociable. He does not know himself when he thinks he - is made for entire solitude. I exhorted him on the road to - write his memoirs. He told me, that he had already done it - with an intention of publishing them. - - At present, says he, it may be affirmed, that nobody knows me - perfectly, any more than himself; but I shall describe myself - in such plain colours, that henceforth every one may boast - that he knows himself, and Jean Jacques Rousseau. I believe, - that he intends seriously to draw his own picture in its true - colours: but I believe, at the same time, that nobody knows - himself less. For instance, even with regard to his health, a - point in which few people can be mistaken, he is very - fanciful. He imagines himself very infirm. He is one of the - most robust men I have ever known. He passed ten hours in the - night-time, above deck, during the most severe weather, when - all the seamen were almost frozen to death, and he caught no - harm. He says that his infirmity always increases upon a - journey; yet was it almost imperceptible on the road from - Paris to London. - - His wearing the Armenian dress is a pure whim; which, however, - he is resolved never to abandon. He has an excellent warm - heart; and, in conversation, kindles often to a degree of heat - which looks like inspiration. I love him much, and hope that I - have some share in his affections. - - I find that we shall have many ways of settling him to his - satisfaction; and as he is learning the English very - fast,[304:1] he will afterwards be able to choose for himself. - There is a gentleman of the name of Townsend, a man of four or - five thousand a-year, who lives very privately, within fifteen - miles of London, and is a great admirer of our philosopher, as - is also his wife. He has desired him to live with him, and - offers to take any board he pleases. M. Rousseau was much - pleased with this proposal, and is inclined to accept of it. - The only difficulty is, that he insists positively on his - gouvernante's sitting at table,--a proposal which is not to be - made to Mr. and Mrs. Townsend. - - This woman forms the chief encumbrance to his settlement. M. - de Luze, our companion, says, that she passes for wicked and - quarrelsome, and tattling; and is thought to be the chief - cause of his quitting Neufchâtel. He himself owns her to be so - dull, that she never knows in what year of the Lord she is, - nor in what month of the year, nor in what day of the month or - week; and that she can never learn the different value of the - pieces of money in any country. Yet she governs him as - absolutely as a nurse does a child. In her absence his dog has - acquired that ascendant. His affection for that creature is - beyond all expression or conception. - - I have as yet scarce seen any body except Mr. Conway and Lady - Aylesbury.[305:1] Both of them told me, they would visit Jean - Jacques, if I thought their company would not be disagreeable. - I encouraged them to show him that mark of distinction.[305:2] - Here I must also tell you of a good action which I did; not - but that it is better to conceal our good actions. But I - consider not my seeking _your_ approbation as an effect of - vanity: your suffrage is to me something like the satisfaction - of my own conscience. While we were at Calais, I asked him - whether, in case the King of England thought proper to gratify - him with a pension, he would accept of it. I told him, that - the case was widely different from that of the King of - Prussia; and I endeavoured to point out to him the difference, - particularly in this circumstance, that a gratuity from the - King of England could never in the least endanger his - independence. He replied: "But would it not be using ill the - King of Prussia, to whom I have since been much obliged? - However, on this head (added he,) in case the offer be made - me, I shall consult my father;" meaning Lord Marischal.[306:1] - I told this story to General Conway, who seemed to embrace - with zeal the notion of giving him a pension, as honourable - both to the king and nation. I shall suggest the same idea to - other men in power whom I may meet with, and I do not despair - of succeeding. - - P. S.--Since I wrote the above, I have received your obliging - letter, directed to Calais. M. Rousseau says, the letter of - the King of Prussia is a forgery; and he suspects it to come - from M. de Voltaire.[306:2] - - The project of Mr. Townsend, to my great mortification, has - totally vanished, on account of Mademoiselle Le Vasseur. Send - all his letters under my cover.[307:1] - -Hume writes again on the 12th, to state that he has succeeded in -obtaining the promise of a pension from the king: "You know," he says, -"that our sovereign is extremely prudent and decent, and careful not to -give offence. For which reason, he requires that this act of generosity -may be an entire secret." He states, that this information must be kept -to herself and the Prince of Conti: and she in her answer, admires -Hume's generous and delicate conduct, and promises to keep the secret. -In his postscript Hume announces the important fact, that Mademoiselle -le Vasseur had arrived, and had found a companion to whom such a rag of -celebrity was no small acquisition. - - -"P.S.--Since I wrote the above, I have seen General Conway, who tells me -that the king has spoke to him on the same subject, and that the sum -intended is a hundred pounds a-year: a mighty accession to our friend's -slender revenue. - -"A letter has also come to me open from Guy the bookseller, by which I -learn that Mademoiselle sets out post, in company with a friend of mine, -a young gentleman, very good-humoured, very agreeable--and very mad! He -visited Rousseau in his mountains, who gave him a recommendation to -Paoli, the King of Corsica; where this gentleman, whose name is Boswell, -went last summer, in search of adventures. He has such a rage for -literature, that I dread some event fatal to our friend's honour. You -remember the story of Terentia, who was first married to Cicero, then to -Sallust, and at last, in her old age, married a young nobleman, who -imagined that she must possess some secret, which would convey to him -eloquence and genius."[308:1] - - -Soon after, we find Hume writing as follows:-- - - -HUME _to his Brother_. - -"_London, 2d February, 1766._ - -"As you know that I never left any place without regret, you may imagine -that I did not leave Paris altogether willingly, after having been so -long accustomed to it. I do not find this new scene near so much to my -taste; and I shall be long ere I am reconciled to it. Perhaps Edinburgh -may please me better; I promise myself at least some satisfaction in my -nephews, of whom I hear a very good account; and it is surely more -suitable to one of my years to seek a retreat in my native country, than -to pass the dregs of life among the great, and among people who, though -they seem to have a friendship for me, are still strangers. I accustom -myself, therefore, to this idea without reluctance; and since I have -crossed the seas, I find my regret for the good company I left behind -me, less pungent and uneasy. . . . . - -"You will have heard by this time, that I have brought over with me the -famous Rousseau, the most singular man, surely, in the world. He applied -to me last summer to take him under my protection in England, as he -called it; but in the meanwhile, he was chased out of Switzerland, and -came to Strasburg, with an intention of going to the King of Prussia, -who pressed him earnestly to live with him. At Strasburg my letter -reached him, making him an offer of all my services; upon which he -turned short, and having obtained the King of France's passport, came -and joined me at Paris. I have lived with him ever since. He is a very -modest, mild, well-bred, gentle-spirited, and warm-hearted man, as ever -I knew in my life. He is also to appearance very sociable. I never saw a -man who seems better calculated for good company, nor who seems to take -more pleasure in it. Yet is he absolutely determined to retire and board -himself in a farmer's house among the mountains of Wales, for the sake -of solitude. He has refused a pension from the King of Prussia, and -presents from hundreds. I have been offered great sums for him, if I -could have prevailed on him to accept of them. Yet, till within these -three months, he was in absolute beggary. He has now about £70 -a-year?[309:1] which he has acquired by a bargain for his works. It is -incredible the enthusiasm for him in Paris, and the curiosity in London. -I prevailed on him to go to the play-house in order to see Garrick, who -placed him in a box opposite the king and queen. I observed their -majesties to look at him more than at the players.[309:2] I should -desire no better fortune than to have the privilege of showing him to -all I please. The hereditary prince paid him a visit a few days ago; and -I imagine the Duke of York called on him one evening when he was abroad. -I love him much, and shall separate from him with much regret."[310:1] - - -Hume writes to Dr. Blair on 11th February:-- - -"You have seen in the newspapers enow of particulars concerning my -pupil, who has now left me and retired to Chiswick. He is impatient to -get into the mountains of Wales. He is a very agreeable amiable man, but -a great humorist.[310:2] The philosophers of Paris foretold to me that I -could not conduct him to Calais without a quarrel; but I think I could -live with him all my life in mutual friendship and esteem. I am very -sorry that the matter is not likely to be put to a trial! I believe one -great source of our concord is, that neither he nor I are disputatious, -which is not the case with any of them. They are also displeased with -him because they think he overabounds in religion; and it is indeed -remarkable, that the philosopher of this age who has been most -persecuted, is by far the most devout. I do not comprehend such -philosophers as are invested with the sacerdotal character. I am, dear -doctor, yours _usque ad aras_."[310:3] - -The first attempt to find a settlement for Rousseau, was with the -French gardener at Fulham, already alluded to. The arrangement proposed -by Hume was, that the gardener was to receive from fifty to sixty pounds -a-year, as the consideration for boarding Rousseau and Mademoiselle, but -that he was only to draw twenty-five pounds from Rousseau, from whom he -was to keep the arrangement secret.[311:1] Rousseau rejected this -arrangement with disgust; and various other efforts to find him a -suitable home were equally unsuccessful. Hume, who, as Rousseau himself -tells Madame de Boufflers, was more anxious about his welfare than he -was himself, appears to have spent week after week, in the vain pursuit -of a resting place for the wanderer--no sooner framing a hopeful scheme -than it was contemptuously rejected. It does not appear, however, that -the inquiries were conducted precisely in the sphere in which Rousseau -liked to act. It is clear that he had not come to Britain to negotiate -with farmers at Chiswick, or French gardeners at Fulham. He undoubtedly -expected much more distinguished titles to be mixed up with his -arrangements; and we find that it was not till a rich man's well kept -country mansion was put at his disposal, that he deigned to be for a -moment satisfied. A letter to Blair, contains a very full narrative of -the subsequent proceedings. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR.[312:1] - - _Lisle Street, Leicester Fields, - 25th March, 1766._ - - DEAR DOCTOR,--I had asked M. Rousseau the question you propose - to me: He answered, that the story of his "Héloise" had some - general and distant resemblance to reality; such as was - sufficient to warm his imagination and assist his invention: - but that all the chief circumstances were fictitious. I have - heard in France, that he had been employed to teach music to a - young lady, a boarder in a convent at Lyons; and that the - master and scholar fell mutually in love with each other; but - the affair was not attended with any consequences. I think - this work his masterpiece; though he himself told me, that he - valued most his _Contrat Social_; which is as preposterous a - judgment as that of Milton, who preferred the Paradise - Regained to all his other performances. - - This man, the most singular of all human beings, has at last - left me; and I have very little hopes of ever being able, for - the future, to enjoy much of his company, though he says, that - if I settle either in London or Edinburgh, he will take a - journey on foot every year to visit me. Mr. Davenport, a - gentleman of £5000 or £6000 a-year, in the north of England, - and a man of great humanity and of a good understanding, has - taken the charge of him. He has a house called Wooton, in the - Peake of Derby, situated amidst mountains and rocks and - streams and forests, which pleases the wild imagination and - solitary humour of Rousseau; and as the master seldom - inhabited it, and only kept there a plain table for some - servants, he offered me to give it up to my friend. I - accepted, on condition that he would take from him £30 a-year - of board for himself and his gouvernante, which he was so - good-natured as to agree to. Rousseau has about £80 a-year, - which he has acquired by contracts with his booksellers, and - by a liferent annuity of £25 a-year, which he accepted from - Lord Marischal. This is the only man who has yet been able to - make him accept of money. - - He was desperately resolved to rush into this solitude, - notwithstanding all my remonstrances; and I foresee, that he - will be unhappy in that situation, as he has indeed been - always in all situations. He will be entirely without - occupation, without company, and almost without amusement of - any kind. He has read very little during the course of his - life, and has now totally renounced all reading: He has seen - very little; and has no manner of curiosity to see or remark: - He has reflected, properly speaking, and studied very little; - and has not indeed much knowledge: He has only _felt_, during - the whole course of his life; and in this respect, his - sensibility rises to a pitch beyond what I have seen any - example of: but it still gives him a more acute feeling of - pain than of pleasure. He is like a man who were stript not - only of his clothes, but of his skin, and turned out in that - situation to combat with the rude and boisterous elements, - such as perpetually disturb this lower world. I shall give you - a remarkable instance of his turn of character in this - respect: It passed in my room, the evening before his - departure. - - He had resolved to set out with his gouvernante in a - post-chaise; but Davenport, willing to cheat him and save him - some money, told him that he had found a retour chaise for the - place, which he might have for a trifle, and that luckily it - set out the very day in which Rousseau intended to depart. His - purpose was to hire a chaise, and make him believe this story. - He succeeded at first, but Rousseau afterwards ruminating on - the circumstances, began to entertain a suspicion of the - trick. He communicated his doubts to me, complaining that he - was treated like a child; that though he was poor, he chose - rather to conform himself to his circumstances, than live like - a beggar on alms; and that he was very unhappy in not speaking - the language familiarly, so as to guard himself against these - impositions. I told him that I was ignorant of the matter, and - knew nothing more of it, than I was told by Mr. Davenport, but - if he pleased I should make inquiry about it. "Never tell me - that," replied he, "if this be really a contrivance of - Davenport's, you are acquainted with it, and consenting to it; - and you could not possibly have done me a greater - displeasure." Upon which he sat down very sullen and silent; - and all my attempts were in vain to revive the conversation, - and to turn it on other subjects; he still answered me very - drily and coldly. At last, after passing near an hour in this - ill-humour, he rose up and took a turn about the room. But - judge of my surprise, when he sat down suddenly on my knee, - threw his hands about my neck, kissed me with the greatest - warmth, and bedewing all my face with tears, exclaimed, "Is it - possible you can ever forgive me, my dear friend? After all - the testimonies of affection I have received from you, I - reward you at last with this folly and ill behaviour: but I - have notwithstanding a heart worthy of your friendship; I love - you, I esteem you, and not an instance of your kindness is - thrown away upon me." I hope you have not so bad an opinion of - me as to think I was not melted on this occasion; I assure you - I kissed him and embraced him twenty times, with a plentiful - effusion of tears. I think no scene of my life was ever more - affecting.[315:1] - - I now understand perfectly his aversion to company; which - appears so surprising in a man well qualified for the - entertainment of company, and which the greater part of the - world takes for affectation. He has frequent and long fits of - the spleen, from the state of his mind or body, call it which - you please; and from his extreme sensibility of temper, during - that disposition, company is a torment to him. When his - spirits and health and good humour return, his fancy affords - him so much and such agreeable occupation, that to call him - off from it gives him uneasiness; and even the writing of - books, he tells me, as it limits and restrains his fancy to - one subject, is not an agreeable entertainment. He never will - write any more; and never should have wrote at all, could he - have slept a-nights. But he lies awake commonly; and to keep - himself from tiring, he usually composed something, which he - wrote down when he arose. He assures me, that he composes very - slowly, and with great labour and difficulty. - - He is naturally very modest, and even ignorant of his own - superiority. His fire, which frequently rises in conversation, - is gentle and temperate; he is never in the least arrogant and - domineering, and is, indeed, one of the best bred men I ever - knew. I shall give you such an instance of his modesty as must - necessarily be sincere. When we were on the road, I - recommended to him the learning of English, without which, I - told him, he would never enjoy entire liberty, nor be fully - independent, and at his own disposal. He was sensible I was in - the right, and said, that he heard there were two English - translations of his "Emile, or Treatise on Education;" he - would get them as soon as he arrived in London; and as he knew - the subject, he would have no other trouble, than to learn or - guess the words: this would save him some pains in consulting - the dictionary; and as he improved, it would amuse him to - compare the translations and judge which was the best. - Accordingly, soon after our arrival, I procured him the books, - but he returned them in a few days, saying that they could be - of no use to him. "What is the matter?" replied I. "I cannot - endure them," said he, "they are my own work; and ever since I - delivered my books to the press, I never could open them, or - read a page of them without disgust." "That is strange," said - I, "I wonder the good reception they have met with from the - world has not put you more in conceit with them." "Why," said - he, "if I were to count suffrages, there are perhaps more - against them than for them." "But," rejoined I, "it is - impossible but the style, and eloquence, and ornaments must - please you." "To tell the truth," said he, "I am not - displeased with myself in that particular: but I still dread, - that my writings are good for nothing at the bottom, and that - all my theories are full of extravagance. Je crains toujours - que je pèche par le fond, et que tous mes systèmes ne sont que - des extravagances." You see that this is judging of himself - with the utmost severity, and censuring his writings on the - side where they are most exposed to criticism. No feigned - modesty is ever capable of this courage. I never heard ---- - reproach himself with the ----: nobody ever heard you express - any remorse, for having put Ossian on the same footing with - Homer! - - Have I tired you, or will you have any more anecdotes of this - singular personage? I think I hear you desire me to go on. He - attempted once to justify to me the moral of his New Heloisa, - which, he knew, was blamed, as instructing young people in the - art of gratifying their passions, under the cover of virtue, - and noble refined sentiments. "You may observe," said he - "that my Julia is faithful to her husband's bed, though she is - seduced from her duty during her single state; but this last - circumstance can be of no consequence in France, where all the - young ladies are shut up in convents, and have it not in their - power to transgress: it might, indeed, have a bad effect in a - Protestant country." But notwithstanding this reflection, he - told me, that he has wrote a continuation of his "Emilius," - which may soon be published. He there attempts to show the - effect of his plan of education, by representing Emilius in - all the most trying situations, and still extricating himself - with courage and virtue. Among the rest, he discovers that - Sophia, the amiable, the virtuous, the estimable Sophia, is - unfaithful to his bed, which fatal accident he bears with a - manly superior spirit. "In this work," added he, "I have - endeavoured to represent Sophia in such a light that she will - appear equally amiable, equally virtuous, and equally - estimable, as if she had no such frailty." "You take a - pleasure, I see," said I, "to combat with difficulties in all - your works." "Yes," said he, "I hate marvellous and - supernatural _events_ in novels. The only thing that can give - pleasure in such performances is to place the personages in - situations difficult and singular." Thus, you see, nothing - remains for him but to write a book for the instruction of - widows! unless perhaps he imagines that they can learn their - lesson without instruction. Adieu, dear doctor; you say that - you sometimes read my letters to our common friends; but you - must read this only to the initiated.[317:1] - -Almost the only other matter which appears conspicuously in Hume's -correspondence during his intercourse with Rousseau, is the death of a -dear friend, often mentioned in his previous letters--Dr. Jardine. He -was a man of strong judgment, and much sarcastic wit; but his articles -in _The Edinburgh Review_ of 1755, are almost the only specimens of his -ability which he has left to posterity. He was born in Dumfries-shire -on 3d January, 1716, and he was minister of the Tron Church parish when -he died. The death was sudden; and Hume, overlooking the calamitous -consequences of such events to surviving relatives, and in harmony with -the opinions he had expressed on death in a still more appalling form, -seems to have considered its suddenness as fortunate. He thus writes to -Blair, on 5th June. - -"I cannot begin my letter without lamenting most sincerely the death of -our friend Dr. Jardine. I do not aggravate it by the circumstance of its -being sudden, for that is very desirable. But surely we shall ever -regret the loss of a very pleasant companion, and of a very friendly -honest man. It makes a blank which you must all feel, and which I in -particular will sensibly feel, when I come amongst you. I need not ask -you whether the miscreants of the opposite party do not rejoice, for I -take it for granted they do."[318:1] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[264:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[265:1] MS. R.S.E. In answer, Millar tells him that the prejudice is not -against the Scots, but against Lord Bute; that matters have now, -however, been all put right, for "it is generally believed that Mr. -_Greenville_ is a good manager of the finances, and in general means -well: as a proof of it, our stocks have been creeping up daily, and it -is now generally believed that 3 per cent will soon come to par if -affairs continue peaceable!" One possessed of better opportunities of -judging, and more capable of using them, joins in these anticipations of -success with which Grenville's disastrous career as a financier opened. -Elliot says, on 25th March, 1765: "To-morrow Mr. Grenville opens the -budget, as it is usually called, and I believe our revenue will appear -to be on a better footing than is usually believed. I hope we shall have -discharged as much debt without breach of faith as you have done in a -politer way. Not that I pretend to censure your method. You borrow at a -high interest during time of war, and it is understood you are to take -your own method in peace. Our mode of proceeding is the very reverse of -this. . . . Your negotiation with regard to the French prisoners you -must have heard, met with all the approbation it so well deserved." (MS. -R.S.E.) - -[268:1] Probably Vallière. The Duc de Vallière was supposed to be the -author of some anonymous theatrical pieces. - -[270:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[270:2] This gentleman is the same who afterwards distinguished himself -as a diplomatist, and who was so well known by the title of Sir Robert -Liston. - -[272:1] Minto MSS. - -[273:1] Mallet died on 21st April, 1765. - -[273:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[275:1] On account of his taxation system having caused the American -Revolution, Grenville is now generally ranked with statesmen of despotic -principles. He was, however, an avowed admirer of the democratic -portions of the constitution; and it was in truth his ill-directed -advocacy of popular rights, not an intentional departure from his avowed -principles, that made his administration so disastrous. His zeal for the -independent authority of Parliament, and for the curtailment of the -prerogatives of the Crown, induced him to struggle for the exercise by -parliament, in the colonies, of a power with which the crown could not -compete,--that of taxation. - -[275:2] Minto MSS. - -[276:1] Evidently the Abbé Morellet, who afterwards corresponded with -Hume on these subjects. He was born in 1727, and died in 1819. From his -great age and the cheerful social habits of his latter years, he was one -of the few members of the school of the Encyclopædiasts, whom men of the -present generation have been accustomed to meet in general society. -Morellet possessed two distinct titles to fame. He had written some -grave and valuable books on political economy and statistics; while in -lighter literature, and in Madame Geoffrin's circle, he enjoyed a high -reputation for playful and pungent wit. His friends likened him to -Swift; but as he sought to avoid malice in his sarcasms, and to make -them subservient to good principles in morals and religion, he might, in -this part of his character, be more aptly compared with Sydney Smith. He -had a great partiality for Scottish music; but it may be doubted if this -taste was either created or fostered by his intercourse with Hume. In -his very amusing Memoires, he describes a dinner with a musical party -near Plymouth, in the open air. Some young ladies, with their father and -mother, approached near enough to hear the music. The Abbé gallantly -carried them a basket of cherries. "Je les prie en même temps de vouloir -bien chanter _some Scotish song_, dont, moi Français, j'étais _very -fond_. Elles se regardent un moment: et dès que nous fûmes retournés à -nos places, comme si notre plus grand éloignement les eût rassurées, -elles se mettent à chanter toutes les trois à l'unisson, avec des voix -d'une extrême douceur, _The lass of Peatie's Mill_. Le temps, le lieu, -la singularité de la rencontre ajoutèrent quelques charmes à ce petit -concert." Vol. i. p. 209. - -[277:1] Memorials of Oswald, p. 81. - -[278:1] Mr. Elliot, in answer to the letter printed above, (p. 189,) -says, "So, my dear sir, you have at last, with no small reluctance, and -after many struggles, prevailed with yourself to acquaint some of your -friends that Lord Hertford means to desire that government would be -graciously pleased to bestow the character and emoluments of the -secretaryship upon the person who actually performs the functions of it. -At your time of life, with so much independency about you, and so unlike -all your former conduct, indeed I am not at all surprised that it cost -you near two pages of apology and explanation before you would even -intrust me with the secret. Were you less deep in the study of human -nature, and somewhat more an adept in the ways of men, I am apt to think -you would rather have filled your letter with excuses for not having -sooner made this application." - -He goes on to state, that he has been exerting himself in the matter, -but that on all occasions he had found himself anticipated by Lord -Hertford. He continues: - -"As to _ingrata patria ne ossa quidem habebis_, don't be at all uneasy. -Here I can speak more peremptorily; and notwithstanding all your errors, -mistakes, and heresies in religion, morals, and government, I undertake -you shall have at least Christian burial, and perhaps we may find for -you a niche in Westminster Abbey besides. Your Lockes, Newtons, and -Bacons had no great matter to boast of during their lives; and yet they -were the most orthodox of men; they required no godfather to answer for -them; while, on the other hand, did not Lord Hertford spread his -sevenfold shield over all your transgressions? Pray, what pretensions -have you, either in church or state; for you well know you have offended -both?"--MS. R.S.E. - -[279:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[280:1] Private Correspondence, p. 121. - -[281:1] Mrs. Elliot, who as an heiress preserved the name of Murray -Kynynmond. - -[282:1] Minto MSS. - -[282:2] Walpole, Memoirs of George III. i. 391. Walpole pretends that -Conway's dismissal was partly caused by revenge against Lord Hertford -for his conduct on this occasion, (ib. 402.) But from his own account of -it, the resolution to dismiss Conway had been taken before Hume's -appointment. - -[284:1] Lives of Men of Letters, &c. p. 225. - -[284:2] He was Lady Hertford's nephew. - -[286:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[286:2] See above, p. 172. - -[286:3] The Dauphin was then far advanced in the disease of which he -died. According to the ordinary French historians, he was at the same -time so completely subjected to the priestly influence of the Molinists, -as to justify the supposition, that the decay of his mind kept pace with -that of his body. Others give a totally different account of him, and -Walpole says, "To please his family, the prince went through all the -ceremonies of the church, but showed to his attendants after they were -over, how vain and ridiculous he thought them. Many expressions he -dropped in his last hours that spoke the freedom of his opinions; and to -the Duc de Nivernois he said, he was glad to leave behind him such a -book as 'Hume's Essays.'" Memoirs of George III. vol. ii. p. 242. The -Dauphin died on 20th December, 1765. - -[287:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[288:1] A general officer of reputation, making such an application, on -behalf of a friend, says:-- - -"The divine in question has a very good living, but in a quarter of the -world where he has not a creature to converse with. If his excellency -would enrol him among that million of the tribe of Levi, that attend at -the Castle of Dublin, who are called his chaplains, it would excuse his -attendance at quarters: And his general,--I mean, his bishop, would be -under the necessity of permitting him to be absent whilst he had the -honour to be about the commander-in-chief at headquarters."--MS. R.S.E. - -[289:1] Lord Hertford, writing to Hume, on 5th August, says:-- - -"DEAR SIR,--You will see, in the papers, that Barré is to be my -secretary; but it has no other foundation. If I had been at liberty, I -should have desired to continue with him whose abilities and ease in -business I have so long experienced; but the world will have it -otherwise, and it must be my son. He is popular in Ireland; and I am -invited, on all hands, to name him; at the same time that I am told the -great danger of indulging my own inclinations, that if I named you, with -the particular additional prejudice that prevails, at present, against -the Scotch, that I should condemn my own administration. I have, -therefore, made it the condition of my acceptance of the lieutenancy, -that you are immediately provided for in a manner less likely to subject -you to the inconvenience of party changes. I have explained, both to the -King and the ministers, how essential I thought it to my honour and ease -of mind; and it is resolved. I flatter myself I shall soon be able to -acquaint you, that I have been a good solicitor; and, as my private -friend, I beg leave to assure you that I shall always be most happy in -receiving you in Dublin, and every other part of the world, let the -prejudices and follies of mankind be what they will. I hope you will -consider me as your friend; and I will desire no other return for all -the services I may be able to do you, than such a portion of your time -as you can bestow upon me, consistently with your inclination. The Duke -of Richmond goes to France: I do not yet know upon what plan, having not -seen him. He is a pretty figure; is easy in his behaviour; and does not -want parts. I wish he may have temper, experience, and knowledge of men -for that place. I have talked to my brother, as it became a wellwisher -to peace, upon this occasion. You will receive, by the messenger which -carries this letter to France, an official one from my brother, drawn by -himself, by which you will be able to judge of his style. I need not add -any thing to it. Every thing which passed, in a very long conference we -had together with Guerchy, is fully stated in it; but, when you talk to -the Duke of Praslin upon it, you will, if you please, take an -opportunity of recommending from me, in a particular manner, the -indulgence required for the holders of the Canada bills. This point may -be essential to the good understanding between the two courts."--MS. -R.S.E. - -[290:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[291:1] Lord Hertford writes Hume, on 16th August;-- - -"The usher of the black rod, in Ireland, is in my disposal. It produces, -in the course of a session, from £800 to £900, as I am informed. If you -approve it, my intention is to give it to a gentleman who will be -extremely satisfied to accept of £300 a-year for his trouble, at most, -and the rest will be placed to your account, without interrupting the -benefit of the pension." - -And again, on September 5, after Hume's refusal:-- - -"The black rod you will give me leave to dispose of as I intended. You -shall, at the end of the session, refuse the emoluments I propose to -reserve out of it, if you see sufficient reason. £300 for doing the duty -of it should satisfy the person to whom I will give it."--MS. R.S.E. - -[292:1] _Lit. Gazette_, 1822, p. 711. Corrected from original in MSS. -R.S.E. - -[293:1] _Lit. Gazette_, 1822, p. 722. Corrected from original in MSS. -R.S.E. - -[293:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[295:1] We are told (vie de Rousseau par Musset Pathay, i. 102,) that a -certain M. Augar, having been here presented to the apostle of -education, said he was bringing up his son after the model of "Emile." -"So much the worse both for you and your son;" _tant pis pour vous et -pour votre fils_, said Rousseau. This must have been highly -satisfactory. Of all the theories to reconcile Rousseau's -contradictions,--to discover on what principle he preached up parental -care, and sent his own children to the foundling hospital, the best is -supplied by himself in a single sentence in the Heloise: "L'on sait bien -que tout homme qui pose des maximes générales, entend qu'elles obligent -tout le monde, excepté lui." This is certainly more intelligible than -the mystical theory of his eulogist, D'Escherny: "Il n'y a que les sots -qui ne se contredisent point, parce que leur esprit borné ne voit jamais -qu'un côté de l'objet." - -[295:2] He states, in the "Confessions," that when Wallace's work on the -Number of Mankind was passing through the press, Hume undertook the -revision of the proof sheets, though the work was written against -himself. I am not aware of any other authority for this anecdote. -Rousseau said he was charmed with it, because the conduct was so much -like his own! - -[296:1] Account of the Controversy between Hume and Rousseau. - -[297:1] "Un banc très-massif, qui étoit dans la rue à côté de ma porte -et fortement attaché, fut détaché, enlevé, et posé debout contre la -porte; de sorte que, si l'on ne s'en fût aperçu, le premier qui pour -sortir auroit ouvert la porte d'entrée, devoit naturellement être -assommé."--_Confessions_, Liv. 12. - -[301:1] Hume, though habitually sceptical, was far from being -suspicious; and in his kindness to his new companion, he took every -thing in sincerity. "C'est un des malheurs de ma vie," says Rousseau, -"qu'avec un si grand désir d'être oublié, je sois contraint de parler de -moi sans cesse;" but those who knew him better than Hume did at so early -a period of their intercourse, do not give him credit for desiring to be -either neglected or forgotten. Madame de Genlis professes to have been -much vexed and perplexed by having acted on a reliance similar to -Hume's. Rousseau had promised to accompany her to the Comédie Françoise, -on the condition that they were to occupy a _loge grillée_. When they -entered, madame flew to shut the grating; Rousseau opposed her; he was -sure _she_ would not like it to be closed, and he would be sufficiently -hidden, by sitting behind her. In the scuffle he was recognised; madame, -vexed and terrified, insisted that the grating should be closed; but he -was inexorable. The commencement of a popular piece soon relieved them -from notice, and when the eyes of the audience were averted from him, -Rousseau grew gloomy and rude. He afterwards professed himself deeply -offended at having been exhibited as a wild beast! _Mémoires_, ii. 12. - -The same lady gives a more pleasing instance of his characteristics at -that time, in describing her first introduction to him. A friend told -her, that her husband intended to play a trick on her: to employ the -celebrated mimic Preville, the Foote of the French stage, to personate -Rousseau at his table. The expected guest appeared. His dress and -appearance were so unlike other people's, yet so like what would have -been expected in Rousseau--his conversation was so brilliant--that it -certainly must be a piece of wonderful acting. Thoroughly at her ease, -she laughed, and talked, and sang the airs of the Devin du village. It -was Rousseau himself! and not accustomed, in this the full blaze of his -reputation, to be received with so much freedom, by a young and -accomplished woman, he pronounced her to be the most lively and -unaffected of her sex. - -[303:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[304:1] It does not appear that Rousseau made any progress in English. -In a letter to Hume, from Wooton, he says, "J'ai eu hier la visite de M. -le Ministre, qui, voyant que je ne lui parlois que François, n'a pas -voulu me parler Anglois, de sorte que l'entrevue s'est passée à peu près -sans mot dire. J'ai pris goût à l'expédient; je m'en servirai avec tous -mes voisins, si j'en ai; et dussé-je apprendre l'Anglois, je ne leur -parlerai que François, sur-tout si j'ai le bonheur qu'ils n'en sachent -pas un mot." - -[305:1] General Conway's wife. - -[305:2] Rousseau writes to Hume:-- - - _Le Lundi Soir._ - - Je vous supplie, mon très cher patron, de vouloir bien - m'excuser auprès de Myladi Ailesbury et de Mr. Le Général - Conway. Je suis malade, et hors d'état de me présenter, et - Mademoiselle Le Vasseur, très bonne, et très estimable - personne, n'est point faite pour paroître dans les grandes - compagnies. Trouvez bon, mon très cher patron, que nous nous - en tenions au premier arrangement et que j'attende dans - l'après midi le carrosse que M. Davenport veut bien envoyer. - J'arrive suant et fatigué d'une longue promenade: c'est - pourquoi je ne prolonge pas ma lettre: vous m'avez si bien - acquis et je suis à vous de tant de manières que cela même ne - doit plus être dit. Je vous embrasse de toute la tendresse de - mon coeur. - - J. J. ROUSSEAU. - -Had Lady Aylesbury requested the honour of Mademoiselle le Vasseur's -company along with that of her keeper? Rousseau tells us what pleasure -it gave him to see Madame la Marechale de Luxembourg embrace her in -public. But if any English lady of rank and character offered to extend -her hospitality to such a person, there could be no stronger evidence of -the general consent to suspend all social laws in favour of Rousseau. - -[306:1] Of Lord Marischal he always spoke with respect. In the -Confessions, he says, "O bon Milord! ô mon digne père! que mon coeur -s'émeut encore en pensant à vous! Ah les barbares! quel coup ils m'ont -porté en vous détachant de moi! Mais non, non, grand homme, vous êtes et -serez toujours le même pour moi, qui suis le même toujours." - -[306:2] Madame de Boufflers seems to have early apprehended mischief -from Walpole's letter. In the letter referred to, she says, "Je voudrois -savoir si une lettre du Roy de Prusse qui court Paris est vraie ou -fausse. On dit qu'elle est pleine d'ironie." She then proceeds to -describe the letter. Hume in answer says, "I suppose, that by this time -you have learned it was Horace Walpole who wrote the Prussian letter you -mentioned to me. It is a strange inclination we have to be wits, -preferably to every thing else. He is a very worthy man; he esteems and -even admires Rousseau; yet he could not forbear, for the sake of a very -indifferent joke, the turning him into ridicule, and saying harsh things -against him. I am a little angry with him; and I hear you are a great -deal: but the matter ought to be treated only as a piece of -levity."--_Private Correspondence_, p. 130. - -[307:1] Private Correspondence, p. 125-128. - -[308:1] Private Correspondence, p. 131-132. - -[309:1] The mark of interrogation is in the MS. - -[309:2] Writing to the Marquise de Barbantane, he makes the following -addition to this anecdote:-- - -"When the hour came, he told me, that he had changed his resolution, and -would not go: 'for--what shall I do with Sultan?' That is the name of -his dog. 'You must leave him behind,' said I. 'But the first person,' -replied he, 'who opens the door, Sultan will run into the streets in -search of me, and will be lost.' 'You must then,' said I, 'lock him up -in your room, and put the key in your pocket.' This was accordingly -done: but as we went down stairs, the dog howled and made a noise; his -master turned back, and said he had not resolution to leave him in that -condition; but I caught him in my arms and told him, that Mrs. Garrick -had dismissed another company in order to make room for him; that the -King and Queen were expecting to see him; and without a better reason -than Sultan's impatience, it would be ridiculous to disappoint them. -Partly by these reasons, and partly by force, I engaged him to -proceed."--_Private Correspondence_, p. 144. - -[310:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[310:2] The word appears not to be used in its modern popular sense, but -as meaning a person full of caprice. - -[310:3] MS. R.S.E. - -[311:1] In his narrative of the controversy, Hume says, "I wrote -immediately to my friend Mr. John Stewart of Buckingham Street, that I -had an affair to communicate to him, of so secret and delicate a nature, -that I should not venture even to commit it to paper, but that he might -learn the particulars of Mr. Elliot. . . . . Mr. Stewart was to look out -for some honest and discreet farmer in his neighbourhood, who might be -willing to lodge and board M. Rousseau and his gouvernante. . . . . It -was not long before Mr. Stewart wrote me word he had found a situation, -which he conceived might be agreeable," &c. - -In confirmation of this narrative, there is the following letter in the -MSS. R.S.E. Mr. Stewart is probably the "Jack Stewart," frequently -alluded to in Hume's letters. - - "MY DEAR SIR,--Mr. Elliot told me the affair you recommended - to him. Since his arrival I have tried every farmer in our - side of the country, and can find no proper place. Some have - not room, some hate foreigners, some don't chuse boarders, and - the major part of all are such beings as he could not live - with in any comfortable manner. There is an old Frenchman who - has been here since a child, and has a sort of a garden farm - at Fulham. To him I proposed the thing without mentioning - names, and to oblige me he will take such a boarder: but still - I could wish to find a place where he would be more agreeably - situated, for this man keeps only a single maid, eats very - plain, and his house is as dirty as a Frenchman's in France. - The farmer himself is about sixty years old, unmarried, a - cheerful honest creature, of a very obliging disposition. - Consider whether this will suit your purpose, or if I should - try in other counties. Adieu, my worthy good sir. Believe me - eternally, your devoted servant, - - "J. STEWART." - -[312:1] Blair had written on 24th February,-- - -"I received both your letters; and am exceedingly indebted to you for -the many curious and entertaining anecdotes you gave me concerning -Rousseau. They bestowed upon me somewhat of the same importance which -you say your connexion with Rousseau himself bestowed upon you in Paris, -by having so much information to give my friends from you concerning so -extraordinary a personage. Your accounts pleased me the more, that they -coincided very much with the idea I had always formed of the -man--amiable but whimsical. Strong sensibilities joined with an oddly -arranged understanding. He is a proof of what I always thought to be a -possible mixture in human nature, one being a sceptic from the turn of -their mind, and yet an enthusiast from the turn of their heart; for this -I take to be his real character--a man floating betwixt doubts and -feelings--betwixt scepticism and enthusiasm: leaning more to the latter -than the former; his understanding strangely tinctured by both." He -desires Hume to ask Rousseau, whether the principal scenes in his -"Héloise" were not founded on real events.--MS. R.S.E. - -[315:1] This anecdote is told in substantially the same manner to Madame -de Boufflers, to whom its spirit would be doubtless far less -incomprehensible than to Dr. Blair.--_See Private Correspondence_, p. -150. - -[317:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 731, corrected from original, MS. -R.S.E. - -[318:1] MS. R.S.E. Blair writes on 12th June:-- - -"Poor Jardine--I knew you would join with us in dropping very cordial -tears over his memory. What pleasant hours have I passed with you and -him. We have lost a most agreeable companion, as it was possible for any -man to be, and a very useful man to us here, in all public affairs. I -thought of you at the very first as one who would sensibly feel the -blank he will make in our society, when you come again to join it. But -when are you to come?"--MS. R.S.E. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -1766-1767. Æt. 55-56. - - Rousseau at Wooton--Mr. Davenport--Negotiations as to - Rousseau's pension--Origin and rise of his excitement against - Hume--Proper method of viewing the dispute--Incidents - illustrative of Rousseau's state of mind--His charges against - Hume--Smith's opinion--Opinion of the French friends--Hume's - conduct in the publication of the papers--Voltaire--Rousseau's - flight and wanderings--Hume's subsequent conduct to him. - - -The place where Rousseau found a retreat, was the mansion of Wooton in -Derbyshire, surrounded by scenery, not unlike that which he had left -behind him in the Jura. It was a late addition to the extensive -ancestral estates of its proprietor, Mr. Davenport of Davenport. How -successful Hume had been, in finding a man of generous, warm, kindly -nature, to be the protector of his exiled friend, some letters from Mr. -Davenport, printed in the course of this narrative will attest.[319:1] - -That Rousseau might be induced to live in his house, it was necessary -that Mr. Davenport should agree to accept of a sum of money in the shape -of board, and he good-humouredly conceded to Hume, that the amount -should be fixed at £30 a-year. "If it be possible," says Hume, "for a -man to live without occupation, without books, without society, and -without sleep, he will not quit this wild and solitary place; where all -the circumstances which he ever required, seem to concur for the -purpose of making him happy. But I dread the weakness and inquietude -natural to every man, and, above all, to a man of his character. I -should not be surprised that he had soon quitted this retreat."[320:1] -It appears that Mr. Davenport intended, if Rousseau became attached to -Wooton, to leave him a life lease of the house.[320:2] - -Rousseau reached Wooton about the middle of March. On the 22d he wrote -to his _cher Patron_ Hume, informing him that his new place of residence -was in every way delightful; and that its charms were enhanced by the -reflection, that he owed all the happiness of his new position to his -dear friend.[320:3] Doubtless Hume, who must now have been a little -tired of the caprices which had so constantly baffled his friendly -exertions, felt this acknowledgment to be very gratifying. On the 29th -he received a letter, still friendly and grateful, but not quite so -warm, in which Rousseau, while he complains of the inconvenience of not -being understood by the servants, congratulates himself on his ignorance -of the English language, as saving him from the annoyance of -communication with his neighbours.[320:4] - -While all seemed thus serene, dark thoughts were gathering in the -exile's mind: and if Hume, relieved of his troublesome duties, and -probably satisfied with his own conduct, had known the nicer tests of -the state of that variable and tempestuous temper, he might have -calculated, by some indications, that the storm was about to burst. The -letter of Horace Walpole had, for some time, been lying at the bottom of -Rousseau's mind, not forgotten, though hidden from view; and it seems to -have formed the nucleus round which his diseased imaginations gathered, -and put themselves into shape.[321:1] On the 7th of April, Rousseau -sent a letter to the editor of the _St. James's Chronicle_, in which it -had appeared, denouncing it as a forgery concocted in Paris, and saying -that it rent and afflicted his heart to say, that the impostor had his -accomplices in England. That it was not then, or for many weeks before, -that he first became acquainted with this _jeu d'esprit_, is clear from -a letter to Madame de Boufflers, of 18th January, in which he states, -that Hume had just informed him of its existence.[323:1] He appears to -have then attributed it to Voltaire. He afterwards imputed it, with -great confidence, to D'Alembert; and the ultimate discovery, that it was -not written by any literary rival and conspirator, but by an English -gentleman partial to such wicked amusements, appears to have been the -most galling circumstance connected with it. - -It seems to have been believed, by some of those who knew Rousseau's -character, that his brooding over Walpole's letter would have been -insufficient to cause the commotions that followed, without the -malicious assistance of Mademoiselle Le Vasseur.[323:2] This woman, who -seems to have possessed all the vices to which her sex is liable, -without one of its virtues,--who had just enough of intellect to assist -the cunning of her depraved heart,--is said to have had an influence -over the philosopher of education, of which it is certainly difficult to -credit the extent. It will be seen, in the letters of Mr. Davenport, -that she had a dispute with his venerable housekeeper, concerning a -kettle and cinders! What was the exact nature of the dispute, is now, it -may be feared, buried in eternal oblivion; and we are left to conjecture -whither an influential cause in a literary quarrel, which interested all -Europe, may possibly have been a kettle and cinders. On the 12th of -May, Rousseau wrote to General Conway, acknowledging the king's goodness -in bestowing on him a pension; saying he thought himself armed against -all disasters, but that a new and unimagined one had arisen, which so -troubled his spirit, that he had not the necessary presence of mind to -decide on the conduct he ought to adopt as to the pension. He expressed, -at the same time, sorrow that he could not publicly acknowledge his -obligations. This appeared to Hume and Conway to be an intimation, that -the pension would not be accepted if it were to be secret.[324:1] - -While his mind was thus blackening within, he preserved a cheerful -exterior; and Mr. Davenport wrote to Hume, on 14th May, from Wooton: "I -came on Friday, and had the satisfaction of finding M. Rousseau in -perfect health. He seems to like the place; amuses himself with walking -when the weather is fair; if raining, he plays upon the harpsichord and -writes: is very sociable, and an excellent companion."[325:1] There is -evidence, however, that he had entertained all his evil thoughts of Hume -at a much earlier period. His second letter to him, in the capacity of -_Cher Patron_, is dated, as we have mentioned, 29th March. On the 31st -he wrote to M. D'Ivernois, saying that he found Hume allied with his -most dangerous enemies, and if he were not a rascal, he himself would -owe him many reparations for unjust suspicions entertained of -him.[325:2] - -Resolved to bring the matter of the pension to a conclusion, Hume wrote -to Rousseau thus:-- - - -"_Lisle Street, Leicester Fields_, _June 16, 1766_. - -"As I have not received any answer from you, sir, I conclude that you -persevere in the resolution of refusing all marks of his majesty's -goodness, as long as they must remain a secret. I have, therefore, -applied to General Conway to have this condition removed; and I have -been so fortunate as to obtain his promise, that he would speak to the -king for that purpose. It will only be requisite, said he, that we know -previously from M. Rousseau, whether he would accept of a pension -publicly granted him, that his majesty may not be exposed to a second -refusal. He gave me authority to write to you on the subject; and I beg -to hear your resolution as soon as possible. If you give your consent, -which I earnestly entreat you to do, I know that I can depend on the -good offices of the Duke of Richmond to second General Conway's -application; so that I have no doubt of success. I am, my dear sir, -yours, with great sincerity."[326:1] - - -This brought on the first gust of the storm. On 23d June, Rousseau wrote -his celebrated letter, beginning with the observation, that his silence, -interpreted by Hume's conscience, must have convinced the latter that -the whole of his horrible designs were discovered. In this letter -nothing is more remarkable than the contrast between the frantic -bitterness of the language, and the elaborate neatness of the -penmanship, which, if handwriting conveyed a notion of character, would -represent a calm, contented mind, gratifying itself by the exercise of -the petty art of caligraphy. A fac-simile of the concluding paragraph is -given, that the reader may have an opportunity of marking this singular -contrast. - -[Illustration] - -Hume, now thoroughly angry, wrote as follows:-- - - -HUME _to_ ROUSSEAU. - -"_June 26, 1766._ - -"As I am conscious of having ever acted towards you the most friendly -part, of having always given you the most tender and the most active -proofs of sincere affection, you may judge of my extreme surprise on -perusing your epistle. Such violent accusations, confined altogether to -generalities, it is as impossible to answer, as it is impossible to -comprehend them. But affairs cannot, must not, remain on that footing. I -shall charitably suppose that some infamous calumniator has belied me to -you. But, in that case, it is your duty, and, I am persuaded, it will be -your inclination, to give me an opportunity of detecting him, and of -justifying myself; which can only be done by your mentioning the -particulars of which I am accused. You say, that I myself know that I -have been false to you; but I say it loudly, and will say it to the -whole world, that I know the contrary; that I know my friendship towards -you has been unbounded and uninterrupted; and that though I have given -you instances of it, which have been universally remarked both in France -and England, the public as yet are acquainted only with the smallest -part of it. I demand, that you name to me the man who dares assert the -contrary; and, above all, I demand, that he shall mention any one -particular in which I have been wanting to you. You owe this to me; you -owe it to yourself; you owe it to truth, and honour, and justice, and to -every thing deemed sacred among men. As an innocent man--for I will not -say, as your friend; I will not say, as your benefactor; but I repeat -it, as an innocent man, I claim the privilege of proving my innocence, -and of refuting any scandalous falsehood which may have been invented -against me. Mr. Davenport, to whom I have sent a copy of your letter, -and who will read this before he delivers it, will, I am confident, -second my demand, and tell you that nothing can be more equitable. -Happily I have preserved the letter you wrote me after your arrival at -Wooton; and you there express, in the strongest terms, in terms indeed -too strong, your satisfaction in my poor endeavours to serve you. The -little epistolary intercourse, which afterwards passed between us, has -been all employed on my side to the most friendly purposes. Tell me, -then, what has since given you offence. Tell me, of what I am accused. -Tell me the man who accuses me. Even after you have fulfilled all these -conditions to my satisfaction, and to that of Mr. Davenport, you will -still have great difficulty to justify your employing such outrageous -terms towards a man, with whom you have been so intimately connected, -and who was entitled, on many accounts, to have been treated by you with -more regard and decency. - -"Mr. Davenport knows the whole transaction about your pension, because I -thought it necessary that the person who had undertaken your settlement -should be fully acquainted with your circumstances; lest he should be -tempted to perform towards you concealed acts of generosity, which, if -they accidentally came to your knowledge, might give you some grounds of -offence. I am, sir," &c.[328:1] - - -In here exhibiting a few of the prominent features of the quarrel -between Hume and Rousseau, there is no intention of entering on a -defence of Hume, or a full examination of the conduct of the parties. -Viewing it as a picturesque incident in literary history, the reader -will probably feel an interest in such new light as may be thrown upon -it on the present occasion; but, it is presumed that few who have made -themselves acquainted with the material circumstances of the dispute, as -they have been already made known, will expect any thing to be said that -can alter their appreciation of the conduct of the parties. Where there -are personal disputes, there is no cause so hopelessly bad as to be -without partisans; and when no other motive comes into action, a feeling -of generosity towards one who seems to have forfeited the good opinion -of his kind, calls forth a few vindicators and supporters. It was -natural that Rousseau, a man of great genius, whose writings had -produced a prodigious influence on his age,--one who had shown, in many -instances, the outward manifestations of a kind unselfish disposition, -and who had discarded, with an air of magnanimous scorn, all the -grovelling ties that bind the human creature to the earth on which he -crawls,--should have champions and supporters in any dispute in which he -might be involved, be his conduct what it might. Thus he had a few -vindicators, chiefly of the female sex, while he lived: but gradually, -when feelings of personal sympathy had died away, the conduct of the -disputants ceased to be weighed against each other in the same scales. -People did not inquire which of them had acted more fairly and justly -than the other; but, putting Rousseau's conduct out of the question as a -criterion, they asked, whether that of Hume was kind and magnanimous -towards the unfortunate monomaniac?[329:1] Although this view is plainly -to be traced in the sentiments of those who have fugitively touched on -the dispute, it is to be gathered more from the general tone of their -remarks, than from any direct avowal of belief, that Rousseau was a -monomaniac.[331:1] There is a majesty in genius, that makes us reluctant -thus to ally it with the debasement of the human intellect. Yet, too -often, some portion of the most brilliant mind is thus eclipsed, though -the brightness of what is clear prevents our seeing easily the blackened -spot. In Rousseau's case, there has been, perhaps, a disinclination to -admit the "plea of insanity," on account of the wonderful practical -sagacity that accompanied his aberrations. Though apparently surveying -the world with a sick and careless eye, he occasionally penetrated into -the depths of the human heart, and marked its secrets, with an accuracy -that made the practised and systematic observer's survey seem but a -superficial glance. He had a mind at times eminently practical,[332:1] -and suited to estimate men's conduct and character: and thus appearing -before the world, there has been much hesitation to pronounce, that the -sincerity of insanity accompanied all his vile charges against a man -whose heart could not have been for one moment visited by the atrocities -of which he is accused. - -It is clear, that whatever had been Hume's conduct in the affair, -Rousseau's rage was a storm predestined to burst upon him. Its elements -were in the mind of "the self-torturing sophist," not in the conduct of -any other person; and whoever was the object nearest to his thoughts at -the moment, as being most associated with the circumstances in which he -was placed, had to stand the shock. In this view, Hume's conduct is no -more to be tested by that of Rousseau, than the keeper's by that of his -patient. We are thus rid of the unpleasant employment of comparing -things which cannot bear comparison; and of the sickening task of -enumerating instances of kindness, attachment, persevering good offices, -and charitable interpretations of conduct on the one side, met by black -ingratitude, contempt, and deadly injury on the other. - -If we look for that over-excited propensity which may have caused this -mental disease, it appears, beyond doubt, that it was vanity.[333:1] -All Rousseau's avowed misfortunes are the calamities of celebrity. At -one time he is the victim of princes and prime ministers; at another, of -an assembled clergy; at another, of half the learned men of Europe. That -he is neglected and forgotten is never among his ostensible complaints; -though there is good reason to believe that it was at the bottom of his -most conspicuous fits of fury. The English people, though they were at -first somewhat curious about the remarkable stranger, did not incommode -themselves about him, and obstinately abstained from following him into -the wilderness. In his long letter of charges, he cannot help bitterly -remarking the apathy of the public; but he states it as an accusation -against Hume,[333:2] whom he supposes to have said, like Flavius, - - I'll about - And drive away the vulgar from the streets: - So do you too, where you perceive them thick. - These growing feathers, pluck'd from Cæsar's wing, - Will make him fly an ordinary pitch, - Who else would soar above the view of men, - And keep us all in servile fearfulness. - -Had the solitudes of Wooton been peopled by multitudes anxious to catch -a passing glance of the "apostle of affliction," he would doubtless have -let loose his half-appeased discontent in some querulous letters about -the impossibility of his finding repose and solitude; but he would not -have courted such a conflict as he rushed into in the bitterness of his -solitude. Although his character stands without parallel in its own vast -proportions, it is not without abundance of exemplifications on a -smaller scale. There are few who have not, in their journey through -life, encountered one or more small Rousseaus, in men of ravenous and -insatiable vanity, who, unlike the ordinary good-natured vain men, are -perpetually rejecting the incense offered to their appetite, and -demanding some new form of worship. In these, as in the chimney-piece -models of celebrated statues, may we view the proportions of the great -self-tormenter's mind; and when it is found that the peculiarity is -generally accompanied with some observable amount of intellectual -acquirements, which place the individual a degree above those who -surround him, the resemblance is the more complete. Vanity being its -source, the shape assumed by his monomania was a dread of conspiracies -in all shapes; and he was as sincere a believer in their existence, as -any unfortunate inhabitant of bedlam has ever been in the creations of -his diseased mind.[334:1] - -Hume had difficulty in extracting an answer to his letter of 26th June; -and probably it would not have been opened without the intervention of -Mr. Davenport. It was one of Rousseau's whims for some time not to -receive any letters; he said they were one of the methods by which his -enemies had persecuted him. On his first arrival he was to open none but -those which passed through the hands of his _Cher Patron_;[335:1] a -convenient arrangement, as it afterwards enabled him to accuse Hume of -tampering with his correspondence. - -Two letters were received from Mr. Davenport, before Rousseau drew up -his charge. - - -MR. DAVENPORT _to_ HUME. - - _Davenport, June 30, 1766._ - - DEAR SIR,--The receipt of your two last gave me much - uneasiness, which was augmented by some letters received - yesterday from Rousseau, along with yours, directed for me at - Wooton. Surely there must have been some excessive great - mistakes. It appears to me a heap of confusion, of which I can - make neither head nor tail. His letter to you is perfectly - astonishing: never any thing was so furious; so--I protest I - don't know what to call it! I long to see him: he certainly - will tell some reason or other that could induce him to write - in that manner. Till I have seen him I can give no sort of - answer to your queries, as he never spoke one syllable to me - about any difference at all. I can't, possibly, before - Saturday's post; as in this part of the country we have only - three days in a week to send letters to town. You desired me - to burn the duplicate after reading. That signifies nothing, - for I can send you the other which I received yesterday from - Wooton. Good God, he must be most excessively out of the way - about this pension! In short, I have not patience to add one - word more, till I hear what he can possibly have to say; and - then I'll immediately acquaint you. - - I can't help being troubled at seeing your uneasiness, and - will with great pleasure do all in my power to assist in - freeing you from it; at least I'll do my best endeavours. I - am, your most obedient humble servant, - - R. DAVENPORT. - - - _6th July, 1766._ - - DEAR SIR,--I went over to Wooton on Tuesday: had a long - conference with Mr. Rousseau on the subject of your last - letters; gave into his hands yours addressed to him, (which he - had not read before:) showed him those I received from you; - and in the most earnest manner insisted upon his giving you an - open answer to all your questions, which I told him you had - certainly a right to ask, and he could not have any pretence - whatever to refuse. His spirits seemed vastly fluttered. - However, he told me a long history of the whole affair. I - said, that as my knowledge of the French language was very - imperfect, I might easily misrepresent things, so begged him - to write down the whole matter. Before he began his discourse, - I could not help speaking a deal to him on the subject of the - pension, and expressed my astonishment at his even ever having - had the least thought of refusing the favours of the greatest - king in the world. To my infinite surprise, he directly - returned this answer, That he never had refused, or any thing - like it; spoke with the greatest respect and veneration of his - majesty, and with all sort of acknowledgments of gratitude to - General Conway, &c. You may well imagine my surprise - increased. He then began his story: but that I entirely leave - to his pen, as he has faithfully promised to perform. I am - really sorry for him; he's uneasy, frets perpetually, and - looks terribly. 'Tis almost impossible to conceive the oddness - of his extreme sensibility; so that I conclude, when he's - guilty of an error, his nerves are more in fault than his - heart. Things vex him to the utmost extent of vexation, which - would not even move such a dull soul as mine is. In short, I - perceive his disorder is jealousy: he thinks you are fond of - some _savans hommes_, whom he unfortunately calls his enemies. - It will give me the greatest satisfaction to hear that you - have received a satisfactory answer, and that every thing is - set right again.[337:1] - -At last came the full outpouring of the long-treasured wrath, in a -letter dated the 10th of July, as long as an ordinary pamphlet, and -penned with the same neat precision as its predecessor. The reader will -not expect a document so well known and easily accessible to be -reprinted; and an abridgment would fail to give any notion of the rabid -eloquence with which the most paltry incidents are made to assume the -appearance of portentous charges; until, through vehemence of expression -and multitude of powerful words, they seem for the moment to acquire -substantial shape. Many of the charges contained in this "indictment" -have been already alluded to. The document begins with a statement of -its author's candour,[337:2] and hatred of every kind of artifice; and -no one can read the charges which follow, monstrously absurd as they -are, without seeing that they are made in the perfect sincerity of a -mind that saw all things through its own diseased medium. The following -is one of the substantive charges:-- - - I was informed that the son of the quack Tronchin,[338:1] my - most mortal enemy, was not only the friend of Mr. Hume, and - under his protection, but that they both lodged in the same - house; and when Mr. Hume found that I knew this, he imparted - it in confidence to me; assuring me that the son by no means - resembled the father. I lodged a few nights myself, together - with my governante, in the same house; and from the kind of - reception with which we were honoured by the landladies, who - are his friends, I judged in what manner either Mr. Hume, or - that man, who, as he said, was by no means like his father, - must have spoken to them both of her and me. - - All these facts put together, added to a certain appearance of - things on the whole, insensibly gave me an uneasiness, which I - rejected with horror. - -The description of the following scene must have been, to those who knew -Hume personally, irresistibly ludicrous. The picture of the phlegmatic -reserve of English manners, is made perfect by contrast. It appears from -Hume's letter, that the scene arose out of the dispute about the return -chaise. - - One evening, after supper, as we were sitting silent by the - fireside, I caught his eyes intently fixed on me, as indeed - happened very often; and that in a manner of which it is very - difficult to give an idea. At that time he gave me a - steadfast, piercing look, mingled with a sneer, which greatly - disturbed me. To get rid of my embarrassment, I endeavoured to - look full at him in my turn; but, in fixing my eyes upon his, - I felt the most inexpressible terror, and was soon obliged to - turn them away. The speech and physiognomy of the good David - are those of an honest man; but where, great God! did this - honest man borrow those eyes which he fixes on his friends? - - The impression of this look remained with me, and gave me much - uneasiness. My trouble increased even to a degree of fainting; - and if I had not been relieved by a flood of tears, I must - have been suffocated. Presently after this I was seized with - the most violent remorse: I even despised myself; till at - length, in a transport, which I still remember with delight, I - sprang on his neck, and embraced him eagerly; while, almost - choked with sobbing, and bathed in tears, I cried out, in - broken accents, "No, no, David Hume cannot be treacherous; if - he be not the best of men, he must be the basest." David Hume - politely returned my embraces, and gently tapping me on the - back, repeated several times, in a placid tone, "Why, what, my - dear sir! Nay, my dear sir! Oh, my dear sir!" He said nothing - more. I felt my heart yearn within me. We went to bed; and I - set out the next day for the country. - -There is another charge against Hume, of once muttering in his sleep the -words _Je tiens J. J. Rousseau_; which he did not deny, saying, that he -could not feel certain as to what he might or might not have done when -asleep, though he doubted if it was his practice to dream in -French.[339:1] The proffered hospitalities and kindnesses of Hume are a -running charge throughout; wound up with the conclusion, that as he must -have seen that Rousseau was estranged from him, "If he supposed that in -such circumstances I should have accepted his services, he must have -supposed me to have been an infamous scoundrel. It was then in behalf of -a man whom he supposed to be a scoundrel that he so warmly solicited a -pension from his majesty."[340:1] - -Hume's answer to this charge was as follows: - - -HUME _to_ ROUSSEAU. - - _Lisle Street, Leicester Fields, July 22, 1766._ - - SIR,--I shall only answer one article of your long letter: it - is that which regards the conversation we had the evening - before your departure. Mr. Davenport had contrived a - good-natured artifice, to make you believe that a retour - chaise was ready to set out for Wooton; and I believe he - caused an advertisement be put in the papers, in order the - better to deceive you. His purpose only was to save you some - expenses in the journey, which I thought a laudable project; - though I had no hand either in contriving or conducting it. - You entertained, however, a suspicion of his design, while we - were sitting alone by my fireside; and you reproached me with - concurring in it. I endeavoured to pacify you, and to divert - the discourse; but to no purpose. You sat sullen, and was - either silent, or made me very peevish answers. At last you - rose up, and took a turn or two about the room, when all of a - sudden, and to my great surprise, you clapped yourself on my - knee, threw your arms about my neck, kissed me with seeming - ardour, and bedewed my face with tears. You exclaimed, "My - dear friend, can you ever pardon this folly? After all the - pains you have taken to serve me, after the numberless - instances of friendship you have given me, here I reward you - with this ill-humour and sullenness. But your forgiveness of - me will be a new instance of your friendship; and I hope you - will find at bottom, that my heart is not unworthy of it." - - I was very much affected, I own; and I believe a very tender - scene passed between us. You added, by way of compliment no - doubt, that though I had many better titles to recommend me to - posterity, yet perhaps my uncommon attachment to a poor, - unhappy, and persecuted man, would not be altogether - overlooked. - - This incident was somewhat remarkable; and it is impossible - that either you or I could so soon have forgot it. But you - have had the assurance to tell me the story twice, in a manner - so different, or rather so opposite, that when I persist, as I - do, in this account, it necessarily follows, that either you - are, or I am, a liar. You imagine, perhaps, that because the - incident passed privately without a witness, the question will - lie between the credibility of your assertion and of mine. But - you shall not have this advantage or disadvantage, whichever - you are pleased to term it. I shall produce against you other - proofs, which will put the matter beyond controversy. - - First, You are not aware, that I have a letter under your - hand, which is tolerably irreconcilable with your account, and - confirms mine.[343:1] - - Secondly, I told the story the next day, or the day after, to - Mr. Davenport, with a view of preventing any such good-natured - artifices for the future. He surely remembers it. - - Thirdly, As I thought the story much to your honour, I told it - to several of my friends here. I even wrote it to Madame de - Boufflers at Paris. I believe no one will imagine that I was - preparing beforehand an apology, in case of a rupture with - you; which, of all human events, I should then have thought - the most incredible, especially as we were separated, almost - for ever, and I still continued to render you the most - essential services. - - Fourthly, The story, as I tell it, is consistent and rational: - there is not common sense in your account. What! because - sometimes, when absent in thought, (a circumstance common - enough with men whose minds are intensely occupied,) I have a - fixed look or stare, you suspect me to be a traitor, and you - have the assurance to tell me of such black and ridiculous - suspicions! For you do not even pretend that before you left - London you had any other solid grounds of suspicion against - me. - - I shall enter into no detail with regard to your letter: you - yourself well know that all the other articles of it are - without foundation. I shall only add in general, that I - enjoyed about a month ago an uncommon pleasure, in thinking - that, in spite of many difficulties, I had, by assiduity and - care, and even beyond my most sanguine expectations, provided - for your repose, honour, and fortune. But that pleasure was - soon imbittered, by finding that you had voluntarily and - wantonly thrown away all those advantages, and was become the - declared enemy of your own repose, fortune, and honour: I - cannot be surprised after this that you are my enemy. Adieu, - and for ever.[344:1] - -Hume did not profess to submit to these attacks with the meekness of the -dove, as a few letters to his friends will show. Of the two following -letters to Blair, the one was written before, the other after the -reception of Rousseau's "indictment." - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Lisle Street, 1st July, 1766._ - -"You will be surprised, dear Doctor, when I desire you most earnestly -never in your life to show to any mortal creature the letters I wrote -you with regard to Rousseau. He is surely the blackest and most -atrocious villain, beyond comparison, that now exists in the world, and -I am heartily ashamed of any thing I ever wrote in his favour. I know -you will pity me when I tell you that I am afraid I must publish this to -the world in a pamphlet, which must contain an account of the whole -transaction between us.[344:2] My only comfort is, that the matter will -be so clear as not to leave to any mortal the smallest possibility of -doubt. You know how dangerous any controversy on a disputable point -would be with a man of his talents. I know not where the miscreant will -now retire to, in order to hide his head from this infamy. I am," -&c.[345:1] - - -"_15th July, 1766._ - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--I go in a few hours to Woburn; so can only give you the -outline of my history. Through many difficulties I obtained a pension -for Rousseau. The application was made with his own consent and -knowledge. I write him, that all is happily completed, and he need only -draw for the money. He answers me, that I am a rogue and a rascal; and -have brought him into England merely to dishonour him. I demand the -reason of this strange language; and Mr. Davenport, the gentleman with -whom he lives, tells him that he must necessarily satisfy me. To-day I -received a letter from him, which is perfect frenzy. It would make a -good eighteen-penny pamphlet; and I fancy he intends to publish it. He -there tells me, that D'Alembert, Horace Walpole, and I, had, from the -first, entered into a combination to ruin him, and had ruined him. That -the first suspicion of my treachery arose in him while we lay together -in the same room of an inn in France. I there spoke in my sleep, and -betrayed my intention of ruining him. That young Tronchin lodged in the -same house with me at London; and Annie Elliot looked very coldly at him -as he went by her in the passage. That I am also in a close confederacy -with Lord Lyttelton, who, he hears, is his mortal enemy. That the -English nation were very fond of him on his first arrival; but that -Horace Walpole and I had totally alienated them from him. He owns, -however, that his belief of my treachery went no higher than suspicion, -while he was in London; but it rose to certainty after he arrived in the -country; for that there were several publications in the papers against -him, which could have proceeded from nobody but me, or my confederate, -Horace Walpole. The rest is all of a like strain, intermixed with many -lies and much malice. I own that I was very anxious about this affair, -but this letter has totally relieved me. I write in a hurry, merely to -satisfy your curiosity. I hope soon to see you, and am," &c.[346:1] - - -There could have been no incident better calculated than this to create -a sensation in the coteries of Paris. Immediately on receiving the first -angry letter, Hume sent an indignant account of the ingratitude and -malevolence of Rousseau to the Baron D'Holbach, which proved a -delightfully exciting morsel to a party assembled at his house; for the -baron had told him, from the beginning, that he was warming a serpent in -his bosom.[346:2] The very rapid celebrity which the story received does -not seem to have been anticipated by Hume, and he says, apologetically, -to Madame de Boufflers,--"I wrote, indeed, to Baron D'Holbach, without -either recommending or expecting secrecy: but I thought this story, like -others, would be told to eight or ten people; in a week or two, twenty -or thirty more might hear it, and it would require three months before -it would reach you at Pougues. I little imagined that a private story, -told to a private gentleman, could run over a whole kingdom in a moment. -If the King of England had declared war against the King of France, it -could not have been more suddenly the subject of conversation."[346:3] -Between the rupture and the publication of the narrative regarding it, -Hume seems to have written very abundantly on the subject, to his -friends in Paris. The following is one of his letters:-- - - -HUME _to the_ ABBÉ LE BLANC. - - _Lisle Street, Leicester Fields, 12th August, 1766._ - - MY DEAR SIR,--I have used the freedom to send to you, in two - packets, by this post, the whole train of my correspondence - with Rousseau, connected by a short narrative. I hope you will - have leisure to peruse it. The story is incredible, as well as - inconceivable, were it not founded on such authentic - documents. Surely never was there so much wickedness and - madness combined in one human creature; nor did ever any one - meet with such a return for such signal services as those I - performed towards him. But I am told that he used to say to - Duclos, and others, that he hated all those to whom he owed - any obligation. In that case I am fully entitled to his - animosity. - - I am really at a loss what use to make of this collection. The - story, I am told, is very much the object of conversation at - Paris. Though my conduct has been entirely innocent, or - rather, indeed, very meritorious, it happens, no doubt, as is - usual in such ruptures, that I will bear a part of the blame; - from which a publication of these papers would entirely free - me: yet I own I have an antipathy and reluctance to appeal to - the public; and fear that such a publication would be the only - blame I could incur in this affair. You know that nobody's - judgment weighs farther with me than yours: think a little of - the matter. If M{me.} De Dupré were in town, I would desire - her to give these papers a perusal, and tell me her opinions. - Unhappily M. Trudaine would only understand the French part, - which is by far the most considerable. What would his friend - Fontenelle have done in this situation? - - I am as great a lover of peace as he, and have kept myself as - free from all literary quarrels; but surely neither he nor any - other person was ever engaged in a controversy with a man of - so much malice,--of such a profligate disposition to lies, and - such great talents. It is nothing to dispute my style or my - abilities as an historian or philosopher; my books ought to - answer for themselves, or they are not worth the - defending;--to fifty writers who have attacked me on this - head, I never made the least reply. But this is a different - case; imputations are here thrown on my morals and my conduct; - and, though my case is so clear as not to admit of the least - controversy, yet it is only clear to those who know it; and I - am uncertain how far the public in Paris are in this case. At - London, a publication would be regarded as entirely - superfluous. - - I must desire you to send these papers to D'Alembert after you - have read them: M. Turgot will get them from him. I should - desire that _he_ saw them before he sets out for his - government. - - Does not M{me.} de Montigny laugh at me, that I should have - sent her, but a few weeks ago, the portrait of Rousseau, done - from an original in my possession, and should now send you - these papers, which prove him to be one of the worst men, - perhaps, that ever existed, if his frenzy be not some apology - for him. I beg my compliments to M. and M{me.} Fourqueux; and - am, with great truth and sincerity, my dear sir, your most - affectionate humble servant.[348:1] - -To Adam Smith, who was then in Paris, he wrote the following letter, -without date:-- - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"You may see in M. D'Alembert's hands, the whole narrative of my affair -with Rousseau, along with the whole train of correspondence. Pray, is it -not a nice problem, whether he be not an arrant villain, or an arrant -madman, or both. The last is my opinion, but the villain seems to me to -predominate most in his character. I shall not publish them unless -forced, which you will own to be a very great degree of self-denial. My -conduct in this affair would do me a great deal of honour, and his would -blast him for ever, and blast his writings at the same time; for as -these have been exalted much above their merit, when his personal -character falls, they would of course fall below their merit. I am, -however, apprehensive that in the end I shall be obliged to publish. -About two or three days ago, there was an article in the _St. James's -Chronicle_, copied from the _Brussels Gazette_, which pointed at this -dispute. This may probably put Rousseau in a rage. He will publish -something, which may oblige me for my own honour to give the narrative -to the public. There will be no reason to dread a long train of -disagreeable controversy. One publication begins and ends it on my side. -Pray, tell me your judgment of my work, if it deserves the name. Tell -D'Alembert I make him absolute master, to retrench or alter what he -thinks proper, in order to suit it to the latitude of Paris. - -"Were you and I together, dear Smith, we should shed tears at present -for the death of poor Sir James Macdonald. We could not possibly have -suffered a greater loss, than in that valuable young man. I am," -&c.[349:1] - - -There is a letter by Smith on the subject, kind and honest. It must be -kept in view, that it was written not only before the series of -documents, mentioned in Hume's letter, had been sent to France, and -before the French friends had recommended Hume to publish, but before -the date of Rousseau's indictment. We shall, hereafter, find that Smith -seems to have withdrawn his objection to the publication. - - -ADAM SMITH _to_ HUME. - - _Paris, 6th July, 1766._ - - MY DEAR FRIEND,--I am thoroughly convinced that Rousseau is as - great a rascal as you and as every man here believes him to - be; yet let me beg of you, not to think of publishing any - thing to the world, upon the very great impertinence which he - has been guilty of to you. By refusing the pension which you - had the goodness to solicit for him with his own consent, he - may have thrown, by the baseness of his proceedings, some - little ridicule upon you in the eyes of the court and the - ministry. Stand this ridicule, expose his brutal letter, but - without giving it out of your own hand, so that it may never - be printed; and if you can, laugh at yourself, and I shall - pawn my life, that before three weeks are at an end, this - little affair, which at present gives you so much uneasiness, - shall be understood to do you as much honour as any thing that - has ever happened to you. By endeavouring to unmask before the - public this hypocritical pedant, you run the risk of - disturbing the tranquillity of your whole life. By letting him - alone, he cannot give you a fortnight's uneasiness. To write - against him is, you may depend upon it, the very thing he - wishes you to do. He is in danger of falling into obscurity in - England, and he hopes to make himself considerable, by - provoking an illustrious adversary. He will have a great - party: the Church, the Whigs, the Jacobites, the whole wise - English nation, who will love to mortify a Scotchman, and to - applaud a man who has refused a pension from the king. It is - not unlikely, too, that they may pay him very well for having - refused it, and that even he may have had in view this - compensation. Your whole friends here wish you not to - write--the Baron,[350:1] D'Alembert, Madame Riccoboni, - Mademoiselle Rianecourt, M. Turgot, &c. &c. M. Turgot, a - friend every way worthy of you, desired me to recommend this - advice to you in a particular manner, as his most earnest - entreaty and opinion. He and I are both afraid that you are - surrounded with evil counsellors, and that the advice of your - English literati, who are themselves accustomed to publish all - their little gossiping stories in newspapers, may have too - much influence upon you. Remember me to Mr. Walpole, and - believe me, &c. - -Smith was thus in consultation on the subject with the excellent Turgot, -who gave Hume his opinion at great length. On the 27th July, before he -could have heard of the long "indictment," he wrote[351:1] that he could -trace the rage of Rousseau to two causes: first, Hume being the author -of one of the sarcasms in Walpole's letter, a rumour which Turgot -appears to have believed; and second, the interpreting the letter to Mr. -Conway as a refusal of the pension, which it was not intended by -Rousseau to be. If the latter was one of Rousseau's grievances, he did -not make it a count in the indictment. Turgot was ignorant of the -strength of provocation which Hume received. He says, that it is a -mistake to suppose Rousseau's conduct the effect of deliberate -design,--a view in which every one not in the vortex of the dispute must -have coincided with him; and on the ground that no sensible person will -believe that he is guilty of the charges his excited enemy may make -against him, he advises Hume not to treat them seriously. He even hints -that Hume should acknowledge that he misinterpreted the letter about the -pension, and should endeavour to coax Rousseau back to good humour, as a -public exposure would be unpleasant to both parties. On the 7th -September, after having seen all the documents, he preserved the same -tone in speaking of Rousseau; recommending forbearance towards him: but -at the same time he expressed an opinion that Hume might find it -necessary to publish a narrative of the transaction.[352:1] - -We find that Smith was also in communication with Madame de Boufflers, -who wrote to Hume at considerable length, in the knowledge of the first -angry letter, but not of the "indictment." She assumes a tone much the -same as that of Turgot, when he wrote in the same circumstances. She -expresses many regrets that Hume should have written so condemnatory a -letter to the Baron D'Holbach. He is told that those who _profess_ to be -his friends in France will abet him, because he is proving himself to be -a mere ordinary human being, instead of continuing to show his -superiority to the common frailties of humanity. He is entreated to look -compassionately on a man who has overwhelmed himself with calamities, -and to treat one who is capable only of injuring himself with generous -pity. While making these recommendations, she, as well as Turgot, -believed that one of the sarcasms in Walpole's letter had been suggested -by Hume.[354:1] The same tone was taken up by Lord Marischal; who, -writing on the 15th August from Potsdam, seems not to have perused the -"indictment." "You did all in your power," says this kind old soldier, -"to serve him; his écart afflicts me on his account more than yours, who -have, I am sure, nothing to reproach yourself with. It will be good and -humane in you, and like Le Bon David, not to answer."[354:2] - -D'Alembert was at first opposed to a publication, and to an exposure of -the follies of the wise before "cette sotte bête appelée le public." So -early, however, as the 21st of July, he communicates the solemn opinion -of himself and other friends in Paris, that after the publicity which -the dispute has acquired, it will be necessary for Hume to print a -narrative.[354:3] He states that this is the opinion of all intelligent -people. He says at the same time, that he had been speaking with Adam -Smith on the subject, and though his name is not among those of the -committee who recommended the publication, it may be presumed that he -had at length admitted it to be necessary. - -In connexion with the letter from D'Alembert, Hume wrote thus to -Walpole:-- - - DEAR SIR,--When I came home last night, I found on my table a - very long letter from D'Alembert, who tells me, that on - receiving from me an account of my affair with Rousseau, he - summoned a meeting of all my literary friends at Paris, and - found them all unanimously of the same opinion with himself, - and of a contrary opinion to me, with regard to my conduct. - They all think I ought to give to the public a narrative of - the whole. However, I persist still more closely in my first - opinion, especially after receiving the last mad letter. - D'Alembert tells me that it is of great importance for me to - justify myself from having any hand in the letter from the - King of Prussia. I am told by Crawford, that you had wrote it - a fortnight before I left Paris, but did not show it to a - mortal, for fear of hurting me; a delicacy of which I am very - sensible. Pray recollect if it was so. Though I do not intend - to publish, I am collecting all the original pieces, and I - shall connect them by a concise narrative. It is necessary for - me to have that letter and Rousseau's answer. Pray, assist me - in this work. About what time, do you think, were they - printed? I am, &c.[355:1] - -Hume, afterwards, sent to Paris all the documents connected with -Rousseau's attack, to be published or not, at the discretion of his -friends; and they were published. If it be asked how he permitted so -cruel a thing to be done, the answer is, that he was human, and had been -deeply injured; that he had a reputation to preserve, and did not -consider himself bound to sacrifice it to the peace of his assailant. -Rousseau had triumphantly written, hither and thither, that Hume dared -not publish the "indictment." He had said, that if he did not see David -Hume exposed ere he died, he would cease to believe in Providence. He -was occupied in writing his celebrated Confessions, and had -significantly hinted to Hume that he would find himself pilloried there. -It is possible to create an ideal image of a mind that would have calmly -resisted all these impulses, and let the traducer proceed unnoticed in -his frantic labours. It is probable that if he had adopted this course, -Hume would in the end have been as completely absolved from the -accusations of Rousseau, as he was by the publication of the accusation. -Had he thus scorned to adopt the usual means of protecting his good -name, his character would have appeared, to all who believed in his -innocence, more magnanimous than it was. But it certainly would not have -been so natural; and many of those who seemed to have expected that the -metaphysician should be above the influence of ordinary human passions, -appear to have forgotten, that there are few even of the men whose -office it is to teach that those smitten on the one cheek should present -the other, who would have shown even as much forbearance on the occasion -as David Hume. - -The editing of the French version of these documents was committed to -Suard, the author of the Mélanges de Littérature. In answer to a letter -of 2d November,[357:1] announcing the publication, Hume wrote to him in -the following terms, admitting, as the reader will perceive, that he had -used harsh expressions, and approving of their being softened. - - -HUME _to_ M. SUARD. - - I cannot sufficiently express, my dear sir, all the - acknowledgments which I owe you for the pains you have taken - in translating a work, which so little merited your attention, - or the attention of the public. It is done entirely to my - satisfaction; and the introduction in particular is wrote with - great prudence and discretion in every point, except where - your partiality to me appears too strongly. I accept of it, - however, very willingly as a pledge of your friendship. You - and M. D'Alembert did well in softening some expressions, - especially in the notes; and I shall take care to follow these - corrections in the English edition. My paper, indeed, was not - wrote for the public eye; and nothing but a train of - unforeseen accidents could have engaged me to give it to the - press. I am not surprised, that those who do not consider nor - weigh those circumstances, should blame this appeal to the - public; but it is certain that if I had persevered in keeping - silence, I should have passed for the guilty person, and those - very people who blame me at present, would, with the - appearance of reason, have thrown a much greater blame upon - me. This whole adventure, I must regard as a misfortune in my - life: and yet, even after all is past, when it is easy to - correct any errors, I am not sensible that I can accuse myself - of any imprudence; except in accepting of this man when he - threw himself into my arms: and yet it would then have - appeared cruel to refuse him. I am excusable for not expecting - to meet with such a prodigy of pride and ferocity, because - such a one never before existed. But after he had declared war - against me in so violent a manner, it could not have been - prudent in me to keep silence towards my friends, and to wait - till he should find a proper time to stab my reputation. From - my friends, the affair passed to the public, who interested - themselves more in a private story, than it was possible to - imagine; and rendered it quite necessary to lay the whole - before them. Yet, after all, if any one be pleased to think, - that by greater prudence I could have avoided this - disagreeable extremity, I am very willing to submit. It is not - surely the first imprudence I have been guilty of.[358:1] - -Among other distinctions, the publication of the controversy brought -Hume a letter from Voltaire, in which the patriarch gave the history of -his own grievances against Rousseau, with all his usual sarcasm; and -said, of that absorbing vanity for which he might have had more fellow -feeling, that Rousseau, believing himself worthy of a statue, thought -one half of the world was occupied in raising it on its pedestal, and -the other in pulling it down.[358:2] - -This little collection, bearing the title, "Exposé succint de la -contestation qui s'est élévée entre M. Hume et M. Rousseau, avec les -pieces justificatives," was soon afterwards published in English, under -Hume's own superintendence. He judiciously observed, that a translation -would undoubtedly appear, and that it was more honest, and at the same -time more conducive to his reputation, that he should himself -superintend the publication. - -He had intimated, that as Rousseau would probably impugn the genuineness -of the letters as they appeared in print, he would deposit the originals -in a public library. In this view, he addressed the following letter to -the librarian of the British Museum. - - -"_Edinburgh, 23d Jan. 1767._ - -"SIR,--As M. Rousseau had wrote to several of his correspondents, that I -never dared to publish the letters which he had wrote me; or if I -published them they would be so falsified that they would not be the -same, I was obliged to say in my preface, that the originals would be -consigned in the Museum. I hope you have no objection to the receiving -them. I send them by my friend M. Ramsay. Be so good as to give them the -corner of any drawer. I fancy few people will trouble you by desiring a -sight of them. All the world seems to be satisfied concerning the -foundation of that unhappy affair. Yet notwithstanding, I own, that I -never in my life took a step with so much reluctance as the consenting -to that publication. But as it appeared absolutely necessary to all my -friends at Paris, I could not withstand their united opinion. I have -also sent the original of M. Walpole's letter to me, which enters into -the collection. I am, sir, your most obedient, and most humble -servant."[360:1] - - -It appears that the trustees of the British Museum, for some one or -other of the inscrutable reasons which occasionally sway the counsels of -such bodies, declined to receive this very curious collection of -documents. Dr. Maty, writing to Hume on 22d April, 1767, says, "I longed -to have some conversation with you on the subject of the papers, which -were remitted to me by the hands of M{r.} Ramsay, and as our trustees -did not think proper to receive them, to restore them into yours. With -respect to these papers, give me leave to assure you, that I had never -any doubt about the merits of the cause. I have long ago fixed my -opinion about R----'s character, and think madness is the only excuse -that can be offered for his inconsistencies."[360:2] - -Those original letters connected with the controversy, which were -addressed to Hume, whether by Rousseau or others, are among the papers -in possession of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. They bear marks of -having been much handled.[360:3] Of the letters addressed to Rousseau, -which of course were written in French, it is to be presumed that Hume -preserved the duplicates, which afterwards enabled him to show copies of -the documents on both sides. The originals probably do not exist; for -Rousseau, who held his own part in a controversy as the only important -one, appears not to have kept the letters addressed to him, though he -retained copies of his own. - -The dispute with Rousseau very nearly produced a subsidiary discussion -with Horace Walpole. He said, alluding to the advice which had been -transmitted to Hume by D'Alembert, "Your set of literary friends are -what a set of literary men are apt to be, exceedingly absurd. They hold -a consistory to consult how to argue with a madman; and they think it -very necessary for your character, to give them the pleasure of seeing -Rousseau exposed; not because he has provoked you, but them. If Rousseau -prints, you must; but I certainly would not, till he does." - -Walpole evidently looked on this quarrel as a small dispute between -small people;--something on a par with the wrangling of country -gentlemen about their preserves and their swing gates.[361:1] Yet, when -he found that his own name appeared to be connected with it, he thought -it right to publish "a narrative of what passed relative to the quarrel -of Mr. David Hume and J. J. Rousseau, as far as Mr. Horace Walpole was -concerned in it." He very distinctly absolves Hume from any connexion -with the fictitious letter of the King of Prussia. The only wrong of -which he had to complain was, that Hume published this exoneration, of -which it seems a publication was not expected, though the letter -contained the words, "You are at full liberty, dear sir, to make use of -what I say in your justification, either to Rousseau or any body else;" -and that, in printing the letter, the passage above cited, reflecting on -the literary circle of Paris, had been, from motives of delicacy towards -all parties, suppressed.[362:1] - -The only portion of Walpole's pamphlet that appears to possess any -interest, contains Hume's remarks on his friend, D'Alembert. They were -intended as an answer to Walpole's spiteful sneers; but, though -eulogistic, and apparently just, they by no means exhibit a violent -encomiastic zeal. - - D'Alembert is a very agreeable companion, and of - irreproachable morals. By refusing great offers from the - Czarina and the King of Prussia, he has shown himself above - interest and vain ambition. He lives in an agreeable retreat - at Paris, suitable to a man of letters. He has five pensions: - one from the King of Prussia, one from the French King, one as - member of the Academy of Sciences, one as member of the French - Academy, and one from his own family. The whole amount of - these is not six thousand livres a-year; on the half of which - he lives decently, and gives the other half to poor people - with whom he is connected. In a word, I scarce know a man, - who, with some few exceptions, (for there must always be some - exceptions,) is a better model of a _virtuous_ and - _philosophical_ character. - - You see I venture still to join these two epithets as - inseparable, and almost synonymous, though you seem inclined - to regard them almost as incompatible. And here I have a - strong inclination to say a few words in vindication, both of - myself and my friends; venturing even to comprehend you in the - number. What new prepossession has seized you, to beat in so - outrageous a manner your nurses of Mount Helicon, and to join - the outcry of the ignorant multitude against science and - literature? For my part, I can scarce acknowledge any other - ground of distinction between one age and another, between one - nation and another, than their different progress in learning - and the arts. I do not say between one man and another, - because the qualities of the heart and temper, and natural - understanding, are the most essential to the personal - character; but being, I suppose, almost equal among nations - and ages, do not serve to throw a peculiar lustre on any. You - blame France for its fond admiration of men of genius; and - there may no doubt be, in particular instances, a great - ridicule in these affectations; but the sentiment, in general, - was equally conspicuous in ancient Greece; in Rome, during its - flourishing period; in modern Italy; and even, perhaps, in - England about the beginning of this century. If the case be - now otherwise, it is what we are to lament and be ashamed of. - Our enemies will only infer, that we are a nation which was - once, at best, but half civilized; and is now relapsing fast - into barbarism, ignorance, and superstition. I beg you also - to consider the great difference, in point of morals, between - uncultivated and civilized ages. But I find I am launching out - insensibly into an immense ocean of commonplace. I cut the - matter, therefore, short, by declaring it as my opinion, that - if you had been born a barbarian, and had every day cooked - your dinner of horse flesh, by riding on it fifty miles - between your breech and the shoulder of your horse, you had - certainly been an obliging, good-natured, friendly man; but, - at the same time, that reading, conversation, and travel, have - detracted nothing from these virtues, and have made a - considerable addition of other valuable and agreeable - qualities to them. I remain, not with ancient sincerity, which - was only roguery and hypocrisy, but very sincerely, dear sir, - &c. - -Rousseau did not resign his pension, and made it be very distinctly -known that he would insist upon his claims to be paid what had been -promised; but he would not owe it to the intervention of David Hume. He -continued to reside for several months at Wooton, where he made some -progress in his renowned "Confessions." "He is, I am sure," says Mr. -Davenport, in one of his letters, "busy writing; and it should be some -large affair, from the quantity of paper he bought." Like other mental -patients, when long separated from his favourite excitement, his mind -became attuned to less tumultuous movements; and he ceased, in some -measure, to feel the want of notoriety. The visions of conspiracy and -treachery gradually disappeared, and now we find him, in his letters, -only saying; "Je n'ai rien à dire de M. Hume, sinon que je le trouve -bien insultant pour un bon homme, et bien bruyant pour un philosophe." -He had a genuine love of nature and of rural pursuits; and he appears to -have varied his literary labours, by joining in some projects of Mr. -Davenport for the cultivation of forest lands. - -Writing to Blair, on 14th February, 1767, Hume says:-- - - -"General Conway told me, on my arrival, that Rousseau had made an -application to him, through the canal of Mr. Davenport, to have his -pension granted to him. The general's answer was, that I was to be in -town in a few days; and, without my consent, and even full approbation, -he would take no step in that affair. You may believe that I exhorted -him to do so charitable an action. I wish he may not find a difficulty -with the King, who is very much prejudiced against Rousseau.[365:1] This -step of my old friend confirms the suspicion which I always entertained, -that he thought he had interest enough to obtain the pension of himself; -and that he had only picked a quarrel with me in order to free himself -from the humiliating burden of gratitude towards me. His motives, -therefore, were much blacker than many seem to apprehend them. - -"A gentleman told me that he heard, from the French ambassador, that his -most Christian Majesty had given an arrêt, prohibiting, under the -severest penalties, the printing, vending, or dispersing, any paper of -Rousseau, or his partisans, against me. I dine with the ambassador -to-day, so shall know the truth of the matter, which scarce appears -credible. It is surely very honourable for me; but yet will occasion -that strange man to complain, that he is oppressed with power all over -the world. I am,"[365:2] &c. - - -At length, on the 31st of April, 1767, Rousseau and Mademoiselle Le -Vasseur suddenly disappeared from Wooton together. Hume thus describes -the incident in a letter to Blair:-- - -"You may, perhaps, have heard that Rousseau has eloped from Mr. -Davenport, without giving any warning; leaving all his baggage, except -Mademoiselle, about thirty pounds in Davenport's hands, and a letter on -the table, abusing him in the most violent terms, insinuating that he -was in a conspiracy with me to ruin him.[366:1] He took the road to -London, but was missing for about a fortnight. At last he emerges at -Spalding in Lincolnshire, whence he writes a letter to the Chancellor, -informing him that the bad usage he had met with in England, made it -absolutely necessary for him to evacuate the kingdom, and desiring his -lordship to send him a guard to escort him to Dover--this being the last -act of hospitality he will desire of the nation. He is plainly mad, -though I believe not more than he has been all his life. The pamphlet -you mention was wrote by one as mad as himself, and it was believed at -first to be by Tristram Shandy, but proves to be [by] one Fuseli an -engraver. He is a fanatical admirer of Rousseau, but owns he was in the -wrong to me. The pamphlet I sent to you was wrote by an English -clergyman, whom I never saw; a man of character, and rising in the -church,[366:2] for which reason it is more prudent in me to conceal his -name. When would _you_ have done so much for me."[367:1] - -As Rousseau did not favour the world in his "Confessions," with the -adventures he encountered during this flight, it is of some interest, in -the absence of a personal narrative, to mark the impression produced by -the incident on an onlooker, whom it seems to have filled with mingled -feelings of compassion and astonishment. The following are some extracts -from Mr. Davenport's letters to Hume:-- - - -MR. DAVENPORT _to_ HUME. - - _Davenport, 13th May, 1767._ - - DEAR SIR,--After all my inquiries, I can't, for the life of - me, find out to what part my wild philosopher is fled. I sent - after him some papers, thinking they would most certainly find - him in London. No such matter: he is not to be found there. - They scarce took any thing along with them, but what they - carried on their backs. All the trunks, &c. are at Wooton; and - this odd man has just packed up his things, and left the keys - dangling at the locks of his boxes. No sort of direction for - me, though he knows I am in his debt between £30 and £40; and - I want, of all things, to inform him what he has to do in - relation to his majesty's bounty, which I am sure he will with - great satisfaction receive, because I have it so positively - under his own hand. You shall have the joy of perusing his - letter; but one dated about six days before must be added to - it. At present my gout is too much upon me to write copies of - them. Pray, if you hear where he is, do me the pleasure to - inform me. I am, &c. &c. - - P.S.--I protest I pity him more and more, as I certainly - conclude that his head is not quite right. - - - _Davenport, Monday 18th._ - - I can't help giving you the trouble of this. Last night I - received a most melancholy letter from poor Rousseau, dated - Spalding in Lincolnshire. How, or on what account, he got to - that place, I can't for the life of me guess; but this I - learn, that he is most excessively sick of his situation, and - is returning to Wooton, as soon as, I suppose, he can well get - there. He has been all the time at an inn in that town. Pray, - was the place you mentioned to me in that county, any where - near Spalding? I own to you, I was quite moved to read his - mournful epistle. I am quite confirmed in my opinion of him: - this last from him, is entirely different in style, from any I - ever yet received. I have in my answer, desired he would write - to some friend of his in town, to authorize him to receive his - majesty's bounty, as it becomes due. I have told him that his - agent must apply, and show his letter to Mr. Lounds of the - Treasury. Poor Rousseau writes of nothing but his misery, - illness, afflictions; in a word, of his being the most - unfortunate man that ever existed. Good God! most of those - distresses are surely occasioned by his own unhappy temper, - which I really believe is not in his power to alter! so, let - him be where he will, I fear he is certain to be uneasy. His - passion for Botany has, as I conjecture, almost left him. If I - am right in my guess, I have no sort of doubt, but he will - again take to his pen, as 'tis impossible for his imagination - to remain idle. I am, &c. - - - _Davenport, May 25, 1767._ - - DEAR SIR,--'Tis with the greatest satisfaction I hear, this - poor unfortunate man will enjoy the pension. I am sure he lies - under a thousand obligations to you, and am extremely glad he - has wrote to General Conway. I hope he made use of at least - some expressions of gratitude and respect to that gentleman, - whose goodness of heart obtained this favour from his majesty. - - I am sure you'll do your endeavour to save him from the - Bastile, or (which I more fear) the Archbishop of Paris' - prison. - - He wrote me a letter from Spalding, dated 11th, in which he - says, I have great reason to be offended at his manner of - leaving Wooton. He says,-- - - Je préférois la liberté, au séjour de votre maison; ce - sentiment est bien excusable. Mais je préfère infiniment le - séjour de votre maison à tout autre captivité, et je - préférerois toute captivité à celle où je suis, qui est - horrible, et qui, quoiqu'il arrive ne sauroit durer. Si vous - voulez bien Monsieur me recevoir derechef chez vous, je suis - prêt à m'y rendre au cas qu'on m'en laisse la liberté, et - quand j'y serois après l'expérience qui j'ai faite, - difficilement serois-je tenté d'en ressortir pour chercher de - nouveaux malheurs. Si ma proposition vous agrée, tâchez, - Monsieur de me le faire savoir par quelque voie sûre, et de - faciliter mon retour d'ici chez vous. - - He repeats the same request of sending to him two or three - times. This which he sent on the 11th, I received on the 17th. - On the 18th I despatched a servant to Spalding: instead of - staying for my answer, behold, on the 14th he set out for - Dover, and on that morning wrote again by the post to me, in - which he says, that if he had any assurance this letter of the - 11th would come to me, and that I would agree to his - proposals, and again receive him, he should certainly stay for - an answer; but as he despaired of my receiving his, so he was - determined to pass the Channel, and I should hear from him - when he reached Calais, and quite sure of his liberty; that he - would write from thence and make me a very singular - proposition. He professes the greatest regard for me, &c. The - next is dated, Dover, 18th May, where he says, that he chose - to write to me from that place; that seeing the sea, and - finding he was in reality a free man, and might either go or - stay,--then, says he, I stopped, and intended to return to - you; but by chance seeing in a public paper how my departure - from Wooton was treated, caused him immediately to renounce - that idea. He finishes with many compliments, but without - telling me where to write to him, and I long to know how to - address my letters. Before he left Wooton, he disposed of - several long gowns amongst the poor people, went off in an old - French dress, and got a blue coat made for him at Spalding. - Pray, can you inform me who he has authorized to receive his - majesty's bounty; because I think I may pay into their hands - the money I have of his in mine. I should be pleased if you - could be so kind as to inform me what date his letter bore, - which he wrote to the Lord Chancellor. I am, dear sir, &c. - - - _4th July, 1767._ - - This week I received a letter from Rousseau, dated, Fleury - under Meudon, wrote with great complaisance; he returns a - thousand thanks for all the civilities he received from me at - Wooton; says that he is not fixed as to the place of his - future residence, but that he will inform me as soon as he has - made choice of one. - - The style of this is vastly different from some of the last of - those which he wrote in England; no mention of captivities, no - wild imaginations of any kind, but entirely calm and composed. - I heartily wish he may continue so, then sure he will be - somewhat happy. I am, &c. - - - _6th July, 1767._ - - The good woman who is called my housekeeper was my nurse, near - ninety, and more than three parts blind. Mad{lle} and she - never could agree. I have heard something of the story of the - kettle and cinders,[370:1] but am inclinable to believe my - philosopher's resolutions were determined before that fray - happened. His governante has an absolute power over him, and - without doubt more or less influences all his actions. You - certainly guess right about the unaccountable quarrel with - you, to whom he has so many and great obligations: nay, I am - almost sure he very heartily repents and inwardly wants to be - reconciled. He has desired to hear from me often, and promises - to let me know how he goes on, as soon as ever he is the least - fixed. What he was writing, is the same he mentioned to you, - will be a large work, containing at least twelve volumes. I - am positively certain that when I left him, he had not - entirely finished one. There's nothing in it which in any - shape relates to state affairs or to ministers of state. - - You shall see his letter the first opportunity; but, God help - him! I can't, for pity, give a copy; and 'tis so much mixed - with his own poor little private concerns, that it would not - be right in me to do it. . . . I am, dear sir, &c.[371:1] - -In the following letters, Hume narrates these events to his Northern -friends, having been so frequently desired to give explanations of the -rumours regarding Rousseau's escapades which occasionally reached -Scotland, that he found it most expedient to answer miscellaneous -inquiries by general chronological narratives. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_27th May, 1767._ - -"Since you are curious to hear Rousseau's story, I shall tell you the -sequel of it. A few days after his letter to the Chancellor, of which I -informed you, I got a letter from Davenport, who told me that he had -just received a letter from Rousseau, dated at Spalding, wherein that -wild philosopher, as he calls him, appeared very penitent, and contrite, -and melancholy; and expressed his purpose of returning immediately to -his former retreat at Wooton. The same day, and nearly the same hour, -General Conway received a long letter from him, dated at Dover, about -two hundred miles distant from Spalding. This great journey he had made -in two days; and had probably set out immediately after writing the -letter above-mentioned to Davenport.[372:1] This letter to General -Conway is the most frenzical imaginable. He there supposes that he was -brought into England by a plot of mine, in order to reduce him to -infamy, derision, and captivity. That General Conway, and all the most -considerable personages of the nation, and the nation itself, had -entered into this conspiracy. That he is at present actually a state -prisoner in General Conway's hands, and has been so ever since his -arrival in the kingdom. He entreats him, however, to allow him the -liberty of departing; warns him that it will not be safe to assassinate -him in private; as he is unhappily too well known not to have inquiries -made, if he should disappear on a sudden; and promises that if his -request be granted, his memoirs shall never be printed to disgrace the -English ministry and the English nation. - -"He owns that he has wrote such memoirs, the chief object of which was -to deliver a faithful account of the treatment he has met with in -England; but he promises, that the moment he sets foot on the French -shore, he shall write to the friend in whose hand the manuscript is -deposited, to deliver it to the General, who may destroy it if he -pleases. He adds, that as it may be objected, that after recovering his -liberty he may do as he pleases, he offers, as a pledge of his -sincerity, to accept of his pension; after which he thinks no one will -imagine he could be so infamous as to write against the king's ministers -or his people. Amidst all this frenzy, he employs these terms as if a -ray of reason had for a moment broke into his mind. He says, speaking -of himself in the third person, 'Non-seulement il abandonne pour -toujours le projet d'écrire sa vie et ses mémoires, mais il ne lui -échappera jamais, ni de bouche ni par écrit, un seul mot de plainte sur -les malheurs qui lui sont arrivés en Angleterre; il ne parlera jamais de -M. Hume, ou il n'en parlera qu'avec honneur, et lorsqu'il sera pressé de -s'expliquer sur quelques indiscrètes plaintes, qui lui sont quelquefois -échappées dans le fort de ses peines, il les rejettera sans mystère, sur -son humeur aigrie et portée à la défiance, et aux ombrages par ce -malheureux penchant, ouvrage de ses malheurs, et qui maintenant y met le -comble.'[373:1] - -"We hear that notwithstanding his imagined captivity, he has passed over -to Calais; where he is likely to experience what real captivity is. I -have, however, used my persuasion with Mons{r} de Guerchi to represent -him to his court as a real madman, more an object of compassion than of -anger. We shall no doubt see his Memoirs in a little time: which will be -full of eloquence and extravagance, though perhaps as reasonable as any -of his past productions; for I do not imagine he was ever much more in -his senses than at present. I think I may be entirely without anxiety -concerning all his future productions."[374:1] - - -The following letters to Smith appear to have been intended as a -comprehensive history of the flight of Rousseau. The reader will readily -excuse the repetition of some incidents already mentioned, and may -perhaps find an interest in comparing the impressions produced by the -events as they were successively occurring, with this general retrospect -of the whole. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_London, 8th October, 1767._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I shall give you an account of the late heteroclite -exploits of Rousseau, as far as I can recollect them. There is no need -of any secrecy: they are most of them pretty public, and are well known -to every body that had curiosity to observe the actions of that strange, -undefinable existence, whom one would be apt to imagine an imaginary -being, though surely not an _ens rationis_. - -"I believe you know, that in spring last, Rousseau applied to General -Conway to have his pension. The General answered to Mr. Davenport, who -carried the application, that I was expected to town in a few days; and -without my consent and approbation he would take no steps in that -affair. You may believe I readily gave my consent. I also solicited the -affair, through the Treasury; and the whole being finished, I wrote to -Mr. Davenport, and desired him to inform his guest, that he needed only -appoint any person to receive payment. Mr. Davenport answered me, that -it was out of his power to execute my commission: for that his wild -philosopher, as he called him, had eloped of a sudden, leaving a great -part of his baggage behind him, some money in Davenport's hands, and a -letter on the table, as odd, he says, as the one he wrote to me, and -implying that Mr. Davenport was engaged with me in a treacherous -conspiracy against him! He was not heard of for a fortnight, till the -Chancellor received a letter from him, dated at Spalding in -Lincolnshire; in which he said that he had been seduced into this -country by a promise of hospitality; that he had met with the worst -usage; that he was in danger of his life from the plots of his enemies; -and that he applied to the Chancellor, as the first civil magistrate of -the kingdom, desiring him to appoint a guard at his own (Rousseau's) -expense, who might safely conduct him out of the kingdom. The Chancellor -made his secretary reply to him, that he was mistaken in the nature of -the country; for that the first post-boy he could apply to, was as safe -a guide as the Chancellor could appoint. At the very same time that -Rousseau wrote this letter to the Chancellor, he wrote to Davenport, -that he had eloped from him, actuated by a very natural desire, that of -recovering his liberty; but finding he must still be in captivity, he -preferred that at Wooton: for his captivity at Spalding was intolerable -beyond all human patience, and he was at present the most wretched being -on the face of the globe: he would therefore return to Wooton, if he -were assured that Davenport would receive him. - -"Here I must tell you, that the parson of Spalding was about two months -ago in London, and told Mr. Fitzherbert, from whom I had it, that he had -passed several hours every day with Rousseau, while he was in that -place; that he was cheerful, good-humoured, easy, and enjoyed himself -perfectly well, without the least fear or complaint of any kind. However -this may be, our hero, without waiting for any answer, either from the -Chancellor or Mr. Davenport, decamps on a sudden from Spalding, and -takes the road directly to Dover; whence he writes a letter to General -Conway, seven pages long, and full of the wildest extravagance in the -world. He says, that he had endured a captivity in England, which it was -impossible any longer to submit to. It was strange, that the greatest in -the nation, and the whole nation itself, should have been seduced by one -private man, to serve his vengeance against another private man: he -found in every face that he was here the object of general derision and -aversion, and he was therefore infinitely desirous to remove from this -country. He therefore begs the General to restore him to his liberty, -and allow him to leave England; he warns him of the danger there may be -of cutting his throat in private; as he is unhappily a man too well -known, not to have inquiries made after him, should he disappear of a -sudden: he promises, on condition of his being permitted to depart the -kingdom, to speak no ill of the king or country, or ministers, or even -of Mr. Hume; as indeed, says he, I have perhaps no reason; my jealousy -of him having probably arisen from my own suspicious temper, soured by -misfortunes. He says, that he wrote a volume of Memoirs, chiefly -regarding the treatment he has met with in England; he has left it in -safe hands, and will order it to be burned, in case he be permitted to -go beyond seas, and nothing shall remain to the dishonour of the king -and his ministers. - -"This letter is very well wrote, so far as regards the style and -composition; and the author is so vain of it, that he has given about -copies, as of a rare production. It is indeed, as General Conway says, -the composition of a whimsical man, not of a madman. But what is more -remarkable, the very same post, he wrote to Davenport, that, having -arrived within sight of the sea, and finding he was really at liberty to -go or stay, as he pleased, he had intended voluntarily to return to him; -but seeing in a newspaper an account of his departure from Wooton, and -concluding his offences were too great to be forgiven, he was resolved -to depart for France. Accordingly, without any farther preparation, and -without waiting General Conway's answer, he took his passage in a packet -boat, and went off that very evening. Thus, you see, he is a composition -of whim, affectation, wickedness, vanity, and inquietude, with a very -small if any ingredient of madness. He is always complaining of his -health; yet I have scarce ever seen a more robust little man of his -years. He was tired in England; where he was neither persecuted nor -caressed, and where, he was sensible, he had exposed himself. He -resolved, therefore, to leave it; and having no pretence, he is obliged -to contrive all those absurdities, which he himself, extravagant as he -is, gives no credit to. At least, this is the only key I can devise to -his character. The ruling qualities above-mentioned, together with -ingratitude, ferocity, and lying,--I need not mention eloquence and -invention,--form the whole of the composition. - -"When he arrived at Paris, all my friends, who were likewise all his, -agreed totally to neglect him. The public, too, disgusted with his -multiplied and indeed criminal extravagancies, showed no manner of -concern about him. Never was such a fall from the time I took him up, -about a year and a half before. I am told by D'Alembert and Horace -Walpole, that, sensible of this great alteration, he endeavoured to -regain his credit by acknowledging to every body his fault with regard -to me: but all in vain: he has retired to a village in the mountains of -Auvergne, as M. Durand tells me, where nobody inquires after him. He -will probably endeavour to recover his fame by new publications; and I -expect with some curiosity the reading of his Memoirs, which will I -suppose suffice to justify me in every body's eyes, and in my own, for -the publication of his letters and my narrative of the case. You will -see by the papers, that a new letter of his to M. D., which I imagine to -be Davenport, is published. This letter was probably wrote immediately -on his arrival at Paris; or perhaps is an effect of his usual -inconsistence: I do not much concern myself which. Thus he has had the -satisfaction, during a time, of being much talked of, for his late -transactions; the thing in the world he most desires: but it has been at -the expense of being consigned to perpetual neglect and oblivion. My -compliments to Mr. Oswald; and also to Mrs. Smith. I am," &c.[378:1] - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_London, 17th October, 1767._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I sit down to correct a mistake or two in the former -account which I gave you of Rousseau. I saw Davenport a few days ago, -who tells me, that the letter inserted in all the newspapers, was never -addressed to him. He even doubts its being genuine; both because he -knows it to be opposite to all his sentiments with regard to me, to whom -he desires earnestly to be reconciled, and because it is too absurd and -extravagant, and seems to be contrived rather as a banter upon him. -Davenport added, that Rousseau was retired to some place in France, and -had changed his name and his dress:[379:1] but wrote to him that he was -the most miserable of all beings; that it was impossible for him to stay -where he was; and that he would return to his old hermitage, if -Davenport would accept of him. Indeed, he has some reason to be -mortified with his reception in France; for Horace Walpole, who has very -lately returned thence, tells me, that though Rousseau is settled at -Cliché, within a league of Paris, nobody inquires after him, nobody -visits him, nobody talks of him, every one has agreed to neglect and -disregard him: a more sudden revolution of fortune than almost ever -happened to any man--at least to any man of letters. - -"I asked Mr. Davenport about those Memoirs, which Rousseau said he was -writing, and whether he had ever seen them. He said, yes, he had; it was -projected to be a work in twelve volumes; but he had as yet gone no -farther than the first volume, which he had entirely composed at Wooton. -It was charmingly wrote, and concluded with a very particular and -interesting account of his first love, the object of which was a person -whose first love it also was. Davenport, who is no bad judge, says, that -these Memoirs will be the most taking of all his works; and, indeed, you -may easily imagine what such a pen would make of such a subject as that -I mentioned. Meanwhile it appears clearly, what I told you before, that -he is no more mad at present, than he has been during the whole course -of his life, and that he is capable of the same efforts of genius. I -think I may wait in security his account of the transactions between us. -But, however, this incident, which I foresaw, is some justification of -me for publishing his letters, and may apologise for a step, which you, -and even myself, have been inclined sometimes to blame, and always to -regret."[380:1] - - -So ended Rousseau's wild sojourn, in what he termed "l'heureuse terre, -où sont nés David Hume et le Maréchal d'Ecosse." When the wounds -inflicted on his benefactor by ungrateful actions and uncharitable -interpretations had been healed by time, and the conduct of him who had -occasioned them was seen no longer through the excited medium of -lacerated feelings, the hour had come for the just understanding to aid -the kind heart, in estimating the character of the assailant; for -finding that, deep as were the wounds he might inflict on others, there -was an arrow still more deeply buried in his own bosom; that -commiseration should take the place of resentment; and that the -wanderer's footsteps should be accompanied by the prayer, that peace -might revisit his disturbed spirit. Hume felt, perhaps, what he could -not have expressed so well as one whose mind had too much in common with -that which he describes, - - His life was one long war with self-sought foes; - Or friends by him self-banished; for his mind - Had grown Suspicion's sanctuary, and chose, - For its own cruel sacrifice, the kind, - 'Gainst whom he raged with fury strange and blind. - But he was frenzied,--wherefore, who may know? - Since cause might be which skill could never find; - But he was frenzied by disease or woe, - To that worst pitch of all, which wears a reasoning show. - -Hume was not a man given to the clamorous expression of contritions or -regrets. It is in his silence and his subsequent acts that we find him -desirous to compensate for the punishment he had inflicted on his -assailant. The letters of his French friends, during the summer of 1767, -show that he had earnestly exerted himself to protect Rousseau from the -vengeance of the government;[381:1] and there is all reason to believe, -that it was through this intervention that the wanderer was permitted to -pursue his course in peace. On the other hand, when the dark cloud had -completely passed away, the monomaniac appears to have awakened to a -distressing consciousness of what he had done. He afterwards attributed -his conduct in England to our foggy atmosphere, which had filled his -mind with gloom and discontent; and the work at which he laboured busily -with the fierce excitement of him who forges a weapon to avenge his -wrongs, stopped short at the very point where his narrative of injuries -was to commence. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[319:1] It might be expected, from the nature of Mr. Davenport's -letters, that his descendants should be in possession of letters, either -by Hume or Rousseau bearing on this curious passage of literary history. -I believe I am committing no breach of private confidence in saying, -that this family, to whom I am indebted for many polite attentions, lost -all such documents, along with other valuable papers. They were -destroyed by an attorney,--who at the same time put an end to his own -life. - -[320:1] This letter was written in French; and the person to whom it was -addressed is not known. It was published in a miscellany, of which a -translation (from which the above extract is made) appeared in 1799, as -"Original Letters of J. J. Rousseau, Butta Fuoco, and David Hume." - -[320:2] Private Correspondence, p. 153. - -[320:3] Exposé Succinct. - -[320:4] See above, p. 304. One of Rousseau's favourite amusements was, -drawing a vehement picture of his misfortunes and his poverty; and after -having thus laid a sort of trap, catching some benevolent person in the -act of secretly attempting to aid him. Many of his letters are like -those of a petty dealer, who is afraid of being imposed on, and must see -that all the consignments are exact, as per invoice and account. The -matter of the return chaise already alluded to, slightly tinges the good -humour of the former of these letters. In the other, there are some -remonstrances about a model of a bust of himself, which he will not take -from the artist unless it is to be paid for. The same letter contains -the following passage, which the editors of the "Exposé Succinct" did -not think it necessary to print. It illustrates Rousseau's occasional -attention to small matters. - -"Je vous suis obligé d'avoir bien voulu solder le mémoire de M. Stuart. -J'y trouve deux articles qui ne sont pas de ma connoissance. L'un de £1 -14 pour du café, et l'autre de 5 sh. pour un moulin. Il est vrai que M. -Stuart avoit bien voulu se charger de ces commissions, mais je ne les ai -point recues ni avec mon bagage ni autrement, et n'en ai aucun avis que -par son mémoire." - -[321:1] Though it has been repeated in so many other places, it seems -necessary, for the distinctness of the narrative, here to print this -famous letter. - - "Mon cher Jean Jacques, - - "Vous avez renoncé à Genève, votre patrie. Vous vous êtes fait - chasser de la Suisse, pays tant vanté dans vos écrits; la - France vous a décrété; venez donc chez moi. J'admire vos - talens; je m'amuse de vos rêveries qui (soit dit en passant) - vous occupent trop et trop longtemps. Il faut à la fin être - sage & heureux; vous avez fait assez parler de vous, par des - singularités peu convenables à un véritable grand homme: - démontrez à vos enemis que vous pouvez avoir quelquefois le - sens commun: cela les fâchera sans vous faire tort. Mes états - vous offrent une retraite paisible: je vous veux du bien, & je - vous en ferai, si vous le trouvez bon. Mais si vous vous - obstinez à rejetter mon secours, attendez-vous que je ne le - dirai à personne. Si vous persistez à vous creuser l'esprit - pour trouver de nouveaux malheurs, choisissez-les tels que - vous voudrez; je suis roi, je puis vous en procurer au gré de - vos souhaits; et, ce qui sûrement ne vous arrivera pas - vis-à-vis de vos ennemis, je cesserai de vous persécuter, - quand vous cesserez de mettre votre gloire à l'être. Votre bon - ami, - - FREDERICK." - -Rousseau thought it worse than strange, that the person who wrote this -letter should have been intrusted with the conveyance of a parcel to -him, holding it to be clear that Walpole must necessarily be a person -who could not be intrusted with his property. M. Musset Pathay, in his -"Vie de Rousseau," makes a serious charge against Hume, in connexion -with Walpole's conduct. Hume confessed his being present when one of the -pleasantries of the letter was uttered in conversation. "Horace -Walpole's letter," he says to Madame de Barbantane, "was not founded on -any pleasantry of mine. The only pleasantry in that letter came from his -own mouth in my company, at Lord Ossory's table, which my lord remembers -very well." (_Private Correspondence_, p. 146.) On this passage, M. -Musset says: "Elle prouve que l'historien Anglais s'est permis une -plaisanterie contre Jean Jacques, au moment même ou, lui témoignant le -plus grand intérêt, il se préparait à l'emmener en Angleterre. Ainsi, à -l'époque où David donnait à Rousseau les plus grandes marques d'amitié, -il contribuait d'un côté à le rendre un objet de ridicule, par un bon -mot qui fit partie du persiflage d'Horace Walpole," (i. 115.) If the -reader thinks he here finds a French statesman announcing the rigid -doctrine of sincerity, that no man should patiently hear his friend's -foibles laughed at, he will find, on examining the passage, that M. -Musset has chosen to speak of Hume as the _author_ of the jest. In -harmony with this view he, innocently it is to be presumed, translates -the above sentence in Hume's letter thus:--"La seule plaisanterie que je -me sois permise relativement à la prétendue lettre du roi de Prusse, fut -faite _par moi_ à la table de Lord Ossory!" - -[323:1] Private Correspondence, p. 133. - -[323:2] Madame de Boufflers writes on 6th May:-- - -"Je ne puis croire que le violent chagrin dont parle J. J. vienne de la -lettre de M. Walpole, quoique sûrement elle l'a du beaucoup affecter. Je -crains bien plutôt que quelque dégoût de M{elle.} Le Vasseur ou quelques -querelles entre eux n'en soit la cause; éclaircissez cela de grâce, et -ôtez moi du l'inquiétude où vous m'avez prise."--MS. R.S.E. - -[324:1] That Hume was, in the meantime, quite unconscious of any cause -of offence against himself, is evident from his writing to Madame de -Boufflers, on 16th May: - -"As to the deep calamity of which he complains, it is impossible for me -to imagine it. I suppose it is some trifle, aggravated by his melancholy -temper and lively fancy. I shall endeavour to learn from Mr. Davenport, -who is just gone to that neighbourhood. Lady Aylesbury and General -Conway believe that it is Horace Walpole's letter which still torments -him. That letter was put into our newspapers; which produced an answer, -full of passion, and indeed of extravagance, complaining in the most -tragical terms of the forgery, and lamenting that the impostor should -find any abettors and partisans in England. Mr. Walpole has wrote a -reply, full of vivacity and wit, but sacrifices it to his humanity, and -is resolved that no copy of it shall get abroad. He assures me that he, -as well as Madame du Deffand, were entirely innocent of that publication -at Paris: it was a lady, a friend of yours, who gave the first copy." -_Private Correspondence_, pp. 170-171. - -[325:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[325:2] Musset Pathay, Vie de Rousseau, vol. i. p. 116. This gentleman -concludes that, within the space of twenty-four hours, Rousseau must -have had reason to change from the extremity of confidence in Hume, to a -full conviction of his guilt. But with all his desire to vindicate -Rousseau, his account of the manner in which this conclusion had been -reached, does not tend to convince one that it was well founded. - - "Mais, d'après l'étude du caractère de Rousseau, d'après - l'observation qui prouve que, dans la solitude, l'imagination - s'effarouche aisément, il est plus naturel de croire que, - tout-à-coup, une multitude de circonstances s'offrirent à la - fois à la mémoire de Jean Jacques, et, quoique minutieuses en - elles mêmes, qu'elles devinrent, par leur nombre, et leur - coïncidence, importantes et graves. Il ne fallait qu'un - incident pour les rendre telles, comme une goutte suffit pour - faire déborder un vase plein d'eau." - -[326:1] Printed documents of the controversy--Ritchie's Life of Hume. - -[328:1] Documents of the controversy, &c. - -[329:1] There is certainly one important exception to this method of -viewing the matter, and that in a book otherwise of merit. One would -hardly expect to meet with a work of the nineteenth century, containing -a serious vindication of Rousseau, as a sane man who was in the right in -this quarrel, while Hume was in the wrong. Yet some such task has been -undertaken in the "Histoire de la Vie et des Ouvrages de J. J. -Rousseau," by the late M. Musset Pathay, (1821,) which may be ranked -among the boldest efforts of that school of biographers, whose principle -is, that the hero of their tale must not be admitted to have had any -vice or weakness. M. Musset's charges against Hume are much of the same -mystical character with those made by Rousseau himself, and amount to -this, that there was something in the whole aspect of affairs not quite -satisfactory. He deals with some small matters of fact,--he is very -indignant that Hume should, as he confesses, have tried to prevent -Rousseau from plunging into a distant solitude; and we have already seen -the effect which his zeal has had on his discrimination, in the affair -of Walpole's letter. He makes one discovery, of which it would be unjust -to deny him the full merit. Hume says, in his Vindication, "It is with -reluctance I say it, but I am compelled to it. I now know of a -certainty, that this affectation of extreme poverty and distress was a -mere pretence, a petty kind of imposture, which M. Rousseau successfully -employed to excite the compassion of the public: but I was then very far -from suspecting any such artifice." In a letter to Madame de Boufflers, -he says, "I should be glad to know how your inquiries at M. Rougemont's -have turned out. It is only matter of mere curiosity: for even if the -fact should prove against him, which is very improbable, I should only -regard it as one weakness more, and do not make my good opinion of him -to depend on a single incident." (_Private Correspondence_, p. 130.) Now -Rougemont was a banker, and M. Musset infers that Hume had been making -inquiries as to Rousseau's pecuniary affairs. Perhaps, when he found a -man proclaiming his destitution to all Europe, and flinging back, in the -faces of the givers, the assistance his importunities extracted from the -compassionate, it was not a very great crime to endeavour to ascertain -the truth of any rumour, that the misery was not so extreme as the -sufferer painted it, and the necessity for their intervention not so -great as the compassionate believed it to be. There is one letter from -M. Rougemont among the MSS. R.S.E. dated 5th March, 1766. If it does not -contradict, it certainly does not confirm the theory of M. Musset. It is -too long and commonplace to be here inserted in full. There is not a -word in it about money matters; and it appears to be written in answer -to some high praise of Rousseau by Hume. The banker says: - -"L'opinion que vous avez de M. Rousseau ne me laisse plus aucun doute: -et c'est avec la plus grande satisfaction que je vois que mon -enthusiasme ne m'a point aveuglée; les détails que vous me faites, me -persuadent encore plus de la vérité d'une observation que vous avez -faite un soir; c'est, qu'il n'est qu'un homme ordinaire quand son coeur -ne sent rien." MS. R.S.E. - -One might indeed infer, that Hume's inquiries were to discover whether -the solitude of Wooton would be likely to be favourable to Rousseau. M. -Rougemont thinks it would not. "La solitude," he says, "qui peut cesser -quand on veut, peut avoir des charmes; mais je ne puis croire qu'il ne -soit pas fort malheureux d'être nécessairement privé de toute société." -The rest of his letter is devoted to Parisian literary gossip, with -which the banker appears to have been ambitious of showing his -acquaintance. - -It is not when reviewing the conduct of Hume, but when recalling such -observations as those made by Dr. Johnson on Rousseau, that one is -tempted to sympathize with M. Musset. Of the rigid moralist's opinions, -Boswell gives us the following sketch: - -"One evening, at the Mitre, Johnson said sarcastically to me, 'It seems, -sir, you have kept very good company abroad: Rousseau and Wilkes!' I -answered, with a smile, 'My dear sir, you don't call Rousseau bad -company: do you really think _him_ a bad man?' Johnson. 'Sir, if you are -talking jestingly of this, I don't talk with you. If you mean to be -serious, I think him one of the worst of men; a rascal who ought to be -hunted out of society as he has been. Three or four nations have -expelled him; and it is a shame that he is protected in this country. -Rousseau, sir, is a very bad man. I would sooner sign a sentence for his -transportation, than that of any felon who has gone from the Old Bailey -these many years. Yes, I should like to have him work in the -plantations.'"--Boswell, vol. ii. p. 314, ed. 1835. - -[331:1] A scientific gentleman, whose writings on medical jurisprudence -are of high authority, and who had read the Hume and Rousseau -controversy, observed to me, that Rousseau's case should have been -treated as one of monomania. - -[332:1] Whoever would notice the practical sagacity of Rousseau's -genius, may compare the early part of "Émile," with "Combe on the -Management of Infancy," and observe in how many things the theorist and -the scientific inquirer coincide. - -[333:1] "We have had," says Burke, in his Reflections on the French -Revolution, "the great professor and founder of the philosophy of vanity -in England. As I had good opportunities of knowing his proceedings, -almost from day to day, he left no doubt on my mind that he entertained -no principle, either to influence his heart or guide his understanding, -but vanity: with this vice he was possessed to a degree little short of -madness." - -[333:2] D'Alembert writes to Hume, on 4th August: - -"Il y a dans la drôle de lettre de _ce joli petit homme_, comme vous -l'appelliez autrefois, une phrase sacramentelle ou sacramentale, à -laquelle vous n'avez peut-être pas fait autant d'attention qu'elle le -mérite; c'est que _le public, qui d'abord avoit eté fort amoureux de -lui, commença bientôt après à le négliger_. Voilà ce qui le fâche -véritablement, et il s'en prend à qui il peut. Vous vous êtes chargé de -montrer l'ours à la foire; sa loge qui d'abord etoit pleine, est bientôt -restée vuide, et il vous en rend responsable. Il est d'ailleurs três -certain, et je le sçais de Duclos son ami, à qui il l'a dit, ainsi qu'à -bien d'autres, qu'il _ne peut pas souffrir toutes les personnes à qui il -a obligation_: et sur ce pied là, vous avez bien des droits à sa haine." -MS. R.S.E. - -[334:1] During his sojourn in England, he was in dread of being -kidnapped. The late Professor Walker remembered being asked by Lord Bute -to accompany Rousseau on a botanizing excursion on the banks of the -Thames, and that he was just explaining something about marine plants -being acrid, when a Cockney pic-nic party of youths, dressed as sailors, -landed. Rousseau instantly took to his heels! The professor being -responsible for his safe restoration, followed, and, after a -considerable chase, succeeded in running him down. Rousseau, seeing that -there were no other pursuers, passed the matter off by the observation -that marine _men_ were acrid. After his return from England, an account -for nine francs, which it appears he was not due, was presented against -him by a tradesman. He called on all Europe to witness this conspiracy -to destroy his character, and raised such an outcry as must have -effectually frightened sober tradesmen from overcharging interesting -solitaries. - -[335:1] Even his trusted friend, Du Peyrou, writing to Hume on 13th -February, after many eulogiums on his kindness to the unfortunate, -says:-- - -"C'est sous votre couvert qu' M. Rousseau m'a marqué, Monsieur, que je -devois lui écrire: voudriez vous donc avoir la complaisance de lui faire -parvenir l'incluse à son adresse." MS. R.S.E. - -[337:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[337:2] He was a cordial hater of all uncandidness in others, whatever -he might be in his own case. Morellet tells a laughable anecdote of -Rousseau's presence on an occasion when some of the wicked wits of Paris -were what is commonly called "trotting out" a vain poet, and making him -say ridiculous things of his own genius. Rousseau, after walking -restlessly about the room, burst into a rage, told the poet that he was -a poor paltry idiot, and the company were only encouraging him to make -game of him. - -[338:1] An incident had just happened to make the name of the "quack -Tronchin," peculiarly offensive. This distinguished physician had -received public honours at Parma. After strenuous popular opposition, he -had been permitted to practise the new precautionary remedy of -inoculation on the young prince Ferdinand. The experiment had been -successful; all Parma, excited by loyal joy, petitioned the Grand-duke -to admit the physician to the rank of citizen. A tablet, commemorating -the triumph of science, was erected in the town hall, and a medal with -suitable devices was struck in honour of the operator. He was a relation -of Tronchin the Procureur Général of Geneva, author of _Lettres écrites -de la Campagne_, which Rousseau answered in _Lettres de la Montagne_. -See him mentioned above, p. 186. - -[339:1] Morellet questions if he _could_ have done so, i. 106. - -[340:1] The following jeu-d'esprit, which was printed in some of the -periodicals of the day, is really a pretty accurate abridgment of -Rousseau's paper. It has the appearance of having been written by a -Scottish lawyer:-- - - -_Heads of an Indictment laid by J. J. Rousseau, philosopher, against D. -Hume, Esq._ - - 1. That the said David Hume, to the great scandal of - philosophy, and not having the fitness of things before his - eyes, did concert a plan with Mess. Tronchin, Voltaire, and - D'Alembert, to ruin the said J. J. Rousseau for ever, by - bringing him over to England, and there settling him to his - heart's content. - - 2. That the said David Hume did, with a malicious and - traitorous intent, procure, or cause to be procured, by - himself, or somebody else, one pension of the yearly value of - £100 or thereabouts, to be paid to the said J. J. Rousseau, on - account of his being a philosopher, either privately or - publicly, as to him the said J. J. Rousseau should seem meet. - - 3. That the said David Hume did, one night after he left - Paris, put the said J. J. Rousseau in bodily fear, by talking - in his sleep; although the said J. J. Rousseau doth not know - whether the said David Hume was really asleep, or whether he - shammed Abraham, or what he meant. - - 4. That, at another time, as the said David Hume and the said - J. J. Rousseau were sitting opposite each other by the - fireside in London, he, the said David Hume, did look at him, - the said J. J. Rousseau, in a manner of which it is difficult - to give any idea: That he, the said J. J. Rousseau, to get rid - of the embarrassment he was under, endeavoured to look full at - him, the said David Hume, in return, to try if he could not - stare him out of countenance; but in fixing his eyes against - his, the said David Hume's, he felt the most inexpressible - terror, and was obliged to turn them away, insomuch that the - said J. J. Rousseau doth in his heart think and believe, as - much as he believes any thing, that he, the said David Hume, - is a certain composition of a white-witch and a rattlesnake. - - 5. That the said David Hume on the same evening, after - politely returning the embraces of him, the said J. J. - Rousseau, and gently tapping him on the back, did repeat - several times, in a good-natured easy tone, the words, "Why, - what, my dear sir! Nay, my dear sir! Oh, my dear sir!" From - whence the said J. J. Rousseau doth conclude, as he thinks - upon solid and sufficient grounds, that he the said David Hume - is a traitor; albeit he, the said J. J. Rousseau, doth - acknowledge, that the physiognomy of the good David is that of - an honest man, all but those terrible eyes of his, which he - must have borrowed; but he the said J. J. Rousseau vows to God - he cannot conceive from whom or what. - - 6. That the said David Hume hath more inquisitiveness about - him than becometh a philosopher, and did never let slip an - opportunity of being alone with the governante of him the said - J. J. Rousseau. - - 7. That the said David Hume did most atrociously and - flagitiously put him, the said J. J. Rousseau, philosopher, - into a passion; as knowing that then he would be guilty of a - number of absurdities. - - 8. That the said David Hume must have published Mr. Walpole's - letter in the newspapers, because, at that time, there was - neither man, woman, nor child, in the island of Great Britain, - but the said David Hume, the said J. J. Rousseau, and the - printers of the several newspapers aforesaid. - - 9. That somebody in a certain magazine, and somebody else in a - certain newspaper, said something against him, the said John - James Rousseau, which he, the said J. J. Rousseau, is - persuaded, for the reason abovementioned, could be nobody but - the said David Hume. - - 10. That the said J. J. Rousseau knows, that he, the said - David Hume, did open and peruse the letters of him, the said - J. J. Rousseau, because he one day saw the said David Hume go - out of the room, after his own servant, who had, at that time, - a letter of the said J. J. Rousseau's in his hands; which - _must_ have been in order to take it from the servant, open - it, and read the contents. - - 11. That the said David Hume did, at the instigation of the - devil, in a most wicked and unnatural manner, send, or cause - to be sent, to the lodgings of him, the said J. J. Rousseau, - one dish of beefsteaks, thereby meaning to insinuate, that he, - the said J. J. Rousseau, was a beggar, and came over to - England to ask alms: whereas be it known to all men by these - presents, that he, the said John James Rousseau, brought with - him the means of subsistence, and did not come with an empty - purse; as he doubts not but he can live upon his labours--with - the assistance of his friends; and in short can do better - without the said David Hume than with him. - - 12. That besides all these facts put together, the said J. J. - Rousseau did not like a certain appearance of things on the - whole. - -[343:1] "That of the 22d of March, which is full of cordiality, and -proves that M. Rousseau had never, to that moment, entertained any of -those black suspicions of perfidy which he publishes at present. There -is only in that letter a peevish passage about the affair of his -chaise."--Hume. - -[344:1] Documents of the controversy. - -[344:2] Such was his first impulse. He evidently, after viewing the -matter more coolly, was disinclined to publish, but he was finally -prevailed on to do so. - -[345:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[346:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[346:2] Morellet, i. 105. - -[346:3] Priv. Cor. 204. - -[348:1] Voltaire et Rousseau par Henry Lord Brougham, App. No. IX. Lord -Brougham twice honoured me with an intimation that he had obtained -letters of David Hume, in Paris, which were too late for his own "Lives -of Men of Letters," and were to be sent to _me_. While thankfully -waiting for their arrival, I observed, on the title page of his -lordship's French lives of Voltaire and Rousseau, that the book -contained "Léttres entièrement inédites de _Hume_." Thinking it not -impossible that the letters destined for my use, had thus, by some -accident, been diverted from their destination, I have printed them in -this book, according to their dates, in the fullest assurance of his -lordship's cordial concurrence. - -[349:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[350:1] D'Holbach. - -[351:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[352:1] - -"_A Paris, le 7 Septembre, 1766._ - -"J'ai trouvé ici, monsieur, votre lettre de 5 Août, à mon retour d'un -voyage que j'ai été faire en Normandie. D'Alembert, qui venoit alors de -recevoir votre récit de l'Histoire de Rousseau avec les lettres que vous -y avez insérées, me l'a communiqué. Je vous crois à présent si ennuyé de -cette affaire que je ne sais si je dois encore vous en parler. M. De -Montigni m'a cependant dit que vous désiriez de savoir ma façon de -penser. Vous imaginez bien qu'elle ne peut pas être douteuse sur le fond -de l'affaire, et je crois qu'excepté Rousseau, et peut-être M{lle.} Le -Vasseur, il n'y a personne dans le monde qui s'imagine, ni qui eut -jamais imaginé, que vous ayez mené Rousseau en Angleterre pour le -trahir, et à qui sa longue lettre et ses démonstrations ne fassent -pitié. Mais je vous avoue que j'y vois toujours plus de folie que de -noirceur. J'y vois des sophismes dont une imagination se sert pour -empoisonner les circonstances les plus simples et les transformer au gré -de la manie qui l'occupe. Mais je ne crois point que ces extravagances -soient un jeu joué, et un prétexte pour secouer le poids de la -reconnoissance qu'il vous doit. Il paroît sentir lui même que personne -ne le croira, et qu'il se couvre d'opprobre du moins pour le moment aux -yeux du public. Il avoue qu'il sacrifie et son intérêt et même sa -réputation: et il est certain que cette affaire lui fait un tort -irréparable, l'isole du genre humain, et lui ôte tout appui contre les -persécutions auxquelles ses opinions et encore plus ces traits de sa -misanthropie l'exposeront toujours. Je persiste donc à ne le croire que -fou, et je suis affligé que l'impression trop vive qu'a faite sur vous -sa folie vous ait mis dans le cas de la faire éclater et de la rendre -irrémédiable; car le bruit qu'à fait votre lettre au Baron, est pour -Rousseau une démonstration que ces conjectures étoient fondées sur la -vérité même. Il a bien mandé à Madame de Boufflers qu'il ne se plaignoit -pas, et que cette lettre qui vous a donné lieu de le diffamer comme le -dernier des hommes n'étoit écrite qu'à vous. L'éclat que vous avez fait, -lui a fait tout le mal possible, et sa lettre ne vous en a fait aucun. . -. . . . . Après vous avoir dit aussi franchement mon avis, vous serez -surpris peut-être de me voir presque revenu à l'avis de faire imprimer. -La folie de Rousseau est telle qu'il a écrit ici différentes lettres -dans lesquelles il regarde votre trahison comme si constante, et les -démonstrations comme si terrassantes pour vous, qu'il vous défie de -publier les pièces sans vous déshonorer, à moins que vous ne les -falsifiez; ce ne sont pas ses termes mais c'en est le sens. Si cette -espèce de défi devenoit public à un certain point, et faisoit plus -d'impression en Angleterre qu'il n'en peut faire en France, peut-être -serez-vous obligé d'imprimer. Mais en ce cas je voudrois retrancher tout -réçit, toute imputation de mensonge, toutes notes excepté quelques unes -nécessaires pour rétablir simplement les faits importans, comme celui de -la scène qui s'est passée la veille de son départ pour Wooton. Encore -voudrois-je que dans ces notes vous disiez simplement le fait, sans -traiter Rousseau de menteur, sans vous abaisser à le prouver. Vous devez -être cru sur ce que vous direz, et vous le serez. Je ne mettrois autre -chose à la tête, si non que les discours répandus sur la querelle, &c. -et l'espèce de défi que M. Rousseau vous fait d'en publier ce qui s'est -passé, vous obligent à regret à publier les accusations de M. Rousseau -contre vous, et que vous croyez leur publication une réponse suffisante. -Voilà quel est actuellement mon penchant. Mais comme je ne vois à cela -rien de pressé, je crois que vous ferez bien de vous donner tout le tems -d'y réfléchir. Plus vous mettez dans cette affaire de modération et même -d'indifférence, plus le tort de Rousseau deviendra évident."--MS. R.S.E. - -[354:1] The original of this letter is in the MSS. R.S.E. It is printed -in Priv. Cor. p. 187. - -[354:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[354:3] "Le hasard a voulu que la plus part de vos amis, et surtout ceux -à qui vous me conseillez de lire votre lettre, se soient trouvés -rassemblés chez M{lle.} de L'Espinasse presque au moment que je l'ai -reçue; Mr. Turgot, Mr. L'Abbé Morellet, Mr. Roux, Mr. Saurin, Mr. -Marmontel, Mr. Duclos. Tous unanimement, ainsi que M{lle.} de -L'Espinasse et moi sommes d'avis, que vous devez donner cette histoire -au public, avec toutes ses circumstances. Voici ce que nous vous -conseillons--je dis nous, car je parle ici au nom de tous. Vous -commencerez d'abord par dire que vous savez que Rousseau travaille à ses -mémoires, qu'il fera sans doute mention de sa querelle avec vous, qui a -fait trop de bruit pour qu'il ne cherche pas à la tourner à son -avantage, que les mémoires pourront paroître ou après votre mort ou -aprés la sienne: que dans le 1{er} cas, comme vous l'observez vous-même, -personne ne pourra vous justifier; que dans le second, votre défense -seroit sans force; que vous avez donc cru devoir donner vous même toute -cette histoire au public, afin que Mr. Rousseau réponde s'il le peut. -Ensuite vous entrerez dans le détail, et dans le plus grand détail, mais -surtout, et c'est une chose absolument essentielle et que nous vous -recommendons tous--vous vous bornerez aux faits, exprimés simplement et -nettement, sans aigreur, sans la moindre injure, sans même de réflexions -sur le caractère de Rousseau et sur ses écrits; vous rapporterez vos -lettres et les siennes; celle qu'il vous a écrite le 23 juin suffiroit -seule pour le faire condamner, vous ne direz point, du moins trop -souvent, que vous êtes son bienfaiteur--tout le monde le sait assez. -Enfin mon cher ami, nous vous recommendons, et nous vous conjurons de -mettre dans cette brochure la plus grande modération mais en même temps -la plus grande clarté."--MS. R.S.E. - -[355:1] Walpole's "Narrative." - -[357:1] "Vous devez être bien étonné, Monsieur, de n'avoir encore reçu -aucune lettre sur la publication de votre mémoire, et il y a en cela -beaucoup de ma faute. J'avois dit à M. D'Alembert que j'aurois l'honneur -de vous écrire. Il a compté sur moi. Le Baron D'Holbach a compté sur -nous deux, et moi j'ai compté aussi sur eux; voilà ce qui fait qu'il n'y -a rien que d'avoir plusieurs domestiques pour être mal servi." - -Stating, that he has sent a copy of the collection by post, he proceeds: - -"Vous avez désiré que je fusse votre traducteur, et je n'avois pas -besoin de tous les sentimens qui m'attachent à vous, pour me charger de -ce travail, avec plaisir. Votre cause me paroisoit celle des honnêtes -gens et surtout celle des amis de la philosophie. Il y a long-tems que -je regardois Rousseau comme un profond et dangereux charlatan, qui avoit -passé sa vie à recevoir des bienfaits de tout le monde, et à faire tout -le mal qu'il avoit pu à ceux qui lui avaient fait le plus de bien. . . -Vous trouverez sans doute, Monsieur, qu'on a pris bien des libertés avec -votre texte: il y a beaucoup de passages altérés, et suprimés: mais il -n'y a aucun changement qui n'ait été fait par M. D'Alembert ou de son -consentement, et toujours pour des raisons que vous aprouverez -vraisemblement." - -[358:1] New Monthly Magazine, (original series,) No. 72. - -[358:2] The letter is dated Ferney, 24th Oct. 1766. Oeuvres de Voltaire, -ed. 1789, lxiv. 495. Probably Hume never received this letter. It is not -in the MSS. R.S.E., and Voltaire was known to be in the habit of writing -to people through the press. Hume, however, states, in a note to the -narrative of his controversy, that he had had a letter from Voltaire -about three years before. There is no trace of it among his papers. - -[360:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[360:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[360:3] Among those who were eager to peruse these documents, Hume says, -writing to Madame de Barbantane, "The King and Queen of England -expressed a strong desire to see these papers, and I was obliged to put -them into their hands. They read them with avidity, and entertain the -same sentiments that must strike every one. The king's opinion confirms -me in the resolution not to give them to the public, unless I be forced -to it by some attack on the side of my adversary, which it will -therefore be wisdom in him to avoid." _Private Correspondence_, p. 210. - -[361:1] He says, in a subsequent letter,--"What are become of all the -controversies since the days of Scaliger and Scioppius, of Billingsgate -memory? Why, they sleep in oblivion, till some Bayle drags them out of -their dust, and takes mighty pains to ascertain the date of each -author's death, which is of no more consequence to the world than the -day of his birth. Many a country squire quarrels with his neighbour -about game and manors, yet they never print their wrangles, though as -much abuse passes between them, as if they could quote all the -Philippics of the learned." We have an instance of what he considered a -really important dispute, when he was baffled in his attempt to get his -nephew, Lord Orford, married to Miss Nicol, "the vast fortune." "Thus," -he says, "had I placed him in a greater situation than even his -grandfather hoped to bequeath to him,--had retrieved all the oversights -of my family,--had saved Houghton, and all our glory." "I have been -forced," he says, writing to Horace Mann, "_to write a narrative_ of the -whole transaction; and was with difficulty kept from publishing -it."--_Letters_, ii. 401. - -[362:1] He did not lose the opportunity afforded by the publication of -his pamphlet, for again expressing his contempt of men whose sole claim -to notice rested on the greatness of their genius: "For Monsieur -D'Alembert," he says, "I said that I was mighty indifferent about seeing -him. That it was not my custom to seek authors, who are a conceited -troublesome set of people." And hearing that Fréron, the same who was so -sharp a thorn in Voltaire's side, had made some remarks on him, which -displeased the Duchesse de Choiseul, he says, "I immediately wrote to -Paris, to beg the duchess would suffer Fréron and D'Alembert, or any of -the tribe, to write what they pleased, to get what money they could by -abusing me." - -[365:1] This is repeated in a letter to Robertson, of 19th March, and is -followed by the statement, "The King, when applied to, said, that since -the pension had once been promised, it should be granted, -notwithstanding all that had passed in the interval. And thus the affair -is happily finished, unless some new extravagance come across the -philosopher, and urge him to reject what he has anew applied -for."--_Stewart's Life of Robertson._ - -[365:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[366:1] The letter is in the usual editions of Rousseau's works, dated -30th April. - -[366:2] The pamphlets produced in England on this subject, were not -nearly so numerous as those published in France. Fuseli, whose mind was -well suited for such a paradoxical championship, wrote "A defence of M. -Rousseau, against the Aspersions of Mr. Hume, Monsieur Voltaire, and -their associates." The other pamphlet alluded to in the letter, was, -perhaps, "A letter to the Honourable Horace Walpole, concerning the -dispute between Mr. Hume and M. Rousseau," by the Rev. Ralph Heathcote, -D.D. Hume says, in a letter to Madame de Boufflers, "Agreeably to the -licence of this country, there has been a great deal of raillery on the -incident, thrown out in the public papers, but all against that unhappy -man. There is even a print engraved of it: M. Rousseau is represented as -a Yahoo, newly caught in the woods; I am represented as a farmer, who -caresses him and offers him some oats to eat, which he refuses in a -rage; Voltaire and D'Alembert are whipping him up behind; and Horace -Walpole making him horns of _papier mâché_. The idea is not altogether -absurd."--_Private Correspondence_, p. 234. - -[367:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[370:1] Walpole, whose capacity for acquiring information on such -matters was unrivalled, seems to have at least made a near approach to -the discovery of this point. He says in his narration, "The chief cause -of his disgust has been a long quarrel between his housekeeper and Mr. -Davenport's cook-maid, who, as Rousseau affirmed, had always dressed -their dinner very ill, and at last had sprinkled ashes on their -victuals." - -[371:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[372:1] These incidents are also narrated in a letter to Madame de -Boufflers.--_Priv. Cor._ p. 241. And some of them in a French letter to -a person unknown, ib. p. 220. - -[373:1] See the letter following that of 30th April to Mr. Davenport, in -the ordinary editions of Rousseau's works. The only material divergence -in the passage cited above is in the last clause, and the words -"quelques indiscrettes plaintes qui lui sont quelquefois echappées dans -le fort de ses peines," to which the corresponding clause in Rousseau's -Works, is "les plaintes indiscrettes, qui dans le fort de ses peines, -lui sont quelquefois échappées." These discrepancies were probably -between Rousseau's preserved copy, and the letter sent. That this letter -was printed from a copy preserved by Rousseau, is shown by the editors -of his Works not knowing to whom it was addressed. Hume repeats his own -version of the passage in a French letter already referred to. See -_Private Correspondence_, p. 222. - -[374:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[378:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 649. Corrected from original MS. -R.S.E. - -[379:1] He assumed the name of Renou. - -[380:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[381:1] On 1st June, 1767, Turgot writes, in answer to a letter from -Hume: "Je me hâte d'y répondre par ce courier, quoique je n'aie encore -fait aucune démarche pour le malheureux homme auquel, il est si digne de -vous de prendre encore intérêt. Le degré de folie qu'il montre -aujourdhui est en vérité préférable à une folie moins exaltée, qui le -laissoit chargé de tout l'odieux d'un excès d'ingratitude envers vous et -M. Davenport. Une pareille ingratitude réfléchie et méditée ne peut me -paroître dans la nature. . . . Je vous remercie de m'avoir choisi parmi -vos amis de ce pays-ci pour m'associer à la bonne action que vous voulez -faire en lui rendant service. J'y mettrai certainement tout le zèle dont -je suis capable et à cause de son infortune, et à cause de l'intérêt que -vous y prenez." He continues to say, that to get him a safe passage may -be easy: to find him a permanent asylum in France, would be a more -difficult matter. "La chose est possible hors du ressort du Parlement de -Paris, mais il faut que le Roi y consente. Il n'y a que l'intérêt même -que vous prenez, et la singularité de cette circonstance qui puisse -peut-être adoucir le Roi sur le compte de Rousseau en faisant demander -la chose en votre nom par M. de Choiseul." - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -1766-1770. Æt. 55-59. - - Hume Under Secretary of State--Church Politics--Official - abilities--Conduct as to Ferguson's book--Quarrel with - Oswald--Baron Mure's sons--Project of continuing the History-- - Ministerial convulsions--Hume's conduct to his Family--His - Brother--His Nephews--Baron Hume--Blacklock--Smollett--Church - Patronage--Gibbon--Robertson--Elliot--Gilbert Stuart--The - Douglas Cause--Andrew Stewart--Morellet--Return to Scotland. - - -The quarrel with Rousseau seems to have so fully occupied the attention -of Hume, during its continuance, that he scarcely alluded to any other -subject in his correspondence; and thus, though the preceding chapter is -devoted entirely to that event, a very slight retrospect from the point -of time reached at its conclusion, will suffice for whatever else, -worthy of notice in his life or correspondence, has been preserved. - -In the summer of 1766, he made a short visit to Scotland. "I returned," -he says, in his "own life," "to that place, not richer, but with much -more money, and a much larger income, by means of Lord Hertford's -friendship, than I left it; and I was desirous of trying what -superfluity could produce, as I had formerly made an experiment of a -competency. But, in 1767, I received, from Mr. Conway, an invitation to -be under-secretary; and this invitation, both the character of the -person, and my connexions with Lord Hertford, prevented me from -declining." - -He was thus solicited to undertake the very responsible duties of this -office, by one who had good opportunities of knowing his capacity for -public business; and the simple fact of the appointment is a testimony -to the ability with which he had performed the analogous functions of -his office in France. He was indeed at all times a man of punctual -habits, and his unwearied industry had not yet begun to slacken. He had -a mind of that clear systematic order which was well fitted for the -composition of official documents; and his triumphs in philosophical and -historical literature never inflated him with the ambition of -considering any business which he consented to undertake too -insignificant to deserve his full attention. Some official documents, -connected with the successive offices which he held, have been -preserved, by collectors, as autographs of so celebrated a man: and they -generally arrest the attention of every one who examines them, by the -clearness and precision of the language, and not a little by the -neatness of the handwriting. - -After the resignation of the Marquis of Tweeddale, in 1746, there was no -longer a principal secretary of state for Scotland; and it became usual -to consult the Lord Advocate, or any other ministerial officer, locally -connected with the north, as to the policy to be pursued in Scottish -affairs. None of the principal members of the Grafton ministry were -Scotsmen; and there can be little doubt that Hume must then have -exercised a large influence in all affairs connected with his native -country.[383:1] He held his office until the 20th of July 1768, when -General Conway was superseded by Lord Weymouth. - -The following letter contains a brief sketch of the general current of -his official life. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_1st April, 1767._ - -"My way of life here is very uniform, and by no means disagreeable. I -pass all the forenoon in the secretary's house, from ten till three, -where there arrive, from time to time, messengers, that bring me all -the secrets of the kingdom, and, indeed, of Europe, Asia, Africa, and -America. I am seldom hurried; but have leisure, at intervals, to take up -a book, or write a private letter, or converse with any friend that may -call for me; and from dinner to bed-time is all my own. If you add to -this, that the person with whom I have the chief, if not only -transactions, is the most reasonable, equal tempered, and gentleman-like -man imaginable, and Lady Aylesbury the same, you will certainly think I -have no reason to complain; and I am far from complaining. I only shall -not regret when my duty is over; because, to me, the situation can lead -to nothing, at least in all probability; and reading, and sauntering, -and lounging, and dosing, which I call thinking, is my supreme -happiness. I mean my full contentment. - -"I thank you for the acquaintance you offer me of Mr. Percy; but it -would be impracticable for me to cultivate his friendship, as men of -letters have here no place of rendezvous; and are, indeed, sunk and -forgot in the general torrent of the world. If you can therefore -decline, without hardship, any letter of recommendation, it would save -trouble both to him and me."[385:1] - - -In the beginning of the year 1767, Ferguson published his "Essay on the -History of Civil Society," a work which speedily acquired a wide -reputation through Europe. The allusions which Hume has been found -making to some work of a similar character, so early as 1759,[385:2] -probably refer to a particular portion of this book. Immediately before -its publication, he recommended Ferguson's friends to prevail on him to -suppress the work, as likely to be injurious to its author's literary -reputation: one of the few instances, if it be not the only one, in -which he discouraged a fellow-countryman, desirous of casting his lot -into the competition for literary distinction. He ultimately found that -his advice was erroneous, as the book soon obtained a high character. -But, had his own opinion of its merits coincided with the suffrages of -the public, it would not have been so honourable to his memory, as the -satisfaction he expressed on the discovery that the verdict of the -reading world was against him. Writing to Blair on 24th February, 1767, -he says:-- - -"I happened yesterday to visit a person three hours after a copy of -Ferguson's performance was opened, for the first time, in London. It was -by Lord Mansfield. I accept this omen of its future success. He was -extremely pleased with it; said it was very agreeable, and perfectly -well wrote; assured me that he would not stop a moment till he had -finished it; and recommended it strongly to the perusal of the -Archbishop of York, who was present. I have wrote the same article of -intelligence to Ferguson himself; but as he is the likeliest person in -the world to suppress it, I thought it safest to put it into your hands, -in order to circulate it."[386:1] - -Again:-- - -"I hear good things said of Ferguson's book every day. Lord Holderness -showed me a letter from the Archbishop of York, where his Grace says, -that in many things it surpasses Montesquieu. My friend, Mr. Dodwell, -says that it is an admirable book, elegantly wrote, and with great -purity of language. Pray, tell to Ferguson and to others all these -things."[386:2] - -Again, writing to the same correspondent, on 1st April, he says:-- - -"The success of the book, dear Doctor, which you mention, gives me great -satisfaction, on account of my sincere friendship for the author; and so -much the rather, as the success was to me unexpected. I have since begun -to hope, and even to believe, that I was mistaken; and in this -persuasion have several times taken it up and read chapters of it. But, -to my great mortification and sorrow, I have not been able to change my -sentiments. We shall see, by the duration of its fame, whether or not I -am mistaken. Helvétius and Saurin both told me at Paris, that they had -been consulted by Montesquieu about his 'Esprit des Loix.' They used the -freedom to tell him, as their fixed opinion, that he ought to suppress -the book; which they foresaw would very much injure his reputation. They -said to me that, no doubt, I thought they had reason to be ashamed of -their judgment. But still, added they, you may observe that the public -are very much returned from their first admiration of that book; and we -are persuaded that they will daily return still more. - -"I hope that I shall be found a false prophet as much as these -gentlemen; for though the 'Esprit des Loix,' be considerably sunk in -vogue, and will probably still sink farther, it maintains a high -reputation, and probably will never be totally neglected. It has -considerable merit, notwithstanding the glare of its pointed wit, and -notwithstanding its false refinements, and its rash and crude positions. -Helvétius and Saurin assured me, that this freedom of theirs never lost -them any thing of Montesquieu's friendship. I believe the like would be -my case; but it is better not to put it to a trial. On that account, as -well as others, I recommend to you secrecy, towards every person except -Robertson."[388:1] - -A letter from Adam Smith, desiring that his friend, Count Sarsfield, -might be introduced to Hume's circle of acquaintance, called forth the -following narrative of a very amusing incident:-- - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_London, 13th June, 1767._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--The Count de Sarsfield is a good acquaintance of mine, -from the time I saw him at Paris; and as he is really a man of merit, I -have great pleasure whenever I meet him here. My occupations keep me -from cultivating his friendship as much as I should incline. I did not -introduce him to Elliot, because I knew that this gentleman's reserve -and indolence would make him neglect the acquaintance; and I did not -introduce him to Oswald, because I fear that he and I are broke for -ever; at least he does not seem inclined to take any steps towards an -accommodation with me. - -"I am to tell you the strangest story you ever heard of. I was dining -with him, above two months ago, where, among other company, was the -Bishop of Raphoe.[388:2] After dinner we were disposed to be merry. I -said to the company, that I had been very ill used by Lord Hertford; for -that I always expected to be made a bishop by him during his -lieutenancy! but he had given away two sees from me, to my great -vexation and disappointment. The right reverend, without any farther -provocation, burst out into the most furious, and indecent, and -orthodox rage that ever was seen: told me that I was most impertinent; -that if he did not wear a gown, I durst not, no, I durst not, have used -him so; that none but a coward would treat a clergyman in that manner; -that henceforth he must either abstain from his brother's house, or I -must; and that this was not the first time he had heard the stupid joke -from my mouth. With the utmost tranquillity and temper I asked his -pardon; assured him, upon my honour, that I did not mean him the least -offence: if I had imagined he could possibly have been displeased, I -never should have mentioned the subject; but the joke was not in the -least against him, but entirely against myself, as if I were capable of -such an expectation as that of being a bishop! my regard for himself, -and still more for his brother, with whom I had long been more -particularly connected, would certainly restrain me from either joke or -earnest, which could be offensive to him; and that, if I had ever -touched on the same topic before, I had entirely forgot it, and it must -have been above a twelvemonth ago. He was nowise appeased; raved on in -the same style for a long time. At last I got the discourse diverted, -and took my leave, seemingly with great indifference and even good -humour. I was nowise surprised nor concerned about his lordship; because -I had, on other occasions, observed the same orthodox zeal swell within -him, and it was often difficult for him to converse with temper when I -was in the company. - -"But what really surprised and vexed me was, that his brother kept -silence all the time. I met him in the passage when I went away, and he -made me no apology. He has never since called on me; and though he sees -that I never come near his house, though formerly I used to be three or -four times a-week with him, he never takes the least notice of it. I own -this gives me vexation, because I have a sincere value and affection for -him. It is only some satisfaction to me to find, that I am so palpably -in the right as not to leave the least room for doubt or ambiguity. Dr. -Pitcairne, who was in the company, says that he never saw such a scene -in his lifetime. If I were sure, dear Smith, that you and I should not -some day quarrel in some such manner, I should tell you that I am, yours -very affectionately and sincerely."[390:1] - - -The world levies certain penalties on the enjoyment of a character for -good nature and kindness, and Hume seems to have paid them to their most -ample extent, in the shape of executing commissions, and performing -general petty services for his friends. We have witnessed the zeal with -which he attended to the education of Mr. Elliot's two sons. A teacher -of languages, possessing the distinguished name of Graffigny, and -professing to be in the confidence of celebrated literary people in -Paris, appears to have excited the suspicion of Baron Mure, whose sons -he was employed to instruct. Hume undertook to make some inquiries -regarding him; and his brief reports, from time to time, have some -interest from their containing a few of his opinions on education. - - -HUME _to_ BARON MURE. - -"_London, 1st July, 1767._ - -"DEAR BARON,--I believe I told you, that D'Alembert disclaimed all sort -of acquaintance with him. I have this moment received a letter from -Helvétius, doing the same. It was in answer to one I wrote him at Lord -Hertford's desire. I know not from what quarter we had heard that he had -given to Lord Harcourt, or Lord Newnam, a good character of Graffigny: -but it must have been a mistake; for to me he says, that he knows no -such man; that his wife, who was niece to the famous Ma{me} de -Graffigny, and educated with her, never saw or heard of such a man: nor -can they imagine who he may be. After this second imposture, it is -certain that Lord Hertford will not put his sons to him; nor do I think -it fit yours should longer remain. He is an empty, conceited fellow, -full of chimeras and pretensions; and I think you are at no great loss -for parting with him. The question [is,] what to do next?" - - -(_Undated._) - -"DEAR BARON,--He is indeed a conceited man, full of whimseys and -affectations, reasoning always in the clouds about the most obvious -things, and hunting after novelties and singularities of which his -genius is incapable. What, for instance, can be more whimsical than his -method of teaching Latin? He gives his boys a long list of words, which -they are to get by heart, like the muster-roll of a regiment, and a -great heap of grammar rules, which are to them unintelligible. After he -has laid this foundation of a language, as he imagines, he begins them -with the most difficult of all the Latin poets; and for this plan of -education, he will give you a galimatias of reasons, clothed in the -smoothest language, and delivered with the softest accent." - - -(_Undated._) - -"DEAR BARON,--In my conversation with your young folks yesterday, I -endeavoured to inform myself concerning their progress in Latin. I find -that they are not taught any Latin grammar; they are only instructed in -the sense of single detached words, which they learn, both in Greek and -Latin, at once. Accordingly they told me water, aqua, and +hudôr+; but -though I tried them in about half a dozen more words, I could not find -their learning extended so far. All this appears to me very whimsical; -and I doubt a dead language can never be learned in this manner without -grammar. In a living language, the continual application of the words -and phrases teaches at the same time the sense of the words, and their -reference to each other; but a list of words got by heart, without any -connected sense, easily escapes the memory, and is but a small part of -the language."[392:1] - - -There are several indications that Hume still retained the half-formed -intention of continuing his History through a portion of the period -succeeding the Revolution. In a brief undated letter, written to Smith -in Paris, he says:-- - -"Some push me to continue my History. Millar offers me any price. All -the Marlborough papers are offered me: and I believe nobody would -venture to refuse me. But _cui bono_? Why should I forego idleness, and -sauntering, and society, and expose myself again to the clamours of a -stupid factious public? I am not yet tired of doing nothing; and am -become too wise either to mind censure or applause. By and bye I shall -be too old to undergo so much labour. Adieu."[392:2] - -Smith's opinion is thus reported by Andrew Millar, on 22d November, -1766. - -"He is of opinion, with many more of your very good sensible friends, -that the History of this country, from the Revolution, is not to be met -with in books yet printed; but from MSS. in this country, to which he is -sure you will have ready access, from all accounts he hears from the -great here; and therefore you should lay the ground-work here, after -your perusal of the MSS. you may have access to, and doing it below will -be laying the wrong foundation. I think it my duty to inform you the -opinion of your most judicious friends, and I think he and Sir John -Pringle may be reckoned amongst that number."[393:1] - -Millar, indeed, seems to have scarcely ever relaxed from urging this -project; and perhaps it was his perseverance, and not any -self-originating desire to pursue the task, that kept the design alive -in Hume's mind. He had written to his worthy publisher on 8th October, -1766:-- - -"I shall probably do as you advise, and sketch out the outlines of the -two or three subsequent reigns, which I may finish at London, after I -find that there remains no farther obstacles to this work, and that it -is favoured, I do not say by every body, (for that is impossible,) but -by the generality of the world." - -At a later date he thus expressed his views:-- - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_London, 17th July, 1767._ - -"DEAR SIR,--We are still in as unsettled a condition as when you left -us. There will certainly be a considerable alteration in the ministry; -and I do not at present reckon my principal's situation more precarious -than that of any other minister. He speaks, however, like a man who is -to be out of office in a few days. I have also taken the precaution to -desire him to request of the king, in my name, the liberty, after my -dismission, of inspecting all the public records, and all the papers in -the Paper-office. His majesty was pleased to say, that he very willingly -complied with my request, and was glad to hear of my intentions. But my -chief view is to run over such papers as belong to the period which I -have already wrote, in order to render that part of my History as little -imperfect as possible. It would be folly to think of writing any more; -and even as to correcting, were it not an amusement, to what purpose -would it serve, since I shall certainly never live to see a new -edition?"[394:1] - - -On the same subject, and in the same tone, he writes to his brother, on -6th October:-- - -"As to myself, I pass my time, as I told you, in an agreeable enough -kind of business, and not too much of it. My income, also, is at present -very considerable--above £1100 a-year, of which I shall not spend much -above the half. Notwithstanding, I sometimes wish to be out of -employment, in order to prosecute my History, to which every body urges -me. When Mr. Conway was on the point of resigning, I desired him to -propose to the king that I might afterwards have the liberty of -inspecting all the public offices for such papers as might serve to my -purpose. His majesty said, that he was glad that I had that object in my -eye; and I should certainly have all the assistance in his power. He was -also pleased, some time after, to send to me the Baron Behr, minister -for Hanover, to tell me that he had ordered over some papers from -Hanover, to be put into my hands, because he believed they would be of -use to me. I believe I have told you that the use of the Marlborough -papers had been promised me by Lord and Lady Spencer; but Marchmont, who -had some pretence of authority over them, as trustee, delayed giving -them up, suspecting, I suppose, the use they intended to make of -them."[395:1] - -Though it was as part of Lord Rockingham's administration that Conway -became secretary of state, and his political connexions attached him to -that leader, he had been prevailed on to retain office on the formation -of the Grafton and Chatham cabinet, in August 1766. In the summer of -1767, that ministry seemed likely to be formidably assailed by the -united efforts of the Rockingham and Bedford parties, whose meetings and -resolutions at Newcastle House are matters well known in history. -General Conway's resignation would have terminated Hume's tenure of -office; and we find, in his correspondence, a few indications of -interest in the political movements of the time; yet so calm and -modified, that even the possession of office seems scarcely to have -affected the stoic philosophy with which he contemplated ministerial -revolutions. - -He says to his friend Blair, on the 18th of June:-- - -"We are all again in confusion. Negotiations for a new ministry; the -fatal month of July approaching; a new settlement to be made, which will -be no settlement. I fancy I return, in a few weeks, to my former -situation."[395:2] - -And to Smith, on 14th July:-- - -"DEAR SMITH,--I send you the enclosed, with a large packet for Count -Sarsfield. This is the last ministerial act which I shall probably -perform; and with this exertion I finish my functions. I shall not -leave this country presently. Perhaps I may go over to France. Our -resignation is a very extraordinary incident, and will probably occasion -a total change of ministry. Are you busy?"[396:1] - -His official life, however, was not so near a conclusion as he thought -it was. The following letter is more full and explicit, in regard to -these matters:-- - -_London, 28th July, 1767._ - -"DEAR BROTHER,--Were my present situation any object of anxiety, I -should have been very unhappy of late: so uncertain has my continuance -appeared every moment, and so near did my ministerial functions seem to -draw towards their conclusion. But as the matter was very nearly -indifferent to me, I neither felt anxiety for my past danger, nor do I -experience any joy from my present establishment; for we are now -established, for some time at least, and all apprehensions of a change -are removed to a distance. The history of our late transactions is, in -short, as follows: About this time twelvemonth, when the last revolution -of ministry took place, Mr. Conway staid in, though Lord Rockingham, and -most of his friends, were turned out: But it was with reluctance, and -only on the earnest entreaties of the king and Lord Chatham, and on -their giving him a promise that several of his friends and party should -still continue to hold their places. This engagement was broke last -winter. Some of these gentlemen were turned out; and Mr. Conway, after -protesting against this usage, declared, that though he would keep his -office during the session, not to disturb the king's business, he would -resign as soon as the parliament should rise. He accordingly desired the -king, about six weeks ago, to provide him a successor, and was -entreated only to keep the seals till a proper person should be thought -of. When the matter came to be discussed, it was found very difficult. -The Duke of Grafton declared, that being deprived of Lord Chatham's -support, he could not continue to serve without Mr. Conway: and a total -dissolution of the ministry seemed to be the effect of the incident. -Negotiations were accordingly set on foot with the leaders of the -opposition, and a great meeting of them was held last week, at Bedford -House. It was found that they could not, by any means, agree in their -demands; and they separated in mutual discontent. Every body thinks that -Mr. Conway has now satisfied, to the full, the point of honour, in which -he is very scrupulous, and that he will cordially resume his functions, -especially as he stands so well with the king and his fellow ministers, -and has brought it within the choice of his old friends to accept of the -ministry, if they had thought proper. I was beginning to wish for our -dissolution; but upon this turn of affairs, I resume my occupations with -cheerfulness."[397:1] - -The remainder of this letter is devoted to a matter in which we have -already frequently found him taking interest--the education of his -nephews. From his earliest to his latest days, his connexion with his -elder brother was cordial and affectionate. On the 6th of October we -find him writing, in a tone which indicates a sympathy with some -domestic calamity which his brother must have suffered:-- - -"The time of your going to Edinburgh approaches, which makes a great -change in your way of life, and will naturally make yourself, as well as -all your friends, anxious about the issue of it. However, I cannot but -think that you will there live more cheerfully, with all your children -about you, than in the country, during the winter, when your boys were -absent. At first only, as your spirits are not very strong at present, -you may feel uneasy at the alteration, as you are at present somewhat -apprehensive about it."[398:1] - -There was apparently but one point in which the two brothers differed; -and it was a subject on which Hume seems to have been at war with all -his clan. The Laird of Ninewells, notwithstanding all the lustre that -had now gathered round the name of _Hume_, would not adopt it in place -of that of _Home_, which his father had borne. He was a simple, -single-hearted man, moderate in all his views and wishes, and neither -ambitious of distinction nor of wealth. He passed his life as a retired -country gentleman; and while Europe was full of his brother's name, he -was so averse to notoriety, that he is known to have objected to the -domestic events of births, marriages, and deaths, in his family, -obtaining the usual publicity through the newspapers.[398:2] His eldest -son, Joseph, frequently mentioned in the following correspondence, -succeeded him in his estate and retired habits, but not entirely in his -disposition; for he indulged in many of the eccentricities and -peculiarities so often exhibited by the Scottish gentry,--a -characteristic they seem to derive from the circumstance, that, in the -British empire, there is no person less liable to encounter an equal, -and to be thwarted in his small exercise of absolute power, than a -Scottish laird. It is evident from his uncle's letters, that Joseph -obtained an excellent education. He was for some time placed under the -charge of poor Blacklock,--an arrangement by which Hume sought to -perform a double act of beneficence.[399:1] Joseph died unmarried, on -14th February, 1832, and was succeeded by his brother David, whose -career was more public and distinguished. He was born on 27th February, -1757,[401:1] and died on 27th July, 1838. He was successively sheriff of -the counties of Berwick and Linlithgow. He was professor of Scots law in -the university of Edinburgh, and a principal clerk of Session. He -subsequently resigned these offices, on his being appointed a Baron of -the Scottish Exchequer. His works are of great authority in the -practical departments of the law. While he taught in the university, his -students zealously collected notes of his lectures; and, as he refused -to permit any version of them to be published, the well preserved -collections of these notes have been considered valuable treasuries of -legal wisdom. In 1790, he published "Commentaries on the law of -Scotland, respecting trials for crimes;" and, in 1797, "Commentaries on -the law of Scotland respecting the description and punishment of -crimes," forming, in four quarto volumes, a comprehensive treatise on -all the departments of the criminal law of Scotland, which has now -passed through three editions. It has been justly remarked, that lawyers -of the present generation, can, with difficulty, appreciate the merit -of this work, because, from its having converted the whole subject it -embraces into a system, the chaotic mass, from which the present -comparatively orderly criminal code of Scotland was constructed, has -disappeared.[402:1] - -Few literary reputations have been more unlike each other than those of -the two David Humes, uncle and nephew. The former hated legal details -and the jargon of technical phraseology; to the latter they were the -breath of his literary life. The one, as a philosopher, saw, throughout -a wide circumference of vision, the relations to each other of the most -distant objects of human knowledge; the latter saw nothing beyond the -bounds of the professional details before him; but these he noted with -an unrivalled accuracy. The strength, clearness, and beauty of the -philosopher's language have been a lasting object of admiration; the -lawyer's diction was clumsy, rude, and ponderous, without being either -strong or clear. On one point only did they agree--their political -opinions; and yet, on this subject, they seem not always to have been in -unison. From a very curious letter, which will be found a few pages -farther on, it appears that Hume thought it necessary seriously to warn -his nephew against republican principles. Few, who are only acquainted -with the opinions of Baron Hume's later life, will be inclined to -believe that this danger could ever have been serious. He was a -supporter of all those parts of the criminal law of Scotland,--in his -day not a few,--which put the subject at the mercy of the crown and of -the judges; and a warm admirer of his sagacity and learning, as a -lawyer, cannot quit this subject without regretting that these qualities -should have been brought to aid the promulgation of arbitrary -principles. - -The education of his nephews, occupies, as has been already stated, the -remainder of the letter by Hume to his brother above cited. - -"My present situation revives those reflections which have frequently -occurred to me concerning the education of your sons, particularly of -Josey, whose age now advances, and seems to approach towards a crisis. -The question is, whether he had better continue his education in -Scotland or in England. There are several advantages of a Scots -education; but the question is, whether that of the language does not -counterbalance them, and determine the preference to the English. He is -now of an age to learn it perfectly; but if a few years elapse, he may -acquire such an accent, as he will never be able to cure of. It is not -yet determined what profession he shall be of: but it must always be of -great advantage to speak properly: especially if it should prove, as we -have reason to hope, that his good parts will open him the road of -ambition. The only inconvenience is, that few Scotsmen, that have had an -English education, have ever settled cordially in their own country; and -they have been commonly lost ever after to their friends. However, as -this consequence is not necessary, the superior recommendations of an -English education ought not to be neglected. I have been making -inquiries for some time, and on the whole I find Eton the best place for -the education of youth. He would there be able to form connexions with -many young people of distinction; though the whole expense would -scarcely exceed £70 a-year, which I fancy is little more than he costs -you at present. I suggest, therefore, this idea to you that you may -weigh it at leisure, and determine upon it. I know you do not like to be -hurried, and therefore the more time for reflection the better. His -friend and companion, young Adam, is coming up soon, but is going to -Westminster school, which is a place that I find some objections to. - -"I hope Mrs. Home is perfectly recovered. I am glad to hear such good -news of Jock. I had a letter from Davie last week, which gave me -pleasure. I am, dear brother, yours sincerely."[404:1] - -On 13th October, in a letter of which a portion has been cited above, -Hume writes further on the same subject: - -"DEAR BROTHER,--I never prognosticated well of Josey's genius for the -mathematics, from his great slowness in learning arithmetic: and I am -not surprised to find that his progress in Euclid has not been so great -as might have been expected from his quickness and his capacity in other -particulars. There is indeed something very unaccountable in his turn; -so childish in many cases, and yet so manly, and quick, and sensible in -others. The presence of strangers, above all, seems to make him -recollect himself, and he is exceedingly taking among them. His address -in particular, is remarkably good, and he seems to have a turn for the -world and for company. However, I do not think him by any means -deficient in his talents for literature. It appeared to me that he -always read his books with a very good taste, Latin as well as French -and English; and I imagine that he will make at least a very -gentlemanlike scholar. I wish therefore he had a further trial of the -Greek; and if that will not do, I think with you that the Italian is an -easy and genteel acquisition, which will furnish him with occupation for -this winter."[405:1] - -Hume expressed no high respect for the historical abilities of Dr. -Smollett, nor could he have well expected credit for sincerity if he had -done so. With the works in which the novelist let loose his native -genius, it is not likely that the philosopher could have had much -sympathy. But two letters addressed by him to Smollett, show that the -successful and affluent man of letters was substantially kind and -friendly to his less fortunate countryman. - - -HUME _to_ TOBIAS SMOLLETT. - -"_London, July 18, 1767._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I have had a conversation with Lord Shelburne concerning -your affairs: he told me that he had long been pre-engaged for the -consulship of Nice to the Spanish ambassador, and could not possibly get -free of that obligation. I then mentioned the consulship of Leghorn; but -he said he was already engaged for that office to a friend of Mr. -Dunning, the lawyer. On the whole, I cannot flatter you with any hopes -of success from that quarter; even supposing his lordship were to remain -in office, which is very uncertain, considering the present state of our -ministry. For of all our annual confusions, the present seems to be the -most violent, and to threaten the most entire revolution, and the most -important events. As Lord Chatham's state of health appears totally -desperate, and as Lord Shelburne's connexion is supposed to be chiefly, -if not solely, with him, many people foretell a short duration to the -greatness of the last named minister. Every thing is uncertain: there is -a mighty combination to overpower the king. The force of the crown is -great; but is not employed with that steadiness which its friends would -wish. I pretend not to foresee, much less to foretell, the consequences. -I am, dear sir, your most obedient, and most humble servant," &c.[406:1] - - -It has been a matter of speculation, if not of dispute among -ecclesiastical politicians, how far Hume had an influence in the -dispensation of church patronage in Scotland. The following letters, -having however a more immediate reference to state politics, may be held -to afford some light on this question. - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT.[406:2] - -"_London, 13th August, 1767._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I am told that the minister of Kirkton, in the -Presbytery of Jedburgh, is either dying, or is to be removed, and that -the living is in the gift of the crown. I have spoke to General Conway -desiring that, in case no unexpected difficulties occur, he may give it -to my nephew's tutor; and he has agreed to it. I have since heard, that -the living, though it stands in our list as a crown presentation, is -alternately in the gift of Sir John Elliot of Stobs, and Cavers Douglas. -I shall be much obliged to you, if, without mentioning the reason, you -could make inquiries, and give me information. - -"You have heard, no doubt, that all our negotiations have vanished, and -that our present ministry is settled on a firmer basis than ever. Mr. -Conway's delicacy of honour was satisfied, by bringing his old friends -the Rockinghams to have an offer; and as it was impossible for them to -concert a ministry, he has agreed to act cordially with the Duke of -Grafton: the king is very happy that no changes are to have place. I do -not reckon the change in Ireland for any thing, because Lord Bristol -goes out at his own earnest and repeated desire. I am told that Lord -Townsend openly ascribes his own promotion entirely to the friendship of -Lord Bute. Charles Fitzroy lately, in a great meeting, proposed Lord -Bute's health in a bumper. It will be a surprise to you certainly, if -that noble lord should again come into fashion, and openly avow his -share of influence, and be openly courted by all the world. I am, dear -Sir Gilbert, yours sincerely."[407:1] - - -"_10th Sept. 1767._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--Lord North has refused the office of Chancellor -of the Exchequer; though it was earnestly pressed upon him, and -though he professed an entire satisfaction with every person in the -administration. He dreads the labour of the office, especially as it -obliges him to take so great a part in the business of the House of -Commons. It will not probably be offered to any Scotsman, for fear of -popular reflections concerning the influence of the Thane. The same -objection, as well as others, lie against Dyson, who has been thought -of. I see the ministry in some perplexity; perhaps this incident may -draw on new resignations and negotiations, and cabals. I think one -defect of the present situation of our government is, that nobody -desires much to have any share in the administration, except -adventurers, of whom the public is naturally distrustful. The pecuniary -emoluments are of no consideration to men of rank and fortune. You have -often more personal regard from being in the opposition. The protection -of the law is at all times sufficient for your security; and by -acquiring authority you are exposed to insults, instead of gaining the -power to revenge them.[408:1] Why, then, should a man of birth, fortune, -and parts, sacrifice his fame and peace to an ungrateful public? Such is -the defect that arises from the perfection of the most perfect -government."[408:2] - -The next in the chronological order of Hume's letters, reverts to the -prospect of his continuing his History. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_19th October, 1767._ - -"DEAR SIR,--The picture which Donaldson has done for me is a drawing; -and, in every body's opinion, as well as my own, is the likest that has -been done for me, as well as the best likeness. Since you still insist -that an engraving should be made from it, we are [thus] more likely to -have a good engraving made than by any other means. I shall, however, be -glad to sit to Ferguson.[409:1] I intend to give up all my leisure time -to the correction of my History, and to contrive more leisure than I -have possessed since I came into public office. I had run over four -volumes; but I shall give them a second perusal, and employ the same, or -greater accuracy in correcting the other four. I shall read carefully -all the records in the Paper Office, as far back as they go, and shall -leave nothing untried that may bestow the greatest exactness upon it. -For this reason, as well as many others, I would not have you -precipitate this edition, which is probably the last that I may have -occasion to make. I would wish to leave that work as little imperfect as -possible to posterity. I am," &c.[409:2] - - -Gibbon tells us, in his amusing autobiography, that with the assistance -of his friend Deyverdun, he had written in French a portion of a history -of Switzerland, and that the opinions he heard expressed when a fragment -of it was anonymously read before a society in London, prompted him to -abandon the work, and burn the portion he had written. "I delivered," he -says, "my imperfect sketches to the flames." Yet, singularly enough, he -seems to have confounded the intention with the fulfilment, for they -were discovered after his death, but were not thought worthy of being -published by his literary executor, Lord Sheffield.[409:3] Gibbon had -endeavoured to find for his friend Deyverdun some employment in -England, picturesquely observing, that his own "purse was always open, -but it was often empty." They wrote in company some numbers of a -periodical, now very rare, called "Mémoires Littéraires de La Grande -Bretagne," and Gibbon informs us that these specimens of their labours -introduced them to the notice of Hume,[410:1] in whose office Deyverdun -held an appointment at the date of the following letter:-- - - -GIBBON _to_ HUME. - - _Baiton, 4th October, 1767._ - - SIR,--A six years' residence in Switzerland inspired me with - the design of writing a general history of that brave and free - people, so little known to the rest of Europe, but whom I had - studied with some attention. This design was dropt almost as - soon as conceived, from the almost insurmountable difficulty - of procuring proper materials, as they were mostly in German, - a language I am totally unacquainted with. A Swiss gentleman, - and intimate friend of mine, has removed that difficulty. Mr. - Deyverdun, who passed the summer with me in the country two - years ago, approved very much my design, and offered to assist - me by translating what was most difficult, himself, and by - superintending a German translator, as to the remainder. He is - now returning to London after a much shorter visit than I - desired; and as he has the happiness of supporting some - connexion with you, I flattered myself that you might indulge - a wish, perhaps presumptuous, that I had conceived, and that - you would condescend to glance your eye over the sheets of - this History, which I had already drawn up in a language - indeed foreign to an Englishman, but which the favourable - reception of a former essay engaged me to make use of. - - Give me leave, sir, to add, that I must beg you to consider - this liberty as a proof of my respect; and that I shall - consider your severity as a mark of your esteem. If you - advise me to burn what I have already wrote, I shall - immediately execute your sentence, with a full persuasion that - it is just. Let me say, however, I have perhaps vanity enough - to make so unlimited a sacrifice to no man in Europe but to - Mr. Hume. I am, sir, with the greatest esteem, your most - obedient humble servant, - - E. GIBBON, Junior.[411:1] - - -HUME _to_ GIBBON. - -"_London, 24th October, 1767._ - -"SIR,--It is but a few days since Mr. Deyverdun put your manuscript into -my hands; and I have perused it with great pleasure and satisfaction. I -have only one objection, derived from the language in which it is -written. Why do you compose in French, and carry fagots into the wood, -as Horace says, with regard to the Romans who wrote in Greek? I grant, -that you have a like motive to those Romans, and adopt a language much -more generally diffused than your native tongue: but have you not -remarked the fate of those two ancient languages in following ages? The -Latin, though then less celebrated, and confined to more narrow limits, -has, in some measure, outlived the Greek, and is now more generally -understood by men of letters. Let the French, therefore, triumph in the -present diffusion of their tongue. Our solid and increasing -establishments in America, where we need less dread the inundation of -barbarians, promise a superior stability and duration to the English -language. - -"Your use of the French tongue has also led you into a style more -poetical and figurative, and more highly coloured, than our language -seems to admit of in historical productions: for such is the practice of -French writers, particularly the more recent ones, who illuminate their -pictures more than custom will permit us. On the whole, your History, in -my opinion, is written with spirit and judgment; and I exhort you very -earnestly to continue it. The objections that occurred to me on reading -it were so frivolous, that I shall not trouble you with them, and -should, I believe, have a difficulty to collect them. I am, with great -esteem," &c.[412:1] - - -Some remarks communicated to Dr. Robertson, on his "History of Charles -V." while that work was passing through the press, have deservedly -attracted notice by their unconstrained and natural playfulness. - - -HUME _to_ DR. ROBERTSON. - - I got yesterday from Strahan about thirty sheets of your - History to be sent over to Suard, and last night and this - morning have run them over with great avidity. I could not - deny myself the satisfaction (which I hope also will not - displease you) of expressing presently my extreme approbation - of them. To say only that they are very well written, is by - far too faint an expression, and much inferior to the - sentiments I feel. They are composed with nobleness, with - dignity, with elegance, and with judgment, to which there are - few equals. They even excel, and, I think, in a sensible - degree, your "History of Scotland." I propose to myself great - pleasure in being the only man in England, during some months, - who will be in the situation of doing you justice,--after - which you may certainly expect that my voice will be drowned - in that of the public. - - You know that you and I have always been on the footing of - finding in each other's productions _something to blame, and - something to commend_; and therefore you may perhaps expect - also some seasoning of the former kind; but really neither my - leisure nor inclination allowed me to make such remarks; and I - sincerely believe you have afforded me very small materials - for them. However, such particulars as occur to my memory, I - shall mention. _Maltreat_ is a Scoticism which occurs once. - What the devil had you to do with that old fashioned dangling - word _wherewith_? I should as soon take back _whereupon_, - _whereunto_, and _wherewithal_. I think the only tolerable - decent gentleman of the family is _wherein_; and I should not - choose to be often seen in his company. But I know your - affection for _wherewith_ proceeds from your partiality to - Dean Swift, whom I can often laugh with, whose style I can - even approve, but surely can never admire. It has no harmony, - no eloquence, no ornament; and not much correctness, whatever - the English may imagine. Were not their literature still in a - somewhat barbarous state, that author's place would not be so - high among their classics. But what a fancy is this you have - taken of saying always _an hand_, _an heart_, _an head_? Have - you _an ear_? Do you not know that this (n) is added before - vowels to prevent the cacophony, and ought never to take place - before (h) when that letter is sounded? It is never pronounced - in these words; why should it be wrote? Thus, I should say, _a - history_, and _an historian_; and so would you too, if you had - any sense. But you tell me that Swift does otherwise. To be - sure there is no reply to that; and we must swallow your - _hath_ too upon the same authority. I will see you d----d - sooner. But I will endeavour to keep my temper. - - I do not like this sentence in page 149: _This step was taken - in consequence of the treaty Wolsey had concluded with the - Emperor at Brussels, and which had hitherto been kept secret._ - Si sic omnia dixisses, I should never have been plagued with - hearing your praises so often sounded, and that fools - preferred your style to mine. Certainly it had been better to - have said, _which_ Wolsey, &c. That relative ought very seldom - to be omitted; and is here particularly requisite to preserve - a symmetry between the two members of the sentence. You omit - the relative too often, which is a colloquial barbarism, as Mr - Johnson calls it. - - Your periods are sometimes, though not often, too long. Suard - will be embarrassed with them, as the modish French style runs - into the other extreme.[413:1] - -Turgot, at the instigation of some Italian friends, had applied to Hume -to recommend a scholar, who would undertake to teach the English -language and literature at Parma. He selected Robert Liston; but he had -overlooked an objection which the enlightened promoters of the scheme in -Italy appear to have considered too obvious to require preliminary -explanation, that Liston was a Protestant! In returning thanks to Hume -for the unavailing recommendation, Liston discovers the bent of his -genius, by desiring that, if an opportunity should occur, Hume would -recommend him as secretary of legation to any of the secondary -embassies. The fate of the Parma scheme was thus communicated to Elliot. - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT. - -"_London, 5th July, 1768._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I beg of you to direct the enclosed to poor Liston, -who will be disappointed in the scheme for Parma: they will have nothing -but a Papist. Such fools! Let the Pope excommunicate them on the one -hand: I will do so on the other. - -"I have seen a book newly printed at Edinburgh, called 'Philosophical -Essays:' it has no manner of sense in it, but is wrote with tolerable -neatness of style: whence I conjecture it to be our friend, Sir -David's.[414:1] I am obliged to him for the treatment which he destines -me, to be locked up for five years in a dungeon, and then to be hanged, -and my carcass to be thrown out of Scotland. He supports himself, -indeed, by the authority of Plato, whom I own to be truly divine. Pray, -have you seen the book? Is it Sir David's? I think it has not so many -attempts at humour, as that pious gentleman would employ. - -"We are all very quiet here; as quiet as you are at Minto, though -perhaps not so busy. No more noise of Wilkes and Liberty. Lord Mansfield -said to me, that it was impossible for him to condemn him to the -pillory, because the attorney-general did not demand it. Yesterday he -represented to the Spanish ambassador, that moderate sentence, as a -refinement in politics, which reduced the scoundrel the sooner to -obscurity. It would be a strange cause, which he could not find -plausible reasons to justify. - -"I beg to be remembered to Lady Elliot, and to any of your family who -may be at Minto. I ever am, dear Sir Gilbert, yours sincerely."[415:1] - - -SIR GILBERT ELLIOT _to_ HUME. - - "_Minto, 11th July, 1768._ - - "I am sorry, my dear sir, for poor Liston's disappointment. I - am told he thought himself secure. I have seen the book you - mention; but you do injustice to our friend Sir David. He is - not the author; but a very moral and worthy man, who, I - believe, once had the honour to attend you in some of your - writings before,--his name James Balfour--at least I am told - so. The young feudal author, Gilbert Stewart, is just now in - my neighbourhood; and, his father tells me, impatient, to a - great degree, for your letter. It seems he is much your - admirer. However, I hope my criticisms, on some parts of his - work, may keep him from carrying his admiration, on some - points, too far. Not that I mean to close with my friend, Mr. - Balfour, in his candid proposition for treating you after the - manner of the divine Plato. I rest entirely on you for - politics, changes of ministry, foreign politics, and domestic - occurrences. I have now no correspondents; and I did not think - it prudent to engage with any ministerial men; as I might be - led, in such a correspondence, to commit mistakes, which may - be inconvenient next winter. Farming, I find, is very - expensive--days' wages now at a shilling; but our fields are - green, and the hedges thrive. I hope to see your brother this - autumn. He is very orthodox, I am told, so far as husbandry - goes. I hope to hear your love affair, and your King William, - are in a good way. My wife not yet arrived. Yours," &c.[416:1] - -Gilbert Stuart, then unknown to fame, whether good or bad, and still -possessed of any small portion of modesty he had ever been endowed with, -was about to publish his little work on the British constitution, the -temporary celebrity of which had so prejudicial an effect on his -subsequent career. We shall afterwards have an opportunity of noticing -him on an occasion when he seems to have thought that the relation which -Hume and he bore to each other, in 1768, of humble admirer and -distinguished patron, was reversed in his favour. - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT. - -"_22d July, 1768._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I send you my letter enclosed to Mr. Stewart; which -I hope is calculated to encourage a young man of merit. Without -overstraining the compliment, it were better, however, for him, and for -every body, to pursue, in preference to the idle trade of writing, some -other lawful occupation, such as cheating like an attorney; quacking -like a physician; canting and hypocrising like a parson, &c. &c. &c. It -is for very little purpose to go out of the common track. Does he -expect to make men wiser? a very pretty expectation truly! - -"I fancy the ministry will remain; though surely their late remissness, -or ignorance, or pusillanimity, ought to make them ashamed to show their -faces, were it even at Newmarket. There are fine doings in America. O! -how I long to see America and the East Indies revolted, totally and -finally,--the revenue reduced to half,--public credit fully discredited -by bankruptcy,--the third of London in ruins, and the rascally mob -subdued! I think I am not too old to despair of being witness to all -these blessings. I approve of your farming scheme, notwithstanding the -expense; though your situation, as well for markets as means of -improvement, is not advantageous. My brother's advice may be of use to -you; but you are always to remember that he is of the sect of the -_médecin tant pis_; had he possessed enterprise, proportioned to his -industry and skill, he might have gone far in that way.[417:1] - -"I continue my parasitical practices; that is, of dining at all the -great tables that remain in London. We are likely to be plagued with -this King of Denmark; though not so much as formerly with Canute the -Great. I have some thoughts of paying a visit to France this autumn; -that is, if I can collect enough of resolution to leave the present -place of abode. - -"When I wrote last, I did not know that Lady ---- had eloped; that -practice continues very fashionable here; and it is to be hoped will -spread itself more and more every day! - -"I thought Sir David had been the only Christian that could write -English on the other side of the Tweed. I did not think of Balfour. It -is very true he would fain, I see, be candid, and civil, as in his other -book; if his zeal for the house of the Lord would permit him. - -"Lord Bute certainly sets out this day se'ennight, and, it is said, is -in a very bad state of health. - -"Lord Chatham is a greater paradox than ever:--is seen at home by no -human creature;--absolutely by none! rides twenty miles every day,--is -seen on the road, and appears in perfect good health; but will now speak -to no creature he meets. I am much persuaded, all is quackery;--he is -not mad; that is, no madder than usual."[418:1] - - -Towards the end of the year 1768, poor Smollett, with his spirit crushed -by the united calamities of a broken constitution and ruined fortunes, -sought to retrieve his health, by travelling in Italy. Before commencing -his journey, he wrote the following letter; in which the too apparent -tone of despondency is yet insufficient to damp the kindly warmth of his -feelings:-- - - -TOBIAS SMOLLETT _to_ HUME. - - _London, 31st August, 1768._ - - DEAR SIR,--Perhaps I overrate my own consequence when I - presume to recommend to your acquaintance and good offices, - the bearer, Captain Robert Stobo; a man whose very - extraordinary services and sufferings in America, have - merited, and obtained the most ample and honourable - testimonials, which he will gladly submit to your perusal. I - can safely say from my own knowledge, that he is not less - modest and sensible in the conversation and occurrences of - civil life, than enterprising and indefatigable in his - military capacity. All these good qualities, united to an - extensive knowledge of our American concerns, cannot fail to - engage the friendship and regard of Mr. David Hume, from what - quarter so ever they may come recommended. - - With respect to myself, I am sorry I cannot have the pleasure - of taking leave of you in person, before I go into perpetual - exile. I sincerely wish you all health and happiness. In - whatever part of the earth it may be my fate to reside, I - shall always remember with pleasure, and recapitulate with - pride, the friendly intercourse I have maintained with one of - the best men, and undoubtedly the best writer of the age; if - any judgment in distinguishing either character or capacity - may be allowed to, dear sir, your very humble servant, - - T{S} SMOLLETT. - - Nos patriam fugimus: tu, Tityre, lentus in umbra, - Formosam resonare doces Amaryllida silvas.[419:1] - - -HUME _to_ TOBIAS SMOLLETT. - -"_Ragley,[419:2] September 21, 1768._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--I did not see your friend, Captain Stobo, till the day -before I left Cirencester, and only for a little time; but he seemed to -be a man of good sense, and has surely had the most extraordinary -adventures in the world. He has promised to call on me when he comes to -London, and I shall always see him with pleasure. - -"But what is this you tell me of your perpetual exile, and of your never -returning to this country? I hope that as this idea arose from the bad -state of your health, it will vanish on your recovery; which, from your -past experience, you may expect from those happier climates to which you -are retiring; after which the desire of revisiting your native country -will probably return upon you, unless the superior cheapness of foreign -countries prove an obstacle, and detain you there. I could wish that -means had been fallen on to remove this objection; and that at least it -might be equal to you to live any where, except where the consideration -of your health gave the preference to one climate above another. But the -indifference of ministers towards literature, which has been long, and -indeed always, the case in England, gives little prospect of any -alteration in this particular. - -"I am sensible of your great partiality, in the good opinion you express -towards me; but it gives me no less pleasure than if it were founded on -the greatest truth, for I accept it as a pledge of your good will and -friendship. I wish an opportunity of showing my sense of it may present -itself during your absence. I assure you I should embrace it with great -alacrity, and you need have no scruple, on every occasion, of having -recourse to me. I am, my dear sir, with great esteem and sincerity, your -most obedient, and most humble servant," &c.[420:1] - - -Of the following remarkable letter, the first paragraph, relating to the -success of John Home's new play, has already been published.[420:2] The -remainder will probably be as surprising to the reader as it is new. It -is very evident that Hume exercised towards the great Chatham, Dr. -Johnson's virtue of honest hatred. There was indeed little love lost -between these great contemporaries; for Chatham fiercely attacked the -constitutional doctrines of the History of England, and Hume looked upon -the national idol as an unprincipled demagogue. The words with which -the observations on the Douglas cause conclude, are evidence of the -contempt which, amidst all his Tory prepossessions, Hume preserved for -merely hereditary rank, and indeed for all nominal and outward marks of -distinction, which were not allied to intellectual superiority. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Park Place, London, 28th March, 1769._ - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--'The Fatal Discovery' succeeded, and deserved it. It has -feeling, though not equal to 'Douglas,' in my opinion. The versification -of it is not enough finished. Our friend escaped by lying concealed; but -the success of all plays in this age is very feeble; and people now heed -the theatre almost as little as the pulpit.[421:1] History now is the -favourite reading, and our other friend[421:2] the favourite historian. -Nothing can be more successful than his last production; nor more -deservedly. I agree with you, it is beyond his first performance, as was -indeed natural to be expected. I hope, for a certain reason, which I -keep to myself, that he does not intend, in his third work, to go beyond -his second, though I am damnably afraid he will, for the subject is much -more interesting. Neither the character of Charles V., nor the incidents -of his life, are very interesting; and, were it not for the first -volume, the success of this work, though perfectly well writ, would not -have been so shining. - -"This madness about Wilkes excited first indignation, then apprehension; -but has gone to such a height that all other sentiments with me are -buried in ridicule. This exceeds the absurdity of Titus Gates and the -Popish plot: and is so much more disgraceful to the nation, as the -former folly, being derived from religion, flowed from a source which -has from uniform prescription acquired a right to impose nonsense on all -nations and all ages. But the present extravagance is peculiar to -ourselves, and quite risible. However, I am afraid my mirth will soon be -spoilt, and affairs become quite serious; for I am well assured that -Lord Chatham will, after the holidays, creep out from his retreat and -appear on the scene. - - Depositis novus exuviis, nitidusque juventâ, - Volvitur ad solem et linguis micat ore trisulcis. - -"I know not if I cite Virgil exactly,[422:1] but I am sure I apply him -right. This villain is to thunder against the violation of the Bill of -Rights in not allowing the county of Middlesex the choice of its -member! Think of the impudence of that fellow,[423:1] and his -quackery--and his cunning--and his audaciousness: and judge of the -influence he will have over such a deluded multitude. - -"I was struck with a very sensible indignation at the decision of the -Douglas cause,[423:2] though I foresaw it for some time. It was -abominable with regard to poor Andrew Stuart, who had conducted that -cause with singular ability and integrity; and was at last exposed to -reproach, which unfortunately never can be wiped off. For the cause, -though not in the least intricate, is so complicated, that it never will -be reviewed by the public, who are besides perfectly pleased with the -sentence; being swayed by compassion and a few popular topics. To one -who understands the cause as I do, nothing could appear more scandalous -than the pleadings of the two law lords. Such gross misrepresentation, -such impudent assertions, such groundless imputations, never came from -that place. But all was good enough for their audience; who, bating -their quality, are most of them little better than their brethren the -Wilkites in the streets. - -"I am very much obliged to you for giving me the acquaintance of your -cousin, Mr. Blair,[423:3] who seems, indeed, to me, a very accomplished -young man. The death of your brother-in-law is a great loss to you, and -even to us all. I comprehend myself; for I intend to visit you soon, and -for good and all. Indeed, I know not what detains me here, except that -it is so much a matter of indifference where I live; and I am amused -with looking on the scene, which really begins to be interesting. I had -taken one of Allan Ramsay's houses;[424:1] but gave it up again, on the -representation of some of my friends in Edinburgh, who said that a -house, on the north side of a high hill, in the 56th degree of latitude, -could not be healthful. But I now repent it, though I have my old house -to retreat to till I get a better. I am glad you like my nephew. He is, -indeed, clever, though, I am afraid, a little giddy.[424:2]" - - -Andrew Stuart, who is noticed in the preceding letter, and has -frequently been referred to in Hume's correspondence, was a man of great -talent. His letters to Lord Mansfield, on the Douglas cause, remarkable -for their solemn asperity, belong to a species of literature, of which -the English language scarcely boasts of any other instance,--a -systematic and serious arraignment of the conduct of a Judge in the -highest court in the realm, by the law agent of a litigant! Stuart -conducted the investigations in France, on which the evidence that the -children said to be born to Lady Jane Douglas were spurious, was -founded; and from the strange circumstances brought forward in the -evidence, we can imagine that, if Stuart had left a diary of his -adventures and inquiries, few works of fiction could be more -interesting. His arraignment of the judge was accompanied by an act -almost equally anomalous: his challenging the counsel on the other -side--who was Mr. Wedderburn, afterwards Lord Loughborough--on account -of the manner in which his conduct had been spoken of in the appeal -case. The challenge was accepted; but neither party was wounded. From -occasional allusions, in Hume's correspondence, he and Stuart appear to -have been early friends; and many of the letters, which he preserved, -within a few years of his death, are from Stuart, who, occasionally, -appears to write in acknowledgment of pecuniary advances. Among Hume's -papers, there is a letter, of which the address has not been preserved, -but in which there is a note, in Baron Hume's handwriting, that it was, -"respecting his friend Stuart--Andrew, I suppose." The letter has a -sufficient interest in itself. It is as follows:-- - - -"MY DEAR SIR,--Nothing can be more just than the sentiment you have -expressed in your letter. I am to be envied for having had it in my -power to contribute to the happiness of the best man, and the most -intimate friend I have ever had in the world. There is nothing else in -the possession of a fortune that deserves the least envy or the least -consideration. Every man is independent who thinks himself so. But every -man has not been blessed with such a friend, or with the power of -showing, in some small degree, the value he puts upon worth, delicacy, -attachment, and ability like his. It adds to my happiness not a little, -that your sentiments coincide so entirely with mine. You have known -Stuart enough to value him as much as I do; and he has too much -discernment not to put the same high value upon you, which you have -commanded from every one of your friends." - - -Hume received a letter from the Abbé Morellet, dated 15th May -1769,[426:1] requesting him to accept of a copy of his forthcoming -"Prospectus d'un Nouveau Dictionnaire de Commerce;" and to distribute -some others among a list of names, including those of Adam Smith and -Benjamin Franklin. The comprehensive work of which the Abbé thus -developed what he considered the proper principles, was never written by -him. He was too much occupied with fugitive literature, and the -absorbing politics of the time, to be able seriously to pursue a project -involving so much steady industry. Hume answered as follows:-- - - -HUME _to the_ ABBÉ MORELLET. - - _London, 10th July, 1769._ - - That part of your prospectus, in which you endeavour to prove - that there enters nothing of human convention in the - establishment of money, is certainly very curious, and very - elaborately composed; and yet I cannot forbear thinking that - the common opinion has some foundation. It is true, money must - always be made of some materials, which have intrinsic value, - otherwise it would be multiplied without end, and would sink - to nothing. But, when I take a shilling, I consider it not as - a useful metal, but as something which another will take from - me; and the person who shall convert it into metal is, - probably, several millions of removes distant. You know that - all states have made it criminal to melt their coin; and, - though this is a law which cannot well be executed, it is not - to be supposed that, if it could, it would entirely destroy - the value of the money, according to your hypothesis. You have - a base coin, called billon, in France, composed of silver and - copper, which has a ready currency, though the separation of - the two metals, and the reduction of them to their primitive - state, would, I am told, be both expensive and troublesome. - Our shillings and sixpences, which are almost our only silver - coin, are so much worn by use, that they are twenty, thirty, - or forty per cent. below their original value; yet they pass - currently; which can arise only from a tacit convention. Our - colonies in America, for want of specie, used to coin a paper - currency; which were not bank notes, because there was no - place appointed to give money in exchange: yet this paper - currency passed in all payments, by convention; and might have - gone on, had it not been abused by the several assemblies, who - issued paper without end, and thereby discredited the - currency. - - You mention several kinds of money, sheep, oxen, fish, - employed as measures of exchange, or as money, in different - parts of the world. You have overlooked that, in our colony of - Pennsylvania, the land itself, which is the chief commodity, - is coined, and passes in circulation. The manner of conducting - this affair is as follows:--A planter, immediately after he - purchases any land, can go to a public office and receive - notes to the amount of half the value of his land; which notes - he employs in all payments, and they circulate through the - whole colony, by convention. To prevent the public from being - overwhelmed by this fictitious money, there are two means - employed--first, the notes issued to any one planter, must not - exceed a certain sum, whatever may be the value of his land: - secondly, every planter is obliged to pay back into the public - office every year one-tenth part of his notes; the whole, of - course, is annihilated in ten years; after which, it is again - allowed him to take out new notes to half the value of his - land. An account of this curious operation would enrich your - dictionary; and you may have a more particular detail of it, - if you please, from Dr. Franklin, who will be in Paris about - this time, and will be glad to see you. I conveyed to him your - prospectus, and he expressed to me a great esteem of it. - - I see that, in your prospectus, you take care not to disoblige - your economists, by any declaration of your sentiments; in - which I commend your prudence. But I hope that in your work - you will thunder them, and crush them, and pound them, and - reduce them to dust and ashes! They are, indeed, the set of - men the most chimerical and most arrogant that now exist, - since the annihilation of the Sorbonne. I ask your pardon for - saying so, as I know you belong to that venerable body. I - wonder what could engage our friend, M. Turgot, to herd among - them; I mean, among the economists; though I believe he was - also a Sorbonnist. - - I sent your prospectus to Dr. Tucker, but have not heard from - him since. I shall myself deliver copies to Dr. Robertson and - Mr. Smith, as I go to Scotland this autumn. - - And now, my dear Abbé, what remains to me but to wish you - success in your judicious labours? to embrace you, and through - you, to embrace all our common friends, D'Alembert, Helvétius, - Buffon, Baron d'Holbach, Suard, Mlle. L'Espinasse? Poor Abbé - Le Bon is dead, I hear. The Abbé Galliani goes to Naples: he - does well to leave Paris before I come thither; for I should - certainly put him to death for all the ill he has spoken of - England. But it has happened, as was foretold by his friend, - Caraccioli; who said that the Abbé would remain two months in - this country, would speak all himself, would not allow an - Englishman to utter a syllable; and after returning would give - the character of the nation during the rest of his life, as if - he were perfectly well acquainted with them. - - Pray make my compliments to M. Maletête. Tell him, that Prince - Masserane says, that he has saved much effusion of blood to - this country. It is certain that M. Maletête had a great - curiosity to see a riot here, and yet was resolved to keep his - person in safety. For this purpose, he hired a window; and - proposed to be present at one of the mad elections of Wilkes, - and to divert himself with the fray. Somebody got a hint of - it, and put it into the newspapers; asking the freeholders if - they were so degenerate as to make themselves a laughing - stock, even to the French, their enemies, whom they despised. - Prince Masserane alleges that this incident made that election - so remarkably peaceable! - - Are you acquainted with Crébillon? I am ashamed to mention his - name. He sent me over his last work, with a very obliging - letter: but as I must write to him in French, I have never - answered him. If all the English were as impertinent as I am, - the Abbé Galliani would have reason to abuse us.--I am, dear - Abbé, after asking your blessing, yours sincerely.[428:1] - -"I returned to Edinburgh in 1769," says Hume in his "own Life," "very -opulent, (for I possessed a revenue of £1000 a-year) healthy, and though -somewhat stricken in years, with the prospect of enjoying long my ease, -and of seeing the increase of my reputation." He had thus finally -triumphed over the temptations which assailed him abroad, and resolved -to spend the remainder of his days among the friends of his youth. He -had received very strong solicitations from Madame de Boufflers and -others, to take up his abode at Paris. In one letter she informs him -that there is a house prepared for him in the Temple, and another with a -large garden near the Bois de Boulogne.[429:1] To these pressing offers -he seems not to have trusted himself with rendering a direct answer, -leaving his projects undefined, until, by returning to Edinburgh, he -rendered the acceptance of such invitations impracticable. Fairly -re-established in his old house in James's Court, and enjoying its -magnificent prospect, we find him thus writing to Smith:-- - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_James's Court, 20th August, 1769._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I am glad to have come within sight of you, and to have a -view of Kirkaldy from my windows: but as I wish also to be within -speaking terms of you, I wish we could concert measures for that -purpose. I am mortally sick at sea, and regard with horror, and a kind -of hydrophobia, the great gulf[429:2] that lies between us. I am also -tired of travelling; as much as you ought naturally to be of staying at -home. I therefore propose to you to come hither, and pass some days with -me in this solitude. I want to know what you have been doing; and -propose to exact a rigorous account of the method in which you have -employed yourself during your retreat. I am positive you are in the -wrong in many of your speculations, especially where you have the -misfortune to differ from me. All these are reasons for our meeting, and -I wish you would make me some reasonable proposal for that purpose. -There is no habitation on the island of Inchkeith, otherwise I should -challenge you to meet me on that spot, and neither of us ever to leave -the place, till we were fully agreed on all points of controversy. I -expect General Conway here to morrow, whom I shall attend to Roseneath, -and I shall remain there a few days. On my return, I expect to find a -letter from you, containing a bold acceptance of this defiance. I am, -dear Smith, yours sincerely."[430:1] - - -The letters addressed to Hume at this time, show that he had made -inquiries with the view of continuing the education of his nephews at -one of the English universities. The following letter explains the -reason why this plan was not adopted. - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT. - -"_Edinburgh, 16th October, 1769._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I am very much obliged to you for the pains you have -taken to give me an account of your sons' expenses and management at -Oxford. I found my brother undetermined, or rather averse, to the -project. He thinks his son rather inclines to be dissipated and idle; -and believes that a year or two at Oxford would confirm him thoroughly -in that habit, without any other advantage than the acquiring of a -little better pronunciation; for this reason he seems rather inclined to -try him a year in the Law College here, before he makes him so much his -own master. - -"I have been settled here two months, and am here body and soul, without -casting the least thought of regret to London, or even to Paris. I think -it improbable that I shall ever in my life cross the Tweed, except -perhaps a jaunt to the north of England, for health or amusement. I live -still, and must for a twelvemonth, in my old house in James's Court, -which is very cheerful, and even elegant, but too small to display my -great talent for cookery, the science to which I intend to addict the -remaining years of my life! I have just now lying on the table before -me, a receipt for making _soupe à la reine_, copied with my own hand: -for beef and cabbage, (a charming dish,) and old mutton, and old claret, -nobody excels me. I make also sheep-head broth, in a manner that Mr. -Keith speaks of it for eight days after; and the Duc de Nivernois would -bind himself apprentice to my lass to learn it. I have already sent a -challenge to David Moncreif: you will see that in a twelvemonth he will -take to the writing of history, the field I have deserted; for as to the -giving of dinners, he can now have no further pretensions. I should have -made a very bad use of my abode in Paris, if I could not get the better -of a mere provincial like him. All my friends encourage me in this -ambition; as thinking it will redound very much to my honour. - -"I am delighted to see the daily and hourly progress of madness, and -folly, and wickedness in England. The consummation of these qualities -are the true ingredients for making a fine narrative in history, -especially if followed by some signal and ruinous convulsion,--as I -hope will soon be the case with that pernicious people! He must be a -very bad cook indeed, who cannot make a palatable dish from the whole. -You see in my reflexions and allusions, I shall mix my old and new -professions together. I am, dear Sir Gilbert, your most obedient humble -servant," &c.[432:1] - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT. - -"_Edinburgh, 5th February, 1770._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I do not know whether you be good for any thing, or -at all worth the applying to; I rather suspect not: but in case you are, -I make you the following application in favour of Christopher Tate, -probationer, who was tutor to my nephews. You know I resigned my -pretensions on the presentation of Humbie to your nephew's tutor; but -under promise, that you would assist me in a like case. This kirk is a -king's presentation; it is within your county, and I very earnestly -desire success in this application, and trust much to your friendship in -it. - -"The last unexpected incident strikes us mute with astonishment; either -the Duke of Grafton is much to blame for leaving us so abruptly in so -very critical a time, or a greater than he, if he got any just cause for -it. I carry my view to very dismal consequences, especially as I suspect -the last to be the case. I fancy we shall have curious scenes, worthy -the pen of the greatest historian. I am tired and disgusted with -conjecture. My compliments to Lady Elliot. Believe me to be very -sincerely, your affectionate humble servant," &c.[432:2] - - -To Smith, whose "Wealth of Nations" was now supposed to be nearly ready -for the press, we find the following letter:-- - - -"_6th February, 1770._ - -"What is the meaning of this, dear Smith, which we hear, that you are -not to be here above a day or two, on your passage to London? How can -you so much as entertain a thought of publishing a book full of reason, -sense, and learning, to those wicked abandoned madmen? - -"I suppose you have not yet got over your astonishment at this most -astonishing resignation. For my part, I knew not at first whether to -throw the blame on the Duke or the King; but I now find it is entirely -and completely the Duke's own; and I think him dishonoured for ever." - - -This refers to the Duke of Grafton's resignation, of which he proceeds -to quote an account from "a very good hand," prophesying tranquillity -and the restoration of confidence. - -"So far my friend--whose prophecy I hope will be fulfilled; though, for -my part, I am rather inclined to give myself up to despair. Nothing but -a rebellion and bloodshed will open the eyes of that deluded people; -though, were they alone concerned, I think it is no matter what becomes -of them."[433:1] - -In the following letter, we have a farther, and a very strong instance -of Hume's dislike of the English as a people. We find him again busy in -sifting his History of all remains of popular principles; and there is a -tone throughout the letter, as if it were satisfactory to him to be able -to overturn the objects of popular idolatry, which a people he so -heartily disliked had endeavoured to set up, in the alleged antiquity of -their constitution. - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT. - -"_Edinburgh, 21st February, 1770._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I am glad of your victories; though I look upon them -all as temporary and imperfect, like the fallacious recoveries of a -hectic person, who is hastening to his dissolution. Our government has -become a chimera, and is too perfect, in point of liberty, for so rude a -beast as an Englishman; who is a man, a bad animal too, corrupted by -above a century of licentiousness. The misfortune is, that this liberty -can scarcely be retrenched without danger of being entirely lost; at -least the fatal effects of licentiousness must first be made palpable, -by some extreme mischief resulting from it. I may wish that the -catastrophe should rather fall on our posterity; but it hastens on with -such large strides, as leave little room for this hope. - -"I am running over again the last edition of my History, in order to -correct it still further. I either soften or expunge many villanous, -seditious Whig strokes, which had crept into it. I wish that my -indignation at the present madness, encouraged by lies, calumnies, -imposture, and every infamous act usual among popular leaders, may not -throw me into the opposite extreme. I am, however, sensible that the -first editions were too full of those foolish English prejudices, which -all nations and all ages disavow. - -"The present firm conduct of the king, and his manly resentment, afford -some glimpse of hope. We, at a distance, are not acquainted with these -matters; and few even at London; but there still appears something -mysterious in the Duke of Grafton's resignation. I hope it proceeded -only from his discontents with Bedford House. - -"But I detain you too long. I shall only conclude, that, though I reckon -myself among the _sepoliti_, I cannot forbear expressing my hearty good -wishes to your cause and you. I am, very sincerely, dear Sir Gilbert, -your obliged humble servant."[435:1] - - -"_Edinburgh, 5th April, 1770._ - -"I am sorry to inform you, that all we statesmen in this town condemn -loudly the conduct of you statesmen in London, especially in allowing -those insolent rascals, the mayor and sheriffs, to escape with impunity. -We were much disappointed not to find them impeached, and a bill of -pains and penalties passed upon them. The tumults which might have -ensued in London, we thought rather an advantage; as it would give -government an opportunity of chastising that abominable rabble. But you -have thought otherwise; and it is pretended that these lenient maxims -are succeeding; that faction abates, the tide turns, and the heroes of -opposition are in despair. I am heartily glad of it: but this is a new -experiment to reconcile such extreme license with government; and if, in -a case where popular complaints had not the smallest shadow of pretence, -the king and parliament have prevailed, after a long struggle, and with -much difficulty, what must it be, where there is some plausible -appearance, and perhaps some real ground of complaint, such as it is -natural to expect in all governments? However, I repeat it, I am glad of -the present appearance of tranquillity; and, indeed, distant dangers are -not to be too anxiously provided against. I am," &c. - - -Hume seems to have now commenced the building of the house, in the New -Town of Edinburgh, in which he died. It was the commencement of the -street leading southward from St. Andrew's Square, now called St. David -Street.[436:1] - - -HUME _to_ BARON MURE. - -"_Edinburgh, 2d October, 1770._ - -"DEAR BARON,--I am sorry that I should correspond so ill to your very -obliging letter, by telling you, that I cannot propose to see you till -you come to town next winter. I am engaged in the building a house, -which is the second great operation of human life: for the taking a wife -is the first, which I hope will come in time; and by being present, I -have already prevented two capital mistakes, which the mason was falling -into; and I shall be apprehensive of his falling into more, were I to be -at a distance. I must therefore renounce the hopes of seeing you at your -own house this autumn, which, I assure [you,] I do with much regret. My -compliments to Mrs. Mure and the young ladies. Please tell Miss Kitty, -that my coat is much admired, even before I tell that it is her livery. -For her sake I shall be careful that it never meet with any such -accident, as the last. I am, dear Baron, yours very sincerely.[436:2] - -"P.S.--Mr. Moore's verses are really very elegant." - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[383:1] In the conclusion of Hume's letter to Dr. Blair, of 27th May, -1767, cited above, there is the following paragraph:-- - -"Pray, how has the General Assembly passed? I have had a long letter -from Mass David Dickson, complaining of your injustice. Has John Home -any thoughts of coming up? Tell Robertson that the compliment, at the -end of General Conway's letter to him, was of my composing, without any -orders from him. He smiled when he read it, but said it was very proper, -and signed it. These are not bad puffs from ministers of state, as the -silly world goes." I inferred from this that the letter in question was -the King's letter to the General Assembly of 1767; but I find no -allusion to Robertson in that document, and am not aware of any letter, -generally known at the period, which answers the above description. It -is clear that Hume refers to some official communication from the -secretary of state. The letter from Dickson is a long complaint about -the conduct of some judicatories as to a forgotten church dispute. It -begins with the statement;--"I am informed that His Majesty's letter to -the General Assembly, of this year, is issued from the secretary's -office, under your direction." As it is pretty generally believed that -the policy of the Home-office, in its communications with the Church of -Scotland, was directed by Hume, during the period when he was under -secretary, the following extract from the King's letter to the General -Assembly, in 1767, is given, that the reader may judge for himself -whether the style and matter are characteristic of Hume's pen:-- - -"Convinced, as we are, of your prudence and firm resolution to concur in -whatever may promote the happiness of our subjects, it is unnecessary -for us to recommend to you to avoid contentious and unedifying debates; -as well as to avoid every thing that may tend to disturb that harmony -and tranquillity which is so essential in councils solely calculated for -the suppression of every species of licentiousness, irreligion, and -vice. And, as we have the firmest reliance on your zeal in the support -of the Christian faith, as well as in the wisdom and prudence of your -councils, we are thoroughly assured that they will be directed to such -purposes as may best tend to enforce a conscientious observance of all -those duties which the true religion, and laws of this kingdom require, -and on which the felicity of every individual so essentially -depends."[383:A] - - [383:A] MS. R.S.E. - -[385:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[385:2] See above, p. 56. - -[386:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[386:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[388:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[388:2] John Oswald, brother of Mr. Oswald of Dunnikier, who was -translated from the see of Dromore to that of Raphoe in 1763. - -[390:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[392:1] Copies in R.S.E. The originals are in possession of Colonel -Mure. - -[392:2] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 666. Original, MS. R.S.E. - -[393:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[394:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[395:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[395:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[396:1] _Literary Gazette_. MS. R.S.E. - -[397:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[398:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[398:2] An early acquaintance with this characteristic, might have saved -the present writer some fruitless investigations. - -[399:1] There are two letters from Blacklock to Hume, remarkably -characteristic of the timid and excitable character of the blind genius. -After an exordium on the tone which he hopes their intercourse will -maintain, full of nervous susceptibility; the fear of being too profuse -in correspondence alternating with the dread that he may be thought -cold, negligent, or ungrateful; he gives an account of the education of -his pupil, Joseph, and then turns towards his own dark prospects. - -"It was not indeed without some fear that I undertook the office. The -vivacity of his disposition, and even the quickness of his genius, -inspired me with terror that I should not be able to manage the one, or -make any lasting impression upon the other. But how agreeable was my -disappointment to find his temper, though lively, extremely amiable and -flexible, and his apprehension, though quick, yet distinct and -retentive. He applies with a diligence not often found in people of his -age and character. As during this winter we had a pretty numerous -family, most of whom were gentlemen of parts and spirit, I have seen -numberless instances in which his passions, though warm and sensible, -were governed with a discretion worthy of mature age and experience, yet -in such a manner as to preserve his dignity, and betray no degree of -complaisance unworthy of his spirit, or inconsistent with his ingenuity. -You cannot imagine but such an object must pre-engage every susceptible -heart. He is really admired by all the young gentlemen of our family who -know him. I love him, and Mrs. Blacklock doats on him; yet there are -not, perhaps, two in the human species who have it in their power to vex -me in the same degree, if at any time he should be more remiss and -careless than usual. He is now reading French with Mons{r} Cauvin, and -the Satires of Horace, and Homer's Iliad, with me. - -"Mr. Alexander's account of my situation, in general, was right. I have -indeed got clear of a parish where I could have never been happy, even -though their malice had been less implacable than I found it. But when I -left that vindictive place, my poetical vanity was not quite -extinguished; and it is natural for those who have felt the oppressive -hand of unprovoked injury, to expect a kinder and more human reception, -where civility, politeness, and gentler manners prevail. These -sentiments, too sanguinely indulged, might perhaps have raised my hopes -too high, and taught me to anticipate a greater degree of notice from -the people of taste and learning in this place, than I have either -obtained or deserved. Be that as it will, I am at present almost an -absolute recluse; and when I meet with any of the virtuosi in public -places, (where, indeed, I do not commonly appear,) their behaviour seems -more cool and reserved than I could have thought. Not that all my -self-importance can flatter me with any degree of merit in this way; but -surely it was not unnatural to hope the enterprises which I attempted in -the circumstances in which I was involved, might have attracted some -degree of attention, and impressed some faint prepossessions in my -favour, when not opposed by any vice or immorality in my character. For -these reasons, as well as the private and disinterested attachment of my -heart, you will naturally imagine the pleasure I feel from the prospect -of your arrival in Edinburgh, and from my promised intercourse with one, -who, though he might do honour to the republic of letters in any period, -yet descends to honour me with the name of a FRIEND." - -In the other letter, dated 2d May, 1767, he states that he has been -overworking himself; and says, "My old nervous complaints have been like -to return, and unhinge all our schemes; but, thank God, they are a -little better again." He then details, with some minuteness, the reasons -for feeling that his pecuniary prospects are precarious; and ascribes -his exertions to his wish "to do something, if possible, for these -approaching contingencies," which, he says, "the natural gloom" of his -mind has made "not very distant." He continues:-- - -"You was so kind as hint your friendly intention towards a church -settlement. That, I begin to think, I am unfit to encounter with again; -for the ten thousand hardships and disagreeable things which I met with -in my short but dear-bought experience of that kind of life, brought me -a great way on in my journey down hill; so that if any one of them -should again occur in another trial, I would certainly soon reach the -foot of the precipice. This event is matter of no great thought to -myself, but as it may concern one not undeservedly dear to me." - -These letters are written with great precision, in a small, neat, -regular hand; and, though duly signed, "Thos. Blacklock," it is clear -that they cannot be the penmanship of their sightless author. - -Appended to the second, and in a bolder and more masculine looking hand, -is the following:-- - -"Mrs. Blacklock begs leave to offer her compliments to Mr. Hume, -herself; and to supplicate some easy thing, if it can be procured, -(without giving Mr. Hume much trouble,) for her friend, whom she has -been a good deal apprehensive for this spring, by reason of his close -study. Our college has acquired a new professor for natural history. Do -you think one for poetry could be added, with a moderate salary to -it?"--MSS. R.S.E. - -[401:1] The dates of the births of John Home's children, as entered in -the Kirk-session Record of Chirnside, are:--Joseph, 24th June, 1752; -John, 21st April, 1754; Helen, 22d August, 1755; David, 27th February, -1757; John, 29th April, 1758; Catherine, 9th November, 1760; Agnes, 7th -October, 1763; Agatha, 31st December, 1764. His wife was Agnes Carre, -daughter of Robert Carre of Cavers, in Roxburghshire. - -[402:1] "Hume carried the torch into all the recesses of actual -practice. He not only made himself familiar with all the scattered -matter that had been published, though much of it had been hid in places -not commonly explored; but he was the very first who went systematically -to the records, and filtered these fountain heads."--_Ed. Rev._, January -1846, p. 197. - -[404:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[405:1] A comparison of the two brothers, Joseph and David, is thus made -by their father in a letter to his brother of 21st November, 1768. He -begins with David: "He still shows the same talents and temper, and an -attention and keenness for what he is employed about, and might go very -far in any profession if he was properly directed, and quite in a -different manner from any of the rest, particularly from Josey, whose -trifling superficial talents makes him never apply to any thing -thoroughly, nor do I ever expect he will. He this winter is at Mr. -Ferguson and Blair's classes, and the Italian, which completes his -university education. I am totally at a loss what to do with him after. -Law will never do with him. The army he inclines not to, though that, as -he has address and behaviour, is best calculated for him."--MS. R.S.E. - -[406:1] _Scots Magazine_, 1807, p. 247. - -[406:2] Sir Gilbert had succeeded to the baronetcy on the death of his -father, in 1766. - -[407:1] Minto MSS. - -[408:1] This is probably in allusion to Wilkes having obtained his -verdict of £1000 damages against the Secretary of State for the seizure -of his papers. - -[408:2] Minto MSS. - -[409:1] A Scottish artist, whose productions are known to collectors, -but who has not been handed down to posterity by the critics and -biographers. - -[409:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[409:3] Milman's edition of Gibbon's Life, p. 216. - -[410:1] Deyverdun had (in a letter, MS. R.S.E.) acknowledged himself to -be the author of an attack on Rousseau, which the latter attributed to -Hume. - -[411:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[412:1] Life of Gibbon. - -[413:1] Stewart's Life of Robertson. - -[414:1] The "Philosophical Essays" were not written by Sir David -Dalrymple, as here hinted, but as Sir Gilbert explains, by James -Balfour, who has already been mentioned, (see vol. i. p. 160, 345.) The -Essays were mainly directed against Kaimes' "Essays on Morality and -Natural Religion." - -[415:1] Minto MSS. - -[416:1] MS. R.S.E. I can find no light on the meaning of the words "love -affair." - -[417:1] Mr. Home was a very cautious farmer, and carried his dislike of -novelties and innovations to the unprecedented extent of declining the -higher rents he might have obtained from enterprising tenants. - -[418:1] Minto MSS. - -[419:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[419:2] Perhaps a false transcript for Hagley, the seat of Lord -Lyttelton. - -[420:1] _Scots Mag._, 1807, p. 248. - -[420:2] In Mackenzie's Account of Home. - -[421:1] Blair, writing on 11th March, says,-- - -"I long exceedingly to hear of the success of 'The Fatal Discovery,' and -am much pleased with what I have already heard. I read it a twelvemonth -ago, and thought highly of it. I will not pronounce it quite equal to -'Douglas,' but inferior only to it. Mr. Garrick told me, when last in -London, that he approved highly of it, and sent a message to the author -by me, advising him to take measures for bringing it on. I am infinitely -diverted with the trick which our friend has played to John concerning -it. How foolish will he look when he finds how he has been imposed on. I -beseech you write me how it goes on with the public." - -[421:2] Dr. Robertson, of whom Blair says in the letter above cited: - -"What an excellent performance has Robertson given us. What a treasure -of curious and instructive historical information! I think it much -superior to his former work. He is a little deaf at present, which I -have told him is a thorn in the flesh wisely sent him, that he may not -be too much lifted up with hearing the voice of applause. Your History -of England, and his as an introduction to the History of Europe, form a -perfect historical library. I congratulate myself on living in an age, -when our own country and our friends have done such honour to -literature. For myself I continue piddling still about my Lectures." - -[422:1] Not very. The lines he intended to cite are: - - Cum positis novus exuviis, nitidusque juventâ - Volvitur, aut catulos tectis aut ova relinquens - Arduus ad solem, et linguis micat ore trisulcis. - -[423:1] It is possible that the words "that fellow," apply to Wilkes, -but the context makes it more likely that they are intended for Chatham. - -[423:2] The decision was given on 27th February, 1769. - -[423:3] Apparently Robert Blair, afterwards Lord President of the Court -of Session. Dr. Blair, in his letter of introduction, says:-- - -"He is one of the most accomplished and most promising young men who, -for some time, have appeared at the bar; and will certainly go very high -in his profession. His reputation, in that line, is already far -advanced; and he has, besides this, many great virtues, both as a man -and a scholar. As he is my near relation, he has been, all along, my -pupil; and I have great credit in him." - -[424:1] The line of houses, near the castle of Edinburgh, called Ramsay -Gardens. His friend, Mrs. Cockburn, strongly dissuaded him from living -in this part of the town. - -[424:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[426:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[428:1] _New Monthly Magazine_, original series, No. 72. - -[429:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[429:2] The Firth of Forth. - -[430:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 691. Collated with original MS. -R.S.E. - -[432:1] Minto MSS. - -[432:2] Minto MSS. - -[433:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[435:1] Minto MSS. - -[436:1] When the house was built, and inhabited by Hume, but while yet -the street, of which it was the commencement, had no name, a witty young -lady, daughter of Baron Ord, chalked on the wall, the words "ST. DAVID -STREET." The allusion was very obvious. Hume's "lass," judging that it -was not meant in honour or reverence, ran into the house much excited, -to tell her master how he was made game of. "Never mind, lassie," he -said; "many a better man has been made a saint of before." - -[436:2] MS. R.S.E. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -1771-1776. Æt. 60-65. - - Hume's social character--His conversation--His disposition-- - Traditional anecdotes regarding him--Correspondence--Letter - about the Pretender--Gilbert Stuart's quarrel with Dr. Henry-- - Commercial State of Scotland--Letter to his nephew on - Republicanism--Smith's "Wealth of Nations"--Hume's illness-- - His Will--Smith appointed Literary Executor--Strahan - substituted--His journey to England with Home--Prospects of - Death--Communications with his Friends and Relations--His - Death--General view of his influence on Thought and Action. - - -It is to the period from the year 1770 to his death, when he lived among -his early friends in Edinburgh, that we ought to refer such traditional -accounts of Hume's private life and social habits, as are not expressly -connected with any known event in his history. He was, it is true, a -distinguished man when he left his native city, in 1763. He had then, -indeed, performed all the services which entitled him to immortality. -But his foreign celebrity, and his official honours, had since added -many ostensible glories to his name, and introduced him to a wider -sphere of public notice than the substantial fruits of his genius and -industry would have of themselves secured. When we remember that this -was the most celebrated period of his life, and was the only one of -which persons who are still, or who have lately been alive, could have -any recollection, we naturally refer to it those traditional notices and -incidents which have no distinct place. - -The impression of Hume's character, acquired by one who has sought it in -the tenor of his works, and the history of his literary career, is quite -different from that which we derive from those who knew him, and were -connected with the social circle in which he lived. The former is -solitary, self-relying, and unimpressible even to sternness; the latter -is good, easy, simple, social, and amenable to the sway of gentle -impulses. These two representations are not without a harmony of -principle. In all serious matters, in his projects of literary ambition, -in the philosophy he taught mankind, in all that was to connect him with -posterity and the intellectual destiny of the human race, he was -resolute and uncompromising. But the exhibition of his strength was -reserved for the arena of his triumphs; and in domestic and social -intercourse he put aside his helmet, with its nodding plumes; feeling, -that the intellectual exhibitions suited for _that_ sphere, should -spring from whatever Nature had bestowed on him of sweet, and peaceful, -and kind,--whatever was fitted to drive rancour or angry emulation from -the bosom, and to render life delightful. Hence, to appear in the social -circle as an intellectual gladiator, does not appear to have been his -wish; he was content if he gave himself and others pleasure. - -This view of his character is confirmed by Mackenzie, who, when a young -man, enjoyed the high distinction of mingling in that group, of which he -was the principal figure. - - But the most illustrious of that circle was David Hume, who - had a sincere affection for his poetical namesake,--an - affection which was never abated during the life of that - celebrated man. The unfortunate nature of his opinions with - regard to the theoretical principles of moral and religious - truth, never influenced his regard for men who held very - opposite sentiments on those subjects; subjects which he - never, like some vain and shallow sceptics, introduced into - social discourse: On the contrary, when at any time the - conversation tended that way, he was desirous rather of - avoiding any serious discussion on matters which he wished to - confine to the graver and less dangerous consideration of - cool philosophy. He had, it might be said, in the language - which the Grecian historian applies to an illustrious Roman, - two minds; one which indulged in the metaphysical scepticism - which his genius could invent, but which it could not always - disentangle; another, simple, natural, and playful, which made - his conversation delightful to his friends, and even - frequently conciliated men whose principles of belief his - philosophical doubts, if they had not power to shake, had - grieved and offended. During the latter period of his life, I - was frequently in his company amidst persons of genuine piety, - and I never heard him venture a remark at which such men, or - ladies, still more susceptible than men, could take - offence.[439:1] - -The late Lord Chief Commissioner Adam was another of the young men who -were so fortunate as to be admitted to this circle. In a curious little -collection of notices of eminent persons, called "The Gift of a -Grandfather," privately printed at his own press at Blair-Adam, he says -of Hume: - - He was an intimate friend and acquaintance: and in all the - intercourse of life, and in all he said, and wrote, and did, - when not employed in his unnecessary metaphysical scepticism - (well named, by a friend of mine, intellectual rope-dancing,) - was innocent, playful, and moral, and most natural in his - conversation: equally pleasing and instructive to the young - and old of both sexes. . . . . . . . . . - - His simple unaffected nature, and kindly disposition, exalted - him as much as the singular powers of his mind, and his - talents for expressing in writing what he contemplated--so - well described by Gibbon, as careless inimitable beauties of - style; which, when he read, he laid down the book in despair - that he should ever be able to imitate them. - - I have before shown that he never introduced, in conversation, - his abstruse or sceptical speculations; that all his - sentiments were moral and natural and pleasing, and even - playful in the extreme. This is evinced by his letters, which - are perfect in their kind. He could bring himself down, - without effort, to the most familiar playfulness with young - persons, and particularly delighted in the conversation of - youthful females. - - Mr. Hume was one of our constant visiters, making, as was the - custom of those days, tea-time the hour of calling. In the - summer he would often stroll to my father's beautiful villa of - North Merchiston. On one occasion--I was then a boy of - thirteen--he, missing my mother, made his tea-drinking good - with two or three young ladies of eighteen or nineteen, (his - acquaintances,) who were my mother's guests. I recollect - perfectly how agreeably he talked to them; and my recollection - has been rendered permanent by an occurrence which caused some - mirth and no mischief. - - When the philosopher was amusing himself in conversation with - the young ladies, the chair began to give way under him, and - gradually brought him to the floor. - - The damsels were both alarmed and amused, when Mr. Hume, - recovering himself, and getting upon his legs, said in his - broad Scotch tone, but in English words, (for he never used - Scotch,) "Young ladies, you must tell Mr. Adam to keep - stronger chairs for heavy philosophers." - - This simple story is a good specimen of the man. He was above - all affectation. I was a companion of his eldest nephew, and - saw much of him when I was very young. As I grew up he used to - invite me to dinner, and I took great delight in his - conversation. I continued in and about Edinburgh long enough - to be able to relish it, and perhaps to join in it. On one - particular occasion I met him at tea at Professor Ferguson's; - it was at the period of my attending Dr. Blair's class on - rhetoric and belles lettres: their conversation became very - interesting to me, as it bore upon subjects which had an - affinity to what I was in the habit of hearing prelected upon. - They discussed particularly the Henriade of Voltaire; they - were not displeased with any want of brilliancy in the - versification, but they condemned the choice of the subject. - Mr. Hume said, "He should never choose for an epic poem - history, the truth of which is well known; for no fiction can - come up to the interest of the actual story and incidents of - the singular life of Henry IV.;" and Professor Ferguson added, - "What epic poet could improve upon the chivalrous life of - Chevalier Bayard, or on the event of his extraordinary - romantic death?" - -"I always lived," says James Boswell, in a passage where he has to -record some of his great patron's expressions of contempt and dislike, -"on good terms with Mr. Hume, though I have frankly told him I was not -clear that it was right of me to keep company with him; 'but,' said I, -'how much better are you than your books!' He was cheerful, obliging, -and instructive. He was charitable to the poor;[441:1] and many an -agreeable hour have I passed with him." - -The testimony which Adam Smith bore to his character and disposition, in -the letter which accompanies his autobiography, though so well known, -must not here be omitted. - - His temper seemed to be more happily balanced, if I may be - allowed such an expression, than that perhaps of any other man - I have ever known. Even in the lowest state of his fortune, - his great and necessary frugality never hindered him from - exercising, upon proper occasions, acts both of charity and - generosity. It was a frugality founded, not upon avarice, but - upon the love of independency. The extreme gentleness of his - nature never weakened either the firmness of his mind, or the - steadiness of his resolutions. His constant pleasantry was the - genuine effusion of good nature and good humour; tempered with - delicacy and modesty, and without even the slightest tincture - of malignity, so frequently the disagreeable source of what is - called wit in other men. It never was the meaning of his - raillery to mortify; and, therefore, far from offending, it - seldom failed to please and delight, even those who were the - objects of it. To his friends, who were frequently the objects - of it, there was not, perhaps, any one of all his great and - amiable qualities which contributed more to endear his - conversation. And that gaiety of temper, so agreeable in - society, but which is so often accompanied with frivolous and - superficial qualities, was, in him, certainly attended with - the most severe application, the most extensive learning, the - greatest depth of thought, and a capacity in every respect the - most comprehensive. Upon the whole, I have always considered - him, both in his lifetime, and since his death, as approaching - as nearly to the idea of a perfectly wise and virtuous man, - as, perhaps, the nature of human frailty will permit. - -Of any description of his character, his own account of it must form a -material feature. The mere circumstance that a man should have thus -written about himself, is a noticeable element in his mental history. He -says, in his "own life:" - - To conclude, historically, with my own character. I am, or - rather was, (for that is the style I must now use in speaking - of myself, which emboldens me the more to speak my - sentiments,)--I was, I say, a man of mild disposition, of - command of temper, of an open, social, and cheerful humour, - capable of attachment, but little susceptible of enmity, and - of great moderation in all my passions. Even my love of - literary fame, my ruling passion, never soured my temper, - notwithstanding my frequent disappointments. My company was - not unacceptable to the young and careless, as well as to the - studious and literary; and as I took a particular pleasure in - the company of modest women, I had no reason to be displeased - with the reception I met with from them. In a word, though - most men, any wise eminent, have found reason to complain of - calumny, I never was touched, or even attacked by her baleful - tooth: and though I wantonly exposed myself to the rage of - both civil and religious factions, they seemed to be disarmed, - in my behalf, of their wonted fury. My friends never had - occasion to vindicate any one circumstance of my character and - conduct: not but that the zealots, we may well suppose, would - have been glad to invent and propagate any story to my - disadvantage, but they could never find any which they thought - would wear the face of probability. I cannot say there is no - vanity in making this funeral oration of myself, but I hope - it is not a misplaced one; and this is a matter of fact which - is easily cleared and ascertained. - -We have here a generous testimony to the tolerant spirit of his age: And -yet his history and correspondence show, that he did not always feel -himself safe from the influence of political or polemical resentment. He -seemed, however, to take a pride in contrasting his own personal -reception, by the world, with that of his writings; the one being all -courtesy, the other all prejudice and dislike. A late eminent judge -remembered meeting him at dinner with Black, Smith, and others, a few -months before his death. Smith was speaking of the ingratitude, -perversity, and intolerance of human nature. Hume said he differed with -him. There was he, who had written on history, on politics, and on -morals--some said on divinity; yet, in discussing these exciting topics, -he had not made a single enemy; unless, indeed, all the Whigs, and all -the Tories, and all the Christians! As, in his playful conversation -among his intimate friends, he was inclined to indulge in practical -humour, he made the general unpopularity of his opinions a common theme -of amusement; picturesquely exaggerating the more offensive features, -and exhibiting them as bugbears to frighten the well-meaning. Asking his -friend, Clephane, to look for lodgings for him in London, he represents -the person who is to inhabit them as "a sober, discreet, virtuous, -frugal, regular, quiet, good-natured man--of a bad character." This "bad -character," he seems to have occasionally used as a method of gently -alarming innocent females. A lady, of strictly evangelical principles, -walking home from church, through a crowded part of Edinburgh, was -rather surprised by the zealous attention with which he proffered his -arm. After they had passed through the crowd, he gave his reason for -being so obsequious--it was, that she might be congratulated, by her -friends, on having been seen walking on Sunday with "Hume the Deist." -Mackenzie relates the following incident, which shows that he was not, -however, always proof against the effect of jocular attacks on his -principles by others. - - In the same _bonhommie_, Mr. Hume bore with perfect good - nature the pleasantries which humorous deductions from his - theoretical scepticisms sometimes produced. Once, I have been - told, he was in a small degree ruffled by a witticism of Mr. - John Home's, who, though always pleasant, and often lively, - seldom produced what might be termed or repeated as wit. The - clerk of an eminent banker in Edinburgh, a young man of - irreproachable conduct, and much in the confidence of his - master, eloped with a considerable sum with which he had been - intrusted. The circumstance was mentioned at a dinner where - the two Humes, the historian and the poet, and several of - their usual friendly circle, were present. David Hume spoke of - it as a kind of moral problem, and wondered what could induce - a man of such character and habits as this clerk was said to - possess, thus to incur, for an inconsiderable sum, the guilt - and the infamy of such a transaction. "I can easily account - for it," said his friend, John Home, "from the nature of his - studies, and the kind of books which he was in the habit of - reading." "What were they?" said the philosopher. "Boston's - Fourfold State," rejoined the poet, "and Hume's Essays." David - was more hurt by the joke than was usual with him; probably - from the singular conjunction of the two works, which formed, - according to his friend's account, the library of the - unfortunate young man.[444:1] - -As appropriate to his popularity among women and young people, the -following anecdotes from the pen of one who has gained no little -celebrity by her genius, cannot fail to give interest. They are -contained in a letter by Lady Anne Lindsay, authoress of the song _Auld -Robin Gray_, when she was a young lady living in her grandmother's house -in Edinburgh, to her sister Margaret:-- - - Dinners go on as usual, which, being monopolized by the - divines, wits, and writers of the present day, are not - unjustly called the Dinners of the Eaterati, by Lord Kellie, - who laughs at his own pun till his face is purple. - - Our friend, David Hume, along with his friend, Principal - Robertson, continue to maintain their ground at these - convivial meetings. To see the lion and the lamb lying down - together, the deist and the doctor, is extraordinary; it makes - one hope that some day Hume will say to him, "Thou almost - persuadest me to be a Christian." He is a constant morning - visiter of ours. My mother jested him lately on a circumstance - which had a good deal of character in it. - - When we were very young girls, too young to remember the - scene, there happened to be a good many clever people at - Balcarres at Christmas; and as a gambol of the season, they - agreed to write each his own character, to give them to Hume, - and make him show them to my father, as extracts he had taken - from the pope's library at Rome.[445:1] - - He did. My father said, "I don't know who the rest of your - fine fellows and charming princesses are, Hume; but if you had - not told me where you got _this_ character, I should have said - it was that of my wife." - - "I was pleased," said my mother, "with my lord's answer, it - showed that at least I had been an honest woman." - - "Hume's character of himself," said she, "was well drawn and - full of candour; he spoke of himself as he ought;" but added, - what surprised us all, that, "plain as his manners were, and - apparently careless of attention, vanity was his predominant - weakness. That vanity led him to publish his Essays, which he - grieved over; not that he had changed his opinions, but that - he thought he had injured society by disseminating them." - - "Do you remember the sequel of that affair?" said Hume. - - "Yes, I do," replied my mother, laughing: "you told me that, - although I thought your character a sincere one, it was not - so; there was a particular feature omitted that we were still - ignorant of, and that you would add it; like a fool I gave you - the manuscript, and you thrust it into the fire, adding, 'Oh, - what an idiot I had nearly proved myself to be, to leave such - a document in the hands of a parcel of women!'" - - "Villain!" said my mother, laughing, and shaking her head at - him. - - "Do you remember all this, my little woman?" said Hume to me. - - "I was too young," said I, "to think of it at the time." - - "How's this? have not you and I grown up together?" - - I looked surprised. - - "Yes," added he, "you have grown tall, and I have grown - broad."[446:1] - -It may give us some farther idea of the refined simplicity that made his -conversation agreeable to intellectual and right thinking women, to -observe the manner in which he was addressed in the following very -lively letter from Lady Elliot Murray, the wife of his friend, Sir -Gilbert. - - _Minto, 12th October, 1772._ - - I am resolved to take the reins of government into my own - hands. I don't know what has made me such a humble subservient - animal hitherto. I will dictate from this time forth. I will - give the law, and insist on an implicit obedience to my - superior wisdom; for am I not wiser than the wisest? did I not - foretell what has come to pass, that Mons. De Guigne would not - reach Edinburgh before the middle of this week? and did I not - prove my judgment surpassing that best of historians, who is a - mere pedler in understanding to me? Had he taken my advice, he - need not have jumbled himself seventy long miles over - mountains and plains in one day, and left a family who were - happy in his company, and exchanged the cheering blaze of a - good coal fire, for the dreary glimpses of a clouded moon. - But, however, he had the pleasure of gratifying a sense which - few people are much troubled with, a delicacy and ardour in - politeness; and as that is pretty near akin to benevolence, I - believe the indulgence of it may be a full recompense for the - trouble. But that last principle will lead you back the road - you went; for you left three ladies mourning for your - departure, and the good man of the house has been in a - vexation ever since, and can only be contented by a renewal of - your kind intentions towards us, of passing some quiet days - under our roof. Sir Gilbert came home from Jedburgh, and had - seen your brother there, who told him he would find you here - when he came back. - - Enter Sir Gilbert. Where is Mr. Hume?--Answer: He is gone. - When did he come?--About one o'clock. And when did he go - away?--About five. What! have you quarrelled?--Yes. He and I - had some little difference about his _byeuks_, and I tried to - persuade him to burn them all, and write the other way; for, - as I said, I was sure he would be a shining light, and equal - the author of the "Pilgrim's Progress," or Mr. Ebenezer - Erskine, if he would only take the right side; and he flew in - a passion and went away in a huff! How could you think he - would be persuaded by you? Pooh! though I am but a simple - woman, before it be long he may be convinced I can see farther - into a millstone than he can do; and if he had taken my - advice, he might have rested his bones here this night in - quiet, in place of rumbling along in the dark in a post - chaise; and so in other matters too, I might perhaps do him a - service if he would be ruled by me. My dear, how can you be so - wild? And, my dear, where is the harm in telling one's mind, - when you think you can do good by it, to a good worthy - creature that is only a little mistaken or so? Good by it, - what a chimera! but come, there is some other reason than this - for his going away? None that I know; except a fine flim-flam - letter that he received from the French Ambassador, saying, he - expected to have the exquisite joy of beholding him at - Edinburgh to-morrow. Ah, now I understand it. But when does he - come back? Why he either comes back with Mons. De Guigne, or - after he has done the last duties to him at Edinburgh. So you - see, if you do not come, you will have brought me in for the - lesser excommunication; for you will have been the cause of my - deceiving my husband, and telling him a lie: although, for - that matter, neither you nor I _lukelly_ have any thing to - fear now-a-days, for either the greater or lesser - excommunication: For, as you justly observe, line 12, first - page of your letter, how are things changed! Old prejudices - are done away, but behold new ones arise; and the last errors - I am afraid are worse than the first: but, for my own part, I - would willingly have stood before the kirk-session, to have - shown any respect and regard to Mons{r.} L'Ambassador, who is - a man we all esteem in this house, and from whom we have - always received every possible civility, of which we retain a - grateful sense. But we perceive he is travelling in his public - capacity, and unless Sir Gilbert had had it in his power to go - to town to wait of him, and give him welcome from us to our - house, should it suit his conveniency to rest here upon his - road to England, we think any other invitation would appear - improper and abrupt; and as it so happens he cannot possibly - accomplish this at present, for we are to have company with us - most part of this week; and after that we go to our visits, - which will take us most of next week; and then we shall be - chez nous till our journey southwards, when we will require - from you to restore us your good society, else we shall verily - believe your flying visit was all a hum, and we won't be - _Humed_ so! - - Bless me, I thought I was writing to my poor good Harry. How - does he do, sanctified soul? I have really hopes of you, now - that he and you are come hand to fist at a conversation; as he - tells me you are very often with him, and he really thinks you - are a saint in your nature; and I say that is a great pity, - for tho' I cannot deny the fact, I deplore it for the - consequences of it; but give my best wishes to him, and tell - him I long to hear of better prospects for him. I am really - confounded, when I think what a parcel of nonsense I have - wrote you: But learn to prefer the truth and sincerity of a - Scots wife, to the pernicious flattery of Les Dames - Françaises, of which you have had enough in your days; and so - it is fit you should be made to hear on the other side of the - head. And so wishing you all health and happiness, and - clearness of understanding, I remain, sir, your well wisher, - friend, and obedient servant, - - AG. ELLIOT MURRAY. - - P.S. I don't think the quiet Euthanasia of England will happen - in the year 1773, the mayoralty of J. W. Esq. - -Hume had been for many years very corpulent. In a letter to Sir Harry -Erskine, in 1756, he complains of this tendency to obesity. He -occasionally alludes to his partiality for plain food, and to his being, -to use his own sufficiently distinct expression, "a glutton, not an -epicure."[449:1] We have found him telling Sir Gilbert Elliot, that for -beef and cabbage, which he calls "a charming dish," and old mutton, no -one could excel him; and that the Duc de Nivernois would become -apprentice to his "lass," to learn how she made sheeps'-head broth. The -zest with which he returned to the simple food of his native country, -after the diplomatic feasts of Paris, seems to have been characteristic -of all his habits. Burke is said to have affirmed, that, "in manners he -was an easy unaffected man, previous to going to Paris as secretary to -Lord Hertford; but that the adulation and caresses of the female wits of -that capital had been too powerful even for a philosopher, and the -result was, he returned a literary coxcomb." But the saying is not in -harmony with the characteristics noted by others; and it is not quite -clear that it was ever uttered by Burke.[450:1] All who speak as having -been familiarly acquainted with him, concur in describing his manners as -kind, simple, and polite. He had, as no one who has read his -correspondence can fail to see, a good heart, ever ready to do -benevolent acts where occasions for their performance came under his -notice; and his exterior appearance and manner corresponded with this -part of his character. One occasionally meets with venerable persons who -remember having been dandled on Hume's knee, and the number of these -reminiscences indicates that he was fond of children.[450:2] - -The broad Scottish pronunciation, in which, by all accounts, he -indulged, was a rather singular habit in one who desired to throw off -all marks of provincialism. Yet we are told that in this rude Doric garb -he clothed a very pure English colloquial style. We must take this -statement with allowances: He never probably in his most finished -writings completely divested his style of Scotticisms; and the English -he spoke must have been pure only in comparison with the language of his -fellow countrymen. But it may be remarked, that provincial broadness of -pronunciation in Scotland is far from being incompatible with a very -pure and unprovincial style of language. It has often been observed, -that in those parts of the country where the speech of the uneducated is -most peculiar, English, when spoken at all, is found in greatest -purity. Thus, an inhabitant of the border districts makes his southern -tones, though hardly distinguishable from those of his English -neighbours, the vehicle of intense Scotticisms; while beyond the -Grampians, the deep broad Teutonic pronunciation sometimes gives voice -to uncontaminated English, as established by literary and colloquial -rules. - -Hume had very clearly two kinds of conversation, one for strangers and -the world at large, the other for his chosen friends with whom he was at -ease, and who could understand the good humour of that jocularity which -a contemporary pronounced to have something in it perfectly infantine. -His friend John Home was somewhat renowned for a warlike and romantic -pomp in his ideas, like those which pervade his own tragic personations. -In Hume's conversation we may believe that there was nothing either -heroic or enthusiastic. A good humoured sly application of the fugitive -subjects of discussion, to the peculiarities of the guests; an -occasional vigorous and apt remark; a fantastic wit sometimes let loose -to wander where it pleased, and choose whatever it thought fit for its -object,--seem to have constituted the charm of his society. Yet the tone -of his thoughts sometimes rose to enthusiasm. Thus the son of his valued -friend Ferguson, remembers his father saying, that, one clear and -beautiful night, when they were walking home together, Hume suddenly -stopped, looked up to the starry sky, and said, more after the manner of -"Hervey's Meditations" than the "Treatise of Human Nature," "Oh, Adam, -can any one contemplate the wonders of that firmament, and not believe -that there is a God!" - -In a late collection of casual reminiscences, there is the following -notice of his social habits. - -"Major M----, with whom I dined yesterday, said that he had frequently -met David Hume at their military mess in Scotland, and in other parties; -that he was very polite and pleasant, though thoughtful in company, -generally reclining his head upon his hand, as if in study; from which -he would suddenly recover, however, with some indifferent -question;[452:1] extremely inquisitive, but quite easy to himself and -all around him. One is glad to catch personal notices, however slight, -of memorable men and of speculative philosophers. I know no one so -memorable as Hume. He seems to have so far outstripped the spirit of the -times in his original and profound researches, that the world is in no -condition at present to do justice to his merits."[452:2] - -Those who know him solely by his philosophical reputation, will perhaps -believe him to have been - - Parcus deorum cultor et infrequens. - -But this does not seem to have been the case, at least in his outward -conduct. We find him, in writing home from France, casually mentioning -his not having seen Elliot's sons "in church;" and on another occasion -making a like allusion, indicative of his having been a pretty regular -attendant at the ambassador's chapel. He is said to have been fond of -Dr. Robertson's preaching, and not averse to that of his colleague and -opponent, John Erskine. A lady, distinguished in literature, remembers -that in a conversation with a respectable tradesman's wife, who had been -a servant to Hume, she said that her master one day asked her very -seriously, why she was never seen in church, where he had provided seats -for all his household. At that time there were very few of the humbler -classes in Edinburgh, who did not belong to the Church of Scotland. The -woman's defence was, that she belonged to a dissenting congregation; and -it was admitted to be quite satisfactory. - -Social in his habits, and living the life of a wealthy bachelor, it was -natural that Hume should connect himself with the societies, whether of -a literary or convivial character, which brought the good company of -Edinburgh together. He appears to have been a pretty active member of -the Philosophical Society. In a letter, of which part has already been -printed, and which would probably in strict chronological order belong -to an earlier period, we find him with mild dignity enforcing the -tolerance and philosophical equanimity, that ought to reign wherever men -of different sentiments meet each other in intellectual discussion. - - -"_Tuesday Forenoon._ - -"SIR,--I am so great a lover of peace, that I am resolved to drop this -matter altogether, and not to insert a syllable in the Preface, which -can have a reference to your Essay. The truth is, I could take no -revenge but such a one as would have been a great deal too cruel, and -much exceeding the offence: for, though most authors think, that a -contemptuous manner of treating their writings is but slightly revenged -by hurting the personal character and the honour of their antagonists, I -am very far from that opinion. Besides, I am as certain as I can be of -any thing, (and I am not such a sceptic as you may perhaps imagine,) -that your inserting such remarkable alterations in the printed copy, -proceeded entirely from precipitancy and passion, not from any formed -intention of deceiving the Society. I would not take advantage of such -an incident to throw a slur on a man of merit, whom I esteem, though I -might have reason to complain of him. - -"When I am abused by such a fellow as Warburton, whom I neither know nor -care for, I can laugh at him. But if Dr. Stewart approaches any way -towards the same style of writing, I own it vexes me; because I -conclude, that some unguarded circumstance of my conduct, though -contrary to my intention, had given occasion to it. - -"As to your situation with regard to Lord Kames, I am not so good a -judge. I only think that you had so much the better of the argument, -that you ought, upon that account, to have been more reserved in your -expressions. All raillery ought to be avoided in philosophical argument, -both because it is unphilosophical, and because it cannot but be -offensive, let it be ever so gentle. What, then, must we think with -regard to so many insinuations of irreligion, to which Lord Kames's -paper gave not the least occasion? This spirit of the inquisitor is, in -you, the effect of passion, and what a _cool_ moment would easily -correct. But where it predominates in the character, what ravages has it -committed on reason, virtue, truth, liberty, and every thing that is -valuable among mankind! I shall now speak a word as to the justness of -your censure with regard to myself after these remarks on the manner of -it. I have no scruple of confessing my mistakes. You see I have owned -that I think Lord Kames is mistaken in his argument; and I would sooner -give up my _own_ cause than my _friend's_, if I thought that imputation -of any consequence to a man's character. . . . .[455:1] - -"As I am resolved to drop this matter entirely from the Preface, so I -hope to persuade Lord Kames to be entirely silent with regard to it in -our meeting. But in case I should not prevail, or if any body else start -the subject, I think it better that some of your friends should be -there, and be prepared to mollify the matter. If I durst pretend to -advise, I should think it better you yourself were absent, unless you -bring a greater spirit of composition than you express in your letter. I -am persuaded that whatever a person of Mr. Monro's authority proposes -will be agreed to: though I must beg leave to differ from his judgment -in proposing to alter two pages. That chiefly removes the offence given -to me; but what regards Lord Kames is so interwoven with the whole -discourse, that there is not now any possibility of altering it. I am, -sir, your most obedient humble servant," &c. - -"P. S.--I hope you are very zealous in promoting the sale of Blacklock's -Poems. I will never be reconciled to you unless you dispose of at least -a score of them; and make your friends Sir John Maxwell and Lord Buchan -pay a guinea a piece for their copy."[455:2] - - -The Poker Club, occasionally mentioned in these pages, seems to have -had no other direct and specific object but the consumption of claret. -The duty laid on that national wine, by "the English statesman," so -pathetically commemorated by John Home, was a heavy blow and great -discouragement to the club; but it rallied, and returned to its old -esteemed beverage; and, indeed, it is a somewhat curious circumstance, -that the national taste, created by the early intercourse with France -and the consequent cheapness of French wines, still lingers in Scotland, -where claret is much more generally consumed than in England. The club -met in Fortune's tavern every Friday. It was the practice, at each -meeting, to name two to be, what were called, "attendant members;" an -arrangement, probably, designed to form a nucleus round which those -whose attendance was uncertain, but who might drop in occasionally in -the course of the evening, could form themselves; and to prevent any -general desertion of the club, or, what might be, perhaps, more -calamitous, the accident of any individual finding himself, for the -night, its sole and solitary representative. We find Hume duly taking -his turn in these attendances, and keeping the minutes according to -rotation. On the 20th January, 1775, there is this emphatic entry, in -his handwriting, "As Mr. Nairne was one of the attendant members, and -neglected his duty, the club sent him the bill." The last meeting of -the club, attended by Hume, appears to have been that of 8th December, -1775.[457:1] - -It does not appear to be necessary that traditional anecdotes, such as -the few we possess of Hume, must either be authenticated, or excluded -from such a work as the present. It seems to entitle them to a place, -that they were current among those who knew his character and habits. -They thus afford all that is expected from such sources--passing fancy -sketches, recognised as likenesses. Like several others that have -appeared in these pages, as mere traditions, the following anecdote, -which is eminently natural and curious, has no farther authentication -than the general belief, in Edinburgh, that it "was like the man." - -About the commencement of his last illness, a female member of the -respectable Berean congregation, in Leith, presented herself at his -door, with the information that she had been intrusted with a message to -him from on High; and, becoming very urgent, succeeded in obtaining -admission. "This is a very important matter, madam," said the -philosopher, "we must take it with deliberation;--perhaps you had better -get a little temporal refreshment before you begin. 'Lassie, bring this -good lady a glass of wine.'" While she was preparing for the attack, -Hume entered, good-humouredly, into conversation with her; and, -discovering that her husband was a chandler, announced that he stood -very much in want, at that time, of some temporal lights, and intrusted -his guest with a very large order. This unexpected stroke of business at -once absorbed all the good woman's thoughts; and, forgetting her -important mission, she immediately trotted home to acquaint her husband -with the good news. - -There is an anecdote, which has appeared in numerous collections of such -literary scraps, which represents him as having slipped into the boggy -ground at the base of the castle rock, and called to a woman to help him -out. In his unwieldy and infirm state, during his latter years, the -accident is not improbable. The anecdote proceeds to say, that the -female called on had great doubts of the propriety of helping "Hume, the -Deist," out of that slough of despond into which it had pleased -Providence to cast him. "But, my good woman, does not your religion as a -Christian, teach you to do good, even to your enemies?" "That may be," -said she, "but ye shallna get out o' that, till ye become a Christian -yersell: and repeat the Lord's Prayer and the Belief," a feat which is -said to have been very rapidly performed, much to the worthy catechist's -astonishment. - -Some of his witticisms have a tone of sarcastic severity, which he does -not appear to have been disposed to suppress, even when women were the -victims, if it was called forth by affectation or folly. To a celebrated -"fine woman" of his day, who said she was often pestered to tell her -age, and desired his opinion what answer she should give: he is reported -to have said, "Madam, say you are not yet come to years of discretion." -To the same lady, who, when crossing one of the ferries of the Firth of -Forth, during a fresh breeze, was making a loud outcry about danger, he -remarked, with much coolness, that they would probably soon be food for -fishes; "and who," said the frightened belle, probably a little confused -by the horrors of their position, "who will they begin with?" The answer -she received was, "Why, madam, those of them that are gluttons will -begin with me; those that are epicures with your ladyship." - -We now resume Hume's correspondence. The letters of the last five years -of his life, which have been preserved, are comparatively few; a -circumstance which may be accounted for from his living, during that -period, among his correspondents. On 28th January, 1772, he writes to -Smith, that he would be glad to receive a visit from him; but that his -house would be rather dull, from his sister having fever. In -continuation he says:-- - - -"I shall not take an excuse from your own state of health; which I -suppose only a subterfuge invented by indolence and love of solitude. -Indeed, my dear Smith, if you continue to hearken to complaints of this -nature, you will cut yourself out entirely from human society, to the -great loss of both parties. - -"P.S.--I have not yet read 'Orlando Inamorato;' but intend soon to do -it. I am now in a course of reading the 'Italian Historians,' and am -confirmed in my former opinion, that that language has not produced one -author who knew how to write elegant correct prose, though it contains -several excellent poets."[459:1] - - -In the following letters, we find several details about that remarkable -revulsion in the state of trade in Scotland, which, at the present day, -is chiefly known by the quantity of decisions on points of bankruptcy -law, with which it filled the Reports. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 27th June, 1772._ - -"We are here in a very melancholy situation, continual bankruptcies, -universal loss of credit, and endless suspicions. There are but two -standing houses in this place--Mansfields and the Coutses--for I -comprehend not Cummin, whose dealings were always very narrow. Mansfield -has paid away £40,000 in a few days: but it is apprehended that neither -he nor any of them can hold out till the end of next week, if no -alteration happen. The case is little better in London. It is thought -that Sir George Colebroke must soon stop; and even the Bank of England -is not entirely free from suspicion. Those of Newcastle, Norwich, and -Bristol, are said to be stopped. The Thistle Bank has been reported to -be in the same condition. The Carron Company is reeling, which is one of -the greatest calamities of the whole, as they gave employment to near -ten thousand people. Do these events any wise affect your theory, or -will it occasion the revisal of any chapters? - -"Of all the sufferers, I am the most concerned for the Adams, -particularly John. But their undertakings were so vast, that nothing -could support them. They must dismiss three thousand workmen, who, -comprehending the materials, must have expended above £100,000 a-year. -They have great funds; but if these must be disposed of in a hurry, and -to disadvantage, I am afraid the remainder will amount to little or -nothing. People's [compa]ssion I see was exhausted for John, in his last -calamity, and every body asks why he incurred any more hazards. But his -friendship for his brothers is an apology; though I believe he has a -projecting turn of his own. To me the scheme of the Adelphi always -appeared so imprudent, that my wonder is how they could have gone on so -long. - -"If Sir George Colebroke stop, it will probably disconcert all the -plans of our friends, as it will diminish their patron's influence; -which is a new misfortune. - -"On the whole, I believe that the check given to our exorbitant and ill -grounded credit, will prove of advantage in the long run, as it will -reduce people to more solid, and less sanguine projects, and, at the -same time, introduce frugality among the merchants and manufacturers: -what say you? Here is food for your speculation."[461:1] - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 23d Nov. 1772._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I should agree to your reasoning, if I could trust your -resolution. Come hither for some weeks about Christmas; dissipate -yourself a little; return to Kirkcaldy; finish your work before autumn: -go to London; print it; return and settle in this town, which suits your -studious independent turn, even better than London. Execute this plan -faithfully, and I forgive you. - -"Ferguson has returned, fat and fair, and in good humour, -notwithstanding his disappointment, which I am glad of."[461:2] - - -In 1772, Macpherson published a quarto volume, called "An Introduction -to the History of Great Britain and Ireland," of which Pinkerton, -indignant at the Celtic spirit it displayed, said, "The empty vanity, -shallow reading, vague assertion, and etymological nonsense, in this -production, are truly risible." In a letter to Colonel Dow,[461:3] we -find Hume criticising this book in a rather less emphatic manner. - -"My compliments to Ossian. He has given us a work last winter, which -contains a great deal of genius and good writing; but I cannot assent to -his system. I must still adhere to the common opinion regarding our -origin, or rather your origin; for we are all plainly Danes or Saxons in -the low countries. But these subjects I reserve to a discussion over an -evening fire on your return. I charge you not to think of settling in -London, till you have first seen our New Town, which exceeds any thing -you have seen in any part of the world."[462:1] - -With the following letter, many readers may perhaps be familiar, but to -those who have not already seen it, the curious historical incident it -details, will give it much interest. - - -HUME _to_ SIR JOHN PRINGLE. - - _St. Andrew's Square, Edinburgh, - Feb. 10, 1773._ - - MY DEAR SIR,--That the present Pretender was in London, in the - year 1753, I know with the greatest certainty; because I had - it from Lord Marischal, who said, it consisted with his - certain knowledge. Two or three days after his lordship gave - me this information, he told me, that the evening before, he - had learned several curious particulars from a lady, (who I - imagined to be Lady Primrose,) though my lord refused to name - her. The Pretender came to her house in the evening, without - giving her any preparatory information; and entered the room - when she had a pretty large company with her, and was herself - playing at cards. He was announced by the servant under - another name. She thought the cards would have dropped from - her hands on seeing him. But she had presence enough of mind, - to call him by the name he assumed; to ask him when he came to - England, and how long he intended to stay there. After he and - all the company went away, the servants remarked how - wonderfully like the strange gentleman was to the prince's - picture, which hung on the chimney-piece, in the very room in - which he entered. My lord added, (I think from the authority - of the same lady,) that he used so little precaution, that he - went abroad openly in day-light, in his own dress; only laying - aside his blue riband and star; walked once through St. - James's, and took a turn in the Mall. - - About five years ago, I told this story to Lord Holderness, - who was secretary of state in the year 1753; and I added, that - I supposed this piece of intelligence had at that time escaped - his lordship. "By no means," said he, "and who do you think - first told it me? it was the king himself, who subjoined, 'And - what do you think, my lord, I should do with him?'" Lord - Holderness owned that he was puzzled how to reply; for if he - declared his real sentiments, they might savour of - indifference to the royal family. The king perceived his - embarrassment, and extricated him from it, by adding, "My - lord, I shall just do nothing at all; and when he is tired of - England, he will go abroad again." I think this story, for the - honour of the late king, ought to be more generally known. - - But what will surprise you more, Lord Marischal, a few days - after the coronation of the present king, told me, that he - believed the young Pretender was at that time in London; or at - least had been so very lately, and had come over to see the - show of the coronation, and had actually seen it. I asked my - lord the reason for this strange fact. "Why," says he, "a - gentleman told me so that saw him there; and that he even - spoke to him, and whispered in his ears these words: 'Your - royal highness is the last of all mortals whom I should expect - to see here.'--'It was curiosity that led me,' said the other; - 'but I assure you,' added he, 'that the person who is the - object of all this pomp and magnificence is the man I envy the - least.'" You see this story is so near traced from the - fountain head, as to wear a great face of probability. Query, - What if the Pretender had taken up Dymock's gauntlet? I find - that the Pretender's visit in England, in the year 1753, was - known to all the Jacobites; and some of them have assured me, - that he took the opportunity of formally renouncing the Roman - Catholic religion, under his own name of Charles Stuart, in - the new church in the Strand; and that this is the reason of - the bad treatment he met with at the court of Rome. I own that - I am a sceptic with regard to the last particulars. - - Lord Marischal had a very bad opinion of this unfortunate - prince; and thought there was no vice so mean or atrocious of - which he was not capable; of which he gave me several - instances. My lord, though a man of great honour, may be - thought a discontented courtier; but what quite confounded me - in the idea of that prince, was a conversation I had with - Helvétius at Paris, which, I believe, I have told you. In case - I have not, I shall mention a few particulars. That gentleman - told me, that he had no acquaintance with the Pretender; but, - some time after that prince was chased out of France, "a - letter," said he, "was brought me from him, in which he told - me that the necessity of his affairs obliged him to be at - Paris; and, as he knew me, by character, to be a man of the - greatest probity and honour in France, he would trust himself - to me, if I would promise to conceal and protect him. I own," - added Helvétius to me, "although I knew the danger to be - greater of harbouring him at Paris than at London; and - although I thought the family of Hanover not only the lawful - sovereigns in England, but the only lawful sovereigns in - Europe, as having the full and free consent of the people; yet - was I such a dupe to his flattery, that I invited him to my - house; concealed him there, going and coming, near two years; - had all his correspondence pass through my hands; met with his - partisans upon Pont Neuf; and found, at last, that I had - incurred all this danger and trouble for the most unworthy of - all mortals; insomuch that I have been assured, when he went - down to Nantz, to embark on his expedition to Scotland, he - took fright and refused to go on board; and his attendants, - thinking the matter gone too far, and that they would be - affronted for his cowardice, carried him, in the night time, - into the ship, pieds et mains liés." I asked him, if he meant - literally? "Yes," said he, "literally. They tied him and - carried him by main force." What think you now of this hero - and conqueror? - - Both Lord Marischal and Helvétius agree, that with all this - strange character, he was no bigot; but rather had learned, - from the philosophers at Paris, to affect a contempt of all - religion. You must know that both these persons thought they - were ascribing to him an excellent quality. Indeed, both of - them used to laugh at me for my narrow way of thinking in - these particulars.[465:1] However, my dear Sir John, I hope - you will do me the justice to acquit me. - - I doubt not but these circumstances will appear curious to - Lord Hardwicke, to whom you will please to present my - respects. I suppose his lordship will think this unaccountable - mixture of temerity and timidity, in the same character, not a - little singular. I am yours very sincerely.[465:2] - -If there should be any doubts of the genuineness of this letter, from -its having first appeared, unauthenticated, in a periodical work, they -will be removed by the perusal of the following answer by Sir John -Pringle, printed from the original manuscript. - - -SIR JOHN PRINGLE _to_ HUME. - - _London, 5th November, 1773_. - - DEAR SIR,--I was much obliged to you for your letter of the - 10th ult., as it furnished me with sufficient means for - maintaining my credit with Lord Hardwicke, a person I have not - the honour to be well known to; and I had the more occasion - for such a testimony as yours, as the other earl, mentioned in - your letter, has thought proper, (I presume since he has once - more become a courtier,) to deny his knowing any thing of the - story, when one of the company, (where I told the anecdote to - Lord Hardwicke,) inquired of him about it. - - Lord Hardwicke, not being in town when yours came to hand, I - charged his intimate friend, Mr. Wray, who was going to visit - him, with it. Yesterday, that gentleman returned, and, with - the letter, sent me a line, expressing his lordship's great - satisfaction in the communication; and with many thanks to us - both for it. I understand he is very curious in picking up - such historical facts; and, if so, he certainly never met with - any thing of that kind more suited to his genius. The most - extraordinary circumstance is, that of the _pied et poing - liés_; and yet your authority seems to be unexceptionable. - What could be expected from an adventurer whom they had been - obliged to treat in that humiliating manner? and whose - timidity, they must believe, was every now and then to recur, - to affront those that set him upon the enterprise? I know that - _our_ people were at great pains to decry his courage, after - the battle of Culloden; but that I considered always as done - upon a political, rather than an historical principle. I had - good evidence for believing that, at Derby, he was, of the - council of war, the person who stood longest out against the - motion for returning, and not advancing to London. Again, he - was for standing at the Spey; and, lastly, he did not retire - from Culloden till his whole band was put to flight. It is - true he never advanced nearer than the corps de réserve; but - which corresponded to our second line, in which the Duke of - Cumberland placed himself. I may add, that both of us have - been informed, that he betrayed no unmanly concern, when he - skulked so long with his female heroine; and then, surely, he - was daily in the greatest danger of his life; had he been - taken he would have met with no quarter. But, after all, these - testimonies, in favour of his courage, must yield to such - proofs as you bring to the contrary.[466:1] - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 24th Feb., 1773._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--There are two late publications here which I advise you to -commission. The first is Andrew Stuart's Letters to Lord Mansfield, -which they say have met with vast success in London. Andrew has eased -his own mind, and no bad effects are to follow. Lord Mansfield is -determined, absolutely, to neglect them. The other is Lord Monboddo's -treatise on the Origin and Progress of Language, which is only part of -a larger work. It contains all the absurdity and malignity which I -expected; but is writ with more ingenuity and in a better style than I -looked for."[467:1] - - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 10th April, 1773._ - -"To-day news arrived in town, that the Ayr Bank had shut up, and, as -many people think, for ever. I hear that the Duke of Buccleuch is on the -road. The country will be in prodigious distress for money this term. -Sir G. Colebroke's bankruptcy is thought to be the immediate cause of -this event. - -"Have you seen Macpherson's Homer? It is hard to tell whether the -attempt or the execution be worse. I hear he is employed by the -booksellers to continue my History. But, in my opinion, of all men of -parts, he has the most anti-historical head in the universe. - -"Have you seen Sir John Dalrymple? It is strange what a rage is against -him, on account of the most commendable action in his life. His -collection[467:2] is curious; but introduces no new light into the -civil, whatever it may into the biographical and anecdotical history of -the times. - -"Have you seen 'Alonzo?' Very slovenly versification, some pathetic, but -too much resembling 'Douglas.'"[467:3] - - -We have found Gilbert Stuart deferentially courting Hume's notice of his -earlier literary efforts. A few years of popularity as an author, and -the command of a periodical work, had in the meantime changed the man's -character, by developing all its arrogance, jealousy, conceit, and -vindictiveness. He was one of those who indulge in the comfortable -consciousness, that any comparison between their own genius and that of -any other given person is supremely ludicrous; and as some one said of -La Harpe, it might have proved a good speculation to buy him at what he -was worth, and sell him at his own estimate of his value. Sick of the -praises he heard bestowed on Robertson and the other eminent historians -of his age, he thought it his duty to show the world how the lamp of -such industrious drudges would grow pale before the lustre of true -genius; and thus he favoured the public with some historical efforts, in -which the curious reader of the present day, who takes them from -forgotten shelves, is somewhat surprised to find how effectually -well-turned periods, and a certain audacity of opinion, keep out of view -the meagreness of the author's inquiries. - -In 1773, Stuart began to edit the _Edinburgh Magazine and Review_. -Periodical literature was the proper sphere for exhibiting his powers; -which consisted in the ready acquisition of a superficial view of any -subject, and a rapid, yet elegant style; occasionally magniloquent, and -at other times descriptive or sarcastic. No other periodical work of -that day equalled the _Edinburgh Magazine and Review_, in genius and -originality. But the editor made it the vehicle of his tyrannical and -vindictive spirit; and the purse and person of the proprietor--it might -almost be said the peace of society, were endangered by so formidable a -weapon remaining in such hands.[468:1] - -At this time, the Rev. Robert Henry was publishing his valuable History -of Britain, volume by volume. Stuart had vowed that he would crush this -work; and the critical columns he concentrated against it, do great -credit to his ability as a tactician. Hume was promised the privilege of -reviewing the book in _the Magazine_, and probably Stuart thought that -to arm him against an interloper in his own province was excellent -policy; but when the article was written, and put in proof, it was found -not adapted to the editor's purpose. We find him thus writing to a -confederate: - - David Hume wants to review Henry; but that task is so - precious, that I will undertake it myself. Moses, were he to - ask it as a favour, should not have it: yea, not even the man - after God's own heart. I wish I could transport myself to - London, to review him for the _Monthly_: a fire there and in - the _Critical_, would perfectly annihilate him. Could you do - nothing in the latter? To the former I suppose David Hume has - transcribed the criticism he intended for us. It is precious - and would divert you. I keep a _proof_ of it in my cabinet - for the amusement of friends. This great philosopher begins to - dote.[470:1] - -A review of Henry's work _did_ appear in _The Monthly Review_, but from -a very different pen. The _proof_, however, which gave Stuart so much -amusement, has fortunately been preserved. After giving a favourable -analysis of Henry's second volume, it concludes with the following -sentences, in many respects remarkable. - - The reader will scarcely find in our language, except in the - works of the celebrated Dr. Robertson, any performance that - unites together so perfectly the great points of entertainment - and instruction. It is happy for the inhabitants of this - metropolis, which has naturally a great influence on the - country, that the same persons who can make such a figure in - profane learning, are intrusted with the guidance of the - people in their spiritual concerns, which are of such - superior, and indeed of unspeakable importance. These - illustrious examples, if any thing, must make the infidel - abashed of his vain cavils, and put a stop to that torrent of - vice, profaneness, and immorality, by which the age is so - unhappily distinguished. - - This city can justly boast of other signal characters of the - same kind, whom learning and piety, taste and devotion, - philosophy and faith, joined to the severest morals and most - irreproachable conduct, concur to embellish. One in - particular, with the same hand by which he turns over the - sublime pages of Homer and Virgil, Demosthenes and Cicero, is - not ashamed to open with reverence the sacred volumes; and - with the same voice by which, from the pulpit, he strikes vice - with consternation, he deigns to dictate to his pupils the - most useful lessons of rhetoric, poetry, and polite - literature.[470:2] - -Hume was an early friend of Benjamin Franklin, whom he was instrumental -in introducing to his Parisian friends.[471:1] The celebrated -publication of the papers revealing the policy of the ascendency party, -and the scene at the council board, of which Franklin so deeply -cherished the memory, are thus alluded to in a letter to Smith, of 13th -February, 1774:-- - -"Pray, what strange accounts are these we hear of Franklin's conduct? I -am very slow in believing that he has been guilty in the extreme degree -that is pretended; though I always knew him to be a very factious man, -and faction, next to fanaticism, is of all passions the most destructive -of morality. How is it supposed he got possession of these letters? I -hear that Wedderburn's treatment of him before the council was most -cruel, without being in the least blameable. What a pity!"[471:2] - -The following, among the very few letters which Hume appears to have -written at this period of his life, is addressed to John Home. - - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 4th June, 1774._ - -"DEAR JOHN,--The enclosed came to hand to-day, and, as I take it to be -directed to you, I have sent it you. If on opening it you find it -otherwise, you may return it to me, that I may find the true owner. - -"You have seen, no doubt, the specimen of a Scotch review.[472:1] My -first conjecture was that Carlyle was the author; but Dr. Blair has -convinced me that it is much more probably the production of your -spiritual guide, Tom Hepburn;[472:2] but, whoever be the father, the -child has a great deal of salt, and spirit, and humour. I wish he would -continue, though at the hazard of my getting a rap over the knuckles -from time to time; for I see in this hero the spirit of a Drawcansir, -who spares neither friend nor foe. I think I can reckon about twenty -people, not including the king, whom he has attacked in this short -performance. I hope all his spleen is not exhausted. I should desire my -compliments to him, were I not afraid that he would interpret the -civility as paying black mail to him. I am, dear John, yours -sincerely."[472:3] - - -The following appears to be the earliest letter in which Hume expresses -himself conscious of some unpleasant feelings, systematic of a decay of -the physical functions. - - -HUME _to_ COLONEL EDMONDSTOUNE. - -"_Edinburgh, 23d March, 1775._ - -"CARO GIUSEPPE,--No request can be more obliging than yours; and no -party could have been proposed to any place, or with any company, more -agreeable to me. But you remember what a plague I was to every body and -to myself on my last journey; and you may recollect that I made a vow, -in the bitterness of my distress, never more to leave my own house, nor -lie out of my own bed. This vow I have religiously kept, except two or -three days last autumn, when I went to my brother's; and though I could -scarcely there esteem myself from home, I resolved never more to pay -them a visit. You have not a bed cool enough for me, which proceeds not -from any distemper or disorder, but from a peculiarity of constitution, -that has been gradually increasing on me these last twelve years. I am -in very good health: but let me tell you, that you express yourself -strangely when you say I have been _complaining_. How could you imagine -that I could ever complain, even though _fractus illabatur orbis_? I -beseech you, know better the people to whom you speak, and the force of -the terms you make use of. Miss Keiths desired me to tell you, that some -time ago they had a letter from Sir Basil, by which they learn that your -request with regard to Maillet's friend, is complied with. - -"My compliments to Mrs. Edmondstoune; embrace Jean Jacques in my name. -Dear Guidelianus, I am ever yours."[473:1] - - -Colonel Edmondstoune's answer to these excuses is not a little curious. - - DEAR OBSTINATE DAVID, - - _Pravum_ et tenacem propositi virum - Non civium ardor _recta_ jubentium - Non vultus instantis _Baronnæ_ - Mente quatit _stolida_. - - Will nothing move you, you obdurate philosopher? Your reasons - are not worth a straw; and I'll prosecute you for scandalizing - my house. The room next to your last is as cool as any room - ought to be. It looks to the north, and you was put into a - south room, merely because it was thought that the sun's - vivifying ray would be of use to a man that had been worn out - and so much epuisé in France. Besides, you scrub, have I not - seen you basking for hours together in the sun, contemplating - Shellie, and burning with envy at his prowess? and I heard - nothing about your being heated till we came to Killin, and - that was Crichen's doing, to season you for still a hotter - place.[474:1] - - -HUME _to his Nephew_.[474:2] - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 30th August, 1775._ - -"DEAR DAVY,--Your letter gave me satisfaction, and I approve very much -of your course of study. But I think you are unreasonably diffident of -yourself with regard to the _copia verborum_: you are not wanting in -that particular [consider]ing you as a beginner; and the course you take -will tend very much to [produce] greater facility as well as correctness -of expression. Stylus est optimus [magis]ter eloquentiæ. These, if not -the words, are the sense of Quinctilian, for I cite from memory. You -know that the Roman stylus was the same as the pen. - -"I had a letter to-day from Mr. Millar,[474:3] who tells me that he -expects to see you on the first Monday of November. - -"I do not go to Inverara as soon as I proposed: it will be next week -before I set out. I think I am the better for jaunting; though in the -main I should like better to stay at home. - -"My compliments to your mother; I am glad she has heard from Josey; but -I wonder what has detained him so long at Paris. - -"I fancy you and Jock are very happy at present in your field sports; -and your father will not be displeased to see the favourable progress of -the harvest. I am, dear Davy, your affectionate uncle."[475:1] - - -HUME _to_ JOHN HOME. - - _St. Andrew's Square, Sept. 20th, 1775._ - - DEAR JOHN,--Of all the vices of language, the least excusable - is the want of perspicuity; for, as words were instituted by - men, merely for conveying their ideas to each other, the - employing of words without meaning is a palpable abuse, which - departs from the very original purpose and intention of - language. It is also to be observed, that any ambiguity in - expression is next to the having no meaning at all; and is - indeed a species of it; for while the hearer or reader is - perplexed between different meanings, he can assign no - determinate idea to the speaker or writer; and may, on that - account, say with Ovid, "Inopem me copia fecit." For this - reason, all eminent rhetoricians and grammarians, both ancient - and modern, have insisted on perspicuity of language as an - essential quality; without which, all ornaments of diction are - vain and fruitless. Quinctilian carries the matter so far, as - to condemn this expression, _vidi hominem librum legentem_; - because, says he, legentem may construe as well with _librum_ - as _hominem_; though one would think that the sense were here - sufficient to prevent all ambiguity. In conformity to this - way of thinking, Vaugelas, the first great grammarian of - France, will not permit that any one have recourse to the - sense, in order to explain the meaning of the words; because, - says he, it is the business of the words to explain the - meaning of the sense--not of the sense to give a determinate - meaning to the words; and this practice is reversing the order - of nature; like the custom of the Romans (he might have added - the Greeks,) in their Saturnalia, who made the slaves the - masters; for you may learn from Lucian that the Greeks - practised the same frolic during the festival of Saturn, whom - they called +Chronos+. - - Now, to apply, and to come to the use of this principle: I - must observe to you, that your last letter, besides a - continued want of distinctness in the form of the literal - characters, has plainly transgressed the essential rule - above-mentioned of grammar and rhetoric. You say that Coutts - has complained to you of not hearing from me; had you said - either James or Thomas, I could have understood your meaning. - About two months ago, I heard that James complained of me in - this respect; and I wrote to him, though then abroad, making - an apology for my being one of the subscribers of a paper - which gave him some offence. I was afraid he had not received - mine. The letter of Thomas, I conceived to be only a circular - letter, informing me of a change in the firm of the house: and - having answered it a few days ago, by giving him some - directions about disposing of my money, which proved that I - intended to remain a customer to the shop; it happens, - therefore, luckily, that I had obviated all objections to my - conduct on both sides. - - In turning over my papers, I find a manuscript journal of the - last rebellion, which is at your service. I hope Mrs. Home is - better, and will be able to execute her journey. Are you to be - in town soon? Yours without ambiguity, circumlocution, or - mental reservation.[476:1] - -Hume, though we have found him censuring the conduct of Franklin, was -opposed to any attempt to coerce America. "I always thought," says Sir -John Pringle, when writing to him, "you were in the wrong, when you -supposed these colonies wanted only a pretext to shake off their -subjection."[477:1] This subjection he seems to have thought they were -entitled to throw off; for he was far more tolerant of the sway of -individuals over numbers, which he looked upon as the means of -preserving order and civilization, than of the predominance of one -territory over another, which he looked upon as subjugation. -Unfortunately, few of his opinions on this subject can be better -ascertained than by the reflex light of the letters addressed to him, in -answer to his remarks. With Strahan, the eminent printer, he carried on -an extensive correspondence on political matters, of which the letters -on his own side have unfortunately been lost.[477:2] The sentiments -which Hume had expressed on the American war, are thus described, by -contrast, in the words of that member of Parliament, to whom Franklin -addressed his celebrated letter of defiance. - - -WILLIAM STRAHAN _to_ HUME. - - I differ from you _toto coelo_ with regard to America. I am - entirely for coercive methods with those obstinate madmen; and - why should we despair of success? Why should we suffer the - empire to be so dismembered, without the utmost exertions on - our part? I see nothing so very formidable in this business, - if we become a little more unanimous, and could stop the - mouths of domestic traitors, from whence the evil originated. - Not that I wish to enslave the colonists, or to make them one - jot less happy than ourselves; but I am for keeping them - subordinate to the British legislature; and their trade, in a - reasonable degree, subservient to the interest of the mother - country; an advantage she well deserves; but which she must - inevitably lose, if they are emancipated, as you propose. I am - really surprised you are of a different opinion. Very true, - things look oddly at present; and the dispute hath, hitherto, - been very ill managed; but so we always do at the commencement - of every war. So we did, most remarkably, in the last. It is - perhaps owing to the nature of our government, which permits - not of those sudden and decisive exertions frequently made by - arbitrary princes. But, so soon as the British lion is roused, - we never fail to fetch up our lee-way, as the sailors say. And - so I hope you will find it in this important case.[478:1] - -The following letter, which is not, however, written in a spirit of -entire earnestness or sobriety, has some reference to his views on the -American question. - - -HUME _to_ BARON MURE. - -"_St. David's Street, Oct. 27th, 1775._ - -"OH! DEAR BARON,--You have thrown me into agonies, and almost into -convulsions, by your request. You ask what seems reasonable,--what seems -a mere trifle; yet am I so unfit for it, that it is almost impossible -for me to comply. You are much fitter yourself. That address, by which -you gained immortal honour, was done altogether without my knowledge; I -mean that after the suppression of the late rebellion. Here is Lord Home -teazing me for an address from the Merse; and I have constantly refused -him. Besides, I am an American in my principles, and wish we would let -them alone to govern or misgovern themselves, as they think proper: the -affair is of no consequence, or of little consequence, to us. If the -county of Renfrew think it indispensably necessary for them to -interpose in public matters, I wish they would advise the king, first to -punish those insolent rascals in London and Middlesex, who daily insult -him and the whole legislature, before he thinks of America. Ask him, how -he can expect that a form of government will maintain an authority at -three thousand miles' distance, when it cannot make itself be respected, -or even be treated with common decency, at home. Tell him, that Lord -North, though, in appearance, a worthy gentleman, has not a head for -these great operations; and that, if fifty thousand men, and twenty -millions of money, were intrusted to such a lukewarm coward as Gage, -they never could produce any effect. These are objects worthy of the -respectable county of Renfrew: not mauling the poor infatuated Americans -in the other hemisphere."[479:1] - - -It has already been said, that Hume appears to have suspected that his -nephew, David, was imbibing republican principles. It is well worthy of -remark, that he does not appear to have considered the training of his -young nephews, in political opinions different from his own, as at all -to be deprecated; and David, to whom the following letter is addressed, -was boarded with Professor Millar, afterwards author of the "Historical -View of the English Government," who had even then shown himself as one -of the most powerful antagonists of Hume's constitutional doctrines. It -must be regretted that the letter is much mutilated; but enough of it is -preserved to show how lightly Hume's political opinions hung on him--how -little they possessed the character of a creed--how tolerant he was of -any system of politics which bore the air of philosophy, and how -curiously he could let his reason vibrate between opinions of the most -opposite character in practical politics. - - -HUME _to his_ NEPHEW. - -"_Edinburgh, 8th December, 1775._ - -"DEAR DAVY,--All your letters, both to me and to your father, have -[given] great satisfaction, particularly your last; and, in return, I -must give you [the] satisfaction of telling you, that Mr. Millar is very -well pleased with you, [-----] no less than you with him. He complains -only of one thing, which [is not the] usual complaint of tutors against -their pupils; to wit, that he is afraid you [apply too] close, and may -hurt your health by too assiduous study. I should not men[tion this] if -I had the least apprehension that a hint of this nature would m[ake you] -relax too much. But I cannot forbear saying, that every day, fair or -foul, [you] ought to use some exercise. Relaxation from [for?] -amusement, you may use, [or not,] as you fancy; but that, for health, is -absolutely necessary. When I was [of your] age, I was inclined to give -in to excesses of the same kind; and I remember [an anecdote] told me by -a friend, the present Lord Pitfour. A man was riding, with [great] -violence, and running his horse quite out of wind. He stopt a moment to -[ask when] he might reach a particular place. In two hours, replied the -countryman, [if you] will go slower; in four if you be in such a hurry. -Bad health, be[sides other] inconveniencies, is the greatest interrupter -to study in the world. - -"I cannot but agree with Mr. Millar, that the republican form of -government is by far the best. The ancient republics were somewhat -ferocious and torn [-----] by bloody factions; but they were still much -preferable to the monarchies or [aristocracies] which seem to have been -quite intolerable. Modern manners have corrected this abuse; and all the -republics in Europe, without exception, are so well governed that one is -at a loss to which we should give the preference. But what is this -general subject of speculation to our purpose? For, besides that an -established government [-----] without the most criminal imputation, be -disjointed from any speculation, [-----] is only fitted for a small -state; and any attempt towards it can, in our [-----] produce only -anarchy, which is the immediate forerunner of despotism [-----] tell us -what is that form of a republic which we must aspire to? Or [-----]stion -be afterwards decided by the sword. [One] great advantage of a -commonwealth over our mixed monarchy, is, that it [would consid]erably -abridge our liberty; which is growing to such an extreme as to be -incom[patible wi]th all. Such fools are they who perpetually cry out -liberty, [and think to] augment it by shaking off the monarchy. - -"I have not heard from Josey for some time, which, you may believe, has -produced [-----] reflections in some of your friends. But to show you -that you are not forgotten [-----] I showed Mr. Millar's letter to your -mother. I am afraid, said she, that [-----] some symptoms of a -consumption in poor Davy. - -"[I a]m far from thinking Mr. Millar's demands in point of money -unreas[onable.] On the contrary, I believe that I never laid out money -to better purpose. - -"[Ha]rrington is an author of genius, but chimerical. No laws, however -rigorous, [would ma]ke his Agrarian practicable. And as the people have -only a negative, the [-----] would perpetually gain ground upon them. -You remember that Montesquieu says, that Harrington establishing his -"Oceana" in opposition to the English constitution, is like the blind -men who built Chalcedon on the opposite [-----] to the seat of -Byzantium. I ask your pardon for not writing to you [sooner,] but beg -the continuance of your correspondence. My compliments to [Mr. Millar,] -to whom I owe a letter. I am, your affectionate uncle."[482:1] - - -HUME _to_ JOHN HOME. - -"_Edinburgh, 8th February, 1776._ - -"DEAR TYRTAEUS,--It is a remark of Dr. Swift's, that no man in London -ever complained of his being neglected by his friends in the country. -Your complaint of me is the more flattering. - -"Two posts ago, I received, under a frank of General Fraser's, a -pamphlet, entitled _A letter from an officer retired_. It is a very good -pamphlet; and I conjecture you to be the author. Sallust makes it a -question, whether the writer or the performer of good things has the -preference? and he ascribes the greater praise to the latter. It is -happy for you, that you may rest your fame on either. I here allude to -what you have done for Ferguson. - -"But, pray, why do you say, that the post of Boston is like the camp of -Pirna? I fancy our troops can be withdrawn thence without any -difficulty. - -"I make no doubt, since you sound the trumpet for war against the -Americans, that you have a plan ready for governing them, after they are -subdued: but you will not subdue them; unless they break in pieces -among themselves--an event very probable. It is a wonder it has not -happened sooner. But no man can foretell how far these frenzies of the -people may be carried. Yours," &c.[483:1] - - -The following letter exhibits a feeling of impatience for the appearance -of the long promised "Wealth of Nations." It shows, in discussing some -questions in political economy, that, with his usual sagacity, Hume -predicted that the loss of British supremacy over America, would not -have that dire effect on our commercial prosperity, which had been -anticipated. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Edinburgh, 8th Feb. 1776._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I am as lazy a correspondent as you, yet my anxiety about -you makes me write. By all accounts your book has been printed long ago: -yet it has never yet been so much as advertised. What is the reason? If -you wait till the fate of America be decided, you may wait long. - -"By all accounts, you intend to settle with us this spring: yet we hear -no more of it: What is the reason? Your chamber in my house is always -unoccupied. I am always at home. I expect you to land here. - -"I have been, am, and shall be probably in an indifferent state of -health. I weighed myself t' other day, and find I have fallen five -complete stones. If you delay much longer I shall probably disappear -altogether. - -"The Duke of Buccleuch tells me that you are very zealous in American -affairs. My notion is that the matter is not so important as is -commonly imagined. If I be mistaken, I shall probably correct my error -when I see you, or read you. Our navigation and general commerce may -suffer more than our manufactures. Should London fall as much in its -size as I have done, it will be the better. It is nothing but a hulk of -bad and unclean humours. Yours," &c.[484:1] - - -It is not perhaps uncharitable to suppose, that the following eulogium -would have been more warm, had the person it was addressed to not been -one of "the barbarians who inhabit the banks of the Thames." - - -HUME _to_ GIBBON. - - _Edinburgh, 18th March, 1776._ - - DEAR SIR,--As I ran through your volume of history with a - great deal of avidity and impatience, I cannot forbear - discovering somewhat of the same impatience in returning you - thanks for your agreeable present, and expressing the - satisfaction which the performance has given me. Whether I - consider the dignity of your style, the depth of your matter, - or the extensiveness of your learning, I must regard the work - as equally the object of esteem; and I own, that if I had not - previously had the happiness of your personal acquaintance, - such a performance, from an Englishman in our age, would have - given me some surprise. You may smile at this sentiment; but - as it seems to me that your countrymen, for almost a whole - generation, have given themselves up to barbarous and absurd - faction, and have totally neglected all polite letters, I no - longer expected any valuable production ever to come from - them. I know it will give you pleasure (as it did me,) to find - that all the men of letters in this place concur in their - admiration of your work, and in their anxious desire of your - continuing it. - - When I heard of your undertaking, (which was some time ago,) I - own I was a little curious to see how you would extricate - yourself from the subject of your two last chapters. I think - you have observed a very prudent temperament; but it was - impossible to treat the subject so as not to give grounds of - suspicion against you, and you may expect that a clamour will - arise. This, if any thing, will retard your success with the - public; for in every other respect your work is calculated to - be popular. But, among many other marks of decline, the - prevalence of superstition in England, prognosticates the fall - of philosophy and decay of taste; and though nobody be more - capable than you to revive them, you will probably find a - struggle in your first advances. - - I see you entertain a great doubt with regard to the - authenticity of the poems of Ossian. You are certainly right - in so doing. It is, indeed, strange, that any men of sense - could have imagined it possible, that above twenty thousand - verses, along with numberless historical facts, could have - been preserved by oral tradition during fifty generations, by - the rudest, perhaps, of all European nations; the most - necessitous, the most turbulent, and the most unsettled. Where - a supposition is so contrary to common sense, any positive - evidence of it ought never to be regarded. Men run with great - avidity to give their evidence in favour of what flatters - their passions, and their national prejudices. You are, - therefore, over and above indulgent to us in speaking of the - matter with hesitation. - - I must inform you, that we are all very anxious to hear that - you have fully collected the materials for your second volume, - and that you are even considerably advanced in the composition - of it. I speak this more in the name of my friends than in my - own; as I cannot expect to live so long as to see the - publication of it. Your ensuing volume will be more delicate - than the preceding, but I trust in your prudence for - extricating you from the difficulties; and, in all events, you - have courage to despise the clamour of bigots. I am, with - regard, &c.[485:1] - -At length appeared the long looked for work, in which the parent of the -first elucidations of political economy was to see his own offspring -eclipsed; and to see it with pride. One must be familiar with the -unenvious friendship which Hume ever bestowed, on the fellow countrymen -who joined him in the noble path of philosophical inquiry, to appreciate -the genuine satisfaction with which he thus hailed the appearance of -"The Wealth of Nations." - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Edinburgh, 1st April, 1776._ - -"EUGE! BELLE! DEAR MR. SMITH,--I am much pleased with your performance; -and the perusal of it has taken me from a state of great anxiety. It was -a work of so much expectation, by yourself, by your friends, and by the -public, that I trembled for its appearance, but am now much relieved. -Not but that the reading of it necessarily requires so much attention, -and the public is disposed to give so little, that I shall still doubt -for some time of its being at first very popular. But it has depth, and -solidity, and acuteness, and is so much illustrated by curious facts, -that it must at last take the public attention. It is probably much -improved by your last abode in London. If you were here at my fireside, -I should dispute some of your principles. I cannot think that the rent -of farms makes any part of the price of the produce, but that the price -is determined altogether by the quantity and the demand.[486:1] It -appears to me impossible, that the King of France can take a seignorage -of eight per cent upon the coinage. Nobody would bring bullion to the -mint; it would be all sent to Holland or England, where it might be -coined and sent back to France, for less than two per cent. Accordingly, -Necker says, that the French king takes only two per cent of seignorage. -But these and a hundred other points are fit only to be discussed in -conversation; which, till you tell me the contrary, I still flatter -myself with soon. I hope it will be soon; for I am in a very bad state -of health, and cannot afford a long delay. I fancy you are acquainted -with Mr. Gibbon. I like his performance extremely, and have ventured to -tell him, that, had I not been personally acquainted with him, I should -never have expected such an excellent work from the pen of an -Englishman. It is lamentable to consider how much that nation has -declined in literature during our time. I hope he did not take amiss the -national reflection. - -"All your friends here are in great grief at present, for the death of -Baron Mure, which is an irreparable loss to our society. He was among -the oldest and best friends I had in the world."[487:1] - - -In April, 1776, the disease of which Hume subsequently died, had made -alarming progress. The little autobiographical sketch, called "my own -Life," was finished on the eighteenth of that month; and he there speaks -of the rise and progress of his disorder, and of his feelings under the -expectation of a speedy termination of his life, in the following -terms:-- - - In spring, 1775, I was struck with a disorder in my bowels, - which at first gave me no alarm, but has since, as I apprehend - it, become mortal and incurable. I now reckon upon a speedy - dissolution. I have suffered very little pain from my - disorder; and what is more strange, have, notwithstanding the - great decline of my person, never suffered a moment's - abatement of my spirits; insomuch, that were I to name the - period of my life which I should most choose to pass over - again, I might be tempted to point to this latter period. I - possess the same ardour as ever in study, and the same gaiety - in company. I consider, besides, that a man of sixty-five, by - dying, cuts off only a few years of infirmities; and though I - see many symptoms of my literary reputation's breaking out at - last with additional lustre, I knew that I could have but few - years to enjoy it. It is difficult to be more detached from - life than I am at present. - -It was probably early in the year, and before the disease had made such -progress, as to make his friends in general anticipate its fatal -conclusion, that Dr. Black wrote the following undated letter on the -subject to Smith:-- - -"I write at present, chiefly to acquaint you with the state of your -friend David Hume's health, which is so bad that I am quite melancholy -upon it, and as I hear that you intend a visit to this country soon, I -wish if possible to hasten your coming, that he may have the comfort of -your company so much the sooner. He has been declining several years, -and this in a slow and gradual manner, until about a twelvemonth ago, -since which the progress of his disorder has been more rapid. One of his -distresses has been a sensation of excessive heat, chiefly in the night -time, and which was only external, for it occasioned no internal -distress, or anxiety, or thirst." - -Black then proceeds to describe with more minuteness, than would be -either pleasing or instructive to unscientific readers, a series of -symptoms from which he infers that the most serious part of his -patient's disorder, is a hemorrhage in the upper part of the -intestines.[488:1] He continues,-- - -"His mother, he says, had precisely the same constitution with himself, -and died of this very disorder; which has made him give up any hopes of -his getting the better of it." He concludes by saying,-- - -"Do not, however, say much on this subject to any one else; as he does -not like to have it spoke of, and has been shy and slow in acquainting -me fully with the state of his health." - -In preparation for the event, which could not be far distant, he had -executed a settlement of his estate, so early as the 4th of January. He -left the bulk of his fortune to his brother, or, in the case of his -predeceasing him, to his nephew David, burdened in the latter case with -special legacies to his other nephews and his nieces. He left his sister -£1200. Along with some legacies to a few obscure private friends and to -his servants, he left £200 to D'Alembert, and the same sum to Adam -Ferguson.[489:1] He appointed Smith his literary executor, in the -following terms:[490:1] "To my friend Dr. Adam Smith, late Professor of -Moral Philosophy in Glasgow, I leave all my manuscripts without -exception, desiring him to publish my 'Dialogues on Natural Religion,' -which are comprehended in this present bequest; but to publish no other -papers which he suspects not to have been written within these five -years, but to destroy them all at his leisure. And I even leave him full -power over all my papers, except the Dialogues above mentioned; and -though I can trust to that intimate and sincere friendship, which has -ever subsisted between us, for his faithful execution of this part of my -will, yet, as a small recompense of his pains in correcting and -publishing this work, I leave him two hundred pounds, to be paid -immediately after the publication of it." - -Smith subsequently refused to receive payment of the legacy; and it was -the cause of a long friendly discussion with Mr. Home of Ninewells, who, -in opposition to his argument, that it was bequeathed as a remuneration -for editorial labours, which by a subsequent alteration of the bequest -did not require to be performed, urged such pleas as this, "My brother, -knowing your liberal way of thinking, laid on you something as an -equivalent, not imagining you would refuse a small gratuity from the -funds it was to come from, as a testimony of his friendship."[490:2] But -he pleaded in vain; and Smith continued to refuse the bequest, with all -the firmness of his unmercenary nature. - -Previous to his journey to Bath, which has to be presently narrated, -Hume appears to have informed Smith of the desire expressed in his will, -that he should undertake the publication of the "Dialogues on Natural -Religion." The intimation was probably verbal, as it does not form part -of any letter among Hume's papers. Elliot was opposed to the publication -of this work. Blair pleaded strongly for its suppression; and Smith, who -had made up his mind, that he would not edit the work, seems to have -desired that the testamentary injunction laid on him might be revoked. -Hume, however, before his death, took effectual steps to guard against -its suppression. - -Thus, after having good-naturedly abstained, for nearly thirty years, -from the publication of a work, which might give pain and umbrage to his -dearest friends; at the close of life, and when the lapse of time since -it was written might have been supposed to render him indifferent to its -fate,--because there appeared some danger of its final suppression, he -took decided and well pondered steps to avert from it this fate. Such -was the character of the man! - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_London, 3d May, 1776._ - -"MY DEAR FRIEND,--I send you enclosed an ostensible letter, conformably -to your desire. I think, however, your scruples groundless. Was Mallet -any wise hurt by his publication of Lord Bolingbroke? He received an -office afterwards from the present king and Lord Bute, the most prudish -men in the world; and he always justified himself by his sacred regard -to the will of a dead friend. At the same time, I own that your scruples -have a specious appearance. But my opinion is, that if upon my death you -determine never to publish these papers, you should leave them sealed up -with my brother and family, with some inscription that you reserve to -yourself the power of reclaiming them whenever you think proper. If I -live a few years longer, I shall publish them myself. I consider an -observation of Rochefoucault, that a wind, though it extinguishes a -candle, blows up a fire. - -"You may be surprised to hear me talk of living years, considering the -state you saw me in, and the sentiments which both I and all my friends -at Edinburgh entertained on that subject. But though I cannot come up -entirely to the sanguine notions of our friend John, I find myself very -much recovered on the road, and I hope Bath waters and farther journeys, -may effect my cure. - -"By the little company I have seen, I find the town very full of your -book, which meets with general approbation. Many people think particular -points disputable; but this you certainly expected. I am glad that I am -one of the number; as these points will be the subject of future -conversation between us. I set out for Bath, I believe, on Monday, by -Sir John Pringle's directions, who says, that he sees nothing to be -apprehended in my case. If you write to me (hem! hem!) I say if you -write to me, send your letter under cover to Mr. Strahan, who will have -my direction."[492:1] - - -The "ostensible letter" which was to serve as Smith's justification, if -he should decline to follow the injunctions of the will, is as -follows:-- - - -"_London, 3d May, 1776._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--After reflecting more maturely on that article of my will -by which I left you the disposal of all my papers, with a request that -you should publish my 'Dialogues concerning Natural Religion,' I have -become sensible that, both on account of the nature of the work, and of -your situation, it may be improper to hurry on that publication. I -therefore take the present opportunity of qualifying that friendly -request. I am content to leave it entirely to your discretion, at what -time you will publish that piece, or whether you will publish it at all. - -"You will find among my papers a very inoffensive piece, called "my own -Life," which I composed a few days before I left Edinburgh; when I -thought, as did all my friends, that my life was despaired of. There can -be no objection, that the small piece should be sent to Messrs. Strahan -and Cadell, and the proprietors of my other works, to be prefixed to any -future edition of them."[493:1] - - -Smith did not absolutely refuse to edit the "Dialogues," but Hume saw -pretty clearly that it was a task that would not be performed by him. -That he was correct in this supposition, appears by a letter from Smith -to Strahan after Hume's death, where he says: - -"I once had persuaded him to leave it entirely to my discretion either -to publish them at what time I thought proper, or not to publish them at -all. Had he continued of this mind, the manuscript should have been most -carefully preserved, and upon my decease restored to his family; but it -never should have been published in my lifetime. When you have read it, -you will perhaps think it not unreasonable to consult some prudent -friend about what you ought to do."[494:1] - -By a codicil to his will, dated 7th August, he thus altered the -arrangement referred to in these letters. "In my later will and -disposition, I made some destinations with regard to my manuscripts: All -these I now retract, and leave my manuscripts to the care of Mr. William -Strahan of London, member of Parliament, trusting to the friendship that -has long subsisted between us, for his careful and faithful execution of -my intentions. I desire that my 'Dialogues concerning Natural Religion' -may be printed and published, any time within two years after my death." -After making the bequest to John Home which is mentioned farther on, -leaving to Blair, Smith, Home, and Edmondstoune, "all of them persons -very dear to me, and whose affection to me I know by repeated proofs to -have been mutual," each a copy of the new edition of his works, and to -Miss Ord, ten guineas to buy a ring, "as a memorial of his friendship -and attachment to so amiable and accomplished a person," the codicil is -signed. There is then a new paragraph appended as follows: - -"I do ordain that if my 'Dialogues,' from whatever cause, be not -published within two years and a half after my death, as also the -account of my life, the property shall return to my nephew, David, whose -duty in publishing them, as the last request of his uncle, must be -approved of by all the world."[494:2] - -Both Hume and Smith seem to have thought that Strahan would undertake -the publication as a mere matter of business. But this book, like the -little hunchback in the "Arabian Nights," was a commodity which every -one seemed anxious to transfer to his neighbour. Strahan declined to -undertake the task, and the "Dialogues" did not appear until 1779, when -they were published by their author's nephew. - -Smith cheerfully agreed to undertake the superintendance of the new -edition of his friend's works, then at press. They appear to have been -all in a state of very finished preparation for the press, and an -edition of the "Inquiries" and the miscellaneous essays was published in -1777, from a copy in which the author had completed that removal of -passages of a democratic tendency, which has been so frequently alluded -to. - -By the entreaties of several friends, who believed that travelling might -have a favourable influence on his health, Hume undertook a journey to -London towards the end of April. At Morpeth he met with Adam Smith and -John Home, on their way from London, to visit him in Edinburgh, in -consequence of a letter which the former had received from Ferguson, who -says, "David, I am afraid, loses ground. He is cheerful and in good -spirits as usual; but I confess that my hopes, from the effects of the -turn of the season towards spring, have very much abated." - -Smith proceeded to Edinburgh, but Home went back to London with his -friend, and fortunately preserved a diary of the journey, so very -interesting, and containing so lively a picture of Hume's state of mind -and habits, that, though already published,[495:1] the reader would not -excuse its omission on this occasion. - - -_Note by_ MR. JOHN HOME. - - Soon after Mr. Home received the letter from Dr. Ferguson, he - left London, and set out for Scotland with Mr. Adam Smith. - They came to Morpeth on the 23d of April, 1776, and would have - passed Mr. David Hume, if they had not seen his servant, - Colin, standing at the gate of an inn. Mr. Home thinks that - his friend, Mr. David Hume, is much better than he expected to - find him. His spirits are astonishing: he talks of his - illness, of his death, as matters of no moment, and gives an - account of what passed between him and his physicians since - his illness began, with his usual wit, or with more wit than - usual. - - He acquainted Mr. Adam Smith and me, that Dr. Black had not - concealed the opinion he had of the desperateness of his - condition, and was rather averse to his setting out. "Have you - no reason against it," said David, "but an apprehension that - it may make me die sooner?--that is no reason at all." I never - saw him more cheerful, or in more perfect possession of all - his faculties, his memory, his understanding, his wit. It is - agreed that Smith shall go on to Scotland, and that I should - proceed to Bath with David. We are to travel one stage before - dinner, and one after dinner. Colin tells me that he thinks - Mr. Hume better than when he left Edinburgh. We had a fine - evening as we went from Morpeth to Newcastle. David seeing a - pair of pistols in the chaise, said, that as he had very - little at stake, he would indulge me in my humour of fighting - the highwaymen. Whilst supper was getting ready at the inn, - Mr. Hume and I played an hour at picquet. Mr. David was very - keen about his card-playing. - - - _Newcastle, Wednesday, 24th April._ - - Mr. Hume not quite so well in the morning--says, that he had - set out merely to please his friends; that he would go on to - please them; that Ferguson and Andrew Stuart, (about whom we - had been talking,) were answerable for shortening his life one - week a-piece; for, says he, you will allow Xenophon to be good - authority; and he lays it down, that suppose a man is dying, - nobody has a right to kill him. He set out in this vein, and - continued all the stage in his cheerful and talking humour. It - was a fine day, and we went on to Durham--from that to - Darlington, where we passed the night. - - In the evening Mr. Hume thinks himself more easy and light, - than he has been any time for three months. In the course of - our conversation we touched upon the national affairs. He - still maintains, that the national debt must be the ruin of - Britain; and laments that the two most civilized nations, the - English and French, should be on the decline; and the - barbarians, the Goths and Vandals of Germany and Russia, - should be rising in power and renown. The French king, he - says, has ruined the state by recalling the parliaments. Mr. - Hume thinks that there is only one man in France fit to be - minister, (the Archbishop of Toulouse,) of the family of - Brienne. He told me some curious anecdotes with regard to this - prelate; that he composed and corrected without writing; that - Mr. Hume had heard him repeat an elegant oration of an hour - and a quarter in length, which he had never written. Mr. Hume, - talking with the Princess Beauvais about French policy, said - that he knew but one man in France capable of restoring its - greatness; the lady said she knew one too, and wished to hear - if it was the same. They accordingly named each their man, and - it was this prelate.[497:1] - - - _Thursday, 25th._ - - Left Darlington about nine o'clock, and came to Northallerton. - The same delightful weather. A shower fell that laid the dust, - and made our journey to Boroughbridge more pleasant. Mr. Hume - continues very easy, and has a tolerable appetite; tastes - nothing liquid but water, and sups upon an egg. He assured me, - that he never possessed his faculties more perfectly; that he - never was more sensible of the beauties of any classic author - than he was at present, nor loved more to read. When I am not - in the room with him he reads continually. The post-boys can - scarcely be persuaded to drive only five miles an hour, and - their horses are of the same way of thinking! The other - travellers, as they pass, look into the chaise, and laugh at - our slow pace. This evening the post-boy from Northallerton, - who had required a good deal of threatening to make him drive - as slow as we desired, had no sooner taken his departure to go - home, than he set off at full speed. "_Pour se dédommager_," - said David. - - - _Friday, 26th, Boroughbridge._ - - Mr. Hume this morning not quite so well. He observes, and I - see it, that he has a good day and a bad one. His illness is - an internal hemorrhage, which has been wasting him for a long - time. He is so thin that he chooses to have a cushion under - him when he sits upon an ordinary chair. He told me to-day, - that if Louis XV. had died in the time of the regency, the - whole French nation were determined to bring back the King of - Spain to be King of France,--so zealous were they for - preserving the line of succession. This evening Mr. Hume not - quite so well, and goes to bed at a more early hour than he - used to do. - - - _Ferrybridge, Sunday, 28th._ - - Mr. Hume much better this morning. He told me, that the French - nation had no great opinion of Cardinal Fleury; that the - English had extolled him, in opposition to their own minister - Sir Robert Walpole; but that Fleury was a little genius, and a - cheat. Lord Marischal acquainted Mr. Hume with a piece of - knavery which his lordship said nobody but a Frenchman and a - priest could have been guilty of. The French ambassador at - Madrid came to Lord Marischal one day, and told him, that he - had a letter from the French minister at Petersburgh, - acquainting him that General Keith was not pleased with his - situation in Russia, and wished to return to the Spanish - service, (where he had formerly been;) that it would be proper - for Lord Marischal to apply to the court of Spain. Lord - Marischal said nothing could be more agreeable to him than to - have his brother in the same country with him; but that, as he - had heard nothing from himself, he could not make any - application in his name. The French minister still urged him - to write to the Spanish minister, but in vain. When the - brothers met, several years after, they explained this matter. - Keith had never any intention of coming into the Spanish - service again; and if Lord Marischal had applied to the court - of Spain, measures were taken to intercept the letter, and - send it to the court of Russia. General Keith, who commanded - the Russian army in the field against the Swedes, would have - been arrested, and sent to Siberia; and the moment he had left - the army, the Swedes were to attack the Russians. Mr. Hume - told me, talking of Fleury, that Monsieur Trudent,[499:1] who - was his eléve, acquainted him with an anecdote of that - minister and the late French king, which he, Mr. Hume, - believes Trudent had never ventured to tell to any body but - him; and he (David) had never told it to any body but me. Now, - since Fleury, Trudent, and Lewis, are all dead, it may be - told. Trudent took the liberty of observing to Fleury, that - the king should be advised to apply a little more to business, - and take some charge of his own affairs. Fleury, the first - time Trudent spoke to him upon this subject, made him no - answer; but upon his speaking again on the same subject, he - told him, that he had entreated the king to be a man of - business, and assured him that the French did not like an - inactive prince; that in former times, there had been a race - of indolent princes who did nothing at all, and were called - _Les Rois Fainéants_; that one of them had been put into a - convent. The king made no reply; but some time afterwards, - when Fleury resumed the subject, the king asked him, whether - or no the prince that was put into the convent had a good - pension allowed him?[499:2] - - Mr. Hume this day told me, that he had bought a piece of - ground; and when I seemed surprised that I had never heard of - it, he said it was in the New Church-yard, on the Calton Hill, - for a burying-place; that he meant to have a small monument - erected, not to exceed in expense one hundred pounds; that the - inscription should be - - DAVID HUME. - - I desired him to change the discourse. He did so; but seemed - surprised at my uneasiness, which he said was very - nonsensical. I think he is gaining ground; but he laughs at - me, and says it is impossible; that the year ('76,) sooner or - later, he takes his departure. He is willing to go to Bath, or - travel during the summer through England, and return to - Scotland to die at home; but that Sir John Pringle, and the - whole faculty, would find it very difficult to boat him, - (formerly an usual phrase in Scotland for going abroad, that - is, out of the island, for health.) This day we travelled by - his desire three stages, and arrived with great ease at - Grantham. - - - _Monday, 29th._ - - From the treatment Mr. Hume met with in France, he recurred to - a subject not unfrequent with him--that is, the design to ruin - him as an author, by the people that were ministers, at the - first publication of his History, and called themselves Whigs, - who, he said, were determined not to suffer truth to be told - in Britain. Amongst many instances of this, he told me one - which was new to me. The Duke of Bedford, (who afterwards - conceived a great affection for Mr. Hume,) by the suggestions - of some of his party friends, ordered his son, Lord Tavistock, - not to read Mr. Hume's History of England; but the young man - was prevailed upon by one of his companions (Mr. Crawford of - Errol) to disobey the command. He read the History, and was - extremely pleased with it. - - Mr. Hume told me, that the Duke de Choiseul, at the time Lord - Hertford was in France, expressed the greatest inclination for - peace, and a good correspondence between France and Britain. - He assured Lord Hertford, that if the court of Britain would - relinquish Falkland Island, he would undertake to procure from - the court of Spain the payment of the Manilla ransom. Lord - Hertford communicated the proposal to Mr. Grenville, who - slighted it. Lord Hertford told Mr. Hume the same day an - extraordinary instance of the violence of faction. Towards the - end of Queen Anne's reign, when the Whig ministers were turned - out of all their places at home, and the Duke of Marlborough - still continued in the command of the army abroad, the - discarded ministers met, and wrote a letter, which was signed - by Lord Somers, Lord Townshend, Lord Sunderland, and Sir - Robert Walpole, desiring the duke to bring over the troops he - could depend on, and that they would seize the queen's person, - and proclaim the Elector of Hanover Regent. The Duke of - Marlborough answered the letter, and said it was madness to - think of such a thing. Mr. Horace Walpole, Sir R. Walpole's - youngest son, confirmed the truth of this anecdote, which he - had heard his father repeat often and often; and Mr. Walpole - allowed Mr. Hume to quote him as his authority, and make what - use he pleased of it. When George I. came to England, he - hesitated whether to make a Whig or a Tory administration; but - the German minister, Bernstorf, determined him to take the - side of the Whigs, who had made a purse of thirty thousand - guineas, and given it to this German. George I. was of a - moderate and gentle temper.--He regretted all his life, that - he had given way to the violence of the Whigs in the beginning - of his reign. Whenever any difficulty occurred in parliament, - he used to blame the impeachment of the Tories,--"Ce diable de - impeachment," as he called it. - - The Whigs, in the end of Queen Anne's reign, bribed the - Emperor's ministers, not to consent to the peace, and to send - over Prince Eugene with proposals to continue the war. - - This anecdote from Lord Bath. Another anecdote Mr. Hume - mentioned, but distrusted the authority, for it was David - Mallet who told Mr. Hume, that he had evidence in his custody - of a design to assassinate Lord Oxford. - - Prior, after the accession, was reduced to such poverty by the - persecution he met with, that he was obliged to publish his - works by subscription. Lord Bathurst told Mr. Hume, that he - was with Prior reading the pieces that were to be published, - and he thought there was not enough to make two small volumes. - He asked Prior if he had no more poems? He said, No more that - he thought good enough.--"What is that," said Bathurst, - pointing to a roll of paper. "A trifle," said Prior, "that I - wrote in three weeks, not worthy of your attention or that of - the public." Lord Bathurst desired to see it. This neglected - piece was _Alma_. - - - _Tuesday, 30th._ - - Last night, when Mr. Hume was going to bed, he complained of - cold. One part of his malady had been a continual heat, so - that he could not endure a soft or warm bed, and lay in the - night with a single sheet upon him; he desired to have an - additional covering. Colin observed to him, that he thought it - a good symptom. Mr. Hume said he thought so too, for it was a - good thing to be like other people. This morning he is - wonderfully well; which is visible in his countenance and - colour, and even the firmness of his step. Talking of the - state of the nation, which he continually laments, he - mentioned an anecdote of the former war. He was at Turin with - General Sinclair, after the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, and, - considering the superiority which the French arms had gained, - he could not conceive why France granted such good terms to - Britain. He desired General Sinclair to touch upon that - subject with the King of Sardinia. That prince, who was very - familiar with the General, said he was at a loss to give any - account of that matter; but, many years after, when Hume was - minister in France, and lived in great intimacy with Monsieur - Puysieux, Secretary of State, who had negociated the peace of - Aix, Mr. Hume asked him the reason of the conduct of France at - that time? Puysieux told him, that it was the king's aversion - to war; that he knew more of it than any man alive, for, the - year before the peace, he was ordered by the king to propose - pretty near the same terms. He remonstrated against making the - offer; said that at least the proposal should come from - England; and that there was always some advantage to be gained - by receiving, rather than propounding terms. The king was - impatient, and obliged Puysieux to write the letter, (which - General Ligonier carried,) with those terms which next year - were agreed to by the British court. Mr. John Home said he - knew that the King of France promoted the peace of Paris from - the aversion he had to war; and the peace was made at a time - when it seemed impossible for Britain to carry on a war of - such extent, and retain her scattered conquests. Mr. Hume - mentioned another singular anecdote concerning the beginning - of the last war. When a squadron of the English fleet attacked - and took two French men of war, the Alcide and the Lys, Louis - XV. was so averse to war, that he would have pocketed the - insult; and Madame Pompadour said it was better to put up with - the affront, than to go to war without any object but the - point of honour. It is known, that neither the king nor the - ministers of England wished for war. The French king abhorred - the thought of war!--What then was the cause? Chiefly the fear - of the popular clamour, and of the opposition, in the Duke of - Newcastle's mind. Mr. Hume thinks Lord North no great - minister, but does not see a better; cannot give any reason - for the incapacity and want of genius, civil and military, - which marks this period. He looks upon the country as on the - verge of decline. His fears seem rather too great, and things - are not quite so bad as he apprehends; but certainly the first - show of statesmen, generals, and admirals, is, without - comparison, the worst that has been seen in this country. I - said to Mr. Hume, that I thought the great consideration to be - acquired by speaking in Parliament, was the cause of that want - of every other quality in men of rank: they do speak readily, - but there are many orators who can neither judge nor act well. - - - _Wednesday, 31st April._ - - Arrived in London, where we saw Sir John Pringle, who thought - Mr. Hume much better than he expected to see him, and in no - immediate danger. We staid a few days in London, and then set - out for Bath. - - In travelling from London to Bath, we had occasion frequently - to make our observations on the passengers whom we met, and on - those who passed us, as every carriage continued to do. - Nothing occurred worthy the writing down, except Mr. David's - plan of managing his kingdom, in case Ferguson and I had been - princes of the adjacent states. He knew very well, he said, - (having often disputed the point with us,) the great opinion - we had of military virtues as essential to every state; that - from these sentiments rooted in us, he was certain he would be - attacked and interrupted in his projects of cultivating, - improving, and civilizing mankind by the arts of peace; that - he comforted himself with reflecting, that from our want of - economy and order in our affairs, we should be continually in - want of money; whilst he would have his finances in excellent - condition, his magazines well filled, and naval stores in - abundance; but that his final stroke of policy, upon which he - depended, was to give one of us a large subsidy to fall upon - the other, which would infallibly secure to him peace and - quiet, and after a long war, would probably terminate in his - being master of all the three kingdoms. At this sally, so like - David's manner of playing with his friends, I fell into a fit - of laughing, in which David joined; and the people that passed - us certainly thought we were very merry travellers. - -We have the following account from his own pen of his sojourn at Bath. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Bath, 13th May, 1776._ - -"MY DEAR DOCTOR,--You have frequently heard me complain of my physical -friends, that they allowed me to die in the midst of them without so -much as giving a Greek name to my disorder: a consolation which was the -least I had reason to expect from them. Dr. Black, hearing this -complaint, told me that I should be satisfied in that particular, and -that my disorder was a hemorrhage, a word which it was easy to decompose -into +aimos+[504:1] and +rêgnymi+. But Sir John Pringle says, that I -have no hemorrhage, but a spincture in the colon, which it will be easy -to cure. This disorder, as it both contained two Greek appellations and -was remediable, I was much inclined to prefer; when, behold! Dr. Gustard -tells me that he sees no symptoms of the former disorder, and as to the -latter, he never met with it and scarcely ever heard of it. He assures -me that my case is the most common of all Bath cases, to wit, a bilious -complaint, which the waters scarcely ever fail of curing: and he never -had a patient of whose recovery he had better hopes. - -"Indeed the waters, in the short trial which I have made of them, (for I -have been here only four days,) seem to agree very well with me; and two -days ago I found myself so well, that, for the first time, I began to -entertain hopes of a reprieve. Yesterday I was not so well, from a -misunderstanding in new lodgings with regard to my bedding. My -whimsicalness in this particular surprises Dr. Gustard, and he knows not -what to make of it. By the by, this Dr. Gustard is an excellent kind of -man, very friendly, and I believe very intelligent. He assures me, as do -several others, that the summer is the best time for Bath waters: and if -they continue to agree with me I shall probably pass here that season. I -promised to General Conway, and Lady Aylesbury, that if I had recovered -so much health as to venture myself in company, I should pass some weeks -of the autumn at Park place. This is the only retardment I can foresee -to my return to Scotland before winter. My wishes carry me thither; -though the grievous loss we have suffered in friends makes the abode in -that country less pleasing to my fancy than formerly. - -"You must have heard of the agreeable surprise which John Home put upon -me. We travelled up to London very cheerfully together, and thence to -this place, where we found Mrs. Home almost quite recovered. Never was -there a more friendly action, nor better placed; for what between -conversation and gaming, (not to mention sometimes squabbling,) I did -not pass a languid moment; and his company I am certain was the chief -cause why my journey had so good an effect: of which, however, I suppose -he has given too sanguine accounts, as is usual with him.[505:1] - -"Be so good as to read this letter to Dr. Black and to Mr. Ferguson. -When I write to one, I suppose myself writing to all my friends: and I -also wish to comprehend the Principal in the number. Pray tell him that -Mrs. Macauley is settled in Bath, and though her muse seems now to be -mute, she is, if not a more illustrious, yet a more fortunate historian -than either of us. There is one Dr. Wilson, a man zealous for liberty, -who has made her a free and full present of a house of £2000 value, has -adopted her daughter by all the rites of Roman jurisprudence, and -intends to leave her all his fortune, which is considerable. - -"Two ladies of my acquaintance have laid a scheme of bringing Lady -Huntingdon and me together, for her or my conversion. I wish I may have -spirits to humour this folly."[506:1] - - -On 10th June, Strahan wrote to Adam Smith, to say that he finds in a -letter from Sir John Pringle, giving an account of Hume's health, "that -all the good symptoms that attended his first trial of the Bath waters -are now vanished. His distemper has returned with its usual violence, so -he intends to leave that place and try Buxton."[506:2] He seems not to -have attempted this change, but returning straight from Bath, he sent, -on the way, invitations to a party of his friends to meet him at dinner. -The note addressed to Dr. Blair is as follows: - -"Mr. John Hume,[506:3] alias Home, alias The Home, alias the late Lord -Conservator, alias the late minister of the gospel at Athelstaneford, -has calculated matters so as to arrive infallibly with his friend in St. -David's Street, on Wednesday evening. He has asked several of Dr. -Blair's friends to dine with him there on Thursday, being the 4th of -July, and begs the favour of the Doctor to make one of the -number."[507:1] - -Thus did this knot of men, united in friendship by the greatness of -their talents, and their superiority to all things small and mean, meet -for the last time round the social board, to bid, as it were, a farewell -to him who had been the chief ornament and distinction of their circle. -The eyes of these affectionate friends sedulously and anxiously watched -the expiring flame--their pens have recorded the last scenes of its -existence, and leave to the ordinary biographer only the task of -embodying their statements in deferential silence. Nothing, therefore, -remains, but to put together, along with the few remaining letters by -Hume himself, the accounts furnished us by those who had the best means -of knowing the manner in which he spent the last few days of his life. - -The following is his last letter to John Home. - - -"_Edinburgh, 6th August, 1776._ - -"MY DEAR JOHN,--I shall begin with telling you the only piece of good -news of the family, which is, that my nephew, in no more than two days -that he has staid here, has recovered so surprisingly, that he is -scarcely knowable, or rather is perfectly knowable, for he was not so on -his first arrival.[508:1] Such are the advantages of youth! His uncle -declines, if not with so great rapidity, yet pretty sensibly. Sunday, -ill; half of yesterday the same; easy at present; prepared to suffer a -little to-morrow; perhaps less the day after. Dr. Black says, I shall -not die of a dropsy, as I imagined, but of inanition and weakness. He -cannot, however, fix, with any probability, the time, otherwise he would -frankly tell me. - -"Poor Edmondstoune and I parted to-day, with a plentiful effusion of -tears; all those _Belzebubians_[508:2] have not hearts of iron. I hope -you met with every thing well at Foggo, and receive nothing but good -news from Buxton. In spite of Dr. Black's caution, I venture to foretel -that I shall be yours cordially and sincerely till the month of October -next."[508:3] - - -Next in date is the following affectionate and considerate letter to -his nephew. - - -"_Edinburgh, 15th August, 1776._ - -"DEAR DAVY,--You need not doubt but your company, as well as your -father's, would have been very agreeable to me, especially at present, -for the consolation of your company; but I see the immediate -inconveniences that attend it. You cannot be well spared from Josey, -whose state of health, I am sorry to find, is still somewhat precarious; -and there is no immediate call for your being here. For besides that you -would but pass a melancholy time with me, however your affection might -cover it and relieve it, I am weakening very gradually, and am not -threatened with any immediate incident. I shall probably have more -warning, in which case I shall not fail to summon you; and I shall never -die in satisfaction without embracing you. I doubt not but my name would -have procured you friends and credit, in the course of your life, -especially if my brother had allowed you to carry it, for who will know -it in the present disguise? But as he is totally obstinate on this head, -I believe we had better let him alone. I have frequently told him, that -it is lucky for him he sees few things in a wrong light, for where he -does he is totally incurable. I am very much at my ease to-day. I beg my -compliments to all your family. Your affectionate uncle."[509:1] - - -Of the manner in which he conducted himself when he had come near to the -end of his days, Adam Smith tells us:-- - - His cheerfulness was so great, and his conversation and - amusements run so much in their usual strain, that, - notwithstanding all bad symptoms, many people could not - believe he was dying. "I shall tell your friend, Colonel - Edmondstoune," said Dr. Dundas to him one day, "that I left - you much better, and in a fair way of recovery." "Doctor," - said he, "as I believe you would not choose to tell any thing - but the truth, you had better tell him, that I am dying as - fast as my enemies, if I have any, could wish, and as easily - and cheerfully as my best friends could desire." Colonel - Edmondstoune soon afterwards came to see him, and take leave - of him; and on his way home, he could not forbear writing him - a letter, bidding him once more an eternal adieu, and applying - to him, as to a dying man, the beautiful French verses in - which the Abbé Chaulieu, in expectation of his own death, - laments his approaching separation from his friend, the - Marquis de la Fare.[510:1] Mr. Hume's magnanimity and firmness - were such, that his most affectionate friends knew that they - hazarded nothing in talking or writing to him as to a dying - man, and that so far from being hurt by this frankness, he was - rather pleased and flattered by it. I happened to come into - his room while he was reading this letter, which he had just - received, and which he immediately showed me. I told him, that - though I was sensible how very much he was weakened, and that - appearances were in many respects very bad, yet his - cheerfulness was still so great, the spirit of life seemed - still to be so very strong in him, that I could not help - entertaining some faint hopes. He answered, "Your hopes are - groundless. An habitual diarrhoea of more than a year's - standing, would be a very bad disease at any age: at my age it - is a mortal one. When I lie down in the evening, I feel myself - weaker than when I rose in the morning; and when I rise in the - morning, weaker than when I lay down in the evening. I am - sensible, besides, that some of my vital parts are affected, - so that I must soon die." "Well," said I, "if it must be so, - you have at least the satisfaction of leaving all your - friends, your brother's family in particular, in great - prosperity." He said that he felt that satisfaction so - sensibly, that when he was reading, a few days before, - Lucian's Dialogues of the Dead, among all the excuses which - are alleged to Charon for not entering readily into his boat, - he could not find one that fitted him; he had no house to - finish, he had no daughter to provide for, he had no enemies - upon whom he wished to revenge himself. "I could not well - imagine," said he, "what excuse I could make to Charon in - order to obtain a little delay. I have done every thing of - consequence which I ever meant to do; and I could at no time - expect to leave my relations and friends in a better situation - than that in which I am now likely to leave them. I therefore - have all reason to die contented." He then diverted himself - with inventing several jocular excuses, which he supposed he - might make to Charon, and with imagining the very surly - answers which it might suit the character of Charon to return - to them. "Upon further consideration," said he, "I thought I - might say to him, 'Good Charon, I have been correcting my - works for a new edition. Allow me a little time, that I may - see how the public receives the alterations.' But Charon would - answer, 'When you have seen the effect of these, you will be - for making other alterations. There will be no end of such - excuses; so, honest friend, please step into the boat.' But I - might still urge, 'Have a little patience, good Charon; I have - been endeavouring to open the eyes of the public. If I live a - few years longer, I may have the satisfaction of seeing the - downfal of some of the prevailing systems of superstition.' - But Charon would then lose all temper and decency. 'You - loitering rogue, that will not happen these many hundred - years. Do you fancy I will grant you a lease for so long a - term? Get into the boat this instant, you lazy loitering - rogue.'" - - But, though Mr. Hume always talked of his approaching - dissolution with great cheerfulness, he never affected to make - any parade of his magnanimity. He never mentioned the subject - but when the conversation naturally led to it, and never dwelt - longer upon it than the course of the conversation happened to - require.[512:1] - -How much his mind continued to be occupied with all that it had taken -interest in, in the days of his health and enjoyment, the following -letter, written five days before his death, will show:-- - - -HUME _to the_ COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - -"_Edinburgh, 20th of August, 1776._ - -"THOUGH I am certainly within a few weeks, dear madam, and, perhaps, -within a few days of my own death, I could not forbear being struck with -the death of the Prince of Conti--so great a loss in every particular. -My reflection carried me immediately to your situation in this -melancholy incident. What a difference to you in your whole plan of -life! Pray write me some particulars; but in such terms that you need -not care, in case of decease, into whose hands your letter may fall. - -"My distemper is a diarrhoea, or disorder in my bowels, which has been -gradually undermining me these two years; but, within these six months, -has been visibly hastening me to my end. I see death approach -gradually, without any anxiety or regret. I salute you, with great -affection and regard, for the last time."[514:1] - - -Smith, proceeding with his narrative, says, "He had now become so very -weak, that the company of his most intimate friends fatigued him; for -his cheerfulness was still so great, his complaisance and social -disposition were still so entire, that when any friend was with him, he -could not help talking more, and with greater exertion, than suited the -weakness of his body. At his own desire, therefore, I agreed to leave -Edinburgh, where I was staying, partly upon his account, and returned to -my mother's house here, at Kirkaldy, upon condition that he would send -for me whenever he wished to see me; the physician who saw him most -frequently, Dr. Black, undertaking, in the mean time, to write me, -occasionally, an account of the state of his health. - -"On the 22d of August, the Doctor wrote me the following letter:-- - -"'Since my last, Mr. Hume has passed his time pretty easily, but is much -weaker. He sits up, goes down stairs once a-day, and amuses himself with -reading, but seldom sees any body. He finds that even the conversation -of his most intimate friends fatigues and oppresses him; and it is happy -that he does not need it, for he is quite free from anxiety, impatience, -or low spirits, and passes his time very well with the assistance of -amusing books.' - -"I received, the day after, a letter from Mr. Hume himself, of which the -following is an extract. - - -'_Edinburgh 23d August, 1776._ - -'MY DEAREST FRIEND,--I am obliged to make use of my nephew's hand in -writing to you, as I do not rise to-day. . . . . . . . - -'I go very fast to decline, and last night had a small fever, which I -hoped might put a quicker period to this tedious illness; but, -unluckily, it has, in a great measure, gone off. I cannot submit to your -coming over here on my account, as it is possible for me to see you so -small a part of the day; but Doctor Black can better inform you -concerning the degree of strength which may, from time to time, remain -with me. Adieu,' &c.[515:1] - -"Three days after I received the following letter from Doctor Black:-- - - '_Edinburgh, Monday, 26th August, 1776._ - - 'DEAR SIR,--Yesterday, about four o'clock, afternoon, Mr. Hume - expired. The near approach of his death became evident in the - night between Thursday and Friday, when his disease became - excessive, and soon weakened him so much that he could no - longer rise out of his bed. He continued, to the last, - perfectly sensible, and free from much pain or feelings of - distress. He never dropped the smallest expression of - impatience; but, when he had occasion to speak to the people - about him, always did it with affection and tenderness. I - thought it improper to write to you to bring you over, - especially as I heard that he had dictated a letter to you - desiring you not to come. When he became very weak, it cost - him an effort to speak; and he died in such a happy composure - of mind that nothing could exceed it.'" - -The world is fortunately in possession of an account of this event, by -another scientific man of no less eminence, the great Dr. Cullen. From a -letter which he wrote to Dr. Hunter, on 17th September, the following -extracts are made: - - You desire an account of Mr. Hume's last days, and I give it - you with some pleasure; for, though I could not look upon him - in his illness without much concern, yet the tranquillity and - pleasantry which he constantly discovered did, even then, give - me satisfaction; and, now that the curtain is dropped, allows - me indulge the less alloyed reflection. It was truly an - example "des grands hommes qui sont morts en - plaisantant;"[516:1] and to me, who have been so often shocked - with the horrors of the superstitious on such occasions, the - reflexion on such a death is truly agreeable. For many weeks - before his death, he was very sensible of his gradual decay; - and his answer to inquiries after his health was, several - times, that he was going as fast as his enemies could wish, - and as easily as his friends could desire. He was not, - however, without a frequent recurrence of pain and uneasiness; - but he passed most part of the day in his drawing-room, - admitted the visits of his friends, and with his usual spirit - conversed with them upon literature, politics, or whatever - else was accidentally started. In conversation he seemed to be - perfectly at ease, and to the last abounded with that - pleasantry, and those curious and entertaining anecdotes, - which ever distinguished him. This, however, I always - considered rather as an effort to be agreeable, and he at - length acknowledged that it became too much for his strength. - For a few days before his death, he became more averse to - receive visits; speaking became more and more difficult for - him; and, for twelve hours before his death, his speech failed - altogether. His senses and judgment did not fail till the last - hour of his life. He constantly discovered a strong - sensibility to the attention and care of his friends, and, - amidst great uneasiness and languor, never betrayed any - peevishness or impatience. . . . . .[516:2] - - These are a few particulars, which may perhaps appear - trifling, but to me no particulars seem trifling that relate - to so great a man. It is perhaps from trifles that we can best - distinguish the tranquillity and cheerfulness of the - philosopher, at a time when the most part of mankind are under - disquiet, anxiety, and sometimes even horror. I consider the - sacrifice of the cock as a more certain evidence of the - tranquillity of Socrates, than his discourse on - immortality.[517:1] - -The death and burial of so distinguished a fellow citizen, were -naturally the objects of much attention among the inhabitants of -Edinburgh. On the one hand his unpopular opinions; on the other, the -blameless character of his life and his great genius, excited -conflicting opinions, and these giving zest to public attention and -curiosity, attracted crowds to witness his funeral, and to look with -mingled feelings, on the spot where his remains were, by the injunctions -of his will, deposited.[517:2] - -On the declivity of the Calton Hill there is an old grave-yard, which -seventy years ago was in the open country beyond the boundary of the -city of Edinburgh, and even at the present day, when it is the centre of -a wide circumference of streets and terraces, has an air of solitude, -from its elevated site, and the abrupt rocky banks that separate it from -the crowded thoroughfares. There, on a conspicuous point of rock, -beneath a circular monument built after the simple and solemn fashion of -the old Roman tombs, lies the dust of David Hume. Whither the immortal -spirit that gave life to it is gone, let no man too presumptuously -pronounce; but let us rather contemplate with respectful awe, that -unseen essence which the Deity had imbued with so great a power over the -intellects of men, and believe that this wide sway over the destinies of -the human species had its own wise and beneficent design, and was no -produce of malign influences or untoward accidents. Fallacies may be the -brilliant insects of a day, but truth is eternal; and when the searcher -in philosophy groping amid the darkness of man's imperfect reason, -produces falsehoods, they are speedily forgotten; but if he develop -great truths, they live to bless his species for ever. There are few who -will now deny that mankind have learned many valuable truths of David -Hume. The wide influence of his mind over thought and action, during the -last hundred years, is expressed in the mere naming of the systems of -which he was the author or suggester. - -His Metaphysical labours gave birth to two great schools of philosophy. -The one rising at his own door, endeavoured by powerful and earnest -efforts to reconstruct in a more rational and substantial form the old -system which he had sapped--the other in a distant land, where new -lights of science had begun to burn, sought to raise mental philosophy -from its original elements, purified of the dross and rubbish that had -rendered the old materials cumbrous and unsafe, and to endow the whole -with fresh life and a new form and structure.[519:1] - -In Ethics he was the first to make an Utilitarian morality assume the -aspect of a theoretical system, which it was the task of a great -successor, aided by subordinate labourers, to apply to the practical -operations of mankind, and to spread widely over the earth. - -In History he was the first to divert attention from wars, treaties, and -successions, to the living progress of the people, in all that increases -their civilization and their happiness. The example thus set has been -the chief service of the "History of England;" yet, with all the faults -of its matter, its purely literary merits have been so great, that, as a -classical and popular work, it has hitherto encountered no rival.[519:2] - -But his triumphs in Political Economy are those which, in the present -day, stand forth with the greatest prominence and lustre. In no long -time, a hundred years will have elapsed from the day when Hume told the -world, what the legislature of this country is now declaring, that -national exclusiveness in trade was as foolish as it was wicked; that no -nation could profit by stopping the natural flood of commerce between -itself and the rest of the world; that commercial restrictions deprive -the nations of the earth "_of that free communication and exchange, -which the author of the world has intended by giving them soils, -climates, and geniuses, so different from each other_;" and that, like -the healthy circulation of the blood in living bodies, Free Trade is the -vital principle by which the nations of the earth are to become united -in one harmonious whole.[520:1] Those who, with a reverential eye, have -marked the wonders of the animal structure, and discovered beauty, -utility, and harmonious purpose, where presumptuous ignorance has found -uselessness or deformity; or have seen the lower animals, each working -in its own blind ignorance, gregariously constructing a fabric more -perfect, on philosophical principles, than human science can -create,--have thence drawn vivid pictures of the wisdom and goodness -with which the world is ordered. May we not extend this harmony to the -social economy of the globe, and say, that the spirit of activity and -enterprise, harmonizing with the dispersal of the different bounties of -Providence in the distant regions of the globe, are part of the same -harmonious system; that the love of commerce and the desire of -aggrandisement, which in the eye of a narrow philosophy assume the air -of selfish and repulsive passions, represent themselves, when they are -left to their legitimate course, as motives implanted in us for the -great purposes of securing mutual dependance and kind offices, and their -fruits, peace and good-will, throughout the great family of mankind. To -be the first to teach that the earth is not doomed to the eternal curse -of rivalry and strife, and to open up so wide a prospect of beneficence, -may be an atonement for many errors, and in the eye of good taste may -justify the brief assumption of conscious superiority, in which the -subject of this memoir indulged, when he desired that the inscription on -his monument should contain only his name, with the year of his birth -and of his death. _Leaving it to posterity to add the rest._ - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[439:1] Account of Home, p. 20. - -[441:1] It has been said that, having once given a guinea by mistake to -a beggar, the man, who was a respectable member of his trade, returned -and explained the mistake. He was permitted to keep the coin, the -philosopher observing, "Oh, Honesty--how poor a dwelling-place hast thou -found!" - -[444:1] Account of John Home, p. 20-21. - -[445:1] See, on this amusement of character drawing, vol. i. p. 226. - -[446:1] Lives of the Lindsays. By Lord Lindsay. Vol. ii. p. 183. - -[449:1] Among the traditional anecdotes of his habits, one is, that -going to sup with Mrs. Cockburn, and not arriving until after the choice -of the good things had been consumed, when some effort was made to cater -for him, he said, "Trouble yourself very little about what you have, or -how it appears; you know I am no epicure, but only a glutton." Mr. -Chambers says, (Scottish Jests, p. 171,) that he took down this anecdote -from one who was present. - -These literary parties at Mrs. Cockburn's, appear to have been frequent -and agreeable. A gentleman still living, was present at many of them -when a youth, and particularly recollects one occasion when a tipsy -relative of that lady chose to lock the door of the room where the -walking habiliments of the guests were preserved. A general borrowing of -articles of clothing from surrounding neighbours took place, and those -which fell to Hume's lot, happened to produce a peculiarly ludicrous -effect. - -[450:1] It is given without reference to authority, in Prior's Life of -Burke, vol. i. p. 98. - -[450:2] In one instance, a vivid recollection was preserved of the -difficulty, from his fatness, of getting sufficient room on his knee, -and the necessity of keeping fast hold of the corner of his laced -waistcoat. - -[452:1] He seems, from this and other notices, to have been occasionally -absent in his habits; but there is no such collection of practical -illustrations of this failing, as we possess in the case of Smith and -others. I only remember having heard of one trifling instance, of which -I had an account from an eye-witness. Hume had been dining with Dr. -Jardine, and there had been much conversation about "internal light." In -descending the stair leading from the Doctor's "flat," when he left the -party, Hume failed to observe that after so many flights which reached -the street door, there was, according to a not uncommon practice, -another flight of stairs leading to the cellars. He continued his -descent, accordingly, till the very end, where some time afterwards he -was found in extreme darkness and perplexity, wondering how it was that -he could find no outlet. The circumstance bore rather curiously on some -opinions he had been maintaining, and Jardine said, shaking his head, -"Oh David! where is your internal light?" - -[452:2] Diary of a Lover of Literature.--_Gentleman's Magazine_, N.S. i. -142. - -[455:1] The passage here omitted will be found above, vol. i. p. 97. - -[455:2] MS. R.S.E. In citing this letter above, vol. i. p. 98, it is -stated that on one MS. there is noted a supposition that it was -addressed to Dr. Traill--on another that it was addressed to Gilbert -Stuart. I now think it must have been addressed to Dr. John Stewart, -Professor of Natural Philosophy in the University of Edinburgh, and that -it related to his "Remarks on the Laws of Motion and the Inertion of -Matter," published in "Essays and Observations physical and literary, -read before a Society in Edinburgh." - -[457:1] Minute-book of The Poker Club, in possession of Sir Adam -Ferguson. - -[459:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[461:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[461:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[461:3] Of the East India Company's service, author of "The History of -Hindostan, translated from the Persian," 1803. - -[462:1] _Edinburgh Monthly Magazine_, Sept. 1810. - -[465:1] See above, p. 220. - -[465:2] _Edinburgh Magazine_, 1788, p. 340. - -[466:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[467:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[467:2] Memoirs of Great Britain and Ireland, from the dissolution of -the last parliament of Charles II. until the sea battle of La Hogue, 3 -vols. 4to. - -[467:3] MS. R.S.E. - -[468:1] William Smellie, the respectable printer of the Magazine, seems -to have led an uneasy life, between the quarrels and the dissipation of -his editor, of which he has left some picturesque memorials. Having come -one night to Smellie's house on magazine business in a very advanced -stage of intoxication, Stuart was charitably put to bed. Roused in the -middle of the night by an immense outcry from the awakened editor, -Smellie rushed to the bedroom in his night clothes. Stuart sitting up in -bed and glaring around him, immediately associated the respectable -printer's presence with the places in which he was himself accustomed to -waken, and said,--"Smellie, I never expected to find _you_ in such a -place: put on your clothes, and go back to your wife and family, I shall -never say a word about this." A journey of six miles, from Edinburgh to -Musselburgh, made by Stuart and some of his companions, in which, by -reason of the abundance of good cheer on the way, they occupied several -days, seems to have been fruitful in adventures. One of the party -falling asleep among the ashes of a steam engine, wakened in the night, -and found himself in the presence of a great red furnace, surrounded by -dusky figures clanging bolts and chains. Associating the exhibition with -the course of life he had been running, and its probable reward, he was -heard to exclaim, "Good God, is it come to this at last!"--See _Kerr's -Memoirs of Smellie_. - -[470:1] D'Israeli's Calamities of Authors, ii. 67. The letter, after -such exhortations as the following,--"Strike by all means: the wretch -will tremble, grow pale, and return with a consciousness of his -debility," winds up with the assurance, "When you have an enemy to -attack, I shall in return give my best assistance, and aim at him a -mortal blow, and rush forward to his overthrow, though the flames of -hell should start up to oppose me." - -[470:2] The _proof_, with Hume's corrections, is in the possession of -John Christison, Esq., who has kindly allowed me to make this use of it. -The last paragraph is a manuscript addition made in correcting the -proof. The substance of Hume's praise was probably given to Henry in -some other form; for a portion of the analytical part of the review is -printed in a memoir of Henry, in _The Gentleman's Magazine_, (vol. lxxi. -p. 907,) as written by "one of the most eminent historians of the -present age, whose history of the same period possesses the highest -reputation." - -[471:1] Madame Geoffrin, in writing to Hume, notices Franklin's -imperfect acquaintance with the French language; this must have been one -of the difficulties which his matchless perseverance conquered. - -I may mention that, aware that Hume had written to Franklin, I thought -it not unlikely that the letters might be incorporated in the elaborate -edition of his "Life and Correspondence" by Sparkes. Unfortunately -trusting to the copy in the British Museum, I found, at the last moment, -that that copy was imperfect, and did not afford the means of -ascertaining whether they were published in the work. - -[471:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[472:1] A specimen of the _Scots Review_, a thin duodecimo pamphlet, is -now very rare. Its chief object of attention is "that great necromancer -and magician David Hume." It is not inaptly described by the _Scots -Magazine_:-- - -"It professes to give a prospectus, and a specimen of an intended new -review; but the whole object seems to have been to laugh at some -individuals obnoxious to the writer, and particularly to ridicule the -virulence, and to lower the pretensions of those who had signalized -themselves by their attacks upon the philosophical writings of Mr. Hume; -a promise is held out, that this arch-infidel is himself to be reviewed -in the first place; and next, those authors who have waged a holy war -against him; of whom a list is given, with their characters, the -delineation of which, in no very favourable colours, appears, as already -mentioned, to have exhausted the main object of the piece, though one or -two gentle hits are aimed at the historian himself." - -[472:2] Rev. Thomas Hepburn, minister of Athelstaneford. - -[472:3] _Scots Mag._ New Series. Vol. i. - -[473:1] Original in possession of the Cambusmore family. - -[474:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[474:2] Addressed, "Mr. David Hume, at Ninewells, with a great coat." - -[474:3] Professor Millar of Glasgow. - -[475:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[476:1] Mackenzie's account of Home, p. 158. - -[477:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[477:2] Strahan's letters were carefully preserved by Hume. On -application to those who would be likely to possess Hume's side of the -correspondence, if it existed, I was informed that it was Mr. Strahan's -practice to destroy all the letters addressed to him; but I was very -politely favoured with a copy of one of his own letters, which Mr. -Strahan had preserved. - -[478:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[479:1] _Lit. Gazette_, 1822, p. 637. Corrected from original MS. R.S.E. - -[482:1] MS. R.S.E. Addressed, "Mr. David Hume, at Mr. Professor -Millar's, at Glasgow." The blanks are caused by a stripe having been -torn off the side of the letter. - -[483:1] Mackenzie's Account of Home, p. 160. - -[484:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[485:1] Life of Gibbon. - -[486:1] From this it would appear that Hume had opened up in his own -mind, the theory of rent, afterwards successively suggested by Dr. -Anderson and Ricardo, without the latter, it is believed, knowing that -he had been anticipated by the author of the _Bee_. - -[487:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[488:1] The letter is of such a character, as one medical man might be -supposed to write to another. Black was no pedant, and he writes as if -his correspondent knew the technicalities of the science in their full -practical meaning,--an addition to the many illustrations of the varied -range of scientific knowledge, at the command of the master of political -economy. - -[489:1] The following provision is in a codicil: "I also leave for -rebuilding the bridge of Churnside the sum of a hundred pounds; but on -condition that the manager of the bridge shall take none of the stones -for building the bridge from the quarry of Ninewells, except from that -part of the quarry which has been already opened." With reference to -this, Dr. Cullen, in the letter cited, p. 516, says, "In the -neighbourhood of his brother's house, in Berwickshire, is a brook, by -which the access in time of floods is frequently interrupted. Mr. Hume -bequeaths £100 for building a bridge over this brook, but upon the -express condition that none of the stones for that purpose shall be -taken from a quarry in the neighbourhood, which forms part of a romantic -scene, in which, in his earlier days, Mr. Hume took particular delight." -This is the only authenticated instance that I remember to have met with -of Hume's attachment to local scenery. It is a tradition in Edinburgh, -that he was fond of walking along the base of Salisbury Crags. - -[490:1] In 1773, Smith, apparently in bad health, wrote to Hume, -desiring him to take charge of his manuscripts in case of his own -predecease, (MS. R.S.E.) This, and some other letters by Smith, I might -have been tempted to print in this work, had I not the satisfaction of -knowing that they are likely soon to be published under the auspices of -Lord Brougham. - -[490:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[492:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[493:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[494:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[494:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[495:1] In the Appendix to Mackenzie's Account of the Life of Home. - -[497:1] It is curious to observe, that the object of this united -prediction was that same Loménie de Brienne, who was put at the head of -affairs before the outbreak of the revolution, and who left behind him -so undisputed a character of utter incapacity to be a statesman in -difficult times. - -[499:1] Probably M. Trudaine de Montigny, frequently mentioned above, -whose son translated Hume's "Natural History of Religion." See above, p. -167. - -[499:2] This anecdote is told nearly in the same words, in one of -Walpole's posthumous works. Memoirs of George III. vol. ii. p. 240. - -[504:1] +aima.+ - -[505:1] This paragraph is printed by Mackenzie. - -[506:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[506:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[506:3] David Hume, as many of his letters must have shown, persisted in -spelling his friend's name thus. To commemorate this dispute, and Home's -dislike of port wine, he added this codicil to his will on 7th August:-- - -"I leave to my friend Mr. John Home of Kilduff, ten dozen of my old -claret, at his choice; and one single bottle of that other liquor called -port. I also leave to him six dozen of port, provided that he attests -under his hand, signed John _Hume_, that he has himself alone finished -that bottle at two sittings. By this concession, he will at once -terminate the only two differences that ever arose between us concerning -temporal matters." The original is in the MSS. R.S.E. - -[507:1] Subjoined to the card, there is this note in Dr. Blair's -handwriting:--"_Mem._--This the last note received from Mr. David Hume. -He died on the 25th of August, 1776."--_Mackenzie's Account of Home._ - -[508:1] His nephew, Joseph, had just returned from abroad in very bad -health. - -[508:2] Colonel Edmondstoune was a member of what was called the Ruffian -Club; men whose hearts were milder than their manners, and their -principles more correct than their habits of life. _Mackenzie._ - -[508:3] Mackenzie's Account of Home. On the 13th he wrote thus to his -brother:-- - -"DEAR BROTHER,--Dr. Black tells me plainly, like a man of sense, that I -shall die soon, which was no disagreeable news to me. He says I shall -die of weakness and inanition, and perhaps give little or no warning. -But though I be growing sensibly weaker every day, this period seems not -to be approaching; and I shall have time enough to inform you, and to -desire your company, which will be very agreeable to me. But at this -time your presence is necessary at Ninewells, to settle Josey, and -comfort his mother. Davie will be also very useful with you. I am much -pleased with his tenderness and friendship. I beg, therefore, that -neither you nor he may set out; and as the communication between us is -open and frequent, I promise to give you timely information."--_Lit. -Gaz._ 1822, p. 746. MS. R.S.E. - -[509:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[510:1] Colonel Edmondstoune's letter has been preserved, and is as -follows:-- - - "_Linlithgow, Wednesday._ - - "MY DEAR, DEAR DAVID,--My heart is very full. I could not see - you this morning. I thought it was better for us both. You - can't die, you must live in the memory of all your friends and - acquaintances, and your works will render you immortal. I - could never conceive that it was possible for any one to - dislike you or hate you. He must be more than savage who could - be an enemy to a man of the best head and heart, and of the - most amiable manners. - - O toi, qui de mon ame es la chère moitié; - Toi, qui joins la délicatesse - Des sentimens d'une maitresse - À la solidité d'une sure amitié, - _David_, il faut bien-tôt que la parque cruelle - Vienne rompre des si doux noeuds, - Et malgré nos cris et nos voeux - Bien-tôt nous assuirons une absence eternelle. - - Adieu! adieu!"--MS. R.S.E. - -[512:1] It is from more, perhaps, than the mere force of contrast, -that, after reading this account of the manner in which the dying -philosopher's thoughts were occupied,--the spelling of the family name, -the imagined interview with Charon, &c. the following letter, addressed -to him by a distant friend, possesses a peculiarly solemn interest. - - -WILLIAM STRAHAN _to_ HUME. - - "MY DEAR SIR,--Last Friday I received your affectionate - farewell, and therefore melancholy letter, which disabled me - from sending an immediate answer to it, as I now do, in hopes - this may yet find you, not much oppressed with pain, in the - land of the living. I need not tell you, that your corrections - are all duly attended to, as every particular shall be that - you desire or order. Nor shall I now trouble you with a long - letter. - - "Only permit me to ask you a question or two, to which I am - prompted, you will believe me, not from a foolish or fruitless - curiosity, but from an earnest desire to learn the sentiments - of a man, who had spent a long life in philosophic inquiries, - and who, upon the extreme verge of it, seems, even in that - awful and critical period, to possess all the powers of his - mind in their full vigour, and in unabated tranquillity. - - "I am more particularly led to give you this trouble, from a - passage in one of your late letters, wherein you say, _It is - an idle thing in us to be concerned about any thing that shall - happen after our death; yet this_, you added, _is natural to - all men_. Now I would eagerly ask, if it is _natural to all - men_, to be interested in futurity, does not this strongly - indicate that our existence will be protracted beyond this - life? - - "Do you _now_ believe, or suspect, that all the powers and - faculties of your own mind, which you have cultivated with so - much care and success, will cease and be extinguished with - your vital breath? - - "Our soul, or immaterial part of us, some say, is able, when - on the brink of dissolution, to take a glimpse of futurity; - and for that reason I earnestly wish to have your _last - thoughts_ on this important subject. - - "I know you will kindly excuse this singular application; and - believe that I wish you, living or dying, every happiness that - our nature is capable of enjoying, either here or hereafter; - being, with the most sincere esteem and affection, my dear - sir, faithfully yours."--MS. R.S.E. - - "London, _August 19, 1776_." - -This letter, if it ever reached him for whom it was designed, must have -done so too late to receive an answer. But if he did peruse it, with his -mind so collected and clear, yet so close on the point of being severed -from those objects of literary ambition which had been its chief glory -and occupation, how valuable would have been the first thought that -passed across it, when the great question was brought thus so distinctly -before his understanding! - -[514:1] _Edinburgh Review_, xvii. 306. - -[515:1] This letter, and Dr. Black's, are in the MSS. R.S.E. - -[516:1] In reference to a work so entitled, published at -Amsterdam.--_Dr. Thomson._ - -[516:2] The passage here omitted describes the conversation about -Lucian, and other incidents which have been already narrated. - -[517:1] Thomson's Life of Cullen, p. 607. - -[517:2] In a little book, called "Supplement to the Life of David Hume, -Esq." there is the following curious statement. - -"The anxious attention with which the public viewed every circumstance -respecting Mr. Hume's illness was not terminated even by his death. From -the busy curiosity of the mob, one would have presumed them to entertain -notions that the ashes of Mr. Hume were to have been the cause or the -object of miraculous exertion. As the physicians of London and Edinburgh -were divided about the seat of his disorder, those of the city where he -died proposed that his body should be opened; but this his brother, who -was also his executor, agreeably to the orders of the deceased, would -not permit. It is hardly to be credited that the grave-diggers, digging -with pick-axes Mr. Hume's grave, should have attracted the gaping -curiosity of the multitude; that, notwithstanding a heavy rain which -fell during the interment, multitudes of all ranks gazed on the funeral -procession, as if they had expected the hearse to have been consumed in -livid flames, or encircled with a ray of glory; that people in a sphere -much above the rabble would have sent to the sexton for the keys of the -burying-ground, and paid him to have access to visit the grave. And that -on a Sunday evening, (the gates of the burying-ground being opened for -another funeral,) the company from a public walk in the neighbourhood -flocked in such crowds to Mr. Hume's grave, that his brother actually -became apprehensive upon the unusual concourse, and ordered the grave to -be railed in with all expedition." - -[519:1] On peut dire que Hume est la fantôme perpétuel de Kant. Dès que -le philosophe Allemand est tenté de faire un pas en arrière, dans -l'ancienne route, Hume lui apparaît et l'en détourne, et tout l'effort -de Kant est de placer la philosophie entre l'ancien dogmatisme et le -sensualisme de Locke et de Condillac, a l'abri des attaques du -scepticisme de Hume.--_Cousin, Leçons sur la Philosophie de Kant_, 18. - -[519:2] While this sheet is passing through the press, the French -newspapers announce a new translation of Hume's History, "precedée d'un -essai sur la vie et les écrits de Hume, par Campenon, de l'académie -Française." - -[520:1] In one of his epistles to the great Frederic, Voltaire says of -the distribution of the fruits of the earth:-- - - Il murit, à Moka, dans le sable Arabique, - Ce caffé nécessaire aux pays des frimats; - Il met la fièvre en nos climats, - Et le remède en Amerique. - -But the policy of the earth's distribution, with many other truths not -to be at once penetrated, even by the keenest mortal vision, were -mysteries to the auto-theist, and being so, were therefore to his -self-sufficient wisdom, absurd and ludicrous. Could that be right of -which the sage of Ferney could not understand the ruling principle! - - - - -INDEX. - - - Abercrombie--General James, i. 212, 222, 311. - - Abingdon--Lord, ii. 185. - - Adam--John, architect, ii. 174, 187, 195, 286. - - ----, William--Lord Chief Commissioner, ii. 174. - His notices of Hume, 439. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 174, 286. - - Advocates' Library. - Hume as librarian, i. 367. - Its extent, 373. - French works removed from, as improper, 395. - Hume resigns librarianship of, ii. 18. - - Aiguillon--Duchesse de, ii. 175. - - Albemarle--Lord, i. 245-246. - - Alembert--D', i. 94; ii. 181. - Hume's friendship with, 218, 270, 323, 345, 348, 350, 354, 355, 377, - 489. - - Allen--Dr., his inquiry into the rise and progress of the royal - prerogative, ii. 122. - - Amelia--The Princess, ii. 292. - - Ancient Nations--Essay on the populousness of, i. 363. - - Anderson--Revd. George, i. 425. - His writings against Hume and Lord Kames, 428. - His death, 432. - - Anderson--Dr. Walter, i. 424. - - Annandale--Marquis of. - His invitation to Hume, i. 170. - His mental condition, 172. - Hume's residence with, 170, _et seq._ - - ----, Marchioness-Dowager of, i. 185. - Letter to, 203. - - Anson--Madame, ii. 236. - - Anstruther--General, i. 383. - - Antiquaries. - Their use to the historian, ii. 122-123. - - Antiquity, the populousness of. - Dissertation on, i. 326. - - Aquinas--His theory of association, i. 286. - Its alleged similarity to Hume's, 287. - - Argyle--Duke of, ii. 55. - - Armstrong--Dr., ii. 64, 148. - - Arnauld--Antony, i. 432. - - Artois--Comte d', ii. 178. - - Assembly--General. - Its proceedings against Hume, i. 429. - Overture to, regarding him, 430. - - Association--Hume's theory of, i. 286. - - Aylesbury--Lady, ii. 305, 385. - - - Bacon--Lord, ii. 67. - - Balance of trade--Hume's opinions on, i. 358. - - Balcarras--Earl of, letter to, i. 412. - His appearance, 413. - - Balfour--James of Pilrig, i. 160, 345; ii. 192, 414, 415. - - Bank--Cash credit in. - Its nature, i. 359. - - Banking--Hume's remarks on, i. 359. - - Barbantane--Marquise de, ii. 280, 309, 322, 360. - - Barré--Colonel, ii. 150, 289. - - Bastide--M., ii. 236, 241. - - Bath--Hume's visit to, ii. 495, _et seq._ - - Bayard--The Chevalier, ii. 441. - - Beauchamp--Lord, ii. 161, 162, 171, 183, 204, 245, 268, 287. - - Beauvais--Princess, ii. 497. - - Beauveau--Madame de, ii. 206. - - Beccaria, i. 121. - - Bedford--Duke of, ii. 279, 280, 285, 290. - - ----, Duchess of, ii. 279. - - Bellman's Petition, i. 315, 317. - - Belot--Madame, her translation of Hume's works, ii. 176. - - Bentham, i. 121, 384. - - Berri--Duc de, ii. 178. - - Bertrand--Professor, ii. 187. - - Betham--Mr. and Mrs., i. 411. - - Birch--Dr., i. 416, 436; ii. 82. - - Black--Joseph. - Letters from, ii. 488, 514-515. - - Blacklock--Thomas, i. 385. - Hume's first acquaintance with, 388. - His ideas of light and colours, 389. - Account of his early life, 390. - Publication of his poems, 392. - Miscellaneous notices of, 393, 398; ii. 164, 454. - Letters from, 399. - - Blacklock--Mrs., ii. 401. - - Blackwell--Hume's criticism on his Court of Augustus, i. 434. - - Blair--Dr., i. 427; ii. 86, 115, 117, 139, 153, 167, 175, 192, 198. - Letters to, 180, 181, 193, 229, 265, 267, 286, 288, 297, 310, 312, - 318, 344, 365, 371, 386, 395, 421, 472. - - ----, Robert, President of the Court of Session, ii. 423. - - Blanc--Abbé le, i. 365. - His translations from Hume, 366. - Letter to, 406, 409; ii. 347. - - Bologna--University of, i. 151. - - Bon--Abbé le, his death, ii. 428. - - Bonne--Hume's account of, i. 249. - - Boswell--James, received Johnson in Hume's house, ii. 138, 139, 307, - 441. - - Boufflers--Madame de, ii. 72. - Account of, 90. - Her letters to Hume, 94, 99, 106, 110. - Letters to, 114, 205, 246, 247. - Notice of, 251, 279, 280, 298, 303, 323, 330, 346, 352, 353, 429. - Last letter to, 513. - - Bourgés--University of, i. 151. - - Bower--Archibald, ii. 58. - - Boyle--The Honourable Mr., i. 293. - - Brand--Mr., ii. 225. - - Breda--Hume's account of, i. 244. - - Brest, ii. 63. - - Brienne, Archbishop of Toulouse, ii. 283, 497. - - Bristol--Lord, ii. 407. - - Brodie--George, ii. 66. - - Brougham--Lord, ii. 348. - His opinion of Hume's Political Discourses, i. 354. - - Brown--Dr. John, ii. 23. - - Browne--Sir Thomas, i. 94. - - Bruce--Professor, ii. 192. - - Bruyére--La, i. 148. - - Buccleuch--Duke of, ii. 58, 227, 467. - - Buchan--Lord, ii. 455. - - Buckingham--Mrs., ii. 186. - - Buffon--M. de, ii. 181, 299. - - Bunbury--Mr. afterwards Sir Charles, ii. 159, 164, 189, 239, 277, 280. - - ----, Lady Sarah, ii. 239. - - Burke--Edmund, i. 351, 353; ii. 59, 333, 449. - - Burnet--James, Lord Monboddo, i. 394; ii. 204, 231. - - Bute--Lord, ii. 34, 149, 159, 162, 163, 187, 258, 265, 282, 290, 334, - 407; ii. 418. - - Butler--Samuel, ii. 90. - - ----, Bishop, i. 64, 143. - - - Caldwell--Sir James, i. 260. - - Calton Hill--Hume's monument on, ii. 518. - - Campbell--Dr. George, ii. 115, 116. - Letter to, 118. - Letter from, 119. - Notice of, 154. - - Carlyle--Dr., ii. 88, 164, 266, 472. - - Carraccioli, ii. 53. - - Carre--George, of Nisbet, i. 115. - - Cause and Effect--Hume's views of, i. 79. - Their effect on Kant, ib. - - Causes--unseen, aptly illustrated by Hume, i. 83. - - Charles Edward--his insurrection, i. 175. - Anecdotes of, ii. 462. - - Charlemont--Lord. - Description and anecdotes of Hume by, i. 270, 394; ii. 116, 223. - - Chatham--Lord, ii. 396, 406, 418. - Hume's dislike to, ii. 420, 422. - - Chaulieu, 510. - - Chesterfield--Lord, ii. 131, 160. - - Cheyne--Dr. George, i. 42. - His work, "The English Malady," i. 43. - - Chivalry--Essay on, i. 18-25. - - Choiseul--Duc de, ii. 228, 500. - - ----, Duchesse de, her civilities to Hume, ii. 169. - - Choquart--Abbé, ii. 242, 261, 262, 271, 273. - - Christianity--cannot be injured by theories purely metaphysical, i. - 86, 88. - - Church--Catholic. - Hume's treatment of, ii. 5. - - ----, Scottish Episcopal. - Its condition in Hume's time, ii. 6. - - ----, English. - Hume's sympathies with, ii. 9. - - Churchill--Charles, ii. 148. - - Chute--Mr., ii. 225. - - Cicero--Orations of. - Essay on, i. 144, 145. - - Clagenfurt in Carinthia. - Hume's account of, i. 264. - - Clairaut--M., ii. 295. - - Clarendon--as a historian, i. 404. - - Clark--General, ii. 172, 195. - - Clarke--Dr. Staniers, ii. 179. - - Cleghorn--William. - Appointed Professor of Moral Philosophy, i. 170. - - Clephane--Dr. - Letters to, i. 314, 376, 379, 381, 384, 397, 408, 433; ii. 38, 443. - - Clow--Mr., Professor of logic in the University of Glasgow, i. 351; - ii. 199. - - Club--The Poker. - Its proceedings, ii. 456. - - Coblentz--Hume's account of, i. 249. - - Cockburn--Mrs. - Letter from, ii. 230, 424, 449. - - Coke--Sir Edward, ii. 69. - - Colebroke--Sir George, ii. 460, 467. - - Coleridge--His charge against Hume, i. 286. - How disproved, 287. - - Cologne--Hume's account of, i. 248. - - Condé--Prince of, ii. 92. - - Constitutional theories--Hume's, ii. 65, 67, 73. - - Conti--Prince of, ii. 90, 221, 246, 297, 307. - - ----, Princess of, ii. 245. - - Conway--Marshal, ii. 156-157, 283, 284, 305, 307, 324, 326, 351, 365, - 371, 374. - - ----, Appoints Hume under-secretary, ii. 382, 396, 407. - - Corby castle, i. 226. - - Corneille, ii. 196. - - Coutts--Provost, i. 165. - - ----, Thomas, ii. 476. - - ----, James, ii. 476. - - Cowley, ii. 90. - - Craigie--Professor, i. 350. - - Crawford--James, i. 233; ii. 149, 500. - - Crébillon--His "L'Ecumoire," i. 395; ii. 428. - - Crowle--Anecdote regarding, i. 306. - - Cudworth, i. 94. - - Cullen--Dr. - Letter to, i. 350, 418. - Notice of, 411; ii, 199. - Letters from, ii. 488, 489, 515. - - Currency--Hume's views on, ii. 426. - - - D'Angiviller--M., ii. 216. - - Dalrymple--Sir David, i. 395; ii. 415, 416. - - ----, Sir John, ii. 37, 467. - - Dauphin of France--His attentions to Hume, ii. 177-178. - Notice of, 286. - - Davenport--Richard, ii. 313. - Gives Rousseau a retreat at Wooton, 319. - Notice of, 323, 327, 328. - Letter from, 335, 336, 343, 345, 364, 367, 368, 370. - Notice of, 374, 378, 379. - - Deffand--Madame du. - Character of, ii. 214. - Her quarrel with Mademoiselle de L'Espinasse, 215. - - De Lolme, i. 137. - - D'Epinay--Madame. - Anecdote from, ii. 224. - - Dettingen--Battle-field of, i. 252. - - Deyverdun, ii. 410. - - Dialogues concerning Natural Religion--Their characteristics, i. - 328-330. - Account of them in a letter to Sir Gilbert Elliot, 332; ii. 490. - - Dickson--David, ii. 383. - - Diderot, ii. 181, 220. - - D'Ivernois--M., ii. 325. - - Divine right--Hume's opinions on, i. 123-124. - - Dodwell--Mr., ii. 386. - - Donaldson--Alexander, i. 431; ii. 4, 82. - - Douglas--Mr., ii. 204. - - ----, Dr., afterwards Bishop of Carlisle, ii. 78, 87. - - ---- cause, ii. 150, 163, 203, 421, 423. - - ---- of Cavers, ii. 407. - - ----, Duchess of, ii. 232. - - ----, Lady Jane, ii. 424. - - ----, Tragedy of. Hume's criticism on, i. 419. - Rehearsal of, 420. - - Dow--Colonel, ii. 461. - - Duclos, ii. 181, 347. - - Dupré de St. Maur--Madame, ii. 168, 347. - - Durand--M., ii, 378. - - Dysart--Mrs., of Eccles. - Hume's correspondence with, i. 337. - - Dyson--Mr., ii. 132, 408. - - - Earthquakes--Fears regarding, i. 298. - - Economy--Political. - See Political Economy. - - Edmondstoune--Colonel, i. 212, 397, 409. - Letter to, ii. 182. - Letter from, to Hume, 185. - Letters to, 187, 473. - Letter from, 474, 508. - - Education--On the influences of, i. 85. - - ----, State of, in Scotland, in 17th and 18th centuries, i. 151. - - Egmont--Countess of, ii. 299. - - Election--Westminster, in 1749, i. 305. - - Elibank--Lord, letters to, i. 192, 387; ii. 167, 252, 256, 257, 260. - - Elliot--Sir Gilbert, of Minto. - Hume's intercourse with, i. 320. - Letters to, 321, 324. - His criticism on Hume's Dialogue, 323. - Hume's reply to, 324. - Account of the "Epigoniad" to, ii. 25. - Letter to, 32. - Letters to, 144, 159, 189. - Letter from, 233. - Reply, 235. - Letters to, 240, 244, 261, 270, 273, 280, 406, 407, 414. - Letter from, 415. - Letters to, 432, 434. - - ----, Gilbert, younger of Minto, afterwards Governor-general of India, - ii. 233, 262, 271, 273, 281. - - Elliot--Sir John, of Stobs, ii. 407. - - ----, Anne, ii. 345. - - ----, Hugh, ii. 262, 271, 273, 281. - - ----, Lady, ii. 415, 446. - - ----, Miss, ii. 62, 90. - - ----, Peggy, ii. 62 - - "Emile"--Criticism on, ii. 114. - - England--History of. - Rapidity with which it was composed and printed, i. 381; ii. 121. - - "English Malady," by Dr. Cheyne--Extracts from, i. 43-46. - - Entails--Device for breaking, ii. 32. - - Epicurean--The. - Remarks on, i. 142. - - Epicurus, i. 142. - - "Epigoniad." - Some account of, ii. 25. - Hume's partiality to, 31. - Its rejection by the public, 34, 37. - - Eriot--Professor, ii. 241. - - Erskine--Sir Harry, i. 212. - Letter to, 219. - His illness, 264, 397, 409; ii. 159. - - Erskine--John, ii. 453. - - Essay--Historical, on chivalry and modern honour, i. 18, 25. - - Essays--Moral and Political, when published, and how, i. 136. - Their success, 143. - Third edition of, 289. - - ---- on Suicide and the Immortality of the Soul, ii. 13. - - ---- on Political Economy, i. 354, 363. - - Eugene--Prince. - His palace, i. 262; ii. 501 - - - Fairholms--Bankruptcy of, ii. 195. - - Falconer--Sir David, of Newton, i. 1. - - Farquhar--John, ii. 154. - - Ferguson--Sir Adam, ii. 451, 457. - - ----, Professor Adam. - Hume's commendation of, ii. 32. - Notice of, 34. - Appointed Professor of Natural Philosophy, 45. - Notice of, 56. - "Sister Peg" attributed to him, 83. - Hume's mystification on the subject, 88. - Letter to, 172. - Letter from, 175. - His Essay on the History of Civil Society, 385, 409, 440, 461. - - ----, a painter, ii. 409. - - Fitzmaurice--Mr., ii. 163, 171. - - Fitzroy--Charles, ii. 407. - - Fléche--La. - Hume's residence in, i. 57. - Jesuit's College of, ib. - - Fleury--Cardinal, 498. - - Fontaine--La, Les Contes de, removed from the Advocates' Library, i. - 395. - - Forester--Colonel James. - His connexion with the Marquis of Annandale, i. 174. - Verses on his traveling to the Highlands of Scotland, ib. - - Fourqueux, ii, 348. - - France--State of morality in, during Hume's time, ii. 91. - - ----, Manners in, i. 53-54, 55-56; ii. 208. - - Frankfort--Hume's account of, i. 251, 252. - - Franklin--Benjamin, ii. 426, 427, 471, 476. - - Fraser--James, i. 305. - Hume's character of, 308. - - Free Trade--Hume as the founder of the principles of, ii. 520. - - French literature. - Its licentious features, i. 395. - - - Galliani--Abbé, ii. 428. - - Garden--Francis, ii. 204. - - Garrick--David, ii. 141, 309, 421. - - Gascoigne--Chief-justice, ii. 69. - - Genlis--Madame de, ii. 221, 301. - - Geoffrin--Madame. - Her position in Paris, ii. 210. - Specimen of her handwriting, 211. - Character of, 212, 471. - - Geometry and Natural Philosophy--Dissertation on, i. 421. - - Gerard--Alexander, ii. 55, 154, 155. - - Gibbon--Edward, ii. 409. - Letter from, 410. - Letter to, 411, 484. - - Gillies--Adam, ii. 138. - - Glamorgan--Lord, ii. 77, 78. - - Glanvill--Joseph, i. 83. - - Glover--Richard, ii. 141. - - Goodall--Walter, i. 374. - Anecdote regarding him, ib.; ii. 254. - - Gordon--Father, ii. 201. - - Government--Monarchical. - Hume's partiality for, i. 140. - - Gower--Earl, i. 305. - - Graffigny--M., ii. 390. - - ----, Madame de, ii. 391. - - Grafton--Duke of, ii. 284, 397, 407, 432. - - Grammont--Madame de, ii. 206. - - Gregory--Dr., ii. 154, 155. - - Grenville--George, ii. 191, 226, 265, 272, 274, 282. - - Greville--Mrs. - Her Ode to Indifference, i. 228. - - Grimm--Baron de, ii. 168, 223. - - Guerchy--M. de, ii. 290, 373. - - Guichiardin, i. 113. - His character of Alexander VI. 113-114. - - Guigne--M. de, ii. 446. - - Gustard--Doctor, ii. 504. - - - Hague--The. - Hume's account of, i. 243. - - Hamilton--Duke of, i. 417. - - ----, Sir William, i. 288; ii. 153. - - Halifax--Lord, ii. 160, 277. - - Hall--Edward, ii. 72. - - Hallam--Henry, ii. 66. - - Hardwicke--Lord, ii. 465. - - Harrington--Hume's opinion of, i. 361; ii. 481. - - Hawke--Admiral, ii. 63. - - Hay--Secretary to Prince Charles Edward, ii. 203. - - Helvétius--His "De l'Esprit," i. 121; ii. 52. - Proposes Hume to translate it, 52. - Hume excuses himself, 53. - Notice of, 54, 57, 168, 131, 387. - His intercourse with Prince Charles Edward, ii. 464. - - Henault--President, ii. 181, 266, 269. - - Henry--Robert. - His History of Britain, ii. 469. - Hume's review of it, 470. - - Hepburn--Rev. Thomas, ii. 472. - - Herbert--Mr., ii. 162. - - Hertford--Marquis of. - His appointment to the French Embassy, ii. 156. - Invitation to Hume, 156, 158. - Notice of, 159, 161, 164, 171, 172, 181. - Hume's opinion of, 183, 188, 197, 205, 232, 258, 269, 272, 274, 278. - Appointed lord-lieutenant of Ireland, 282, 284, 388. - - ----, Marchioness of, ii. 92, 161, 171, 280. - - Hervey--Lady, ii. 225. - - Historians--Benefit to, from being familiar with military service, i. - 218, 221. - - ----, Knowledge requisite in, ii. 123-127. - - History--Essay on, ii. 123, 126. - - ---- of England--Hume's. - Preparation of, i. 378. - Rapidity of composition, 381. - Its reception, 414. - - Hobbes--Hume's remarks regarding, i. 77, 94. - - Holbach--Baron d', ii. 346, 353, 357. - - Holderness--Lord, ii. 194, 386, 463. - - Holingshed--Raphael, ii. 73. - - Holland--Lord, i. 403; ii. 239. - - Home--Alexander, Solicitor General, i. 208. - - ----, Alexander, of Whitfield. - Letter to, i. 2-3. - - ----, Lord. - His relationship to the Humes, i. 3. - - ----, Henry. - Letters to, i. 62, 105, 144. - Letter from, 204. - His Essays, 426. - Anderson's writings against, 428. - Attacked in the General Assembly, 429. - His Law Tracts, ii. 56, 131, 195, 454. - - ----, John. - His "Douglas" noticed, i. 316, 392, 411; ii. 17. - Hume's interest in him, i. 418. - Hume's opinion of his "Douglas," i. 419; ii. 32. - Suppressed dedication to, 16. - His "Siege of Aquileia," 81, 159, 166, 188, 191, 199, 383, 444, 456, - 475, 482. - His diary of a journey with Hume, 495. - Bequest of port wine to, 506, 507. - - ---- of Ninewells. - _See_ Hume. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 404. - - ----, Sir James, of Blackadder, i. 3. - - Hope--Lord, ii. 56. - - Human Nature, treatise of, i. 66. - Character of the work, 66, 97. - Its Style, 91. - - ----, Understanding, Philosophical Essays concerning, i. 271. - Inquiry concerning, 271. - - Human Actions, as the object of inductive philosophy, i. 275. - Application of this theory to history, 276. - - Hume--David, his birth and parentage, i. 2-3. - Account of his family, 2-7. - His opinions on the philosophy of family pride, 5. - Scenes of his boyhood, 8-9. - Account of his early years, 10-11. - Education, ib. - Early correspondence, 12-16. - Ambitious projects, 17. - Early writings, 18-19. - Essay on chivalry, 18-25. - Deserts the law, 26. - Letter to a physician, 30-39. - Goes to Bristol, 39. - Leaves Bristol for France, 48. - Visit to Paris, 49. - Residence at Rheims, 51-56. - Residence at La Fléche, 57. - Correspondence with Home, 62-65. - Preparing his treatise for press, 65. - Treatise of Human Nature, 66. - Treatise on the Passions, 99. - Review of Treatise in "Works of the Learned," 109. - Anecdote on the subject, 110. - Intercourse with Hutcheson, 112. - Application for a situation, 115. - Treatise on Morals, 120. - Extracts from memorandum book, 127-135. - Moral and Political Essays, their publication, 136. - Their character, 137-143. - His partiality for monarchical government, 140. - Opinions on the liberty of the press, 137-139. - Criticism on Cicero, 144-146. - Correspondence with Hutcheson, 146. - Correspondence with Mure, 153, 158. - Thoughts on religion, 162. - On prayer, 163. - Endeavours to obtain the professorship of moral philosophy, 165. - Opposition, 168-169. - Unsuccessful, 170. - Residence with the Marquis of Annandale, ib. - Dissension there, 182-190. - Its effect on Hume, 191. - He resigns the appointment, 193. - Different views of his resignation, 194. - State of society in Scotland at that time, 196. - Difficulty of means of subsistence, 196-197. - Position of the poor scholar, 199. - Offer from General St. Clair of the Secretaryship accepted, 208. - Expedition to the coast of France, 210. - One of the historians who have been familiar with military service, - 218. - Letter to Sir Harry Erskine, 219. - To Henry Home, 220. - To Col. Abercrombie, 222. - Desponding remarks on public affairs, 224. - Returns to Ninewells, 225. - Supposed character of himself, found amongst his papers, 226. - His poetical attempts, 227-229. - Question whether he was ever in love, 231. - Poetic epistle to John Medina, 234. - Appointment as secretary to the mission to the court of Turin, 235. - Letter to James Oswald, 236. - Views regarding history, ib. - Disinclination to leave his studies, 239. - New edition of his Essays, ib. - Philosophical Essays, ib. - His position with General St. Clair, 240. - Extracts from the Journal of his journey to Italy, 240-271. - Hague, 242. - Breda, 244. - Nimeguen, 247. - Bonne, 249. - Coblentz, ib. - Frankfurt, 251. - Wurtzburg, 252. - Ratisbon, 255. - Vienna, 257. - Knittlefeldt, 262. - Trent, 264. - Mantua, 265. - Turin, 266. - Publication of his Philosophical Essays, 271. - Inquiry concerning Human Understanding, 272. - Doctrine of Necessity, 275. - Doctrines on Miracles, 279-285. - His mode of treating the subject, 281. - Leading principle of his theory concerning, 282. - Third edition of Essays, Moral and Political, 289. - His mother's death, 291. - Silliman's story, 292. - Disproved, 293. - Correspondence with Dr. Clephane, 296. - Westminster election, 305. - Document regarding James Fraser, 308. - Letters to Col. Abercrombie, 311, 312. - To Dr. Clephane, 314. - Bellman's Petition, 315, 317. - Correspondence with Sir Gilbert Elliot, 324. - Dissertation on the Populousness of Antiquity, 326. - Dialogues concerning Natural Religion, 328. - Their character and tendency, 330. - Writes to Elliot regarding them, 331. - His brother's marriage, 337. - Letter to Mrs. Dysart, ib. - The independence of his mind, and moderation of his wishes, 340. - Letter to Michael Ramsay, 342. - His domestic arrangements, 344. - His theory of morals, 346. - Utilitarian system, 344. - Limited extent to which Hume carried it, 347. - Charge against it, 349. - Publication of Political Discourses, 350. - Is unsuccessful in his application for the chair of logic in - Glasgow, 350. - Letter to Dr. Cullen, 350. - Unfitness to be a teacher of youth, 352. - Political Discourses, 354. - Political economy, 355, 366. - Appointment, as keeper of the Advocates' Library, 367. - Letter to Dr. Clephane, 369, 376. - Account of domestic arrangements, 377. - Preparation of the History, 378. - Letter to Dr. Clephane, 379, 381. - Absorbing nature of his studies, 382. - Kindness to Blacklock, 385. - Letter to Joseph Spence, 388. - To Adam Smith, 393. - Gives Blacklock his salary as librarian, 393. - History of the Stuarts, 397. - Letter to Dr. Clephane, 397. - Conflicting opinions regarding the History of the Stuarts, 400. - Misapprehension regarding state of constitution, 403. - Inconsistencies between his philosophical and historical works, 405. - Letter to the Abbé le Blanc, 406. - To Dr. Clephane, 408. - To William Mure of Caldwell, 409. - To Mrs. Dysart, 410. - To Andrew Millar, 415. - To Adam Smith, 417. - Criticism on Home's "Douglas," 419. - _Edinburgh Review_, 422. - Attacked by Anderson, 429. - By the church courts, 430. - The second volume of the History of the Stuarts, ii. 5. - Its reception, ib. - Apologies for his treatment of religion, 10. - Unpublished preface, 11. - Essay on Suicide, 13. - Natural History of Religion, ib. - The suppressed Essays, ib. - Resigns the office of librarian, 18. - Dedication to Home, 21. - Third volume of the History, 22. - "Epigoniad," 25. - Warburton's attack, 35. - Goes to London, 47. - Correspondence with Dr. Robertson, 48. - Returns to Scotland, 65. - History of the Tudors, ib. - His constitutional theories, 67. - Alterations of the History in the direction of despotic principles, - 73. - Specimens of alterations, 74-77. - Specimens of alteration in style, 79, 80. - Letter to Millar, 81. - To Robertson, 83. - Macpherson's "Ossian," 85. - Letter to Dr. Carlyle, 88. - To Adam Smith, 89. - Madame de Boufflers, 90. - Correspondence with Madame de Boufflers, 94-98, 102. - Rousseau, 102. - Letters from Earl Marischal, 104. - Criticism on "Emile," 114. - Publication of the History anterior to the accession of the Tudors, - 120. - Intention to write an Ecclesiastical History, 130. - Correspondence with Millar, 132. - Residence in James's Court, 136. - Corrections of his works, 144. - His projects, 144-146. - Douglas cause, 150. - Criticisms on Reid's "Inquiry into the Human Mind," 153. - Accepts the office of secretary to the French embassy, 157. - Correspondence on the occasion, 157-160. - His celebrity in Paris, 167. - Feelings on the occasion, 171-172. - Attentions of the dauphin, 177. - Memoirs of James II., 179. - Advice to a clergyman, 185. - Secretaryship of the embassy, 188. - His pension, 191. - Letters from Paris, 193. - Madame de Boufflers, 205. - Social position in France, 207. - Notices by H. Walpole, 225. - Takes charge of Elliot's sons, 235. - Settles them in Paris, 244. - Liability to anger, 251. - Letter to Lord Elibank, 252. - Care of Elliot's sons, 273. - Secretaryship of legation, 278-281. - Is appointed to it, and to receive the salary, 284. - Expects to be secretary to Lord Hertford, as Lord-lieutenant of - Ireland, 287. - Is disappointed, 289. - Rousseau, 293. - Hume's first opinion of him, 299. - Brings him to England, 303. - Settles him at Wooton, 319. - Rousseau's quarrel, 326-330. - Publication of it, 354-360. - Walpole, 361. - Kindness to Rousseau, 381. - Appointed under secretary of state, 382. - His amiability of character, 390. - Compared with his nephew, Baron Hume, 402. - His interest in the education of his nephews, 403. - Influence in church patronage, 406. - His picture, 408. - Criticism of Robertson's Charles V., 412. - Views on currency, 426. - Returns to Edinburgh, 429. - Education of his nephews, 430. - His dislike of the English, 433. - His social character, 437. - Temper and disposition, 441. - His own account of his character, 442. - His conversation, 451. - Traditional anecdotes, 457. - Incidents regarding Prince Charles Edward, 462. - Review of Henry's History, 469. - Political opinions, 479. - Impatient for Smith's "Wealth of Nations," 483. - His last illness, 487, _et seq._ - His will, 489. - Disposal of his manuscripts, 490. - Publication of the "Dialogues on Natural Religion," 491-493. - Negotiations with Smith on the subject, ib. - His journey to Bath, 495, _et seq._ - John Home's account of their journey, ib. - His return, 506. - Party to bid him farewell, 507. - Correspondence, ib. - Smith's account of his latter days, 514. - Account of his death by Dr. Black and Dr. Cullen, 515. - His funeral and monument, 517-518. - Influence of his works on the opinions of the world, 519. - - Hume, or Home of Ninewells--Anecdote of, i. 6, 7. - - ----, John of Ninewells, brother to Hume, i. 213. - Narrative of the Expedition to the coast of France, addressed to, - 213-217. - His marriage, 337. - Letters to, ii. 290, 308, 396. - His character, 398. - - ----, David, afterwards Baron, ii. 400. - Compared with his uncle, 402, 405, 425, 474, 479, 480. - - ----, Joseph, of Ninewells, i. 1. - - ----, Joseph, younger. - His education, ii. 174, 175, 292, 398, 403, 404. - - ----, Director, i. 387. - - ----, John. - _See_ Home--John. - - ----, Mrs., verses by, i. 295. - - ----, Frank, ii. 199. - - Huntingdon--Lady, ii. 506. - - Hurd--Warburton's letter to, ii. 35. - Notice of, 50. - - Hutcheson--Francis, i. 111. - Hume's correspondence with, 112. - His reflexions on Hume's papers, 112. - Letter to, 117, 146. - - - Ideas--Hume's theory of, i, 70. - - Impressions--Hume's theory of, i. 73. - - Inquiry concerning the Principles of Morals, i. 344. - Its tendency, ib. - - ---- concerning Human Understanding, its publication, 273. - Views developed in it, 274. - - Irvine--Colonel, ii. 160. - - - James II.--Memoirs of, ii. 179, 200. - - James's Court--Hume's residence in, description of, ii. 136. - - Jardine--Dr., ii. 197, 230, 286. - His death, 317, 318. - - Jeffrey--Lord, i. 403. - - Jenyns--Soame, ii. 55, 59. - - Johnson--Dr., ii. 122. - Anecdote of, 138, 420. - - Johnstone of Hilton--Anecdote of, i. 6, 7. - - ----, Colonel John, i. 185. - - ----, Sir James--of Westerhall, i. 175, 176. - Letters to, 182, 184, 192. - Letter to, from Henry Home, 204. - - Johnstone--Sir William, ii. 168. - - Journal--Hume's, of his journey to Italy, i. 240, 271. - - Judge Advocate--Hume appointed, i. 212. - Claim for half-pay, 222. - - Justice Clerk--The, ii. 47. - - - Kames--Lord. - _See_ Home--Henry. - - Kant--Effect of Hume's Theory of Cause and Effect on, i. 79. - His justification of Hume, 88. - - Keith--Mr., ii. 431. - - Keith--General, ii. 498. - - Kenrick--William Shakspere, editor of _The London Review_, i. 110. - - Kincaid--Alexander, i. 431; ii. 4, 81, 82. - - Kirkpatrick--James, i. 387. - - Knittlefeldt in Styria, Hume's account of it, i. 262. - - Knox--John, ii. 58. - - - La Chapelle, ii. 270. - - La Harpe, ii. 468. - - Lansdowne--Lord, ii. 146. - - Larpent--Mr., ii. 245, 271. - - Law and government--first principles of, Hume's remarks on, i. 122. - - Leechman--Dr., i. 160. - Hume's criticism on his sermon, 161, 411. - - Legge, H. B., ii. 54. - - Leslie--Sir John. - His professorship, i. 89. - - L'Espinasse--Mademoiselle de. - Her position with Madame du Deffand, ii. 215. - D'Alembert's attachment to her, ib. - Notice of, 237. - - Lestock--Admiral Richard, i. 210. - - Leyden--University of, i. 151. - - Lindsay--Lord, i. 413. - - ----, Lady Anne. - Her remembrances of Hume, ii. 445. - - Liston--Mr., afterwards Sir Robert, ii. 245, 270, 271, 273, 280, 414. - - Literature, French--State of, ii. 166. - - Locke, i. 94; ii. 68. - - Logic--chair of, in Glasgow, i. 350. - - L'Orient--Port of, i. 211. - Expedition against, i. 211. - - Loughborough--Lord, ii. 425. - - Louis XV--Anecdotes of, 499. - - Lounds--Mr., ii. 368. - - Lyttelton--George Lord, i. 391, 433; ii. 55, 58, 79, 82, 226, 345. - - Luze--M. de, ii. 303-305. - - - Macdonald--Sir James, ii. 228, 229, 257, 267, 272, 349. - - Mackenzie--Henry, i. 58. - His ideas of Hume, ii. 438, 444. - - Mackenzie, Stuart, ii. 258, 259. - - Mackintosh--Sir James, i. 287. - - Macpherson--James, i. 462; ii. 85, 461. - - Malesherbes, ii. 219. - - Maletête--M., ii. 428. - - Mallet--David, ii. 3, 79, 82, 131, 140, 141. - Letter from, to Hume, 142. - Notice of, 144, 187, 232. - His death, 273. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 62, 141, 200, 232. - - Malthus, i. 364. - - Mansfield--Lord, ii. 163, 386, 415, 424, 466. - - Mantua--Hume's account of, i. 265. - - March--Lord, ii. 240, 241, 242, 245. - - Marchmont--Lord, extraordinary adventure of, i. 237. - - Marischal--Lord, ii. 103. - Letters from, 104, 105. - Notice of, 113, 139, 175, 179, 182, 217, 293, 295, 306, 313, 354, - 464, 465. - - Markham--Sir George, ii. 146. - - Marlborough--Duke of, ii. 141. - - ----, Duchess of, ii. 141. - - Marmontel, ii. 181, 196. - - Martigny, ii. 52. - - Masserane--Prince, ii. 428. - - Mathematics. - Hume's application of, i. 73. - - Mauvillon--Eléazar, i. 365. - - Maxwell--Sir John, ii. 455. - - Mead--Dr., i. 316. - - Medina--John, poetic epistle to, by Hume, i. 234. - - Memorandum book--Hume's. - Extracts from, i. 126-135. - - Mesnieres--President, ii. 177. - - Metaphysics. - Theories purely such not dangerous to religion, i. 86, 88. - - Millar--Andrew, i. 415. - His views for Hume, ib. - Correspondence with, 421; ii. 2, 22, 34. - Notice of, 57, 64, 81. - Letters to, 130, 134, 135, 136, 138, 143, 147, 179, 199, 200, 231, - 263, 264, 272, 393, 408. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 180, 200, 232. - - ----, Professor, ii. 474, 479, 480, 481. - - Milton--Lord, ii. 46, 199. - - Minto--Lord, i. 320; ii. 233. - - Mirabeau, the elder, i. 365, 366. - - Miracles--Doctrines on, i. 279-286. - - Mirepoix--Madame de, ii. 244, 245. - - Monarchical character--sacredness of, Hume's ideas on, ii. 70. - - Monboddo--Lord, ii. 467. - _See_ Burnet. - - Moncrief--David, ii. 431. - - Money--Letter on the value of, i. 301. - - ----, Elements of the value of, according to Hume, i. 358-360. - - Montesquieu, i. 92, 139. - His Esprit des Loix, i. 304. - His appreciation of Hume's critical works, 305, 365, 387. - Letters from, to Hume, 426. - - Montigny--Trudaine de, letter from, ii. 167, 352. - - ----, Madame, ii. 348. - - Moore--Mr., ii. 436. - - Moral and Political Essays, their publication, i. 136. - - ---- Sentiments--Theory of, by Adam Smith, ii. 55. - Hume's appreciation of it, ib. - - Morals--Treatise on, i. 120. - Principles of, inquiry concerning, 344. - The utilitarian, limited extent to which it was carried by Hume, - 347. - Charge against it, 349. - - Morellet--The Abbé, ii. 276, 337, 425. - Letter to, 426. - - Morrice--Corbyn, ii. 147. - - Mount Stuart--Lord, ii. 184. - - Muirhead--Mr., i. 411. - - Mure--William, of Caldwell, i. 380. - Letters to, i. 153, 158, 162, 165; ii. 19, 158, 165, 199, 200, 390, - 391, 436, 478. - - Murray--Lady Elliot, letter from, ii. 446. - - ----, Alexander, i. 306; ii. 93, 101, 168, 258, 259. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 281. - - ----, of Broughton, i. 167. - - Musset Pathay, ii. 322, 325, 329, 330. - - - Nairne--Mr., ii. 456. - - National characters--Essay on, i. 290. - - Nationality--Hume's spirit of, ii. 31. - - Natural Philosophy--Hume's notes on, i. 95-96. - - Natural Religion--Dialogues concerning, i. 328, 330. - Arrangements regarding their publication, ii. 490-493. - - Necessity--Doctrine of, i. 275. - - Necker, ii. 487. - - Neville--Mr., ii. 171. - - Nicholas--Sir Harris. - His chronology of history, ii. 123. - - Nicol--Miss, ii. 361. - - Niebuhr, i. 218. - - Nimeguen--Hume's account of, i. 247. - - Ninewells, family residence of the Humes, i. 1, 8. - - Nivernois--Duc de, ii. 286, 431, 449. - - Nominalism--Hume's, a system of, i. 73. - - North--Lord, ii. 479. - - Norwich--Bishop of, ii. 54. - - Note-book--Hume's, extracts from, i. 126-135. - - - Obedience--Passive, Hume's opinions on, ii. 70. - - Orange--Prince of. - His popularity, i. 242. - - Ord--Baron, ii. 436. - - ----, Miss, ii. 436, 494. - - Original Contract--Essay of the, i. 290. - - Orleans--Duke of, ii. 269. - - ----, Duchess of, ii. 269. - - Ormond--James Butler, Duke of, ii. 77. - - Ossian's Poems, ii. 85. - Essay on the authenticity of, 86. - Notice of, 180. - - ----, Papers regarding, i. 462. - - Ossory--Lord, ii. 322. - - Oswald--Sir Harry, ii. 188, 191. - - ----, James, of Dunnikier, i. 156, 222. - Letter to, 236, 301, 380. - Notice of, ii. 58. - Letter to, 149. - Notice of, 188. - Letter to, 275. - - - Page du Boccage--Madame de, ii. 213. - - Paley--William, i. 152. - - Palgrave--Sir Francis, ii. 122. - - Paoli, King of Corsica, ii. 307. - - Paris--Abbé, miracles at his tomb, i. 49-50. - - ----, Hume's first visit to, i. 49-51. - - ----, University of, i. 151. - - Passions--Treatise on, i. 99. - Some account of, 104. - Dissertation on, 421. - - Passive obedience--Essay of, i. 220. - - Percy--Bishop, ii. 385. - - Peyrou, du, ii. 335. - - Philosophical Essays concerning the Human Understanding. - When published, i. 271. - - Philosophy--System of, in the Treatise of Human Nature, i. 66, 97. - Its characteristic, 97. - - Physician--Letter to, i. 30-39, 41, 42. - - Piozzi--Mrs., ii. 139. - - Pitcairne--Dr., ii. 390. - - Pitfour--Lord, ii. 480. - - Pitt--William, i. 392; ii. 63, 159, 160, 162, 163. - - Platonist--The, i. 141. - - Pluche--The Abbé, i. 52. - - Plutarch--Hume's project of translating, i. 415, 417. - - Poetry by Hume, i. 228. - - ---- by Mrs. Home of Ninewells, i. 295. - - ---- By Miss A. B., to Mrs. H----, by her Black Boy, i. 296. - - Political Discourses--Publication of, i. 350. - Their character, 354. - - ---- Economy. Hume's ideas on, i. 355. - How received, 356. - State of opinion on, in the time of Hume, i. 355-356. - Effect of the French Revolution on, 357. - - Political Doctrines--Hume's, i. 123. - Their inconsistency with his historical works, 405. - - Pompadour--Madame de, ii. 169. - - Populousness of Ancient Nations--Essay on, i. 326, 363. - - Praslin--Duc de, ii. 172, 283, 290. - - ----, Duchess de, ii. 173. - - Press--Liberty of, i. 137-138. - - Prevôt--Abbé, i. 408; ii. 52. - - Primrose--Lady, ii. 462. - - Pringle--Sir John, president of the Royal Society of London, i. 165. - Letter to, ii. 162. - Letter from, 465, 476. - - Protestant Succession--Essay on, i. 365. - - Provence--Comte de, ii. 178. - - Prussia--King of, ii. 306, 309, 363. - - Prynne--William, i. 405. - - Puysieuls--Mons. de, ii. 204, 266. - - - Quesnay, i. 365. - - - Rabutin--Bussy, i. 306. - - Ralph--Mr., ii. 148. - - Ramsay--Allan, i. 421; ii. 135. - - ----, The Chevalier, i. 12, 53. - - ----, Michael, an early correspondent of Hume's, i. 11, 51, 107, 116. - Letter to, ii. 342. - - Ratisbon--Hume's account of, i. 255. - - Raynal--The Abbé, i. 365. - - Record Commission. - Works prepared by, ii. 121. - - Reid--Dr. Thomas; his "Inquiry into the Human Mind," ii. 151. - Intercourse with Hume, 153. - Letter from, 154. - - Religion--Hume's thoughts regarding, i. 162-164, 279. - His treatment of, ii. 5. - Tone in speaking of the Roman Catholic religion, ii. 6. - - ----, Hume's apologies for his treatment of, ii. 10. - - ----, Natural. - Dialogues concerning, i. 328; ii. 490. - Their character and tendency, i. 330. - - Republicanism--Hume's estimate of, ii. 481. - - _Review_--The original _Edinburgh_. - Its origin, i. 422. - - Rheims--Hume's residence in, i. 51-56. - - Rianecourt--Madame, ii. 351. - - Riccoboni--Madame, ii. 350. - - Richmond--Duke of, ii. 282, 290, 326. - - Rivière, i. 365. - - Robertson--Dr. William. - Hume's commendations of, ii. 32, 43. - Letter to, regarding Queen Mary, 48. - Correspondence with Hume, 49-55. - Notice of, 58. - Correspondence and notices, 83, 100, 176, 229, 252, 266, 270, 286, - 383. - Remarks by Hume on his History of Charles Fifth, 412, 445, 453, 470. - - Robinson--Sir Thomas, i. 257. - - Roche--La. - Story of, i. 58. - - Rockingham--Lord, ii. 282, 395, 396. - - Rodney--Admiral, ii. 61. - - Rohan--Louis, Prince de, ii. 221. - - Rollin, ii. 50. - - Romilly--Sir Samuel, ii. 220. - - Rougemont--M., ii. 330. - - Rousseau--Jean Jacques, ii. 102, 110, 112-113, 114, 187. - Takes up his abode at Motier Travers, 293. - Removes to St. Pierre, 294. - Goes to Strasburg, 296. - To Paris, ib. - The enthusiasm for him at Paris, 299. - Goes to England, 303, 308, 311, 312. - Hume's account of him, 315. - His judgment on his own works, 316. - Settlement at Wooton, 319. - Walpole's letter, 321. - Pension from the King of England, 324. - Quarrel with Hume, 326-380. - - Ruat--Professor, ii. 56, 62. - - Ruddiman--Thomas, i. 367; ii. 19. - - Russel--J., ii. 192. - - Rutherford--Dr., ii. 199. - - - Saducismus Triumphatus, i. 83. - - Sandwich--Lord, ii. 160. - - Sarsfield--Count, ii. 388. - - Saurin, ii. 387. - - Sceptic--The, i. 141. - Character of, 143. - - Scholar--The poor. - His position in Hume's time, i. 199. - - Scott of Scotstarvet, i. 416. - - ----, Sir Walter. - His remarks on Hume's poetical attempts, i. 226, 227; ii. 137. - - Selwin--George, ii. 240. - - Shaftesbury--Lord, i. 384. - - Sharp--Matthew, of Hoddam. - Letter to, i. 178-180, 386. - - Sheffield--Lord, ii. 409. - - Shelburne--Lord, ii. 405, 406. - - Short--Mr., ii. 64. - - Silliman--the American traveller. - His story regarding Hume, i. 291-293. - - Smellie--William, ii. 469. - - Smith--Adam. - His first introduction to Hume, i. 117. - His appointment to the chair of Moral Philosophy, 350. - The method of his political economy, 361. - Letters to, and notices of, 375, 393. - His correspondence with Hume, 417. - Letter to, ii. 16. - Hume's commendation of, 32. - Notice of, 58, 59. - Correspondence with, 89, 148, 150, 157, 160, 168, 227, 228, 348, - 349, 353, 388, 390, 395, 426, 429, 432, 433, 459, 461, 466, 471. - Letter to, on his "Wealth of Nations," 486. - Appointed Hume's literary executor, 490. - Letters to, 491. - Revocation of the nomination, 494. - His account of Hume's last moments, 509. - - Smollett--Tobias, ii. 53. - Hume's interest in, 405. - Letter from, 418. - Letter to, 419. - - Solitude--Hume's opinion on, i. 99. - - Spence--Joseph. - Letter to, i. 388. - Notice of, 435. - - Spinoza, i. 89. - - St. Clair--General. - His invitation to Hume, to act as secretary to the expedition to the - Coast of France, i. 208. - His expedition, ib. 440. - Appoints Hume secretary to the mission to the Court of Turin, 235, - 372. - - Stanislaus Augustus, King of Poland, ii. 91. - - Stevenson--John, ii. 46. - - Stewart--Dugald, i. 88, 89. - - ----, John, ii. 168, 180, 311, 321. - - Stobo--Captain Robert, ii. 418. - - Stoic--The, i. 141. - - Strahan--William, ii. 82-83, 412. - Hume's papers left to the charge of, 494. - Letters from, 477, 512. - - Stuart--Andrew, ii. 168, 175, 203, 423, 424, 466. - - ----, Dr., ii. 454. - - ---- Mackenzie, Mr., ii. 258. - - ----, Gilbert, ii. 414, 416, 456, 467. - His opinion of himself, 468. - Anecdotes regarding, 469. - His malignity, ib. 470. - - Stuarts--History of the, i. 399. - Character of the work, ib. - Conflicting opinions regarding, 400. - Charge brought against, 401. - Tendency, 402. - Its reception, 414. - Second volume, ii. 2. - - Suard--M. - Letter to, ii. 357. - - Suicide--Hume's ideas on, ii. 15. - - Sympathy--Criticism on Smith's ideas on, ii. 60. - - - Tate--Christopher, ii. 432. - - Tavistock--Lord, ii. 239. - - Teacher of youth--Hume's unfitness for, i. 352. - Qualifications requisite, ib. - - Temple--Lord, ii. 163. - - Tessé--Countess of, ii. 206. - - Thomson--Dr. John, i. 351, 353. - - Torbay, ii. 63. - - Townsend--Lord, ii. 407. - - ----, Charles, ii. 58, 132, 133, 134, 304, 305. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 305. - - Trade--Free. - _See_ Free Trade. - - Tragedy--Dissertation on, i. 421. - - Trail--Dr., ii. 204, 245, 456. - - Treatise of Human Nature, when published, i. 66. - Character of the work, 66-97. - Its service to philosophy, 90. - Characteristics of the system, 97. - Hume's condition during its composition, 96. - Its reception, 107-109. - Treatise on the Passions, some account of, 99. - Treatise on Morals, its character, 120-123. - - Trent--Hume's account of, i. 264. - - Trentham--Lord, i. 305. - - Tronchin, ii. 186, 338, 345. - - Tucker. - His Light of Nature, i. 150. - - ----, Dr., ii. 428. - - Turgot, i. 365. - Hume's friendship with, ii. 219, 351, 354. - Letters from, 352, 381, 428. - - Tweeddale--Marquis of, ii. 383. - - - Understanding--The Treatise on, i. 99. - - Universities--foreign. - The resort of Scottish youth, i. 150. - - Utilitarian system--Hume's development of, i. 121, 344. - Limited extent to which he carried it, 347. - - - Vain man--Hume's character of, i. 104. - - Vallière--Duc de, ii. 268. - - Vandeput--Sir George, i. 105. - - Vauban, i. 365. - - Vasseur--Thérèse le, ii. 294, 299, 305, 307, 323, 352, 366, 370. - - Verdelin--Madame de, ii. 295. - - Vienna. - Hume's account of the court there, and his introduction, i. 257-259. - - Vincent--Captain Philip, i. 177, 180. - His position with the Marquis of Annandale, 181, 186-189. - Letter from, 189. - Terms specified by, of Hume's engagement with the Marquis of - Annandale, 201, 203. - - Voltaire, i. 219; ii. 57, 126, 166, 184, 195, 323, 348, 358. - His "Henriade," Hume's opinion of, 440. - - - Walker--Professor, ii. 334. - - Wallace--Dr. Robert, i. 364, 387; ii. 193. - - Walpole, Lady, ii. 138. - - ----, Sir Robert. - Hume's character of, i. 289. - - ----, Horace. - Anecdote from, i. 197; ii. 54, 55, 159. - His notices of Hume, 226. - Account of his own reception in Paris, 226. - His letter in the name of the King of Prussia, 306, 321. - His Memoirs of George III., 282, 345, 351. - Letter to, 355, 361. - - Warburton--Bishop. - His letter to Hurd, i. 285. - Notice of, ii. 35. - His letter against Hume, ib. - His Remarks on Hume's essays, ib. - Notice of, 38, 64, 454. - - Warton--Thomas, ii. 51. - - Wealth of Nations--Hume's opinion of the, ii. 486. - - Wedderburn--Alexander, i. 379; ii. 471. - - Westminster election, in 1749, i. 305. - - Weymouth--Lord, ii. 384. - - Wilkie--William. - His "Epigoniad," ii. 25, 29. - His education, 26. - - Wilkes--John, ii. 148, 202, 282, 422. - - Wilson--Mr., type-founder, ii. 59. - - Wood--Mr., ii. 63, 182. - - Worcester--Marquis of. - _See_ Glamorgan--Lord. - - Wray--Mr., ii. 465. - - Wroughton--Mr., ii. 272. - - Wurtzburg--Hume's account of, i. 252. - - - York--Archbishop of, ii. 386. - - ----, Duke of, ii. 310. - - Yorke--Mr., ii. 59. - - - - -ERRATA. - - -Vol. i. p. 361, for _Harrison_ read _Harrington_. - -Vol. ii. p. 14, in the reference in the note, p. 246, read p. 216. - ----- p. 215, for _protégé_ read _protégée_. - - - - -TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES: - - -The following explanation of the different kinds of blockquotes used in -this volume can be found on page xiv of Vol. I of this series: - - "It may be right to explain, that the two sizes of type, used - in this work, were first adopted with the design of presenting - all letters addressed to Hume, all extracts, and all letters - from him with which the public is already familiar, in the - smaller type, in order that the reader coming to a document - with which he is already acquainted, might see at once where - it ends. This arrangement was accidentally broken through, - several letters having been printed in the larger that should - have appeared in the smaller type."[A] - - [A] Burton, John Hill. Life and Correspondence of - David Hume.</cite> Vol. I. Edinburgh: William Tait, - 1847. - -The following words use an oe ligature in the original: - - coelo - coeur - diarrhoea - Foedera - Phoenix - -Text in French has been preserved as printed. - -Corrections listed in the Errata have been made. The Errata is included -for completeness. - -The following corrections have been made to the text: - - Page 1: Nationalism--Warburton--Colonel Edmondstoune[original - has "Edmonstoune"] - - Page 44: and that a man cannot[original has "connot"] employ - himself - - Page 57: more decisive than he used[original has "uses"] to be - in its favour - - Page 58: he would put the Duke of Buccleuch[original has - "Buccleugh"] - - Page 58: conclude with--Your humble servant.[original has - extraneous quotation mark] - - Page 84: once entertained thoughts of attempting.[84:1] - [Footnote anchor added by transcriber] - - Page 150: the enclosed to Colonel Barré[original has "Barrè"] - - Page 160: Some[original has "some"] pretend that the present - - Page 167: Madame Dupré de St.[period missing in original] Maur - writes - - Page 178: by express order from the D.[178:1][Footnote anchor - added by transcriber] - - Page 178: the Comte d'Artois, afterwards Charles[original has - "Charle"] X. - - Page 192: any civilities you show the Colonel."[quotation mark - missing in original] - - Page 197: point vous êtes chéri en France.'[quotation mark - missing in original] - - Page 199: Literary classes of the university[original has - "unversity"] - - Page 202: imprudent for me to lend them to him.[quotation mark - missing in original] - - Page 207: Aristocracy--Madame Geoffrin[original has - "Geofrin"]--Madame Du Page - - Page 213: Madame le Page du Boccage[original has "Bocage"] - - Page 223: "[quotation mark missing in original]From what has - been already said of him - - Page 239: no new ground of attachment to England."[quotation - mark missing in original] - - Page 243: every body, by which you desire . . . ."[quotation - mark missing in original] - - Page 249: without withdrawing from a friendship[original has - "frendship"] - - Page 275: sir, your most obedient servant."[quotation mark - missing in original] - - Page 282: with whom he and his connexions[original has - "connexious"] were not - - Pages 308-9: and came to Strasburg,[original has a period] - with an intention - - Page 312: [original has extraneous quotation mark]Lisle - Street, Leicester Fields - - Page 312: [original has extraneous quotation mark]DEAR - DOCTOR,--I had asked M. Rousseau - - Page 325: [original has extraneous quotation mark]_June 16, - 1766_ - - Page 369: de faciliter mon retour d'ici chez vous.[transcriber - removed extraneous footnote anchor] - - Page 375: assured that Davenport would receive him.[original - has a comma] - - Page 407: I am, dear Sir Gilbert, yours sincerely."[quotation - mark missing in original] - - Page 421: HUME _to_ DR.[period missing in original] BLAIR. - - Page 426: otherwise it would be multiplied[original has - "mutiplied"] without - - Page 429: "[quotation mark missing in original]_Minto, 11th - July, 1768._ - - Page 429: "[quotation mark missing in original]I am sorry, my - dear sir - - Page 444: Mr.[original has "Hr."] Hume bore with perfect good - nature - - Page 446: adding, 'Oh, what an idiot I had nearly proved - myself to be, to leave such a document in the hands of a - parcel of women!'"[both single quotes missing in original] - - Page 468: proprietor--it might[original has "it ght"] almost - be said - - Page 477: for coercive methods with those obstinate[original - has "ohstinate"] madmen - - Page 484: would have given me[original has "given m"] some - surprise - - Page 485: I am, with regard,[original has extraneous quotation - mark] &c. - - Page 506: may have spirits to humour this folly."[quotation - mark missing in original] - - Page 507: the Doctor to make one of the number."[quotation - mark missing in original] - - Page 512: about any thing that shall happen[original has - "hoppen"] - - Page 523: Aiguillon[original has "Aguillon"]--Duchesse de, ii. - 175. - - Page 523, under "Alembert--D'": Hume's friendship with, 218, - 270, 323, 345, 348, 350, 354, 355, 377, 489[original has - "589"]. - - Page 524: Calton Hill--Hume's monument on, ii.[volume number - missing in original] 518. - - Page 525: Conti[original has extraneous comma]--Prince of, ii. - 90, 221, 246, 297, 307. - - Page 525: Crébillon[original has "Crebillon"]--His - "L'Ecumoire," i. 395; ii. 428. - - Page 525: under "Cullen—Dr.", Letters from, ii. 488, - 489, 515[original reads "489, 515; ii. 488"]. - - Page 526: under "Eugene—Prince" His palace, i. 262; - ii.["ii." missing in original] 501. - - Page 526: Fitzroy[original has "Fitz-roy"]--Charles, ii. 407. - - Page 526: Gower--Earl[original has "Lerd"], i. 305. - - Page 528: under "Hume--David", "Extracts from the Journal of - his journey to Italy", Wurtzburg[original has "Wurtzburgh"], - 252 - - Page 528: under "Hume--David", Letters from Earl - Marischal[original has "Marishal"], 104. - - Page 530: Keith—General, ii.[original has "i."] 498. - - Page 530: Mesnieres[original has "Mesnières"]--President, ii. - 177. - - Page 531: Musset Pathay, ii. 322, 325[original has - "322,-325"], 329, 330. - - Page 533: Vasseur--Thérèse[original has "Therèse"] le, ii. - 294, 299, 305, 307, 323, 352, 366, 370. - - [5:2] written by Daniel Macqueen, D.D.,[comma missing in - original] the chief object - - [6:1] "[quotation mark missing in original]_By one who - personally knew him._ - - [141:1] I desire to be known by that appellation.'[quotation - mark missing in original] - - [187:2] Sic[original has extraneous period] in MS. - - [216:1] Maître Janotus de ses chausses."[quotation mark - missing in original] - - [221:2] He makes great account of his works[original has - "vorks"] - - [226:1] (Ib. 130-131.)[closing parenthesis missing in - original] - - [226:1] self-satisfied account of the distinctions - conferred[original has "conerred"] - - [238:1] interest taken by the Comtesse de Boufflers[original - has "Boufilers"] - - [239:1] methods often hostile, always indelicate[original has - "indolicate"] - - [301:1] "[quotation mark missing in original]C'est un des - malheurs de ma vie," says Rousseau - - [301:1] having been exhibited as a wild beast![original has - extraneous quotation mark] - - [309:1] mark of interrogation is in the MS.[original has - "M.S."] - - [329:1] expect to meet with a work of the nineteenth[original - has "nineteeth"] century - - [329:1] one letter from M. Rougemont[original has "Rougement"] - among the MSS. - - [329:1] "[quotation mark missing in original]L'opinion que - vous avez de M. Rousseau - - [331:1] degree little short of madness."[quotation mark - missing in original] - - [421:2] Dr.[period missing in original] Robertson - - [421:2] piddling still about my Lectures."[quotation mark - missing in original] - - [452:2] _Gentleman's Magazine_, N.S. i. 142.[period missing in - original] - - [472:1] aimed at the historian himself."[quotation mark - missing in original] - -Punctuation has been standardized in the Index. - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Life and Correspondence of David Hume, -Volume II (of 2), by John Hill Burton - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DAVID HUME, VOLUME II *** - -***** This file should be named 42844-8.txt or 42844-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/2/8/4/42844/ - -Produced by Adrian Mastronardi, Michael Zeug, Lisa Reigel, -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images -generously made available by The Internet Archive/Canadian -Libraries) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Life and Correspondence of David Hume, Volume II (of 2) - -Author: John Hill Burton - -Release Date: May 30, 2013 [EBook #42844] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DAVID HUME, VOLUME II *** - - - - -Produced by Adrian Mastronardi, Michael Zeug, Lisa Reigel, -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images -generously made available by The Internet Archive/Canadian -Libraries) - - - - - - - -Transcriber's Notes: Variations in spelling and hyphenation have been -left as in the original. Greek words have been transliterated and placed -between +plus signs+. Words in italics in the original are surrounded by -_underscores_. A row of asterisks represents a thought break. Letters -superscripted in the original are surrounded by {braces}. Ellipses match -the original. A complete list of corrections follows the text. - -The original has two different kinds of blockquotes: one uses a smaller -font than the main text, and the other has wider margins. In this text, -the blockquotes in a smaller font have wider margins, and the other -blockquotes have two blank lines before and after the quotation. An -explanation of the different kinds of quotations can be found at the end -of this text. - -The original uses side by side columns for comparisons. This text has -the contents of the right column indented five spaces below the contents -of the left column. - - - - - LIFE AND - - CORRESPONDENCE OF - - DAVID HUME. - - - [Illustration: Portrait of Hume from a Bust] - - - - - LIFE - - AND - - CORRESPONDENCE - - OF - - DAVID HUME. - - - FROM THE PAPERS BEQUEATHED BY HIS NEPHEW TO THE - ROYAL SOCIETY OF EDINBURGH; AND OTHER - ORIGINAL SOURCES. - - - BY JOHN HILL BURTON, ESQ. - ADVOCATE. - - - VOLUME II. - - - EDINBURGH: - WILLIAM TAIT, 107, PRINCE'S STREET. - MDCCCXLVI. - - - - - EDINBURGH: - Printed by WILLIAM TAIT, 107, Prince's Street. - - - - -CONTENTS OF VOLUME SECOND. - - -ILLUSTRATIONS TO VOL. II. - - Portrait of Hume from a Bust, _Frontispiece_. - - Fac simile of a page of the History of England, Page 79 - - Fac simile of a letter from Rousseau, 326 - - -CHAPTER X. - -1756-1759. AET. 45-48. - - The second volume of the History of the Stuarts--His Apologies - for his Treatment of Religion--The Four Dissertations--The Two - Suppressed Dissertations--Resigns his Office of Librarian-- - Home's Douglas--Commences the History of the Tudors-- - Wilkie's Epigoniad--Hume's Nationalism--Warburton--Colonel - Edmondstoune--Dr. Robertson--Negotiations as to Ferguson's - Chair--Hume goes to London--Writes Letters of Fictitious and - Extravagant News--Smith's Theory of Moral Sentiments-- - Publication of the History of the House of Tudor--General View - of the Constitutional Principles of the History. 1 - - -CHAPTER XI. - -1760-1762. AET. 49-51. - - Alterations of the History in the direction of despotic - Principles--Specimens--Alterations in Style--Specimens--His - Elaboration--Ossian's Poems--Labours at the early part of the - History--Ferguson's "Sister Peg"--Acquaintance with Madame de - Boufflers--Account of that lady--First intercourse with - Rousseau--Rousseau's position--The exiled Earl Marischal-- - Campbell and his Dissertation on Miracles. 73 - - -CHAPTER XII. - -1762-1763. AET. 51-52. - - The Publication of the History anterior to the Accession of - the Tudors--Completion of the History--Inquiry how far it is a - complete History--Hume's Intention to write an Ecclesiastical - History--Opinions of Townsend and others on his History-- - Appreciation of the Fine Arts--Hume's House in James's Court-- - Its subsequent occupation by Boswell and Johnson--Conduct - of David Mallet--Hume's Projects--The Douglas Cause-- - Correspondence with Reid. 120 - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -1763-1764. AET. 52-53. - - Lord Hertford's appointment to the French Embassy, and - invitation to Hume to accompany him--Correspondence on the - occasion--Residence in London, and remarks on the Political - Movements of 1763--State of his reputation in France--His - Arrival--Letters to friends at home about his flattering - reception--The young French princes--Observations on eminent - French people--His recommendations to a Clergyman-- - Introductions of Fellow Countrymen. 156 - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -1764-1765. AET. 53-54. - - The French and English Society of Hume's day--Reasons of his - warm reception in France--Society in which he moved--Mixture - of lettered men with the Aristocracy--Madame Geoffrin--Madame - Du Page de Boccage--Madame Du Deffand--Mademoiselle De - L'Espinasse--D'Alembert--Turgot--The Prince of Conti--Notices - of Hume among the Parisians--Walpole in Paris--Resumption of - the Correspondence--Hume undertakes the management of Elliot's - sons--Reminiscences of home--Mrs. Cockburn--Adam Smith--Madame - De Boufflers and the Prince of Conti--Correspondence with Lord - Elibank. 207 - - -CHAPTER XIV.[vi:A] - -1765-1766. AET. 54-55. - - Hume's Sentiments as to the Popularity of his works--A letter - to the Scottish Clergy--Correspondence with Elliot continued-- - Sir Robert Liston--Mallet--Hume appointed Secretary of - Legation--Charge d' Affaires at Paris--Proposal to appoint him - Secretary for Ireland--Reasons of the Failure of the Project-- - Lord Hertford--Resumption of Communication with Rousseau-- - Rousseau in Paris--Notices of his History and Character-- - Hume's Solicitude for his welfare--Return to Britain--Disposal - of Rousseau--Death of Jardine. 263 - - -CHAPTER XV. - -1766-1767. AET. 55-56. - - Rousseau at Wooton--Mr. Davenport--Negotiations as to - Rousseau's pension--Origin and rise of his excitement against - Hume--Proper method of viewing the dispute--Incidents - illustrative of Rousseau's state of mind--His charges against - Hume--Smith's opinion--Opinion of the French friends--Hume's - conduct in the publication of the papers--Voltaire--Rousseau's - flight and wanderings--Hume's subsequent conduct to him. 319 - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -1766-1770. AET. 55-59. - - Hume Under Secretary of State--Church Politics--Official - abilities--Conduct as to Ferguson's book--Quarrel with - Oswald--Baron Mure's sons--Project of continuing the History-- - Ministerial convulsions--Hume's conduct to his Family--His - Brother--His Nephews--Baron Hume--Blacklock--Smollett--Church - Patronage--Gibbon--Robertson--Elliot--Gilbert Stuart--The - Douglas Cause--Andrew Stewart--Morellet--Return to Scotland. 382 - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -1771-1776. AET. 60-65. - - Hume's social character--His conversation--His disposition-- - Traditional anecdotes regarding him--Correspondence--Letter - about the Pretender--Gilbert Stuart's quarrel with Dr. Henry-- - Commercial State of Scotland--Letter to his nephew on - Republicanism--Smith's "Wealth of Nations"--Hume's illness-- - His Will--Smith appointed Literary Executor--Strahan - substituted--His journey to England with Home--Prospects of - Death--Communications with his Friends and Relations--His - Death--General view of his influence on Thought and Action. 437 - -INDEX. 523 - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[vi:A] By mistake two chapters have been numbered XIV. - - - - -THE LIFE - -OF - -DAVID HUME. - - - - -CHAPTER X. - -1756-1759. AET. 45-48. - - The second volume of the History of the Stuarts--His Apologies - for his Treatment of Religion--The Four Dissertations--The Two - Suppressed Dissertations--Resigns his Office of Librarian-- - Home's Douglas--Commences the History of the Tudors--Wilkie's - Epigoniad--Hume's Nationalism--Warburton--Colonel Edmondstoune-- - Dr. Robertson--Negotiations as to Ferguson's Chair--Hume goes - to London--Writes letters of Fictitious and Extravagant News-- - Smith's Theory of Moral Sentiments--Publication of the History - of the House of Tudor--General View of the Constitutional - Principles of the History. - - -We have now followed the personal history of David Hume through nearly -twenty years of authorship. We have seen him approach the tribunal of -public opinion with the strongest internal assurance of success, and in -a form so different from that of his predecessors, as a high reliance on -his own powers could alone have prompted. Baffled in the first, and in -the second, and in the third attempt, he still persevered; and while the -coldness of each reception showed him that his last effort had proved a -failure, it never extinguished the fire of literary ardour which he felt -burning within him, or quenched the hope, that it would one day blaze -forth before the world. It is only towards the termination of this long -period of laborious authorship that we find the philosopher's early -visions of intellectual greatness beginning to be fulfilled. At the -period at which we have now arrived, his name was famous over Europe. It -was a fame that, once spread abroad, was not soon to die; for those to -whom his name was first made known in his new popular work, speedily -discovered that, in his earliest neglected effort, he had laid the -foundation of a still surer claim on their admiration, and justified the -sagacity with which, in the pride and strength of youthful genius, he -had thrown its first fruits before the world unaided and unadvised. - -The year 1756 seems to have been in a great measure devoted by Hume to -the printing of the second volume of his History, to which the following -letters to Millar refer. A great part of the correspondence with this -sagacious publisher relates to minute business arrangements. It is -presumed, that the reader may wish to see some specimens of the manner -in which Hume transacted such matters, but that he will not care to have -the whole of the arrangements between the author and publisher laid -before him. A few specimens of the business part of the letters are -accordingly selected, while those portions which have any general -interest, literary, philosophical, or political, are given in full. The -reader will see, perhaps, with some surprise, that he was very anxious -to subject his style to the critical eye of Mallet. We shall hereafter -have to disclose some curious features of his literary intercourse with -this extraordinary person. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 22d September, 1756._ - -"Mr. Strahan, in a few days, will have finished the printing this -volume; and I hope you will find leisure, before the hurry of winter, -to peruse it, and to write me your remarks on it. I fancy you will -publish about the middle of November. I must desire you to take the -trouble of distributing a few copies to my friends in London, and of -sending me a few copies here. The whole will be fifteen copies. - -"Notwithstanding Mr. Mallet's impertinence in not answering my letter, -(for it deserves no better a name,) if you can engage him from yourself -to mark on the perusal such slips of language as he thinks I have fallen -into in this volume, it will be a great obligation to me: I mean that I -shall lie under an obligation to you; for I would not willingly owe any -to him. I am, dear sir, your most humble servant."[3:1] - - -"_Edinburgh, 4th December, 1756._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I have two of yours before me, and should have answered them -sooner, had not Mr. Dalrymple told me that he would come to a -resolution, in a few days, about the method of printing his volume. As -soon as he does so, I shall write you. - -"I am certainly very well satisfied with your sale, which I hope -continues. Lord Lyttelton's objection is not well grounded; I have not -contradicted that story betwixt Shaftesbury and Clifford: I have only -omitted it. It stands only on Burnet's authority, who is very careless -and inaccurate. I believe I could convince both you and him that it was -without foundation. I am very glad that Mr. Mallet has marked those -expressions which appeared Scotticisms. You could not do me a greater -pleasure than to procure me a list of them. I beg of you to employ all -your interest with him to that purpose. I am very anxious to see them -soon, that I may examine them at leisure, and correct them in all my -writings. A very little time would suffice for him to take down the page -and the line and the expression. If counting the line were too -troublesome, he would oblige me by only marking the page and the -expression; I would easily find it. - -"I had a conversation, yesterday, with Messrs. Kincaid and Donaldson, -when I made them a proposal, which, I hope, will be for both your -advantage. They told me that you had only about four hundred complete -sets of my philosophical writings. I am extremely desirous to have these -four volumes, with that which you will publish this winter, brought into -a quarto volume. They said that the small size was rather more proper -for their sale; and, therefore, they would gladly take, at present, two -hundred sets of the four volumes, to be paid for by so many of their -shares in the quarto edition as would be an equivalent; that is, if the -quarto volume were sold at the same price with the four volumes, then -set for set: if at more, then such allowance to be made as, upon -calculation, would appear to be an equivalent. If the History meet with -success, it will certainly quicken the sale of the philosophical -writings; and the taking two hundred sets from you, leaves you so small -a number on hand, as gives you a certain prospect of coming soon to a -new edition. Though some odd copies of particular volumes remain on -hand, there is no great matter, as they may be disposed of with a small -discount. If you agree to this proposal, they empowered me to desire you -to put the two hundred copies on board a ship with the first occasion, -and to write them a letter, by which they may be sure that there is no -mistake in the conditions. The bringing these scattered pieces into one -volume will, of itself, quicken the sale; and every new edition has -naturally that effect. - -"I again recommend to you, very earnestly, the procuring me that favour -from Mr. Mallet. It is not possible that he can refuse you. I wish I had -desired you to ask the same favour of Mr. Reid, to whom please to make -my compliments. I am, dear sir, your most obedient servant."[5:1] - - -The second volume of the History, bringing down the narrative to the -Revolution, was published in 1756. "This performance," says Hume in his -"own life," alluding to the previous volume, "happened to give less -displeasure to the Whigs, and was better received. It not only rose -itself, but helped to buoy up its unfortunate brother." - -The manner in which he had characterized the different religious bodies, -whose conduct he had to describe, gave offence to many readers, and was -afterwards matter of regret to himself. The toleration which forbids us -to punish our neighbour on account of his creed, he had fully learned. -That still higher toleration, which forbids us to treat our neighbour's -religious creed with disrespect, he had not yet acquired. He always -speaks of the extreme Independents and Presbyterians as enthusiasts. -With this term, not in itself opprobrious, because, though it implies -excess, it does not imply the excess of a bad quality, he, on some -occasions, associates the word fanaticism, and other expressions having -a like sarcastic, or at least slighting tendency. To the Roman Catholic -religion he was still less respectful, generally speaking of it -as "the Catholic superstition."[5:2] In his "Natural History -of Religion," published in 1757, he used the same offensive -expressions, and spoke of the ceremonies and essential doctrines -of the church of Rome, in a tone which no sincere member of that -church can encounter without painful feelings. In this respect he -certainly did not act up to the character of a true philosopher, -though his expressions are no doubt in harmony with the general -tone of his mind. He certainly had no wish to insult any man's -creed, but he never dreamed that, among his readers, there might -be some who sympathized deeply with the catholic spirit of the -gothic ages, or with the independent temper of the covenanters. -One whose mind revolted so nervously against whatever was not -stamped with the character of profound philosophy, or of brilliant -intellect, could see nothing to admire in the adaptation of the -catholic system to the dark ages in which it flourished; and would -have little respect for such achievements as it gained in the war -with barbarous minds and brutal passions.[6:1] - -In Scotland, the Episcopal Church was at that time barely tolerated; and -many an outcry against this toleration, as one of the sins of the time, -made its adherents daily fear that their freedom of conscience might be -made still more narrow. For the Roman Catholics there was no toleration -in the proper acceptation of the term. Had their priesthood mingled in -the ordinary society of Edinburgh, and had Hume become acquainted with -them as he afterwards was with the clergy of France, he would perhaps -have blushed to write as he did, of the creed of learned and -accomplished men. In his subsequent editions, he carefully cleansed his -History of these offensive expressions, substituting in general the word -"creed" or "religion," instead of superstition. - -The coincidence of his metaphysical opinions, with those of a -considerable portion of the Presbyterians, has already been noticed; and -his desire to strip religion of all forms and symbols, would seem to -point out the Presbyterian system as that with which he should naturally -have had the greatest sympathy. But he disliked enthusiasm or zeal, -whatever were the opinions of the zealots; and therefore he invariably -marks with censure the extreme views of that religious party. In the -English church, on the other hand, he met with a larger proportion of -learned, accomplished, and gentlemanlike men. Among persons, too, many -of whom were tempted to assume the sacerdotal character by its -emoluments, not by its duties, he found a tolerable portion of that -philosophical indifference, which it is to be feared he looked upon as -no blemish in a clergyman's character. In the Church of England, his -sympathies were thus with the insincere.[9:1] Where there was sincere -belief, but not to the extent of enthusiasm, the clergy of the Church of -Scotland would have the largest share of his confidence. Accordingly, we -find that he had formed a warm intimacy with many of the members of the -"moderate" party in that church. His own good taste and sense of -colloquial politeness, would suggest to him the propriety of avoiding, -whether in correspondence or conversation, all forms of expression or -enunciations of opinion, such as it would be unbecoming in a clergyman -to hear without reproving. On the other hand, his correspondence with -the clergy bears traces of his having made it part of the understanding -on which their intercourse was to be based, that they were not to make -him a subject for the exercise of their calling; and that they were to -abstain from all efforts of conversion, and all discussion of religious -subjects. Hence, although there are many observations on church politics -in his correspondence with his reverend friends, religion is a matter -never mentioned. - -Before he published his second volume, Hume felt conscious of the -impropriety of the tone he had adopted in the first, towards religious -creeds. In a letter to Dr. Clephane, he says,--"I am convinced that -whatever I have said of religion should have received some more -softenings. There is no passage in the History which strikes in the -least at revelation. But as I run over all the sects successively, and -speak of each of them with some mark of disregard, the reader, putting -the whole together, concludes that I am of no sect; which to him will -appear the same thing as the being of no religion. With regard to -politics and the character of princes and great men, I think I am very -moderate. My views of _things_ are more conformable to Whig principles; -my representations of _persons_ to Tory prejudices. Nothing can so much -prove that men commonly regard more persons than things, as to find that -I am commonly numbered among the Tories."[11:1] - -The following paper is evidently a draft of a preface, which, in the -consciousness that some apology was called for in connexion with this -subject, he intended to prefix to the second volume. He afterwards -published a great part of the substance of it in a note towards the end -of the volume: but there is sufficient difference in the contents of the -two papers to make the following a distinct object of interest. - - -PREFACE. - - It ought to be no matter of offence, that in this volume, as - well as in the foregoing, the mischiefs which arise from the - abuses of religion are so often mentioned, while so little in - comparison is said of the salutary consequences which result - from true and genuine piety. The proper office of religion is - to reform men's lives, to purify their hearts, to enforce all - moral duties, and to secure obedience to the laws and civil - magistrate. While it pursues these useful purposes, its - operations, though infinitely valuable, are secret and silent, - and seldom come under the cognisance of history. That - adulterate species of it alone, which inflames faction, - animates sedition, and prompts rebellion, distinguishes itself - in the open theatre of the world. Those, therefore, who - attempt to draw inferences disadvantageous to religion from - the abuses of it mentioned by historians, proceed upon a very - gross, and a very obvious fallacy; for, besides that every - thing is liable to abuse, and the best things the most so, the - beneficent influence of religion is not to be sought for in - history. That principle is always the more pure and genuine, - the less figure it makes in the annals of war, politics, - intrigues, and revolutions, quarrels, and convulsions; which - it is the business of an historian to record and transmit to - posterity. - - It ought as little to be matter of offence, that no religious - sect is mentioned in this work without being exposed sometimes - to some note of blame and disapprobation. The frailties of - our nature mingle themselves with every thing in which we - are employed, and no human institutions will ever reach - perfection, the idea of an infinite mind. The author of the - universe seems at first sight to require a worship absolutely - pure, simple, unadorned, without rites, institutions, - ceremonies; even without temples, priests, or verbal prayer - and supplication. Yet has this species of devotion been often - found to degenerate into the most dangerous fanaticism. When - we have recourse to the aid of the senses and imagination, in - order to adapt our religion in some degree to human infirmity, - it is very difficult, and almost impossible, to prevent - altogether the intrusion of superstition, or keep men from - laying too great stress on the ceremonial and ornamental parts - of their worship. Of all the sects into which Christians have - been divided, the Church of England seems to have chosen the - most happy medium; yet it will undoubtedly be allowed, that - during the age of which these volumes treat, there was a - tincture of superstition in the partisans of the hierarchy, as - well as a strong mixture of enthusiasm in their antagonists. - But it is the nature of the latter principle soon to evaporate - and decay. A spirit of moderation usually succeeds in a little - to the fervours of zeal; and it must be acknowledged, to the - honour of the present Presbyterians, Independents, and other - sectaries of this island, that they resemble in little more - than in name their predecessors, who flourished during the - civil wars, and who were the authors of such disorders. It - would appear ridiculous in the eyes of the judicious part of - mankind, to pretend that even the first reformers, in most - countries of Europe, did not carry matters to a most violent - extreme, and were not on many occasions liable to the - imputation of fanaticism. Not to mention that uncharitable - spirit which accompanies zealots of all kinds, and which led - the early reformers, almost universally, to inflict upon the - Catholics, and on all who differed from them, the same rigours - of which they themselves so loudly complained. - - These hints, however obvious, the author thought proper to - suggest, with regard to the free and impartial manner in which - he has treated religious controversy. As to the civil and - political part of his performance, he scorns to suggest any - apology, where he thinks himself entitled to approbation. To - be above the temptation of interest is a species of virtue, - which we do not find by experience to be very common; but to - neglect at the same time all popular and vulgar applause, is - an enterprise much more rare and arduous. Whoever, in a - factious nation, pays court to neither party, must expect that - justice will be done him by time only, perhaps only by a - distant posterity.[13:1] - -The "Natural History of Religion" above referred to, remarkable even -among its author's other works, for the breadth of its research, and its -apt union of philosophy with historical detail, was published in 1757, -along with three other essays;[13:2] and a curious incident connected -with this publication has now to be revealed. In 1783, a work was -published in London, called "Essays on Suicide and the Immortality of -the Soul, ascribed to the late David Hume, Esq., never before published; -with remarks, intended as an antidote to the poison contained in these -performances, by the Editor." The editor and his antidote are now both -forgotten: but the style of Hume and his method of thinking were at once -recognised in these essays, and they have been incorporated with the -general edition of his works. If any doubt attached to the authorship, -it would be cleared up by some allusions in his subsequent -correspondence, where we shall find him naturally expressing alarm at -the circumstance of Wilkes having, through the negligence of Millar, had -possession of a copy containing the two suppressed essays. Many copies, -indeed, of the first edition of the dissertations bear marks of having -been mutilated.[14:1] That Hume wrote these essays, and intended to -publish them, is thus an incident in his life which ought not to be -passed over; but it is also part of his history, that he repented of the -act at the last available moment, and suppressed the publication. - -That after the ghastly scene which he witnessed twenty years -earlier,[14:2] he should have written on suicide with his usual -philosophical indifference, and contempt for the prevalent sentiments -and feelings of mankind, is a remarkable proof how little he was liable -to ordinary imaginative impressions; how completely he was free of -subjection to those - - "lords of the visionary eye, whose lid - Once raised remains aghast, and will not fall." - -It may safely be pronounced, that had he widened the circle of his -utilitarian theory, and embraced within it, as he might have done, -Hutcheson's theory of universal benevolence, he never would have -palliated self-slaughter. He looked at it only in relation to the person -who perpetrates the act. The utilitarian principle, however, should have -suggested to him the misery caused to surviving relatives by one such -deed, the horrible uncertainty that must pervade any society where it is -common; and he would have felt that no single life can be so dreadful a -burden to the owner as to justify him in causing such an amount of evil -to the rest of the world, as he would produce by casting it away. The -result of modern reading and inquiry into vital statistics, is to show -that the desire of longevity, which the author of our being has -implanted in all bosoms, is an adaptation to universal utility; because -it is from premature deaths, produced by violence or disease, that -communities are burdened with those unproductive members of society, -which in a healthy and long-lived community, receive domestic support -from the productive members.[15:1] - -The reasonings of an enthusiast have generally more plausibility than -those of a philosopher who has gone astray from his own theory; for the -straying philosopher speaks like one who has misgivings; while the -enthusiast never doubts that he is in the right, and urges his opinions -with a corresponding confidence and sincerity. Thus the justification of -suicide which Rousseau puts into a letter from St. Preux to Lord Edward -Bomston, is a far more attractive vindication than that which Hume had -intended to publish. - -This was not the only suppression connected with the publication of the -Dissertations. As at first printed, they were preceded by an -affectionate and laudatory dedication to John Home. Before the edition -was published, this dedication was suppressed; because Hume thought it -might injure his friend, in the estimation of his brethren of the -church. Before the edition was sold, however, Hume desired the -dedication to be restored. This step was probably owing to Home having -intimated to him his design of resigning his charge as minister of -Athelstaneford, which he did in June, 1757. This not only removed the -objection to the dedication, but as it severed the dramatic martyr from -his professional brethren, it made him more dependant on the sympathy -and suffrages of other friends, and rendered Hume's testimony to his -merits more valuable. - -He thus writes on this subject to Smith. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -[16:1]"DEAR SMITH,--The dedication to John Home, you have probably seen; -for I find it has been inserted in some of the weekly papers, both here -and in London. Some of my friends thought it was indiscreet in me to -make myself responsible to the public, for the productions of another. -But the author had lain under such singular and unaccountable -obstructions in his road to fame, that I thought it incumbent on his -wellwishers to go as much out of the common road to assist him. I -believe the composition of the dedication will be esteemed very prudent, -and not inelegant. - -"I can now give you the satisfaction of hearing that the play, though -not near so well acted in Covent Garden as in this place, is likely to -be very successful. Its great intrinsic merit breaks through all -obstacles. When it shall be printed, (which will be soon,) I am -persuaded it will be esteemed the best, and by French critics the only -tragedy of our language! This encouragement will no doubt engage the -author to go on in the same career. He meets with great countenance in -London, and, I hope, will soon be rendered independent in his fortune. - -"Did you ever hear of such madness and folly as our clergy have lately -fallen into? For my part, I expect that the next Assembly will very -solemnly pronounce the sentence of excommunication against me; but I do -not apprehend it to be a matter of any consequence; what do you think? - -"I am somewhat idle at present, and somewhat undetermined as to my next -undertaking. Shall I go backwards or forwards in my History? I think you -used to tell me, that you approved more of my going backwards. The other -would be the more popular subject; but I am afraid that I shall not find -materials sufficient to ascertain the truth--at least, without settling -in London, which, I own, I have some reluctance to. I am settled here -very much to my mind; and would not wish, at my years, to change the -place of my abode. - -"I have just now received a copy of 'Douglas' from London; it will -instantly be put in the press. I hope to be able to send you a copy in -the same parcel with the dedication."[18:1] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 20th January, 1757._ - -"DEAR SIR,--The dedication of my Dissertations to Mr. Hume[18:2] was -shown to some of his friends here, men of very good sense, who were -seized with an apprehension that it would hurt that party in the church, -with which he had always been connected, and would involve him, and them -of consequence, in the suspicion of infidelity. Neither he nor I were in -the least affected with their panic; but to satisfy them, we agreed to -stand by the arbitration of one person, of great rank and of known -prudence; and I promised them to write to you to suspend the publication -for one post, in case you should have resolved to publish it presently. -Next post you shall be sure to hear from me; and if we be obliged to -suppress it, you'll be pleased to place the charges of print and paper -to my account. I indorse this day your two bills to Mr. Alexander -Cunningham. I am," &c. - - -Early in 1757, Hume resigned his office of librarian of the Advocates' -Library. As a verbal intimation of his wishing to leave this situation -was not considered satisfactory, he favoured his learned employers with -the following laconic letter:-- - - -"_Edinburgh, January 8, 1757._ - -"SIR,--A few days ago, I sent the Faculty a verbal resignation; but as I -am told that it is expected I should give a resignation under my hand, -and as I am very desirous to deliver over the charge of the library as -soon as possible, I have been induced to write you at present, and beg -of you to inform the Faculty, that they may choose me a successor -whenever they think proper. I am, sir, your most humble servant.[19:1] - -"_To Mr. Charles Binning, -Vice-Dean of the Faculty of Advocates._" - - -HUME _to_ WILLIAM MURE _of Caldwell_. - -"DEAR MURE,--I hope you do not think yourself obliged, by saying civil -things, to make atonement for the too homely truths, which you told me -formerly. I will not believe so. I take for granted, that you are -equally sincere in both: though I must own that I think my first volume -a great deal better than the second. The subject admitted of more -eloquence, and of greater nicety of reasoning, and more acute -distinctions. The opposition, I may say the rage, with which it was -received by the public, I must confess, did not a little surprise me. -Whatever knowledge I pretend to in history, and human affairs, I had not -so bad an opinion of men as to expect that candour, disinterestedness, -and humanity, could entitle me to that treatment. Yet such was my fate. -After a long interval, I at last collected so much courage, as to renew -my application to the second volume, though with infinite disgust and -reluctance; and I am sensible that, in many passages of it, there are -great signs of that disposition, and that my usual fire does not every -where appear. At other times, I excited myself, and perhaps succeeded -better. - - Exul eram; requiesque mihi, non fama, petita est; - Mens intenta suis, ne foret usque malis. - Nam simul ac mea caluerant pectora musae, - Altior humano spiritus ille malo est.[20:1] - -"I leave you to judge whether your letter came in a very seasonable -time. I own that I had the weakness to be affected by it, when I found -that a person, whose judgment I very much valued, could tell me, though -I was not asking his opinion----But I will not proceed any farther. The -matter gave me uneasiness at the time, though without the least -resentment. At present the uneasiness is gone; and all my usual -friendship, confirmed by years and long acquaintance, still remains. - -"Pray, whether do you pity or blame me most, with regard to this -dedication of my Dissertations to my friend, the poet? I am sure I never -executed any thing which was either more elegant in the composition, or -more generous in the intention; yet such an alarm seized some fools -here, (men of very good sense, but fools in that particular,) that they -assailed both him and me with the utmost violence; and engaged us to -change our intention. I wrote to Millar to suppress that dedication; two -posts after, I retracted that order. Can any thing be more unlucky than -that, in the interval of these four days, he should have opened his -sale, and disposed of eight hundred copies, without that dedication, -whence, I imagined, my friend would reap some advantage, and myself so -much honour? I have not been so heartily vexed at any accident of a long -time. However, I have insisted that the dedication shall still be -published. - -"I am a little uncertain what work I shall next undertake; for I do not -care to be long idle. I think you seem to approve of my going forward: -and I am sensible that the subject is much more interesting to us, and -even will be so to posterity, than any other I could choose: but can I -hope that there are materials for composing a just and sure history of -it? I am afraid not. However, I shall examine the matter. I fancy it -will be requisite for me to take a journey to London, and settle there -for some time, in order to gather such materials as are not to be found -in print. But, if I should go backwards, and write the History of -England from the accession of Henry the Seventh, I might remain where I -am; and I own to you, at my time of life, these changes of habitation -are not agreeable, even though the place be better to which one removes. - -"I am sorry my fair cousin does not find London so agreeable as, -perhaps, she expected. She must not judge by one winter. It will improve -against next winter, and appear still better the winter after that. -Please make my compliments to her, and tell her that she must not be -discouraged. By the by, Mrs. Binnie tells me that she writes her a very -different account of matters, so that I find my cousin is a hypocrite. - -"I shall make use of your criticisms, and wish there had been more of -them. That practice of doubling the genitive is certainly very -barbarous, and I carefully avoided it in the first volume; but I find it -so universal a practice, both in writing and speaking, that I thought it -better to comply with it, and have even changed all the passages in the -first volume, in conformity to use. All languages contain solecisms of -that kind. - -"Please make my compliments to Sir Harry Erskine, and tell him that I -have executed what I proposed. I am," &c.[22:1] - - -The following letter shows that he did not long remain idle, or -undecided in his historical projects:-- - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 20th May, 1757._ - -"I have already begun, and am a little advanced in a third volume of -History. I do not preclude myself from the view of going forward to the -period after the Revolution; but, at present, I begin with the reign of -Henry the Seventh. It is properly at that period modern history -commences. America was discovered; commerce extended; the arts -cultivated; printing invented; religion reformed, and all the -governments of Europe almost changed. I wish, therefore, I had begun -here at first. I should have obviated many objections that were made to -the other volumes. I shall be considerably advanced in this volume -before I be in London. - -"I come now to speak to you of an affair which gives me uneasiness, and -which I mention with reluctance. I am told that one Dr. Brown has -published a book in London, where there is a note containing personal -reflections on me, for which he quotes a letter I wrote to you.[23:1] -What sort of behaviour this is, to make use of a private letter, without -the permission of the person to whom it was addressed, is easily -conceived; but how he came to see any of my letters, I cannot imagine; -nor what I wrote, that could give him any handle for his calumny. All I -can recollect of the matter is this, that above two years ago, when -Bailie Hamilton was in London, he wrote me, that the stop in the sale of -my History proceeded from some strokes of irreligion, which had raised -the cry of the clergy against me. This gave me occasion to remark to -you, that the Bailie's complaint must have proceeded from his own -misconduct; that the cause he assigned could never have produced that -effect; that it was rather likely to increase the sale, according to all -past experience; that you had offered (as I heard) a large sum for -Bolingbroke's Works, trusting to this consequence; and that the strokes -complained of were so few, and of such small importance, that, if any -ill effects could have been apprehended from them, they might easily -have been retrenched. As far as I can recollect, this was the purport of -my letter;[24:1] but I must beg you, that you would cause it to be -transcribed, and send me a copy of it, for I find by John Hume that you -have it still by you. I doubt not but I could easily refute Dr. Brown; -but as I had taken a resolution never to have the least altercation with -these fellows, I shall not readily be brought to pay any attention to -him; and I cannot but be displeased that your inadvertence or -indiscretion (for I cannot give it a better name) should have brought me -to this dilemma. I fancy Brown will find it a difficult matter to -persuade the public that I do not speak my sentiments in every subject I -handle, and that I have any view to any interest whatsoever. I leave -that to him and his gang: for he is a flatterer, as I am told, of that -low fellow, Warburton; and any thing so low as Warburton, or his -flatterers, I should certainly be ashamed to engage with. I am, &c. - -"P.S. Since you are acquainted with Dr. Brown, I must beg of you to read -this letter to him; for it is probably, or indeed certainly, all the -answer I shall ever deign to give him."[25:1] - - -The reader will feel interested in the sketch, by the pen of Hume, of an -eminent contemporary--his friend Wilkie--in the following letter. - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Edinburgh, 3d July, 1757._ - -"DEAR SIR,--To show you that I am not such an affecter of singularity as -to entertain prejudices against ministers of state,[25:2] I am resolved -to congratulate you on your return to power, and to express my wishes, -that, both for your sake and the public's, your ministry, and that of -your friends, may be more durable than it was before. We even hope it -will, though the strange motley composition which it consists of, gives -us some apprehensions. However, we are glad to find, from past -experience, that you can neither rise nor fall, without credit and -reputation. You know that, according to the whimsical way in this -country, it is more difficult to rise than fall with reputation. - -"I suppose that, by this time, you have undoubtedly read and admired the -wonderful production of the Epigoniad, and that you have so much love -for arts, and for your native country, as to be very industrious in -propagating the fame of it. It is certainly a most singular production, -full of sublimity and genius, adorned by a noble, harmonious, forcible, -and even correct versification. We generally think the story deficient -and uninteresting; but perhaps the new fancy of crossing the invention -of all modern romance-writers may make some atonement, and even bestow -an air of novelty on the imitation of Homer. As I cannot but hope that -this work will soon become the subject of conversation in London, I -shall take this opportunity of supplying you with some anecdotes with -regard to the author, besides such as you already know,--of his being a -very worthy and a very entertaining man, adorned with all that -simplicity of manners, so common to great men, and even with some of -that rusticity and negligence which serve to abate that envy to which -they are so much exposed. - -"You know he is a farmer's son, in the neighbourhood of this town, where -there are a great number of pigeon-houses. The farmers are very much -infested with the pigeons, and Wilkie's father planted him often as a -scarecrow (an office for which he is well qualified) in the midst of his -fields of wheat. It was in this situation that he confessed he first -conceived the design of his epic poem, and even executed part of it. He -carried out his Homer with him, together with a table, and pen and ink, -and a great rusty gun. He composed and wrote two or three lines, till a -flock of pigeons settled in the field, then rose up, ran towards them, -and fired at them; returned again to his former station, and added a -rhyme or two more, till he met with a fresh interruption. - -"Two or three years ago, Jemmy Russel put a very pleasant trick on an -English physician, one Dr. Roebuck, who was travelling in this country. -Russel carried him out one day on horseback to see the outlets of the -town, and purposely led him by Wilkie's farm. He saw the bard at a -small distance, sowing his corn, with a sheet about him, all besmeared -with dirt and sweat, with a coat and visage entirely proportioned to his -occupation. Russel says to his companion, 'Here is a fellow, a peasant, -with whom I have some business: let us call him.' He made a sign, and -Wilkie came to them: some questions were asked him with regard to the -season, to his farm and husbandry, which he readily answered; but soon -took an opportunity of digressing to the Greek poets, and enlarging on -that branch of literature. Dr. Roebuck, who had scarce understood his -rustic English, or rather his broad Scotch, immediately comprehended -him, for his Greek was admirable; and on leaving him, he could not -forbear expressing the highest admiration to Russel, that a clown, a -rustic, a mere hind, such as he saw this fellow was, should be possessed -of so much erudition. 'Is it usual,' says he, 'for your peasants in -Scotland to read the Greek poets?'--'O Yes,' replies Russel, very -coolly, 'we have long winter evenings; and in what can they employ -themselves better, than in reading the Greek poets?' Roebuck left the -country in a full persuasion that there are at least a dozen farmers in -every parish who read Homer, Hesiod, and Sophocles, every -winter-evening, to their families; and, if ever he writes an account of -his travels, it is likely he will not omit so curious a circumstance. - -"Wilkie is now a settled minister at Ratho, within four miles of the -town.[27:1] He possesses about L80 or L90 a-year, which he esteems -exorbitant riches. Formerly, when he had only L20, as helper, he said -that he could not conceive what article, either of human convenience or -pleasure he was deficient in, nor what any man could mean by desiring -more money. He possesses several branches of erudition, besides the -Greek poetry; and, particularly, is a very profound geometrician, a -science commonly very incompatible with the lively imagination of a -poet. He has even made some new discoveries in that science; and he told -me, that, when a young man, he threw cross and pile, whether he should -devote himself chiefly to mathematics or to poetry, and fears that -rather he crossed the bent of his genius in taking to the latter. Yet -this man, who has composed the second epic poem in our language! -understands so little of orthography, that, regularly through the whole -poem, he spelled the word yield in this manner, 'ealde;' and I had great -difficulty to convince him of his mistake. - -"I fancy our friend, Robertson, will be able to publish his History next -winter. You are sufficiently acquainted with the merit of this work; and -really it is admirable how many men of genius this country produces at -present. Is it not strange that, at a time when we have lost our -princes, our parliaments, our independent government,--even the presence -of our chief nobility; are unhappy, in our accent and pronunciation; -speak a very corrupt dialect of the tongue we make use of,--is it not -strange, I say, that, in these circumstances, we should really be the -people most distinguished for literature in Europe? - -"Having spoke so much to Mr. Elliot, the man of letters, you must now -allow me to say a few words to Mr. Elliot, the lord of the admiralty. -There is a cousin-german of mine, Alexander Edgar, who is midshipman in -the Vestal, off Harwich, and has passed his trials, above four months -ago, for a lieutenantcy. He always behaved well in all his service, -which has been very long; and, almost from his infancy, he has had the -good-will, and even friendship, of all his captains; is modest, sober, -frugal, and attentive, and very deserving of promotion. I recommended -him to Mr. Oswald, who always protected him, but can no longer be of -service to him. He is of a very good family, though his father spent his -estate and died a bankrupt; and the poor lad has now scarce any other -friends than what I can procure him: permit me the freedom of -recommending him to your protection. If I did not think him worthy of -it, I should not venture to do so, notwithstanding his near relationship -to me. I think I ought to make some apologies for this liberty I use -with you; but I think it would be wronging our friendship to make too -many. I am, dear sir, your most obedient humble servant."[29:1] - - -Wilkie's Epigoniad, of which few ordinary readers now know more than the -name, if even that be very generally remembered south of the Tweed, -inspired many zealous Scotsmen of the day, with the belief that their -country had, at last, produced a great epic poet: but the national -feeling was not responded to in England.[29:2] - -Finding that the Epigoniad was attacked by the English critics, Hume -was determined to be the champion of his countryman's fame against all -comers; and accordingly addressed a letter to the editor of _The -Critical Review_, containing a long complimentary criticism, in which he -says,-- - - There remained a tradition among the Greeks, that Homer had - taken this second siege of Thebes for the subject of a poem, - which is lost; and our author seems to have pleased himself - with the thoughts of reviving the work, as well as of treading - in the footsteps of his favourite author. The actors are - mostly the same with those of the Iliad; Diomede is the hero; - Ulysses, Agamemnon, Menelaus, Nestor, Idomeneus, Merion, even - Thersites, all appear in different passages of the poem; and - act parts suitable to the lively characters drawn of them by - that great master. The whole turn of this new poem would - almost lead us to imagine, that the Scottish bard had found - the lost manuscript of that father of poetry, and had made a - faithful translation of it into English. Longinus imagines, - that the Odyssey was executed by Homer in his old age; we - shall allow the Iliad to be the work of his middle age; and we - shall suppose that the Epigoniad was the essay of his youth, - where his noble and sublime genius breaks forth by frequent - intervals, and gives strong symptoms of that constant flame - which distinguished its meridian. . . . - - The story of a poem, whatever may be imagined, is the least - essential part of it; the force of the versification, the - vivacity of the images, the justness of the descriptions, the - natural play of the passions, are the chief circumstances - which distinguish the great poet from the prosaic novelist, - and give him so high a rank among the heroes in literature; - and I will venture to affirm, that all these advantages, - especially the three former, are to be found, in an eminent - degree, in the Epigoniad. The author, inspired with the true - genius of Greece, and smit with the most profound veneration - for Homer, disdains all frivolous ornaments; and relying - entirely on his sublime imagination, and his nervous and - harmonious expression, has ventured to present to his reader - the naked beauties of nature, and challenges for his partisans - all the admirers of genuine antiquity.[31:1] - -In his conduct on this occasion, Hume exhibited strong national -partiality. It may seem at first sight at variance with some of his -other characteristics; but it is undoubtedly true, that Hume was imbued -with an intense spirit of nationality. It was a nationality, however, of -a peculiar and restricted character. He cared little about the heroism -of his country, or even its struggles for independence: Wallace, Bruce, -and the Black Douglas, were, in his eyes, less interesting than Ulysses -or AEneas, - - ----carent quia vate sacro. - -But in that arena which he thought the greatest, in the theatre where -intellect exhibits her might, he panted to see his country first and -greatest. No Scotsman could write a book of respectable talent without -calling forth his loud and warm eulogiums. Wilkie was to be the Homer, -Blacklock the Pindar, and Home the Shakspere, or something still -greater, of his country. On those who were even his rivals in his own -peculiar walks--Adam Smith, Robertson, Ferguson, and Henry, he heaped -the same honest, hearty commendation. He urged them to write; he raised -the spirit of literary ambition in their breasts; he found publishers -for their works; and, when these were completed, he trumpeted the -praises of the authors through society. - -The following letter shows how accidentally Hume became acquainted with -a matter, which, according to modern notions, should have formed part of -his systematic studies, before he began to write a history of England. - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Edinburgh, 9th Aug. 1757._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I can easily perceive that your friends were no lawyers, who -said that there was no statute in Henry the Seventh's reign, which -facilitated the alienation of lands, and broke the ancient entails: it -is 4 Hen. VII. cap. 24; but a man may read that passage fifty times, and -not find any thing that seems, in the least, to point that way. I should -certainly have overlooked the meaning of it, had I not been guided by -Lord Kames. You must know that it was a practice in the courts of -justice, before Henry the Seventh's time, to break entails by a device -which seems very ridiculous, but which is continued to this day, and -first received the sanction of law during the reign of that prince. You -have an entailed estate, I suppose, and want to break the entail. You -agree with me that I am to claim the estate by a sham title, prior to -the first entailer; you confess in court that my title is good and -valid; the judges, upon this confession of the party, adjudge the estate -to me; upon which I immediately restore the estate to you, free and -unencumbered; and by this hocus-pocus the entail is broke.--Such was the -practice, pretty common before Henry the Seventh. All that the -parliament then did, was to regulate the method of proceeding in this -fine device, and to determine that the titles of minors, and femmes -couvert, were not to be injured by it. As to other people, who had an -interest to preserve an entail, and who had any good reason to plead in -their own favour, they would naturally appear for themselves. This -practice is called a fine, and a recovery: fine, from the Latin word -finis; because it forecloses all parties, and puts a final issue to -their claims and pretensions: a recovery, because a man thereby recovers -his estate, without the encumbrance of an entail. - -"By the bye, I am told, that there are many of these practices still -continued in the law of England; which are as foolish, juvenile, and -ridiculous, as are to be met with in ---- I mean in ---- I would be -understood to mean in ---- any craft or profession of the world.[33:1] - -"I am writing the History of England, from the accession of Henry the -Seventh, and am some years advanced in Henry the Eighth. I undertook -this work because I was tired of idleness, and found reading alone, -after I had often perused all good books, (which I think is soon done,) -somewhat a languid occupation. As to the approbation or esteem of those -blockheads who call themselves the public, and whom a bookseller, a -lord, a priest, or a party can guide, I do most heartily despise it. I -shall be able, I think, to make a tolerable smooth, well-told tale of -the history of England during that period; but I own I have not yet been -able to throw much new light into it. I begin the Reformation to-morrow. - -"I find the public, with you, have rejected the Epigoniad, for the -present. They may do so if they please; but it has a great deal of -merit, much more than any one of them is capable of throwing into a -work. - -"I disapprove very much of Ferguson's scruples, with regard to entering -into Lord Bute's family, with the inspection of more than one boy; but I -hope Lord Bute will conform himself to his delicacy, at least if he -wants to have a man of sense, knowledge, taste, elegance, and morals, -for a tutor to his son.[34:1] - -"I am obliged to you for your good intentions, with regard to my cousin; -but you must express yourself otherwise, than by saying that you will -concur with the rest of my friends in endeavouring to promote him; for -now that Oswald is out of court, whom have I besides to apply to? Dear -Sir, your most obedient humble servant."[34:2] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 3d September, 1757._ - -"As to my opinions, you know I defend none of them positively; I only -propose my doubts where I am so unhappy as not to receive the same -conviction with the rest of mankind. It surprises me much to see any -body who pretends to be a man of letters, discover anger on that -account; since it is certain, by the experience of all ages, that -nothing contributes more to the progress of learning than such disputes -and novelties. - -"Apropos to anger; I am positively assured, that Dr. Warburton wrote -that letter to himself, which you sent me; and indeed the style -discovers him sufficiently.[35:1] I should answer him; but he attacks so -small a corner of my building, that I can abandon it without drawing -great consequences after it. If he would come into the field and dispute -concerning the principal topics of my philosophy, I should probably -accept the challenge: at present nothing could tempt me to take the pen -in hand but anger, of which I feel myself incapable, even upon this -provocation. - -"I have finished the Index to the new collection of my pieces; this -Index cost me more trouble than I was aware of when I began it. I am -obliged to Mr. Strahan, for the uncommon pains he has taken in making it -correct. The Errata which I have given, consist mostly of small -alterations in the style, which I made myself. You know I always expect -half-a-dozen of copies on each new edition. I would wish that Mr. -Strahan would accept of one, as a proof of the sense which I have of his -care on this occasion. Please keep one by you, which I fancy I shall -have occasion to send abroad; and be so good as to send the other four, -with any other parcel you are sending hither. I am very assiduous in -writing a new volume of History, and am now pretty well advanced. I find -the whole will be comprised in one volume, though somewhat more bulky -than any of the former. The period of time is a great deal longer than -that of either of the former, but is not near so full of interesting -matter; and as the original historians are much fewer, there are not so -many circumstances transmitted to us. I am pretty certain, that I shall -be able to deliver to you the manuscript about a twelvemonth hence, and -shall certainly be in London myself for that purpose. You seemed -desirous that we should mutually enter into articles about this volume; -which I declined, till I should be so much advanced as to be sure of my -resolution of executing it, and could judge with some certainty of the -bulk. Now that I am satisfied in both these particulars, I am willing to -engage with you for the same price, viz. seven hundred pounds, payable -three months after the publication. If you approve of this proposal, -please write me a letter for that purpose; and I shall also, in return, -send you an obligatory letter. I think this justice is due to you, that -you may see I do not intend, on account of any success, to screw up the -price, or ask beyond what you have already allowed me, which, I own, was -very reasonable. - -"Mr. Dalrymple has paid me twenty pounds and a crown. I can never meet -with Mr. Wright, though I call often at his shop. Mr. Balfour does not -name any day. - -"I am glad of the approbation which Mr. Dalrymple's book meets with; I -think it really deserves it.[37:1] - -"Nothing surprises me more than the ill usage which the Epigoniad has -received. Every body here likes it extremely. The plan and story is not -so much admired, as the poetry and versification; but your critics seem -willing to allow it no merit at all. I fancy it has not been enough -dispersed; and that your engaging on it, would extremely forward its -success. The whole edition is out. There were five hundred and fifty -disposed of here; two hundred sent to London. As the author is my very -good friend and acquaintance, I should be much pleased to bring you to -an understanding together. If the bad success on the first edition has -not discouraged you, I would engage him to make you proposals for that -purpose. He will correct all the blemishes remarked. I should not be -displeased that you read to Dr. Warburton, the paragraph in the first -page of my letter, with regard to himself. The hopes of getting an -answer, might probably engage him to give us something farther of the -same kind; which, at least, saves you the expense of advertising. I see -the doctor likes a literary squabble. - -"I would be glad to know, how near you think you are to a new edition of -my History, and whether you intend a duodecimo edition of these -philosophical pieces. I am," &c.[38:1] - - -DAVID HUME _to_ DR. CLEPHANE. - -"_Edinburgh, 3d Sept. 1757._ - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--I am charmed to find you so punctual a correspondent. I -always knew you to be a good friend, though I was afraid that I had lost -you, and that you had joined that great multitude who abused me, and -reproached me with Paganism, and Jacobitism, and many other wretched -isms, of which I am only guilty of a part. - -"I believe a man, when he is once an author, is an author for life; for -I am now very busily engaged in writing another volume of history, and -have crept backwards to the reign of Henry the Seventh. I wish indeed -that I had begun there; for, by that means, I should have been able, -without making any digression, by the plain course of the narration, to -have shown how absolute the authority was which the English kings then -possessed, and that the Stuarts did little or nothing more than continue -matters in the former track, which the people were determined no longer -to admit. By this means I should have escaped the reproach of the most -terrible ism of them all, that of Jacobitism. I shall certainly be in -London next summer; and probably to remain there during life; at least, -if I can settle myself to my mind, which I beg you to have an eye to. A -room in a sober, discreet family, who would not be averse to admit a -sober, discreet, virtuous, frugal, regular, quiet, good-natured man of a -bad character,--such a room, I say, would suit me extremely, especially -if I could take most of my meals in the family; and more especially -still, if it was not far distant from Dr. Clephane's. I shall then be -able, dear doctor, to spend L150 a-year, which is the sum upon which, I -remember, you formerly undertook me. But I would not have you reckon -upon _probabilities_, as you then called them, for I am resolved to -write no more. I shall read and correct, and chat and be idle, the rest -of my life. - -"I must now make room for Sir Harry, who smiles at the sum at which I -have set up my rest. I am," &c.[39:1] - - -Among the officers of the Scottish Royal Regiment who served in the -expedition to Port L'Orient, and afterwards continued in terms of -familiar acquaintance with Hume, was captain, afterwards Colonel -Edmondstoune, of Newton in Perthshire. His letters, which were preserved -by Hume, and will occasionally be cited in these pages, show that he -was a man of wit and learning. Frequent allusions to him, under the name -of Guidelianus, have already occurred in Hume's letters to mutual -friends. The following, graceful and thoroughly amiable as it is, is -apparently the earliest of Hume's letters to him which has been -preserved. - - -HUME _to_ CAPTAIN EDMONDSTOUNE. - -"_Edinburgh, 29th Sept. 1757._ - -"DEAR EDMONDSTOUNE,--I believe it is a rule in law, that any summons -prevents prescription; and in like manner, that the wakening a process -keeps one's rank in the lords' row.[40:1] It is with some such view that -I now write to you; not to send you a formal letter, which would require -a formal answer, and would therefore get no answer at all: but just to -take a shake of your hand, and ask you how you do, and speak a little -nonsense to you as usual, and then fall into s[ilence] without giving -myself the trouble of supporting the conversation any lon[ger]; and, in -a word, keep you from forgetting that you have some such friend in the -world as myself. - -"But pray, why did you not write me as you promised and give me your -direction? Was you afraid I should write to you? You see I can find out -a method of directing to you without your information. - -"Tell me about the Epigoniad. Was there ever so much fine versification -bestowed on so indifferent a story? Has it had any success in Ireland? I -fancy not; for the criticklings in Dublin depend on the criticklings in -London, who depend on the booksellers, who depend on their interest, -which depends on their printing a book themselves. This is the cause why -Wilkie's book is at present neglected, or damned, as they call it: but I -am much mistaken if it end so. Pray what says the primate of it? I hear -he has the generosity to support damned books till the resurrection, and -that he is one of the saints who pray them out of purgatory. I hope he -is an honest fellow and one of [us.] Captain Masterton told me, that he -was not quite of my opinion with regard to the 'Douglas,' and that he -blamed my dedicatory address to the author. But I persist still, and -will prove in spite of him and you, and of every man who [wears eit]her -black or scarlet, that it is an admirable tragedy, comparable [to the -exce]llent pieces of the good age of Louis Quatorze. The author is here -at present, and is refitting his 'Agis' for the theatre, which I hope -will have justice done it. _Il est le mieux rente de touts les beaux -esprits._ He has a pension from his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, -as you have probably heard. - -"I hear sometimes from the Doctor, who desires me to tell him something -about you. But I am no necromancer; only, as the ancients -said,--_prudentia est quaedam divinatio_. I conjecture that you are -lounging, and reading, and playing at whist, and blaming yourself for -not writing letters, and yet persisting in the neglect of your -duty."[41:1] - - -The following is the second letter in which we find Hume appreciating -the merits of his friend and rival, Robertson. There is no passage in -literary history, perhaps, more truly dignified, than the perfect -cordiality and sincere interchange of services between two men, whose -claims on the admiration of the world came in so close competition with -each other. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 6th April, 1758._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I am very glad that Mr. Robertson is entering on terms with -you. It was indeed my advice to him, when he set out for London, that he -should think of no other body; and I ventured to assure him that he -would find your way of dealing frank, and open, and generous. He read me -part of his History, and I had an opportunity of reading another part of -it in manuscript above a twelvemonth ago. Upon the whole, my -expectations, both from what I saw, and from my knowledge of the author, -were very much raised, and I consider it as a work of uncommon merit. I -know that he has employed himself with great diligence and care in -collecting the facts: his style is lively and entertaining; and he -judges with temper and candour. He is a man generally known and esteemed -in this country: and we look upon him very deservedly as inferior to -nobody in capacity and learning. Hamilton and Balfour have offered him a -very unusual price; no less than five hundred pounds for one edition of -two thousand; but I own, that I should be better pleased to see him in -your hands. I only inform you of this fact, that you may see how high -the general expectations are of Mr. Robertson's performance. It will -have a quick sale in this country, from the character of the author; and -in England, from the merit of the work, as soon as it is known. - -"Some part of his subject is common with mine; but as his work is a -History of Scotland, mine of England, we do not interfere; and it will -rather be an amusement to the reader to compare our method of treating -the same subject. I give you thanks, however, for your attention in -asking my opinion."[43:1] - - -The following is from another letter on the same subject. - - -"_Edinburgh, 20th June, 1758._ - -"I send enclosed a letter from Mr. Robertson. He wishes it were -practicable to send him more than one sheet every post. I am afraid, if -this be not done, our publications will interfere, which would be -disagreeable to you as well as to both of us. - -"I have read a small pamphlet called 'Sketches,' which, from the style, -I take to be Dr. Armstrong's, though the public voice gives it to Allan -Ramsay.[43:2] I find the ingenious author, whoever he be, ridicules the -new method of spelling, as he calls it; but that method of spelling -_honor_, instead of _honour_, was Lord Bolingbroke's, Dr. Middleton's, -and Mr. Pope's; besides many other eminent writers'. However, to tell -truth, I hate to be any way particular in a trifle; and therefore, if -Mr. Strahan has not printed off above ten or twelve sheets, I should not -be displeased if you told him to follow the usual, that is, his own way -of spelling throughout; we shall make the other volumes conformable to -it: if he be advanced farther, there is no great matter."[43:3] - - -A letter to Elliot, after some farther recommendations of Hume's -nephew, young Edgar, to his attention, thus proceeds:-- - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Edinburgh, 11th May, 1758._ - -"I have the prospect of paying my respects to you this autumn, in -London. I am now come within sight of land, and am drawing near to a -period of that volume which I had undertaken. I find the subject -curious; and I believe that this volume will contain some novelty, as -well as greater accuracy of composition, than is employed by our -ordinary historians. I could add, greater than is requisite to please -the taste of the public,--at least if we may judge by the vast success -of Dr. Smollett's history. _Vanitas vanitatum, atque omnia vanitas_, -says the Preacher; the great object of us authors, and of you orators -and statesmen, is to gain applause; and you see at what rate it is to be -purchased. I fancy there is a future state, to give poets, historians, -and philosophers their due reward, and to distribute to them those -recompenses which are so strangely shared out in this life. It is of -little consequence that posterity does them justice, if they are for -ever to be ignorant of it, and are to remain in perpetual slumber in -their literary paradise. However, it is some comfort, that virtue is its -own reward, and that a man cannot employ himself in the cultivation of -letters without reaping a real present satisfaction from his industry. I -am, dear sir, your most obliged humble servant. - -"P.S.--I am sorry to hear that the bill for the importation of Irish -cattle is rejected. Besides other arguments for it, I remember a strong -argument which was used in Charles II.'s time against the prohibition, -when it was first laid on: it was affirmed that the shipping employed in -that commerce was nearly equal to that which served for the carriage of -coal from Newcastle to London. It is not improbable that this argument -has, at present, escaped all the reasoners on that subject; and I -thought it a proper one to be suggested to a lord of the Admiralty. It -is to be found, if my memory do not deceive me, in Carte's Ormond, and -was employed by that duke."[45:1] - - -In the year 1759, Adam Ferguson was appointed professor of natural -philosophy in the university of Edinburgh. From the following -correspondence, it appears that Hume and others were desirous that Smith -should occupy a chair in Edinburgh, and, apparently, the same that was -obtained by Ferguson,[45:2] and that Ferguson should succeed Smith in -Glasgow. The singular terms on which the Edinburgh professorship appears -to have been disposed of, were, probably, not such as Smith would accede -to; and we afterwards find Hume conducting a negotiation for Ferguson -alone. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_8th June, 1758._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I sit down to write to you along with Johnstone; and as we -have been talking over the matter, it is probable we shall employ the -same arguments. As he is the younger lawyer, I leave him to open the -case, and, suppose that you have read his letter first. We are certain -that the settlement of you here, and of Ferguson at Glasgow, would be -perfectly easy, by Lord Milton's interest. The prospect of prevailing -with Abercromby is also very good; for the same statesman, by his -influence over the town council, could oblige him either to attend, -which he never would do, or dispose of the office for the money which he -gave for it. The only real difficulty is, then, with you. Pray, then, -consider that this is, perhaps, the only opportunity we shall ever have -of getting you to town. I dare swear that you think the difference of -place is worth paying something for; and yet it will really cost you -nothing. You made above L100 a-year, by your class, when in this place, -though you had not the character of professor. We cannot suppose that it -will be less than L130 after you are settled. John Stevenson; and it is -John Stevenson, makes near L150, as we were informed upon inquiry.[46:1] -Here is L100 a-year for eight years' purchase; which is a cheap -purchase, even considered as the way of a bargain. We flatter ourselves -that you rate our company at something; and the prospect of settling -Ferguson will be an additional inducement. For, though we think of -making him take up the project if you refuse it, yet it is uncertain -whether he will consent; and it is attended, in his case, with many very -obvious objections. I beseech you, therefore, to weigh all these motives -over again. The alteration of these circumstances merit that you should -put the matter again in deliberation. I had a letter from Miss Hepburn, -where she regrets very much that you are settled at Glasgow, and that we -had the chance of seeing you so seldom. I am," &c. - -"P.S.--Lord Milton can, with his finger, stop the foul mouths of all the -roarers against heresy."[47:1] - - -HUME _to the_ REV. JOHN JARDINE.[47:2] - -"REV. SIR,--I am informed, by the late Rev. Mr. John Home, that the -still Rev. Adam Ferguson's affair is so far on a good footing, that it -is agreed to refer the matter to the Justice Clerk, whether more shall -be paid to Mr. Abercromby than he himself gave for that professorship. -Now, as it is obvious that, in these kinds of references, where the -question is not of law and justice, the circumstances of the person are -to be considered, I beg of you to inform my Lord of the true state of -the case. Ferguson must borrow almost the whole sum which he pays for -this office. If any more, therefore, be asked than L1000, it would be -the most ruinous thing in the world for him to accept of the office. I -am even of opinion that if any other method of subsistence offered, it -were preferable to this scheme of paying the length of L1000; at least -such would be my sentiments, if the case were mine. - -"If the Justice Clerk considers the matter aright, he will never agree -to so unreasonable a demand as that of paying more; and I hope you will -second these arguments with all your usual eloquence, by which you so -successfully confound the devices of Satan, and bring sinners to -repentance. I am, Rev. Sir, your most obsequious humble servant."[47:3] - - -Towards the end of the year 1758, but at what particular time is not -more minutely known, Hume went to London, and resided in Lisle Street, -Leicester Fields. His object probably was to superintend the printing -of the "History of the House of Tudor;" but he was able at the same time -to perform essential services to his friend Dr. Robertson, whose -"History of Scotland" was then going through the press in London. Of -Hume's letters to Dr. Robertson, several have been published, though -only in a fragmentary form, in Dugald Stewart's "Life of -Robertson."[48:1] The portions thus preserved, are naturally those which -have most relation to the person to whom they are addressed; but of the -letters themselves, which doubtless, like many others from the same -hand, contained some curious particulars of their author's habits and -passing thoughts, no trace has been found.[48:2] Several of these -letters, written while Robertson's work was at press, have relation to -minor historical questions, which have subsequently been settled. The -following extracts are given, from the parts which have least reference -to these details. - - -HUME _to_ DR. ROBERTSON. - -(_Extracts._) - - I am afraid that you, as well as myself, have drawn Mary's - character with too great softenings. She was, undoubtedly, a - violent woman at all times. You will see in _Murden_ proofs of - the utmost rancour against her innocent, good-natured, dutiful - son. She certainly disinherited him. What think you of a - conspiracy for kidnapping him, and delivering him a prisoner - to the King of Spain, never to recover his liberty till he - should turn Catholic? Tell Goodall, that if he can but give me - up Queen Mary, I hope to satisfy him in every thing else; and - he will have the pleasure of seeing John Knox and the - Reformers made very ridiculous. . . . - - You have very good cause to be satisfied with the success of - your History, as far as it can be judged of from a few weeks' - publication. I have not heard of one who does not praise it - warmly; and were I to enumerate all those whose suffrages I - have either heard in its favour, or been told of, I should - fill my letter with a list of names. Mallet told me that he - was sure there was no Englishman capable of composing such a - work. The town will have it that you was educated at Oxford, - thinking it impossible for a mere untravelled Scotsman to - produce such language. In short, you may depend on the success - of your work, and that your name is known very much to your - advantage. - - I am diverting myself with the notion how much you will profit - by the applause of my enemies in Scotland. Had you and I been - such fools as to have given way to jealousy, to have - entertained animosity and malignity against each other, and to - have rent all our acquaintance into parties, what a noble - amusement we should have exhibited to the blockheads, which - now they are likely to be disappointed of. All the people - whose friendship or judgment either of us value, are friends - to both, and will be pleased with the success of both, as we - will be with that of each other. I declare to you I have not - of a long time had a more sensible pleasure than the good - reception of your History has given me within this fortnight. - - - _25th January, 1759._ - - I am nearly printed out, and shall be sure to send you a copy - by the stage-coach, or some other conveyance. I beg of you to - make remarks as you go along. It would have been much better - had we communicated before printing, which was always my - desire, and was most suitable to the friendship which always - did, and I hope always will, subsist between us. I speak this - chiefly on my own account. For though I had the perusal of - your sheets before I printed, I was not able to derive - sufficient benefits from them, or indeed to make any - alteration by their assistance. There still remain, I fear, - many errors, of which you could have convinced me, if we had - canvassed the matter in conversation. Perhaps I might also - have been sometimes no less fortunate with you. Particularly - I could almost undertake to convince you, that the Earl of - Murray's conduct with the Duke of Norfolk was no way - dishonourable. . . . - - Dr. Blair tells me that Prince Edward is reading you, and is - charmed. I hear the same of the Princess and Prince of Wales. - But what will really give you pleasure, I lent my copy to - Elliot during the holidays, who thinks it one of the finest - performances he ever read; and though he expected much, he - finds more. He remarked, however, (which is also my opinion,) - that in the beginning, before your pen was sufficiently - accustomed to the historic style, you employed too many - digressions and reflections. This was also somewhat my own - case, which I have corrected in my new edition. - - Millar was proposing to publish me about the middle of March; - but I shall communicate to him your desire, even though I - think it entirely groundless, as you will likewise think, - after you have read my volume. He has very needlessly delayed - your publication till the 1st of February, at the desire of - the Edinburgh booksellers, who could no way be affected by a - publication in London. I was exceedingly sorry not to be able - to comply with your desire, when you expressed your wish that - I should not write this period. I could not write downward. - For when you find occasion, by new discoveries, to correct - your opinion with regard to facts which passed in Queen - Elizabeth's days, who, that has not the best opportunities of - informing himself, could venture to relate any recent - transactions? I must, therefore, have abandoned altogether - this scheme of the English history, in which I had proceeded - so far, if I had not acted as I did. You will see what light - and force this History of the Tudors bestows on that of the - Stuarts. Had I been prudent, I should have begun with it. I - care not to boast, but I will venture to say, that I have now - effectually stopped the mouths of all those villanous Whigs - who railed at me. - - You are so kind as to ask me about my coming down. I can yet - answer nothing. I have the strangest reluctance to change - places. I lived several years happy with my brother at - Ninewells; and had not his marriage changed a little the state - of the family, I believe I should have lived and died there. I - used every expedient to evade this journey to London; yet it - is now uncertain whether I shall ever leave it. I have had - some invitations, and some intentions, of taking a trip to - Paris; but I believe it will be safer for me not to go - thither, for I might probably settle there for life. No one - was ever endowed with so great a portion of the _vis - inertiae_. But as I live here very privately, and avoid as - much as possible (and it is easily possible) all connexion - with the great, I believe I should be better in Edinburgh. . . . . - - - _London, 8th February, 1759._ - - . . . . As to the "Age of Leo the Tenth," it was Warton - himself who intended to write it; but he has not wrote it, and - probably never will. If I understand your hint, I should - conjecture, that you had some thoughts of taking up the - subject. But how can you acquire knowledge of the great works - of sculpture, architecture, and painting, by which that age - was chiefly distinguished? Are you versed in all the anecdotes - of the Italian literature? These questions I heard proposed in - a company of literati, when I inquired concerning this design - of Warton. They applied their remarks to that gentleman, who - yet, they say, has travelled. I wish they do not, all of them, - fall more fully on you. However, you must not be idle. May I - venture to suggest to you the Ancient History, particularly - that of Greece? I think Rollin's success might encourage you; - nor need you be in the least intimidated by his merit. That - author has no other merit but a certain facility and sweetness - of narration; but has loaded his work with silly - puerilities. . . . . - - * * * * * - - I forgot to tell you, that two days ago I was in the House of - Commons, where an English gentleman came to me, and told me - that he had lately sent to a grocer's shop for a pound of - raisins, which he received wrapped up in a paper that he - showed me. How would you have turned pale at the sight! It was - a leaf of your History, and the very character of Queen - Elizabeth, which you had laboured so finely, little thinking - it would so soon come to so disgraceful an end. I happened a - little after to see Millar, and told him the story; - consulting him, to be sure, on the fate of his new boasted - historian, of whom he was so fond. But the story proves more - serious than I apprehended: for he told Strahan, who thence - suspects villany among his apprentices and journeymen; and has - sent me very earnestly to know the gentleman's name, that he - may find out the grocer, and trace the matter to the bottom. - In vain did I remonstrate that this was sooner or later the - fate of all authors, _serius, ocyus, sors exitura_. He will - not be satisfied; and begs me to keep my jokes for another - occasion. But that I am resolved not to do; and, therefore, - being repulsed by his passion and seriousness, I direct them - against you. - - Next week I am published; and then I expect a constant - comparison will be made between Dr. Robertson and Mr. Hume. I - shall tell you in a few weeks which of these heroes is likely - to prevail. Meanwhile, I can inform both of them for their - comforts, that their combat is not likely to make half so much - noise as that between Broughton and the one-eyed coachman. - _Vanitas vanitatum, atque omnia vanitas._ I shall still - except, however, the friendship and good opinion of worthy - men. I am, &c. - - - _London, 12th March, 1759._ - - MY DEAR SIR,--I believe I mentioned to you a French gentleman, - Monsieur Helvetius, whose book, "De l'Esprit," was making a - great noise in Europe. He is a very fine genius, and has the - character of a very worthy man. My name is mentioned several - times in his work with marks of esteem; and he has made me an - offer, if I would translate his work into English, to - translate anew all my philosophical writings into French. He - says that none of them are well done, except that on the - "Natural History of Religion," by Monsieur Martigny,[52:1] a - counsellor of state. He added, that the Abbe Prevot, - celebrated for the _Memoires d'un homme d'Honneur_, and other - entertaining works,[52:2] was just now translating my - History. This account of Helvetius engaged me to send him over - the new editions of all my writings; and I have added your - History, which, I told him, was here published with great - applause; adding, that the subject was interesting, and the - execution masterly; and that it was probable some man of - letters at Paris may think that a translation of it would be - agreeable to the public. I thought that this was the best - method of executing your intentions. I could not expect that - any Frenchman here would be equal to the work. There is one - Carraccioli, who came to me and spoke something of translating - my new volume of History; but as he also mentioned his - intentions of translating Smollett, I gave him no - encouragement to proceed. The same reason would make me averse - to see you in his hands. - - But though I have given this character of your work to - Monsieur Helvetius, I warn you, that this is the last time - that, either to Frenchman or Englishman, I shall ever speak - the least good of it. A plague take you! Here I sat near the - historical summit of Parnassus, immediately under Dr. - Smollett; and you have the impudence to squeeze yourself by - me, and place yourself directly under his feet. Do you imagine - that this can be agreeable to me? And must not I be guilty of - great simplicity, to contribute, by my endeavours, to your - thrusting me out of my place in Paris as well as at London? - But I give you warning that you will find the matter somewhat - difficult, at least in the former city. A friend of mine, who - is there, writes home to his father, the strangest accounts on - that head, which my modesty will not permit me to repeat, but - which it allowed me very deliciously to swallow. - - I have got a good reason or pretence for excusing me to - Monsieur Helvetius, with regard to the translating his work. A - translation of it was previously advertised here. - - - _---- 20th, 1759._ - - I am afraid that my letters will be tedious and disagreeable - to you by their uniformity. Nothing but continued and - unvaried accounts of the same thing must in the end prove - disgusting. Yet since you will hear me speak on this subject, - I cannot help it, and must fatigue your ears as much as ours - are in this place, by endless and repeated, and noisy praises - of the "History of Scotland." Dr. Douglas told me yesterday, - that he had seen the Bishop of Norwich, who had just bought - the book, from the high commendations he heard of it from Mr. - Legge. Mallet told me that Lord Mansfield is at a loss whether - he shall most esteem the matter or the style. Elliot told me, - that being in company with George Grenville, that gentleman - was speaking loud in the same key. Our friend pretended - ignorance; said he knew the author, and if he thought the book - good for any thing, would send for it and read it. "Send for - it, by all means," said Mr. Grenville; "you have not read a - better book of a long time."--"But," said Elliot, "I suppose, - although the matter may be tolerable, as the author was never - on this side the Tweed till he wrote it, it must be very - barbarous in the expression." "By no means," cried Mr. - Grenville. "Had the author lived all his life in London, and - in the best company, he could not have expressed himself with - greater elegance and purity." Lord Lyttelton seems to think - that, since the time of St. Paul, there scarce has been a - better writer than Dr. Robertson. Mr. Walpole triumphs in the - success of his favourites the Scotch, &c. &c. &c. - - . . . . . The great success of your book, beside its real - merit, is forwarded by its prudence, and by the deference paid - to established opinions. It gains also by its being your first - performance, and by its surprising the public, who are not - upon their guard against it. By reason of these two - circumstances, justice is more readily done to its merit; - which, however, is really so great, that I believe there is - scarce another instance of a first performance being so near - perfection. - - - _London, 29th May, 1759._ - - MY DEAR SIR,--I had a letter from Helvetius lately, wrote - before your book arrived at Paris. He tells me, that the Abbe - Prevot, who had just finished the translation of my History, - paroit tres-dispose a traduire l'Histoire d'Ecosse que vient - de faire Monsieur Robertson. If he be engaged by my - persuasion, I shall have the satisfaction of doing you a real - credit and pleasure; for he is one of the best pens in - Paris.[55:1] . . . . . . - - Our friend Smith[55:2] is very successful here, and - Gerard[55:3] is very well received. The Epigoniad I cannot so - much promise for, though I have done all in my power to - forward it, particularly by writing a letter to _The Critical - Review_, which you may peruse. I find, however, some good - judges profess a great esteem for it: but _habent et sua fata - libelli_: however, if you want a little flattery to the - author, (which I own is very refreshing to an author) you may - tell him that Lord Chesterfield said to me he was a great - poet. I imagine that Wilkie will be very much elevated by - praise from an English Earl, and a knight of the Garter, and - an ambassador, and a secretary of state, and a man of so great - reputation. For I observe that the greatest rustics are - commonly most affected with such circumstances. - - Ferguson's book[55:4] has a great deal of genius and fine - writing, and will appear in time. . . . . - -In 1759, Adam Smith published his "Theory of Moral Sentiments." The -following letters embody Hume's appreciation of that work. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - - _London, April 12, 1759._ - - DEAR SIR,--I give you thanks for the agreeable present of your - Theory. Wedderburn and I made presents of our copies to such - of our acquaintances as we thought good judges, and proper to - spread the reputation of the book. I sent one to the Duke of - Argyle, to Lord Lyttelton, Horace Walpole, Soame Jenyns, and - Burke an Irish gentleman, who wrote lately a very pretty - Treatise on the Sublime. Millar desired my permission to send - one in your name to Dr. Warburton. - - I have delayed writing to you, till I could tell you something - of the success of the book, and could prognosticate, with some - probability, whether it should be finally damned to oblivion, - or should be registered in the temple of immortality. Though - it has been published only a few weeks, I think there appear - already such strong symptoms, that I can almost venture to - foretell its fate. It is, in short, this---- - - But I have been interrupted in my letter by a foolish - impertinent visit of one who has lately come from Scotland. He - tells me that the University of Glasgow intend to declare - Rouet's office vacant, upon his going abroad with Lord Hope. I - question not but you will have our friend Ferguson in your - eye, in case another project for procuring him a place in the - University of Edinburgh should fail. Ferguson has very much - polished and improved his Treatise on Refinement;[56:1] and - with some amendments it will make an admirable book, and - discovers an elegant and a singular genius. The Epigoniad, I - hope, will do; but it is somewhat up-hill work. As I doubt not - but you consult the Reviews sometimes at present, you will see - in _The Critical Review_ a letter upon that poem; and I desire - you to employ your conjectures in finding out the author. Let - me see a sample of your skill in knowing hands by your - guessing at the person.[56:2] - - I am afraid of Kames' "Law Tracts." A man might as well think - of making a fine sauce by a mixture of wormwood and aloes, as - an agreeable composition by joining metaphysics and Scottish - law. However, the book, I believe, has merit; though few - people will take the pains of inquiring into it. But to return - to your book, and its success in this town, I must tell - you---- - - A plague of interruptions! I ordered myself to be denied; and - yet here is one that has broke in upon me again. He is a man - of letters, and we have had a good deal of literary - conversation. You told me, that you was curious of literary - anecdotes, and therefore I shall inform you of a few that - have come to my knowledge. I believe I have mentioned to you - already, Helvetius's book "De l'Esprit." It is worth your - reading, not for its philosophy, which I do not highly value, - but for its agreeable composition. I had a letter from him a - few days ago, wherein he tells me that my name was much - oftener in the manuscript, but that the censor of books at - Paris obliged him to strike it out. - - Voltaire has lately published a small work called _Candide, - ou, l'Optimisme_. I shall give you a detail of it. But what is - all this to my book, say you? My dear Mr. Smith, have - patience: compose yourself to tranquillity; show yourself a - philosopher in practice as well as profession: think on the - emptiness, and rashness, and futility of the common judgments - of men; how little they are regulated by reason in any - subject, much more in philosophical subjects, which so far - exceed the comprehension of the vulgar. - - ----Non si quid turbida Roma, - Elevet, accedas: examenve improbum in illa - Castiges trutina: nec te quaesiveris extra. - - A wise man's kingdom is his own breast; or, if he ever looks - farther, it will only be to the judgment of a select few, who - are free from prejudices, and capable of examining his work. - Nothing, indeed, can be a stronger presumption of falsehood - than the approbation of the multitude; and Phocion, you know, - always suspected himself of some blunder, when he was attended - with the applauses of the populace. - - Supposing, therefore, that you have duly prepared yourself for - the worst by all these reflections, I proceed to tell you the - melancholy news, that your book has been very unfortunate; for - the public seem disposed to applaud it extremely. It was - looked for by the foolish people with some impatience; and the - mob of literati are beginning already to be very loud in its - praises. Three bishops called yesterday at Millar's shop in - order to buy copies, and to ask questions about the author. - The Bishop of Peterborough said, he had passed the evening in - a company where he heard it extolled above all books in the - world. The Duke of Argyle is more decisive than he used to be - in its favour. I suppose he either considers it as an exotic, - or thinks the author will be serviceable to him in the - Glasgow elections. Lord Lyttelton says that Robertson, and - Smith, and Bower,[58:1] are the glories of English literature. - Oswald protests he does not know whether he has reaped more - instruction or entertainment from it. But you may easily judge - what reliance can be put on his judgment, who has been engaged - all his life in public business, and who never sees any faults - in his friends. Millar exults and brags that two-thirds of the - edition are already sold, and that he is now sure of success. - You see what a son of the earth that is, to value books only - by the profit they bring him. In that view, I believe it may - prove a very good book. - - Charles Townsend, who passes for the cleverest fellow in - England, is so taken with the performance, that he said to - Oswald he would put the Duke of Buccleuch under the author's - care, and would make it worth his while to accept of that - charge. As soon as I heard this, I called on him twice, with a - view of talking with him about the matter, and of convincing - him of the propriety of sending that young nobleman to - Glasgow: for I could not hope, that he could offer you any - terms which would tempt you to renounce your professorship; - but I missed him. Mr. Townsend passes for being a little - uncertain in his resolutions; so perhaps you need not build - much on his sally. - - In recompense for so many mortifying things, which nothing but - truth could have extorted from me, and which I could easily - have multiplied to a greater number, I doubt not but you are - so good a Christian as to return good for evil; and to flatter - my vanity by telling me, that all the godly in Scotland abuse - me for my account of John Knox and the Reformation. I suppose - you are glad to see my paper end, and that I am obliged to - conclude with--Your humble servant.[58:2] - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - - _London, 28th July, 1759._ - - DEAR SIR,--Your friend, Mr. Wilson,[59:1] called on me two - three days ago when I was abroad, and he left your letter. I - did not see him till to-day. He seems a very modest, sensible, - ingenious man. Before I saw him, I spoke to Mr. A. Millar - about him, and found him very much disposed to serve him. I - proposed particularly to Mr. Millar, that it was worthy of so - eminent a bookseller as he, to make a complete elegant set of - the classics, which might set up his name equal to the - Alduses, Stevenses, or Elzevirs; and that Mr. Wilson was the - properest person in the world to assist him in such a project. - He confessed to me that he had sometimes thought of it; but - that his great difficulty was to find a man of letters, who - could correct the press. I mentioned the matter to Wilson, who - said he had a man of letters in his eye: one Lyon, a nonjuring - clergyman at Glasgow. He is probably known to you, or at least - may be so; I would desire your opinion of him. - - Mr. Wilson told me of his machines, which seem very ingenious, - and deserve much encouragement. I shall soon see them. - - I am very well acquainted with Bourke, who was much taken with - your book. He got your direction from me, with a view of - writing to you, and thanking you for your present; for I made - it pass in your name. I wonder he has not done it: he is now - in Ireland. I am not acquainted with Jenyns; but he spoke very - highly of the book to Oswald, who is his brother in the board - of trade. Millar showed me, a few days ago, a letter from Lord - Fitzmaurice; where he tells him, that he has carried over a - few copies to the Hague, for presents. Mr. York was very much - taken with it, as well as several others who had read it. - - I am told that you are preparing a new edition, and propose to - make some additions and alterations, in order to obviate - objections. I shall use the freedom to propose one; which, if - it appears to be of any weight, you may have in your eye. I - wish you had more particularly and fully proved that all kinds - of sympathy are necessarily agreeable. This is the hinge of - your system, and yet you only mention the matter cursorily, in - p. 20. Now, it would appear that there is a disagreeable - sympathy, as well as an agreeable. And, indeed, as the - sympathetic passion is a reflex image of the principal, it - must partake of its qualities, and be painful where that is - so. Indeed, _when we converse with a man with whom we can - entirely sympathize_, that is, where there is a warm and - intimate friendship, the cordial openness of such a commerce - overpowers the pain of a disagreeable sympathy, and renders - the whole movement agreeable. But, in ordinary cases, this - cannot have place. An ill-humoured fellow; a man tired and - disgusted with every thing, always _ennuie_, sickly, - complaining, embarrassed; such a one throws an evident damp on - company, which I suppose would be accounted for by sympathy, - and yet is disagreeable. - - It is always thought a difficult problem to account for the - pleasure received from the tears, and grief, and sympathy of - tragedy, which would not be the case if all sympathy was - agreeable. An hospital would be a more entertaining place than - a ball. I am afraid that, in p. 99, and 111, this proposition - has escaped you, or, rather, is interwoven with your - reasonings in that place. You say expressly, "It is painful to - go along with grief, and we always enter into it with - reluctance." It will probably be requisite for you to modify - or explain this sentiment, and reconcile it to your system. - - My dear Mr. Smith, you must not be so much engrossed with your - own book as never to mention mine. The Whigs, I am told, are - anew in a rage against me, though they know not how to vent - themselves; for they are constrained to allow all my facts. - You have, probably, seen Hurd's abuse of me. He is of the - Warburtonian school; and, consequently, very insolent and very - scurrilous; but I shall never reply a word to him. If my past - writings do not sufficiently prove me to be no Jacobite, ten - volumes in folio never would. - - I signed, yesterday, an agreement with Mr. Millar; where I - mention that I proposed to write the History of England, from - the beginning till the accession of Henry VII.; and he engages - to give me L1400 for the copy. This is the first previous - agreement ever I made with a bookseller.[61:1] I shall execute - this work at leisure, without fatiguing myself by such ardent - application as I have hitherto employed. It is chiefly as a - resource against idleness that I shall undertake this work; - for, as to money, I have enough; and as to reputation, what I - have wrote already will be sufficient, if it be good; if not, - it is not likely I shall now write better. I found it - impracticable (at least fancied so) to write the History since - the Revolution. I am in doubt whether I shall stay here and - execute the work; or return to Scotland, and only come up here - to consult the manuscripts. I have several inducements on both - sides. Scotland suits my fortune best, and is the seat of my - principal friendships; but it is too narrow a place for me; - and it mortifies me that I sometimes hurt my friends. Pray - write me your judgment soon. Are the bigots much in arms on - account of this last volume? Robertson's book has great merit; - but it was visible that he profited here by the animosity - against me. I suppose the case was the same with you. I am, - dear Smith, yours sincerely.[61:2] - -In 1758 and 1759, much alarm was caused throughout Britain by a -threatened invasion from France. Hume seems to have "improved" this -state of matters, in the following letters, imparting wild and -exaggerated news. His writing in such a tone, at such a juncture, is an -example of his entertaining the same contempt for panics as for popular -feeling in other forms. There is no address on the first of the letters. -The second would reach its destination nearly at the same time with the -account of Rodney's destruction of the flat-bottomed boats intended for -the invasion. - - -"_15th May, [1759.]_ - -"DEAR SIR,--If you pass by Edinburgh, please bring me two pounds of -rapee, such as Peggy Elliot uses to take. You will get it at Gillespy's -near the Cross. - -"Mrs. Mallet has her compliments to you, and begs you to procure her a -collection of Scotch pebbles. I assured her that I should inform you of -her desire, and also that you would not fail to execute it. - -"We hear that you are to be expelled the university with disgrace. Even -the most partial of your friends here are obliged to allow that you -deserve it. - -"We expect over forty thousand French, with the first fair wind. They -will probably settle the ministry; for, at present, the Pitts and the -Legges, and the Grenvilles, are all going by the ears. - -"We live in hopes of seeing you soon. My compliments to Smith, whose -book is in a very good way. - -"Dr. Warburton presents his compliments to you. Yours sincerely," -&c.[62:1] - - -HUME _to_ MR. RUAT.[62:2] - -"_6th July [1739.]_ - -"DEAR RUAT,--I am very much obliged to you for the desire you express to -Miss Elliot of hearing from me; and particularly your wishing to be -informed, by me, of any news that pass. As soon as I knew, certainly, -how to direct to you, I have sat down to write; and, though the -occurrences are no way extraordinary which I can communicate, they -shall all be strictly, and literally, and certainly true; and you may -venture to tell them as such to all the idle people that frequent -Buxton. - -"This morning, there arrived an express from Admiral Hawke's fleet, -giving an account that the French fleet had sallied out of Brest, with -twenty-four ships of the line, and had engaged the English fleet, in a -desperate and bloody battle, from morning to night, which ended in a -total victory on our side. There are seven of the French ships sunk and -burnt, and four taken. There are two of our capital ships sunk, and the -admiral's ship was blown up, with its whole company, not one of whom is -saved. Prince Edward, in the Phoenix, behaved to admiration; but, -towards the end of the engagement, an unlucky cannon ball carried away -both his legs, by which it is feared we shall loose that promising young -prince. Our friend, poor Dr. Blair, would not go below deck, but stood -by the prince's side during the whole engagement, till his head was -carried off by a double-headed shot. - -"About three hours after the arrival of this express, there arrived -another from the west, giving an account of the landing of the French in -Torbay, to the number of twenty thousand foot, and five thousand horse. -They believe already, in London, that they are sixty thousand strong. -The panic is inconceivable. The people in the country are hurrying up to -town; those in the town are hurrying down to the country. Nobody thinks -of resistance. Every one believes the French, Popery, and the Pretender, -to be at their heels. - -"What adds to our general confusion is, the discovery of treachery in -our councils. Mr. Pitt is sent to the Tower, for holding a secret -correspondence with the French:--his ciphers and letters are taken. Mr. -Wood, our friend, (if he can be said to deserve that name,) is thrown -into a dungeon; and there will be certain proofs to convict him of that -treachery. - -"In order to prepare the way for this blow, the perfidious French had -employed somebody to blow up the magazine in the Tower. I heard the -explosion this morning about five o'clock. All London is covered with -rubbish, and stones and brick, and broken arms. There fell into our back -court a shattered musket, and the bloody leg of a man. I thought the day -of judgment was come when I first heard the explosion, and began -seriously to think of my sins. - -"These events will, all of them, make a figure in future historians; and -it is happy for these gentlemen, who are, or ought to be, very -scrupulous with regard to matters of fact, that they can so well -reconcile the true and the marvellous. - -"As to private news, there is little stirring; only Dr. Warburton turned -Mahometan, and was circumcised last week. They say he is to write a -book, in order to prove the divine legation of Mahomet; and it is not -doubted but he will succeed as well as in proving that of Moses. I saw -him yesterday in the Mall with his turban; which really becomes him very -well. - -"Poor Andrew Millar is declared bankrupt; his debts amount to above -L40,000, and it is said his creditors will not get above three shillings -in the pound. All the world allow him to have been diligent and -industrious; but his misfortunes are ascribed to the extravagance of his -wife, a very ordinary case in this city. - -"Miss ----, yesterday morning declared her marriage with Dr. Armstrong; -but we were surprised in the afternoon to find Mr. Short the optician, -come in and challenge her for his wife. It seems she has been married -privately for some time to both of them. Her sister has been much more -prudent, whom we find to have confined herself entirely to gallantry, -and to have privately entertained a correspondence with three gallants. -I am, dear Ruat, with great truth, your most sincere friend and humble -servant."[65:1] - - -About the commencement of November, Hume returned to Scotland, for he -writes to Millar on 18th December that he has been six weeks in -Edinburgh. He states, that he is correcting his "History of the -Stuarts;" and says, "I fancy that I shall be able to put my account of -that period of English history beyond controversy. As soon as this task -is finished, I undertake the ancient English history. I find the -Advocates' Library very well provided with books, in this period: but -before I finish, I shall pass a considerable time in London, to peruse -the manuscripts in the Museum."[65:2] - -On his return he left behind him, to be published in London, the two -volumes of his "History of England, under the House of Tudor," of which -he says in his "own life,"--"The clamour against this performance was -almost equal to that against the History of the two first Stuarts. The -reign of Elizabeth was particularly obnoxious." - -He had now published the whole of that department of his History, from -which his opinions on the later progress of the British constitution can -be derived; and the epoch of this publication calls for some notice of -the manner in which subsequent inquirers have found that he performed -his task.[65:3] He was not like such writers as Clarendon and Brady, -the interested or prejudiced advocate of the crown against the people; -and we must look for the causes of his erroneous views in what he did -not know, or did not believe, rather than in what he wilfully -misrepresented. In his "Essay on Commerce," published in 1752, we find -him thus foreshadowing the principle on which he was to treat the -History of Britain:--"Lord Bacon, accounting for the great advantages -obtained by the English in their wars with France, ascribes them chiefly -to the superior ease and plenty of the common people among the former; -_yet the government of the two kingdoms was at that time pretty much -alike_." This assertion has been satisfactorily proved to be erroneous. -The spirit of credulity in historical inquiry makes out every thing -ancient to be better and greater than its modern representative. The -spirit of scepticism questions whatever is said in favour of antiquity. -The sceptic cannot throw doubt on the existing wonders of modern times. -If one nation is far beyond another in arts, arms, civilization, or -wealth, the facts cannot be denied; but when he looks back into past -ages, the pliability of the evidence admits the influence of the -levelling principle of scepticism, the tendency of which is to make all -mankind seem much alike; and Hume, who would not have ventured to say -that in his own day the constitutions of France and England were very -much alike, considered it but a piece of proper caution to discard as -fallacious the evidence that there was any great difference between them -in former times. - -Unquestionably the doubting or inquiring spirit is a valuable quality in -a historian; for the narratives of human affairs are full of -falsehoods, which it is the philosophical historian's function to -discard. But the sifting will not be satisfactory, if the materials -subjected to it have not been largely and laboriously collected; and the -charge against Hume is, that he applied it to imperfect data. Where the -data are insufficient, credulity and scepticism are merely the -counterparts of each other, and produce erroneous results nearly alike. -Those who proclaimed Bruce, the Abyssinian traveller, to be a liar, for -statements which have now been authenticated, believed in the account -given of a fictitious people, in an impudent forgery, called -Psalmanazer's Formosa, which would not now impose for a moment on any -educated person. Our enlarged knowledge of the matters to be subjected -to sceptical analysis, has now, in both cases, brought us to the right -conclusion. - -An inquirer into the structure of the earth, who should know nothing of -its crust but the sandy plains of Germany, would, were he of a sceptical -spirit, discredit all those geological wonders which the most sceptical -of scientific men now believe.[68:1] In relation to some parts of the -British constitution, Hume was in the position of such an investigator. -His early prejudice against the study of the law, prevented him from -being fully acquainted with a science, the knowledge of which is -essential to any man who would clearly develop the progress of our -constitution,--the common law of England. He did not understand its -stubborn immovable nature, its solid impregnable masonry, against which -the ambitious violence of monarchs, and the fury of popular tumults -raged in vain. From the day when Gascoigne committed Henry V. to prison, -to that when surly tyrannical old Sir Edward Coke argued face to face -with King James against the interference of the prerogative with the -independent authority of his court, those who were the honest -administrators of the common law held that they were no man's servants, -and no man's masters, but the sworn expounders of a settled rule of -action, which no power within the realm could sway. It might be full of -strange conceits, of passages hard to determine, of unreasonable and -often cruel rules: but what this oracle bade them, that were they bound -to do, be the consequences what they might. - -To a mere onlooker, this system appeared to be clumsy and barbarous, and -unendowed with that philosophical symmetry which characterized the rival -system of the civil law. It required that one should have a full -knowledge of its massive structure, and passive power of resistance, to -appreciate its value in a country where king, nobles, and common people, -were alike characterized by party spirit, courage, and restless -activity. A philosopher, indulging in a distant contemplation, would at -once prefer the nice philosophical adaptation to the wants of a state, -and the fine logical structure, with which a despotic power, able to -manipulate the laws at its own will, had endowed the system of -Justinian; and if he found that the administrators of the rude common -law waged a determined war against this philosophical code, his -contempt for the one, and his admiration of the other, would be likely -to be increased. But there is no doubt that the advocates of the common -law were right in resisting the introduction of the pliant principles of -the civilians. If it be true that the common law, and the constitution -which grew along with it, embodied no philosophical principle of -liberty, it is also true that they embodied no philosophical principle -of despotism, such as that which was ready made in the Justinian -legislation. The theories of passive obedience, and the sacredness of -the monarchical character, were strangers to it; and these doctrines, so -attractive to those who profit by them, were introduced by the -civilians. In presence of the unbending operation of the common law, and -dependent on a surly suspicious parliament, the sovereign might yet, if -he were a man of talent and courage, be very powerful and very -tyrannical: but he had none of those attributes through which the -ingenuity of the civilians had divested him of all the moral failings, -so far as they were accompanied with the moral responsibilities of a -human being. He was often a "most dread sovereign:" but it was for these -novel doctrines, the fruit of the reading of the clergy and the -ecclesiastical lawyers, to invest him with the attributes of "sacred -majesty." - -The supporters of the common law, and of the old popular rights, strove -to keep the law above the king. Those who drew their constitutional -principles from the civilians and canonists, desired to place the king -above the law. They accomplished their object in name, but not in fact, -by incorporating with the constitutional law those fictions, that the -king never dies, is not responsible, does not require to appear by his -attorney, suffers no laches, &c. But in reality the old principles which -made the king merely the head of a community, all of whom were subjected -to the law, substantially held its ground; for, in so far as the monarch -was exempted from responsibilities, in the same proportion was he -deprived of any powers which he could exercise otherwise than through a -responsible minister. - -There was in Hume a like want of appreciation of the value of -parliamentary forms and privileges, and a corresponding indifference -about their violation. He had not sufficiently studied the Journals of -the Commons, and did not trace the rise and development of that system -of procedure which has protected our own liberties, and afforded a model -for the legislative assemblies of all free nations.[71:1] It was in the -Long Parliament, and under the eye of the able men of business who then -held the lead, that this noble system was brought to perfection; but the -reader whose historical information is derived solely from Hume, knows -little of its value. Thus unconscious of the practical importance of the -rights and privileges of the English people, he did not sympathize with -those who expected alarming consequences from their infringement. He -involved those who put the protection of their legal rights to the issue -of the sword, in the same contemptuous estimate with the fanatics whom -he charged with convulsing the state about religious differences of no -essential moment. In either case the event at issue was of so little -importance in his estimation, that he had small charity for those who -made it a vitally important concern.[72:1] But in all these matters we -look back on Hume with the light of later times. To appreciate his -services to constitutional history, we must, while we keep in view the -successful labours of later inquirers, remember how little had been done -by his predecessors. The old chroniclers, such as Hall and Holingshed, -scarcely ever deign to descend from the pride, pomp, and circumstance of -glorious war, to mention constitutional matters; and perhaps, in an -impartial estimate, it will be admitted that in the gradual progress -towards a better appreciation of what is truly valuable in British -history, no one writer has taken so great a stride as Hume. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[3:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[5:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[5:2] In a small book, called "Letters on Mr. Hume's History of Great -Britain," Edinburgh, 1756, known to have been written by Daniel -Macqueen, D.D., the chief object is to prove that Hume has not treated -the Roman Catholic religion with sufficient severity, and to supply this -defect in his History. In a few remarks at the end, however, Dr. -Macqueen had the merit of suggesting many of the constitutional -criticisms on Hume, which were afterwards followed out. - -[6:1] A sketch of Hume's character and habits, in _The Edinburgh -Magazine_ for 1802, professing to be by one who was personally -acquainted with him, is discredited, by its containing a statement that -he had joined the Roman Catholic Church when he was in France. The -reader will remember that, almost from the moment of his setting foot on -foreign soil, he censures the Roman Catholics, in his letters to his -friends; and nothing could be mentioned more at variance with a known -character, than this writer's assertion, which seems to rest on some -imaginative parallel between the personal history of Hume and that of -Gibbon. As the reader may desire to read the sketch thus condemned, and -to judge for himself of its applicability to Hume, it is here given. - - -"ANECDOTES OF DAVID HUME, ESQ. - -"_By one who personally knew him._ - - "David Hume was a man of parts, natural and acquired, far - superior to most of mankind; of a benevolent heart, a - friendly, kind disposition, and a real affection for all his - connexions. No man is without his failings; and his great - views of being singular, and a vanity to show himself superior - to most people, led him to advance many axioms that were - dissonant to the opinions of others, and led him into - sceptical doctrines only to show how minute and puzzling they - were to other folk; in so far, that I have often seen him (in - various companies, according as he saw some enthusiastic - person there) combat either their religious or political - principles; nay, after he had struck them dumb, take up the - argument on their side with equal good humour, wit, and - jocoseness, all to show his pre-eminency. For the justness of - these observations, I appeal to his life, wrote by himself, - and published by his friend and admirer, Adam Smith, where you - see he was so chagrined at no notice of, or answer being made - to, his Essays, and was so disappointed, that he proposed to - retire to Saumure, or some other part of France, to be lost to - the unheeding world; and, in short, be a perfect hermit. But, - on being answered by a bishop, on some of his dogmas, and - other favourable circumstances flattering him that he would at - last be conspicuous, he gave up the project, and was first a - companion, for some time, to the Marquis of Annandale; then - librarian to the Advocates here; after that, secretary to - General Sinclair at Turin (who was, under pretence of an - ambassador to his Sardinian Majesty, a spy, as his conduct was - dubious to the allies, against Louis XV.;) afterwards, by - General Conway's interest, secretary to Lord Hertford at - Paris; left there charge d'affairs; and, finally, one of the - under secretaries of state for about half a year. After which - he settled in Edinburgh for life, and made all his friends and - connexions happy by the possession of so worthy a man.--Thus - far I have given my real sentiments of the man, and can only - now regret that he was so weak as to write his life in the - style he did. - - "I must add, that he was a cheerful and most agreeable - companion, well informed, and who accommodated himself to the - company; and, for all his abstruse learning, was never happier - than in a select company of ladies and friends, and fond to - engage in a party at whist, of which game he was a complete - adept, and, of consequence, successful. He never played deep; - never above a shilling, one, two, or three; and I have known - him come into Edinburgh for some weeks, pay his residence - there, and get a recruit of clothes and necessaries out of his - gains; nay, sometimes to have a pound or two to give in - assistance to a necessitous relation; and carry back to his - brother's house, at Ninewells, the cash he brought with him - from that place, in order to defray the expenses of his visit - to the metropolis. General Scott of Balcomie, who was a good - judge in these matters, was so convinced of his superior skill - at whist, that I was assured he offered David his purse to - gamble at London; and that he would give him L1000 a-year if - he would communicate his winnings. This he refused with - disdain, saying, he played for his amusement; and though - General Scott would give him ten times more per annum, he - would be accessary to no such fraudulent doings. - - "It was very remarkable, that, though from study and reading - the purest authors in the English language he learnt to write - in a correct and elegant style, yet, in conversing, he spoke - with the tone, idiom, and vulgar voice of the commonalty in - the Merse or Berwickshire. This, I presume, arose from his - having been greatly, in his early years, about his brother's - house, conversing with servants, &c.; and having no ear - (though a foreign or even a dead language, which he acquired - by grammar and rules, he wrote pointedly,) it was impossible - for him to attain, in speaking, any other dialect of the Scots - than that he caught in his childhood: besides, he had but a - creeping voice, rather effeminate than manly. - - "I could give you several anecdotes with regard to him; I - shall content myself with one. One day when he was advancing - some irreligious maxims in a sarcastical style, I said to him, - 'L----, David, ye are much altered in your sentiments since - you professed yourself a sincere Roman Catholic, confessed - yourself to the priests, declared yourself a sincere penitent, - got absolution, and even extreme unction.' He was much - offended at this, as he believed none knew, in this country, - that all this had happened to him at Nice. He answered in a - huff, 'I was in a high fever then, and did not know what I - said, or they did with me.' I replied, 'You put me in mind of - Patie Birnie's answer to the minister of Kinghorn, who, - stumbling o'er him in a passage dead drunk, said, 'Ah! Patie, - is this your promise that you would never be fu' again, if the - Lord spared you?'--'Wow,' quo' Pate, 'I wonder to hear ane of - your honour's sense mind what ony body says in a red raving - fever; I kent naithing of what was ga'en.' David and I, for - years after, were tolerable good friends, but never so cordial - as before. G. N." [These initials are supposed to be those of - George Nichol, M. P.] - -[9:1] Hume was inclined to admire the polity of the Church of England, -on grounds peculiar to himself. The tendency of his remarks on the -wealth and dignity of that establishment, is to hold that heaping riches -and honours on a clergy, by occupying their minds in pomps and vanities, -diverts a certain portion of the spirit of priestcraft from its natural -propensity to subdue or annoy the rest of the community, and is on the -whole a judicious investment of a considerable proportion of the wealth -and honours which may happen to be at the command of a state. Adam -Smith's opinion, on the other hand, was, that the people are best -protected against the influence of priestcraft, by allowing no sect to -have a superiority over others, and by leaving the clergy of different -denominations to expend their zeal in fighting with each other. - -[11:1] Original at Kilravock. - -[13:1] Scroll in Hume's handwriting, Minto MSS. - -[13:2] Four Dissertations: The Natural History of Religion; Of the -Passions; Of Tragedy; Of the Standard of Taste. 8vo, A. Millar. Hume, in -his "own life," says they were published in the interval between the -first and second volumes of his History. - -[14:1] In a copy which I possess, after p. 200, the end of the third -dissertation, there are four strips of paper, the remains of half a -sheet cut away. This occurs in signature K, and signature L begins with -the fourth dissertation. - -[14:2] Vol. i. p. 246. - -[15:1] A simple example tells at once the whole philosophy of this view. -In an unhealthy community, a workman dies after he has been ten years -married, and leaves a widow and children dependant on the public. In a -healthy community, he lives for twenty years after his marriage, and -leaves children grown up and able to provide for themselves. - -In general, the aim of all remarks on Hume's writings in the present -work is expository, not controversial. The reader desirous of having -every light thrown on Hume's opinions, will care nothing about mine; but -where, as in the present case, he seems to have gone astray from his own -leading principles, it appeared to be right to notice the aberration. - -[16:1] This letter is not dated. - -[18:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[18:2] He persisted in spelling the poet's name thus. - -[19:1] MS. Advocates' Library. A good example of the same thing being -done in two ways, is afforded by comparing Hume's resignation with that -of his venerable predecessor, Ruddiman. The latter is a document of -considerable length, and ends in the following strain:--"But though I -can be no longer serviceable to the honourable Faculty in that my former -capacity, yet there is one duty still in my power, and which can never -be dispensed with; and that is, that from the deep and most grateful -sense which I shall always retain of your great and manifold favours, I -should earnestly pray to Almighty God for the honour, prosperity, and -flourishing state of your most learned and useful society; that ye may -continue a great ornament to those high courts, of which you are -members; and that in them, and every where else, ye may shine forth with -that splendour and dignity, that unblemished character for justice and -probity, and the faithful discharge of all those duties your honourable -profession has laid upon you, for which you are so remarkable; and which -the superior name and rank you bear in the world, give your country just -ground to expect of you. - -"This is the last best testimony and assurance I can give, of my most -sincere gratitude, warm affection, and high regard to the honourable -Faculty; and that I am, now, and always, my much honoured patrons and -masters, your most obliged, most humble, and most dutiful servant,-- - - Dum memor ipse mei, dum spiritus hos regit artus - - "T. RUDDIMAN." - -[20:1] These two distichs are taken from separate parts of the fourth -book of Ovid's "Tristia." The first is accurate, but the second is -evidently a variation of the following: - - Sic ubi mota calent viridi mea pectora Thyrso - Altior humano spiritus ille malo est. - -[22:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 636. MS. R.S.E. - -[23:1] In a work by Dr. John Brown, called, "An Estimate of the Manners -and Principles of the Times," 1757, there is the following passage:--"A -certain historian, of our own times, bent upon _popularity_ and _gain_, -published a large volume, and omitted no opportunity that offered to -disgrace religion. A large impression was published, and a small part -sold. The author being asked why he had so larded his work with -irreligion, his answer implied:--'He had done it that his book might -sell.' It was whispered him, that he had totally mistaken the spirit of -the times;--that no allurements could engage the _fashionable_ infidel -world to travel through a large quarto; and that, as the few readers of -quartos that yet remain lie mostly among the serious part of mankind, he -had offended his best customers, and ruined the sale of his book. This -information had a notable effect; for a second volume, as large and -instructive as the first, hath appeared; not a smack of irreligion is to -be found in it; and an apology for the first concludes the whole."--P. -57. - -Dr. Brown's book is said to have been very popular, and to have run to a -seventh edition in a few months. It is rather singular that the edition -marked as the seventh, has precisely the same matter in each page, and -the same number of pages as the first. - -[24:1] The letter does not appear to have been preserved. - -[25:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[25:2] Elliot had been made a Lord of the Admiralty in 1756. - -[27:1] Viz. of Edinburgh. - -[29:1] Minto MSS. - -[29:2] The title of the Epigoniad does not, unfortunately, convey any -associations to the general English reader, who requires to be told that -it is derived from +Epigonoi+, or descendants, in allusion to those of -the warriors who had been slain at the first siege of Thebes; and the -main incident of the poem is the subsequent sacking of that city. It is -not difficult for the reader of the better parts of the Epigoniad to -imagine, that he is perusing Pope's translation of Homer. When an -approach was thus made to a model so famous, all was supposed to have -been gained; and it was thought that a work had been produced which -would stand beside the Iliad and the Odyssey. It is hardly necessary, at -the present day, to ask, whether the highest genius will produce an -immortal poem out of the machinery of another age and nation, and -appealing to sentiments which have no response in the habits or feelings -of the people to whom its author appeals? We read the great national -poems of other countries in their own language, because we thus endow -ourselves, as far as it is possible, with the feeling and ideas of those -to whom the poem was addressed. We read spirited translations, because -they are an attempt to represent to us, in our own tongue, that which is -grand in another language; and our interest is like that with which we -view the portrait of a great man. We thus encounter Ulysses, Agamemnon, -and Menelaus in the Iliad, with the interest of excited curiosity; and -those who cannot read the original, are content to make acquaintance -with persons whom a great genius has made so famous, even through a rude -translation. But few cared to meet them reappearing in Wilkie's -imitation; nor, however forcible may be his expressions, or flowing his -versification, do we feel very vividly the horrors of Cacus' den, and -the destructive ire of the Cyclops, or sympathize in the torments of -Hercules, from the Centaur's poisoned robe, when they are described in -the Epigoniad. - -[31:1] The paper is reprinted from _The Critical Review_, in the -Appendix to Ritchie's Life of Hume. - -[33:1] These fictions were to a considerable extent superseded by an -act, so late as the year 1833; 3 & 4 Will. IV. c. 74. - -[34:1] In 1757 Adam Ferguson became tutor to the family of Lord Bute. - -[34:2] Minto MSS. - -[35:1] Warburton writes as follows to Hurd:--"As to Hume, I had laid it -aside ever since you was here; I will now, however, finish my skeleton. -It will be hardly that. If, then, you think any thing can be made of it, -and will give yourself the trouble, we may, perhaps, between us, do a -little good, which, I dare say, we shall both think worth a little -pains. If I have any force in the first rude beating out of the mass, -you are best able to give it the elegance of form and splendour of -polish. This will answer my purpose; to labour together in a joint work -to do a little good. I will tell you fairly, it is no more the thing it -should be, and will be, if you undertake it, than the Dantzic iron at -the forge is the gilt and painted ware at Birmingham. It will make no -more than a pamphlet; but you shall take your own time, and make it your -summer's amusement, if you will. I propose it to bear something like -this title:--'_Remarks on Mr. Hume's late Essay, called The Natural -History of Religion; by a Gentleman of Cambridge, in a Letter to the -Rev. Dr. W._' I propose the address should be with the dryness and -reserve of a stranger, who likes the method of the letters on -Bolingbroke's Philosophy, and follows it here against the same sort of -writer, inculcating the same impiety, naturalism, and employing the same -kind of arguments. The address will remove it from me; the author, a -gentleman of Cambridge, from you; and the secrecy in printing from us -both."--_Letters from a late Eminent Prelate to one of his Friends_, p. -240. In the immediately preceding letter, we find him saying, "I will -trim the rogue's jacket, at least sit upon his skirts, as you will see -when you come hither, and find his margins scribbled over." - -Thus were concocted the "Remarks on Mr. David Hume's Essay on the -Natural History of Religion, addressed to the Rev. Dr. Warburton," -(1757) wherein the candid author, in pursuance of his instructions, -says, "Of my _person_, indeed, I must have leave to make no discovery; -and to tell you the truth, I have taken such effectual precautions, as -to that particular, that I will venture to say you will never know more -of me than you do at present." The original notes are to be found in the -quarto edition of Warburton's works. Hume says, in his "own life," of -the Natural History of Religion, "Its public entry was rather obscure, -except only that Dr. Hurd wrote a pamphlet against it, with all the -illiberal petulance, arrogance, and scurrility which distinguish the -Warburtonian school. This pamphlet gave me some consolation for the -otherwise indifferent reception of my performance." - -[37:1] Probably "An Essay towards a General History of Feudal Property -in Great Britain, under several heads," 1757-8, by Mr. afterwards Sir -John Dalrymple. - -[38:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[39:1] _Scots Magazine_ for 1802, p. 978. - -[40:1] These analogies are taken from the technicalities of Scots law. -The southern reader may as well be informed, that Prescription stands -for "The Statute of Limitations" in Scotland; that a summons is the writ -by which the plaintiff brings the defendant into court; and that "the -lords' row," is the roll of cases in the Court of Session. - -[41:1] Original in the possession of the Cambusmore family. - -[43:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[43:2] The Painter. The "Sketches and Essays on various subjects," were -written by Armstrong. - -[43:3] MS. R.S.E. - -[45:1] Minto MSS. - -[45:2] It appears, however, from a letter to Smith, farther on, that an -attempt had been made to procure a chair for Ferguson, in Edinburgh, -which had failed. - -[46:1] John Stevenson was appointed professor of logic and metaphysics -in 1730. - -[47:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[47:2] Without date. - -[47:3] Original in possession of Sir Henry Jardine. - -[48:1] Note B. - -[48:2] It is also remarkable, that there is not one letter from -Robertson among the MSS. R.S.E., or in any known collection. - -[52:1] Perhaps this may be a mistake for M. Merian, the name of the -author of a translation of this essay, published in 1759. - -[52:2] See above, p. 408. See the letters of Helvetius in the Appendix. -He does not seem to have translated any of Hume's works, his proposed -reciprocity treaty not having been concluded. He appears to have had -considerably more at heart the being chosen a member of the Royal -Society of London, as a means of restoring his lost popularity at home. - -[55:1] A translation was published in 1764, by Besset de la Chapelle. - -[55:2] Theory of Moral Sentiments. - -[55:3] Essay on Taste. - -[55:4] See next page. - -[56:1] Stewart says this is the work subsequently published under the -title of "An Essay on the History of Civil Society." But this may be -doubted: see Hume's Remarks on it at the time of publication. - -[56:2] See above, p. 30. - -[58:1] This association of names is evidently intended as a sarcasm on -Lord Lyttelton's taste. - -[58:2] Stewart's Life of Smith. - -[59:1] Probably Mr. Wilson, type-founder, Glasgow; the father of the art -in Scotland. - -[61:1] He did not consider his agreement about the Treatise of Human -Nature a "previous" one, as the book was written. See vol. i. p. 65. - -[61:2] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 665. Original MS. R.S.E. - -[62:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[62:2] See this gentleman, who was a professor in Glasgow, mentioned -above, p. 59, where his name is spelt Rouat. - -[65:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[65:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[65:3] An account of all the books in which the constitutional -principles of the history have been ably impugned, would only be -reminding the reader of many works with which he is probably already -familiar. But among the marked productions of this series, if he desire -to have a calm appreciation of the merits of Hume's historical -criticism, by those who have gone over the same ground, he will peruse -the historical works of Hallam, and the treatises of Dr. Allen, -including his articles in _The Edinburgh Review_, and his "Inquiry into -the Rise and Growth of the Royal Prerogative." If, however, he wish to -have all Hume's tergiversations sifted and exposed with forensic -acuteness, and the zeal of an able and vigilant prosecutor,--to have -before him, in short, the whole "case" of the British constitution -against Hume, let him read Brodie's "History of the British Empire." It -will gratify all the admirers of his book to know, that Mr. Brodie is -occupied in the preparation of a new edition of his great work, which -will, no doubt, be marked by all the same qualities which distinguished -the first, increased by farther study and enthusiastic research. It is a -singular incident in literary history, that immediately after the -appearance of the first edition, filled as it is with a prodigious array -of notes and references, the subject was gone over by Godwin in his -"History of the Commonwealth," with but slight reference to Mr. Brodie's -book; but in such a manner, from the structure of his narrative and -otherwise, as to show that he had scarcely any other book before him. - -This is not the place for a discussion of Mr. Brodie's charges against -Hume: they are honestly supported by references, and will stand or fall -on their own merits. But there is one instance in which Mr. Brodie's -acuteness has led him farther than every one can follow him. Thus, -speaking of a particular passage of Hume, he says, "he has given the -very words of Perinchief, whom he yet durst not quote; and his -pencil-marks are still at the place in the copy belonging to the -Advocates' Library." This statement, to the effect that there exists -evidence of Hume having read passages which he has designedly avoided -citing, is frequently repeated; and if one would absolutely assure -himself that Hume had read the passages, by reference to the copies of -the books in the Advocates' Library, he finds one or two scores drawn -across the margin with a pencil! The distinguished historical critic, -who has noticed this circumstance, must make some allowance for the -inferior acumen of ordinary readers, if they should fail to discover why -this simple score must of necessity be David Hume--his mark. - -Mr. Brodie's book is particularly valuable as a criticism on Hume's -notions of the old prerogative in relation to the Star Chamber, the -Court of High Commission, Martial Law, Impressments, and Forced Loans. - -[68:1] Locke gives an admirable illustration of the sceptical spirit -working on imperfect data, in the following anecdote. "It happened to a -Dutch ambassador, who, entertaining the King of Siam with the -particularities of Holland, which he was inquisitive after, amongst -other things, told him, that the water in his country would sometimes, -in cold weather, be so hard, that men walked upon it, and that it would -bear an elephant if he were there. To which the king replied, 'Hitherto -I have believed the strange things which you have told me, because I -look upon you as a sober fair man: but now I am sure you lie.'"--_On the -Understanding_, book iv. chap. 15, Sec. 5. - -[71:1] The forms of voting and coming to a decision in the British -Parliament have been adopted by other countries, not from any partiality -towards our systems, but because in this we seem to have approached -abstract perfection; and the framers of codes, after all endeavours to -make forms of like excellence, are obliged to have recourse to those -which have been followed for centuries in St. Stephen's. In the French -Assemblies, ingenuity was frequently exercised in vain to devise some -plan by which, after a series of proposals had been made, and debated -upon, the sense of the meeting in regard to them might be ascertained -and recorded without the record being liable to be questioned as -inaccurate. In the English system, the matter is at once solved. Each -proposed resolution is made and put on record before the discussion -begins, and however many different proposals there may be in relation to -the subject of debate, they must be all put in writing, and each one -must be singly, and without intermixture with the others, adopted or -rejected by a vote of the house. - -[72:1] He seems to have afterwards soothed himself with the reflection -that his historical speculations were in favour of the stability of a -fixed government, and opposed to innovating principles. In a letter to -Madame de Boufflers, dated 23d Dec. 1768, he says:-- - -"Indeed, the prospect of affairs here is so strange and melancholy, as -would make any one desirous of withdrawing from the country at any rate. -Licentiousness, or rather the frenzy of liberty, has taken possession of -us, and is throwing every thing into confusion. How happy do I esteem -it, that in all my writings I have always kept at a proper distance from -that tempting extreme, and have maintained a due regard to magistracy -and established government, suitably to the character of an historian -and a philosopher! I find, on that account, my authority growing daily; -and indeed have now no reason to complain of the public, though your -partiality to me made you think so formerly. Add to this, that the -king's bounty puts me in a very opulent situation. I must, however, -expect that, if any great public convulsion happen, my appointments will -cease, and reduce me to my own revenue: but this will be sufficient for -a man of letters, who surely needs less money both for his entertainment -and credit, than other people."--_Private Correspondence_, p. 266. - - - - -CHAPTER XI. - -1760-1762. AEt. 49-51. - - Alterations of the History in the direction of Despotic - Principles--Specimens--Alterations in Style--Specimens--His - Elaboration--Ossian's Poems--Labours at the early part of the - History--Ferguson's "Sister Peg"--Acquaintance with Madame de - Boufflers--Account of that lady--First intercourse with - Rousseau--Rousseau's position--The exiled Earl Marishal-- - Campbell and his Dissertation on Miracles. - - -We have seen, from various indications in Hume's letters to his friends, -that he employed himself occasionally in corrections and alterations of -the published volumes of his History. In these revisals, and especially -in that of the "History of the Stuarts," his alterations were not -limited to the style. He tells us, with a sort of scornful candour, in -his "own life," "Though I had been taught by experience that the Whig -party were in possession of bestowing all places, both in the state and -in literature, I was so little inclined to yield to their senseless -clamour, that in above a hundred alterations which farther study, -reading, or reflection engaged me to make in the reigns of the two first -Stuarts, I have made all of them invariably to the Tory side. It is -ridiculous to consider the English constitution, before that period, as -a regular plan of liberty." - -It was part of his nature, when popular clamour called for the adoption -of a particular course, to turn his steps for that reason the more -distinctly in the opposite direction. He has not exaggerated the extent -or character of his alterations; for an inspection of the various -editions of his History which came under his own revision, shows him, by -turns of expression, structure of narrative, and other gentle -alterations, approaching closer and closer to despotic principles. The -democratic opinions contained in his early essays, have already been -alluded to; and their suppression in subsequent editions, harmonizes -with these variations of the opinions expressed in his History.[74:1] - -There are, however, a very few alterations in an opposite spirit. Thus, -in the following sentence relative to the proceedings of the House of -Commons regarding the militia, the part in italics is suppressed in the -later editions. "He [the king] issued proclamations against this -manifest usurpation; _the most precipitant and most enormous of which -there is any instance in the English history_." - -On one incident of some importance in history, he was obliged materially -to change his ground of argument, yet would not alter his original -opinion. During the fervour of the civil wars in 1646, Lord Glamorgan -had in the name of Charles I. concluded a treaty with the confederated -Irish Catholics, by which, on the condition of their aiding the king, -besides other concessions, the Roman Catholic religion was to be -restored to its old supremacy through a great part of Ireland. Ormond, -the lord lieutenant, charged Glamorgan with high treason: but he -produced two commissions from the king. The king disowned the -commissions: but the parliament believed in their genuineness.--It was -in this shape that the matter appeared in the first instance before -Hume. In his first edition he accordingly maintained that the -commissions were forgeries; and a long note, explanatory of the grounds -of this belief, is a remarkable instance of a plausible fabric of -historical reasoning, doomed afterwards to fall to pieces by the removal -of its foundation. Before he published his second edition, he received a -letter from the Rev. John Douglas, afterwards Bishop of Carlisle,[78:1] -who was intrusted with the editing of the Clarendon Papers. In this -communication, the reverend gentleman regrets that he cannot send to -Hume a letter written by Glamorgan, describing the method in which the -commissions were actually prepared, and its object; but he gives an -account of the contents of the letter.[78:2] Hume could no longer hold -that the commissions were not genuine: but he still maintained Charles -to be guiltless; and though they were unknown to the lord lieutenant, -and bore no attestation of having passed through the proper offices, he -still argued that Glamorgan, in treating with the Irish, though he was -within the letter of his very wide powers, must have exceeded his -instructions; and ingeniously pointed to his work, "The century of -Inventions," in connexion with which Lord Glamorgan is better known, by -his subsequent title of Marquis of Worcester, as the production of a man -who never could have been trusted with powers so extensive as those -which he arrogated. - -Besides the variations in political opinion, there were in the -subsequent editions of Hume's History other alterations suggested by -other influences. His opinions were self-formed, and he jealously -protected them in their formation from the influence of other minds; but -in the cultivation of his style he sought assistance with avidity -from all who could afford it. Hence he appears to have earnestly -solicited the aid of Lyttelton, Mallet, and others, whose experience of -English composition might enable them to detect Scotticisms. - -[Illustration: SPECIMEN OF THE M.S. OF HUME'S HISTORY. - -REIGN OF HENRY II. PUBLISHED IN 1762.] - -Before they went to press, his compositions underwent a minute and -rigorous correction. His manuscripts, as the small fac-simile engraved -for these volumes shows, were subjected to a painful revisal. We -sometimes find him, after he has adopted a form of expression, scoring -it out and substituting another; but again, on a comparison of their -mutual merits, restoring the rejected form, and perhaps again discarding -it when he has lighted on a happier collocation of words.[79:1] It is -worthy of remark, that his most brilliant passages are those which bear -the least appearance of being amended. It is not thence to be inferred -that these passages sprang from his mind in their full symmetry and -beauty: but rather that they had been elaborated, and made ready for -insertion in their proper place, before they were put in writing. - -We now resume the correspondence; which will be found to have reference, -among other topics, to the preparation of the History anterior to the -accession of the Tudors. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 22d March, 1760._ - -"DEAR SIR,--You gave me a very sensible pleasure in informing me so -early of the success of 'The Siege of Aquileia'[81:1] on its first -representation. I hope it sustained its reputation after it came into -print. I showed Mr. Kincaid your letter; and he has published an -edition here, of a thousand, which go off very well. As he had published -a pamphlet, this winter, which he got from you, I told him that I -fancied you would be satisfied with the same terms, which he then agreed -to. - -"I am very busy, and am making some progress; but find that this part of -English History is a work of infinite labour and study; which, however, -I do not grudge; for I have nothing better nor more agreeable to employ -me. I have sent you a short catalogue of books, which either are not in -the Advocates' Library, or are not to be found at present. I must beg of -you to procure them for me, and to send them down with the first ship. -Send me also the prices; for I shall be able to engage the curators of -the library to take from me such as they want at the price. - -"Dr. Birch, (to whom make my compliments,) will be so good as to give -you his advice about buying these books; and will tell you if several of -them are collected in volumes, as is often the case with the old English -historians. - -"I hope Lord Lyttelton and Mr. Mallet are as busy as I; if so, we may -expect to see their history soon. Please to inform me what you hear of -them. We are informed that Lord Lyttelton is soon to appear. I wish very -much to have the benefit of his work before I go to the press. Donaldson -told me, that Strahan has, at last, finished the small edition of my -Essays, and that you have shipped his and Kincaid's number. They are -resolved, I find, to dispose of them all in this place. I hope you have -not forgot to send me half a dozen of copies in sheets, the number which -we agreed to on any new edition. - -"Your press, in London, has been somewhat barren this winter. We have -had nothing from you but a good pamphlet or two, and have, I think, -paid the same in kind. Our militia pamphlet was certainly wrote with -spirit; and has been twice reprinted, as I hear, in London.[83:1] I beg -to be remembered to Mrs. Millar; and please tell her that I am very -sorry we shall not have the pleasure of seeing her here this summer. I -could wish her just as much sickness as to make her sensible that -travelling is good for her. My compliments to Dr. Douglas and Strahan, -and to Friend Cummin, who, I hope, sees now a better prospect of -overcoming all his difficulties. I am," &c. - - -The following letter, though it must be already familiar to many -readers, is so clear an exposition of the writer's views on some -branches of historical and biographical literature, that it ought not to -be omitted. - - -HUME _to_ DR. ROBERTSON. - - I have frequently thought, and talked with our common friends - upon the subject of your letter. There always occurred to us - several difficulties with regard to every subject we could - propose. The ancient Greek history has several - recommendations, particularly the good authors from which it - must be drawn: but this same circumstance becomes an - objection, when more narrowly considered; for what can you do - in most places with these authors but transcribe and translate - them? no letters or state papers from which you could correct - their errors, or authenticate their narration, or supply - their defects. Besides, Rollin is so well wrote with respect - to style, that with superficial people it passes for - sufficient. There is one Dr. Lelland, who has lately wrote the - life of Philip of Macedon, which is one of the best periods. - The book, they tell me, is perfectly well wrote; yet it has - had such small sale, and has so little excited the attention - of the public, that the author has reason to think his labour - thrown away. I have not read the book; but by the size, I - should judge it to be too particular. It is a pretty large - quarto. I think a book of that size sufficient for the whole - History of Greece till the death of Philip: and I doubt not - but such a work would be successful, notwithstanding all these - discouraging circumstances. The subject is noble, and Rollin - is by no means equal to it. - - I own, I like still less your project of the age of Charles - the Fifth. That subject is disjointed; and your hero, who is - the sole connexion, is not very interesting. A competent - knowledge at least is required of the state and constitution - of the empire; of the several kingdoms of Spain, of Italy, of - the Low Countries, which it would be the work of half a life - to acquire; and, though some parts of the story may be - entertaining, there would be many dry and barren; and the - whole seems not to have any great charms. - - But I would not willingly start objections to these schemes, - unless I had something to propose, which would be plausible; - and I shall mention to you an idea which has sometimes pleased - me, and which I had once entertained thoughts of - attempting.[84:1] You may observe that, among modern readers, - Plutarch is, in every translation, the chief favourite of the - ancients. Numberless translations and numberless editions have - been made of him in all languages; and no translation has been - so ill done as not to be successful. Though those who read the - originals never put him in comparison either with Thucydides - or Xenophon, he always attaches more the reader in the - translation; a proof that the idea and execution of his work - is, in the main, happy. Now, I would have you think of writing - modern lives, somewhat after that manner: not to enter into a - detail of the actions, but to mark the manners of the great - personages, by domestic stories, by remarkable sayings, and by - a general sketch of their lives and adventures. You see that - in Plutarch the life of Caesar may be read in half an hour. - Were you to write the life of Henry the Fourth of France after - that model, you might pillage all the pretty stories in Sully, - and speak more of his mistresses than of his battles. In - short, you might gather the flower of all modern history in - this manner: the remarkable Popes, the Kings of Sweden, the - great discoverers and conquerors of the New World; even the - eminent men of letters, might furnish you with matter, and the - quick despatch of every different work would encourage you to - begin a new one. If one volume were successful, you might - compose another at your leisure, and the field is - inexhaustible. There are persons whom you might meet with in - the corners of history, so to speak, who would be a subject of - entertainment quite unexpected; and as long as you live, you - might give and receive amusement by such a work; even your - son, if he had a talent for history, would succeed to the - subject, and his son to him. I shall insist no farther on this - idea; because, if it strikes your fancy, you will easily - perceive all its advantages, and, by farther thought, all its - difficulties.[85:1] - -In 1760, Macpherson published those "Fragments of Ancient Poetry, -collected in the Highlands of Scotland, and translated from the Gaelic -or Erse language," which, afterwards enlarged, became the celebrated -"Ossian's Poems." Hume took an early interest in this professed -resuscitation of early national literature. He at first doubted the -truth of assertions so unprecedented in literary history, as those by -which the genuineness of the poems was maintained. But there was nothing -to which his heart would have responded with a warmer enthusiasm than -the discovery, that his ancestors, generally reputed to be but late -accessions to civilization, could look back upon a literature as rich -and great as that which had crowned Greece with the literary supremacy -of the world. Hence, he seems to have, after some time, willingly -yielded to a belief in the genuineness of these poems. His good sense -and sceptical spirit, however, resumed the supremacy, and he afterwards -wrote a very searching though short "Essay on the Authenticity of -Ossian's Poems." It is printed in the Appendix; and thither the whole -correspondence on the subject is transferred, that the reader may peruse -the various pieces in a series. It is probable that the sole reason why -Hume never published this detection, was a kindly feeling to his friend -Dr. Blair, against whom he might not wish to appear in a controversy, -where the critical powers of the latter would be so severely tested. And -yet they stood on perfectly fair ground. Neither Hume nor Blair had any -knowledge of the archaeological merits of the question. Each of them -discussed the probable genuineness of the poems on grounds as purely -critical as if they had been brought from Central Africa, instead of -being the alleged literature of a people who are supposed to have at one -time occupied the ground on which Edinburgh is built; and at the time of -that controversy, as at the present day, might be visited on a journey -of fifty miles. In such a state of knowledge, it required great freedom -and decision in criticism to pronounce the poems forgeries. Then, as -now, every genuine Celt protested that he had heard them over and over -again in Gaelic with his own ears; and with this only difference from -the translation, that there were peculiar delicate beauties in the -native Gaelic, which neither Macpherson, nor any other man, was capable -of expressing in English. In such an unequal controversy, between the -internal evidence of criticism, and the external evidence of broad -assertion, it is singular that no one should have attempted to solve the -question through the faint light which the chronicles of the surrounding -tribes throw on the history of the Celts in Scotland. That knowledge has -now been pretty widely extended; and hence "Ossian's Poems" have been -estimated at their true value, as an embossment of poetical language and -imagery, on the surface of such barren metrical narratives as all -uncivilized and warlike people possess; it has been found that the -structure of the narratives, the characteristic names, the events of -history, and the manners of the times, have been treated with no more -deference, when an alteration was found to suit the purpose of the -"translator."[87:1] - -Intensely occupied with his History anterior to the accession of the -Tudors, we thus find Hume writing to Millar on 27th October:-- - - -"I have been very busy ever since I came down; and if I keep my health, -shall be able to publish the winter after the next, or at farthest in -the subsequent spring; which I fancy will serve your purpose well -enough. At any rate, this is not a matter which I can hurry on faster -than I am able to satisfy myself in the execution. - -"I am very much pleased with what you tell me, that the Clarendon Papers -have fallen into Dr. Douglas's hands, especially as Dr. Robertson tells -me he intends to publish them. What my sentiments are on the question -you mention, you may learn from my letter to the Doctor, which I have -sent you open, and which I beg you to take the trouble of sending; for I -do not know how to direct it." - - -Hume wished to amuse himself with mystifying his friends about the -pamphlet above alluded to, called Sister Peg. The circumstance which -suggested to him the following letter, is said to have been his being -kept in ignorance that his friend Ferguson was the author of the piece. - - -HUME _to_ DR. CARLYLE. - -"_Edinburgh, 3d February, 1761._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I am informed that you have received a letter from London, -by which you learn that the manuscript of Sister Peg has been traced to -the printer's, and has been found to be, in many places, interlined and -corrected in my handwriting. I could have wished that you had not -published this piece of intelligence before you told me of it. The truth -is, after I had composed that trifling performance, and thought I had -made it as correct as I could, I gave it to a sure hand to be -transcribed, that in case any of the London printers had known my hand, -they might not be able to discover me. But as it lay by me some weeks -afterwards, I could not forbear reviewing it; and not having my -amanuensis at hand, I was obliged in several places to correct it -myself, rather than allow it to go to the press with inaccuracies of -which I was sensible. I little dreamed that this small want of -precaution would have betrayed me so soon; but as you know that I am -very indifferent about princes or presidents, ministers of the gospel or -ministers of state, kings or keysars, and set at defiance all powers, -human or infernal, I had no other reason for concealing myself, but in -order to try the taste of the public; whom, though I also set in some -degree at defiance, I cannot sometimes forbear paying a little regard -to. I find that frivolous composition has been better received than I -had any reason to expect, and therefore cannot much complain of the -injury you have done me by revealing my secret, and obliging me to -acknowledge it more early than I intended. The only reason of my writing -to you is, to know the printer's name, who has so far broke his -engagements as to show the manuscript; for the bookseller assured my -friend to whom I intrusted it, that we might depend upon an absolute -secrecy. I beg my compliments to Mrs. Carlyle, and am, dear sir," -&c.[89:1] - - -We see by the date of the following letter, that Hume varied his city -life with an occasional residence with his brother in Berwickshire. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Ninewells, 29th June, 1761._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--As your professorship of Hebrew is vacant, I have been -applied to in behalf of young Mr. Cummin; and you are the person with -whom I am supposed to have some interest. But as I imagine you will not -put this election on the footing of interest, I shall say nothing on -that head; but shall speak much more to the purpose by informing you, -that I have known Mr. Cummin for some time, and have esteemed him a -young man of exceeding good capacity, and of a turn towards literature. -He tells me that he has made the oriental tongues, and particularly the -Hebrew, a part of his study, and has made some proficiency in them. But -of this fact, craving his pardon, I must be allowed to entertain some -doubt; for if Hebrew roots, as Cowley says, thrive best in barren -soil,[90:1] he has a small chance of producing any great crop of them. -But as you commonly regard the professorship of Hebrew as a step towards -other professorships, in which a good capacity can better display -itself, you will permit me to give it as my opinion, that you will find -it difficult to pitch on a young man, who is more likely to be a credit -to your college, by his knowledge and industry. - -"I am so far on my road to London, where I hope to see you this season. -I shall lodge in Miss Elliot's, Lisle Street, Leicester Fields; and I -beg it of you to let me hear from you the moment of your arrival."[90:2] - - -In 1761, commenced Hume's acquaintance with Madame de Boufflers. It -afterwards ripened into a friendship, of which we cannot fully estimate -the nature, without looking not only at the character and position of -the parties, but at some conventional notions of morality, to which Hume -had been, previously, a stranger. Hyppolyte de Saujon, Comtesse de -Boufflers-Rouvel, is not to be confounded with her contemporary the -Marquise de Boufflers-Remencourt, mother of the witty Chevalier de -Boufflers. The prominent difference between them is but too startlingly -characteristic of the moral atmosphere in which they both lived--that -the former was mistress of the Prince of Conti, while the latter is -supposed to have held the same relation to Prince Stanislaus Augustus of -Poland, of whose court she was the great ornament and attraction. A -friendship between a respectable Scotsman of letters and a person in -Madame de Boufflers' position, is apt to excite a smile or a frown, -according to the habits or temper of the reader. Hume himself was not -likely to take the most austere view of the matter; and must have felt, -at any rate, that the scandal and even the blame of such connexions must -be greatly affected by the countenance they receive from the society to -which the parties belong. On the vileness of this code of organized -immorality, it would be superfluous, at this hour, to enlarge; but there -is a great difference between those who act up to the standard of a low -social system and those who do the same acts in breach of a higher code. -A Mahomedan who keeps a harem in Constantinople is inferior in his tone -of morality to an English gentleman, of good domestic conduct; but he is -infinitely superior to an Englishman with a harem in Piccadilly. - -The lady in question undoubtedly held a very high station in the best -society of Paris; and at that time, and in that country, it is certain -that such attachments, if permanent and decorous, and in a very high -class of society, acquired a more than tolerated respectability. In -1769, Madame de Boufflers speaks of her attachment as one of twenty -years' duration. Early in life, and soon after her marriage, she had -been placed at the court of the Duchess of Orleans: but quarrelling with -that princess, she came under the protection of the Prince of Conti. Of -course, her correspondence bears no mark of her having been subjected to -slights, or of her dreading them; or indeed of any suspicion that there -was any thing in her position to prevent her from being rigid in her -ideas of virtue, and a teacher of social duties. On her visit to -England, she was well received by the British aristocracy, and was even -honoured by a laudatory growl from Johnson. We find her exchanging -visits with the Marchioness of Hertford, the wife of the English -ambassador, one of the purest of that portion of the English female -aristocracy which had not suffered taint. In one of her letters to Hume, -she describes the death-bed of the prince's mother; speaks of her -displaying the heroism of a grand-daughter of the great Conde; and talks -with tearful gratitude of the early kindness of that princess to -herself, and of her attempts to pay the debt by solacing her old age, -and performing to her the last duties which the living receive from each -other. It is in all its spirit the letter of a daughter-in-law. - -The prince, though a generous and kind-hearted man, could not be -prevailed on to make her his wife on her husband's death; but when he -died in 1776, he had raised no princess over her head. We shall find -that she made Hume the confidant in her griefs and disappointments, and -the adviser in her difficulties. There is a great air of earnestness and -solicitude in these appeals; and though we cannot help presuming, that a -woman so full in her disclosures to a foreigner, living among a people -of totally different habits and morals, must have distributed a still -larger portion of her confidential revelations nearer home; yet it is -evident that she had much reliance on Hume's counsel, and perhaps he was -not ill fitted for a father-confessor to such a penitent. - -The letters of Hume to the countess, have already been for some time -before the English reader.[92:1] On the present occasion some -characteristic extracts will be interwoven with the letters which form -the other side of the correspondence. It is difficult for a native of -this country, with the fullest allowance for the redundancy of the -French laudatory and amicable vocabulary, to estimate at its true value -the ardour of these letters, or to adjust the amount of solid truth and -friendliness represented by such a blaze of ardent expressions. The -correspondence was of the lady's seeking and pursuing. Frequently, when -there is a pause, an impassioned letter from her rouses up the -philosopher; who starts into a sort of artificial excitement, and, when -it is over, sinks into lethargy again. Yet it must be admitted that Hume -acted his part pretty well, and that the fat philosopher was not far -behind the vivacious Frenchwoman. But with him it is visibly all acting; -and there is a total absence of the playful ease which adorns those -letters to his own chosen friends, with whom he was in heart and habits -at ease. In some instances, perhaps, he studied a formal and measured -style, as being more intelligible to a foreigner; and occasionally we -find him offering his correspondent facilities by the adoption of idioms -more French than English; as where he says, "I am truly ashamed, dear -madam, of your having _prevented_ me in breaking our long silence; but -you have _prevented_ me only a few days."[93:1] - -The letter with which the countess opens the correspondence, seems to -have been forwarded to Hume by Lord Elibank's brother, Alexander Murray, -who was then mixing with the Jacobites abroad, and who appears to have -enjoyed a very wide and much varied circle of acquaintance in France. He -says, in a letter of the 18th May, 1761:-- - - -"MY DEAR SIR,--It would appear great presumption in me to make you any -compliments upon your History of England, after having read the -enclosed; which with infinite pleasure I send you, as it procures you a -correspondence with the most amiable and accomplished lady of this -kingdom, or indeed any other. If after the peace you take a trip to this -polite and elegant country, you are sure, by the means of your new -female correspondent, of being made acquainted in a very short time with -all the wits in this part of the world. It is true your most -incomparable productions justly entitle you to that distinction. -However, being took by the hand by Madame de Boufflers, won't diminish -your intrinsic value, even among the most profound philosophers. In case -I can't return to England, and you take the resolution of coming here . -. . . . . I beg leave to assure you that I am, with as much esteem and -veneration as human creature can be, my dear sir, your most obedient and -most humble servant, and avowed friend, - - "A. MURRAY. - -"When you answer the enclosed, I beg it may be in English, as the lady -is quite mistress of that language."[94:1] - - -The letter forwarded to Hume was as follows: - - -MADAME DE BOUFFLERS _to_ HUME. - -(_Translation._) - - For a long time, sir, I have struggled with conflicting - sentiments. The admiration which your sublime work has - awakened in me, and the esteem with which it has inspired me - for your person, your talents, and your virtue, have often - aroused the desire of writing to you, that I might express - those sentiments towards you with which I am so deeply - penetrated. - - On the other hand, keeping in view the little value you can - have for my opinion, your want of personal acquaintance with - me, and the reserve and privacy, even, which are suitable to - my sex, I fear being accused of presumption, and of making - myself be known, to my own disadvantage, by a man whose good - opinion I shall always regard as the most flattering, and the - most precious of benefits. Nevertheless, although the - reflections I have made on this subject appeared to have much - force, an irresistible inclination rendered them unavailing; - and I come to add one to the thousand other instances, to - justify the truth of that remark which I have read in your - "History of the House of Stuart,"--"Men's views of things are - the result of their understanding alone: their conduct is - regulated by their understanding, their temper, and their - passions." Thus, when my reason tells me I ought to be silent, - my enthusiasm prevents me from regarding its voice. - - Although a woman, and of no very advanced age, despite the - dissipation attendant on the life one leads in this country, - having always loved reading, there are few good books in any - language, or of any kind, that I have not read, either in the - original, or in translations; and I can assure you, sir, with - a sincerity which cannot be questioned, that I have found none - which, to my judgment, unites so many perfections as your own. - I know no terms capable of expressing what I felt in reading - this work. I was moved, transported: and the emotion which it - caused me is, in some measure, painful by its continuance. It - elevates the soul; it fills the heart with sentiments of - humanity and benevolence; it enlightens the intellect, by - showing that true happiness is closely connected with virtue; - and discovers, by the same light, what is the end, and the - sole end, of every reasonable being. In the midst of the - calamities which, on all sides, surrounded Charles the First, - we see peace and security shining in their brightness, and - accompanying him to the scaffold; whilst trouble and remorse, - the inseparable companions of crime, follow the steps of - Cromwell, even to the throne. - - Your book also teaches how the best of things are liable to - abuse; and the reflections which are made on this subject - ought to augment our caution and distrust of ourselves. It - animates with a noble emulation; it inspires love of liberty; - and teaches, at the same time, submission to the government - under which we are obliged to live. In a word, it is a _terra - fecunda_ of morals and instruction, presented in colours so - bright, that we believe we see them for the first time. - - The clearness, the majesty, the touching simplicity of your - style delight me. Its beauties are so striking, that, - notwithstanding my ignorance of the English language, they - cannot escape me. You are, sir, an admirable painter: your - pictures have a grace, a nature, an energy, which surpass even - what the imagination can portray. - - But how shall I be able to express the effect produced upon me - by your divine impartiality? I would that I had, on this - occasion, your own eloquence in which to express my thought! - In truth, I believed I had before my eyes the work of some - celestial being, free from the passions of humanity, who, for - the benefit of the human race, has deigned to write the events - of these latter times. - - I dare only add, that in all which issues from your pen, you - show yourself a perfect philosopher, a statesman, a historian - full of genius, an enlightened politician, a genuine patriot. - All these sublime qualities are so far above the understanding - of a woman, that it is fitting I should say little on the - subject; and I have already great need of your indulgence for - the faults I have committed against discretion and decorum, by - the excess of my veneration for your merit. I entreat this of - you, sir, and, at the same time, the greatest secrecy. The - step I have taken is rather extraordinary. I fear it may - attract blame: and I would be grieved if the sentiment which - has constrained me to it should be misunderstood. - - I have the honour to be, sir, your very humble and very - obedient servant, - - HYPPOLYTE DE SAUJON, COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - - They tell me, sir, you have some idea of coming to France--to - Paris. I earnestly wish you would execute this resolution, - and that I may be able to assist in rendering your sojourn - agreeable. - - PARIS, _15th March, 1761_.[97:1] - -Hume must have been the more than mortal being which his new friend -describes, if he had resisted such an appeal; and he thus wrote in -answer:-- - - -HUME _to the_ COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - - _Edinburgh, 15th May, 1761._ - - MADAM,--It is not easy for your ladyship to imagine the - pleasure I received from the letter, with which you have so - unexpectedly honoured me, nor the agreeable visions of vanity, - in which, upon that occasion, I indulged myself. I concluded, - and, as I fancied, with certainty, that a person, who could - write so well herself, must certainly be a good judge of - writing in others; and that an author, who could please a lady - of your distinction, educated in the court of France, and - familiarized with every thing elegant and polite, might - reasonably pretend to some degree of merit, and might presume - to take his rank above the middling historians. But, madam, it - is but fair, that I, who have pretended, in so long a work, to - do justice to all parties and persons, should also do some to - myself; and should not feed my vanity with chimeras, which, I - am sensible, in my cooler moments, can have no foundation in - reason. When I had the pleasure of passing some time in - France, I had the agreeable experience of the polite - hospitality, by which your nation is distinguished; and I now - find, that the same favourable indulgence has appeared in your - ladyship's judgment of my writings. And, perhaps, your esteem - for the entire impartiality which I aim at, and which, to tell - the truth, is so unusual in English historians, has made your - ladyship overlook many defects, into which the want of art or - genius has betrayed me. - - In this particular, madam, I must own, that I am inclined to - take your civilities in their full latitude, and to hope that - I have not fallen much short of my intentions. The spirit of - faction, which prevails in this country, and which is a - natural attendant on civil liberty, carries every thing to - extremes on the one side, as well as on the other; and I have - the satisfaction to find, that my performance has alternately - given displeasure to both parties. I could not reasonably hope - to please both: such success is impossible from the nature of - things; and next to your ladyship's approbation, who, as a - foreigner, must necessarily be a candid judge, I shall always - regard the anger of both as the surest warrant of my - impartiality. - - As I find that you are pleased to employ your leisure hours in - the perusal of history, I shall presume to recommend to your - ladyship a late work of this kind, wrote by my friend and - countryman, Dr. Robertson, which has met with the highest - approbation from all good judges. - - It is the "History of Scotland" during the age of the - unfortunate Queen Mary; and it is wrote in an elegant, - agreeable, and interesting manner, and far exceeding, I shall - venture to say, any performance of that kind that has appeared - in English. The failings of that princess are not covered - over; but her singular catastrophe is rendered truly - lamentable and tragical; and the reader cannot forbear - shedding tears for her fate, at the same time that he blames - her conduct. There are few historical productions, where both - the subject and execution have appeared so happy. - - Some prospect is now given us, that this miserable war between - the two nations is drawing towards a period, and that the - former intercourse between them will again be renewed. If this - happy event take place, I have entertained hopes that my - affairs will permit me to take a journey to Paris; and the - obliging offer, which you are pleased to make me, of allowing - me to pay my respects to you, will prove a new and very - powerful inducement to make me hasten the execution of my - purpose. - - But I give your ladyship warning, that I shall, on many - accounts, stand in need of your indulgence. I passed a few - years in France during my early youth; but I lived in a - provincial town, where I enjoyed the advantages of leisure for - study, and an opportunity of learning the language: what I had - imperfectly learned, long disuse, I am afraid, has made me - forget. I have rusted amid books and study; have been little - engaged in the active, and not much in the pleasurable scenes - of life; and am more accustomed to a select society than to - general companies. - - But all these disadvantages, and much greater, will be - abundantly compensated by the honour of your ladyship's - protection; and I hope that my profound sense of your obliging - favours will render me not altogether unworthy of it. - - I have the honour to be, with the greatest respect, madam, - your ladyship's most obedient and most humble servant.[101:1] - -In return, Madame De Boufflers reiterates her compliments, vouches for -her sincerity, and if Hume should fulfil his intention of visiting -France, offers him the use of apartments, saying, that if he accept the -offer it will be an infinite obligation to her; if he refuse it, she -will be vexed but not offended. She will introduce him to her circle of -friends, and do every thing that can tend to make his visit -agreeable.[101:2] In answer to this, Hume finds that the warlike aspect -of affairs will preclude him, in the meantime, from enjoying the society -"of a person so celebrated for her accomplishments by all who have any -knowledge of the court of France."[101:3] - -Mr. Murray's praise of Madame de Boufflers' knowledge of the English -language was not misapplied; as the following short letter, and another -of greater length, which will be found a few pages farther on, show. -With a few inaccuracies, they afford a very remarkable instance of -idiomatic acquaintance with our tongue. - - -"I have received, sir, by an unknown hand, the continuation of your -admirable performance. Some little perhaps of the pride so common in my -sex, but much more the desire to contract an obligation with a man of -your merit, and to obtain from him so valuable a favour, have persuaded -me I was indebted to you for it. 'Tis natural to bend our thoughts -towards what is most advantageous for us, however elevated it may be. -The wrong should be only to believe we deserve it. Then, sir, I think, -that in wishing such a proof of your kindness, and confessing in the -same time I have no right to pretend to it, I prove my just opinion of -both. I am, sir, your humble servant. - -"_Paris, May 29, 1762._" - - -On this, Hume, after observing with ingenious courtesy, that a fairy, a -sylph, or a good genius, who knew his inmost thoughts, must have -anticipated him in sending the copy of his History, continues:--"But, -madam, what new wonder is this which your letter presents to me? I not -only find a lady, who, in the bloom of beauty and height of reputation, -can withdraw herself from the pleasures of a gay court, and find leisure -to cultivate the sciences; but deigns to support a correspondence with a -man of letters in a remote country, and to reward his labours by a -suffrage the most agreeable of all others, to a man who has any spark of -generous sentiments or taste for true glory. Besides these unusual -circumstances, I find a lady, who, without any other advantages than her -own talents, has made herself mistress of a language commonly esteemed -very difficult to strangers, and possesses it to such a degree as might -give jealousy to us who have made it the business of our lives to -acquire and cultivate it. - -"I cannot but congratulate my country on this incident, which marks the -progress made by its literature and reputation in foreign countries." - - * * * * * - -Nearly contemporary with the Comtesse de Boufflers, comes on the scene a -person with whom we shall hereafter have much concern, Jean Jacques -Rousseau. He had been living under the protection of the Marechal de -Luxembourg, in the celebrated hermitage near the castle of Montmorency, -when he published his "Emile." Highly as he was supported, the wrath of -the clergy prevailed; and a writ of _prise de corps_ was issued for his -apprehension. It appears that in those strange times of intolerance and -infidelity, there would have been no cause of wonder, if the proceedings -had ended in a capital conviction. With the aid of his friends, the -Luxembourgs and Choiseuls, Rousseau fled the kingdom. On this occasion -he seems to have been thoroughly frightened; and his conduct was -occasioned neither by ostentation, nor perverse discontent. His first -place of refuge was Neufchatel, one of the Swiss Cantons, of which the -sovereignty was in the house of Brandenburg. Rousseau was thus for a -time one of the illustrious literary men under the protection of -Frederick the Great, though distant from his philosophical capital. - -He appealed, however, to a warmer heart than ever beat in the breast of -the conqueror of Prague. The exiled Earl Marischal of Scotland--a valued -friend of Hume, as of all who became acquainted with him--was then -Governor of Neufchatel. Subsequently to his flight from his native -country, for his concern in the rebellion of 1715, when he was a mere -youth, he had suffered a long series of hardships, privations, and -uncertainties; until Frederick saw his value, and purchased his services -at such a rate as a friendless exile might not refuse. Adversity, which -too often hardens the selfishness, and debases the propensities of an -aristocracy driven from home by internal convulsions, had but taught him -how much men are dependent on each other, and had opened his heart to a -wider sympathy with his fellow creatures. His opinions were as tolerant -as his nature was kind; and the fugitive could not have sought an asylum -where he would be more sincerely welcomed. The power of the king of -Prussia's representative, was, however, not sufficient to protect him -from the people,--or from himself; and from the time of his flight from -France, those who believed that he sincerely desired a retreat where he -would be safe from all molestation, looked towards Britain. The -following letters from the forfeited earl, at a few months' interval -from each other, chiefly relate to Rousseau. The earl appears to have -been so thoroughly imbued with foreign habits, that he wrote English -with difficulty: most of his letters to Hume are in French, and when he -commences in English, he generally relapses into French. Though so long -employed by the Prussian court, he seems to have been ignorant of -German. It may be observed, however, that French is the vernacular -language of Neufchatel. - - -THE FORFEITED EARL MARISCHAL _to_ HUME. - - _April 29._ - - In answer to your question, the Donquixotisme you mention - never entered into my head. I wish I could see you, to answer - honestly all your questions; for though I had my share of - folly with others, yet as my intentions were at bottom honest, - I should open to you my whole budget, and let you know many - things which are perhaps ill-represented, I mean not truly. I - remember to have recommended to your acquaintance Mr. Floyd, - son to old David Floyd, at St. Germains, as a man of good - sense, honour, and honesty. I fear he is dead: he would have - been of great service to you in a part of your History since - 1688. Apropos of History, when you see Helvetius, tell I - desired you to inquire of him concerning a certain History. I - fancy he will answer you with his usual frankness. I do - believe Mr. Rousseau will find it impossible to live where he - finds nobody who understands a word of what he says; there - occurs so often occasion, even of trifling things necessary, - that it is a vexation not to understand the language of the - country. I feel it often, though I understand many words of - German, such as kleigh, nigh, nogh, ter migh, ter - Teyfel,[105:1] and others, high sounding as here pronounced, - and of which the Ter Tunder would, I believe, put to flight - the delicate ears of the whole town of Sienna. - - I hear you are going to France this summer. If you will come - to Frankfort on Main, I will meet you there the end of July, - and stay with you a fortnight. Bon jour. - - N.B.--You have better roads than I, you are strong as a giant, - and I am growing ten years older every month; so I think my - offer fair. - - - _Oct. 2, 1762._ - - Jean Jacques Rousseau, persecuted for having writ what he - thinks good, or rather, as some folks think, for having - displeased persons in great power, who attributed to him what - he never meant, came here to seek retreat, which I readily - granted; and the king of Prussia not only approved of my so - doing, but gave me orders to furnish him his small - necessaries, if he would accept them; and though that king's - philosophy be very different from that of Jean Jacques, yet he - does not think that a man of an irreproachable life is to be - persecuted because his sentiments are singular. He designs to - build him a hermitage with a little garden, which I find he - will not accept, nor perhaps the rest which I have not yet - offered to him. He is gay in company, polite, and what the - French call _aimable_, and gains ground daily in the opinion - of even the clergy here. His enemies elsewhere continue to - persecute him: he is pestered with anonymous letters. This is - not a country for him: his attachment and love to his native - town is a strong tie to its neighbourhood. The liberty of - England, and the character of my good and honoured friend, D. - Hume, F----i D----r, (perhaps more singular than that of J. - Jacques, for I take him to be the only historian impartial,) - draws his inclinations to be near to the F----i D----r. For my - part, though it be to me a very great pleasure to converse - with the honest savage, yet I advise him to go to England, - where he will enjoy - - ----placidam sub libertate quietem. - - He wishes to know, if he can print all his works, and make - some profit, merely to live, from such an edition. I entreat - you will let me know your thoughts on this, and if you can be - of use to him in finding him a bookseller to undertake the - work: you know he is not interested, and little will content - him. If he goes to Britain, he will be a treasure to you, and - you to him, and perhaps both to me (if I were not so old.) I - have offered him lodging in Keith-hall. I am ever, with the - greatest regard, your most obedient servant, - - M----. - -At the same time Madame de Boufflers wrote as follows:-- - - -MADAME DE BOUFFLERS _to_ HUME. - -(_Translation._) - - _Paris, 16th June, 1762._ - - Jean Jacques Rousseau, citizen of Geneva, and the author of - many works with which you are probably acquainted, has - composed a Treatise on Education, in four volumes, in which he - sets forth many principles contrary to ours, both in politics - and religion. As we do not enjoy here the liberty of the - press, the Parliament, by a decree, just, (if it is, as I - doubt not, conformable to the laws of the kingdom,) but - nevertheless rigorous, has decreed the _prise de corps_; and - it is said that, if he had not taken to flight, he would have - been condemned to death. I can scarcely think they could have - proceeded so far against him as a stranger; but, be that as it - may, it would have been imprudent in him to remain in France - under such circumstances. He has therefore departed, uncertain - what asylum he will choose. I have advised him to go to - England, promising him letters of recommendation to you, and - other friends. I fulfil my promise, and I cannot, in my - opinion, choose for him, in all Europe, a protector more - respectable by his position, and more to be commended for his - humanity. M. Rousseau is known to the greater part of the - people in this country for an eccentric man. This epithet, - according to its true signification, is most justly applied to - him; for he differs, in many respects, in his modes of acting - and thinking, from the men of his day. He has an upright - heart, a noble and disinterested soul. He dreads every - species of dependence, and consequently would have preferred - being in France, gaining his subsistence by copying music, to - receiving benefits even from his best friends, who are anxious - to make up for his misfortunes. This delicacy may appear - excessive, but it is not criminal, and it even augurs elevated - sentiments. He flies from intercourse with the world; he feels - pleasure only in solitude. This partiality for retirement has - made him enemies. The self-love of those who court him is - wounded by his rebuffs; but notwithstanding such apparent - misanthropy, I do not believe you will find any where, a man - more gentle, more humane, more compassionate to the sorrows of - others, and more patient under his own. In short, his virtue - appears so pure, so contented, so equal, that, until now, - those who hated him could find only in their own heart reasons - for suspecting him. As for me, with appearances so much in his - favour, I would rather be deceived than doubt his sincerity. - - From the opinion that I have of him, sir, he has been judged - worthy of being known to you; and in procuring him this - honour, I believe I give the most marked proof of my - consideration for him.[107:1] - -To this Hume made answer in the postscript of the letter cited above. - - -"P.S.--So far I had wrote in answer to your ladyship's of the 29th of -May, when I was again honoured with yours of the 14th of June. Good God! -madam, how much I regret my being absent from London on this occasion, -which deprives me of the opportunity of showing in person my regard for -your recommendation, and my esteem, I had almost said veneration, for -the virtue and genius of M. Rousseau. I assure your ladyship there is no -man in Europe of whom I have entertained a higher idea, and whom I would -be prouder to serve; and as I find his reputation very high in England, -I hope every one will endeavour to make him sensible of it by -civilities, and by services, as far as he will accept of them. I revere -his greatness of mind, which makes him fly obligations and dependence; -and I have the vanity to think, that through the course of my life I -have endeavoured to resemble him in those maxims. - -"But as I have some connexions with men of rank in London, I shall -instantly write to them, and endeavour to make them sensible of the -honour M. Rousseau has done us in choosing an asylum in England. We are -happy at present in a king who has a taste for literature; and I hope M. -Rousseau will find the advantage of it, and that he will not disdain to -receive benefits from a great monarch, who is sensible of his merit. I -am only afraid that your friend will find his abode in England not so -agreeable as may be wished, if he does not possess the language, which I -am afraid is the case: for I never could observe in his writings any -marks of his acquaintance with the English tongue."[109:1] - - -From these communications, Hume derived the notion that Rousseau had -immediately proceeded to London. The following paragraph, in a letter -from Elliot, indicates the nature of the inquiries pursued under this -supposition. - - DEAR SIR,--As soon as I received your letter, I applied to Mr. - Home, who had also heard from you by the same post, and - desired him to make all possible inquiry after M. Rousseau. If - he be in London we shall certainly find him out; and I need - not assure you, that both on account of his own merit, and - your recommendation, I shall not fail to show him all the - attention in my power. I should doubt, from the known - character of the man, whether he would accept a pension if it - could be procured for him; and should rather apprehend that, - though this government will protect and tolerate the boldness - of his pen, yet it will hardly reward it. Rousseau is not the - only man of genius, the singularity of whose opinions has - intercepted the rewards due to the superiority of his talents. - -In the supposition that he had passed over to England, Hume addressed a -letter to Rousseau, as then in London, which was answered by the Chien -de Diogene, as Voltaire called him, from his retreat in Neufchatel, on -19th February, 1763. He says he has just received the letter, regrets -that he should have made the mistake of trusting himself among his own -countrymen, who have treated him with insult and outrage, instead of -seeking the hospitable shores of Britain. He does something like justice -to the kindness of Lord Marischal, in the midst of his general mordacity -and discontent; and he praises the wide views, the wonderful -impartiality, the genius of Hume, which would raise him so far above the -rest of his kind, did not the goodness of his heart bring him nearer to -their level.[110:1] - -The following letter from Madame de Boufflers, written in English, had -been received in the meantime. - - -MADAME DE BOUFFLERS _to_ HUME. - - _July 30._ - - How difficult it is, sir, for one very far from being - insensible to reputation, to refuse the praises of a man, - whose sincerity and admirable talents render them so valuable. - But in regard to veracity, and perhaps more to my true - interest, I am obliged to acknowledge, I stand a great - distance, for internal or external accomplishments, from the - favourable opinion you have taken of me, whether, in - consulting the noble sentiments which ever inspire you with - sublime ideas, whether in hearkening to some of your - countrymen, disposed to indulgence towards me, by my - well-known inclination for their country. - - Perhaps, sir, I confess it with ingenuity, had I been doomed - to be never personally acquainted with you, I should not have - generosity enough to correct your judgment of me. But in this - particular occasion, as in all other, according to my humble - opinion, right and good are closely united. What a shame - indeed for me, and disappointment for you, in place of the - object your imagination has adorned with such shining - qualifications, to find a person to whom Nature has granted - but indifferent ones. A great part of my youth is over. Some - delicacy in features, mildness and decency in countenance, are - the only exterior advantages I can boast of; and as for - interior, common sense, improved a little by early good - reading, are all I possess. My knowledge of the English - language also is confined, as you can easily perceive. I have, - indeed, acquired without assistance that which I know of it; - but if I am entitled to some elegancy, I owe it to the - repeated readings of your admirable works. - - After this true picture of myself, in which I have struggled - to exert the noble impartiality and candour which shine in all - your writings, my first care is, sir, to acknowledge the - infinite obligations you have conferred upon me by your kind - letter. I have translated the P. S. to send it to my friend. - The esteem of such a man must be the best balm for his wounded - heart. But I am afraid he will not accept the glorious support - you are so good as to offer him. I fear that the weight of his - calamities has impaired his health, and he cannot sustain the - fatigues of a long journey. In his last letter to me, he - expresses a resolution never to see England upon that account. - Nevertheless, I am informed since, that new persecutions may - possibly determine him to alter his mind. An irregular trial - has deprived him of the natural rights in his own country. The - commonwealth of Berne, from the example of Geneva and France, - has burnt his book, and he has been reduced to leave in a - hurry the asylum that a friend had proffered him there. Such - are the grievous misfortunes of this virtuous and unhappy man. - I pity, I love him, and wish earnestly to sooth the sorrows - under which he labours. Nevertheless, sir, I would fain also - vindicate the honour of my nation in the eyes of so good a - judge as you are. The reflection you cast upon it gives - uneasiness; but mistrusting greatly my capacity, I fear to - betray the cause I would defend by an enterprise so unequal to - my force. I dare only to say, that your happy country has not - attained in a moment the perfect constitution which gives us - admiration. All convenient and well-calculated laws are not - framed at once; and those most exceptionable, while they - stand, deserve obedience and respect. - - Is it possible, sir, that this late unhappy event could - deprive of the honour of your presence, a country filled with - your fervent admirers, and where every one will endeavour to - outdo each other in expressing the veneration and regard you - so justly deserve? I hope you will not keep this severe - resolution. If we want a liberty you think an advantage, 'tis - a reason to pity, and not to punish us. Besides, your case and - that of M. Rousseau, though both foreigners in France, are - quite different. Few days before I received your letter, I - heard that it was a friend of mine who has favoured me with - your last performance. I am infinitely obliged to him for this - gracious gift, and to you, sir, for your good intention. - - But what strange a creature will you think me, to venture to - point a mistake in a work so perfect? In several parts of the - first volume our countryman Godefroy of Bouillon is named - Godefroy de Boulogne. You have reasons, perhaps, for the - alteration, and I am ready to submit to them. I would only - express my doubts: I hope you will excuse this freedom. - - Since I have gone so far, permit me, sir, to ask your opinion - upon the last book of M. Rousseau. I should be very glad to - have my judgment of it confirmed or mended by yours. Nothing - would be wanting to my satisfaction, if in the same letter, - where you could grant me the favour I wish for, I was assured - you had renewed the project to come here, and that you would - speedily execute it. I am, sir, with esteem, gratitude, and, - permit me to add, friendship, your most humble servant. - -In answer to this letter, Hume says that he had at first regarded it as -a sort of challenge to answer it in French, but that he had given up the -attempt as an unequal contest with "the sole instance of a foreigner, -not habituated to our tongue, who has, from reading alone, become so -entirely mistress of it." He then gives an account of the letter he had -received from Lord Marischal, and says of Rousseau's refusal of the -kindnesses proferred to him,--"Rousseau, with his usual dignity, refused -all these gratuities, though at the same time he desired my lord to -learn from me, whether it were possible for him to gain from the London -booksellers as much money as would suffice for his maintenance; and this -recompense, being the fruit of his own industry, he would have no -scruple to accept of. I think this instance of conduct a kind of -phenomenon in the republic of letters, and one very honourable for M. -Rousseau. One is only apt to wish that he could practise this virtue -with less hardship and difficulty; though we must also confess, that the -difficulty adds to the lustre of it. I have heard, that the circumstance -which deterred him from coming over to England, as he first intended, -was a harsh reflection, which he threw out on the people in his -'Treatise of Education:' if this was his motive, I am persuaded that he -would find it a vain fear, and that every one would rather have been -anxious to show respect to his merit."[113:1] - -He then obeys the mandate to criticise the "Emile." - - You deign, madam, to ask my opinion of the new performance of - M. Rousseau. I know that it becomes me better to form my - judgment upon yours; but in compliance with your commands, I - shall not make a secret of my sentiments. All the writings of - that author appear to me admirable, particularly on the head - of eloquence; and if I be not much mistaken, he gives to the - French tongue an energy, which it scarce seems to have reached - in any other hands. But as his enemies have objected, that - with this domineering force of genius there is always - intermingled some degree of extravagance, it is impossible for - his friends altogether to deny the charge; and were it not for - his frequent and earnest protestations to the contrary, one - would be apt to suspect, that he chooses his topics less from - persuasion, than from the pleasure of showing his invention, - and surprising the reader by his paradoxes. The "Treatise of - Education," as it possesses much of the merit, seems also - exposed to the faults of his other performances; and as he - indulges his love of the marvellous even in so serious and - important a subject, he has given a pledge to the public that - he was in earnest in all his other topics. If I dared to - object any thing to M. Rousseau's eloquence, which is the - shining side of his character, I should say, that it was not - wholly free from the defect sometimes found in that of the - Roman orator; and that their great talent for expression was - apt to produce a prolixity in both. This last performance - chiefly is exposed to this objection; and I own, that though - it abounds in noble and shining passages, it gave me rather - less pleasure than his former writings. However, it carries - still the stamp of a great genius; and, what enhances its - beauty, the stamp of a very particular genius. The noble pride - and spleen and indignation of the author bursts out with - freedom in a hundred places, and serves fully to characterize - the lofty spirit of the man. - - When I came to peruse that passage of Mons. Rousseau's - Treatise, which has occasioned all the persecution against - him, I was not in the least surprised that it gave offence. - He has not had the precaution to throw any veil over his - sentiments; and as he scorns to dissemble his contempt of - established opinions, he could not wonder that all the zealots - were in arms against him. The liberty of the press is not so - secured in any country, scarce even in this, as not to render - such an open attack of popular prejudices somewhat - dangerous.[115:1] - -In 1761, Dr. Blair communicated to Hume the sermon by Dr. Campbell, -which, when subsequently expanded, became the "Dissertation on -Miracles," already referred to.[115:2] On this occasion, Hume wrote in -the following terms to Dr. Blair:-- - - -"DEAR SIR,--I have perused the ingenious performance, which you was so -obliging as to put into my hands, with all the attention possible; -though not perhaps with all the seriousness and gravity which you have -so frequently recommended to me. But the fault lies not in the piece, -which is certainly very acute; but in the subject. I know you will say, -it lies in neither, but in myself alone. If that be so, I am sorry to -say that I believe it is incurable. - -"I could wish that your friend had not chosen to appear as a -controversial writer, but had endeavoured to establish his principles in -general, without any reference to a particular book or person; though I -own he does me a great deal of honour, in thinking that any thing I have -wrote deserves his attention. For besides many inconveniences which -attend that kind of writing, I see it is almost impossible to preserve -decency and good manners in it. This author, for instance, says -sometimes obliging things of me, much beyond what I can presume to -deserve, and I thence conclude that in general he did not mean to insult -me; yet I meet with some other passages, more worthy of Warburton and -his followers, than of so ingenious an author. - -"But as I am not apt to lose my temper, and would still less incline to -do so with a friend of yours, I shall calmly communicate to you some -remarks on the argument, since you seem to desire it. I shall employ -very few words, since a hint will suffice to a gentleman of this -author's penetration." - - -This is followed by a particular examination of some parts of Dr. -Campbell's work, which may be perused to most advantage in conjunction -with the Dissertation itself, along with which the letter is generally -printed. He then says,-- - - -"I could wish your friend had not denominated me an infidel writer, on -account of ten or twelve pages, which seem to him to have that tendency, -while I have wrote so many volumes on history, literature, politics, -trade, morals, which, in that particular at least, are entirely -inoffensive. Is a man to be called a drunkard, because he has been seen -fuddled once in his lifetime?"[116:1] - - -The letter terminates with a recommendation which accounts for the -absence of all observations on religious topics in the correspondence -between Blair and Hume: while it shows that their intercourse had not -always excluded discussions of such a character. - - -"Having said so much to your friend, who is certainly a very ingenious -man, though a little too zealous for a philosopher, permit me also the -freedom of saying a word to yourself. Whenever I have had the pleasure -to be in your company, if the discourse turned upon any common subject -of literature, or reasoning, I always parted from you both entertained -and instructed. But when the conversation was diverted by you from this -channel towards the subject of your profession; though I doubt not but -your intentions were very friendly towards me, I own I never received -the same satisfaction: I was apt to be tired, and you to be angry. I -would therefore wish, for the future, whenever my good fortune throws me -in your way, that these topics should be forborne between us. I have -long since done with all inquiries on such subjects, and am become -incapable of instruction; though I own no one is more capable of -conveying it than yourself. After having given you the liberty of -communicating to your friend what part of this letter you think proper, -I remain, sir," &c. - - -Hume afterwards wrote the following letter on the same subject:-- - - -HUME _to_ DR. CAMPBELL. - -"_January 7, 1762._ - -"DEAR SIR,--It has so seldom happened that controversies in philosophy, -much more in theology, have been carried on without producing a personal -quarrel between the parties, that I must regard my present situation as -somewhat extraordinary, who have reason to give you thanks for the civil -and obliging manner in which you have conducted the dispute against me, -on so interesting a subject as that of miracles. Any little symptoms of -vehemence, of which I formerly used the freedom to complain, when you -favoured me with a sight of the manuscript, are either removed or -explained away, or atoned for by civilities, which are far beyond what I -have any title to pretend to. It will be natural for you to imagine, -that I will fall upon some shift to evade the force of your arguments, -and to retain my former opinion in the point controverted between us; -but it is impossible for me not to see the ingenuity of your -performance, and the great learning which you have displayed against me. - -"I consider myself as very much honoured in being thought worthy of an -answer by a person of so much merit; and as I find that the public does -you justice with regard to the ingenuity and good composition of your -piece, I hope you will have no reason to repent engaging with an -antagonist, whom, perhaps, in strictness, you might have ventured to -neglect. I own to you, that I never felt so violent an inclination to -defend myself as at present, when I am thus fairly challenged by you, -and I think I could find something specious at least to urge in my -defence; but as I had fixed a resolution, in the beginning of my life, -always to leave the public to judge between my adversaries and me, -without making any reply, I must adhere inviolably to this resolution, -otherwise my silence on any future occasion would be construed an -inability to answer, and would be matter of triumph against me."[119:1] - - -He then, in the passage already cited,[119:2] describes the occasion on -which the "Theory of Miracles" was suggested to him. - -In answer to this, there is a letter by Campbell, in which he endeavours -to rival his opponent in candour, politeness, and gentlemanlike feeling. -The happy courtesy with which he apologizes for the occasionally -irascible tone of his essay, shows that the retired northern divine -possessed in no small degree the qualities that might have adorned a -more showy station. - - -DR. CAMPBELL _to_ HUME. - - _25th June, 1762._ - - The testimony you are pleased to give in favour of my - performance, is an honour of which I should be entirely - unworthy, were I not sensible of the uncommon generosity you - have shown in giving it. Ever since I was acquainted with your - works, your talents as a writer have, notwithstanding some - differences in abstract principles, extorted from me the - highest veneration. But I could scarce have thought that, in - spite of differences of a more interesting nature, even such - as regard morals and religion, you could ever force me to love - and honour you as a man. Yet no religious prejudices (as you - would probably term them,) can hinder me from doing justice to - that goodness and candour, which appear in every line of your - letter. - - It would be in vain to dissemble the pleasure which it gives - me, that I am thought to have acquitted myself tolerably in a - dispute with an author of such acknowledged merit. At the same - time, it gives me real pain, that any symptoms of vehemence - (which are not so easily avoided in disputation as one would - imagine,) should give so generous an adversary the least - ground of complaint. You have (if I remember right, for I have - not the book here,) in the appendix to the third volume of - your "Treatise on Human Nature," apologized for using - sometimes the expressions--'Tis certain, 'Tis evident, and the - like. These, you observe, were in a manner forced from you by - the strong, though transient light in which a particular - object then appeared, and are therefore not to be considered - as at all inconsistent with the general principles of - scepticism which are maintained in the Treatise. My apology is - somewhat similar. There is in all controversy a struggle for - victory, which I may say compels one to take every fair - advantage that either the sentiments or the words of an - antagonist present him with. But the appearances of asperity - or raillery, which one will be thereby necessarily drawn into, - ought not to be constructed as in the least affecting the - habitual good opinion, or even the high esteem, which the - writer may nevertheless entertain of his adversary. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[74:1] The following contrasted extracts represent some of the -variations above alluded to. The passages on the one side will be found -in the first, and those in the other in the last corrected edition of -the "History of the Stuarts." - -_First edition._ - - _Later editions._ - -_King James_ inculcated those monarchical tenets with which he was so -much infatuated. P. 54. - - Inculcated those monarchical tenets which he had so strongly - imbibed. - -_Divine right._ And though these doctrines were perhaps more openly -inculcated and more strenuously insisted on during the reign of the -Stuarts, they were not then invented. P. 120. - - And though it is pretended that these doctrines were more - openly inculcated, and more strenuously insisted on, during - the reign of the Stuarts, they were not then invented. - -_America._ The seeds of many a noble state have been sown in climates -kept desolate by the wild manners of the ancient inhabitants; and an -asylum secured in that solitary world for liberty and science, if ever -the spreading of unlimited empire, or the inroad of barbarous nations, -should again extinguish them in this turbulent and restless hemisphere. -P. 134. - - Expunged. - -_Charles I._ However moderate his temper, the natural illusions of -self-love, joined to his education under James, and to the flattery of -courtiers and churchmen, had represented his political tenets as certain -and uncontroverted. P. 148. - - However moderate his temper, the natural and unavoidable - prepossessions of self-love, joined to the late uniform - precedents in favour of prerogative, had made him regard his - political tenets as certain and uncontroverted. - -Loans were by privy seal required of several: to others the way of -benevolence was proposed; methods supported by precedents, condemned by -positive laws, and always invidious even to times more submissive and -compliant. In the most despotic governments, such expedients would be -regarded as irregular and disorderly. P. 159. - - Of some, loans were required: to others, the way of - benevolence was proposed: methods supported by precedent, but - always invidious even in times more submissive and compliant. - In the most absolute governments, such expedients would be - regarded as irregular and unequal. - -The new counsels which Charles had mentioned to the parliament, were now -to be tried in order to supply his necessities. Had he possessed any -military force on which he could depend, 'tis likely that he had at once -taken off the mask, and governed without any regard to the ancient laws -and constitution: so high an idea had he imbibed of kingly prerogative, -and so contemptible a notion of the privileges of those popular -assemblies, from which he thought he had met with such ill usage. But -his army was new levied, ill-paid, and worse disciplined; no way -superior to the militia, who were much more numerous, and who were in a -great measure under the influence of the country gentlemen. It behoved -him therefore to proceed cautiously, and to cover his enterprises under -pretext of ancient precedents. P. 158. - - The new counsels which Charles had mentioned to the - parliament, were now to be tried, in order to supply his - necessities. Had he possessed any military force on which he - could rely, it is not improbable that he had at once taken off - the mask, and governed without any regard to parliamentary - privileges: so high an idea had he received of kingly - prerogative, and so contemptible a notion of the rights of - those popular assemblies, from which he very naturally thought - he had met with such ill-usage. But his army was new levied, - ill-paid, and worse disciplined; nowise superior to the - militia, who were much more numerous, and who were in a great - measure under the influence of the country gentlemen. It - behoved him therefore to proceed cautiously, and to cover his - enterprises under pretence of ancient precedents, which, - considering the great authority commonly enjoyed by his - predecessors, could not be wanting to himself. - -In most national debates, though the reasons may not be equally -balanced, yet are there commonly some plausible topics, which may be -pleaded even in favour of the weaker side; so complicated are all human -affairs, and so uncertain the consequences of every public measure. But -it must be confessed, that in the present case, nothing of weight can be -thrown into the opposite scale. The imposition of ship-money, is -apparently the most avowed and most dangerous invasion of national -privileges, not only which Charles was ever guilty of, but which the -most arbitrary princes in England, since any liberty had been -ascertained to the people, had ever ventured upon. P. 218. - - Expunged. - -Perhaps the King, who dreaded above all things the House of Commons, and -who never sufficiently respected the constitution, thought, that, in his -present urgent distresses, he might be enabled to levy subsidies, by the -authority of the peers alone. But the employing so long a plea of -necessity, which was evidently false, and ill grounded, rendered it -impossible for him to avail himself of a necessity which was now at last -become real and inevitable. P. 247. - - Perhaps the King, who dreaded above all things the House of - Commons, and who expected no supply from them on any - reasonable terms, thought, that in his present distresses, he - might be enabled to levy supplies by the authority of the - peers alone. But the employing so long the plea of a - necessity, which appeared distant and doubtful, rendered it - impossible for him to avail himself of a necessity which was - now at last become real, urgent, and inevitable. - - -_The attempt to seize the Five Members._ - -This strange resolution, so incompatible with the majesty of a king, so -improper even for the dignity of any great magistrate, was discovered to -the Countess of Carlisle, sister to Northumberland, a lady of great -spirit, wit, and intrigue. P. 318. - - This resolution was discovered to the Countess of Carlisle, - sister to Northumberland, a lady of spirit, wit, and intrigue. - -[78:1] In the MSS. R.S.E. - -[78:2] See the letter itself in the Clarendon Papers, ii. 201-3. - -[79:1] The following are some instances of the alterations made on the -first edition of his History. The collection of these instances has been -facilitated by the use of a copy of the first edition of the Histories -of the Houses of Stuart and Tudor, in the possession of a friend, on -which the alterations embodied in the subsequent editions are written in -red ink. - -_In the first edition._ - - _As altered._ - -Scotch. - - Scottish. - -Such was the terror, respectable and rare in a monarch. - - So great was the terror, respectable as well as rare, in a - monarch. - -May be esteemed a great reflection on his memory. - - May be deemed a great reflection on his memory. - -Betwixt. - - Between. - -We come now to relate. - - We are now to relate. - -Under pretext of a hunting match. - - On pretence of a hunting match. - -Making account that. - - Thinking himself assured that. - -Their concurrence became requisite. - - Their concurrence became necessary. - -Along with. - - Together with. - -Esteemed impartial. - - Deemed impartial. - -To a pitch beyond what had ever been known since. - - To a height beyond what had been known since. - -Entirely requisite for their future safety. - - Absolutely necessary for their future safety. - -When the exception really occurs, even though it be not precedently -expected. - - When the exception really occurs, even though it be not - previously expected. - -Any way displeased at the, &c. - - Any-wise displeased at the, &c. - -Monarchical tenets with which he was so much infatuated. - - Monarchical tenets which he had so strongly imbibed. - -Graced with ecclesiastical titles. - - Endowed with ecclesiastical titles. - -Inflicting this sentence. - - Pronouncing this sentence. - -Confined in the Tower. - - Confined to the Tower. - -Debarred from such sports. - - Debarred such sports. - -Raleigh pretended not. - - Raleigh did not pretend. - -War with the Spaniards. - - War against the Spaniards. - -As to the circumstance of the narration. - - As to the circumstance of the narrative. - -Would have had a most just cause. - - Would have had a just cause. - -Such as together with. - - Such as along with. - -Interposal in the wars. - - Interposition in the wars. - -Effectuate a marriage. - - Effect a marriage. - -He was utterly devoid. - - He was utterly destitute. - -Headlong in his passions. - - Headstrong in his passions. - -Obtained at last. - - Obtained at length. - -A bill declarative. - - A bill declaratory. - -Forced into a breach. - - Constrained to make a breach. - -Had sat. - - Had sitten. - -However little inclined. - - How little soever inclined. - -Besides being a most atrocious violence. - - Besides its being a most atrocious act of violence. - -Precedent to Strafford's trial. - - Previous to Strafford's trial. - -Afraid that. - - Afraid lest. - -Was ordinarily lodged in. - - Was commonly lodged in. - -Was the person who introduced. - - Was the person that introduced. - -During all the time when. - - During the time that. - -Reduced to shifts. - - Reduced to extremities. - -The Star Chamber, who were sitting. - - The Star Chamber, which was sitting. - -A story which, as it marks the genius of parties, may be worth reciting. - - A story which, as it discovers the genius of parties, may be - worth relating. - -Contempt entertained towards. - - Contempt entertained for. - -Could such an attempt be interpreted treason. - - Could such an attempt be considered as treason. - -Lay great weight upon. - - Lay great stress upon. - -Devoid of temporal sanction. - - Destitute of temporal sanction. - -Parliament designed to levy war. - - Parliament intended to levy war. - -It would ascertain the devoted obedience. - - It would ensure the devoted obedience. - -His dignity was exempted from pride. - - His dignity was free from pride. - -When the exception really occurs, even though it be not precedently -expected. - - When the exception really occurs, even though it be not - previously expected. - -To those effects which were operated. - - To those effects which were wrought. - -[81:1] A tragedy by John Home. - -[83:1] The militia of England had, owing to the unpopularity of the -foreign mercenaries in British pay, been strengthened and enlarged. A -proposal was entertained, to extend the system to Scotland: but it was -not executed till many years afterwards. There were several pamphlets on -the subject. Probably the one here referred to is the well known -"History of the Proceedings in the case of Margaret, commonly called -Peg, only lawful Sister of John Bull, Esq.;" attributed to Adam -Ferguson, which will have to be mentioned farther on. - -[84:1] Hume seems to have himself commenced a translation of Plutarch. -See above, vol. i. p. 417. - -[85:1] Stewart's Life of Robertson. - -[87:1] It will be observed, that Hume's strongest argument from internal -criticism is, that the state of society and feeling exhibited in these -poems was that of the middle ages, and involved the spirit of chivalry -peculiar to that period. - -[89:1] Mackenzie's Account of Home, p. 155. The original is in the MSS. -R.S.E. Mr. Mackenzie says, "I could not read this letter without being -confirmed in an observation which I have often ventured to make, on the -uncertainty of the evidence arising from _letters_, when the writers are -dead, and the motives of their correspondence cannot be known." - -[90:1] It is not Cowley but Butler who makes this sarcasm. - - For Hebrew roots although they're found - To flourish most in barren ground. - -[90:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[92:1] Private Correspondence of David Hume with several distinguished -persons, between the years 1761 and 1776. London, 1820, 4to. - -[93:1] Private Correspondence, p. 269. - -[94:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[97:1] Depuis long-tems, Monsieur, je suis combattue par des sentimens -contraires. L'admiration que me cause votre sublime ouvrage, et l'estime -qu'il m'inspire pour votre personne, vos talents, et votre vertu, m'ont -fait naitre souvent le desir de vous ecrire, pour vous exprimer les -sentimens dont je suis profondement penetree. D'un autre cote, -considerant que je vous suis inconnue, le peu de prix que doit avoir mon -suffrage, la reserve et l'obscurite meme qui convient a mon sexe: j'ai -craint d'etre accusee de presomption, et de me faire connoitre a mon -desavantage, d'un homme de qui je regarderai toujours la bonne opinion -comme le bien le plus flatteur et le plus precieux. Neanmoins, puisque -les reflexions que j'ai faites a cet egard ne paroissent avoir beaucoup -de force, un penchant irresistible les rend infructueuses, et je vais -ajouter mon exemple a mille autres, pour justifier la verite de cette -remarque que j'ai lue dans votre histoire de la Maison de -Stuard,--"Men's views of things are the result of their understanding -alone; their conduct is regulated by their understanding, their temper, -and their passions,"--puisque quand ma raison me dit que je devrais me -tenir dans le silence, l'enthousiasme, ou je suis, m'empeche de le -pouvoir garder. - -Quoique femme, et dans un age qui n'est pas encore avance, et malgre la -dissipation de la vie qu'on tient dans ce pays, ayant toujours aime la -lecture, il est peu de bons livres, en quelque langue et en quelque -genre que ce soit, que je n'ai lus, ou dans l'original, ou dans les -traductions; et je puis vous assurer, monsieur, avec une sincerite qui -ne doit pas vous etre suspecte, que je n'ai trouve aucun qui reunit a -mon jugement, autant de perfections que le votre. Je ne sais point de -termes qui puissent vous rendre ce que j'aprouve en lisant cet ouvrage. -Je me suis attendrie, transportee, et l'emotion qu'il me cause est en -quelque facon penible par sa continuite. Il eleve l'ame, il remplit le -coeur de sentimens d'humanite et bienfaisance. Il eclaire l'esprit, et -en lui montrant la veritable felicite intimement liee a la vertu, il lui -decouvre par le meme rayon le seul et unique but de tout etre -raisonnable. Au milieu des calamites qui environnent de toutes parts le -Roi Charles Premier, l'on voit la paix et la serenite briller avec eclat -et l'accompagner sur l'echafaud; tandis que le trouble et les remords, -cortege inseparable du crime, suivent les pas de Cromwell et s'asseyent -sur le trone avec lui. Votre livre apprend encore combien l'abus est -voisin des meilleures choses, et les reflexions qu'il fait faire a ce -sujet, doit [doivent] augmenter la vigilance et la defiance de soi-meme. -Il anime d'une noble emulation, il inspire l'amour de la liberte, et -instruit en meme tems a la soumettre au gouvernement sous lequel on est -oblige de vivre. En un mot c'est un _terra fecunda_ de morale et -d'instructions presentees avec des couleurs si vives qu'on croit les -voir pour la premiere fois. - -La clarte, la majeste, la simplicite touchante de votre style, me ravit. -Les beautes sont si frappantes, que malgre mon ignorance dans la langue -Angloise, elles n'ont pu m'echapper. Vous etes, Monsieur, un peintre -admirable. Vos tableaux ont une grace, un naturel, une energie, qui -surpasse ce que l'imagination meme peut attendre. - -Mais quelles expressions employerai-je pour vous faire connoitre l'effet -que produit sur moi votre divine impartialite? J'avois besoin en cette -occasion de votre propre eloquence, pour bien rendre ma pensee. En -verite je crois avoir devant les yeux l'ouvrage de quelque substance -celeste, degage des passions, qui pour l'utilite a daigne ecrire les -evenemens de ces derniers tems. - -Je n'ose ajouter, que dans tout ce qui sort de votre plume vous vous -montrez un philosophe parfait, un homme d'etat, un historien plein de -genie, un politique eclaire, un vrai patriote, toutes ces sublimes -qualites sont si fort au dessus des connoissances d'une femme, qu'il me -convient peu d'en parler; et j'ai deja grand besoin de votre indulgence -pour les fautes que j'ai commises centre la discretion et la bienseance -par l'exces de ma veneration pour votre merite. Je vous la demande, -Monsieur, et en meme tems le plus profond secret. La demarche que je -fais a quelque chose d'extraordinaire. Je craindrois qu'elle ne -m'attirat le blame, et je serois fachee que le sentiment qui me l'a -dictee put etre inconnu. J'ai l'honneur d'etre, Monsieur, votre tres -humble et tres obeissante servante, - -HYPPOLYTE DE SAUJON, COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - -On me dit, Monsieur, que vous avez en vue de venir en France, a Paris. -Je souhaite bien vivement que vous executiez cette resolution, et -pouvoir contribuer a vous en rendre le sejour agreable. - -Ce 15 Mars, 1761. A Paris.[97:A] - - [97:A] MS. R.S.E. - -[101:1] Private Correspondence, &c. 1-4. - -[101:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[101:3] Private Correspondence, 5. - -[105:1] It will be observed that this is an attempt to spell those -expressions according to the pronunciation. - -[107:1] - -_A Paris, 16 Juin, 1762._ - -Jean Jacques Rousseau, citoyen de Geneve, et auteur de plusieurs ecrits -qui vous sont vraisemblablement connus, vient de composer un Traite sur -l'Education, en quatre volumes, ou il expose plusieurs principes -contraires aux notres, tant sur la politique, que sur la religion. Comme -nous ne jouissons pas ici de la liberte de la presse, le Parlement par -un arret, juste, s'il est comme je n'en doute pas conforme aux lois du -royaume, mais neanmoins rigoureux, l'a decrete de prise de corps, et -l'on pretend que s'il n'avoit pas pris la fuite, il auroit ete condamne -a la mort. J'ai de la peine a croire qu'on eut pu aller si loin sur la -qualite d'etranger. Mais quoi qu'il en soit, il eut ete imprudent de -lui, de rester en France dans de pareilles circonstances. Il est donc -parti, incertain quel asile il choisiroit. Je lui ai conseille de se -retirer en Angleterre, lui promettant des lettres de recommendation pour -vous, Monsieur, et pour d'autres personnes de mes amis. Je m'acquitte de -ma promesse, et je ne puis pas a mon avis lui choisir dans tout -l'Europe, un protecteur plus respectable par ses liaisons, et plus -recommendable par son humanite. M. Rousseau passe chez la plupart des -gens en ce pays pour un homme singulier. A prendre cette epithete selon -la vraie signification, elle lui est justement donnee, car il differe, a -beaucoup d'egards, de la facon d'agir et de penser des hommes du jour. -Il a le coeur droit, l'ame noble et desinteressee. Il craint toute -espece de dependance, et par cette raison il a mieux aime, etant en -France, gagner sa vie en copiant de la musique, que de recevoir les -bienfaits de ses meilleurs amis, qui s'empressoient de reparer sa -mauvaise fortune. Cette delicatesse peut paroitre excessive, mais elle -n'a rien de criminelle, et meme elle suppose des sentimens eleves. Il -fuit le commerce du monde, il ne se plait que dans la solitude, ce gout -pour la retraite lui a fait des ennemis. L'amour propre de ceux qui -l'ont recherche s'est trouve blesse de ses refus. Mais malgre sa -misanthropie apparente, je ne crois pas qu'il y ait nulle part, un homme -plus doux, plus humain, plus compatissant aux peines des autres, et plus -patient dans les siennes, en un mot, sa vertu paroit si pure, si -contente, si uniforme, que, jusqu'a, present, ceux qui le haissent, -n'ont pas trouve que dans leur propre coeur des raisons pour le -soupconner. Pour moi, avec des apparences aussi avantageuses, j'aimerois -mieux en etre trompe que de me defier de sa sincerite. - -D'apres l'opinion que j'en ai monsieur, je l'ai juge digne d'etre connu -de vous, et en lui procurant cet honneur, je crois lui donner la preuve -la plus marquee du cas que je fais de lui.[107:A] - - [107:A] MS. R.S.E. - -[109:1] Private Correspondence, &c. pp. 8, 9. - -[110:1] This letter is printed in the Private Correspondence, p. 58. -There are two duplicate originals of it among the MSS. R.S.E. - -[113:1] Private Correspondence, &c. p. 54. - -[115:1] Private Correspondence, p. 54. - -[115:2] Vol. i. p. 283. - -[116:1] The following anecdote of Hume, by Lord Charlemont, seems -appropriate to this passage. "He never failed, in the midst of any -controversy, to give its due praise to every thing tolerable that was -either said or written against him. One day that he visited me in -London, he came into my room laughing and apparently well pleased. 'What -has put you into this good humour, Hume?' said I. 'Why man,' replied he, -'I have just now had the best thing said to me I ever heard. I was -complaining in a company where I spent the morning, that I was very ill -treated by the world, and that the censures put upon me were hard and -unreasonable. That I had written many volumes, throughout the whole of -which there were but a few pages that contained any reprehensible -matter, and yet that for those few pages, I was abused and torn to -pieces.' 'You put me in mind,' said an honest fellow in the company, -whose name I did not know, 'of an acquaintance of mine, a notary public, -who having been condemned to be hanged for forgery, lamented the -hardship of his case; that after having written many thousand -inoffensive sheets, he should be hanged for one line.'" _Hardy's Memoirs -of Charlemont_, p. 121. - -[119:1] _European Magazine_, 1785, p. 250. - -[119:2] Vol. i. p. 57. - - - - -CHAPTER XII. - -1762-1763. AEt. 51-52. - - The Publication of the History anterior to the Accession of - the Tudors--Completion of the History--Inquiry how far it is a - complete History--Hume's Intention to write an Ecclesiastical - History--Opinions of Townsend and others on his History-- - Appreciation of the Fine Arts--Hume's House in James's Court-- - Its subsequent occupation by Boswell and Johnson--Conduct - of David Mallet--Hume's Projects--The Douglas Cause-- - Correspondence with Reid. - - -In 1762 there was published, in two quarto volumes, the "History of -England, from the Invasion of Julius Caesar, to the Accession of Henry -VII." The farther back we proceed from those periods of which a full -narrative of historical events is preserved by contemporary chroniclers, -into those more obscure ages when even the lines of kings are hardly -preserved, and fragments of laws, or of long obsolete literature, and -antiquarian relics, are the historian's only guide, the less -satisfactory is Hume's history, when compared with other historical -works. The earliest part is thus the least valuable. He had here, -however, to encounter difficulties which we are only at this day able to -estimate, in the absence of those materials which the industry of -antiquaries has lately brought to light, to so great an extent, as -almost necessarily to supersede Hume's "History of England" during the -early ages, as a source of historical knowledge.[121:1] - -But both in this and the other departments of his work, we are bound to -estimate Hume, as we do great workmen in all departments of mental -labour, not by the state of his science at the present day, but by that -in which he found it. To comprehend how far it may be practicable for -any one mind to create a full and satisfactory history of the island of -Great Britain, without having the advantage of the previous labours of -many minds, occupied in elucidating the details of the various branches -of knowledge with which he has to deal, let us cast a casual glance at -the prominent topics which must be fully discussed in such a History, if -it be a satisfactory work. - -The historian should be master of every scrap of information contained -in Greek or Roman authors, about the connexion of the people of the -ancient world with our island. In the works of Caesar and Tacitus this -will be a simple matter; but scattered about among the productions of -the Panegyrists, and in other such obscure quarters, there are many -important incidental notices, which will not be so easily found or so -satisfactorily interpreted. To this the investigator must add more -recondite stores of knowledge, collected from etymological -investigations among the roots of languages--Celtic and Teutonic. He -must study Strabo, Ptolemy, and the other geographers; and interpreting -the information collected from them, and the incidents derived from the -other sources above alluded to, with his etymological inquiries, he must -endeavour to solve the vexed questions about the migration of -races--whether the Cimbri were pure Celts? whether the Welsh are the -descendants of that race? whether the Caledonii, with whom Agricola -fought, were Celts? who and what were those mysterious people, called -the Picts? - -There must be some criticism, however unsatisfactory it may be, on the -worship anterior to the introduction of Christianity, and on the -vestiges of that and of other early customs supposed to be supplied by -the remnants of ancient masonry and engineering, with which our island -abounds. The historian must next be able to show what is truly known, -and what is not, regarding the inroads of the Teutonic tribes, and must -be able to fathom the learning of the German antiquaries on this -department of history. Here the early literature of Ireland, of which so -much has lately been printed by O'Conor and others, and the relics of -Scandinavian metrical histories, will widen the inquiry, while they -render it more satisfactory. - -Having got these settlers from the Teutonic tribes, the Saxons as they -are generally called, established in the island, the peculiar internal -policy, national character, and literature of Britain, begin to assume -a shape under the eye of the historian, and to gather round them their -distinctive attributes as he proceeds. He will soon have to deal with -the birth of laws and customs, which, modelled to the progress of an -increasing population and civilisation, are still in daily practice. - -From this epoch downwards, he has to watch the changes of the national -literature. Observing it in its purely Anglo-Saxon period, he must -estimate the extent to which it was altered by the adoption of -Norman-French as a court language, while Anglo-Saxon still continued to -be the tongue of the common people; and mark the continued existence of -this fundamental Teutonic speech, and its action upon the language of -the court, until the former became the established literary language of -the day, the latter merely imparting to it one of its characteristic -features. Thus tracing these elements from their respective sources down -to the days of Chaucer, the influence of the revival of classical -learning upon modern language and thought must find a place, and English -literature must be described in its progress towards and arrival at full -manhood. Along with this inquiry, there should be an ancillary -investigation into the causes why the language and literature of the -Scottish lowlands have so long differed from those of England, though -both springing from the same root. - -Returning to the Anglo-Saxon period, another and more laborious inquiry -opens in the department of the laws and public institutions. There must -be a search after those which were peculiar to the Anglo-Saxons; and in -dealing with authorities posterior to the conquest, the historian must -carefully sift them, that he may ascertain the extent to which any law -or custom was undoubtedly Anglo-Saxon. After having ascertained how -much of the spirit of feudal institutions had tinged the purely Saxon -usages, he must next follow the progress of feudalism abroad, and fully -explain the effect produced on Britain by its full grown importation at -the era of the Conquest. In conjunction with this large inquiry, the -jurisprudence of Rome must be kept in view; first, as some relics of it -in municipal institutions, and otherwise, may have been associated with -the very earliest forms of internal organization in modern Europe; and -secondly, after its letter had been buried for centuries, as it was -resuscitated by the civilians and canonists, and brought in array -against the common law of England, and amalgamated with the feudal -system in Scotland. From these elements the history of Parliament and of -municipal bodies, the prerogatives of the crown, and the rights and -privileges of the subject, together with the practical administration of -the law, ought all to be developed in their origin and growth. The state -of knowledge and of opinion among the people at large, on political -matters, and particularly on the manner in which they are governed, -should form a part of this constitutional inquiry. - -The history of religion should occupy a conspicuous place in the -historian's studies. In the folios of the Bollandists, no inconsiderable -portion of the scanty records of the civil history of the period are to -be found. A full and patient study of the Roman Catholic creed and -polity in their rise and development, is necessary for the effectual -employment of the knowledge thus acquired; and it is needless to say how -many other creeds and systems must be studied by the historian of -Britain. By observing its mere results on the outward history of a -people, the inquirer will never know the real influence of any system of -religious tenets. A brief survey shows us the outward demonstrations. -But to be acquainted with the character of the internal impulses of any -religious creed, to see how the fire glows and radiates within the bosom -of the votary, we must study the vital elements of the creed itself with -industry and with zeal. - -The language and literature of the country have already been alluded to. -The state of the arts at different times must be carefully watched and -explained. To accomplish this task, the historian should possess a wide -knowledge of the principles and practice of art: not that conventional -knowledge which teaches him how to distinguish from all that are below -them those efforts which are entitled to the approbation of the -fastidious, but the catholic spirit, which enables the mind fully to -estimate progress before perfection is reached. - -All the departments of the historian's knowledge are more or less -blended with each other. From the sixth century downwards, for several -ages, the coinage of the realm only marks the state of the arts or -serves to adjust disputed chronologies: gradually, however, the -historian feels it becoming involved with more complex elements -connected with the state of society, and at last the great question of -the currency and the monetary system of the country has to be grappled -with. Here the whole field of political economy is opened up. It is -needless to say, that the historian, especially he who treats of a -people in any degree civilized, must be thoroughly imbued with political -economy. - -The state of manufactures and of the sciences should not be neglected. A -history of Britain during the nineteenth century, containing no account -of the triumphs of the steam engine, or of the progress of railway -engineering, would give a very imperfect view of the living progress of -the nation. The history of the early period would be more satisfactory, -if it informed us when the pump and the potter's wheel were first used -in Britain. Closely akin to this subject is the progress of agriculture, -which, however, is a matter simpler and more easy of attainment than -many of the historian's other objects of inquiry. - -In truth, it may be safely said, that every circumstance that can be -discovered concerning the particular country, and every thing, whether -animate or inanimate that is on its surface, comes within the compass of -its history, using that word in the sense of merely civil -history,--unless in so far as it belongs to what is natural history. And -yet even from this science civil history has many lights to receive. -Human physiology is intimately connected with the elucidations of the -historian; and it would appear that, in regard to the influence of -political institutions on the physical as well as the moral state of -races of men, we are still only on the threshold of knowledge. Here the -physiologist, and the recorder of political events, who heretofore have -travelled on different roads, may some day or other find a common object -of exertion, and may tell us, by their united labours, why the race that -inhabited ancient Egypt, from being the most inventive, should have been -among the most supine of people; why the Chinese should have passed -through an epoch of active discovery, and should have thenceforth, -unlike the rest of the world, neither forgotten nor improved the fruits -of their original enterprise; why the Celts, once the nurses of European -learning, should, at a later time, have appeared as if doomed to retire -before the ardent genius of the Teutonic race; and why this race, after -being long inferior to other branches of the Caucasian family, should -appear, with British enterprise and German thought, likely to absorb -the faculties of the rest of mankind. - -The historian must not wholly neglect other natural productions. The -inferior animals and the vegetable kingdom are intimately connected with -the fate of the human beings who are the immediate object of his -labours. With geology he may appear to have comparatively little -concern; yet the marble of Greece, and the coal and iron of Britain, -have had no little influence on the destinies of these nations. - -Hume did so much towards the completion of that circle of knowledge with -which the historian has to deal, that he was the first to add to a mere -narrative of events, an inquiry into the progress of the people, and of -their arts, literature, manners, and general social condition. This -attempt was so original, that, as it embodied in some measure the theory -developed in Voltaire's "Essai sur les Moeurs," first published in 1756, -when the first volume of the "History of the Stuarts" had been two years -before the public, it was supposed that Hume might have borrowed the -idea from some fragments of that work which had been surreptitiously -printed with the title "Abrege de l'Histoire Universelle." There seems -to be no room, however, for such a supposition. Hume's own "Political -Discourses" are as close an approach to this method of inquiry as the -work of Voltaire; and if we look for such productions of other writers -as may have led him into this train of thought, it would be more just to -name Bacon and Montesquieu.[129:1] The works of such authors as Guizot -and Hallam may teach us that much had to be added to Hume's system of -historical composition, to render it perfect; but they do so in the same -manner as the last steam engine shows us how many improvements have been -made on the inventions of Watt. - - * * * * * - -We now resume the correspondence with Millar. The letter immediately -following, puts beyond a doubt, what had only been partially believed, -that Hume had, at one time, expressed an intention of writing an -ecclesiastical history. Of the manner in which he would have executed -such a task, opinions will widely vary. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 15th March, 1762._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I am very glad that you are in so good a way, and that you -think so soon of making a new edition. I am running over both the -ancient history and the Tudors, and shall send you them up by the wagon -as soon as they are corrected. Please tell Mr. Strahan, to keep -carefully this copy I send up, as well as that which I left of the -Stuarts; for if you intend to print an octavo edition next summer, it -will be better to do it from these copies which are corrected, than from -the new edition, where there will necessarily be some errors of the -press. - -"I give you full authority to contradict the report, that I am writing -or intend to write an ecclesiastical history; I have no such intention; -and I believe never shall. I am beginning to love peace very much, and -resolve to be more cautious than formerly in creating myself enemies. -But in contradicting this report, you will be so good as not to impeach -Mr. Mallet's veracity; for 'tis certain I said to Lord Chesterfield -(from whom Mr. Mallet first had it) that I had entertained such a -thought; but my saying so proceeded less from any serious purpose, than -from a view of trying how far such an idea would be relished by his -lordship. - -"I have not laid aside thoughts of continuing my History to the period -after the Revolution. It is not amiss to be idle a little time; but it -is probable I shall tire of that kind of life: and if I then find that -the public desires to see more of me, and that the great will not shut -up their papers from me, I shall set to work in earnest. - -"I never thought that Lord Kames' Elements would be a popular book; but -I hoped, that, as you engage for no copy money, it would certainly -defray the charge of paper and print; and on that footing alone I -recommended it to you. I find the author's expectations raised up to a -vast pitch, and indeed there are some parts of the work ingenious and -curious; but it is too abtruse and crabbed ever to take with the public. -As to the advice you desire me to give him, it is certainly very -salutary; but I fancy neither I nor any other of his friends will ever -venture to mention it. The admonitions, which come from you, are -commonly the most effectual; and if this book do not sell, I think it -were not amiss, that you tell him the plain truth without disguise or -circumlocution. I find the booksellers here have sold off all their -share of my Essays, and are desirous of another edition, which, however, -I told them, I believed you was not ready for. I desire to be informed -two or three months before you put it to the press: because I intend to -make some considerable alterations on some parts of them. - -"I hope Mrs. Millar intends to pay us a visit next summer, and that you -will be of the party. Please make my most sincere respects to her. I am, -dear Sir," &c.[132:1] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_8th April, 1762._ - -"I shall answer your story of Charles Townsend very fully, by another -story of the same gentleman. Three years ago, when I was in London, I -was told by a friend, that Mr. Townsend said, that my History of the -Stuarts (the only one then published,) was full of gross blunders in the -facts: he had consulted all the authentic documents, particularly the -journals of the House of Commons, and found it so. When I made light of -this information, as knowing somewhat of Mr. Townsend's hasty manner of -speaking, my friend said, that I ought not so much to neglect the -matter; because Mr. Townsend had told him that Mr. Dyson, clerk to the -House of Commons, a man of knowledge and solidity, had made to him the -same observation. I was a little surprised and alarmed at this; and I -went to Mr. Elliot, whom I desired to speak to Mr. Dyson, and to tell -him that there was nothing in the world I desired so much as to be -informed of my errors, and that he would oblige me extremely by pointing -out those mistakes. Mr. Dyson replied, that he had never in his life -spoke of the matter to Mr. Townsend; and that though he differed from me -in my reasonings and views of the constitution, he had observed no -blunders in facts, except one with regard to the dispensing power: -which, by the bye, was the one also remarked to me by the Speaker, and -which I corrected in the second edition. It was not an error with regard -to the reign of James Second, but with regard to that of King William, -which I had not sufficiently examined. I assure you there is not a -quotation that I did not see with mine own eyes, except two or three at -most, which I took from Tyrrel or Brady, because I had not the books -referred to. That there is no mistake in such a number of references, -would be rash or even absurd to affirm: that the printer also has not -sometimes made mistakes in the name of the author or in the number of -the page quoted, is what I dare not aver: for I only compared the sheet -now and then with my manuscript, and was contented to be as correct as -possible in the text. I knew that these mistakes could neither be -frequent nor material. But if people, finding a few here and there, -point them out, and give them as a specimen of the whole, I know no -remedy for this malice, but to allow them to go on. Men of candour will -judge otherwise without scrutiny: and men of diligence and industry will -find that the case is otherwise, upon scrutiny.[133:1] - -"I have heard of Charles Townsend's extolling and decrying me -alternately, according as the humour bites; and all the world knows this -to be his character. He is perhaps angry with me at present, because I -did not wait of him when I was in London. It is strange, that great men -in England should slight and neglect men of letters when they pay court -to them, and rail at them when they do not. I have a regard to Mr. -Townsend as a man of parts, I believe of very great parts; but I attach -myself to no great man, and visit none of them but such as happen to be -my friends, and particular acquaintance. I wish they would consider me -as equally independent with themselves, or more so. However, there is no -necessity of enraging Mr. Townsend farther by the story I told you in -the first paragraph; and therefore I would not have you communicate it -to any body, except a very particular friend whom you can trust. You may -read the second paragraph to every body."[134:1] - - -In the following letter to Millar, we find him professing his ignorance -of the practical application of the fine arts in engraving. Although he -has written on the philosophy of taste, we find no traces in his -writings of what the Germans have denominated the aesthetic; no sense of -an internal emotion arising from the contemplation of works of art. In -his travels, he had an opportunity of seeing many fine pictures, but he -never mentions one; and it does not appear, from any incident in his -life, or allusion in his letters, which I can remember, that he had ever -really admired a picture or a statue.[134:2] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 17th May, 1762._ - -"I like much better your publishing in volumes than in numbers. Though -this last method has been often practised, it has somewhat of a quackish -air, which you have always avoided, as well as myself. I know not what -to do for frontispieces; I have no manner of skill myself in designing, -and am not able to point out the most proper subjects, nor the method of -executing them. On the whole, I think it an expense which may be spared; -but if you continue in the resolution of having some such ornament, I -could write a letter to Allan Ramsay, who, I hope, would take the pains -of directing the engraver. As to my head, I think that also a -superfluous expense; and as there is no picture of me in London, I know -not how it can be executed: with submission to you, would it not be -better to throw these charges on the paper and print? I do not imagine, -because these ornaments have helped off the sale of Smollett's History, -that mine would be the better for them.[135:1] These arts are seldom -practised twice with the same success. - -"I do not lose view of my design to continue my History, at least for -two reigns more; but I question whether party prejudices with regard to -me, are as yet sufficiently subsided, to enable me to carry on that -work, without meeting with repulses and disgusts from those who have the -materials in their power, which must serve for the foundation of my -narrative: a little farther time will, I hope, operate that -effect."[135:2] - - -He concludes this letter by saying, "I remove my house this week to -James's Court." - -Entering a low gateway which pierces the line of lofty houses along the -Lawnmarket, one finds oneself in a square court, surrounded by houses, -which have now evidently fallen to the lot of humbler inhabitants than -those for whom they were erected. These spaces, walled off by the -intervening houses from the main street, were in the Scottish -metropolis, like the similar edifices of the French nobility, frequently -designed with the view of protecting those who dwelt within the gate -from the unwelcome intrusion of either legal or illegal force. But it is -probable that James's Court scarcely dates back to times so lawless, and -that it was built early in the eighteenth century. The plan of a closed -court was, perhaps, adopted as a means of enabling a small community to -have the civic functions of lighting and cleaning performed more -accurately than they were then administered to the inhabitants at large. - -Entering one of the doors opposite the main entrance, the stranger is -sometimes led by a friend, wishing to afford him an agreeable surprise, -down flight after flight of the steps of a stone staircase, and when he -imagines he is descending so far into the bowels of the earth, he -emerges on the edge of a cheerful crowded thoroughfare, connecting -together the Old and New Town; the latter of which lies spread before -him, a contrast to the gloom from which he has emerged. When he looks up -to the building containing the upright street through which he has -descended, he sees that vast pile of tall houses standing at the head of -the Mound, which creates astonishment in every visiter of Edinburgh. -This vast fabric is built on the declivity of a hill, and thus one -entering on the level of the Lawnmarket, is at the height of several -stories from the ground on the side next the New Town. In Hume's day, a -lake lay not many yards from the base of the building; and the whole -space now occupied by the streets and squares of the New Town, was open -ground, covered with woodland in those places where it did not consist -of agricultural ground or barren heath. A full view of the surrounding -country must have been possessed by every floor in this mass of -buildings. I have ascertained that by ascending the western of the two -stairs facing the entry of James's Court, to the height of three -stories, we arrive at the door of David Hume's house, which, of the two -doors on that landing-place, is the one towards the left.[137:1] - -Of the first impression made on a stranger, at that period, when -entering such a house, a vivid description is given by Sir Walter Scott -in "Guy Mannering;" and in Counsellor Pleydell's library, with its -collection of books and the prospect from the window, we have probably -an accurate picture of the room in which Hume spent his studious hours -when he was in his own house in Edinburgh. - -When Boswell describes the veritable locality of the house in which he -did actually receive the illustrious Dr. Johnson, he tells us at the -same time that it was in James's Court. Hume had then left his house, -and it appears that James Boswell became his tenant.[137:2] One cannot -therefore resist the conclusion, that the house thus consecrated, was -the very one which had been occupied by Hume. Would Boswell communicate -such a fact, or tell what manner of man was the landlord of the -habitation into which he had, under the guise of hospitality, entrapped -the arch-intolerant?[138:1] Who shall appreciate the mental conflict -which Boswell may have experienced on this occasion! On the one side he -would have to consider, whether it would not be more candid to let the -appalling truth be known. But would Johnson have been able to "sleep o' -nights" in such a house? The dilemma might not have been so easily -solved as the dinner with Wilkes. - -Hume's house was, during his absence in France, occupied by Dr. Blair; -so that the old flat, three stories up from the entrance in James's -Court, had in its day sheltered inmates of no common eminence. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 22d Nov. 1762._ - -"DEAR SIR,--As yours of the 16th of last month did not require any -immediate reply, I have used the freedom to delay answering it. I am -glad to find your two new editions so well advanced: I hope they will be -successful. Some people tell me, that, as the two volumes last published -do not shock any party prejudices, they have been better received than -the former, and procure a good reception for the whole. If I should see -them make any farther progress, it would be the best encouragement for -me to proceed in writing the more recent history. I am far from losing -sight of that project; but it is better not to begin it, till matters -are more ripe for the execution, and till I find, that every one would -frankly concur in opening their cabinets, and allowing me the use of all -papers which may be necessary for my purpose. I had a letter from Mr. -Mallet lately, by which I find, that he will no longer be an obstacle in -my way; for he tells me that his History of the Duke of Marlborough is -ready for the press; which is more than I or most people expected. - -"Lord Marischal wrote me lately, that the celebrated Rousseau had taken -shelter with him at Neufchatel; but that he had thoughts of coming to -England, and desired to know of me, if he could make an edition of his -works by which he could gain a little money for his subsistence, as he -was not interested. He wished also, that I could recommend him to a -bookseller. You have told me, that you do not care to deal in French -books; but if he should publish any new work, might he not have a -translation of it ready to be published at the same time with the -original? And would not you be willing to deal with him in that shape? I -should think him very fortunate, if he were in your hands. I beg my -compliments to Mrs. Millar, who, I hope, is at Bath, more for her -amusement than her health. I am, dear sir, yours sincerely. - -"P.S.--As your edition on royal paper is not numerous, I shall only -desire three copies of it to be sent me, and shall reserve the other -three for the octavo edition. Be so good therefore as to embark three -copies in any parcel you send to Edinburgh. The peace will now make the -intercourse of trade more open between us. The mention of peace reminds -me to thank you for your assistance in making out my subscription last -year, which is likely to turn out so much to my advantage. The stocks -are now very high; but I suppose will not come to their full height this -twelvemonth, and till then I fancy you will not think it prudent in me -to sell out."[140:1] - - -That Mallet had his History of the Duke of Marlborough ready for press, -was, as Hume gently says, more than he or most people expected. However, -Mallet seems to have convinced him that it really was the case; and his -success in carrying conviction to the prince of sceptics, is a brilliant -instance of that mingled cunning and impudence by which he had made -himself a great man. The literary history of the life of Marlborough is -well known. The duchess had left L1000 to Glover and Mallet, as a fee -for a life to be written by them jointly. Glover gave up his share of -the labour and its reward, and Mallet obtained the L1000. The service he -gave in return, consisted entirely in the labour of convincing the -world, by hints and skilfully mysterious announcements, that he had made -considerable progress in the work, though he died without having -commenced it; and if this systematic deception had been the service for -which he was paid, it would have been admitted that he had done his -duty.[141:1] The following letter is a memorable instance of the manner -in which Mallet conducted his operations; and it shows at the same time -his infinitely lofty notion of his own position. He had managed to be a -great author among the aristocracy, and to be a great aristocrat among -authors; and the air of calm superiority which he adopts towards Hume -is not the least remarkable feature in the production. - - -DAVID MALLET _to_ HUME.[142:1] - - DEAR SIR,--I have done at last, what nothing but the greatest - regard for the writer, and the truest friendship for the man, - could have made me submit to; I have gone over both your - volumes again, with the eye and attention of a mere - grammarian. The task of looking after verbal mistakes, or - errors against the idiom of a tongue, though not unnecessary, - is trivial, and disgusting in the greatest decree; but your - work, and you, deserved it of me: and I could not have - forgiven myself had I not treated yours as I hope and expect - you will do mine. - - I have not been idle; though I give no account of my progress - to one in a hundred I converse with; as it contains several - particulars of the reigns of the two brothers, Charles and - James, the most interesting though the least known parts of - King William's, and embraces the whole of Queen Anne's reign, - together with some anecdotes relative to her successor,--it - will swell into two quarto volumes. I am resolved, too, that - the translation, which will be done here by an excellent hand - under my own eye, shall appear at the same time the original - does. These are some of the causes that occasion the - complaints I have been teased with: and there are many others, - that would make no figure on paper, though they are - unavoidable and consume much irretrievable time. But what is - well done is done soon; and, as I have not you in my way, I - should not feel the least uneasiness, if all our other - complete historians should write the same period twenty times - over. My work, both in matter and form, would still be new. If - you are upon the undertaking, which you desired might remain a - secret, I dare assure you, that besides the merit of accuracy - and impartiality, it will have all the charm of novelty; for - such a work, on a rational and philosophical plan, is a - thing, as Milton has it, unattempted yet in prose or rhime. - Adieu. I am, dear sir, most faithfully yours. - - D. MALLET.[143:1] - -The following letter is a not less curious revelation of Mallet's -proceedings. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 21st April, 1763._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I had a letter from Mr. Mallett, in which he tells me, that -he has run over carefully the two volumes of my History last published, -and has wrote all his remarks, as well on the language as matter, on the -margin. He said, that he would find an opportunity to send them to me. I -replied to him, that I was extremely obliged to him, (as I certainly -am,) and that if he sent them to you, you would soon find an opportunity -of conveying them to me. I wish you would speak to him on that subject, -as you have occasion to meet with him, and would send the books -carefully to me by the first parcel you send to Edinburgh. I should -desire you also to give him a new copy in place of this which he has -sacrificed; but if there be only a word here and there, I can efface -them, after transcribing them into my own copy, and can afterwards -restore the book as good as ever. - -"In the same letter, he complains much of a report, that I was writing -the English History since the revolution: which he says he cannot -believe, because it would be a very invidious task to him. I answered -him, that by his former letter I imagined his History was just ready for -the press; that I had not wrote a line of the History of that period; -but if I undertake it, one great inducement would be the hopes of -seeing his volumes published before me; by which means, I could hope -for much light and great materials; that as he was near twenty years -advanced before me, it was ridiculous to fear that I could overtake him; -and that I was glad of the report he mentioned, if it would prove a spur -to his industry. I find Mr. Mallet would fain be like the dog in the -manger, neither eat himself nor allow others to eat. I should have a -breach with him, and might expect all ill offices from him, if I pursue -my plan; but this would be a frivolous consideration, where his anger -would be so ill-founded. As soon as the octavo edition of my History is -finished, please send me a copy of it. I should be pleased to run it -over; and make an errata to it. I am," &c.[144:1] - - -The following letter to Elliot shows the zeal with which Hume carried on -that systematic removal from his works of all passages tending to favour -popular rights, which has been already alluded to. - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Edinburgh, 12th March, 1763._ - -"DEAR SIR,--In this new edition I have corrected several mistakes and -oversights, which had chiefly proceeded from the plaguy prejudices of -Whiggism, with which I was too much infected when I began this work. I -corrected some of these mistakes in a former edition; but being resolved -to add to this edition the quotations of authorities for the reigns of -James I. and Charles I., I was obliged to run over again the most -considerable authors who had treated of these reigns; and I happily -discovered some more mistakes, which I have now corrected. As I began -the History with these two reigns, I now find that they, above all the -rest, have been corrupted with Whig rancour, and that I really deserved -the name of a party writer, and boasted without any foundation of my -impartiality: but if you now do me the honour to give this part of my -work a second perusal, I am persuaded that you will no longer throw on -me this reproachful epithet, and will acquit me of all propensity to -Whiggism. If you still continue to upbraid me, I shall be obliged to -retaliate on you, and cry, _Whig vous meme_. - -"In page 33, vol. v. you will find a full justification of the -impositions laid on by James I. without authority of parliament: in p. -113, 114, 389, a justification of persecuting the Puritans: in p. 180, a -justification of Charles I. for levying tonnage and poundage without -consent of parliament: in p. 100, I acquit James I. of prevarication, -with which I had before rashly charged him. This last mistake indeed was -innocent, and I can easily account for it. I had read Buckingham's -narrative in Rushworth and Franklyn, the two opposite collectors: I saw -what I thought the same paper in the Parliamentary History; but I did -not attend to a line at the bottom, in which it is said, that the paper -is taken from the records more full, than in the preceding collection: -when I read it lately, I found the article here quoted, so that this -blunder proceeded not from any spirit of Whiggery. - -"I now justify James II. more explicitly in his exercise of the -dispensing power, which was intimately interwoven with the constitution -and monarchy--see vol. vi. p. 393-394, 395-400. In vol. iv. p. 322-323, -I mention a very remarkable vein of tyranny, or exertion of arbitrary -power, practised in that period,[146:1] and which came to my knowledge -since the first publication of that volume. - -"There are many other improvements and alterations throughout the whole; -and I am glad that Millar has of himself made you an offer of this -edition. Without flattering you I must say, that there is nobody whom I -more desire to see my writings as correct as I can make them; and I was -thinking to desire Mr. Millar to make you this offer. - -"But there is no end of correcting. In this new edition, vol. v. p. 205, -I have inserted a pretty curious story of Sir George Markham, which I -took from Lord Lansdowne, whom I esteemed safe authority for a Whig -story: but I have since been shown Hobart's Reports, which is infinitely -more authentic than Lord Lansdowne; and the story is there told so -entirely, as to justify the King and the Star-chamber, so that you may -still reproach me that the villanous leaven is not entirely purged -off.[146:2] - -"I am engaged in no work at present; but if I tire of idleness, or more -properly speaking, of reading for amusement, I may probably continue my -History. My only discouragement is, that I cannot hope to finish this -work in my closet, but must apply to the great for papers and -intelligence, a thing I mortally abhor. - -"Is it not hard and tyrannical in you, more hard and tyrannical than -any act of the Stuarts, not to allow me to publish my Dialogues? Pray, -do you not think that a proper dedication may atone for what is -exceptionable in them? I am become much of my friend Corbyn Morrice's -mind, who says, that he writes all his books for the sake of the -dedications. - -"I am very glad to hear from Lord Minto, that you intend to pass a great -part of the ensuing summer in this country. Though you be now become a -great man, I doubt not but I should receive very much satisfaction from -your society and conversation; that is, if I be not jostled out by -suitors who press in upon me. - -"Meanwhile, I am, dear sir, your affectionate friend and -servant."[147:1] - - -He writes to Millar, on 10th March, 1763, "I am in a good measure idle -at present: but if I tire of this way of life, I shall certainly -continue my History, and have no thoughts of any other work. But in this -state of affairs, I suppose your people of rank and quality would throw -the door in my face, because I am a Scotsman."[147:2] - -And again at a later date: - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Edinburgh, 28th March, 1763._ - -"I never lose view of the project of continuing my History. I may -perhaps very soon gather silently together the books which will enable -me to sketch out the reigns of King William and Queen Anne, and shall -finish them afterwards, together with that of George I., in London. But -to tell you the truth, I have an aversion to appear in that capital -till I see that more justice is done to me with regard to the preceding -volumes. The languishing sale of this edition makes me conjecture that -the time is not yet come; and the general rage against the Scots is an -additional discouragement. I think the Scotch minister is obliged to -make me some compensation for this. - -"I am told that Mr. Ralph is dead, who had certainly made a large -collection of books and pamphlets for his work. I should be glad to know -into whose hands they are fallen, and would purchase them if they could -be got at a reasonable price. - -"I hear Dr. Armstrong has sent you over a most violent renunciation of -Wilkes's friendship.[148:1] Wilkes is indeed very blamable in indulging -himself so much in national reflections; which are low, vulgar, and -ungenerous, and come with a bad grace from him, who conversed so much -with our countrymen. My compliments to Mrs. Millar, who, I hope, will -favour me with a visit this summer. I am, dear sir, yours -sincerely."[148:2] - - -On the same day he writes to Adam Smith: - -"I set up a chaise in May next, which will give me the liberty of -travelling about; and you may be sure a journey to Glasgow will be one -of the first I shall undertake. I intend to require, with great -strictness, an account how you have been employing your leisure, and I -desire you to be ready for that purpose. Wo be to you if the balance be -against you! Your friends here will also expect that I should bring you -with me."[149:1] - -A few letters written at this time to his friends, on the subject of the -arrears of half-pay due for his services as judge-advocate,[149:2] -afford the following passages of general interest. To Oswald he says, on -3d April-- - -"I shall add, that it is the only thing in my life I ever asked, it is -the only thing I ever shall ask, and consequently, it is the only thing -I ever shall obtain. Those who assist me in procuring it do me a great -favour, and I very willingly stand obliged to my friends for their good -offices: but of the government and ministry, I ask it as my due. I -imagined that after Lord Bute's consent was obtained, all difficulties -had been surmounted."[149:3] - -To another correspondent he says,-- - -"To tell you the truth, dear Crawford, I made it a rule from the -beginning of my life never to seek a favour of any man; and this humour, -which, if you be very indulgent to me, you will call modesty, if less -so, pride, I was unwilling to relinquish, after having maintained it -through my youth, and during more difficult circumstances than those in -which I am at present placed."[149:4] - -Hume, like every Scotsman of his day, who concerned himself with any -thing beyond his own domestic circle, took a deep interest in the -progress of the Douglas cause. It is difficult, at the present day, to -conceive the excitement which this litigation between private parties -occasioned in the public mind. Men about to meet each other in company, -used to lay an injunction on themselves not to open their lips on the -subject, so fruitful was it in debates and brawls; and yet too often -found that their prudence was no match for their enthusiasm. Hume -adopted the view that the alleged children of Lady Jane Douglas were -spurious. The Court of Session decided in favour of this opinion by a -majority of one; but their decision was afterwards reversed by the House -of Lords. The reversal occasioned many severe animadversions on Lord -Mansfield, both by Hume and his friends. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Edinburgh, 21st July, 1763._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--To-day is the grand question decided by our judges, -whether they will admit of any farther proof with regard to the Douglas -affair, or whether they will rest contented with the proofs already -produced. Their partiality is palpable and astonishing; yet few people -think that they will dare to refuse inquiring into facts so remarkable -and so strongly attested. They are at present sitting, but I hope to -tell you the issue in a postscript. Our friend Johnstone[150:1] has -wrote the most super-excellentest paper in the world, which he has -promised to send to you this evening in franks. Please to deliver the -enclosed to Colonel Barre. I am," &c.[150:2] - - -We have already found one distinguished fellow-countryman of Hume -controversially attacking his works. But another and greater critic was -soon to appear. Dr. Thomas Reid was preparing for the press his "Inquiry -into the Human Mind," which he published in 1764. His was the greatest -mind which set itself in opposition to Hume's system, in British -literature; and he was great, because he examined the works of the -sceptical philosopher, not in the temper of a wrangler or partisan, but -in the honest spirit of an investigator, who is bound either to believe -in the arguments he is examining, or to set against them a system which -will satisfy his own mind, and the minds of other honest thinkers. Reid -was born in 1710, and he was exactly a year older than Hume, for the -birth-day of both was on the 26th of April.[151:1] The philosopher of -common sense, thus brought the accumulated thought and learning of -advanced years to bear on a series of works which the sceptic had -commenced in early youth. There is something in Reid's method of laying -down his principles, and explaining their application, that disinclines -the reader to allow him the palm of original genius, and suggests the -idea that he is a personification of the natural sagacity and useful -industry of his countrymen. But this feeling arises more from his hatred -of such apparent paradoxes as Hume loved, from his courting rather than -avoiding what is familiar and intelligible, and from the titles he gave -to his books, than from deficiency of true originality. Whether his -merit lay in his genius or his industry, he raised a new fabric of -philosophy out of part of those fragments to which the sceptic had -reduced previous systems. The term "common sense," which he used to -characterize his system, had been long employed in philosophy; and if -_bon sens_ may be held its equivalent, it is to be found in the -preliminary dissertation of a French translation of Hume's miscellaneous -essays, published in the same year as Reid's Inquiry.[152:1] Here, and -occasionally by Reid, it is used in its popular sense, expressing -philosophical opinions derived from the general notions of mankind. In -this sense it is an application of induction to mental operations. It -views the opinions of men at large as so many experimental facts, which, -as in the case of the physical operations of nature, may be subjected to -the rules of induction. Hume himself held that mental phenomena are as -regular, and as capable of having laws of nature applied to them, as -physical phenomena. But even if he were right, there is a disturbing -influence at force in the circumstance, that, as the operation of -induction is itself a phenomenon of the same class with those professed -to be subjected to its observation, the philosopher is apt to embody in -his writings the intuitions, if they may be so termed, of his own mind, -instead of giving such an accurate transcript of the results of external -observation as the physical inquirer is generally enabled to present. - -Indeed, it is in promulgating the convictions of his own mind as a -metaphysical thinker, more than in his avowed project of inducting from -the common phenomena of the every-day world, that Reid's writings are -most valuable. In the one case he has told us how far Hume's philosophy -is at variance with the general opinions of mankind; in which he is met -by the comprehensive argument, that Hume may, nevertheless, be right, -and the rest of mankind wrong. But in travelling beyond his avowed -object he certainly has anticipated many of those metaphysical -arguments, on which the basis of the sceptical philosophy has been -attacked; and the world has, perhaps, yet to learn how far the great -system of the German philosophers is under obligations to this powerful -thinker.[153:1] - -Before he put his "Inquiry into the Human Mind," to press, Reid desired, -through Blair's interposition, to subject the manuscript to Hume's -inspection. Fearing that this work might too closely follow the -Warburton school, Hume met the application with the rather petulant -remark: "I wish that the parsons would confine themselves to their old -occupation of worrying one another, and leave philosophers to argue with -temper, moderation, and good manners." But, after inspecting the -manuscript, he thus addressed its author: - - By Dr. Blair's means, I have been favoured with the perusal of - your performance, which I have read with great pleasure and - attention. It is certainly very rare that a piece so deeply - philosophical is wrote with so much spirit, and affords so - much entertainment to the reader; though I must still regret - the disadvantages under which I read it, as I never had the - whole performance at once before me, and could not be able - fully to compare one part with another. To this reason, - chiefly, I ascribed some obscurities, which, in spite of your - short analysis, or abstract, still seem to hang over your - system; for I must do you the justice to own that, when I - enter into your ideas, no man appears to express himself with - greater perspicuity than you do; a talent which, above all - others, is requisite in that species of literature which you - have cultivated. There are some objections, which I would - willingly propose, to the chapter "Of sight," did I not - suspect that they proceed from my not sufficiently - understanding it; and I am the more confirmed in this - suspicion, as Dr. Blair tells me that the former objections I - made, had been derived chiefly from that cause. I shall - therefore forbear till the whole can be before me, and shall - not at present propose any further difficulties to your - reasonings. I shall only say that, if you have been able to - clear up these abstruse and important subjects, instead of - being mortified, I shall be so vain as to pretend to a share - of the praise; and shall think that my errors, by having at - least some coherence, had led you to make a more strict review - of my principles, which were the common ones, and to perceive - their futility. - - As I was desirous to be of some use to you, I kept a watchful - eye all along over your style; but it is really so correct, - and so good English, that I found not any thing worth the - remarking. There is only one passage in this chapter, where - you make use of the phrase, _hinder to do_, instead of _hinder - from doing_, which is the English one; but I could not find - the passage when I sought for it. You may judge how - unexceptionable the whole appeared to me, when I could remark - so small a blemish. I beg my compliments to my friendly - adversaries, Dr. Campbell, and Dr. Gerard, and also to Dr. - Gregory, whom I suspect to be of the same disposition, though - he has not openly declared himself such.[154:1] - -This letter called forth the following answer, valuable as an -acknowledgment of the services which the Scottish school of philosophy -owed to Hume. - - -DR. REID _to_ HUME. - - _King's College, 18th March, 1763._ - - SIR,--On Monday last, Mr. John Farquhar brought me your letter - of February 25th, enclosed in one from Dr. Blair. I thought - myself very happy in having the means of obtaining at - second-hand, through the friendship of Dr. Blair, your opinion - of my performance: and you have been pleased to communicate - it directly in so polite and friendly a manner, as merits - great acknowledgments on my part. Your keeping a watchful eye - over my style, with a view to be of use to me, is an instance - of candour and generosity to an antagonist, which would affect - me very sensibly, although I had no personal concern in it, - and I shall always be proud to follow so amiable an example. - Your judgment of the style, indeed, gives me great - consolation, as I was very diffident of myself in regard to - English, and have been indebted to Drs. Campbell and Gerard - for many corrections of that kind. - - In attempting to throw some new light upon these abstruse - subjects, I wish to preserve the due mean betwixt confidence - and despair. But whether I have any success in this attempt or - not, I shall always avow myself your disciple in metaphysics. - I have learned more from your writings in this kind, than from - all others put together. Your system appears to me not only - coherent in all its parts, but likewise justly deduced from - principles commonly received among philosophers; principles - which I never thought of calling in question, until the - conclusions you draw from them in the "Treatise of Human - Nature" made me suspect them. If these principles are solid, - your system must stand; and whether they are or not, can - better be judged after you have brought to light the whole - system that grows out of them, than when the greater part of - it was wrapped up in clouds and darkness. I agree with you, - therefore, that if this system shall ever be demolished, you - have a just claim to a great share of the praise, both because - you have made it a distinct and determinate mark to be aimed - at, and have furnished proper artillery for the purpose. - - When you have seen the whole of my performance, I shall take - it as a very great favour to have your opinion upon it, from - which I make no doubt of receiving light, whether I receive - conviction or no. Your friendly adversaries, Drs. Campbell and - Gerard, as well as Dr. Gregory, return their compliments to - you respectfully. A little philosophical society here, of - which all the three are members, is much indebted to you for - its entertainment. Your company would, although we are all - good Christians, be more acceptable than that of St. - Athanasius; and since we cannot have you upon the bench, you - are brought oftener than any other man to the bar, accused and - defended with great zeal, but without bitterness. If you write - no more in morals, politics, or metaphysics, I am afraid we - shall be at a loss for subjects. I am, respectfully, sir, your - most obliged humble servant. - - THOMAS REID.[156:1] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[121:1] The works prepared by the Record Commission, whether it be true -or not that it has failed to fulfil the services expected from so large -an expenditure of the public money, present the sources of British -history on a very different scale from that in which they appeared -before Hume; and if he had lived in the present day, he would not have -attempted to write the history of the first fourteen centuries in less -than three years; or, attempting it, would have palpably overlooked -materials which, in his own time, he could not have found access to. -Among such sources may be viewed, Domesday Book, the Rotuli Hundredorum, -the many records of the various courts of justice, the "Parliamentary -writs, or writs of military summons, together with the records and -muniments relating to the suit and service due and performed to the -king's high court of parliament and the councils of the realm, as -affording evidence of attendance given at parliaments and councils;" the -remains of Anglo-Saxon legislation, collected under the name of "Ancient -laws and institutions of England," and the "Ancient laws and institutes -of Wales." - -To these must be added the many antiquarian labours of private -individuals or societies, such as the county histories, the works -circulated by the numerous book clubs, and the inquiries into the early -ecclesiastical history, which the controversies on church polity, for -which this age is becoming peculiar, have excited. The publication of -charters and other documents connected with private rights has opened a -means of becoming acquainted with contemporary habits and institutions, -slow certainly but sure. Besides his labours in the Record Commission, -Sir Francis Palgrave has excavated much curious but not attractive -matter, of which the world will never know the value till some Hume -shall arise to give it shape and symmetry. - -It has been a usual practice to rank those who, by such critical -inquiries, ascertain the truth regarding minute historical propositions, -in the category of "harmless drudges." But perhaps the character has -been applied to the really useful workers in this field, as inaptly as -it was appropriated by Dr. Johnson to the race of Lexicographers, in a -moment of bitter cynicism. Antiquarianism, archaeology, palaeology, or -whatever name it may receive, is a field in which there are many paltry -workers; and these are sometimes, from adventitious circumstances, -conspicuous enough to give a tone in popular estimation to the science. -Dates are but one, and perhaps an inferior branch, of the subject; yet -the labours of Petau, of Antine Durand and Clemencet the authors of the -"Art de verifier les dates," of Newton, Hailes, and Nicolas, would be -enough to vindicate the dignity of this species of inquiry. It is, -indeed, an essential one to history; and where it has been vaguely or -unscientifically applied, the foundations of historical speculation are -rotten. The prevalent failing of antiquaries is the inability to -distinguish the important from the trifling; to perceive that the labour -which might be necessary to fix the era of the restoration of the study -of the civil law in Europe, would be ill bestowed on an inquiry into the -foundation of some inconsiderable rectorship, or the birth of some -undistinguished landed proprietor. But there is perhaps as much -worthless historical Speculation as trifling Antiquarianism extant in -literature. But it does not follow in either case, from the defects of -the injudicious, that the able and accomplished followers of the subject -were ill employed. A late and signal instance may be adduced of the -intimate connexion of the speculative and the minute departments of -history. Dr. Allen, in his "Inquiry into the rise and progress of the -royal prerogative," maintaining that the older kings of England did not -perform public acts until they had taken the coronation oath of fidelity -to the people, found that there was just one exception, in the case of -Richard II. which disconcerted his theory. It was subsequently shown by -Sir Harris Nicolas, in his "Chronology of History," that in "Rymer's -Foedera," and other public documents, the regnal years of that reign had -been by mistake antedated a year. - -But while it does not follow that the one occupation is less dignified -than the other, it is pretty clear that they cannot, to any great -extent, be both followed by the same person. The limits of human -capacity, and the shortness of human life, seem to forbid such an union; -for literature has produced no one who unites the qualities of a Camden, -a Mabillon, and a Montfoucon, with those of a Hume and a Montesquieu, -though Gibbon and Niebuhr have perhaps come nearest to the union. Mr. -D'Israeli says, (Curiosities of Literature, ii. 182,) "The time has -perhaps arrived, when antiquaries may begin to be philosophers, and -philosophers antiquaries. The unhappy separation of erudition from -philosophy, and of philosophy from erudition, has hitherto thrown -impediments in the progress of the human mind, and the history of man." -But unless that author has himself achieved the united title, by showing -that James I. was a man of great mind, and by characterizing political -economy as a mere "confusion of words," the combination appears not to -have yet been accomplished; and indeed the simple physical impossibility -of the same person who brings the fabric to perfection, having time to -produce the raw materials, seems to render it necessary that in all such -histories as that which Hume undertook, the antiquary shall precede the -historian. - -[129:1] It does not appear that even the surreptitious fragments of -Voltaire's work were printed earlier than the year in which the first -volume of the "History of the Stuarts" was published--1754. In the -Essai, Voltaire thus contrasts Hume's sagacity as an historian with the -propagators of monkish legends. "Les moines Fredegaire et Aimoin le -disent: mais ces moines, sont-ils des De Thou et des Humes?" Edit. 1785, -vol. i. p. 235. - -[132:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[133:1] It must be observed, that this method of referring to -authorities and collating them, is, even by Hume's account of it, one -which a scrupulous investigator would call slovenly. The admission of -any authorities at second hand is, to the extent to which it may be -carried, a breach of the historian's duty. To make sure that he had -rightly estimated their meaning on a first perusal, he should have -collated all his references in proof. - -[134:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[134:2] In a letter to Millar, dated 8th October, 1763, he says, on the -occasion of receiving a copy of a series of engravings, which have not -yet been surpassed, "I have been obliged to Mr. Strange for a present of -all his prints. He is a very worthy man, whom I value much, and -therefore I desire you would send him a copy of this new edition of my -History." - -[135:1] In a letter to Millar, of 6th April, 1758, (MS. R.S.E.) he thus -alludes to Smollett's work: "I am afraid the extraordinary run upon Dr. -Smollett, has a little hurt your sales; but these things are only -temporary." - -[135:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[137:1] Information communicated by Joseph Grant, Esq. - -[137:2] This is shown by a paper of no great importance in itself, among -the MSS. R.S.E. It is simply a document of instructions for defending an -action against Hume, by a builder for repairs. It is in his own hand, -and begins,-- - -"At Whitsunday last, Mr. Boswell, advocate, left Mr. Hume's house in -James's Court; and Lady Wallace, dowager, came to it. Mrs. Boswell at -that time sent for Adam Gillies, mason, to repair some plaister which -was broken. Having by this means got access to the house, he went about -and teased Lady Wallace, by telling her that many other things needed -repairs. She frequently bid him let her alone, for she saw no occasion -to trouble the landlord for any thing. Notwithstanding this, he came to -Mr. Hume, and told him that the stone pavement in the kitchen, under the -coal bunker, was all shattered, and must be repaired; and that he was -sent by Lady Wallace to tell him so. Mr. Hume having entire trust in -Lady Wallace's discretion, gave him orders to repair that pavement of -the bunker. Gillies brought him in an account for many other repairs on -the pavement of the kitchen. Mr. Hume told him that he had exceeded his -orders; and that he would not pay him till he should see Lady Wallace, -who was at that time in the country. When she came to town, she told Mr. -Hume the fact, and that Gillies had come to him, not only without her -orders but contrary to them. At the same time, Mrs. Boswell, who had -lived two years in the house, told him, that when she left it, she saw -nothing in the kitchen pavement which needed repairs. Mr. Hume therefore -refused to pay Gillies for any thing, except for the plaister, and also -for whitening the kitchen, for which he had orders. This is the cause -before the court." - -[138:1] It is supposed to have been of Hume that, when some one, in Mrs. -Piozzi's presence, observed, that he had the _lumieres_, Johnson said, -"Just enough to light him to hell." Boswell mentions his having uttered -a remark about Hume, too gross to be committed to paper. It is said -that, when in Hume's presence, a mutual friend offered to make Johnson -acquainted with him, the author of the "Rambler" roared out, "No, sir." - -[140:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[141:1] It is pretty well known, that he managed to persuade Garrick -that a niche would be found, in the life of the first commander of his -day, for the first dramatist of the succeeding generation. The manager -immediately asked if Mallet had given up writing for the stage: -fortunately he discovered that he had not; he had a manuscript play in -his pocket. - -With Mrs. Mallet, who was in all respects worthy of her husband, Hume -had some acquaintance; but he does not appear to have had much respect -for her. Lord Charlemont says, "I never saw him so much displeased, or -so much disconcerted, as by the petulance of Mrs. Mallet, the conceited -wife of Bolingbroke's editor. This lady, who was not acquainted with -Hume, meeting him one night at an assembly, boldly accosted him in these -words, 'Mr. Hume, give me leave to introduce myself to you; we Deists -ought to know each other.' 'Madam,' replied he, 'I am no Deist; I do not -style myself so, neither do I desire to be known by that -appellation.'"--_Hardy's Memoir of Charlemont_, p. 122. - -[142:1] This letter is not dated. It may be questioned whether it be -either the one referred to in the preceding, or in the following letter -by Hume. - -[143:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[144:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[146:1] The alteration of the customs duties by the authority of the -crown. - -[146:2] The case of Sir George Markham, who was fined L10,000 in the -Star-chamber, for rudeness to a peer, is not stated in the first -edition. In the latest editions, the case is stated as it had been set -down on Lansdowne's authority, and there is merely a note mentioning -that Hobart gives a different account of it. See Hobart, p. 120. - -[147:1] Minto MSS. - -[147:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[148:1] The quarrel between Wilkes and Armstrong excited much interest. -They had been close friends, and Wilkes had advanced money to Armstrong -in his need. The latter had ventured to pass a slight sarcasm on -Churchill, who returned it ten-fold, taking Wilkes to his assistance, -who abused Armstrong among the other Scots, in some letters in _The -Public Advertiser_. A very amusing and dramatic dialogue between them -will be found in _The Gentleman's Magazine_ for 1782. - -[148:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[149:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[149:2] See Vol. I. p. 221. - -[149:3] Memorials of Oswald, p. 79. - -[149:4] Scroll MS. R.S.E. - -[150:1] William Johnstone of Westerhall, afterwards Sir William -Pulteney. - -[150:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[151:1] Stewart's Life of Reid. It is not stated whether the date is -estimated by the old or the new style. Hume's birth-day is old style. - -[152:1] Oeuvres Philosophiques de M. D. Hume, &c., 4 vols. 12mo, 1764. - -[153:1] When are the public to be in possession of Sir William -Hamilton's edition of Reid? I have had the privilege of seeing the proof -sheets of this work, so far as it had proceeded, before ill health had, -for a time, interrupted the labours of the professor of logic. The -quantity of learning and deep thought concentrated in the commentary, is -such as, perhaps, but one man in this country could have brought -together; and the natural feeling suggested on the perusal was, regret -that so much of these qualities had been expended in notes and -illustrative essays, instead of being published in a separate work. - -[154:1] Stewart's Life of Reid. - -[156:1] MS. R.S.E. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII. - -1763-1764. AEt. 52-53. - - Lord Hertford's appointment to the French Embassy, and - invitation to Hume to accompany him--Correspondence on the - occasion--Residence in London, and remarks on the Political - Movements of 1763--State of his reputation in France--His - Arrival--Letters to friends at home about his flattering - reception--The young French princes--Observations on eminent - French people--His recommendations to a Clergyman-- - Introductions of Fellow Countrymen. - - -On the conclusion of the treaty of 1763, the Marquis of Hertford was -appointed ambassador to the court of France. He invited Hume to attend -him as secretary; and there is no reason to believe that the selection -was owing to any other motive than the desire to place an able and -honest man in office. The Marquis was a man of high moral character, and -his religious opinions appear to have been considered by some of his -contemporaries as too zealous and exclusive. The intercourse thus -occasioned, was the commencement of a lasting friendship, in which the -English Marquis and the Scottish philosopher, however separated by -nominal difference of rank, had too genuine a respect for each other to -be affected by such inequalities. The intimacy extended to General -Seymour Conway, the brother of the Marquis; and Hume's intercourse with -them both, tends to confirm the impression which the portraits of the -two brothers convey to the present generation, of dispositions open, -kind, and artless. In reference to this event, Hume says, in his "own -life," "I retired to my native country of Scotland, determined never -more to set my foot out of it; and retaining the satisfaction of never -having preferred a request to one great man, or even making advances of -friendship to any of them. As I was now turned of fifty, I thought of -passing all the rest of my life in this philosophical manner, when I -received, in 1763, an invitation from the Earl of Hertford, with whom I -was not in the least acquainted, to attend him on his embassy to Paris, -with a near prospect of being appointed secretary to the embassy, and, -in the meanwhile, of performing the functions of that office. This -offer, however inviting, I at first declined, both because I was -reluctant to begin connexions with the great, and because I was afraid -that the civilities and gay company of Paris, would prove disagreeable -to a person of my age and humour: but on his lordship's repeating the -invitation, I accepted of it. I have every reason, both of pleasure and -interest, to think myself happy in my connexions with that nobleman, as -well as afterwards with his brother, General Conway." - -We have, in his familiar correspondence, a fuller account of his -feelings on the occasion. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Edinburgh, 9th August, 1763._ - -"MY DEAR FRIEND,--I have got an invitation, accompanied with great -prospects and expectations, from Lord Hertford, if I would accompany -him, though at first without any character, in his embassy to Paris. I -hesitated much on the acceptance of this offer, though in appearance -very inviting: and I thought it ridiculous at my years, to be entering -on a new scene, and to put myself in the lists as a candidate of -fortune. But I reflected that I had in a manner abjured all literary -occupations; that I resolved to give up my future life entirely to -amusements; that there could not be a better pastime than such a -journey, especially with a man of Lord Hertford's character; and that it -would be easy to prevent my acceptance from having the least appearance -of dependance. For these reasons, and by the advice of every friend whom -I consulted, I at last agreed to accompany his lordship, and I set out -to-morrow for London. I am a little hurried in my preparations; but I -could not depart without bidding you adieu, my good friend, and without -acquainting you with the reasons of so sudden a movement. I have not -great expectations of revisiting this country soon; but I hope it will -not be impossible but we may meet abroad, which will be a great -satisfaction to me. I am," &c.[158:1] - - -HUME _to_ BARON MURE. - -"_Lisle St. 1st Sept. 1763._ - -"MY DEAR BARON,--As I am not sure where you are, nor whether this -direction be right, I am obliged to speak to you with reserve, both of -public affairs and of my own. Of the latter, I shall only say, that -notwithstanding of my first reluctance, I am entirely reconciled to my -present situation, and have a great prepossession, or rather, indeed, a -great esteem and affection for the person and family whom I am to -accompany to France. The prospect of my being secretary to the embassy -is neither very distant nor is it immediate; but Lord Hertford will -certainly, before our departure, obtain a settlement for me for life; -which at any events will improve my fortune, and is a great pledge of -his friendship and regard. - -"I have insulted [consulted] Elliot, Sir Harry, Oswald, and all our -friends of that administration. The former said to me, that my situation -was, taking all its circumstances, the most wonderful event in the -world. I was now a person clean and white as the driven snow; and that -were I to be proposed for the see of Lambeth, no objection could -henceforth be made to me. What makes the matter more extraordinary, is, -that the idea first came into my patron's head, without the suggestion -of any one mortal.[159:1] - -"You must have heard of the late most astonishing events with regard to -public affairs.[159:2] Yesterday Lord Bute had a pretty large company -dining with him, to whom he gave an account of the whole transactions, -and desired them to publish it. - -"One of them, a friend of mine, as soon as he went home, took it down in -writing, of which he gave me a copy, and which I transmit to you. He is -a military man, and his style is not elegant; but I am sure, from -another certain authority, that the account is in the main just; only I -have reason to think that Lord Halifax was proscribed along with the -rest; at least he said so yesterday to a friend of mine. I wish this -high spirit of his M. may be supported. But _femme qui ecoute et ville -qui parle sont bientot rendues_. Lord Bute goes abroad very soon. Some -pretend that the present administration is more enraged against him than -is the opposition, on account of his taking this important step without -consulting them. Never in any history was there so curious a scene; nor -was there ever so formidable a demagogue as this man. Lord Sandwich, it -is said, will be secretary for some weeks; our friend Wood is so at -present. Many of the leading men in the opposition were left out on Mr. -Pitt's plan; which, it is thought, will breed dissensions among them. - -"I dined yesterday with Lord Chesterfield, along with Colonel Irvine. -The Colonel made an apology for our arriving so late, on account of his -being detained at court. 'At court?' said my lord: 'I should be glad to -know what place that is.' Dear Mure, yours."[160:1] - - -In an earlier part of this work, we have found Hume narrating events of -contemporary military history. In the following, as in the preceding -letter, he gives his version of a celebrated ministerial revolution, of -which the public is as yet possessed of no account which is not liable -to doubt. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Lisle St. 13th Sept. 1763._ - -"MY DEAR SMITH,--The settlement which I had made in Scotland was so much -to my mind, I had indeed struck root so heartily, that it was with the -utmost reluctance I could think of transplanting myself, and I began to -approach towards that age in which these experiments became no longer -practicable with safety. I own that, on my arrival in London, I found -every circumstance more inviting than I had reason to expect; -particularly the characters of Lord and Lady Hertford, who are allowed -to be the two persons the most unexceptionable among all the English -nobility. Even that circumstance of Lord Hertford's character, his great -piety, ought to make my connexions with him more agreeable, both because -it is not attended with any thing sour and rigid, and because I draw the -more honour from his choice, while he overlooked so many seeming -objections which lay against me on that head. My fortune also receives a -great addition during life from this connexion; besides many openings to -ambition, were I so simple as to be exposed to temptation from that -passion. - -"But, notwithstanding all these considerations, shall I tell you the -truth? I repine at my loss of ease and leisure, and retirement and -independence; and it is not without a sigh I look backwards, nor without -reluctance that I cast my eye forwards. Is this sentiment an instinct -which admonishes me of the situation most proper and suitable to me? Or -is it a momentary disgust, the effect of low spirits, which company and -amusement, and a better state of health, will soon dissipate and remove? -I must wait with patience till I see the decision of this question. - -"I find that one view of Lord Hertford in engaging me to go along with -him is, that he thinks I may be useful to Lord Beauchamp in his studies. -That young nobleman is generally spoke of as very amiable and very -promising; but I remember, though faintly, to have heard from you -something to the contrary, which you had heard from that severe critic, -Mr. Herbert: I should be obliged to you for informing me of it. I have -not yet seen my Lord Beauchamp, who is at this time in Paris. We shall -not leave London these three weeks. - -"You have, no doubt, heard of the strange jumble among our ministers, -and of the negotiation opened with Mr. Pitt. Never story was told with -such contrary circumstances as that of his secret conference with the -king, and of the terms demanded by that popular leader. The general -outlines of the whole story seem to be these: - -"Lord Bute, disgusted with the ministers, who had almost universally -conspired to neglect him, and suspecting their bottom to be too narrow, -had, before Lord Egremont's death, opened a negotiation with Mr. Pitt, -by means of Lord Shelburne, who employed Calcraft the agent. Mr. Pitt -says, that he always declared it highly improper that he should be -brought to the king, before all terms were settled on such a footing as -to render it impossible for them to separate without agreeing. He -accordingly thought they were settled. His first conference with the -king confirmed him in that opinion, and he wrote to the Duke of -Devonshire to come to town, in order to place himself at the head of the -treasury. The Duke of Newcastle said, at his table on Sunday was a -fortnight, that the ministry was settled. But when Mr. Pitt came to the -king that afternoon, he found him entirely changed, and every thing was -retracted that had been agreed on. This is his story. The other party -says, that he rose in his terms, and wanted to impose the most -exorbitant conditions on his sovereign. I suppose that the first -conference passed chiefly in generals, and that Mr. Pitt would then be -extremely humble, and submissive, and polite, and dutiful in his -expressions. But when he came to particulars, they did not seem to -correspond with these appearances. At least, this is the best account I -can devise of the matter, consistent with the honour of both parties. - -"You would see the present ministry by the papers. It is pretended that -they are enraged against Lord Bute, for negotiating without their -knowledge or consent; and that the other party are no less displeased -with him for not finishing the treaty with them. That nobleman declared -his resolution of going abroad a week or two ago. Now he is determined -to pass the winter in London. Our countrymen are visibly hurt in this -justle of parties, which I believe to be far from the intentions of Lord -Bute. Lord Shelburne resigned, because he found himself obnoxious on -account of his share in the negotiation. I see you are much displeased -with that nobleman, but he always speaks of you with regard. I hear that -your pupil, Mr. Fitzmaurice, makes a very good figure at Paris. - -"It is generally thought that Mr. Pitt has gained credit and force by -this negotiation. It turns the eyes of the public towards him. It shows -that the king can overlook personal resentment against him and Lord -Temple. It gains him the confidence of his own party, who see that he -was negotiating for the whole of them; and puts people in mind of the -French rhyme,--_ville qui parle et femme qui ecoute_. - -"You would hear that the case of the Douglas is now made clear, even in -the eyes the most blinded and most prejudiced, which I am glad of on -account of our friends. I am," &c.[163:1] - - -The following notice, by one who has unfortunately left nothing behind -to show posterity the grounds on which his reputation rested, the Rev. -Dr. Carlyle, will be read with interest. - - Robertson has managed with great address: he is principal, - chaplain, minister, historiographer, and historian; that is to - say, he has L50 a-year and a house, certain, besides what he - can make by his books. It was taken for granted that he was to - resign his charge on being appointed historiographer with L200 - salary; but that he will do at his leisure. It is also - supposed by his patrons, that he is to write the History of - Britain in ten volumes quarto; that also, I presume, (dreadful - task,) he will execute at his leisure. - - Honest David Home, [Hume,] with the heart of all others that - rejoices most at the prosperity of his friends, was certainly - a little hurt with this last honour conferred on Robertson. A - lucky accident has given him relief. The Earl of Hertford is - appointed ambassador to France: not very capable himself, they - have loaded him with an insignificant secretary, one Charles - Bunbury, who, for the sake of pleasure, more than the thousand - a-year, solicited for the office. Hertford knew David, and - some good genius prompted him to ask him to go along and - manage the business. It is an honourable character: he will - see his friends in France. If he tires, he can return when he - pleases. Bunbury will probably tire first, and then David will - become secretary.[164:1] - -The following letter, without address, appears to have been written to -Dr. Carlyle. - - -"_Lisle Street, 15th Sept. 1763._ - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--The case of poor Blacklock gives me great distress; and -so much the more, as I am afraid it is not in the power of any human -being to relieve him.[165:1] His unhappiness seems to proceed from the -infirmity of his body, and the delicacy, not to say weakness, of his -mind. He has wrote to me letters full of the bitterest anguish, on -account of the treatment he meets with from his parishioners. I believe -it is not good; but it is impossible not to think it exaggerated by his -imagination: and I am of your opinion that the same persecution, partly -real, partly imaginary, would follow him in every other settlement. I -had concerted with Baron Mure a very likely scheme for his removal; but -to what purpose would this serve, if the same complaints must return in -his new situation? I agree with you, that a small pension, could it be -obtained, might bestow on him some degree of tranquillity; but how to -obtain it I profess I do not know, as I suppose you will readily -believe. That door was never very wide for men of letters; and is become -still narrower than ever." - - -He proceeds, in terms similar to those already recorded, to state his -satisfaction in the connexion with Lord Hertford, and continues:-- - - -"I go to a place of the world which I have always admired the most; and -it is not easy to imagine a reception better than I have reason to -expect. What, then, can be wanting to my happiness? I hope, nothing; or -if any thing, it will only be an age and temper better adapted to vanity -and dissipation. I beg of you to embrace Mrs. Carlisle in my name, and -to assure her of my sincere respects. - -"I write no politics, having now become a politician. Please address -yourself to John Hume for information on that head. Let him explain to -you his patron's situation!!!! Pray, is there any body such an idiot at -present as to be a partisan of the Douglas?" - - -To obtain literary distinction in France at that time, was to be -received at court. The star of Germany had not yet risen in the horizon -of literature, and the great monarch and warrior of the Teutonic tribes -treated his native tongue as the speech of boors, tried to distinguish -himself in French literature, and was ambitious of being received into -equal companionship with the popular authors of France. Britain, -notwithstanding her series of illustrious names, had not yet quite -shaken off an air of provincialism. Shakspere was a strange wild genius, -full of barbarisms and abominable galimatias: Voltaire had said it, and -it was a judgment, not an opinion. Some discontented Frerons or Arnauds, -might cavil against it: but this was rebellion, not controversy. The -greatness of our masters in science and philosophy was fully admitted; -but they were viewed as citizens of the great world of letters, -accidentally born in one of its more barren districts; and they were -scarcely more closely identified with the national literature of their -country, than Linnaeus might be with that of Sweden, or Tycho Brahe with -that of Denmark. In truth, the apparent interregnum, following the -decline of the Latin as the literary language of the world, appeared -likely to end in the establishment of the French as its successor. Such -expectations gave to the literature of France a metropolitan air, with -which no other could cope; and communicated to those natives of other -places, whose name was honoured in the French circles of letters, a -corresponding elevation.[167:1] Hume would have been impervious to the -most conclusive evidence on the subject, if he had failed to know how -greatly he was honoured among all the literary circles of the continent, -and particularly in those of the metropolis of literature. Lord Elibank, -writing from Paris, on 11th May, 1763, says to him, "No author ever yet -attained to that degree of reputation in his own lifetime that you are -now in possession of at Paris;"[167:2] and the extent of his fame was -abundantly attested by others.[167:3] - -Hume arrived in France on the 14th day of October, 1763. Of his -reception, his own letters will give the best account. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Fontainbleau, 26th Oct. 1763._ - -"MY DEAR SMITH,--I have been three days at Paris, and two at -Fontainbleau, and have every where met with the most extraordinary -honours, which the most exorbitant vanity could wish or desire. The -compliments of dukes and marischals of France, and foreign ambassadors, -go for nothing with me at present: I retain a relish for no kind of -flattery but that which comes from the ladies. All the courtiers, who -stood around when I was introduced to Madame de Pompadour, assured me -that she was never heard to say so much to any man; and her brother, to -whom she introduced me,----[169:1] But I forget already, that I am to -scorn all the civilities of men. However, even Madame Pompadour's -civilities were, if possible, exceeded by those of the Duchesse de -Choiseul, the wife of the favourite and Prime Minister, and one of the -ladies of the most distinguished merit in France. Not contented with the -many obliging things she said to me on my first introduction, she sent -to call me from the other end of the room, in order to repeat them, and -to enter into a short conversation with me: and not contented with that, -she sent the Danish ambassador after me, to assure me, that what she -said was not from politeness, but that she seriously desired to be in -friendship and correspondence with me. There is not a courtier in -France, who would not have been transported with joy, to have had the -half of these obliging things said to him by either of these great -ladies; but what may appear more extraordinary, both of them, as far as -I could conjecture, have read with some care all my writings that have -been translated into French,--that is, almost all my writings. The king -said nothing particular to me, when I was introduced to him; and (can -you imagine it) I was become so silly, as to be a little mortified by -it, till they told me, that he never says any thing to any body the -first time he sees them. The Dauphin, as I am told from all hands, -declares himself on every occasion very strongly in my favour; and many -people assure me, that I have reason to be proud of his judgment, even -were he an individual. I have scarce seen any of the geniuses of Paris, -who, I think, have in general great merit, as men of letters. But every -body is forward to tell me the high panegyrics I receive from them; and -you may believe that ----[170:1] approbation which has procured me all -these civilities from the courtiers. - -"I know you are ready to ask me, my dear friend, if all this does not -make me very happy: No, I feel little or no difference. As this is the -first letter I write to my friends at home, I have amused myself, (and I -hope I have amused you,) by giving you a very abridged account of these -transactions. But can I ever forget, that it is the very same species, -that would scarce show me common civilities a very few years ago at -Edinburgh, who now receive me with such applauses at Paris? I assure -you, I reap more internal satisfaction from the very amiable manners -and character of the family in which I live, (I mean Lord and Lady -Hertford, and Lord Beauchamp,) than from all these external vanities; -and it is that domestic enjoyment which must be considered as the -agreeable circumstance in my situation. During the two last days, in -particular, that I have been at Fontainbleau I have _suffered_ (the -expression is not improper) as much flattery as almost any man has ever -done in the same time. But there are few days in my life, when I have -been in good health, that I would not rather pass over again. Mr. -Neville, our minister, an honest, worthy English gentleman, who carried -me about, was astonished at the civilities I met with; and has assured -me, that on his return, he will not fail to inform the king of England -and the English ministry of all these particulars. But enough of all -these follies. You see I trust to your friendship, that you will forgive -me; and to your discretion, that you will keep my secret. - -"I had almost forgot, in these effusions, shall I say of my misanthropy -or my vanity, to mention the subject which first put my pen in my hand. -The Baron d'Holbach, whom I saw at Paris, told me, that there was one -under his eye that was translating your 'Theory of Moral Sentiments;' -and desired me to inform you of it.[171:1] Mr. Fitzmaurice, your old -friend, interests himself strongly in this undertaking. Both of them -wish to know, if you propose to make any alterations on the work, and -desire you to inform me of your intentions in that particular. Please -direct to me under cover to the Earl of Hertford at Northumberland -House, London. Letters so directed will be sent to us at Paris. I desire -my compliments to all friends. I am, my dear Smith, yours -sincerely."[172:1] - - -HUME _to_ PROFESSOR FERGUSON. - -"_Fontainbleau, 9th Nov. 1763._ - -"DEAR FERGUSON,--I have now passed four days at Paris, and about a -fortnight in the court at Fontainbleau, amidst a people who, from the -royal family downwards, seem to have it much at heart to persuade me, by -every expression of esteem, that they consider me as one of the greatest -geniuses in the world. I am convinced that Louis XIV. never, in any -three weeks of his life, suffered so much flattery: I say suffered, for -it really confounds and embarrasses me, and makes me look sheepish. Lord -Hertford has told them they will chase me out of France, _a coup de -complimens et de louanges_. Our friend, General Clerk, came to this -place after I had passed a week in it; and the first thing he said to me -was, that he was sure I had never passed so many days with so little -satisfaction. I asked him how he had happened to guess so well. He said, -because he knew me, and knew the French. I really wish often for the -plain roughness of the _Poker_,[172:2] and particularly the sharpness of -Dr. Jardine, to correct and qualify so much lusciousness. However, I -meet sometimes with incidents that please me, because they contain no -mixture of French complaisance or exaggeration. Yesterday I dined at the -Duc de Praslin's, the secretary of state. After we had risen from -dinner, I went into a corner to converse with somebody; when I saw -enter the room, a tall gentleman, a little elderly, with a riband and -star, who immediately called out to the Duchesse de Praslin, 'He, Madame -la Duchesse, que je suis content, j'ai vu Monsieur Hume a la cour -aujourd'hui.' Upon inquiry, I was told he was a man of quality, esteemed -one of the cleverest and most sensible about the court. - -"In two or three days we return to Paris, where I hope to live more at -my ease, and shall pass my time with really great men; for there are -such at present amongst the literati of France. Certainly there is -something perverse, either in the structure of our mind, or in the -incidents of life. My present situation ought naturally to appear an -object of envy; for besides those circumstances of an universal good -reception from all ranks of people, nothing can be more amiable than the -character of the family with whom I live, and nothing can be more -friendly than their behaviour to me. My fortune has already received a -considerable increase by a pension procured me by Lord Hertford, and -settled as they tell me for life. Mr. Bunbury has been told that he must -not go to Paris, which my lord considers as a sure prelude to my being -soon secretary to the embassy; an office which will expose me to little -expense, and bring me a thousand a-year increase of revenue, and puts me -in the road to all the great foreign employments. Yet I am sensible that -I set out too late, and that I am misplaced; and I wish, twice or thrice -a-day, for my easy chair and my retreat in James's Court! Never think, -dear Ferguson, that as long as you are master of your own fireside and -your own time, you can be unhappy, or that any other circumstance can -make an addition to your enjoyment. - -"When I think of my own house, you may believe I often reflect on -Josey, who I am afraid will be more a loser by my absence, than ever I -shall be a gainer by it; I mean in point of his education. I beg of you -to have some inspection over him, and as often as my sister shall send -to you to ask your advice, that you will be sure to give it. I am afraid -that there occurs a difficulty at present about entering him to the -Greek. He is too far advanced by his learning for the class in the High -School to which he is put, and yet he is too young to go to the college: -for this reason I thought that he might learn something of the Greek -before he finished his Latin course, as is the practice in England; and, -accordingly, Murray in Musselburgh gave him some lessons in that -language. I propose that he should continue on the same footing in -Edinburgh; but I am at a loss how it may be done. A master to himself -alone, would not give him any emulation; and were he put to any other -school for this purpose, the hours would interfere with those of the -High School. Be so good as speak to Mathison, and then give your opinion -to my sister. - -"Please remember me to Mr. and Mrs. Adams.[174:1] I saw Willie a moment -at Fontainbleau: he had arrived a quarter of an hour after Jemmy left -it, whom I did not see. These two brothers have been hunting one another -in vain through all France; but I hope they have met at last in Paris. - -"When you favour me with a letter, put it under cover to the Earl of -Hertford, and direct it to him at Northumberland House, in the Strand; -letters so directed come to us with the greatest safety. Make my -compliments to Baron Mure, and Mrs. Mure, and all that family. I shall -write to the Baron soon. Tell Dr. Blair that I have conversed here twice -or thrice with the Duchesse D'Aiguillon, who has been amusing herself -with translating passages of Ossian; and I have assured her that the -authenticity of those poems is to be proved soon beyond all -contradiction. Andrew Stuart is here at present: I meet with nobody here -that doubts of the justice of his cause. I hope your fine judges will at -last be ashamed of their scandalous partiality. I should be glad to hear -of all friends. I am, dear Ferguson, with great sincerity and without -flattery, your affectionate friend and servant. - -"P.S.--I beg you to keep the follies of the above letter to yourself. I -had a letter from Lord Marischal to-day, who tells me that he is to pass -the winter at Edinburgh. Wait often on him; you will like him extremely: -carry all our friends to him, and endeavour to make him pass his time as -agreeably as possible."[175:1] - - -We shall have farther opportunities of observing the affectionate -anxiety with which Hume watched over the education of his nephews. Adam -Ferguson appears to have undertaken the task of noticing the progress of -Joseph, the elder nephew, during Hume's absence, to whom he writes, in -answer to the above:-- - - _Edinburgh, 26th Nov. 1763._ - - At present his journal, as he tells me, begins with getting up - at eight, taking his breakfast and going to school, where he - remains to eleven. Then to the High School Yard to play at - Englishman and Scotsman, or the hare and the dogs; of which I - take the merit, as I saved him from the writing-school at that - hour. He returns to school at twelve, and continues till two: - goes to writing between three and four; and spends his - evenings, as he tells me, in getting his school tasks, or in - reading amusing books,--such as his uncle's history. In short, - he is a very amiable boy, with quick parts, in my opinion as - well as yours; and there is no doubt but he will do well. I am - very glad of every thing that gives you pleasure,--even of - some things that give you pain. From all accounts, both before - and since you went to Paris, it might be foreseen that your - reception, even from sincere as well as affected admirers, - would amount to a degree of teasing. But all for the best, as - my fellow philosopher, Pangloss, says. I don't care if you are - "chasse de France a coups de complimens, et accable en - Angleterre a coups de richesse," so as not to find any rest to - the soles of your feet out of Scotland. I would fain consider - every accession to your fortune as so many dishes added to the - future dinners in James's Court; and your eclat in France, as - the forerunner of much variety of chosen and excellent wines - from every quarter of that great kingdom. Meantime, though I - like to lounge at firesides in practice, I have not, in - speculation, that opinion you mention. I know nothing that is - necessary to happiness but cordiality and the talent of - finding diversion in all places. I remember, somewhere, a - man's being told that he was too nice, because he could not - dine on a ragout, and must have cold mutton. But I should not, - perhaps, contradict you so flatly, nor rub so hard, - considering how tender your sensibility will be grown after so - many lenient applications.[176:1] - - -HUME _to_ DR. ROBERTSON. - - _Paris, Dec. 1, 1763._ - - DEAR ROBERTSON,--Among other agreeable circumstances which - attend me at Paris, I must mention that of having a lady for a - translator; a woman of merit, the widow of an advocate.[176:2] - She was, before, very poor, and known but to few; but this - work has got her reputation, and procured her a pension from - the court, which sets her at ease. She tells me that she has - got a habit of industry; and would continue, if I could point - out to her any other English book she could undertake, without - running the risk of being anticipated by any other translator. - Your "History of Scotland" is translated, and is in the press; - but I recommended to her your "History of Charles V.," and - promised to write to you, in order to know when it would be - printed, and to desire you to send over the sheets from - London, as they come from the press; I should put them into - her hands, and she would, by that means, have the start of - every other translator.[177:1] My two volumes last published, - are, at present, in the press. She has a very easy natural - style: sometimes she mistakes the sense; but I now correct her - manuscript, and should be happy to render you the same - service, if my leisure permit me, as I hope it will. - - Do you ask me about my course of life? I can only say, that I - eat nothing but ambrosia, drink nothing but nectar, breathe - nothing but incense, and tread on nothing but flowers! Every - man I meet, and, still more, every lady, would think they were - wanting in the most indispensable duty, if they did not make a - long and elaborate harangue in my praise. What happened last - week, when I had the honour of being presented to the D----n's - children, at Versailles, is one of the most curious scenes I - have yet passed through. The Duc de B., the eldest, a boy of - ten years old, stepped forth, and told me how many friends - and admirers I had in this country, and that he reckoned - himself in the number, from the pleasure he had received from - the reading of many passages in my works. When he had - finished, his brother, the Count de P., who is two years - younger, began his discourse, and informed me, that I had been - long and impatiently expected in France; and that he himself - expected soon to have great satisfaction from the reading of - my fine History. But what is more curious; when I was carried - thence to the Count D'A., who is but four years of age, I - heard him mumble something which, though he had forgot in the - way, I conjectured, from some scattered words, to have been - also a panegyric dictated to him. Nothing could more surprise - my friends, the Parisian philosophers, than this incident. - - * * * * * - - It is conjectured that this honour was paid me by express - order from the D.[178:1], who, indeed, is not on any occasion - sparing in my praise. - - All this attention and panegyric was at first oppressive to - me; but now it sits more easy. I have recovered, in some - measure, the use of the language, and am falling into - friendships which are very agreeable; much more so than silly, - distant admiration. They now begin to banter me, and tell - droll stories of me, which they have either observed - themselves, or have heard from others; so that you see I am - beginning to be at home. It is probable that this place will - be long my home. I feel little inclination to the factious - barbarians of London; and have ever desired to remain in the - place where I am planted. How much more so, when it is the - best place in the world? I could here live in great abundance - on the half of my income; for there is no place where money is - so little requisite to a man who is distinguished, either by - his birth or by personal qualities. I could run out, you see, - in a panegyric on the people; but you would suspect that this - was a mutual convention between us. However, I cannot forbear - observing on what a different footing learning and the learned - are here, from what they are among the factious barbarians - abovementioned. - - I have here met with a prodigious historical curiosity, the - "Memoirs of King James II." in fourteen volumes, all wrote - with his own hand, and kept in the Scots College. I have - looked into it; and have made great discoveries.[179:1] It - will be all communicated to me: and I have had an offer of - access to the Secretary of State's office, if I want to know - the despatches of any French minister that resided in London. - But these matters are much out of my head. I beg of you to - visit Lord Marischal, who will be pleased with your company. I - have little paper remaining, and less time; and therefore - conclude abruptly by assuring you that I am, dear Doctor, - yours sincerely, &c.[179:2] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - - _Paris, 1st Dec. 1763._ - - DEAR SIR,--I have here fallen upon a great treasure, as I - believe, of historical knowledge; which is, fifteen volumes of - the late King James's Memoirs, wrote all with his own hand. I - shall be able to make use of them for improving and - correcting many passages of my History, in case of a new - edition; which, however, I fancy will not be soon. I am glad - to see public affairs likely to settle in favour of - government. Nobody ever led a more dissipated life than I do - here. Please send to Mr. Stewart, in Buckingham Street, six - copies of the new edition of my History; and two of the last - large paper quarto, all in sheets. Make them carefully up in a - parcel: he is to send them to me. I shall be your debtor for - the quartos. I should be glad to hear from you. My direction - is at the English ambassador's. Excuse my hurry. I beg my - compliments to Mrs. Millar. I am, very sincerely, dear sir, - your most humble servant. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR.[180:1] - - DEAR DOCTOR,--I write every thing in haste, except on public - affairs, which are the only serious matters I have leisure to - mind: so, excuse this letter, if it prove a scrawl. I approve - very much of your plan for ascertaining the authenticity of - Ossian's Poems; and I doubt not of your success. I do not - think you can publish all the letters you receive, which - nobody would read: a summary of them will do better; but - endeavour to be as particular as you can with regard to names - of persons and passages: for the force of your argument will - be there. I have met here with enthusiasts for Ossian's - poetry; but there are also several critics who are of my - opinion, that, though great beauties, they are also great - curiosities, and that they are a little tedious by reason of - their uniformity. - - You desire to know the particulars of my reception here, and - my course of life. I own I write little upon this subject, and - always with some degree of secrecy, both because I wish to - have such intelligence conveyed by others rather than myself, - and because I am somewhat indifferent whether it be conveyed - or not. However, I wrote some circumstances to Robertson, - which I allow him to communicate to you. I suppose this, like - all other violent modes, will pass; and, in the meanwhile, the - hurry and dissipation attending it, gives me more pain than - pleasure. Never was there a stronger instance of the vanity - of human wishes. But this embarrassment proceeds chiefly from - my own fault, and from a vain anxiety to give no offence nor - displeasure to any body. - - The men of letters here are really very agreeable: all of them - men of the world, living in entire, or almost entire harmony - among themselves, and quite irreproachable in their morals. It - would give you, and Jardine, and Robertson, great satisfaction - to find that there is not a single deist among them. Those - whose persons and conversation I like best, are D'Alembert, - Buffon, Marmontel, Diderot, Duclos, Helvetius, and old - President Henault, who, though now decaying, retains that - amiable character which made him once the delight of all - France. He had always the best cook and the best company in - Paris. But though I know you will laugh at me, as they do, I - must confess that I am more carried away from their society - than I should be, by the great ladies, with whom I became - acquainted at my first introduction to court, and whom my - connexions with the English ambassador will not allow me - entirely to drop. - - Nothing can be more easy and agreeable than my situation with - Lord Hertford, who is a man of strict honour, an amiable - temper, a good understanding, and an elegant person and - behaviour. He takes very much in this place. He has got an - opinion very well founded, that the more acquaintance I make, - and the greater intimacies I form with the French, the more I - am enabled to be of service to him: so he exacts no attendance - from me; and is well pleased to find me carried into all kinds - of company. He tells me, that if he did not meet me by chance - in third places, we should go out of acquaintance. Thus you - see my present plan of life sketched out; but it is unsuitable - to my age and temper; and I am determined to retrench and to - abandon the fine folks, before they abandon me.[181:1] - -During his absence, Hume's house was let to Blair. In this letter he -gives pretty minute instructions as to the most advantageous -distribution of the occupation of the apartments, which incidentally -illustrate his own domestic habits. Thus-- - - Never put a fire in the south room with the red paper. It is - so warm of itself, that all last winter, which was a very - severe one, I lay with a single blanket; and frequently upon - coming in at midnight, starving with cold, have sat down and - read for an hour, as if I had had a stove in the room. - - You think it inconvenient to take the house only for an - interval. Alas! my prospects of being home are very distant - and very uncertain: I am afraid I might say worse. My - connexions with Lord Hertford must probably last for some - years; after which, I shall be rich enough to live in Paris or - London as I please, or to retire to a provincial town in - France, or to Bath, or God knows whither. I like to keep my - house in case of accidents, and therefore neither choose to - sell it, nor let a lease of it; but there is no great chance - of your being disturbed in it for some time. I am, &c. - - P.S.--Pray, do you not all pay court to the Lord - Marischal?[182:1] Do you imagine that you ever saw so - excellent a man? or that you have any chance for seeing his - equal if he were gone? - - -HUME _to_ COLONEL EDMONDSTOUNE. - - _Paris, 9th January, 1764._ - - DEAR EDMONDSTOUNE,--I was fully settled, and, as I thought, - for life at Edinburgh; had bought a very pretty little house, - which I had repaired and furnished to my fancy; had purchased - a chaise, and fixed every thing about my family on such a - footing as to continue there the rest of my days. But while I - was in this situation, which was far from disagreeable, I - received a letter from my friend Mr. Wood, wrote by directions - from Lord Hertford, by which I was invited to attend his - lordship in his embassy to Paris, and to perform the - functions of secretary to the embassy. I had never seen Lord - Hertford, though I had heard an excellent character of him; - but as I thought myself too old to enter on a new scene of - life, and found myself settled to my mind, I at first refused - the invitation; but on its being urged more home to me, I came - up to London, where I found that Mr. Bunbury, a gentleman of - considerable fortune, and married to the Duke of Richmond's - sister, had already been appointed secretary; but was so - disagreeable to the ambassador, that he was resolved never to - see, or do business with his secretary, and therefore desired - I should attend him, in order to perform the functions. He - also thought himself certain that Bunbury could not possibly - continue in the situation; but in order to make me more - secure, he procured me a pension of L200 a-year for life, from - the king. As I became every day better acquainted with my - lord, I liked him every day better; and I do not believe there - is in the world a man of more probity or humanity, endowed - with a very good understanding, and adorned with very elegant - manners and behaviour. My lady is also a person of great - merit; and nothing can be more amiable than my Lord Beauchamp: - so that you see I have every domestic means of happiness; and - the good reception I have met with at Paris, particularly, as - you observe, by the ladies, renders my present course of life, - though somewhat too hurried and dissipated, as amusing as I - could wish. My lord appears zealously my friend, and has urged - the matter so home, in my favour, to the king and the - ministers, that he has obtained a promise, that I shall soon - have the appointments and commission of secretary to the - embassy, which is about L1000 a-year, added to what I already - possess: so that you see, dear Edmondstoune, I am in the high - road to riches; and as there is no instance of a secretary to - the embassy at Paris, that has not been advanced to the most - considerable employments, I am at the same time in the high - road to dignities. You must know, that Lord Hertford has so - high a character for piety, that his taking me by the hand is - a kind of regeneration to me, and all past offences are now - wiped off. But all these views are trifling to one of my age - and temper. The material point is (if any thing can be - material,) that I keep my health and humour as entire as I - possessed them at five and-twenty. I am sorry to hear, dear - Edmondstoune, that the case is not the same with you, at least - with regard to the former; and perhaps somewhat with regard to - the latter. Your situation is no doubt tiresome, and somewhat - disagreeable. What is the fancy of sending one of the first - noblemen in the kingdom to pass years in a country - town?[184:1] why do you not go forward to Italy, or back to - Paris? When I arrived here, all M. Voltaire's friends told me - of the regard he always expressed for me; that some advances - on my part were due to his age, and would be well taken. I - accordingly wrote him a letter, in which I expressed the - esteem which are[184:2] undoubtedly due to his talents; and - among other things I said, that if I were not confined to - Paris by public business, I should have a great ambition to - pay him a visit at Geneva. This is the foundation of the - report you mention; but I am absolutely confined to Paris and - the court, and cannot on any account leave them so much as for - three days. - -Some advice, given at this time by Hume to a young man who, though in -holy orders, had a tendency to scepticism, has already been before the -public, and has been severely criticised. His view, that there are -certain secrets which may be circulated among the learned in published -books, without any risk that the vulgar, to whom a knowledge of them -would be dangerous, should ever become acquainted with them, is one of -the most incomprehensible features of his character.[184:3] The -application of his own ethical system to the circumstances, might have -taught him that no good thing can connect itself with a lie; and that, -independently of all more sacred considerations, nothing can be more -desolating to human morality, than the discovery, that those who are -professing to teach solemn truths, do not themselves believe in the -opinions they promulgate. If, on the other hand, his counsel be a -legitimate deduction from his ethical principles, it is right that the -world should possess this test of their nature. - -The following is the correspondence on both sides. For obvious reasons -the name of the young clergyman is suppressed. It may be observed, that -Hume's letter has been made a ground for attributing infidel opinions to -the ministers of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland. But justice -requires it to be kept in view, that it appears from the immediately -ensuing letter, that this individual belonged to the Church of -_England_. - - -COLONEL EDMONDSTOUNE _to_ HUME. - - _Geneva, 26th March._ - - MY DEAR SECRETARY,--I have delayed for some time answering - your letter, in expectation of being able to tell you what is - to become of me; whether I am to return home, or remain abroad - some years longer. Though I believe the latter will happen, I - cannot speak of it with certainty, as I left it to Lord B. to - determine for me; and he has not, as yet, given me any answer. - I write to you at present to consult you about an acquaintance - of yours, Mr. V----, who is here with Lord Abingdon, and who - thinks of returning to England, May next. You'll be so good as - to determine for him what character he is to assume on his - arrival, whether that of a clergyman or a layman. I suppose - you know he is in orders, but he is very very low church. To - speak plain language, I believe him to be a sort of disciple - of your own; and, though he does not carry matters quite so - far as you, yet you have given him notions not very consistent - with his priestly character; so that you see you are somewhat - bound to give him your best advice. V---- is a very - good-natured, sensible, honest follow, without any fortune. My - young man has a great liking for him, and has all the - inclination in the world to serve him; but he neither knows - what to ask for him, and is not sure if his father would ask - any thing at present. We are as much in the dark as to what - passes in England, as if we lived in Siberia. As you know - probably something of the matter, without entering into - politics, you may give us some hints to direct us in what - manner to act, and whether we may not be of more use to our - friend in acting as auxiliaries than principals. You'll - determine whether a man of probity can accept of a living, a - bishoprick, that does not believe all the Thirty-nine - Articles; for you only can fix him: he has been hitherto - irresolute. If [I am not] mistaken, he seems rather inclined - not to be a clergyman; but you know as well, and better than I - do, how difficult it is to get any tolerable civil employment. - I mean any patent place; while as soon as you can - conveniently, and if you should determine for his being a - clergyman, throw in something consolatory on his being obliged - to renounce white stockings the rest of his life. I wait with - impatience to hear of your being made secretary to the - embassy. Shall a descendant of Gospatrick, Earl of - Northumberland, remain in the character of under-secretary? I - hope not; though I am afraid our cursed politics at home will - occasion some delay. Lord Mount Stuart offers his compliments - to you, and thanks you for the pleasure your History gave him. - You scrub, do you think we have so little taste or curiosity - as not to have your History complete? We have two copies, one - to lend, and another for our own use; they were sent us - immediately on the publication; it is almost the only book he - takes pleasure in reading. He has read it once, and has got - through four volumes the second time. By the bye, what is this - M{c}Caulay history? I saw in the newspapers an extract of a - preface that seemed to me to be the rhapsody of a crazy head. - I hear it is in opposition to your History. We have her sister - here, who seems to be a good sort of woman, a Mrs. Buckingham. - I wish your time would allow you to come here: you have a - great many friends; among the rest a Madame Tronchin, wife to - the procureur-general, a virtuous, generous, charitable, good - woman. She has learned English since I have been here, and can - read your History with as much ease as her own language. Her - husband is a man of merit, a man of genius; but knows you only - by the translations of your works. Mallet, Professor - Bertrand, and many others, even ministers, are your friends; - even the Christians acknowledge your merit as an historian. - The Christians here are the friends of Rousseau: those that - are not, have been his persecutors; but it was not for his - religious principles. They were afraid of his breeding - disturbance in their state. I wish you could do something for - Rousseau without his knowing it. Print his works in England - for his benefit. You did not, I suppose, receive my letter on - that subject. I never received that from you, which you say - you enclosed to Sir Harry Erskine. Adieu, yours, - - J. E.[187:1] - - -HUME _to_ COLONEL EDMONDSTOUNE. - -"DEAR EDMONDSTOUNE,--I was just projecting to write a long letter to -you, and another to Mr. V----, when your last obliging epistle came to -hand. I immediately put pen to paper, to assure you that the report is -entirely groundless, and that I have not lost, nor ever could have lost, -a shilling by Fairholm's bankruptcy. Poor John Adams is very deeply -engaged with him; but I had a letter last post from Dr. Blair, which -informs me that he will yet be able to save fifteen or sixteen thousand -pounds. I am glad to give you also this piece of intelligence. - -"What! do you know that Lord Bute is again all-powerful, or rather that -he was always so, but is now acknowledged for such by all the world? Let -this be a new motive for Mr. V---- to adhere to the ecclesiastical -profession, in which he may have so good a patron; for civil employments -for men of letters can scarcely be found: all is occupied by men of -business, or by parliamentary interest.[187:2] - -"It is putting too great a respect on the vulgar, and on their -superstitions, to pique one's self on sincerity with regard to them. -Did ever one make it a point of honour to speak truth to children or -madmen. If the thing were worthy being treated gravely, I should tell -him, that the Pythian oracle, with the approbation of Xenophon, advised -every one to worship the gods--+nomo poleos+. I wish it were still in my -power to be a hypocrite in this particular. The common duties of society -usually require it; and the ecclesiastical profession only adds a little -more to an innocent dissimulation, or rather simulation, without which -it is impossible to pass through the world. Am I a liar, because I order -my servant to say, I am not at home, when I do not desire to see -company? - -"How could you imagine that I was under-secretary to Lord Hertford, or -that I could ever be prevailed on to accept of such a character? I am -not secretary at all, but do the business of secretary to the embassy -without any character. Bunbury has the commission and appointments: a -young man of three or four and twenty, somewhat vain and ignorant, whom -Lord Hertford refused to accept of, as thinking he would be of no use to -him. The king gave me a pension of L200 a-year for life, to engage me to -attend his lordship. My lord is very impatient to have me secretary to -the embassy; and writes very earnest letters to that purpose to the -ministers, and, among the rest, to Lord Bute. He engaged me, somewhat -against my will, to write also to such of my friends as had credit with -that favourite, Oswald, Elliot, Sir Harry, and John Hume. The king has -promised that my Lord Hertford shall soon be satisfied in this -particular; and yet, I know not how, I suspect that some obstacle will -yet interpose; though nothing can be more scandalous, than for a man to -enjoy the revenue of an office, which is exercised by another. Mr. -Bunbury has great interest, being married to a sister of the Duke of -Richmond, and sister-in-law to Lord Holland. The appointments of this -office are above L1000 a-year, and the expense attending it nothing; and -it leads to all the great employments. I wait the issue with patience, -and even with indifference. At my years, and with my fortune, a man with -a little common sense, without philosophy, may be indifferent about what -happens. I am, dear Edmondstoune, yours sincerely."[189:1] - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Paris, 27th March, 1764._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--I believe I need not inform you how little I have been -inclined to solicit the great, or even my own friends, for any thing -that regards my own fortune. I may venture to say, that, hitherto, I -have never once made any application of this nature: and you may wonder -that now, at my years, when the greatest part of life is past, and I may -esteem myself, in other respects, pretty much at my ease, I should -submit to prefer requests which I declined at an age when ambition ought -naturally to be stronger, and when my circumstances much more powerfully -called for assistance. But the step I take at present is at Lord -Hertford's desire; who, being determined to make it a point that I -should have the credentials and appointments of secretary to the -embassy, expressed his wish that I should apply to all my own friends on -the same subject. My obligations to him are so great, that, even were I -more reluctant, I could not have declined compliance; and surely I can -have but small reluctance to apply to you, one of my best friends, with -whom I have long lived in a course of intimacy and good correspondence. - -"I remember that the last time I had the pleasure of seeing you, you -said, that I no doubt wondered how it happened, that while the prime -minister and favourite, who inclined to be a Maecenas, and who bore me no -ill will, was surrounded by all my most particular friends, I should -never have experienced any good effects from their credit. I own that I -never was surprised; not from any diffidence in them, but from some -obvious objections. Now all these objections are removed by Lord -Hertford's friendship. Nobody, henceforth, need be afraid to patronize -me, either as a Scotchman or a Deist. This circumstance encourages me in -my present application to my friends. - -"Surely it is impossible to give them a juster and more plausible cause -to support than mine. I do the functions here of secretary to the -embassy: Is it not scandalous that another should live in London and -draw the salary? - -"Is it for the credit of government, that such abuses should appear to -foreign nations? Is it good policy to send an ambassador to the most -important of all foreign employments, and yet declare that he has so -little credit at home, as not to have the choice of his own secretary. - -"I shall not say that the partiality I meet with here will make these -abuses more remarked, than if another person, less known, were -concerned. But surely the government puts me in a situation which ought -to render me entirely useless to my Lord Hertford, by refusing me a -character which should have appeared necessary, in order to gain me -admittance into company. - -"Allow me to inform you of another circumstance, which renders my -prevailing on this point the most material step to my future fortune. -When I came to London, and found, contrary to Lord Hertford's opinion, -that Mr. Bunbury was likely to keep his appointments, I declined going -abroad, unless something certain was fixed in my favour. My lord said, -that he would obtain me, from the public, a settlement of L200 a-year -for life, or would give me as much from his private fortune. He applied -to the king, who agreed; to Mr. Grenville, who also consented, two days -before we came off. My pension was fixed on the most precarious footing -of all pensions, by a simple order from the treasury to their secretary. -Yet Mr. Grenville told my lord, that this was equivalent to a settlement -for life. My lord believes so still; though I said nothing, perhaps from -a foolish delicacy, as the time of our departure so near approached, and -it was difficult then to correct the blunder. Were I to return to -England, on my present footing, I should regard this pension as -absolutely insignificant--not worth two years' purchase; and never could -form any plan on the supposition of its duration. But had I obtained the -rank and character of secretary to the embassy, there are certain -pensions annexed, by custom, to certain employments; and I believe I -might more depend upon it. - -"You see how materially my interests are concerned. I have wrote to -others of my friends, Sir Harry, Oswald, and John Hume, in the same -style, that an effort may be made, all at once, in my favour. I own -that, notwithstanding all the plausible appearances, my hopes of success -are but moderate. I have been accustomed to meet with nothing but -insults and indignities from my native country; but if it continue so, -'ingrata patria, ne ossa quidem habebis.' I am, my dear sir, yours -sincerely."[192:1] - - -When the fame of Hume's reception in Paris had reached Scotland, some of -his countrymen, who had not previously been very solicitous to court his -notice, discovered that an introduction to him would be a valuable -acquisition. The correspondence shows that the expectations of such -persons were very large, and that if their names connected them with the -aristocracy of Scotland, it could not fail that they should be at once -put at their ease in the midst of the brilliant circle in which Hume was -moving. The following may be taken as an instance of these attempts. On -the 6th April, 1764, Blair writes: - -"This letter will be presented to you by Colonel L----, brother to the -Earl of L----; who, going on a trip to Paris, is very ambitious of being -introduced to your acquaintance. You will find him a very honourable, -good-natured, well-behaved young man, of an amiable disposition and -character. As I have been much connected with the L---- family, who were -my first patrons in the ecclesiastical way, I was very glad to have it -in my power to do them this favour at their desire; and will reckon -myself much obliged to you for any civilities you show the -Colonel."[192:2] - -Blair was not the sole medium through whom this gentleman was -recommended. Wallace writes, on 3d April, with all due ceremony: "The -occasion of my writing at present this short letter, is a desire from -the friends of the family of L---- here, asking me to write you by this -night's post, and acquaint you that the Honourable Alexander L----, -Esquire, son to the late Earl of L----, lieutenant-colonel of Colonel -Carey's regiment of foot, is going to Paris, and will probably be in it -before this reaches you, and wishes you may be acquainted, before he -comes, who he is." Taking the effect of these imposing denominations for -granted, Mr. Wallace continues:--"I dare say you will introduce him to -the good company where you are, and will be ready to put him on the best -methods of enjoying and improving himself at Paris." - -In Hume's answer to this application, we may trace some desire to -reprove any notion that he was a person so insignificant as to feel -highly honoured by an acquaintance with an Honourable, and bound as a -matter of simple etiquette to receive his proffers with grateful -eagerness. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Paris, 26th April, 1764._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--Before I was favoured with yours, I had seen Colonel -L----, who waited on me, as is usual with the British who come to Paris. -I returned his visit, and introduced him to the ambassador, who asked -him to dinner among seven or eight of his countrymen. You will be -surprised, perhaps, when I tell you that this is the utmost of the -civilities which it will ever be possible for me to show Mr. L----. For -as to the ridiculous idea of foreigners, that I might introduce him to -the good company of Paris, nothing can be more impracticable. I know not -one family to which I could present such a man, silent, grave, awkward, -speaking ill the language, not distinguished by any exploit, or science, -or art. Were the French houses open to such people as these, they would -be very little agreeable, considering the immense concourse of strangers -to this place. But it is quite otherwise. The people are more scrupulous -of receiving persons unknown, and I should soon lose all credit with -them, were I to prostitute my recommendations of this nature. Your -recommendations have great weight with me; but if I am not mistaken, I -have often seen Colonel L----'s face in Edinburgh. It is a little late -he has bethought himself of being _ambitious_, as you say, of being -introduced to my acquaintance. The only favour I can do him, is to -advise him, as soon as he has seen Paris, to go to a provincial town -where people are less shy of admitting new acquaintance, and are less -delicate judges of behaviour. It is almost out of the memory of man, -that any British has been here on a footing of familiarity with the good -company except my Lord Holderness, who had a good stock of acquaintance -to begin with, speaks the language like a native, has very insinuating -manners, was presented under the character of an old secretary of state, -and spent, as is said, L10,000 this winter, to obtain that object of -vanity. Him, indeed, I met every where in the best company: but as to -others--lords, earls, marquises, and dukes--they went about to plays, -operas, and ----. Nobody minded them; they kept company with one -another; and it would have been ridiculous to think of bringing them -into French company. I may add General Clarke, who was liked and -esteemed by several people of merit, which he owed to his great -cleverness and ingenuity, and to his surprising courage in introducing -himself. I enter into this detail with you, that people with whom I am -much more connected than with the L. family, may not, at any time, be -surprised that I am able to do so little for them in this way, and may -not form false ideas of the hospitality of the French nation. But I -fancy there will not arrive at Paris many people who will have great -claims of past civilities to plead with me. - -"What you tell me of John Adams gives me great consolation. I had heard -of the alarming news of his connexions with Fairholm, and things were -put in the worst light. I was just ready to write to Ferguson to get -from him a just state of the case; but if he has L15,000, or L18,000 -remaining, his industry will recover him, and he may go on in his usual -way of beneficence and generosity. That family is one of the few to -whose civilities I have been much beholden, and I retain a lively sense -of them. - -"Our friend, I mean your friend, Lord Kames, had much provoked Voltaire, -who never forgives, and never thinks any enemy below his notice. He has -accordingly sent to the _Gazette Literaire_, an article with regard to -the 'Elements of Criticism,' which turns that book extremely into -ridicule, with a good deal of wit.[195:1] I tried to have it suppressed -before it was printed; but the authors of that Gazette told me, that -they durst neither suppress nor alter any thing that came from Voltaire. -I suppose his lordship holds that satiric wit as cheap, as he does all -the rest of the human race; and will not be in the least mortified by -his censure. - -"The taste for literature is neither decayed nor depraved here, as with -the barbarians who inhabit the banks of the Thames. Some people, who had -read your dissertation, affirmed to me, that it was the finest piece of -criticism, incomparably, to be found in the English tongue. I know not -if you have read the 'Poetique de Marmontel:' it is worth your perusal. -Voltaire has published an edition of Corneille, and his notes and -dissertations contain many fine things. There is a book published in -Holland, in two volumes octavo, called 'De la Nature.' It is prolix, and -in many parts whimsical; but contains some of the boldest reasonings to -be found in print. There is a miscellany in three volumes duodecimo -published here, where there are many good pieces. It is perhaps more -amusing to me, than it will be to you; as there is scarce a poem in it -whose author I do not know, or the person to whom it is addressed. - -"It is very silly to form distant schemes: but I am fixed at Paris for -some time, and, to judge by probabilities, for life. My income would -suffice me to live at ease, and a younger brother of the best family -would not think himself ill provided for, if he had such a revenue. -Lodgings, a coach, and clothes, are all I need; and though I have -entered late into this scene of life, I am almost as much at my ease, as -if I had been educated in it from my infancy. However, sickness, or the -infirmities of age, which I may soon expect, may probably make me think -of a retreat: But whether that will be better found in Paris or -elsewhere, time must determine. I forbid myself all resolution on that -head. - -"I shall indulge myself in a folly, which I hope you will make a -discreet use of: it is the telling you of an incident which may appear -silly, but which gave more pleasure than perhaps any other I had ever -met with. I was carried, about six weeks ago, to a masquerade, by Lord -Hertford. We went both unmasked; and we had scarce entered the room when -a lady, in mask, came up to me and exclaimed:--'_Ha! Monsr. Hume, vous -faites bien de venir ici a visage decouvert. Que vous serez bien comble -ce soir d'honnetetes et de politesses! Vous verrez, par des preuves peu -equivoques, jusqu'a quel point vous etes cheri en France._' This -prologue was not a little encouraging; but, as we advanced through the -hall, it is difficult to imagine the caresses, civilities, and -panegyrics which poured on me from all sides. You would have thought -that every one had taken advantage of his mask to speak his mind with -impunity. I could observe that the ladies were rather the most liberal -on this occasion. But what gave me chief pleasure was to find that most -of the eulogiums bestowed on me, turned on my personal character, my -naivete, and simplicity of manners, the candour and mildness of my -disposition, &c.--_Non sunt mihi cornea fibra._ I shall not deny that my -heart felt a sensible satisfaction from this general effusion of good -will; and Lord Hertford was much pleased, and even surprised, though he -said, he thought that he had known before upon what footing I stood with -the good company of Paris. - -"I allow you to communicate this story to Dr. Jardine. I hope it will -refute all his idle notions that I have no turn for gallantry and -gaiety,[197:1]--that I am on a bad footing with the ladies,--that my -turn of conversation can never be agreeable to them,--that I never can -have any pretensions to their favours, &c. &c. &c. A man in vogue will -always have something to pretend to with the fair sex. - -"Do you not think it happy for me to retain such a taste for idleness -and follies at my years; especially since I have come into a country -where the follies are so much more agreeable than elsewhere? I could -only wish that some of my old friends were to participate with me of -these amusements; though I know none of them that can, on occasion, be -so thoroughly idle as myself. - -"I am persuaded you will find great comfort in my house, which, in every -respect, is agreeable. I beg of you and Mrs. Blair, (to whom I desire my -compliments,) that you would sometimes pay some attention to my sister, -who is the person that suffers most by my absence. I am, dear sir, yours -very sincerely."[198:1] - - -Blair writes, on the 15th November, assuring Hume that he is fully -conscious of the unreasonableness of expecting him to introduce those -who are accredited to him, to the good company of Paris. He says, that -his own friend expressed himself as "very well satisfied" with Hume's -behaviour towards him; and perhaps he had a better reception than the -letter to Blair might seem to indicate. At all events, Blair seems not -to have been discouraged, for he immediately introduced the son of the -provost of Glasgow, travelling for his health, and Arthur Masson, a -teacher of languages, recommending them to such good offices as Hume -finds himself at liberty to bestow on them. It is clear, in short, that -he had not been successful in frightening his friends from requesting -him to perform offices of kindness and courtesy, or from trusting that -he would perform them. The following passage, in Blair's letter, is -evidence of the popularity of the Literary classes of the university of -Edinburgh, during the middle of last century. - - My class was, last season, in such reputation that I gave a - second course in summer, at the desire of a body of the - medical students. I am just about to open for this - winter--with what success I cannot tell; for I tremble for it - every season. Against next season I intend to print a synopsis - of my lectures. In the medical school, a revolution is at a - crisis, which is important to us. Dr. Rutherford wants to - demit in favour of Frank Hume; a measure pushed by Lord - Milton, Baron Mure, and John Home; the coalition of three - formidable powers: but which we college people dread as boding - us no good; and are much more inclined to another scheme, of - placing Cullen in Rutherford's chair, and bringing Dr. Black, - from Glasgow, into the chair of chemistry, which would greatly - promote the reputation of our college, and which has all the - popularity on its side at present. - - How unimportant these things seem to you now? I hear much, - from time to time, of your continuing, nay, increasing - celebrity and fame. You are just the high mode, they tell - us--the very delice of all the good company at Paris. - -In a letter to Millar, chiefly in reference to some English law books, -which Hume had engaged to obtain for a French lawyer, he recurs to the -Memoirs of King James. He seems to have indolently adopted the notion -that there were few chances of his having an opportunity of making -additions to his History of the Stuarts. He did live, however, to see -more than one new edition of it: but the references in them to the -treasure he had discovered at Paris, are extremely meagre. Another -letter immediately follows, in which we find that his anticipations of -new editions are already outrun by the demands: and we find in his, as -in many other cases, where permanent fame has been reached, that the -excitement of expectant authorship has declined long before its visions -are realized; and that their fulfilment comes at last on minds sobered -down to indifference. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Paris, 18th March, 1764._ - -"I have lived such a life of dissipation as not to be able to think of -any serious occupation. But I begin to tire of that course of life. I -have, however, run over King James's Memoirs, and have picked up some -curious passages, which it is needless to speak of till we have occasion -for a new edition, which I suppose is very distant." - - -"_Paris, 18th April, 1764._ - -"DEAR SIR,--All the discoveries I made in King James's Memoirs, make -against himself and his brother; and he is surely a good enough witness -on that side: but I believe him also a man of veracity, and I should -have put trust in any matter of fact that he told from his own -knowledge. But this it is needless for us to talk any more about; since, -I suppose, you have got copies enough of my History, already printed, to -last for your lifetime and mine. I shall certainly never think of adding -another line to it. I am too much your friend to think of it. . . . I -beg my sincere compliments to Mrs. Millar. I saw a few days ago Mrs. -Mallet, who seems to be going upon a strange project, of living alone, -in a hermitage, in the midst of the forest of Fontainbleau. I pass my -time very agreeably here; though somewhat too much dissipated for one of -my years and humour."[201:1] - - -"_Paris, 23d April, 1764._ - -"I was very much surprised with what you tell me, that you had made a -new edition in quarto, of my History of the Tudors, and might probably -do the same with that of the Stuarts. I imagined that the octavo edition -would for a long time supersede the necessity of any quarto edition; and -I wonder that of the ancient history did not first become requisite. You -were in the wrong to make any edition without informing me; because I -left in Scotland a copy very fully corrected, with a few alterations, -which ought to have been followed. I shall write to my sister to send it -you, and I desire you may follow it in all future editions, if there be -any such. I shall send you from here the alterations, which my perusal -of King James's Memoirs has occasioned; they are not many, but some of -them, one in particular, is of importance. I have some scruple of -inserting it, on your account, till the sale of the other editions be -pretty considerably advanced. You have not yet informed me how many you -may have upon hand. I suppose a very considerable number. Father Gordon -of the Scots College, who has an exact memory of King James's Memoirs, -was so kind as to peruse anew my History during the Commonwealth, and -the reigns of the two brothers; and he marked all the passages of fact, -where they differed from the Memoirs. They were surprisingly few; which -gave me some satisfaction; because as I told you, I take that prince's -authority for a plain fact to be very good. - -"I never see Mr. Wilkes here but at chapel, where he is a most regular, -and devout, and edifying, and pious attendant; I take him to be entirely -regenerate. He told me last Sunday, that you had given him a copy of my -Dissertations, with the two which I had suppressed;[202:1] and that he, -foreseeing danger, from the sale of his library, had wrote to you to -find out that copy, and to tear out the two obnoxious dissertations. -Pray how stands that fact? It was imprudent in you to intrust him with -that copy: it was very prudent in him to use that precaution. Yet I do -not naturally suspect you of imprudence, nor him of prudence. I must -hear a little farther before I pronounce."[202:2] - - -Millar, writing on 5th June, gives the following account of his conduct -as to the suppressed dissertations. - - "I take Mr. Wilkes to be the same man he was,--acting a part. - He has forgot the story of the _two_ dissertations. The fact - is, upon importunity, I lent to him the only copy I preserved, - and for years never could recollect he had it, till his books - came to be sold; upon this I went immediately to the gentleman - that directed the sale, told him the fact, and reclaimed the - two dissertations which were my property. Mr. Coates, who was - the person, immediately delivered me the volume; and so soon - as I got home, I tore them out and burnt them, that I might - not lend them to any for the future. Two days after, Mr. - Coates sent me a note for the volume, as Mr. Wilkes had - desired it should be sent to him to Paris; I returned the - volume, but told him the two dissertations, I had torn out of - the volume and burnt, being my property. This is the truth of - the matter, and nothing but the truth. It was certainly - imprudent for me to lend them to him." - -The interest taken by Hume, as by all his contemporary -fellow-countrymen, in the Douglas cause, has already been noticed. As -the inquiry which had taken place in France had not been long concluded, -and was the object of discussion in the Court of Session, the adherents -of the exiled royal house, and other Scottish families residing in -Paris, naturally took such a deep interest in the proceedings, as the -following letter explains. - - -HUME _to_ BARON MURE. - -"_Paris, 22d June, 1764._ - -"MY DEAR BARON,--A few days ago I dined with the Duchess of Perth, which -was the first time I had seen that venerable old lady, who is really a -very sensible woman. Part of our conversation was upon the Douglas -affair. - -"That lady, as well as all the company, as well as every body of common -sense here, shows her entire conviction of that imposture; and there was -present a gentleman, an old friend of yours, a person of very good -understanding and of undoubted honour, who laid open to us a scene of -such deliberate dishonesty on the part of her grace of Douglas and her -partisans, as was somewhat new and surprising. I suppose it is all known -to poor Andrew,[203:1] whom I heartily love and pity. 'Tis certain, that -the imposture is as well known to her grace and her friends, as to any -body; and Hay, the Pretender's old secretary, the only man of common -honesty among them, confessed to this gentleman, that he has frequently -been shocked with their practices, and has run away from them to keep -out of the way of such infamy; though he had afterwards the weakness to -yield to their solicitations. Carnegy knows the roguery as well as the -rest; though I did not hear any thing of his scruples. Lord Beauchamp -and Dr. Trail, our chaplain, passed four months last summer at Rheims, -where this affair was much the subject of conversation. Except one -curate, they did not meet with a person, that was not convinced of the -imposture. Mons. de Puysieuls,[204:1] whose country seat is in the -neighbourhood, told me the same thing. Can any thing be more scandalous -and more extraordinary than Frank Garden's behaviour?[204:2] Can any -thing be more scandalous and more ordinary than Burnet's. I am afraid, -that notwithstanding the palpable justice of your cause, it is yet -uncertain whether you will prevail. - -"I continue to live here in a manner amusing enough, and which gives me -no time to be tired of any scene. What between public business, the -company of the learned and that of the great, especially of the ladies, -I find all my time filled up, and have no time to open a book, except it -be some books newly published, which may be the subject of conversation. -I am well enough pleased with this change of life, and a satiety of -study had beforehand prepared the way for it: however, time runs off in -one course of life as well as another, and all things appear so much -alike, that I am afraid of falling into total Stoicism and indifference -about every thing. For instance, I am every moment to be touching on the -time when I am to receive my credential letters of secretary to the -embassy, with a thousand a-year of appointments. The king has promised -it, all the members have promised it; Lord Hertford earnestly solicits -it; the plainest common sense and justice seem to require [it]: yet have -I been in this condition above six months; and I never trouble my head -about the matter, and have rather laid my account that there is to be no -such thing. - -"Please to express my most profound respects to Mrs. Mure, and my sense -of the honour she did me. If I have leisure before the carrier goes off, -I shall write her, and give her some account of my adventures; but I -would not show her so little mark of my attention as to write her only -in a postscript. I am, dear Baron," &c.[205:1] - - -The correspondence with Madame de Boufflers was occasionally resumed, -when Hume or she was absent from Paris. How well the philosopher could -upon occasion accommodate himself to the taste of a French lady of the -court, the following may suffice to show. - - -HUME _to the_ COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - - _Compiegne, 6th July, 1764._ - - We live in a kind of solitude and retirement at Compiegne; at - least I do, who, having nothing but a few general acquaintance - at court, and not caring to make more, have given myself up - almost entirely to study and retreat. You cannot imagine, - madam, with what pleasure I return as it were to my natural - element, and what satisfaction I enjoy in reading, and musing, - and sauntering, amid the agreeable scenes that surround me. - But yes, you can easily enough imagine it; you have yourself - formed the same resolution; you are determined this summer to - tie the broken thread of your studies and literary amusements. - If you have been so happy as to execute your purpose, you are - almost in the same state as myself, and are at present - wandering along the banks of the same beautiful river, perhaps - with the same books in your hand, a Racine, I suppose, or a - Virgil, and despise all other pleasure and amusement. Alas! - why am I not so near you, that I could see you for half an - hour a day, and confer with you on these subjects? - - But this ejaculation, methinks, does not lead me directly in - my purposed road, of forgetting you. It is a short digression, - which is soon over: and that I may return to the right path, I - shall give you some account of the state of the court; I mean - the exterior face of it; for I know no more; and if I did, I - am become so great a politician, that nothing should make me - reveal it. The king divides his evenings every week after the - following manner: one he gives to the public, when he sups at - the grand convent;[206:1] two he passes with his own family; - two in a society of men; and, to make himself amends, two he - passes with ladies, Madame de Grammont, usually, Madame de - Mirepoix, and Madame de Beauveau. This last princess passed - three evenings in this manner at the Hermitage immediately - before her departure, which was on Monday last. I think her - absence a great loss to that society; I am so presumptuous as - to think it one to myself. I found her as obliging and as - friendly as if she had never conversed with kings, and never - were a politician. I really doubt much of her talent for - politics. Pray what is your opinion? Is she qualified, - otherwise than by having great sense and an agreeable - conversation, to make progress in the road to favour? and are - not these qualities rather an encumbrance to her? I have met - her once or twice, with another lady, in whose favour I am - much prepossessed; she seems agreeable, well behaved, - judicious, a great reader; speaks as if she had sentiment, and - was superior to the vulgar train of amusements. I should have - been willing, notwithstanding my present love of solitude, to - have cultivated an acquaintance with her, but she did not say - any thing so obliging to me as to give me encouragement. Would - you conjecture that I mean the Countess of Tesse? I know not - whether you are acquainted with that lady. But I shall never - have done with this idle train of conversation; and therefore, - to cut things short, I kiss your hands most humbly and - devoutly, and bid you adieu.[207:1] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[158:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[159:1] Walpole says, "The decorum and piety of Lord Hertford occasioned -men to wonder, when, in the room of Bunbury, he chose for his secretary -the celebrated freethinker, David Hume, totally unknown to him; but this -was the effect of recommendations from other Scots, who had much weight -with Lord and Lady Hertford." _Walpole's Memoirs of George III._ i. 264. - -[159:2] The change of ministry on which Lord Bute ceased to be minister, -and negotiations were held with Pitt. Hume does not appear to have had -any intercourse with Lord Bute while he was in office. In a letter to -Blair, of 6th October, which will be found in the Appendix on the -"Ossian Controversy," he says, "John Hume [Home] went to the country -yesterday with Lord Bute. I was introduced the other day to that noble -lord at his desire. I believe him a very good man; a better man than a -politician." - -[160:1] Copy R.S.E. The original is in possession of Colonel Mure. - -[163:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[164:1] Extract of a letter from Dr. Carlyle to the Rev. Thomas Hepburn, -dated 5th September, 1763, in Thorpe's Catalogue of Autographs, for -1833. It would be vain to inquire whither the original has now found its -way. - -[165:1] In 1762, Blacklock had received a presentation, as minister to -the parish of Kirkcudbright. His induction was opposed on the ground of -his blindness; and a bitter litigation ensued in the church courts, -while the parishioners, having taken up the matter as vital in a -religious view, persecuted him with all the savage and relentless -cruelty of fanaticism. "No liberal and cultivated mind," he says, in -reference to this dispute, "can entertain the least hesitation in -concluding that there is nothing, either in the nature of things, or -even in the positive institutions of genuine religion, repugnant to the -idea of a blind clergyman. But the novelty of the phenomenon, while it -astonishes vulgar and contracted understandings, inflames their zeal to -rage and madness." - -[167:1] Blair, writing to Hume on 29th September, says, "Horace need not -make you at all blush in your present expedition. If I mistake him not -very much, he paid more court to Maecenas than ever you would have done -to any great man. His _principibus placuisse viris_ was a favourite -passion. Besides that, Horace understood human life too well to refuse -such an opening into high amusement as is now before you: and most -certainly, as you well observe, the farther we advance in life, we need -more to have the scene varied."--(MS. R.S.E.) - -[167:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[167:3] As a specimen of the flattering testimonials which Hume -occasionally received from France, the following letter from M. Trudaine -de Montigny, a young Frenchman who attained to considerable distinction, -is given: - - -(_Translation._) - - "_Paris, 16th May, 1759._ - - "I pass my time, both in town and country, in a circle of - gentlemen, of whom some are acquainted with English, others - not. They had been highly pleased with some portions of your - works, which had been translated; and among others with your - 'Political Discourses,' where they found the practical views - of a citizen, united with the profound reflections of a - politician, and the perspicacity of a philosopher. To put the - whole circle in a position to judge for themselves of the - merit of these works, I undertook, in the course of a country - jaunt which we took all together, to translate your 'Natural - History of Religion.' I chose this piece because it appeared - to me to contain a complete exposition of philosophy on this - subject. I was well rewarded for my pains, by the pleasure I - found I gave to all the world. Madame Dupre de St. Maur, who - has honoured me with the kindest friendship from my infancy, - told me she wished much that you were made acquainted with - this feeble effort. M. Steward, whom I met with M. Helvetius, - and who wished much to hear the perusal, promised to send it - to you." - -Madame Dupre de St. Maur writes, on 16th May, 1759, that Montigny had -received Hume's acknowledgment, which produced more effect on him than -any piece of good fortune he had hitherto experienced. "I partook," she -says, "of his joy the more sensibly, as I had in a great measure -inspired him with confidence to send you his translation, in the -persuasion that great men are the most indulgent."--MS. R.S.E. - -We find the tone of this letter frequently responded to in the -correspondence of Grimm with his German patrons, though the Baron does -not always coincide in the praises he has to record. Andrew Stuart, -known by his letters to Lord Mansfield, who before 1763 was much -employed in France in connexion with the Douglas cause, and appears to -have been admitted into the best company there, writes to Sir William -Johnstone on 16th December, 1762: "When you have occasion to see our -friend, David Hume, tell him that he is so much worshipped here, that he -must be void of all passions, if he does not immediately take post for -Paris. In most houses where I am acquainted here, one of the first -questions is, Do you know Mons{r}. Hume, whom we all admire so much? -I dined yesterday at Helvetius's, where this same Mons{r}. Hume -interrupted our conversation very much."--(MS. R.S.E.) - - * * * * * - -The following note, from the impetuous Alexander Murray, responds to the -same strain:-- - - "MY DEAR HUME,--The great desire that several French gentlemen - of my acquaintance have of being known to you, which happiness - I have promised to procure them, makes me ardently beg the - favour of you to do me the honour to dine with me any day next - week (Monday excepted,) that you please to appoint. Your - rencounters with the men, my dear friend, give me no sort of - pain; but I freely own to you I am under some uneasiness how - you will acquit yourself with the fair sex, whose impatience - of knowing you is not to be expressed. The day you dine with - me you will meet some folks who admire your productions as - much as any of your own countrymen, and perhaps comprehend - your sublime ideas as well as they do. I beg leave to assure - you that no body loves and admires you more than your most - sincere friend and humble servant."--(MS. R.S.E.) - - "_Saturday Morning._" - -[169:1] Some words obliterated. - -[170:1] A word or two obliterated. - -[171:1] A translation was published in 1764, by M. A. Eidous; there was -another in 1774, by Blavet. - -[172:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 648. Corrected from the original -MS. R.S.E. - -[172:2] The Poker Club, which had then existed for some time, and was -continued for some years after Hume's death. Its name is supposed to -have been bestowed on it, on account of its services in stirring the -intellectual energies of the members. - -[174:1] The name Adam used to be thus altered in the Scottish -vernacular. The person here alluded to is evidently John Adam the -architect, and the "Willie," his son William, who became Lord Chief -Commissioner of the Jury Court in Scotland, and died in 1839. - -[175:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1828, p. 683. - -[176:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[176:2] Madame Belot, whose translation of the "History of the House of -Tudor," was published in 1763, as "Histoire de la Maison de Tudor, &c. -par Madam B * * *." She published a translation of the earlier period of -the History, in 1765. Grimm charges Madame Belot with preposterous -blunders as a translator; and gives, as an instance, her rendering -Hume's allusion to the _Polish aristocracy_, by the words, _une -aristocratie polie_. Of this lady, a curious periodical work, called -"Memoires Secrets, pour servir a l'Histoire de la Republique des lettres -en France," says, of date 26th May, 1764, that, after having lived a -life of wretched poverty, scantily supported by the produce of her -translations from the English, she was then living with the President -Mesnieres, whose taste is considered singular as "cette dame est peu -jeune: elle est laide, seche et d'un esprit triste et melancolique." -Such were then the rewards of female authorship in France! - -[177:1] This hint was not adopted. Robertson's work was translated by -Suard. - -[178:1] There can have been no reason for this abbreviation of the title -of the Dauphin and his children, but the circumstance that the letter -was liable to be seen in France, and a full statement might be -considered disrespectful. The first-named was the Duc de Berri, -afterwards Louis XVI.; he was then nine years old. The Count de P. was -the Comte de Provence, afterwards Louis XVIII., born in 1755. The Count -D'A, was the Comte d'Artois, afterwards Charles X., who died in 1836. -Hume has underrated his age, which was six; he was born in 1757. Thus -were these children, who made their little speeches to the historian of -Charles I., all destined to be, successively, kings of France, and to -experience a too intimate acquaintance with such scenes as they found -depicted in his "fine history!" - -[179:1] These volumes were lost during the French Revolution. It is said -that an attempt was made to convey them to St. Omers; but having to be -committed, for some time, to the care of a Frenchman, his wife became -alarmed lest the regal emblems on the binding might expose the family to -danger from the Terrorists. The narrative proceeds to say, that she -first cut off the binding and buried the manuscripts, but that being -still haunted by fears, she exhumed and burned them. See the -introduction by Dr. Staniers Clarke, to "The Life of James II." believed -to be an abridgment of these manuscripts. Hume is not consistent as to -the number of volumes. - -[179:2] Stewart's Life of Robertson. - -[180:1] This letter is not dated. - -[181:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[182:1] Lord Marischal's attainder having been reversed, he had visited -Scotland, for the purpose of purchasing one of his estates. He thus -communicates the result to Hume in a letter of 23d February. - -"I thank you for forwarding my cousin's letter. I wish, now that I am -Laird of Inverury, that he were my son, and of my name. I bought my -estate farthest north. There was no bidder against any one; and great -applause of the spectators." MS. R.S.E. - -[184:1] Edmondstoune appears to have been residing at Geneva, as -guardian to Lord Mount-Stuart, Lord Bute's son. - -[184:2] Sic in MS. - -[184:3] See it noticed in vol. i. p. 405, in connexion with the right of -resistance. - -[187:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[187:2] Sic in MS. - -[189:1] Original in possession of the Cambusmore family. - -[192:1] Minto MSS. - -[192:2] The letter proceeds to say, "Our little society here continues -much on the footing you left it; only that we find frequent occasions of -regretting the blank you make amongst us. In our college we are making a -great improvement. In consequence of a bargain made with J. Russel, -Bruce, the Professor of the Law of Nature and Nations, goes out; Balfour -of Pilrig moves into his place; Ferguson into the chair of Moral -Philosophy; and Russel into that of Natural. Is not this clever?" He -then states, that "The taste for French literature grows more and more -amongst us," and hopes he will send any new publication which has merit. -He concludes with mentioning the bankruptcy of the Fairholms, and the -circumstance of Mr. Adam's involvement in it. - -[195:1] See Tytler's Life of Kames, vol. ii. p. 148. - -[197:1] See Vol. I. p. 232. - -[198:1] MS. R.S.E. The latter part of the letter is printed in the -_Literary Gazette_ for 1822, p. 712. - -[201:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[202:1] See above, p. 14. - -[202:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[203:1] Andrew Stuart, see above, p. 168. - -[204:1] Puisieux? - -[204:2] Francis Garden, afterwards a judge of the Court of Session, with -the title of Lord Gardenstone. He was senior, and James Burnet, -afterwards Lord Monboddo, was junior Scottish counsel for Mr. Douglas in -the Tournelle process in France. - -[205:1] Copy in R.S.E. The original is in possession of Colonel Mure. - -[206:1] Perhaps an error in transcribing _au grand couvert_? - -[207:1] Private Correspondence, p. 83-85. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -1764-1765. AEt. 53-54. - - The French and English Society of Hume's day--Reasons of his - warm reception in France--Society in which he moved--Mixture - of lettered men with the Aristocracy--Madame Geoffrin--Madame - Du Page de Boccage--Madame Du Deffand--Mademoiselle De - L'Espinasse--D'Alembert--Turgot--The Prince of Conti--Notices - of Hume among the Parisians--Walpole in Paris--Resumption of - the Correspondence--Hume undertakes the management of Elliot's - sons--Reminiscences of home--Mrs. Cockburn--Adam Smith--Madame - De Boufflers and the Prince of Conti--Correspondence with Lord - Elibank. - - -There were many things to make the social position he obtained in France -infinitely gratifying to Hume. Even his good birth was no claim to -admission on a position of liberal familiarity with the higher -aristocracy of England. His descent from a line of Scottish lairds would -be insufficient in the eyes of the Walpoles, Russels, and Seymours, to -distinguish him from the common herd of men who could put on a laced -waistcoat and powdered wig, and command decent treatment from the -lackeys in their ante-chambers. His claims rested on his Literary rank; -and the extent to which such claims might be admitted was fixed by -Hereditary rank at its own discretion. It might cordially receive them -one day, and repel them with cold disdain on another. In this doubtful -and partial recognition, Hume would find himself in the motley crowd of -those who force themselves, or are partly welcomed, into these high -places--dissipated men of genius, underbred men of riches, hardworking, -pertinacious politicians; persons with whom his finely trained mind, his -reserve, and his habit of mixing in a refined though small society of -Scotsmen, would not easily harmonize. - -In France matters were widely different; there he was at once warmly and -affectionately received into the bosom of a society to which many of the -supercilious English aristocracy would have sought for admission in -vain. In England no distinct palpable barrier surrounded the -distinguished group. The multitude clamorously asserted an equality. In -default of other qualities, impudence and perseverance were sometimes -sufficient to force admission. In these circumstances, each member of -the privileged classes guarded his own portion of the arena as well as -he might, and the intruder had to fight battle after battle, and contest -every inch of ground he gained. - -It seems as if in France the very rigidness with which the select circle -was fortified was the reason why those admitted within it were placed so -thoroughly at their ease. The aristocracy could open the door, look -about them, and invite an individual to enter, without fearing to -encounter a general rush for admission. There was much evil of every -kind in that circle; we have not to deal here with its inward morality, -but its outward form, and it certainly deserves to be remembered as one -of the most memorable instances in which, on any large scale, the -aristocracy of rank and wealth has met the aristocracy of letters -without restraint. The quality of shining in conversation was not to be -despised by the greatest in wealth, or the highest in the peerage; and -their efforts were measured with those of the first wits of the time. To -an aristocracy which could thus amuse itself, it was a great luxury to -be surrounded by men of thought and learning. The courtier who could -open his salon to the wits and philosophers of Paris, was far more -dependant on their presence than they were on the privilege of -admission. If a Barthelemi, a Marmontel, a Condillac, saw cause to -desert the suppers of D'Holbach, they would be received at those of the -Duc de Praslin or de Choiseul, the Prince of Conti, and Madame du -Deffand; but how were such departed stars to be replaced?[209:1] - -There is perhaps no more striking type of the character and condition -of the Parisian coteries than one of Hume's most intimate friends, -Madame Geoffrin. In this country, were an uneducated woman to frame and -lead a social party, including the first in rank and in talent of the -day, to which no one under royalty was too great not to deem admission a -privilege; were she to be absolute in her admissions and exclusions, -bold in her sarcasms, free and blunt often to rudeness in her -observations and opinions, and severe or kind to all by turns as her own -choice or caprice suggested, it would be at once pronounced that the -reddest blood and the highest rank could alone produce such an anomaly. -A very small number of eminent duchesses have perhaps occupied such a -position in this country. Yet Madame Geoffrin, who acted this part to -the full among the fastidious aristocracy of France before the -revolution, was the daughter of a valet-de-chambre and the widow of a -glass manufacturer. The foundation of her influence was her success in -making herself the centre of a circle of artists and men of letters. She -was much in the confidence of Madame De Tencin, and on that lady's death -succeeded in transferring to herself what remained of her distinguished -society, dimmed as it was by the departure of Montesquieu and -Fontenelle. Madame Geoffrin by activity and energy widened the circle. -She never made visits herself, and those who had the privilege of -entering her dining-room on her public days, found there assembled -D'Alembert, Helvetius, Raynal, Marmontel, Caraccioli, Holbach, Galliani, -and the artist Vanloo. During the British embassy, David Hume, the great -philosopher from the far North, might there be met; and when all other -attempts had perhaps failed, some chance of encountering such an erratic -meteor as Rousseau still remained in attending Madame Geoffrin's -Wednesday dinner. Having once, by her signal wit and wisdom, gained her -position, no obtrusive rivals from her own deserted class could push -near enough to drive her from it. It is not the least admirable feature -of this remarkable woman, that far from assuming the subdued and -cautious tone of one of her own rank, who must be more wary than a -denizen of committing breaches of the social rules of her new cast, a -simplicity and freedom seems to have accompanied all her actions and -ideas; a courageous adoption of what seemed good to her in place of what -might be fit. Her letters, in their severe diction, give some notion of -the writer's character, but cannot convey so full an impression as when -they are presented in the bold, irregular, and most "unlady-like" hand -in which they are scribbled.[211:1] - -The pleasant retailers of the literary chit-chat of that time, -Marmontel, Grimm, Bauchemont, and others, are full of details of Madame -Geoffrin, who, if she was not quite as formally approached as Boufflers, -or Deffand, was as much respected, loved, and feared. The author of the -"Contes Moraux," tells us some of the weaknesses of this gifted lady; -and, according to his account, she had been actually convicted, living -as she was outwardly in the freest society in the world, of a turn for -secret devotion! "Elle avait un apartement dans un couvent de -religieuses et une tribune a l'Eglise des Capucins,--mais avec autant de -mystere que les femmes galantes de ce temps-la avaient des petites -maisons." The picture would be sufficiently ludicrous, were it not for -the darker features presented by a state of society, where no one should -venture to be pious except under pain of being exterminated with -ridicule. - -There was one matter as to which Madame Geoffrin was timid and cautious; -she never meddled with matters of state or unsafe political opinions, -and was induced to discountenance those who did so. Surrounded by -restless and inquiring spirits, she often dreaded being compromised by -their conduct; and was especially uneasy at any time when the Bastille -sheltered a more than usual number of those whose wit was wont to flash -round her board. But her guests have recorded, that if there was a -little saddened and earnest gravity in her deportment, when she received -them after such naughty affairs, she abated nothing of her old kindness. -Her good heart indeed was after all her noblest quality. She was one of -those who held the simple notion, that were it not for the judicious -distribution of favours by the rich, the poor, including artisans and -producers of all kinds, must necessarily die of starvation. She was thus -in the midst of an extensive distribution of charities, actively -occupied in the _encouragement_ of those who lived by the sweat of their -brow; and if she believed that she accomplished much more than she -actually did, it was a satisfaction not to be grudged to one who -occupied herself with the fortunes of the poor, in the midst of the -stony indifference of the French aristocracy of that day. - -Another lady, a friend and correspondent of Hume, Madame le Page du -Boccage, endeavoured to rival Madame Geoffrin as a centre of attraction; -but though she possessed, along with wealth, both rank and beauty, she -was unsuccessful, on account of the presence of a third -quality--authorship. The wits must praise her bad poetry if they -frequented her house, and where so many other doors were open without -such a condition, they abandoned it. "Elle etait d'une figure aimable," -says Grimm, "elle est bonne femme; elle est riche; elle pouvait fixer -chez elle les gens d'esprit et de bonne compagnie, sans les mettre dans -l'embarras de lui parler avec peu de sincerite de sa _Colombiade_ ou de -ses _Amazones_."[213:1] - -Perhaps of all these eminent women, while Madame de Boufflers had the -greatest amount of elegance and accomplishment, Madame du Deffand had -the sharpest and most searching wit. She was the author of that -proverbial _bon mot_ about St. Denis carrying his head under his arm, -_il n'y a que le premier pas qui coute_; a saying sufficient to make a -reputation in France. Madame du Deffand does not appear to have been a -correspondent of Hume, nor, though they occasionally met, does much -cordiality seem to have subsisted between them.[214:1] The aveugle -clairvoyante, as Voltaire aptly called her, in allusion to her blindness -and her wit, thought that she discovered in Hume a worshipper at another -shrine. She wrote to Walpole expressing her disgust of those who paid -court to Madame de Boufflers, at the same time, only just not stating, -in express terms, how much they were mistaken in not transferring their -obsequiousness to herself.[214:2] She, certainly an object of pity from -her blindness, was still more so in her own discontented spirit. The -days which tranquil ease and the attentions of kind friends might have -soothed, were disturbed by restless vanity, an intense desire to -interfere with the doings of that world which she could not see, -dissipation, and literary wrangles. - -One remarkable person, an offshoot of Madame du Deffand's circle, and -driven forth from it to raise an empire of her own, was Mademoiselle de -L'Espinasse. Hume and she met frequently in Paris, and they subsequently -corresponded together. She was an illegitimate child, who, having been -well educated, had been adopted by Madame du Deffand as her companion, -and the minister for supplying, as far as possible, her lost sense of -sight. Mademoiselle had to be present at those displays of intellect -which illuminated the table of her mistress. It soon began to transpire -that the humble drudge possessed a soul of fire; and taking part in the -conversation, her remarks rose as she acquired confidence and ease, into -an originality of thought, fulness of judgment, and rich eloquence of -language, which fascinated the senses of those veteran champions in the -arena of intellect. Thus many of those who went to offer their incense -to a woman old and blind, were constrained to bestow some of it on one -"young in years, but in sage counsel old," who had little more outward -claim on their admiration; for Mademoiselle de L'Espinasse was naturally -plain, and was deeply marked with smallpox. The patroness did not -present herself till six o'clock in the evening; to her who knew no -difference between light and darkness it was morning. She often found -that her protegee had been entertaining the guests for an hour, and that -they had come early to enjoy her conversation. This was treason--an -overt tampering with the allegiance of the followers; and the -subordinate was driven forth with contumely. - -It is not easy to decide which party, if either, was in the right; -though the memoir writers in general take the part of Mademoiselle de -L'Espinasse. Far from being made a homeless wanderer by the dismissal, -she was immediately supplied with a house and furniture by her friends, -who obtained for her a pension from the crown. On these means she -founded a rival establishment of her own; and surrounded herself with an -intellectual circle, which seems to have more than rivalled in -brilliancy that from which she was dismissed. D'Alembert was told that -if he countenanced the new idol, he must bid farewell to his former -patroness. He at once joined the party of the young aspirant. He became -dangerously ill, and Mademoiselle de L'Espinasse nursed him with the -untiring affection of a wife or a daughter. The philosopher, whose -humble dwelling was found to be on too sordid a scale to be consistent -with health, thenceforth took up his abode with his young friend. Hume -must have witnessed the rise of this new connexion, for it was during -his residence in Paris that D'Alembert's illness took place, and it is -the object of occasional anxious allusion by his Parisian -acquaintance.[216:1] - -Though the circumstances in which he passed his earlier days were not -likely to nourish such a taste, no man seems to have been more dependant -on the presence of an educated and intellectual female than the -secretary of the Academy. There is little doubt that the new attachment -was of a Platonic character; but it boded evil to both parties. The -lady, if she had some portion of the purer affections of the soul to -bestow upon the sage, had warmer feelings for likelier objects; and her -frame sunk before the consuming fires of more than one passion.[218:1] -She was carried to an early grave, and the mortifications, caused by her -alienation, followed by grief for her death, broke the spirit, and -imbittered and enfeebled the latter days of the philosopher. Hume seems -to have established a closer friendship with D'Alembert than with any of -his other contemporaries in France; and he left a memorial of his regard -for the encyclopediast in his will. Unlike, in many respects, they had -some features in common. D'Alembert's personal character, and the habits -of his life, had, like his philosophy, the dignity of simplicity. His -figure, and still more his voice, were the objects of much malicious -sarcasm; but cruel jests could not make his fragile body less the -tenement of a noble spirit; or his shrill puny voice less the instrument -of great and bold thoughts. His mind stands forth in strong relief from -the frippery of that age; while his writings contain no marks of that -reckless infidelity which distinguishes the productions of his fellow -labourers. In some of those follies, so prevalent that a man utterly -free of them, must have courted the charge of eccentricity, if not of -insanity, he partook; but moderately and reluctantly, as one suited for -a better time and a nobler sphere of exertion. In the quarrel with -Rousseau, he adopted the cause of Hume with honest zeal. He wrote many -letters to Hume, which are still preserved. They perhaps, in some -measure, exhibit the least amiable feature of his character--his -bitterness, it might be almost termed hatred, towards Madame du Deffand, -on account of her conduct to his own friend. - -It is unnecessary to discourse, at any length, on the distinguished -men--including the names of Buffon, Malesherbes, Diderot, Crebillon, -Morellet, Helvetius, Holbach, Henault, Raynal, Suard, La Condamine, and -De Brosses, who courted Hume's company in France. Next to D'Alembert, -his closest friendship seems to have been with the honest and thoughtful -statesman, Turgot; who, in the midst of that reckless whirl of vanity, -was already looking far into the future, and predicting, from the -disorganized and menacing condition of the elements of French society, -the storm that was to come. He wrote many letters to Hume, containing -remarks on matters of statesmanship and political economy, which are of -great interest in a historical and economical view, especially in one -instance, where he notices the want of any common principle of -sympathies and interests connecting the aristocracy with the people, and -reflects on the dangerous consequences of such a state of matters to the -peace of Europe. - -There are many circumstances showing that much as he loved the social -ease, combined with learning and wit, for which his Parisian circle was -conspicuous, he disliked one prominent feature of that social -system--the scornful infidelity, the almost intolerance of any thing -like earnest belief, so often exhibited, both in speech and conduct. Sir -Samuel Romilly has preserved the following curious statement by -Diderot:--"He spoke of his acquaintance with Hume. 'Je vous dirai un -trait de lui, mais il vous sera un peu scandaleux peut-etre, car vous -Anglais vous croyez _un peu_ en Dieu; pour nous autres nous n'y croyons -gueres. Hume dina avec une grande compagnie chez le Baron D'Holbach. Il -etait assis a cote du Baron; on parla de la religion naturelle: 'Pour -les Athees,' disait Hume, 'je ne crois pas qu'il en existe; je n'en ai -jamais vu.' 'Vous avez ete un peu malheureux,' repondit l'autre, 'vous -voici a table avec dix-sept pour la premiere fois.'"[220:1] - -The secretary's residence in the metropolis was occasionally varied by -official sojourns to Fontainbleau, or Compiegne, a visit to the Duchesse -de Barbantane at Villers Cotterets, or an excursion with Madame de -Boufflers and the Prince of Conti to L'Ile-Adam. That rural seat of -princely magnificence and hospitality is a familiar name in the memoirs -of the times; and particularly in those of Madame de Genlis. It is -singular, indeed, that this lady never mentions Hume, though she appears -to have been living in the castle at the time when he visited it. The -Prince of Conti was in every way possessed of the external -qualifications which, in the eyes of his countrymen, were then the -proper ornaments of his high station. He was brave, a distinguished -military leader, generous, extravagant, gallant, and a lover of -literature and the arts.[221:1] There was probably little in such a -character to rival a Turgot, or a D'Alembert in Hume's esteem; but -his intercourse with this prince, as with De Rohan, De Choiseul, and -others, would be of a more limited and formal character.[221:2] His -influence with courtiers and statesmen, however, appears to have been -considerable. In the letters addressed to him there are several -instances where French people solicit his interposition with the great: -thus, Madame Helvetius desires his good offices to procure an abbaye for -her friend and neighbour the Abbe "Macdonalt," of an illustrious Irish -family.[222:1] One lady, seeking ecclesiastical patronage, tells him -that the clergy will have more pleasure in doing him a favour than in -performing the functions of their office! - -Hume has thus recorded in his "own life" the impression left on him by -his reception in Paris:--"Those who have not seen the strange effects of -modes, will never imagine the reception I met with at Paris, from men -and women of all ranks and stations. The more I resiled from their -excessive civilities, the more I was loaded with them. There is, -however, a real satisfaction in living at Paris; from the great number -of sensible, knowing, and polite company with which that city abounds -above all places in the universe. I thought once of settling there for -life." If he thought that he could have taken up his residence in Paris, -and preserved for the remainder of his days the fresh bloom of his -reputation, he was undoubtedly mistaken; but, dazzled as he in some -measure was, we can see in his correspondence that he estimated the -sensation he made pretty nearly at its just value. In the circle of -toys, seized and discarded, by a giddy fashionable crowd, philosophy -will have its turn, as well as poodles, parrots, tulips, monkeys, cafes, -and black pages. It had been so a century earlier, when the most -abstruse works of Des Cartes had been the ornament of every fashionable -lady's toilette; and now the wheel had revolved and philosophy was again -in vogue. - -A second time we have Lord Charlemont affording us a passing sketch of -Hume. Having had an opportunity of witnessing the philosopher's -reception in France, he says:-- - - "From what has been already said of him, it is apparent that - his conversation to strangers, and particularly to Frenchmen, - could be little delightful, and still more particularly, one - would suppose, to French women: and yet no lady's toilette was - complete without Hume's attendance. At the opera his broad - unmeaning face was usually seen _entre deux jolis minois_. The - ladies in France gave the ton, and the ton was deism: a - species of philosophy ill suited to the softer sex, in whose - delicate frame weakness is interesting, and timidity a - charm. . . . . How my friend Hume was able to endure the - encounter of these French female Titans, I know not. In - England, either his philosophic pride or his conviction that - infidelity was ill suited to women, made him perfectly averse - from the initiation of ladies into the mysteries of his - doctrine."[223:1] - -The same characteristics are recorded by Grimm.[223:2] We have his -position still more vividly painted by Madame d'Epinay, according to -whom he must have undergone not a small portion of the martyrdom of -lionism. One of the "rages" of the day was the holding of cafes, or -giving entertainments in private houses, according to the arrangements -and etiquette of a public cafe. Among the amusements of the evening were -pantomimes, and acted tableaux. In these it was necessary that Hume -should take a _role_, and as he was always willing to conform to -established regulations, we find him seated as a sultan between two -obdurate beauties, intending to strike his bosom, but aiming the blows -at _le ventre_, and accompanying his acting with characteristic -exclamations.[224:1] - -Hume's popularity in Paris appears to have somewhat disturbed Horace -Walpole's equanimity. He was too good an artist to be very angry, or to -express himself in terms of aggravated bitterness; but it is clear from -occasional notices, that, notwithstanding his professed admiration of -Scotsmen, it displeased him to find Hume the Scotsman sitting at the -king's gate. Writing to Lady Hervey on 14th Sept. 1765, he says, "Mr. -Hume, that is _the mode_, asked much about your ladyship."[225:1] Then -to Montague, on the 22d of the same month, and in allusion to the -conversation of the dinner-table in Paris: - - For literature, it is very amusing when one has nothing else - to do. I think it rather pedantic in society: tiresome when - displayed professedly; and, besides, in this country, one is - sure it is only the fashion of the day. Their taste in it is - the worst of all; could one believe, that when they read our - authors, Richardson and Mr. Hume should be their favourites? - The latter is treated here with perfect veneration. His - History, so falsified in many points, so partial in as many, - so very unequal in its parts, is thought the standard of - writing.[225:2] - -Thus, and in the like strain, do the French suffer in his good opinion, -for their offence in making an idol of Hume. So, on the 3d October, when -writing to Mr. Chute,-- - - Their authors, who by the way are every where, are worse than - their own writings, which I don't mean as a compliment to - either. In general, the style of conversation is solemn, - pedantic, and seldom animated, but by a dispute. I was - expressing my aversion to disputes: Mr. Hume, who very - gratefully admires the tone of Paris, having never known any - other tone, said with great surprise, "Why, what do you like, - if you hate both disputes and whisk?"[225:3] - -Then, on the 19th of the same month, to Mr. Brand: - - I assure you, you may come hither very safely, and be in no - danger from mirth. Laughing is as much out of fashion as - pantins and bilboquets. Good folks, they have no time to - laugh. There is God and the king to be pulled down first; and - men and women, one and all, are devoutly employed in the - demolition. They think me quite profane for having any belief - left. But this is not my only crime; I have told them, and am - undone by it, that they have taken from us to admire the two - dullest things we had--Whisk and Richardson. It is very true - that they want nothing but George Grenville to make their - conversations, or rather dissertations, the most tiresome upon - earth. For Lord Lyttelton, if he would come hither, and turn - freethinker once more, he would be reckoned the most agreeable - man in France,--next to Mr. Hume, who is the only thing in the - world that they believe implicitly, which they must do, for I - defy them to understand any language that he speaks.[226:1] - -At this time Adam Smith was travelling in France, with his pupil, the -young Duke of Buccleuch. On 5th July, 1764, he writes from Toulouse, -requesting Hume to give him and his pupil introductions to distinguished -Frenchmen, the Duc de Richelieu, the Marquis de Lorges, &c. He says, -that Mr. Townsend had assured him of these and other introductions, from -the Duc de Choiseul, but that none had made their appearance in that -quarter. Smith seems to have been heartily tired of the glittering -bondage of his tutorship, and to have sighed for the academic -conviviality he had left behind him at Glasgow. He says:-- - -"The Duke is acquainted with no Frenchman whatever. I cannot cultivate -the acquaintance of the few with whom I am acquainted, as I cannot bring -them to our house, and am not always at liberty to go to theirs. The -life which I led at Glasgow, was a pleasureable dissipated life in -comparison of that which I lead here at present. I have begun to write a -book, in order to pass away the time. You may believe I have very little -to do. If Sir James would come and spend a month with us in his travels, -it would not only be a great satisfaction to me, but he might, by his -influence and example, be of great service to the Duke."[228:1] - -There is little doubt that the book he had begun to write, was the -"Wealth of Nations:" and we have here probably the earliest announcement -of his employing himself in that work. On the 21st of October, he writes -from Toulouse, stating that the letters of introduction had reached -him, and that his noble pupil was well received. He says, "Our -expedition to Bourdeaux, and another we have made since to Bagneres, has -made a great change upon the Duke. He begins now to familiarize himself -to French company; and I flatter myself I shall spend the rest of the -time we are to live together, not only in peace and contentment, but in -great amusement." - -Amidst the multiplied attractions of Paris, Hume's thoughts were often -turned to his native city, and the circle of kind friends and admirers -he had there left behind him. Such reminiscences of home doings as are -contained in the following letters, would doubtless ensure his warm -attention. On 1st July, Blair writes: - - Robertson has, of late, had worse health than usual, which has - somewhat interrupted his studies. He talked once of a trip to - France this season; but his want of the language is so - discouraging, as seems to have made him lay aside thoughts of - it for the present. It will be a twelvemonth more, I suppose, - before his Charles V. shall see the light. - - I dined this day with Sir James Macdonald, on whose praises I - need not expatiate to you. Much conversation we had about you; - and a great deal I heard of your flourishing state. You write - concerning it yourself, like a philosopher and a man of sense. - The first splendour and eclat of such situations soon loses - its lustre, and often, as you found it, is burdensome. Ease - and agreeable society are the only things that last and - remain; and these, now that you are quite naturalized, and - have formed habits of life, I imagine you enjoy in a very - comfortable degree. The society at Paris, to one who has all - your advantages for enjoying it in its perfection, is, I am - fully convinced, from all that I have heard, the most - agreeable in the whole world. - - Our education here is at present in high reputation. The - Englishes are crowding down upon us every season, and I wish - may not come to hurt us at the last.[229:1] - -Jardine writes, on 1st August:-- - - I have attempted, four or five times, to write to you but this - poor church has, for some time past, been in such danger, that - I could never find time for it. She has employed all my - thoughts and care for these twelve months past. The enemy had - kindled such a flame, that the old burning bush was like to - have been consumed altogether. I know it will give you - pleasure to hear that my endeavours to preserve her have been - crowned with success. She begins to shine forth with her - ancient lustre; and will very soon be, not only fair as the - sun, but, to all her enemies, terrible as an army with - banners.[230:1] - -It is pleasing to find one whose name has been so much associated with -the later school of our national literature, as Mrs. Cockburn, the early -friend of Scott, enjoying the intimacy of the sages of the philosophical -age of Scottish letters. This accomplished lady, well known as the -authoress of one of the versions of "The Flowers of the Forest," was a -correspondent of Hume. A few of her letters have been preserved; and the -following are her free and animated remarks on Hume's flattering -reception in France,--remarks written in the full assurance that neither -adulation nor prosperity would diminish the regard of that simple manly -heart, for the chosen friends he had left in his native soil. - - From the bleak hills of the north, from the uncultured - daughter of Caledon, will the adored sage of France deign to - receive a few lines: they come from the _heart_ of a friend, - and will be delivered by the _hand_ of an enemy. Which, O man - of mode, is most indifferent to thee? Insensible thou art - alike to gratitude or resentment; fit for the country that - worships thee. Thou art equally insensible to love or hate. A - momentary applause, ill begot, and worse brought up,--an - abortion, a fame not founded on truth,--have bewitched thee, - and thou hast forgot those who, overlooking thy errors, saved - thy worth. Idol of Gaul, I worship thee not. The very cloven - foot, for which thou art worshipped, I despise: yet I remember - _thee_ with affection. I remember that, in spite of vain - philosophy, of dark doubts, of toilsome learning, God had - stamped his image of benignity so strong upon thy _heart_, - that not all the labours of thy head could efface it. Idol of - a foolish people, be not puffed up; it is easy to overturn the - faith of a multitude that is ready to do evil: an apostle of - less sense might bring to that giddy nation--libertinism; - liberty they are not born to. This will be sent to you by your - good friend, Mr. Burnet; who goes much such an errand as you - have given yourself through life, viz., in search of truth; - and I believe both are equally impartial in the search; - though, indeed, he has more visible interests for darkening it - than ever you had. - - _Castlehill, Baird's Close, Aug. 20th, 1764._[231:1] - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Paris, 3d September, 1764._ - -"It is certain that nothing could be a greater inducement to me to -continue my History, than your desiring so earnestly I should do so. I -have so great reason to be satisfied with your conduct towards me, that -I wish very much to gratify you in every thing that is practicable; and -there want not other motives to make me embrace that resolution. For, -though I think I have reason to complain of the blindness of party, -which has made the public do justice to me very slowly, and with great -reluctance, yet I find that I obtain support from many impartial people; -and hope that I shall every day have more reason to be satisfied in that -particular. But, in my present situation, it is impossible for me to -undertake such a work; and I cannot break off from Lord Hertford, as -long as he is pleased to think me useful to him. I shall not, however, -lose sight of this object; and any materials that cast up, in this -country, shall be carefully collected by me. - -"I am glad you are satisfied with the publication of the new edition of -my Essays. I shall be obliged to you if you will inform yourself exactly -how many copies are now sold, both of that edition and of the octavo -edition of my History. I think both these editions very correct. I did -little more than see your friends, Mr. Buchanan and Mr. Wilson, at -Paris, and present them to Lord Hertford. We returned not from Compiegne -till a few days before they left Paris. . . . . . I think the Duchess of -Douglas has chosen well in making Mallet one of her commissioners. I -have no good opinion of that cause. Mrs. Mallet has retired into the -forest of Fontainbleau with a Macgregor. I fancy she is angry with me, -and thought herself neglected by me while in Paris. I heard of her -thrusting herself every where into companies, who endeavoured to avoid -her; and I was afraid she would have laid hold of me to enlarge her -acquaintance among the French. I have not yet executed your commission -with Mons{r}. le Roy, but shall not forget it. I am very glad that Mrs. -Millar is so good as to remember me. I shall regard it as one agreeable -circumstance attending my return to England, that you and she will have -leisure to give more of your company to your friends; and I shall always -be proud to be ranked in the number. - -"The lowness of stocks surely proceeds not from any apprehension of war: -never was a general peace established in Europe with more likelihood of -its continuance; but I fancy your stocks are become at last too -weighty, to the conviction of all the world. What must happen, if we go -on at the same rate during another war? I am, with great sincerity, dear -sir, your most obedient humble servant."[233:1] - - -The course of correspondence with Elliot, which commences with the next -following letter, relates, in a great measure, to the disposal of his -two sons at Paris, and to their future training and education.[233:2] -There could be no better evidence of the reliance placed in Hume's -honourable principles and knowledge of the world, by those friends who -were sufficiently intimate with him, fully to appreciate his character; -while his whole conduct in the transaction shows kindness of heart, with -a warm attachment to friends, and an earnest disposition to serve them. - - -GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto to_ HUME. - - MY DEAR SIR,--My departure from Paris was so very sudden, that - I was obliged to leave many of my little schemes uncompleted; - and, what was still more mortifying, to see the progress of - all my growing attachments cruelly interrupted. I reached this - place just in time, though not a little retarded by the - Russian chancellor and his forty horses. Had I but foreseen - this obstruction, I might as well have set out on Wednesday - morning at two o'clock; and in that case, my dear - philosopher, what a delicious evening should I have passed in - your company. - - Upon full deliberation I am determined to send you my boys, if - a tolerable place can be found for their reception. I did not - much like that talking professor, who undertakes so largely: - if nothing better can be done, pray take the trouble to renew - my negotiation with Madame Anson. Her house, though not just - what I could wish, is, however, not much amiss. I must not - lose this occasion of sending my children to France. I shall - never find any other so favourable. It will be no small - consolation to their mother, from whom they are now to be - separated for the first time, to know that we are not without - a friend in Paris, who will sometimes have an eye to their - conduct. If I am not too partial, I think you will find in - their character much native simplicity, and perhaps some - little elevation of mind. Send them back to me, my dear sir, - with the same qualities, tempered, if you will, but not - impaired by the acquisition of some few of those graces which - spread such an inexpressible charm through those societies - where even you are not ashamed to pass so many precious hours. - - If you should find no leisure to give them a moment's - instruction, tell them at least to look up to the conduct and - character of a young friend of ours at Paris.[234:1] There - they will find a model, which, without hoping to equal, it - will, however, become them to copy. But, after all, what am I - about? At Paris, to have children at all, is _de plus mauvais - ton de monde_, and I forgot to inform myself, when one happens - to have them, whether it be _permitted_ to take any thought - about them. I am impatient to hear from you at London. I shall - not be long there. I desire you would take this important - business into your hands and settle it for me entirely. I will - send them over the moment you desire me, and consigned to whom - you direct,--the sooner the better: you will settle all other - particulars as you find proper. Before I conclude, allow me in - friendship also to tell you, I think I see you at present upon - the very brink of a precipice. One cannot too much clear - their mind of all little prejudices, but partiality to one's - country is not a prejudice. Love the French as much as you - will. Many of the individuals are surely the proper objects of - affection; but, above all, continue still an Englishman. You - know, better than any body, that the active powers of our mind - are much too limited to be usefully employed in any pursuit - more general than the service of that portion of mankind which - we call our country. General benevolence and private - friendship will attend a generous mind and a feeling heart, - into every country; but political attachment confines itself - to one. - - Mon _fils_, sur les humains que ton ame attendrie, - Habite l'univers, mais aime sa patrie. - - I have not now leisure to trouble you with the few - observations my too short stay at Paris had but imperfectly - furnished me with. Irreconcileable to the principles of their - government, I am delighted with the amenity and gentleness of - their manners. I was even pleased to find that the severity - and rigour of our English climate had not rendered me - altogether insensible to the kind impressions of a milder sky. - May I trouble you with my most cordial and sincere respects to - Lord and Lady Hertford. Some French names, too, I could - mention, but I am not vain enough to imagine that I can, upon - so short an acquaintance, have a place in their remembrance. - Believe me, very dear sir, yours very sincerely, and most - affectionately, - - GILBERT ELLIOT.[235:1] - - (I set out this moment.) - - _Brussels, 15th September, 1764._ - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Paris, 22d Sept. 1764._ - -"As soon as I received yours from Brussels, I set on foot my inquiries. -I spoke to Abbe Hooke, to Pere Gordon, to Clairaut, to Madame de Pri, -and to others, with a view of finding some proper settlement for your -young gentlemen. Every body told me, as _they_ did, of the difficulty of -succeeding in my scheme; and nothing yet has been offered me, that I -would advise you to accept of. I went to Madame Anson's, and found that -family a very decent, sensible kind of people. I came in upon them about -seven o'clock, and found a company of eight or nine persons assembled, -whose aspects pleased me very much. The only objection that occurred to -me with regard to this family, is the quarter of the town, which is not -only so unfashionable, that my coachman was astonished when I ordered -him to drive thither, but, what is worse, it is far from all walks and -places of exercise. However, it is near the university; and, -consequently, it is in that quarter where all the youth of France are -educated. If nothing better present itself, I shall conclude a bargain -with this family for a thousand crowns a-year, without firing or -washing, according to the terms proposed to you, which they said they -could not depart from. The misfortune is, that I must go to Fontainbleau -in about a fortnight, and, consequently, am straitened in my time of -inquiry; but, in all cases, I shall certainly conclude with somebody -before my departure. We stay six weeks at Fontainbleau, during which -time, if you send your sons to Paris, I shall take a journey thither to -receive them. In all cases, they must come immediately to the Hotel de -Brancas, where they will not want friends. - -"I do not like the talking man more than you do; and a flattering letter -I have since received from him, does not augment my good opinion. I went -to Monsieur Bastide, he who proposed the scheme for ten thousand livres -a-year. He seems to be a genteel, well-bred man; lives in a very good -house in an excellent quarter of the town; is well spoke of by -D'Alembert and others; and has with him two very agreeable boys, Russian -princes, who speak French very well. I should have given him the -preference, had it not been the price. He asks ten thousand livres -a-year for your two sons and their governor, without supplying them -either with clothes or masters. You know his ten thousand a-piece -included all expenses. If you can resolve to go so far in point of -expense, it is the best place that occurs, or is likely to occur. - -"Since I wrote the above, I went to see Mademoiselle L'Espinasse, -D'Alembert's mistress, who is really one of the most sensible women in -Paris. She told me that there could not be a worthier, honester, better -man, than Bastide. I told her that I had entertained the same opinion, -but was afraid his head-piece was none of the best. She owned that he -did not excel on that side; and a proof of it was, that he had wrote -several books, all of which were below middling. On my return home, I -found the enclosed letter from him.[237:1] I have promised him an answer -by the return of the post from England. On the whole, the chief -advantage, as it appears to me, which his house will have above Anson's, -consists in the air and situation. It lies on the skirts of the town, in -an open street near the rampart; but five thousand livres a-year is -paying too dear for the advantage. - -"I cannot imagine what you mean by saying I am on a precipice. I shall -foretell to you the result of my present situation almost with as great -certainty as it is possible to employ with regard to any future event. -As soon as Lord Hertford's embassy ends, which probably may not -continue long, some zealot, whom I never saw, and never could offend, -finding me without protection, will instanter fly, with alacrity, to -strike off that pension which the king and the ministry, before I would -consent to accept of my present situation, promised should be for life. -I shall be obliged to leave Paris, which I confess I shall turn my back -to with regret. I shall go to Thoulouse or Montauban, or some provincial -town in the south of France, where I shall spend, contented, the rest of -my life, with more money, under a finer sky, and in better company than -I was born to enjoy. - -"From what human motive or consideration can I prefer living in England -than in foreign countries? I believe, taking the continent of Europe, -from Petersburg to Lisbon, and from Bergen to Naples, there is not one -who ever heard of my name, who has not heard of it with advantage, both -in point of morals and genius. I do not believe there is one Englishman -in fifty, who, if he heard I had broke my neck to-night, would be sorry. -Some, because I am not a Whig; some because I am not a Christian; and -all because I am a Scotsman. Can you seriously talk of my continuing an -Englishman? Am I, or are you, an Englishman? Do they not treat with -derision our pretensions to that name, and with hatred our just -pretensions to surpass and govern them? I am a citizen of the world; but -if I were to adopt any country, it would be that in which I live at -present, and from which I am determined never to depart, unless a war -drives me into Switzerland or Italy. - -"I must now inform you what passed with regard to my affair at -L'ile-Adam.[238:1] My friend showed me a letter, which she had lately -received from Lord Tavistock, by which it appears he had fallen into -great friendship, and bore a great regard to Lady Sarah Bunbury. I -instantly forbade her to write to England a line about my affair. I bear -too great a respect to her, to expose her to ask a favour, where there -was so little probability of success: thus have vanished my best hopes -of obtaining justice in this point. Here is surely no new ground of -attachment to England."[239:1] - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Hotel de Brancas, 30th Sept. 1764._ - -"After acknowledging that I received both your letters, that from -Brussels, and that from Calais, I should be ashamed to appear before you -with so late a letter. This day fortnight, Lord March and Selwin -appointed to go off. I sent March a very long letter for you, and -enjoined him, as he lived next door to you, to deliver it the moment he -arrived; and having thus done my duty, I went very contentedly to -L'ile-Adam, where I remained for four days. On my return to Paris, I was -much surprised to hear that March, after his post-chaise was yoked, had -changed his mind, and was still in Paris. When I appeared alarmed at -this intelligence, I was told that he had sent off an express to London -with letters, which composed my mind. Next day I saw him, and he fairly -confessed, that from forgetfulness, he had not sent off my letter. I -begged him to send it to me; he promised it, delayed it, promised again, -and at last owns that he has lost it; which gives me great vexation, -both on your account, and my own, for I spoke to you with great freedom, -and am infinitely uneasy lest my letter should fall into bad -hands.[241:1] When I rail at March, I get no other reply than, 'God damn -you! if your letter was of consequence, why the devil did you trust it -to such a foolish fellow as me?' I am therefore obliged, in a great -hurry, to give you some imperfect account of what I have done. I went to -Ansons', who seem a discreet, sober set of people. I came in upon a -mixed company, whose looks pleased me: the only objection is the quarter -of the town, which is straitened; but it is near the University, and -consequently where all the youth of France are educated. I do not like -the talking man more than you; and a very flattering letter he wrote me, -helped further to disgust me. La Bastide, the 10,000 livres man, I went -to see: he seems an agreeable man, and is well spoke of; he lives in an -agreeable house, and in a good air, and has two young Russian princes -with him, who speak very good French; he offers to take your two boys -and preceptor for 8000 livres on the whole, but without paying either -clothes or master. I suppose you would not choose to pay 5000 livres -a-year, merely for the advantage of better air. I have heard a very good -character of one Eriot, professor of rhetoric in the College de -Beauvais, who offers to take them: they would live in the house with -him alone; but he proposes that they should go to all the classes of the -university, where they would make acquaintance with French boys, and -nobody would ever ask questions about their religion: But as I heard you -declare against their going to the university, (which yet I should -highly approve of,) I cannot make any bargain with Eriot. The misfortune -is, I go to Fontainbleau to-morrow se'ennight, and must conclude a -bargain without hearing from you, by this fine trick Lord March has -played me. It is probable, therefore, it will be with Anson, because you -yourself did not disapprove of that plan; and I should be afraid to -depart from it considerably, without your authority. If you give me -information in time, I shall come from Fontainbleau to settle your boys. -In any case make them come immediately to the Hotel de Brancas, where -they will not want friends if any of the family be in town. - -"Since I wrote the above, one of my numerous scouts came to me, and told -me, that within gunshot of the Hotel de Brancas, there was to be found -all I could wish, and more than I could have imagined. It is called La -Pension Militaire. I immediately went to see it. I found there an -excellent airy house, with an open garden belonging to it. It is the -best house but one in Paris; has a prospect and access into the large -open space of the Invalids, and from thence into the fields. The number -of boys is limited to thirty-five, whom I saw in the court, in a blue -uniform with a narrow silver lace. They left off their play, and made me -a bow with the best grace in the world, as I passed. I was carried to -their master the Abbe Choquart, who appeared to me a sensible, sedate, -judicious man, agreeable to the character I had received of him. He -carried me through the boys' apartments, which were cleanly, light, -spacious, and each lay in a small bed apart. I saw a large collection of -instruments for experimental philosophy. I saw an ingenious machine for -teaching chronology. There were plans of fortification. While I was -considering these, I heard a drum beat in the court. It was the hour for -assembling the boys for their military exercises. I went down. They had -now all got on their belts, and had their muskets in their hands. They -went through all the Prussian exercises with the best air and greatest -regularity imaginable. Almost all were about your son's age, a year or -two more or less. They are the youth of the best quality in France; -their air and manners seemed to bespeak it. The master asked only about -thirteen hundred livres a-year for each of your boys, five hundred for -the preceptor. He supplies them with all masters, except those of -dancing, music, and designing; for these they have masters that come in, -who take only eight livres a-month, though they require from others -three louis-d'ors. There is a riding master belonging to the house. Your -sons need never go to mass unless they please, and nobody shall ever -talk to them about religion; the master only requires, that you should -write him a letter, which he will read to every body, by which you -desire . . . ."[243:1] - - -The following short letter was addressed to Mr. Elliot on the same day -with the preceding one, for the reason which the letter itself states. -The anxious care with which Hume endeavoured not only to be punctual and -exact himself in the performance of the business he had undertaken, but -to remedy the consequences of the absence of these qualities in others, -may afford a useful reproof to those who demean themselves as above the -exercise of these homely virtues; and shows that the practice of them -has been, in one instance at least, considered not incompatible with the -design and achievement of intellectual greatness. - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Hotel de Brancas, 30th September, 1764._ - -"I have wrote you a long letter to London, a short one to Harrowgate, -and now I write to you to Minto. Not to lose time, you must have a -little implicit faith; without making further questions, give instantly -orders that your sons be sent to me, and that they come instantly to the -Hotel de Brancas. Within less than a gunshot of this, I have found a -place which has all advantages beyond what your imagination could -suggest; it is almost directly opposite to my friend the Marechale de -Mirepoix's, by whose advice I act. I tell you this, lest your opinion of -my discretion be not the highest in the world. There are there about -thirty boys of the best families in France. The house is spacious, airy, -clean, has a garden, opens into the fields; the board costs only -thirteen hundred livres a-year for each boy, five hundred for the tutor; -the boys have almost all masters for this sum. I have concluded the -bargain for a quarter; the payment runs on from the first of October, -because the course of studies begins then; there will be no question -about religion or the mass. I have been more particular in my letter to -London. Nothing was ever so fortunate for your purpose." - - -"_Hotel de Brancas, 9th October, 1764._ - -"I go to Fontainbleau to-day; my Lady and Lord Beauchamp go also. Mr. -Trail, the chaplain, and Mr. Larpent, my lord's secretary, follow in a -few days. All these arrangements are unexpected; but the consequence is, -that there will be nobody in the Hotel de Brancas for some weeks; but -this need not retard a moment your sending the young gentlemen. I have -spoke to the master of the academy, who says that the moment they arrive -they shall be settled as well as if all their kindred were there. I have -sent the enclosed letter to him, which the gentleman who attends them -may deliver immediately on his arrival in Paris. Vive valeque."[245:1] - - -In 1764, the Comte de Boufflers died, and his widow expected to be made -Princess of Conti. Hume seems to have seen from the first that this -expectation was likely to lead to manifold mortifications, and that it -was the duty of a true friend to prepare her mind for disappointment. -In this spirit he wrote her the following long and carefully considered -letters, in answer to some communications from her, full of hopes and -fears, and all a Frenchwoman's nervous agitations. - - -HUME _to the_ COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - - _Wednesday, 28th of November, 1764._ - - You may believe that, ever since my return to Paris, I have - kept my eyes and ears open with regard to every thing that - concerns your affair. I find it is the general opinion of all - those who think themselves the best informed, that a - resolution is taken in your favour; and that the resolution - will probably have place. But you do not expect surely, that - so great an event will pass without censure. It would ill - become my friendship to flatter you on this head. The envy and - jealousy of the world would alone account for a repugnance in - many. Nobody has been more generally known than you; both of - late and in your early youth. Will so numerous an acquaintance - be pleased to see you pass, from being their equal, to be so - much their superior? Will they bear your uniting the decisive - elevation of rank to the elevation of genius, which they feel, - and which they would in vain contest? Be assured, that she is - really and sincerely your friend, who can willingly yield you - so great advantages. - - But though I hear some murmurs of this kind, I have likewise - the consolation to meet with several who entertain opposite - sentiments. I was told of a man of superior sense, nowise - connected with you, who maintained in a public company, that, - if the report was true, nothing could give him a higher idea - of the laudable and noble principles of your friend. The - execution of his purpose, he said, could not only be - justified, but seemed a justice due to you. The capital point - is to interpose as few delays as possible. Time must create - obstacles, and can remove none. While the matter seems in - suspense, many will declare themselves with violence against - you, and will render themselves irreconcilable enemies by such - declarations. They might be the first to pay court to you, - had no leisure been allowed them to display their envy and - malignity. - - On the whole, I am fully persuaded, from what I hear and see, - that the matter will end as we wish. But in all cases, I - foresee, that, let the event be what it will, you will reap - from it much honour and much vexation. Alas! dear madam, the - former is never a compensation for the latter: especially to - you, whose delicate frame, already shaken by an incident of - much less importance surely, is ill calculated to bear such - violent agitations. Pardon these sentiments if you think them - mean. They are dictated by my friendship for you. I am indeed - so mean as to wish you alive and healthy and gay in any - fortune. A fine consolation for us truly, to see the epithet - of princess inscribed on your grave, while we reflect that it - contains what was the most amiable in the world? I propose to - pay my respects to you the beginning of next week. - - - _10th December, 1764._ - - It is needless to inform you, how much you employed my - thoughts in this great crisis of your fortune, of your health, - of your life itself. You could perceive, by undoubted signs, - that I partook sincerely of the violent anxieties, by which I - found you agitated; and that, after having endeavoured in vain - to appease the tumult of your passions, I was at last - necessitated myself to take part in your distress. My sympathy - is not abated by absence. I find myself incapable almost of - other occupation or amusement. - - You still recur to my memory. The chief relief I have is in - writing to you, and throwing together some thoughts, which - occur to me, on your subject. - - They are mostly the same which occurred in conversation, and - which I have already suggested to you. They will acquire no - additional authority at present in writing, except by - convincing you that they are the result of my most mature - reflections. - - Of all your friends, I, as a foreigner, am perhaps the least - capable of giving you advice on so delicate a subject: I only - challenge the preference, in the warmth of my affection and - esteem towards you; and I am, as a foreigner, the farther - removed from all suspicion of separate interests and regards. - - I cannot too often repeat, what I inculcated on you with great - earnestness, that, even if your friend should fix his - resolution on the side least favourable to you, you ought to - receive his determination without the least resentment. You - know that princes, more than other men, are born slaves to - prejudices, and that this tax is imposed on them, as a species - of retaliation by the public. This prince in particular is in - every view so eminent, that he owes some account of his - conduct to Europe in general, to France, and to his family, - the most illustrious in the world. It is expected, that men, - in his station, shall not be actuated by private regards. It - is expected, that with them friendship, affection, sympathy, - shall be absorbed in ambition, and in the desire of supporting - their rank in the world; and, if they fail in this duty, they - will meet with blame from a great part of the public. Can you - be surprised, that a person covetous of honour, should be - moved by these considerations? If he neglected them, would not - your grateful heart suggest to you, that he had taken an - extraordinary step in your favour? And can you, with any - grace, complain, that an extraordinary event has not happened, - merely because you wished for it, and found it desirable? - - I am fully sensible, madam, of the force of those arguments - which you urged, not to justify your resentment, [from] which - you declared you would ever be exempted, but to maintain the - reasonableness of your expectations. I am fully sensible of - the regard, the sacred regard, due to a long and sincere - attachment, which, passing from love to friendship, lost - nothing of its warmth, and acquired only the additional merit - of reason and constancy. This regard, I own, is really - honourable and virtuous; and may safely be opposed to the - maxims of an imaginary honour, which, depending upon modes and - prejudices, will always be regarded, by great minds, as a - secondary consideration. I shall add, what your modesty would - not allow you to surmise, or even, perhaps, to think, that an - extraordinary step, taken in favour of extraordinary merit, - will always justify itself; and will appear but an ordinary - tribute. Allow me to do you this justice in your present - melancholy situation. I know I am exempt from flattery: I - believe I am exempt from partiality. The zeal and fervour - which move me, are the effects, not the causes of my judgment. - - But, my dear friend, the consideration, which is the most - interesting, the most affecting, the most alarming, is the - immediate danger of your health and life, from the violent - situation into which fortune has now thrown you. You continued - long to live, with tolerable tranquillity, though exposed to - many vexations, in a state little befitting your worth and - merit; and you still comforted yourself by reflecting that you - could not change it, without withdrawing from a friendship - dearer to you than life itself. You still could flatter - yourself, that the person, for whose sake you made this - sacrifice, if he had it in his power, would, at any price, - repair your honour, and fortify his connexions with you. The - unexpected death of M. de Boufflers has put an end to these - illusions. It has at once brought you within reach of honour - and felicity: and has thrown a poison on your former state, by - rendering it still less honourable than before. - - You cannot say, madam, that I do not feel, and with the most - pungent sensation, the cruelty of your situation. I am - sensible too, that time will scarcely bring any remedy to this - evil. - - The loss of a friend, of a dignity, of fortune, admits of - consolation, if not from reason, at least from oblivion; and - these sorrows are not eternal. But while you maintain your - present connexions, your hopes, still kept alive, will still - enliven your natural desire of that state to which you aspire, - and your disgust towards that state in which you will find - yourself. I foresee that your lively passions, continually - agitated, will tear in pieces your tender frame: melancholy - and a broken constitution may then prove your lot, and the - remedy which could now preserve your health and peace of mind, - may come too late to restore them. - - What advice, then, can I give you, in a situation so - interesting? The measure which I recommend to you requires - courage, but I dread that nothing else will be able to prevent - the consequences, so justly apprehended. It is, in a word, - that after employing every gentle art to prevent a rupture, - you should gradually diminish your connexion with the Prince, - should be less assiduous in your visits, should make fewer and - shorter journeys to his country seats, and should betake - yourself to a private, and sociable, and independent life at - Paris. By this change in your plan of living, you cut off at - once the expectations of that dignity to which you aspire; you - are no longer agitated with hopes and fears; your temper - insensibly recovers its former tone; your health returns; your - relish for a simple and private life gains ground every day, - and you become sensible, at last, that you have made a good - exchange of tranquillity for grandeur. Even the dignity of - your character, in the eyes of the world, recovers its lustre, - while men see the just price you set upon your liberty; and - that, however the passions of youth may have seduced you, you - will not now sacrifice all your time, where you are not deemed - worthy of every honour. - - And why should you think with reluctance on a private life at - Paris? It is the situation for which I thought you best - fitted, ever since I had the happiness of your acquaintance. - The inexpressible and delicate graces of your character and - conversation, like the soft notes of a lute, are lost amid the - tumult of company, in which I commonly saw you engaged. A more - select society would know to set a juster value upon your - merit. Men of sense, and taste, and letters, would accustom - themselves to frequent your house. Every elegant society would - court your company. And though all great alterations in the - habits of living may, at first, appear disagreeable, the mind - is soon reconciled to its new situation, especially if more - congenial and natural to it. I should not dare to mention my - own resolutions on this occasion, if I did not flatter myself - that your friendship gives them some small importance in your - eyes. Being a foreigner, I dare less answer for my plans of - life, which may lead me far from this country; but if I could - dispose of my fate, nothing could be so much my choice as to - live where I might cultivate your friendship. Your taste for - travelling might also afford you a plausible pretence for - putting this plan in execution: a journey to Italy would - loosen your connexions here; and, if it were delayed some - time, I could, with some probability, expect to have the - felicity of attending you thither.[251:1] - -Hume had the happiness of Madame de Boufflers sincerely at heart; and we -find him, on 24th June, 1765, thus writing to his brother:-- - -"I had great hopes, all the winter, of seeing the Countess in a station -suitable to her merit, and of paying my respects to her as part of the -royal family. Several accidents have disappointed us; and the various -turns of this affair have more agitated me than almost any event in -which I was ever engaged." - -The following correspondence exhibits a feature in Hume's character, -which to many readers will be new, and perhaps unpleasing. It shows that -he was by no means exempt from the passion of anger, and that when under -its influence he was liable to be harsh and unreasonable. The general -notion formed of his character is, that he passed through life unmoved -and immovable, a placid mass of breathing flesh, on which the ordinary -impulses which rouse the human passions into life might expend -themselves in vain. We have seen that very early in life he had -undertaken the task of bringing his passions and propensities under the -yoke, and directing all his physical and mental energies to the -accomplishment of his early and never fading vision of literary renown. -From many indications which petty incidents in his life afford, it would -appear that the ardour of his nature, if thus regulated, was not -eradicated; and one cannot, in a general survey of his course and -character, reject the conclusion, that his early resolution not to enter -the lists as a controversial writer, mentioned in the following letter, -was suggested by a profound self-knowledge, and a consciousness of his -inability to preserve his temper as a controversialist. - -The person against whom all the wrath of the following letter is -directed, is the respectable author of the "Historical and Critical -Inquiry into the Evidence produced by the Earls Murray and Morton -against Mary Queen of Scots." That, assailed as he often was by attacks -so much more vehement and unscrupulous, Hume should have taken so deep -umbrage at this piece of free historical criticism, is a problem not -easily to be explained. It is not a little remarkable that the bitterest -remark on any contemporary contained in his published works, is a note -to his History, in which he has abbreviated the purport of the -letter.[252:1] - - -HUME _to_ LORD ELIBANK.[252:2] - -"MY LORD,--As I am told that Dr. Robertson has wrote a few remarks, -which he communicated to your lordship, as our common answer about the -affair of Queen Mary, and has endeavoured to show you that it was -contempt and not inability, which kept him from making a public reply; I -thought it would not be amiss for me to imitate his example; and I did -not indeed know a properer person, nor a more equal judge than your -lordship, to whom I could submit the cause. For if, on the one hand, -your lordship's regard to the memory of that princess might give you a -bias to that side, I know, that the ancient and constant friendship, -with which your lordship has always honoured me, both in public and -private, would give you a strong bias on my side; and there was a good -chance for your remaining neutral and impartial between these motives. - -"I shall confine my apology to the account which I have given of the -conference at Hampton court, as this is indeed the chief point, in which -the answerer has thought proper to find fault with me. - -"There are several places, in which I mention Mary's refusal to give any -reply to Murray's charge, and have commonly said, that she annexed as a -condition, her being admitted to Queen Elizabeth's presence; as in page -496, line 20; page 501, line 12, line 21.[253:1] I have not said that -this condition was an unreasonable one, (the words which the answerer -puts in my mouth,) but only that it was such a one as she did not expect -to be granted; and that because Queen Elizabeth had formerly refused it, -before any positive proofs of Mary's guilt were produced, merely from -the general rumour and opinion, which were unfavourable to her. Having -thus clearly expressed myself on this head, when I have occasion -afterwards, in the course of the narration, to mention the matter, I say -once or twice simply, that Mary refused to give any answer, without -expressing the condition annexed by her. My reasons were, that the -position was sufficiently qualified by the preceding narration; and -because a refusal, grounded on a condition which the person does not -expect to be gratified, and which is accordingly denied, is certainly -equivalent to a simple and absolute refusal. - -"That your lordship may judge of the unfairness of the answerer, he -picks out this simple and unqualified expression of mine, and omits the -others, which explain it to the readers of the meanest capacity; and he -opposes it by a passage cited with equal unfairness from Mr. Goodall's -appendix. He quotes a long passage from Goodall, p. 308, in which Queen -Mary demands copies of her letters, and offers positively to give an -answer without mentioning any conditions; and this detached passage he -opposes to the detached passage from me, in which I assert that she -absolutely refused to answer. He desires that this express contradiction -between my narration and the records may be remarked. But, in the first -place, the condition of being admitted to Queen Elizabeth, though not -mentioned in that paper, is not relinquished, and it is even clearly -implied; because Mary there refers to a former letter, which we find in -Goodall, p. 283, line 2, from the bottom, page 289, line 13, and where -it is positively insisted on. Secondly, we have in Goodall, page 184, -Queen Mary's commission to break up the conference, if that condition be -not granted. Thirdly, Queen Elizabeth understands her meaning very well, -as indeed it was very plain, and offers to her copies of the letters, if -she will promise to answer without any condition; see Goodall, page 311, -line 3, and this offer is not accepted of. Fourthly, in the very last -paper of all, which closes the whole, the Bishop of Ross still insists -on that condition; Goodall, page 390 about the middle. - -"You see, therefore, my lord, the double trick practised. A mangled -passage of my History is confronted with a mangled passage of Mr. -Goodall's papers, and by this gross fraud a contradiction is pretended -to be found between them. A single forgery would not do the business. - -"I believe it will divert your lordship to observe, that when the -answerer is employing these base artifices, this is the very moment he -chooses to call me liar and rascal. But that trick is so frequently -practised by thieves, pick-pockets, and controversial writers, -(gentlemen whose morality are pretty much upon a footing,) that all the -world has ceased to wonder, and wise men are tired of complaining of it. - -"I do not find that even this gentleman has ventured to assert, that -Queen Mary offered to answer Murray's accusation, though she should be -refused access to Queen Elizabeth. Where then is the difference between -us? He asserts, that she offered to answer, if admitted to that queen. I -say that she refused to answer unless she was admitted, which are -positive and negative propositions of the same import. - -"For a proof that Queen Mary's commission was finally revoked, I beg -your lordship to consult Goodall, p. 184, 311, 387, where it is plainly -asserted. The last quotation is from the concluding paper of the whole -collection. - -"I hope your lordship, as my friend, will congratulate me on the -resolution I took in the beginning of my life, that is, of my literary -life, never to reply to any body. Otherwise this gentleman, I mean this -author, might have insulted me on my silence. I am sure your lordship -would have disowned me for ever as a friend, if I had entered the lists -with such an antagonist. Mr. Goodall is no very calm or indifferent -advocate in this cause; yet he disowns him as an associate, and -confesses to me and all the world, that I am here right in my facts, and -am only wrong in my inferences. - -"There appear to me two infallible marks of our opposite parties, and as -we may say proof charges, which, if a man can stand, there is no fear -that any charge will ever burst him. A Whig who believes the popish -plot, and a Tory who asserts Queen Mary's innocence, are certainly -fitted to go all lengths with their party. I am happy to think that such -people are both equally my enemies; and still more happy, that I have no -animosity at either. - -"It is an old proverb, _Love me, love my dog_; but certainly it admits -of many exceptions. I am sure, at least, that I have a great respect for -your lordship, yet have none at all for this dog of yours. On the -contrary, I declare him to be a very mangy cur; entreat your lordship to -rid your hands of him as soon as possible, and think a sound beating, or -even a rope too good for him."[256:1] - - -Lord Elibank's answer does not appear to have been preserved. It can -scarcely be supposed that the foregoing letter, or any one written in a -like spirit, is the communication which Hume characterizes in the -following letter as written "in a spirit of cordiality and amity," and -containing "every pathetic, every engaging sentiment and expression;" -yet we afterwards find Lord Elibank sarcastically alluding to his -having been so stupid as to mistake the spirit thus described, for one -of a totally opposite tendency. - - -HUME _to_ LORD ELIBANK. - -"_Fontainbleau, 3d Nov. 1764._ - -"MY LORD,--In reply to the letter with which your lordship has honoured -me, I shall endeavour to be as clear and as concise as possible. Your -lordship should never have heard of the short and slight disgust between -your brother and me, had he not told Sir James Macdonald that you was in -such a passion against me, on account of my conduct towards him, that -you intended instantly to compose a pamphlet against me, on the subject -of Queen Mary, and to publish it as a full revenge upon me. You see that -he insinuates the same thing in his letter, and he says that you was -_formerly my friend_. But the whole story, I have now reason to see, was -without foundation, both from the tenor of your lordship's present -letter, and from a letter of yours delivered to me by Mons. Calvet, and -which is wrote in the usual friendly strain that had so long subsisted -between us. But not doubting at that time of Mr. Murray's story, I -dreaded the consequence of a pamphlet composed and published by one of -your lordship's temper in a fit of rage, on a subject where you are -naturally heated. I knew that it would be full of expressions of the -utmost acrimony, which you yourself could not forgive, even were I -disposed to do so; and I may now add, that this last letter proves you -to be an excellent proficient in that style. I wrote my letter in a -spirit of cordiality and amity, that I might prevent a rupture most -disagreeable to me. I have no objection to the publishing any thing in -opposition to my opinions. On the contrary, there is nothing I desire -more than these discussions. I was far from threatening your lordship -with the loss of my friendship, which I was sensible could never be of -any consequence to you: I only foretold with infinite regret, that if -you wrote against me in a heat, without allowing your temper to compose -itself, it would be impossible for us to be any longer friends. I -employed every pathetic, every engaging sentiment and expression to -induce your lordship to embrace this way of thinking. I shall venture to -say, that you have never in your life received a more friendly and more -obliging letter. I leave your lordship to judge of the return it has met -with. - -"I composed my letter with great care, because I set a value on your -lordship's friendship. I was so much satisfied with it myself, that I -read it to a friend, who told me, that it would be impossible for your -lordship to resist so many mollifying expressions, and that they would -certainly bring you back to our usual state of friendship. Under what -power of fascination have your eyes lain, when you could see every thing -in a light so directly opposite? - -"I come now to the other ground of your complaint, my indifference in -the case of Mr. Murray. When I arrived in Paris, the first question he -asked me was, whether Lord Bute or Mr. Stuart Mackenzie had recommended -him to Lord Hertford, that he might be received in the ambassador's -house like other British subjects. I asked my lord, who told me that -neither of these persons had ever mentioned Mr. Murray to him; he wished -they had; he desired to show all manner of civilities to Mr. Murray. But -he was afraid, that a person against whom a public proclamation had -been issued, and who had openly lived so many years with the Pretender, -could not be received in his house, unless he had previously received -some assurances, that the matter would give no offence. I told this to -Mr Murray. He was entirely satisfied. He only said that he would write -again to Mr. Stuart Mackenzie, who never wrote to Lord Hertford. In this -affair, then, Mr. Murray received all the favour which he either desired -or expected. - -"But perhaps your lordship means, that I ought to have befriended him in -his law-suit with Mrs. Blake,--I suppose, by taking his part in company. -But who told you that I did not? I have frequently desired people in -general to suspend their judgment; for as to any particular -justification of him, I was not capable of it, because I was and still -am ignorant of all particulars of his story. Whence could I learn them? -From himself, or from his antagonist, or from both? I assure your -lordship that I was otherwise employed, and more to my satisfaction, -than in unravelling an intricate story, which the Parliament of Paris -could not clear up in much less than two years, and which, it is -pretended, they have not cleared up at last. - -"But I need say no more on this head, since your brother a few days -after I wrote you sent me a letter, in which he asked pardon for his -former letter, acknowledged his error, and desired a return of my -friendship. His only ground of quarrel, indeed, was a small negligence -in returning his visits: an offence which, operating on a man of his -vanity, has engaged him to do all this mischief. - -"I have said that your lordship never received a letter more friendly -and obliging than my former letter: I hope you will also acknowledge -that this is wrote with sufficient temper and moderation. Adieu. - -"I have the honour to be, with the greatest regard and consideration, my -lord, your lordship's most obedient, and most humble servant."[260:1] - - -LORD ELIBANK _to_ HUME. - - _Balancrief, July 9th, 1765._ - - DEAR SIR,--I have the pleasure to understand, by yours of the - ----, that I have never been altogether in disgrace with you; - I choose rather to pass for dull as mad, and it would have - been the highest proof of the latter, if I had taken any thing - ill of you, that I had not thought ill meant. - - I own the compliment you say you intended me in your former - letter, was too refined for my genius. I really mistook it for - an intention to break with me; and as there is hardly any - thing I set a greater value on than your friendship, and I was - not conscious of having ever entertained a single idea - inconsistent with it, I could not resign it without pain and - resentment. Diffident of myself, I showed your letter to - several of our common friends, who all understood it as I did. - Had my affection for you been more moderate, my answer to - yours would have been cool in proportion. I am still mortified - to think you could suspect me of siding with my brother - against you. I know the distinction between relationship and - friendship. I have ever thought those connexions incompatible; - and if I was dull enough to mistake the meaning of your - letter, I have not more reason to blush, than you have for - suspecting, that any thing my brother could say, was capable - of influencing my sincere regard for a friend of thirty years' - standing, or that my zeal for the reputation of any prince, - dead or alive, could draw any sentiment or expression from me, - inconsistent with that admiration of your talents, as an - author, and merit as a man, I have constantly felt in myself, - and endeavoured to excite in others. I am, dear sir, your - sincerely obedient humble servant, - - ELIBANK.[260:2] - -In fear lest the two letters to Elliot, printed above,[261:1] might not -have reached their destination, Hume wrote to him again on 17th -November, repeating the substance of his engagement with the Abbe -Choquart. The remainder of the letter follows: - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"As soon as I came from Fontainbleau, I went to the Pension Militaire, -so it is called, where I had first a conversation with the Abbe. I found -him exceedingly pleased with your boys: he told me that whenever his two -young pupils arrived, he called together all the French gentlemen, who -are to the number of thirty or thirty-two, and he made them a harangue; -he then said to them, that they were all men of quality, to be educated -to the honourable profession of arms; that all their wars would probably -be with England; that France and that kingdom, were Rome and Carthage, -whose rivality more properly than animosity never allowed long intervals -of peace; that the chance of arms might make them prisoners of arms to -Messrs Elliot, in which case it would be a happiness to them to meet a -private friend in a public enemy; that he knew many instances of people -whose lives were saved by such fortunate events, and it therefore became -them, from views of prudence, and from the generosity for which the -French nation was so renowned, to give the best treatment to the young -strangers, whose friendship might probably endure, and be serviceable to -them through life: he added, that the effect of this harangue was such, -that, as soon as he presented your boys to their companions, they all -flew to them and embraced them, and have ever since continued to pay -them all courtship and regard, and to show them every mark of -preference. Every one is ambitious to acquire the friendship of the two -young Englishmen, who have already formed connexions more intimate than -ever I observed among his other pupils. '_Ce que j'admire_,' added he, -'_dans vos jeunes amis est qu'ils ont non seulement de l'esprit, mais de -l'ame. Ils sont veritablement attendris des temoinages d'amitie qu'on -leur rend. Ils meritent d'etre aimes, parce qu'ils savent aimer._' - -"When I came next to converse with your boys, I found all this -representation exactly just: I believe they never passed fourteen days -in their life so happily as they did the last. What I find strikes them -much is the high titles of their companions: there is not one, says -Hugh, that is not a marquis, or count, or chevalier at least. They are -indeed all of them of the best families in France, a nephew of M. de -Choiseul, two nephews of M. de Beninghen, &c. &c. They are frequently -drawn out, and displayed after the Prussian manner. I saw them go -through their exercises with the greatest exactness and best air. The -Abbe remarked to me, that the marching, and wheeling, and moving under -arms, is better than all the dancing schools in the world to give a -noble carriage to youth. Gilbert is such a proficient, that the master -is thinking already of advancing him to the first rank, if not of making -him a corporal: all this is excellent for Hugh, and if Gilbert's head be -a little too full with military ideas, this inconvenience will easily be -corrected, as far as it ought to be corrected. - -"The Abbe tells me, that in the short time they have been with him, -their accent is sensibly corrected, and he is persuaded that, in three -months' time, it will not be possible to distinguish them from -Frenchmen. They are never to hear mass, but to attend at the -ambassador's chapel every Sunday. Such is the general account I have to -give you; their preceptor will be more particular, and I shall visit -them from time to time."[263:1] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[209:1] The confidence with which the great aristocracy of birth mingled -with whatever elements it thought fit, is perhaps the best evidence of -the security it felt in the haughty and arbitrary exercise of its -established privileges. With all this free equality of social -intercourse, however, there must have been something yet left to which -the mere guest was not admitted, and to which he never aspired. Without -this, it seems impossible that Actors,--menials by the etiquette of the -court, anathematized by the church, held incapable of giving evidence in -some courts of law as persons of infamous profession,--should have been -so much sought after and caressed. Thus the Le Kains, Fleurys, and -Previlles, among the men; the Sophy Arnoulds, Dumesnils, Clairons, among -the women, many of them thorough profligates, are to be found haunting -places surrounded by the highest lustre of adventitious rank, busying -themselves with state secrets, mingling in family disputes, and always -with the easy assurance of their profession. This state of matters could -not have existed unless the aristocracy, notwithstanding the ease with -which they permitted themselves to be approached, were able effectually -to mark precisely the point where the advance was to stop, and could -feel themselves among persons, who, like old family servants, never -presume upon familiarity. In admitting to social intercourse, however, a -person of Hume's dignity of character and position in literature, there -could be no such reserves, and the intercourse must have been as really -on terms of familiarity as it appeared to be. - -[211:1] The following is a specimen, of a letter to Hume:-- - -[Illustration] - -Among other like distinctions, an author had offered to dedicate to her -his Italian Grammar. She answered, "A moi, Monsieur; la dedicace d'une -grammaire! a moi qui ne sais pas seulement l'orthographe." "C'etait la -pure verite," subjoins Marmontel. - -[213:1] This active lady visited Voltaire, and succeeded in getting -access to him. It is said that the patriarch laboured hard to compose a -quatrain in her praise, but that the muse would not attend for such a -purpose. He solved the difficulty very ingeniously, by twisting some -laurel twigs into a wreath, and placing it on her brow. - -She writes to Hume, on 27th September, 1764, "Je vous presente monsieur -un receuil de mes ouvrages nouvellement imprime a Lyon, pour avoir -l'honneur d'etre dans la bibliotheque d'un homme qui fait l'honneur de -notre siecle. Je vous supplie d'accepter ce faible don, et de vouloir -bien faire passer le paquet que vous trouverez c'y joint au Marquis -Caraccioli Ministre de Naples a Londres."--MS. R.S.E. - -[214:1] The following note shows that there was some intercourse between -them, though it was probably not very extensive. - -"Madame la D. de Choiseul a tres bien recu les compliments de Mr. Hume. -Elle se reproche de ne lui avoir point ecrit. Elle m'a chargee de lui -dire que s'il vouloit la venir voir aujourd'hui sur le midi et demy une -heure[214:A] qu'il lui feroit beaucoup de plaisir. Madame du Deffand -l'exhorte de ne pas manquer a y aller, et elle le prie de faire souvenir -Madame de Choiseul de la promesse qu'elle lui a faite de la venir voir -avant la visite qu'elle veut rendre a Madame L'Ambassadrice."--MS. -R.S.E. - - [214:A] Sic in MS. - -[214:2] "Vous me faites un grand plaisir de m'apprendre que David Hume -va en Ecosse; je suis bien aise que vous ne soyez plus a portee de le -voir, et moi ravie de l'assurance de ne le revoir jamais. Vous me -demanderez ce qu'il m'a fait? Il m'a deplu. Haissant les idoles je -deteste leurs pretres et leurs adorateurs. Pour d'idoles, vous n'en -verrez pas chez moi: vous y pourrez voir quelquefois de leurs -adorateurs, mais qui sont plus hypocrites que devots; leur culte est -exterieur; les pratiques, les ceremonies de cette religion sont des -soupers, des musiques, des operas, des comedies, etc." Letters of the -Marquise du Deffand, vol. i. p. 331. - -[216:1] - - "C'est avec la plus grande joie que M. D'Angiviller a - l'honneur d'informer Monsr. Hume que la philosophie n'a plus - de larmes a repandre. D'Alembert est comme hors d'affaire. Il - a ete transporte chez Watelet. Il s'en trouve fort bien: il - plaisante, il dit de bons mots et s'impatiente. Tout cela est - de bon augure. Duclos a dit assez plaisamment le jour que l'on - a transporte le malade chez Watelet. Voicy un jour - remarquable, c'est aujourd'huy que l'on a sevre D'Alembert; - nous sommes surs au moins qu'il n'y a pas de miracle a cette - guerison; les pretres n'ont pas prie pour lui. Mr. - D'Angiviller a l'honneur d'assurer Monsieur Hume de - l'attachement profond et de la veneration dont il est penetre - pour lui." - - "_Ce Mardi 30._" - -The Earl Marischal writes thus:-- - - "_Potsdam, 11th September, 1764._ - - "Le plaisir de votre lettre, et l'assurance d'amitie de Madame - Geoffrin et de Monsieur D'Alembert a ete bien rabattu par ce - que vous me dites de l'etat de la sante de M. D'Alembert. - Sobre comme il est a table--comment peut-il avoir des maux - d'estomac? Il faut qu'il travaille trop de la tete a des - calculs, ou qu'il allume sa chandelle par les deux bouts. - C'est cela sans doute. Renvoyez-le ici a mon hermitage. Je le - rendrai a sa, ou ses belles, frais, repose, se portant a - merveille. - - "Apropos de mon hermitage dont M. de Malsan vous a fait la - description, il a voyage avec Panurge, et a ete chez _oui-dire - tenant ecole de temorgnerie_. Primo, ma petite maison ne - subsiste pas--par consequence mon grand hote ne pouvoit m'y - honorer de sa presence. 2do, Elle ne sera pas si petite, ayant - 89 pieds de facade avec deux ailes de 45 pieds de long. Le - jardin est petit, assez grand cependant pour moi, et j'ai une - clef pour entrer aux jardins de Sans-Souci. Il y aura une - belle salle avec un vestibule, et un cabinet assez grand pour - y mettre un lit, tout apart des autres apartements. Si - D'Alembert venoit, il pouroit y loger, et prendre les eaux; - mais il est peu-que probable, que le grand hote me - disputeroit, et emporteroit cet avantage. En attendant son - arrivee, j'y logerai mon ancien ami Michel de Montaigne, - Ariosto, Voltaire, Swift, et quelques autres. - - "Dites a D'Alembert que j'ai une vache pour lui donner de bon - lait. Cela le contentera plus que les cent mille roubles qu'on - lui a offert. N'a pas bon lait qui veut, et vir sapiens non - abhorrebit eam, comme disoit Maitre Janotus de ses chausses." - -[218:1] If we are to trust the story told by Marmontel, and repeated by -others who should be equally well informed, her conduct, put in plain -language, comes to this. That she had made up her mind to raise her -position by a distinguished marriage. That in this view, looking to one -object after another, she finally determined boldly to experiment on M. -Mora, the son of the Spanish ambassador. That as this young gentleman -had been recalled by his family to Spain, she fraudulently procured a -certificate from an eminent physician, to the effect that a return to -the climate of France was essential to his safety; and that he died on -his journey back. But not less singular than the tale itself, is the -good-humoured simplicity with which it is told, as something rather -commendable than otherwise. Marmontel tells it, not omitting to state -how he used to run to the post-office for M. Mora's letters, in the -midst of that amusing series of sketches, the leading charm of which is -their amiable author's utter unconsciousness that his narrative is ever -likely to be scrutinized by people so educated and trained, as to look -upon his pleasant frailties as detestable vices, and the whole system of -society, so loveable and interesting in his eyes, as hideous. These -things indeed are mysteries; and read and ponder as we may, we cannot -enter into their spirit, but must view them as strange, distant, and -unnatural objects. - -There is reason, however, to believe, that Marmontel's account of -L'Espinasse is far from being accurate. See the article on Deffand's and -L'Espinasse's letters, in _The Edinburgh Review_, vol. xv. p. 459, -where, as also in the article, vol. xvii. p. 290, a fuller view of the -character of the French literary circles of that day will be found than -any where else in the English language. The doubts of Marmontel's -accuracy in the former of these articles, are singularly confirmed by -the Memoires of Marmontel's uncle-in-law, Morellet, published in 1832, -see vol. ii. p. 276. - -[220:1] Memoirs of Romilly, i. 179. I have seen this anecdote in some -French book, but do not remember where. - -[221:1] Madame de Genlis has preserved an instance of the magnificent -gallantry of the prince. Madame Blot, the same lady probably who -occupies so curious a place in the Chesterfield correspondence, -expressed a wish to have a picture of her canary-bird set in a ring. The -prince desired to have the felicity of accomplishing her wish, and she -consented, provided the ring were of plain gold without ornament. The -ring when it made its appearance was plain indeed, but the portrait was -covered by a large diamond cut flat like glass. Madame Blot preserved -the ring and the picture, but returned the diamond. The prince pounded -the diamond to powder, and wrote the lady a letter strewed with the -diamond dust as drying sand. - -[221:2] The following specimen of the invitations which poured in upon -Hume during his sojourn in Paris, is a slight departure from the usual -received form of such documents, the functionary who had charge of the -despatches of the august entertainer having chosen to make it the -vehicle of his own good taste in literature, and knowledge of the -English language. - -"M. Le Prince Louis de Rohan prie M. Hume de lui faire l'honneur de -venir diner chez lui. Mardi, 17 Janvier--" - -"M. L'Abbe Georgel fait un million de complimens a M. Hume. _He makes -great account of his works, admires her wit, and loves her person._" - -"Samedy, 14."--MS. R.S.E. - -[222:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[223:1] Hardy's Memoirs of Charlemont, p. 122. - -[223:2] "Ce qu'il y a encore de plaisant, c'est que toutes les jolies -femmes se le sont arrache, et que le gros philosophe Ecossais s'est plu -dans leur societe. C'est un excellent homme, que David Hume; il est -naturellement serein, il entend finement, il dit quelquefois avec sel, -quoiqu'il parle peu; mais il est lourd, il n'a ni chaleur, ni grace, ni -agrement dans l'esprit, ni rien qui soit propre a s'allier au ramage de -ces charmantes petites machines qu'on appelle jolies femmes. O que nous -sommes un drole de peuple!"--Correspondance Litteraire, 1iere P. vol. v. -p. 125. - -[224:1] "Le celebre David Hume, grand et gros historiographe -d'Angleterre, connu et estime par ses ecrits, n'a pas autant de talens -pour ce genre d'amusemens auquel toutes nos jolies femmes l'avoient -decide propre. Il fit son debut chez Madame de T----; on lui avoit -destine le role d'un Sultan assis entre deux esclaves, employant toute -son eloquence pour s'en faire aimer; les trouvant inexorables, il devoit -chercher le sujet de leurs peines, et de leur resistance: on le place -sur un sopha entre les deux plus jolies femmes de Paris, il les regarde -attentivement, il se frappe le ventre et les genoux a plusieurs -reprises, et ne trouve jamais autre chose a leur dire que: '_Eh bien! -mes demoiselles...Eh bien! vous voila donc...Eh bien! vous voila...vous -voila ici?_' Cette phrase dura un quart d'heure, sans qu'il put en -sortir. Une d'elles se leva d'impatience: Ah! dit elle, je m'en etois -bien doutee, cet homme n'est bon qu'a manger du veau! Depuis ce temps il -est relegue au role de spectateur, et n'en est pas moins fete et cajole. -C'est en verite une chose plaisante que le role qu'il joue ici; -malheureusement pour lui ou plutot pour la dignite philosophique, car, -pour lui, il paroit s'accommoder fort de ce train de vie; il n'y avoit -aucune manie dominante dans ce pays lorsqu'il y est arrive; on l'a -regarde comme une trouvaille dans cette circonstance, et l'effervescence -de nos jeunes tetes s'est tourne de son cote. Toutes les jolies femmes -s'en sont emparees; il est de tous les soupers fins, et il n'est point -de bonne fete sans lui; en un mot, il est pour nos agreables ce que les -Genevois sont pour moi."--Memoires et Correspondance de Madame d'Epinay, -vol. iii. p. 284. - -[225:1] Letters, collected edition, v. 69. - -[225:2] Ib. 73. - -[225:3] Ib. 77. - -[226:1] Ib. 90-91. He was not then aware that Hume's presence was -destined to afford him an opportunity of becoming "the mode" himself. -This he tells us was the effect of his jeu d'esprit on Rousseau, with -which we shall hereafter have concern; and he tells it in a manner which -shows that, however contemptible when set in the brow of David Hume, the -chaplet of fashionable renown was not felt to be unbecoming on his own. -Thus, he says to Mr. Conway, on 12th January, 1766, "I almost repent -having come hither, for I like the way of life and many of the people so -well, that I doubt I shall feel more regret at leaving Paris than I -expected. It would sound vain to tell you the honours and distinctions I -receive, and how much I am in fashion. Yet when they come from the -handsomest women in France, and the most respectable in point of -character, can one help being a little proud? If I was twenty years -younger, I should wish they were not quite so respectable. Madame de -Brionne, whom I have never seen, and who was to have met me at supper -last night, at the charming Madame D'Egmont's, sent me an invitation by -the latter for Wednesday next. I was engaged and hesitated: I was told, -'Comment! savez-vous que c'est qu'elle ne feroit pas pour toute La -France.' However, lest you should dread my returning a perfect old -swain, I study my wrinkles, compare myself and my limbs to every plate -of larks I see, and treat my understanding with at least as little -mercy. Yet, do you know, my present fame is owing to a very trifling -composition, but which has made incredible noise. I was one evening at -Madame Geoffrin's, joking on Rousseau's affectations and contradictions, -and said some things that diverted them. When I came home I put them -into a letter, and showed it next day to Helvetius, and the Duke de -Nivernois, who were so pleased with it, that, after telling me some -faults in the language, which you may be sure there were, they -encouraged me to let it be seen. As you know I willingly laugh at -mountebanks, political or literary, let their talents be ever so great, -I was not averse. The copies have spread like wildfire, _et me voici a -la mode_. I expect the end of my reign, at the end of the week, with -great composure." (Ib. 118-119.) - -One is tempted to give, as part of the whole picture of the visit of the -two Englishmen, a few of Walpole's notices of his own intense modesty. -Thus: "I had had my share of distresses in the morning, by going through -the operation of being presented to the royal family, down to the little -madame's pap dinner, and had behaved as sillily as you will easily -believe, hiding myself behind every mortal. The queen called me up to -her dressing-table, and seemed mightily disposed to gossip with me; but -instead of enjoying my glory like Madame de Sevigne, I slunk back into -the crowd after a few questions. She told Monsieur de Guerchy of it -afterwards, and that I had run away from her, but said she would have -her revenge at Fontainbleau; so I must go thither, which I did not -intend." Ib. 81-82. So when writing to Gray, after giving a description -of the effect which his wicked wit had produced on Madame de Boufflers -and the Prince of Conti, how she "with a tone of sentiment, and the -accents of lamenting humanity, abused me heartily, and then complained -to myself with the utmost softness," and how he "acted contrition, but -had like to have spoiled all, by growing dreadfully tired of a second -lecture from the Prince of Conti, who had taken up the tale;" he -concludes, "but when I left a triumphant party in England, I did not -come hither to be at the head of a fashion. However, I have been sent -for about like an African prince or a learned canary bird; and was, in -particular, carried by force to the Princess of Talmond, the queen's -cousin, who lives in a charitable apartment in the Luxembourg, and was -sitting on a small bed hung with saints and Sobieskis, in a corner of -one of those vast chambers, by two blinking tapers." (Ib. 130-131.) - -Hume's simple and self-satisfied account of the distinctions conferred -on him, and the gratification they afforded him, has met with -considerable ridicule. But the reader may judge for himself which is the -more honest, manly, and dignified: the plain acknowledgment of -distinctions conferred and appreciated, or this hollow profession of -contempt for unsolicited, unexpected, unenjoyed honours. - -[228:1] MS. R.S.E. The Sir James alludes to Sir James Macdonald. - -[229:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[230:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[231:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[233:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[233:2] The elder of the youths here mentioned, who became afterwards an -eminent statesman, was born in 1751. He was for some time attached to -the Fox party, and after the dissolution of the Fox and North coalition -ministry, he was twice unsuccessfully proposed as Speaker. In 1793, he -was selected for the delicate duty of negotiating with the French -Royalists. During the British sovereignty of Corsica, in 1794, he was -appointed viceroy or governor of the island. But the most brilliant and -the best known chapter in his political career, is his policy as -Governor-general of India, from 1807 to 1814. He was created Baron Minto -in 1797, and Earl of Minto in 1813. He died in 1814. - -[234:1] Probably either the young Comte de Boufflers, the son of the -lady who was Hume's correspondent, or Sir James Macdonald. - -[235:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[237:1] Among Hume's papers there is a letter signed "De Bastide, auteur -d'un Maison d'Education," thanking him for the favourable disposition -shown towards him, and desiring an interview. - -[238:1] In allusion to the interest taken by the Comtesse de Boufflers -in his being appointed secretary of legation. See _postea_. - -[239:1] Minto MSS. The tone of this letter extracted the following -criticism from Elliot. - -"So you did not permit your friend to write the long intended letter. -Your reason for this, I must own, is not to me a satisfactory one. If -the secretaryship were now actually vacant, it would of course devolve -upon you; nor would the interposition of your friends be necessary. It -is Mr. Bunbury's provision then, and not yours, which constitutes the -difficulty: he happens to be in possession; his alliance and his -connexions are considerable; and the difficulty of his re-election makes -it less easy than it would otherwise be to find an equivalent for him. -Yet if it could be found, it is impossible to conceive that he would not -willingly exchange a situation, the functions of which are performed by -another, and which he holds contrary to the inclination of his -principal. In such a state of things, I cannot help thinking, that a -lively representation of your case, from the warm and persuasive pen of -your friend, is the most likely circumstance to engage the active genius -of the D. of B. to rouse government from their indolence about finding -or creating some proper arrangement for Mr. Bunbury. Lord Holland will -probably join his influence, and Lord Tavistock, even on his new -friend's account, will most certainly concur. This joint operation, -supported by the justice of your claims, and the application of your -friends, seems to me the most infallible method to surmount the real -difficulty, which you have candour enough to admit stands in the way of -administration, though disposed to do you justice. If to all this you -object certain delicacies in your own mind, and a disdain to solicit -what ought to be bestowed, I can only answer, a British minister is at -all times so much the slave of those who are not his friends, that his -best friends are almost always obliged to extort justice to themselves -by methods often hostile, always indelicate. I write to you popularly, -not as a philosopher. I desire, therefore, that your objections to my -doctrine may be in the same tone; and, after all, why should you, like -the plaintive author of 'Emile,' indulge yourself in a pleasing kind of -indignation, as if your countrymen had some unaccountable satisfaction -in mortifying a man, who feels so very different treatment even from -strangers. Notwithstanding all you say, we are both Englishmen; that is, -true British subjects, entitled to every emolument and advantage that -our happy constitution can bestow. Do not you speak and write and -publish what you please? and though attacking favourite and popular -opinions, are you not in the confidential friendship of Lord Hertford, -and intrusted with the most important national concerns? Am not I, a -member of Parliament, as much at liberty to abuse ministers and -administration, as if I had been born in Wapping, or to support them if -I think proper? Had it not been for the clamour of _a Scott_, perhaps -indeed I might have been in some more active, but not more honourable or -lucrative situation. This clamour we all know is merely artificial and -occasional. It will in time give way to some other, equally absurd and -ill-founded, when you, if you will, may become a bishop, and I a -minister. In the mean time, let us make the best of our present -circumstances; I as treasurer of the chamber, you as the idol of -whatever is fair and learned at Paris. About the beginning of December I -will be at London, ready to assist your operations if you will follow my -advice. Yours," &c. MS. R.S.E. - -[241:1] It will be seen that the letter had arrived safely. - -[243:1] Minto MS. The remainder of the letter is wanting. - -[245:1] Minto MSS. On 19th October, Mr. Elliot writes,-- - - "I am too well acquainted with your friendly disposition to be - at all surprised at the trouble you have so successfully taken - about my boys. You will, however, allow me to admire your - punctuality in sending me three letters all differently - addressed. The short one for this place is the only one come - to hand. I am impatient, on every account but what regards the - establishment of the boys, for the long one sent to London. I - act with implicit faith upon your short mandate; and if I - could have entertained any doubt, the name of Madame Mirepoix, - you very well know, was more than sufficient to remove it." - -On 6th November, he is able to say,-- - - "I have at length received all your letters; the one intrusted - to Lord March, the other wrote on the supposition of its being - lost, and a third dated October 9th. They all came on the same - day, and so late as the 24th of October. The two boys and - their tutor, Mr. Liston, are now, I presume, settled at Paris. - They had a letter for you. I had luckily directed them, if - they found nobody at the Hotel de Brancas, to inquire for a - Pension opposite to the Marechale de Mirepoix." (MS. R.S.E.) - -[251:1] Private Correspondence, p. 112, _et seq._ - -[252:1] "But there is a person that has written an "Inquiry, historical -and critical, into the evidence against Mary Queen of Scots;" and has -attempted to refute the foregoing narrative. He quotes a single passage -of the narrative, in which Mary is said simply to refuse answering; and -then a single passage from Goodall, in which she boasts simply that she -will answer; and he very civilly and almost directly, calls the author a -liar, on account of this pretended contradiction. The whole inquiry, -from beginning to end, is composed of such scandalous artifices; and, -from this instance, the reader may judge of the candour, fair dealing, -veracity, and good manners of the inquirer. There are, indeed, three -events in our history which may be regarded as the touchstone of party -men. An English Whig, who asserts the reality of the Popish plot; an -Irish Catholic, who denies the massacre in 1641: and a Scotch Jacobite, -who maintains the innocence of Queen Mary, must be considered as men -beyond the reach of argument or reason, and must be left to their -prejudices." - -[252:2] There is no address on the MS., but circumstances show the -letter to have been intended for Lord Elibank. - -[253:1] These references are to the first edition of the "History of the -House of Tudor." - -[256:1] Scroll MS. R.S.E. A faint line is drawn through the concluding -paragraph, and the passage may have been omitted in the letter as -transmitted. - -[260:1] Scroll, MS. R.S.E. - -[260:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[261:1] See pp. 240, 244. - -[263:1] Minto MSS. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV. - -1765-1766. AEt. 54-55. - - Hume's Sentiments as to the Popularity of his works--A letter - to the Scottish Clergy--Correspondence with Elliot continued-- - Sir Robert Liston--Mallet--Hume appointed Secretary of - Legation--Charge d'Affaires at Paris--Proposal to appoint him - Secretary for Ireland--Reasons of the Failure of the Project-- - Lord Hertford--Resumption of Communication with Rousseau-- - Rousseau in Paris--Notices of his History and Character-- - Hume's solicitude for his welfare--Return to Britain--Disposal - of Rousseau--Death of Jardine. - - -Allusion has occasionally been made to the difficulty of satisfying Hume -with any amount of literary success. His correspondence with Millar is a -long grumble about the prejudices he has had to encounter, and their -influence on the circulation of his works; while the bookseller, by the -most glowing pictures of their popularity, is only able to elicit a -partial gleam of content. The success of the History made worthy Mr. -Millar very anxious that it should be continued, and Hume for a time -acquiesced in the proposal. There is a letter from Millar on the 26th -October, enlarging on the great and rapid sales: about 2500 complete -sets of the quarto edition, and upwards of 3000 of the "History of the -Stuarts," had been sold, along with near 2000 of the 8vo. edition. In -continuation he says: - - The Essays, 8vo, were only published in May; what has been - sold of them, of all the different editions, I cannot - recollect. I was asked that question at St. James's the other - day, when I said, I considered your works as classics, that I - never numbered the editions, as I did in books we wished to - puff. This I said before many clergy. I am not a little - surprised to see one of your excellent understanding and merit - so anxious about the sale, when the booksellers entirely - concerned never complained, but on the contrary would be ready - to give you to your utmost wish any encouragement to proceed - in your History; and in truth, considering the number of - enemies, some particular Essays have risen from _interest_, - bigotry, folly, and knavery, not less than a one hundred - thousand, it is rather astonishing your works have sold so - much. While _men_ are _men_ this is to be expected, and you - are the last man I should ever thought could paid the least - attention to such things.[264:1] - -On this Hume says: - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_Paris, 14th January, 1765._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I am much obliged to you for your last letter, which is very -friendly, and I shall not fail to pay the proper attention to it. The -truth is, as I intend to continue my History, I could not possibly have -taken a more proper step than to pay a visit to this country, and to -make acquaintance here; for as France and England are so intermixed in -all transactions since the Revolution, the history of one country must -throw light upon the other; and I am now in a situation to have access -to all the families which have papers relative to public affairs -transacted in the end of the last and beginning of this century. The -reason why I was anxious to know the sale of my History, was, that I -might judge whether I could expect equal access and information in -England. The rage and prejudice of parties frighten me; and above all, -this rage against the Scots, which is so dishonourable, and indeed so -infamous to the English nation. We hear that it increases every day -without the least appearance of provocation on our part. It has -frequently made me resolve never in my life to set foot on English -ground. I dread, if I should undertake a more modern history, the -impertinence and ill manners to which it would expose me; and I was -willing to know from you whether former prejudices had so far subsided -as to ensure me of a good reception."[265:1] - - -The following very characteristic paper, which appears to have been -enclosed to Dr. Blair, needs no introduction. - - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--I am in debt to all my friends in letters, and shall ever -be so. But what strikes me chiefly with remorse, are my great and -enormous debts to the clergy. By this my neglect of my Protestant -pastors, you will begin to suspect that I am turning Papist. But to -acquit myself at once, allow me to write you a common letter, and to -address a few words to every one of you. - - -DR. ROBERTSON. - -"Your History has been very very well translated here, better than mine, -as I am told. Its success has given me occasion to promise your -acquaintance to several persons of distinction; the Duc de Nivernois, -the Marquis de Puysieuls, President Henault, Baron D'Holbach, &c. I wish -you could speak French tolerably; you would find this place agreeable. -The Marechal Broglio spoke of you to me with esteem the other day. - - -DR. CARLYLE. - -"I consulted with the Chevalier Macdonald, (who, by the bye, is here in -great vogue, not for his gallantries, like some others who shall be -nameless, but for his parts and knowledge;) I say I consulted with the -Chevalier about writing a common letter to Eglinton in favour of Wilson. -He told me it would be quite useless. Eglinton would give that kirk and -every thing else to the tenth cousin of the tenth cousin of a voter in -the shire of Ayr, rather than to the most intimate friend he has in the -world. Je baise les mains de Madame Carlyle avec tout l'empressement -possible. - - -DR. FERGUSON. - -"Who, by the bye, I believe is not a doctor, though highly worthy from -his piety and learning to be one; then Mr. Ferguson, I think I have -nothing in particular to say to you, except that I am glad of the change -of your class, because you desired it, and because it fitted Russell. -For otherwise I should have liked better the other science. The news of -your great success in teaching has reached me in Paris, and has given me -pleasure; but I fear for your health from all these sudden and violent -applications. Ah, that you could learn something, dear Ferguson, of the -courteous, and caressing, and open manners of this country. I should not -then have been to learn for the first time, (as I did lately from -General Clark,) that you have not been altogether ungrateful to me, and -that you bear me some good will, and that you sometimes regret my -absence. Why should your method of living with me have borne so little -the appearance of those sentiments? - - -DR. BLAIR. - -"Many people who read English have got your dissertation on Fingal, -which they admire extremely: a very good critic told me lately that it -was incomparably the best piece of criticism in the English language; a -self-evident truth to me. I met also with many admirers of Fingal; but -many also doubt of its authenticity. The Chevalier Macdonald is of use -to me in supporting the argument, from his personal knowledge of facts. -I cannot, however, but allow that the whole is strange, passing strange. - -"You seem to wish that I should give you some general accounts of this -country. Shall I begin with the points in which it most differs from -England, viz., the general regard paid to genius and learning; the -universal and professed, though decent, gallantry to the fair sex; or -the almost universal contempt of all religion among both sexes, and -among all ranks of men? Or shall I mention the points in which the -French begin to concur with the English,--their love of liberty, for -instance? Or shall I give you some remarkable anecdotes of the great men -who, at present, adorn French literature? Perhaps you would wish me to -run over all these topics successively. Alas! there is not one that -would not fill several sheets of paper with curious circumstances, and I -am the most lazy writer of letters in the world: however, I must say -something on these heads; and, first, of the first:-- - -"There is a very remarkable difference between London and Paris; of -which I gave warning to Helvetius, when he went over lately to England, -and of which he told me, on his return, he was fully sensible. If a man -have the misfortune, in the former place, to attach himself to letters, -even if he succeeds, I know not with whom he is to live, nor how he is -to pass his time in a suitable society. The little company there that is -worth conversing with, are cold and unsociable; or are warmed only by -faction and cabal; so that a man who plays no part in public affairs -becomes altogether insignificant; and, if he is not rich, he becomes -even contemptible. Hence that nation are relapsing fast into the deepest -stupidity and ignorance. But, in Paris, a man that distinguishes himself -in letters, meets immediately with regard and attention. I found, -immediately on my landing here, the effects of this disposition. Lord -Beauchamp told me that I must go instantly with him to the Duchess de la -Valieres.[268:1] When I excused myself, on account of dress, he told me -that he had her orders, though I were in boots. I accordingly went with -him in a travelling frock, where I saw a very fine lady reclining on a -sofa, who made me speeches and compliments without bounds. The style of -panegyric was then taken up by a fat gentleman, whom I cast my eyes -upon, and observed him to wear a star of the richest diamonds;--it was -the Duke of Orleans. The Duchess told me she was engaged to sup in -President Henault's, but that she would not part with me;--I must go -along with her. The good president received me with open arms; and told -me, among other fine things, that, a few days before, the Dauphin said -to him, &c. &c. &c. Such instances of attention I found very frequent, -and even daily. You ask me, if they were not very agreeable? I -answer--no; neither in expectation, possession, nor recollection. I left -that fireside, where you probably sit at present, with the greatest -reluctance. After I came to London, my uneasiness, as I heard more of -the prepossessions of the French nation in my favour, increased; and -nothing would have given me greater joy than any accident that would -have broke off my engagements. When I came to Paris, I repented heartily -of having entered, at my years, on such a scene; and, as I found that -Lord Hertford had entertained a good opinion and good will for Andrew -Stuart, I spoke to Wedderburn, in order to contrive expedients for -substituting him in my place. Lord Hertford thought, for some time, that -I would lose all patience and would run away from him. But the faculty -of speaking French returned gradually to me. I formed many acquaintance -and some friendships. All the learned seemed to conspire in showing me -instances of regard. The great ladies were not wanting to a man so -highly in fashion: and, having now contracted the circle of my -acquaintance, I live tolerably at my ease. I have even thoughts of -settling at Paris for the rest of my life; but I am sometimes frightened -with the idea that it is not a scene suited to the languor of old age. I -then think of retiring to a provincial town, or returning to Edinburgh, -or ---- but it is not worth while to form projects about the matter. -D'Alembert and I talk very seriously of taking a journey to Italy -together; and, if Lord Hertford leave France soon, this journey may -probably have place. - -"I began this letter about two months ago; but so monstrously indolent -am I that I have not had time to finish it. I believe I had better send -it off as it is. Tell Robertson that La Chapelle, his translator, is -very much out of humour, and with reason, for never hearing from him. I -suppose some letter has miscarried. I am, &c.[270:1] - -"_Paris, 6th April, 1765._" - - -Mr. Elliot had expressed to Hume a fear lest the longer residence of his -sons in France might "render them too much Frenchmen," while, speaking -of their tutor, Mr. Liston,[270:2] he says, "I own I am more -apprehensive of the consequences of a Paris life upon a young man of his -age than upon the boys, who are too young to enter into the full -dissipation of a country, where, not to be dissipated, is hardly to have -any existence." On this Hume writes: - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Paris, 14th April, 1765._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--I have always had the pleasure of conversing, from time -to time, with your sons, with Mr. Liston, and with the Abbe Choquart, -and never found the least reason to alter the good opinion, which I had -at first conceived of that academy, and of the conduct of every one -concerned: but the tenor of your last letter made me apprehend, that you -had discovered some ground of suspicion; and the more so as Mr. Larpent -told me, that you had spoke to his father, to desire him to request of -his son, that he should keep a watchful eye over the conduct of your -sons, and of Mr. Liston, and inform him of all particulars. This it is -impossible for Larpent to do, and, indeed, impossible for me to do, -otherwise than by conversing with the Abbe Choquart and with your sons -apart. I have done this very carefully, and find Mr. Liston's conduct -not only irreproachable, but laudable. The Abbe tells me, that for the -first three or four months, he scarce ever stirred out of the house, but -conversed with him alone, and with the other masters, till he came to -such perfection in the language, as to be taken for a Languedocian, or a -Frenchman of some province. Since that time the Abbe tells me, he has -made a few acquaintances among his countrymen, and goes out sometimes; -but he uses this liberty with great moderation; and on the whole, the -Abbe praises him (and with great reason as appears to me) for his -reserve, his modesty, his good sense, his sobriety, and his virtue. As -to your sons, he assures me, that though he has been employed nineteen -years in instructing youth, he never knew any more happily formed, and -they are the favourites of the whole school. The boys themselves seem to -be extremely happy in their present situation. Gilbert speaks French -almost like a Parisian, and Hugh follows fast after him. This is an -advantage they have acquired, without interrupting the course of their -other studies. The sociableness of their disposition has been called -forth, by living among companions in a public school; and as they praise -very much the civility and good humour of their fellow students, they -may themselves be the more confirmed in their habits. But, pray, come -hither yourself and judge of the matter. - -"Two or three days ago, Lord Hertford wrote a very earnest letter to Mr. -Grenville in my favour. I know well that, if you find an opportunity, -you will second his application. The Saxon minister at the court, told -my lord, that Mr. Wroughton was soon to leave Dresden. My lord has -proposed that Bunbury be sent thither: if he refuses, it will be a proof -that he is resolved to undertake no public service, but scandalously to -live at home, and enjoy a large salary, which should belong to another. -Surely if Mr. Grenville bore me never so little good-will, as a supposed -Tory, he must allow this reasoning to be unanswerable. - -"You have now with you Sir James Macdonald, who is too good for you, for -I am afraid you will not know to value him. He leaves an universal -regret behind him at Paris, among all who were acquainted with him, and -in none more than myself. I am, dear sir, your faithful humble -servant."[272:1] - - -In the following letter to Millar, we find Mallet and the Life of -Marlborough, that had been promised and paid for, again the subject of -speculation. Hume, though he had at one time been induced to believe -that part of the work was written, seems to have on the whole indulged -himself in scepticism, which, in this case at least, was well founded. -The letter is dated 4th May. - - -"MY DEAR SIR,--As soon as I heard of poor Mallet's death,[273:1] my -curiosity was excited to know, whether he had really proceeded any -length in his work, or whether, as many people imagine, and as is -somewhat my opinion, he had never wrote a line nor taken a note with -regard to it. I beg you would make some inquiry upon that subject. The -widow will be able to inform you. I should be glad to know whether any -lights could be got from that quarter for the continuance of my -work."[273:2] - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Paris, 12th May, 1765._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I went, on Wednesday last, to be present at the examination -of the Abbe Choquart's school, with which I was very well satisfied; -especially for the part your young folks had in it. There were several -people present who came to hear their children and relations; and when -Gilbert was going through some demonstrations of geometry, with a very -good grace, I asked some who sat next me, whether they could perceive -him to be a foreigner? They all declared that they could not; and were -very much surprised when I told them that he had not yet been in the -country six months. Hugh retains still a little of a foreign accent, but -it is wearing out gradually. Mr. Liston speaks so well as to be able to -pass himself for a Gascon! - -"There was also one circumstance of your young gentlemen's behaviour -with which I was much pleased; but whether you will take the praise of -it to yourself, or ascribe it partly to the imitation of French manners, -I cannot determine. I arrived a little before the commencement of the -examination; and, walking into the garden, I took shelter, from the -heat, under some trees. Your young gentlemen, as soon as they saw me, -ran and brought me a chair, which they placed carefully in the most -shady spot they could find. I doubt this attention would not be very -common among mere English schoolboys. - -"Lord Hertford has received, from George Grenville, a final answer to a -very earnest, and very pressing letter he had wrote in my favour. Never -was any refusal so decisive, so cold, so positive, so determined; not -the least circumstance of apology, of good manners, or of regard: he -even gives it as a reason why I cannot be appointed, because Sir Charles -Bunbury has never yet desired to change his situation. In short, the -letter is so different from all letters usually wrote on such occasions, -and so different from those which Mr. Grenville was accustomed to write -to Lord Hertford, that my lord concludes there is some particular reason -of coldness, though he cannot conjecture what it is. But there are also, -in the letter, some expressions which mark extreme animosity against me. -Lord Hertford thinks, they will admit of another sense; and desires me -to write to you, in order to ask whether you have ever perceived such -sentiments in that gentleman. I know that I have affirmed, and, what is -worse, have proved, that Queen Elizabeth's maxims of government were -full as arbitrary as those of the Stuarts. I know that this proposition, -though now an undoubted and acknowledged truth, is contrary to the -principles of sound Whiggery. I know also, that Mr. Grenville, as a -sound Whig, bore me no good will on that account; but I did not really -think that his quarrel could have gone to such an extremity.[275:1] You -are sensible of the consequences which I apprehended, and which you did -not, last summer, think so dangerous as I imagined. I have now, for the -first time, explained to my lord the nature of my situation, which -somewhat surprised him, being so contrary to the assurances given him by -Mr. Grenville: but he told me that my interest was secure; for that he -thought himself obliged to make me reparation from his private fortune, -for any breach of faith which I might apprehend from the public. If this -point were fixed, it would probably stop the malignity of my enemies, -who will see that they can only do a small ill to Lord Hertford, instead -of a great one which they might intend against me. However, my lord -being desirous to know, from you, Mr. Grenville's sentiments, as far as -you can discover them, I am engaged to enter into this detail, which -otherwise I might have desired to avoid. I am, with great sincerity, my -dear sir, your most obedient servant."[275:2] - - -HUME _to_ MR. OSWALD. - -"_Paris, 2d June, 1765._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--There is a gentleman here, an Abbe, and a man of -letters, who is willing to enter into a commerce, or mutual exchange -with me, on every point of political and commercial knowledge.[276:1] He -has a great deal of very exact information, with regard to every thing -that concerns these subjects; has great freedom of thought and speech, -and has no connexions with any minister. As a sample, he has sent me the -enclosed questions, which I could not exactly answer, and is willing to -answer any of a like kind, which I could propose to him. I thought I -could not do better than transmit them to you; and as I know you will -also have questions to ask, I shall also transmit them to him, and you -may depend on his answer as just and solid. I have left the margin large -enough, to save you trouble. I know you are the most industrious and the -most indolent man of my acquaintance; the former in business, the latter -in ceremony. The present task I propose to you is of the former kind. - -"You will hear that Sir Charles Bunbury is appointed Secretary for -Ireland. Lord Hertford thinks it absolutely certain, that I am to -succeed him; and I, too, think it very probable. My lord throws up -immediately, if this demand is not complied with; yet, notwithstanding -these favourable circumstances, I shall not be wonderfully surprised, in -case of a disappointment. I know that I can depend on your good offices -with Lord Halifax, and with every other person on whom you have -influence. Lord Hertford writes this post to that noble lord. The -present advantages I possess are so great, that it seems almost -extravagant to doubt of success; and yet, in general, it appears to me -almost incomprehensible how it should happen, that I, a philosopher, a -man of letters, nowise a courtier, of the most independent spirit, who -has given offence to every sect and every party, that I, I say, such as -I have described myself, should obtain an employment of dignity, and a -thousand a-year. This event is in general so strange, that I fancy, in -the issue, it will not have place. I am, dear sir, yours -sincerely."[277:1] - - -Hume had come to the conclusion, and certainly justly, that as he -performed the functions of secretary of the embassy in France, he ought -to possess the rank and emoluments of that office. He appears, however, -to have been reluctant to take any steps personally for the -accomplishment of this object; and his correspondence with his friends -shows that some urgency was necessary to overcome his scruples.[278:1] -Having, however, finally decided on his course, he appears to have -pursued it with great energy and perseverance, and to have moved every -influence through which he was likely to accomplish his end. - -On 24th June, 1765, Hume writes to his brother that he "has now been -appointed secretary to the embassy, with the usual salary of L1200 -a-year." He says, "The English ministry had intended not to appoint -another secretary of the embassy, who they knew could not be received, -but to suppress that office altogether from views of frugality." For the -continuance of the office, and its bestowal on himself, he seems to have -relied very much on the intervention of a foreign lady, his friend -Madame de Boufflers; and, strange as it may seem to find such an -influence effective in the councils of a British cabinet, he appears to -have been convinced that, had the matter not been previously settled in -his favour, her application would have brought it to a conclusion. -Continuing his letter to his brother, he says, "Nobody can do more -justice to the merit of my friend the Comtesse de Boufflers, than the -Duke and Duchess of Bedford, who have indeed been essentially obliged to -her in their family concerns. She wrote the duke about a fortnight ago, -that the time was now come, and the only time that probably would ever -come, of his showing his friendship to her, by assisting me in my -applications; and she would rest on this sole circumstance all his -professions of regard to her. He received her letter while in the -country, but he wrote her back, that he would immediately hasten to -town, and if he had any credit with the king or ministry, her -solicitations should be complied with. He is not a man that ever makes -vain professions, nor does he ever take a refusal. He would find the -matter finished when he came to London; but it is a sensible pleasure to -me, that I owe so great an obligation, to a person whom I love and -esteem so sincerely as that lady."[279:1] - -In a letter to the Marquise de Barbantane, he gives the same account of -the matter. - - -"Have you heard of the share which Madame de Boufflers had in this -event? As soon as she heard that there was a vacancy, by means of the -promotion of Sir Charles Bunbury, my predecessor, she wrote to the Duke -of Bedford, entreating him, in the most earnest terms, to befriend me in -my pretensions, and setting all my claims in the most favourable light. -The duke answered her, that he would soon be in London; and if he had -any credit or authority with the ministry, her friend should not fail of -success. The duke is not a man that ever promises in vain, nor is he a -man that is ever to be refused; so that, from this interest alone, I was -sure to have prevailed. But happily the same post brought intelligence -to the ambassador, that the affair was already finished. But do you not -think, that I owe the same obligations to our friend? or will you tell -me, that I seek only a pretence for indulging my inclinations?"[280:1] - - -The statement is repeated in the following letter to Elliot. - - -HUME _to_ GILBERT ELLIOT _of Minto_. - -"_Paris, 3d June, 1765._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--Not finding your young gentlemen in church last Sunday, I -went to see them, when I found them both confined to the house with a -light fever, which has since turned out the measles in form, but with -all the most favourable symptoms. I find Mr. Liston very attentive and -very careful; the young gentlemen are attended by the physician of the -academy. I use the freedom to tell Lady Hertford the way in which they -are governed; she tells me she would not act otherwise in the case of -her own children; so that Mrs. Murray,[281:1] if you please to -communicate to her this intelligence, can have no reason for anxiety. -Gilbert has a greater quantity than Hugh, and greater strength to bear -them. - -"You know, I suppose, that I am appointed secretary to the embassy, -though I have not yet received my credential letter: the present -confusions in the court may perhaps retard them for some time; but Mr. -Grenville has informed the ambassador that the matter is concluded, and -the king has given his consent; so that in spite of Atheism and Deism, -of Whiggism and Toryism, of Scoticism and Philosophy, I am now possessed -of an office of credit, and of L1200 a-year: without dedication or -application, from the favour alone of a person, whom I can perfectly -love and respect. I find it has cost my lord a very hard pull; and when -I consider the matter alone, without viewing the steps that led to it, I -am sometimes inclined to be surprised how it has happened. - -"Shall I tell you another circumstance that is not disagreeable to me; a -certain lady, who is at present in London, hearing there was some delay, -wrote in the most earnest terms to the Duke of Bedford, desiring his -interest in my favour; he answered her he would soon be in London, and -if he then possessed any credit or authority, she might depend upon the -success of her friend. You know that he is not a man that makes vain -professions, nor is he a man easy to be refused. If you guess the lady, -you will conclude that it will not cost me a great effort to be -grateful. The share you have also been pleased to take is not forgot, -and strengthens our ancient friendship. I am, my dear sir, yours -sincerely."[282:1] - - -It is probable that this appointment was impeded by more difficulties -than Hume himself could see, or his friends make him aware of. His being -a Scotsman of itself made it then unpopular, and in his case there were -other reasons likely to weigh with statesmen who looked in the direction -of popularity. We are told that "the printers of the _London Evening -Post and Gazetteer_, were called before the House of Lords, on a -complaint made by the Earl of Marchmont, for printing a letter (written -by Wilkes,) reflecting on the Earl of Hertford, ambassador at Paris, for -employing David Hume the historian as his secretary, and representing -the embassy as totally of Scotch complexion."[282:2] - -No sooner had this appointment been completed, than Lord Hertford was -recalled, and Hume was left for a time charge d'affaires at Paris. - -The ambassador had been appointed by Lord Bute, but had chiefly acted -during the administration of Grenville, with whom he and his connexions -were not, as Hume's correspondence has shown, on very friendly terms. In -July, 1765, the Rockingham administration was formed, in connexion with -which Lord Hertford became lord-lieutenant of Ireland, and his brother -secretary of state with the leadership of the House of Commons. Hume had -thus to perform the functions of British representative until the Duke -of Richmond arrived as ambassador in October. Of the manner in which he -performed the duties of his office, Lord Brougham says: - - By Lord Aberdeen's kindness I have been allowed to examine the - correspondence of the embassy with Marshal Conway during these - four months; and it is highly creditable to the philosopher's - business-like talents, and his capacity for affairs. The - negotiations of which he had the sole conduct related to the - important and interesting discussions of Canada; matters - arising out of the cession by the peace of Paris; and to the - demolition of the works at Dunkirk, also stipulated by that - treaty. His despatches, some of them of great length, most of - them in his own hand, are clearly and ably written. The course - which he describes himself as pursuing with the very slippery - and evasive ministers against whom he had to contend, - particularly the Duc de Praslin, appears to have been marked - by firmness and temper, as well as by quickness and sagacity. - His memorials, of which two or three are given, show a perfect - familiarity with diplomatic modes and habits, and they are - both well written and ably reasoned. His information must have - been correct; for he obtained a knowledge of the secret - proceedings of the assembly of clergy, which, though convoked - for the purpose of obtaining the usual _don gratuit_, chose to - enter upon the discussion of all the clerical grievances; - while they kept their deliberations carefully secret, and were - opposed by the parliament of Paris as soon as their - proceedings became known. Mr. Hume obtained a very early, - though somewhat exaggerated account of these things, through - two of the foreign ambassadors; and when he communicated it to - the Bishop of Senlis, he was treated with contempt, as if - nothing could be so wild, and as if some enemy of the church - had invented the fable to discredit her. Marshal Conway - appears by his despatches (which are also excellent) to have - rested his hopes of these differences passing off, on the - prevailing irreligious spirit in France, where "the Dauphin - alone," he says, "has any care for such matters; and he has of - late taken a military turn." In a short time the whole ferment - was allayed by the prudent and able conduct of Brienne, - Archbishop of Toulouse; the _don gratuit_ was voted; and the - assembly was prorogued to the following May. Mr. Hume praises - Brienne very highly on this, as indeed he did on all - occasions.[284:1] - -Hume's familiar letters make us fully acquainted with the feelings he -experienced at this juncture. - - -HUME _to his Brother_. - -"_Compiegne, 14th July, 1765._ - -"DEAR BROTHER,--There arrived yesterday a messenger from England with my -commission under the great seal. My appointments, as I told you, are -L1200 a-year. I have also L300 for my equipage, and three hundred ounces -of plate for my table. This is the fair side of the picture. The -misfortune is, that General Conway, the ambassador's brother, is -secretary of state. The Duke of Grafton, his nephew,[284:2] is the other -secretary. You still say, better and better. Not at all. My Lord -Hertford goes for England in a few days, and leaves the burden of the -embassy upon me. Still you say, where is the harm of all this? You are -come to years of discretion, and can govern yourself. Wait a little, -dear brother. Lord Hertford goes lord-lieutenant to Ireland, and there -is an end of the ambassador, and probably of the secretary. - -"It is true I can count upon Lord Hertford's friendship as much as any -man's in the world. One day last spring, he came into my room, and told -me that he heard of many people who endeavoured by their caresses to -persuade me that I ought to remain in France. But he hoped that I would -embrace no scheme of life which would ever separate him and me. He now -loved me as much as ever he esteemed me, and wished we might pass our -lives together. He had resolved several times to have opened his breast -so far to me; but being a man of few words and no professions, he had -still delayed it, and he now felt himself much relieved by this -declaration of his desires and intentions. I know that Lord Hertford -will not go to Ireland unless he be allowed to name the secretary for -that kingdom. Perhaps he may think his son, Lord Beauchamp, too young -for that office; in which case I may very probably expect it, and it is -an office of between L3000 and L4000 a-year, and stands next in dignity -to all the great offices of the state. In all cases the lord-lieutenant -for Ireland has many and great things to give, of which I should -certainly expect one. - -"Still you say, this is all better and better: Not at all! You know the -fluctuation of English politics. Perhaps, before you receive this, the -whole present system is overturned. Lord Hertford, who, while he -remained here, was a man of no party, is involved with his friends. All -is turned topsy-turvy: and before next winter, perhaps, I am at your -fireside without office or employment! Here, indeed, I allow you to say, -so much the better; for I never had much ambition, I mean for power and -dignities, and I am heartily cured of the little I had. I believe a -fireside and a book the best things in the world for my age and -disposition. I write in some hurry, therefore can only add, that if the -old ministry return, I can look upon the Duke of Bedford alone as my -friend, by means of the lady I mentioned to you. If the ministry stand, -I have, by Lord Hertford's means, many and great friends; and the king, -I have been well assured, honours me particularly with his good opinion. -In all cases it is a great point for me to have obtained this commission -to a place of so much trust and credit and silences all objections -against me, whether they arose from religion or politics. Direct your -letters to me as _Secretaire d'Ambassade d'Angleterre a Paris_. I hate -any thing that disturbs so agreeable a settlement as I had obtained -before these great events. My compliments to Mrs. Home and to Katy. Keep -this letter to yourself, but write part of it to our sister."[286:1] - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Compiegne, 20th July, 1765._ - -"Tell Dr. Robertson that the Dauphin asked Mr. Hume several questions -the other day, about him and his History. That prince seems a reasonable -man, but would be the better of being _roasted_ sometimes in _The -Poker_.[286:2] If they will elect him a member, Mr. Hume will propose it -to him.[286:3] What does the doctor say at present to these great -folding doors opened to all the chimeras of ambition? Alas! they may be -thrown open much wider, if possible; none of these chimeras will enter. -Philosophy, with her severe brows, guards the passage; while Indolence, -in affright, is ready to throw herself out at the window. Mr. Hume -recommends himself to Ferguson and Jardine, and John Adams and Mrs. -Adams, and to all the Poker, and desires the prayers of the faithful -for him on this occasion." - - -Hume had now actually before him the prospect of filling the high office -of secretary to the lord-lieutenant of Ireland. Writing to his brother -on 4th August, 1765, he again states that Lord Hertford, before his -departure, had assured him that he would not accept of the -lord-lieutenancy, unless he were allowed the naming of the secretary; -and now adds, that the office is destined for himself, in conjunction -with Lord Hertford's son, Lord Beauchamp; and that his own salary is to -be about L2000 a-year. He continues: - -"Thus you see a splendid fortune awaits me: Yet you cannot imagine with -what regret I leave this country. It is like stepping out of light into -darkness, to exchange Paris for Dublin. The most agreeable circumstance -is the friendship and confidence of the lord-lieutenant; and if the -present credit of that family continue, as it is likely to do, I shall -probably have it in my power to do service to my friends--particularly -to your young folks; for as to you and myself, it is long since we -thought our fortunes entirely made."[287:1] - -He was not, however, destined to fill this office; and neither he -himself, nor his best friends, appear to have regretted the -circumstance; the fact being that he was but slenderly endowed with -either of the qualifications then indispensable to an Irish -statesman,--a capacity for hard drinking, and adroitness in bold -political intrigues. The exercise of an official function, among a -people where one sect of Christians enjoyed all offices, emoluments, and -honours, while another, following the national religion, were scarcely -allowed to live, must have shocked his sense of political justice; -while it may be questioned if he was a sufficiently bold politician to -have attempted any reform of this abuse. The project of his appointment, -however, was brought so near its consummation, as to elicit certain -applications for ecclesiastical preferment, in order that the reputation -he had achieved, in other places, for influence in this department of -patronage, might not be unacknowledged in Ireland.[288:1] - -In his letters to his friends, at this time, he describes these -vicissitudes of fortune; and indulges in a feeling to which he was very -prone,--an uncertainty as to his future projects, and an indolent -disinclination to make up his mind how to act. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Paris, 23d August, 1765._ - -"All the literati of my friends, who understand English, think your -Dissertation one of the finest performances in our language. A -gentleman, of my acquaintance, has translated it for his own -satisfaction. He could not publish it without publishing "Ossian" at the -same time. My scepticism extends no farther, nor ever did, than with -regard to the extreme antiquity of those poems; and it is no more than -scepticism. - -"You may, perhaps, have heard of the rapid whirl of my fortune -backwards and forwards of late. I had scarce received my commission, as -secretary to the embassy, when I knew that that situation, the most -agreeable in which I could have been placed, was not to last. Lord -Hertford must go to Ireland, and resolved to carry me over as secretary -to that kingdom, in conjoint commission with his son. On his arrival at -London, he found the cry so loud against the promotion of Scotsmen, that -he was obliged to give it up; which he did the more easily, as he knew -my great reluctance to that office and scene of life. He has now got a -pension of L400 a-year settled on me; and as he has prepared an -apartment for me in the castle of Dublin, I shall hurry thither as soon -as I leave France, and shall be afterwards free for the rest of my -life.[289:1] I have not determined where I shall pass my latter days. -This place should be the most agreeable to me; but a man who came late -thither, and who is not supported by family connexions, may, perhaps, -find himself misplaced, even in this centre of letters and good society. -I have a reluctance to think of living among the factious barbarians of -London; who will hate me because I am a Scotsman, and am not a Whig, and -despise me because I am a man of letters. My attachment to Edinburgh -revives as I turn my face towards it."[290:1] - - -HUME _to his Brother_. - -"DEAR BROTHER,--I am now to inform you of another pretty rapid change in -my fortune. Lord Hertford, on his arrival in London, found great -difficulty of executing his intentions in my favour. The cry is loud -against the Scots; and the present ministry are unwilling to support any -of our countrymen, lest they bear the reproach of being connected with -Lord Bute. For this reason, Lord Hertford departed from his project; -which he did the more readily, as he knew I had a great reluctance to -the office of secretary for Ireland; which requires a talent for -speaking in public, to which I was never accustomed. I must also have -kept a kind of open house, and have drunk and caroused with the Irish, a -course of living to which I am as little accustomed. The Duke of -Bedford, to whom I mentioned these objections, thought them very solid. -I think myself, at present, much better provided for, by a pension of -L400 a-year for life, which Lord Hertford has procured me. He also -writes me, that an apartment is fitting up for me in the castle of -Dublin. I shall go thither as soon as I can leave France; which will not -be till the end of October or beginning of November, on the arrival of -the Duke of Richmond. Meanwhile, I am _Charge des affaires d'Angleterre -a la cour de France_, which is the title under which you must write to -me, if you favour me with a letter. - -"Lord Hertford had another additional project for my advantage, in -Ireland. The keeper of the black rod is a very genteel office, which -yields about L900 during the session. He proposed, as I cannot be -present on the opening of the parliament, to give that office to -another, who would officiate, and would be content with L300. But I -declined this offer; not as unjust, but as savouring of greediness and -rapacity.[291:1] - -"Please to write all these particulars to Katty, except the last, and -seal and send her the enclosed. I am charmed with the accounts I hear of -Josey, from all hands. Yours sincerely. - -"There was a kind of fray in London, as I am told, upon Lord Hertford's -declaring his intentions in my favour. The Princess Amelia said, that -she thought the affair might be easily accommodated: why may not Lord -Hertford give a bishopric to Mr. Hume?"[292:1] - - -Writing an account of these transactions to Smith, in nearly the same -words, on 5th November, he commences his letter with the observation, "I -have been whirled about lately in a strange manner; but, besides that -none of the revolutions have ever threatened me much, or been able to -give me a moment's anxiety, all has ended very happily, and to my mind." -He concludes thus:-- - -"As a new vexation to temper my good fortune, I am much in perplexity -about fixing the place of my future abode for life. Paris is the most -agreeable town in Europe, and suits me best; but it is a foreign -country. London is the capital of my own country; but it never pleased -me much. Letters are there held in no honour: Scotsmen are hated: -superstition and ignorance gain ground daily. Edinburgh has many -objections, and many allurements. My present mind, this forenoon, the -5th of September, is to return to France. I am much pressed here to -accept of offers, which would contribute to my agreeable living; but -might encroach on my independence, by making me enter into engagements -with princes, and great lords, and ladies. Pray give me your judgment. - -"I regret much I shall not see you. I have been looking for you every -day these three months. Your satisfaction in your pupil gives me equal -satisfaction."[293:1] - - -He writes to Blair, on 28th December:-- - - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--After great wavering and uncertainty, between Paris and -Edinburgh, (for I never allowed London to enter into the question,) I -have, at last, fixed my resolution to remain some time longer in Paris. -Perhaps I may take a trip to Rome next autumn. Had I returned to -Edinburgh, I was sensible that I shut myself up, in a manner, for life; -and I imagine that I am, even yet, too young and healthy, and in too -good spirits, to come to that determination. If you please, therefore, -you may continue in my house, which I am glad pleases you. If you leave -it, as you thought you would, Nairne may have it for L35, as we -agreed."[293:2] - - -We have now to return to Jean Jacques Rousseau, whom we left, in 1762, -seeking protection from the Earl Marischal at Neufchatel. He finally -took up his abode at Motiers Travers, a village on one of the passes of -the Jura; where, now that some offensive associations connected with his -character and writings have died away, the fame of his genius still -lives, and has been no unprofitable commodity to the inhabitants. Here -he had a wild rocky district to wander over, where he was not liable to -encounter those dangerous impediments which beset the sojourners in the -Alps. He had, at the same time, what was more to his purpose, a zealous -priesthood and an intolerant populace surrounding him. That the outward -manifestations of a morality, odious to his new neighbours, might not be -wanting, he sent for his celebrated mistress, Therese la Vasseur, with -whom he continued openly to live; and that the populace, thus -exasperated, might be under no mistake as to the proper person to throw -stones at, he adopted the garb of an Armenian. - -It is much disputed whether he was really subjected to the attacks of -which he afterwards complained; and it is said, that whatever tangible -evidence of them was perceptible to other eyes than his own, was the -doing of Mademoiselle la Vasseur, to drive him from a neighbourhood -which she disliked. It will be found, however, that his story, as -reported by Hume in the letters which follow, substantially coincides -with the narrative in the "Confessions." This is in some measure a -testimony to the sincerity of Rousseau's own conviction, that those -hostile efforts were made against him; and indeed it would be useless to -question the sincerity of his belief in any thing indicative of the -malevolence of his fellow-beings. Having fled from Motiers, he lived for -some time on the island of St. Pierre, in the lake of Bienne; and, -driven from that asylum, he seems to have hesitated between England and -Prussia as a place of refuge. He left the State of Bienne at the date at -which his "Confessions" terminate, 29th October, 1765. He proceeded to -Strasburg, where, by wearing his Armenian dress in the country where he -had been proscribed, he certainly excited a considerable sensation. He -appears to have held a sort of levee during his residence in that city, -where his daily and hourly proceedings have been recorded with the -precision of a court journal.[295:1] - -It was here that he received Hume's letter, agreeing to aid him in -finding an asylum in England. The negotiation between them had been -brought to a conclusion by Madame de Verdelin, who had spent some time -with Rousseau at Motiers, and persuaded him to take advantage of the -impression which the Earl Marischal and Madame de Boufflers had made in -his favour.[295:2] - -Hume's heart was farther softened by a letter, full of miseries, which -Rousseau had written to M. Clairaut. "I must own," says Hume, "I felt on -this occasion an emotion of pity, mixed with indignation, to think a man -of letters of such eminent merit, should be reduced, in spite of the -simplicity of his manner of living, to such extreme indigence; and that -this unhappy state should be rendered more intolerable by sickness, by -the approach of old age, and the implacable rage of persecution." He was -inclined even to sympathize with Rousseau's petulant rejection of -proferred kindness; conceiving "that a noble pride, even though carried -to excess, merited some indulgence in a man of genius, who, borne up by -a sense of his own superiority, and a love of independence, should have -braved the storms of fortune and the insults of mankind."[296:1] - -Leaving Strasburg, the wanderer proceeded to Paris, where he went about -in his Armenian dress; was mobbed and stared at to his heart's content, -wrote to his friends, complaining with bitter eloquence that people -would allow him neither solitude nor rest, shut himself up, and went -forth again to the world. Before he could have ventured to appear so -publicly, in the capital where a writ had been issued for the seizure of -his person, he must have received very strong assurances of protection. -The arret of the Parliament, however, was not recalled; and his friends -must have felt somewhat provoked by his pertinacious courtship of -popular notice, accompanied by the pretence of a desire to avoid it, by -adopting only what was simple and natural--by wearing, for instance, so -simple a dress as the fur cap, caaftan, and vest of an Armenian, in the -streets of Paris! Hume, who seems really to have had faith in his -modesty, must still have felt it awkward that the representative of -Britain should be closely allied with a person so conducting himself; -and was anxious, whenever the state of public business might permit him, -to see his charge safely across the Channel. It was thought, in the -meantime, expedient to find for Rousseau an asylum within the -privileged area of the Temple, of which his friend, the Prince of -Conti, was Grand Prior. We must now allow Hume himself to describe his -new companion, and their intercourse. - -In continuation of the letter to Blair, of 20th December, above cited, -he says: - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"I must, however, be in London very soon, in order to give an account of -my commission; to thank the King for his goodness to me, and to settle -the celebrated Rousseau, who has rejected invitations from half of the -kings and princes of Europe, in order to put himself under my -protection. He has been at Paris about twelve days; and lives in an -apartment prepared for him by the Prince of Conti, which, he says, gives -him uneasiness, by reason of its magnificence. As he was outlawed by the -Parliament, it behoved him to have the King's passport, which was at -first offered him under a feigned name; but his friends refused it, -because they knew that he would not submit even to that falsehood. You -have heard that he was banished from Neufchatel by preachers, who -excited the mob to stone him. - -"He told me that a trap was laid for him, with as much art as ever was -employed against a fox or a polecat. In the night-time a great enormous -stone was suspended above the door, in such a manner, that on opening it -in the morning, the stone must have fallen and have crushed him to -death.[297:1] A man passing by early, perceived it, and called in to him -at the window to be on his guard. He also told me, that last spring, -when he went about the mountains amusing himself with botany, he came to -a village at some distance from his own: a woman met him, who, surprised -at his Armenian dress--for he wears, and is resolved to wear that habit -during life--asked him what he was, and what was his name. On hearing it -she exclaimed, 'Are you that impious rascal, Rousseau? Had I known it, I -should have waited for you at the end of the wood, with a pistol, in -order to blow out your brains.' He added, that all the women in -Switzerland were in the same disposition, because the preachers had told -them that he had wrote books to prove that women had no souls. He then -turned to Madame de Boufflers, who was present, and said,--Is it not -strange that I, who have wrote so much to decry the morals and conduct -of the Parisian ladies, should yet be beloved by them; while the Swiss -women, whom I have so much extolled, would willingly cut my throat? 'We -are fond of you,' replied she, 'because we know that, however you might -rail, you are at bottom fond _of us_ to distraction. But the Swiss women -hate you, because they are conscious that they have not merit to deserve -your attention.' - -"On leaving Neufchatel, he took shelter in a little island about half a -league in circumference, in the midst of a lake near Berne. There lived -in it only one German peasant, with his wife and sister. The council of -Berne, frightened for his neighbourhood, on account of his democratic -more than his religious principles, ordered him immediately to withdraw -from their state. He wrote the letter of which I send you a copy, as it -is very curious. The council, in answer, reiterated their orders for him -to begone. He then applied to me. I have made an agreement with a -French gardener in Fulham for boarding him. We set out together in a few -days. - -"It is impossible to express or imagine the enthusiasm of this nation in -his favour. As I am supposed to have him in my custody, all the world, -especially the great ladies, tease me to be introduced to him. I have -had rouleaus thrust into my hand, with earnest applications that I would -prevail on him to accept of them. I am persuaded that, were I to open -here a subscription with his consent, I should receive L50,000 in a -fortnight. The second day after his arrival, he slipped out early in the -morning to take a walk in the Luxembourg gardens. The thing was known -soon after. I am strongly solicited to prevail on him to take another -walk, and then to give warning to my friends. Were the public to be -informed, he could not fail to have many thousand spectators. People may -talk of ancient Greece as they please; but no nation was ever so fond of -genius as this, and no person ever so much engaged their attention as -Rousseau. Voltaire and every body else are quite eclipsed by him. - -"I am sensible that my connexions with him add to my importance at -present. Even his maid La Vasseur, who is very homely and very awkward, -is more talked of than the Princess of Morocco or the Countess of -Egmont, on account of her fidelity and attachment towards him. His very -dog, who is no better than a collie, has a name and reputation in the -world. As to my intercourse with him, I find him mild, and gentle, and -modest, and good humoured; and he has more the behaviour of a man of the -world, than any of the learned here, except M. de Buffon; who, in his -figure, and air, and deportment, answers your idea of a marechal of -France, rather than that of a philosopher. M. Rousseau is of a small -stature, and would rather be ugly, had he not the finest physiognomy in -the world: I mean the most expressive countenance. His modesty seems not -to be good manners, but ignorance of his own excellence. As he writes, -and speaks, and acts, from the impulse of genius, more than from the use -of his ordinary faculties, it is very likely that he forgets its force -whenever it is laid asleep. I am well assured that at times he believes -he has inspirations from an immediate communication with the Divinity. -He falls sometimes into ecstasies, which retain him in the same posture -for hours together. Does not this example solve the difficulty of -Socrates' genius, and of his ecstasies? I think Rousseau in many things -very much resembles Socrates. The philosopher of Geneva seems only to -have more genius than he of Athens, who never wrote any thing, and less -sociableness and temper. Both of them were of very amorous complexions; -but a comparison in this particular, turns out much to the advantage of -my friend. I call him such, for I hear, from all hands, that his -judgment and affections are as strongly biassed in my favour as mine are -in his. I shall much regret leaving him in England; but even if a pardon -could be procured for him here, he is resolved, as he tells me, never to -return; because he never will again be in the power of any man. I wish -he may live unmolested in England. I dread the bigotry and barbarism -which prevail there. - -"When he came to Paris, he seemed resolved to stay till the 6th or 7th -of next month. But at present the concourse about him gives him so much -uneasiness that he expresses the utmost impatience to be gone. Many -people here will have it that this solitary humour is all affectation, -in order to be more sought after; but I am sure that it is natural and -unsurmountable:[301:1] I know that two very agreeable ladies breaking in -upon him, discomposed him so much that he was not able to eat his dinner -afterwards. He is short-sighted; and I have often observed, that while -he was conversing with me in the utmost good-humour, (for he is -naturally gay,) if he heard the door open, the greatest agony appeared -on his countenance, from the apprehension of a visit; and his distress -did not leave him, unless the person was a particular friend. His -Armenian dress is not affectation. He has had an infirmity from his -infancy, which makes breeches inconvenient for him; and he told me, that -when he was chased into the mountains of Switzerland, he took up this -new dress, as it seemed indifferent what habit he there wore. I could -fill a volume with curious anecdotes regarding him, as I live in the -same society which he frequented while in Paris. But I must not exhaust -your patience. My kind compliments to Ferguson, Robertson, and all the -brethren. I am," &c. - -"_Paris, 28th Dec. 1765._" - -"P.S.--Be not surprised that I am going to say in my postscript, the -direct contrary to what I said in my letter. There are four days of -interval between my writing the one and the other; and on this subject -of my future abode, I have not these four months risen and gone to bed -in the same mind. When I meet with proofs of regard and affection from -those I love and esteem here, I swear to myself that I shall never quit -this place. An hour after, it occurs to me that I have then for ever -renounced my native country and all my ancient friends, and I start with -affright. I never yet left any place but with regret: judge what it is -natural for me to feel on leaving Paris, and so many amiable people with -whom I am intimately connected, while it is in my power to pass my life -in the midst of them. Were I not indispensably obliged to go to London, -I know that it would be impossible for me to leave this place. But it is -very probable that being once there, and fairly escaped from the cave of -Circe, I may reconcile myself again to the abode of Ithaca. I left -Edinburgh with great reluctance. To return to it, after having tripled -my revenue in less than three years, can be no hardship. I must, -therefore, fairly warn you to remove from my house at Whitsunday. I have -taken a house at Paris; but I will have one also in Edinburgh, and shall -deliberate in London which of them I shall occupy. I shall not go to -Ireland. The arrival of the Duke of Richmond was late; and this -engagement with M. Rousseau protracts my return so long, that it will -not be worth while to go to Dublin. Lord Hertford has been so good as to -excuse me. You have heard of the great fortune of Trail, who is, I -believe, your acquaintance, and a very honest fellow. Nothing is so -agreeable to an irresolute man, says the Cardinal de Retz, as a measure -which dispenses him from taking an immediate resolution. I am exactly in -the case. I hope your resigning my house will be no hardship to -you."[303:1] - - -Hume, Rousseau, and M. de Luze of Geneva, a friend of the fugitive, left -France early in January 1766. We have no account of their arrival, -except Rousseau's statement in a letter to Malesherbes, that whenever he -set foot on the land of liberty, he leaped on his illustrious friend's -neck, embraced him without uttering a word, and covered his face with -kisses and tears; a ceremony with which Hume would probably have -dispensed, in the presence of "the barbarians who inhabit the banks of -the Thames." The first notice of their sojourn in Britain, is in a -bulletin by Hume to Madame de Boufflers, dated London, 19th January, -1766. He says,-- - - My companion is very amiable, always polite, gay often, - commonly sociable. He does not know himself when he thinks he - is made for entire solitude. I exhorted him on the road to - write his memoirs. He told me, that he had already done it - with an intention of publishing them. - - At present, says he, it may be affirmed, that nobody knows me - perfectly, any more than himself; but I shall describe myself - in such plain colours, that henceforth every one may boast - that he knows himself, and Jean Jacques Rousseau. I believe, - that he intends seriously to draw his own picture in its true - colours: but I believe, at the same time, that nobody knows - himself less. For instance, even with regard to his health, a - point in which few people can be mistaken, he is very - fanciful. He imagines himself very infirm. He is one of the - most robust men I have ever known. He passed ten hours in the - night-time, above deck, during the most severe weather, when - all the seamen were almost frozen to death, and he caught no - harm. He says that his infirmity always increases upon a - journey; yet was it almost imperceptible on the road from - Paris to London. - - His wearing the Armenian dress is a pure whim; which, however, - he is resolved never to abandon. He has an excellent warm - heart; and, in conversation, kindles often to a degree of heat - which looks like inspiration. I love him much, and hope that I - have some share in his affections. - - I find that we shall have many ways of settling him to his - satisfaction; and as he is learning the English very - fast,[304:1] he will afterwards be able to choose for himself. - There is a gentleman of the name of Townsend, a man of four or - five thousand a-year, who lives very privately, within fifteen - miles of London, and is a great admirer of our philosopher, as - is also his wife. He has desired him to live with him, and - offers to take any board he pleases. M. Rousseau was much - pleased with this proposal, and is inclined to accept of it. - The only difficulty is, that he insists positively on his - gouvernante's sitting at table,--a proposal which is not to be - made to Mr. and Mrs. Townsend. - - This woman forms the chief encumbrance to his settlement. M. - de Luze, our companion, says, that she passes for wicked and - quarrelsome, and tattling; and is thought to be the chief - cause of his quitting Neufchatel. He himself owns her to be so - dull, that she never knows in what year of the Lord she is, - nor in what month of the year, nor in what day of the month or - week; and that she can never learn the different value of the - pieces of money in any country. Yet she governs him as - absolutely as a nurse does a child. In her absence his dog has - acquired that ascendant. His affection for that creature is - beyond all expression or conception. - - I have as yet scarce seen any body except Mr. Conway and Lady - Aylesbury.[305:1] Both of them told me, they would visit Jean - Jacques, if I thought their company would not be disagreeable. - I encouraged them to show him that mark of distinction.[305:2] - Here I must also tell you of a good action which I did; not - but that it is better to conceal our good actions. But I - consider not my seeking _your_ approbation as an effect of - vanity: your suffrage is to me something like the satisfaction - of my own conscience. While we were at Calais, I asked him - whether, in case the King of England thought proper to gratify - him with a pension, he would accept of it. I told him, that - the case was widely different from that of the King of - Prussia; and I endeavoured to point out to him the difference, - particularly in this circumstance, that a gratuity from the - King of England could never in the least endanger his - independence. He replied: "But would it not be using ill the - King of Prussia, to whom I have since been much obliged? - However, on this head (added he,) in case the offer be made - me, I shall consult my father;" meaning Lord Marischal.[306:1] - I told this story to General Conway, who seemed to embrace - with zeal the notion of giving him a pension, as honourable - both to the king and nation. I shall suggest the same idea to - other men in power whom I may meet with, and I do not despair - of succeeding. - - P. S.--Since I wrote the above, I have received your obliging - letter, directed to Calais. M. Rousseau says, the letter of - the King of Prussia is a forgery; and he suspects it to come - from M. de Voltaire.[306:2] - - The project of Mr. Townsend, to my great mortification, has - totally vanished, on account of Mademoiselle Le Vasseur. Send - all his letters under my cover.[307:1] - -Hume writes again on the 12th, to state that he has succeeded in -obtaining the promise of a pension from the king: "You know," he says, -"that our sovereign is extremely prudent and decent, and careful not to -give offence. For which reason, he requires that this act of generosity -may be an entire secret." He states, that this information must be kept -to herself and the Prince of Conti: and she in her answer, admires -Hume's generous and delicate conduct, and promises to keep the secret. -In his postscript Hume announces the important fact, that Mademoiselle -le Vasseur had arrived, and had found a companion to whom such a rag of -celebrity was no small acquisition. - - -"P.S.--Since I wrote the above, I have seen General Conway, who tells me -that the king has spoke to him on the same subject, and that the sum -intended is a hundred pounds a-year: a mighty accession to our friend's -slender revenue. - -"A letter has also come to me open from Guy the bookseller, by which I -learn that Mademoiselle sets out post, in company with a friend of mine, -a young gentleman, very good-humoured, very agreeable--and very mad! He -visited Rousseau in his mountains, who gave him a recommendation to -Paoli, the King of Corsica; where this gentleman, whose name is Boswell, -went last summer, in search of adventures. He has such a rage for -literature, that I dread some event fatal to our friend's honour. You -remember the story of Terentia, who was first married to Cicero, then to -Sallust, and at last, in her old age, married a young nobleman, who -imagined that she must possess some secret, which would convey to him -eloquence and genius."[308:1] - - -Soon after, we find Hume writing as follows:-- - - -HUME _to his Brother_. - -"_London, 2d February, 1766._ - -"As you know that I never left any place without regret, you may imagine -that I did not leave Paris altogether willingly, after having been so -long accustomed to it. I do not find this new scene near so much to my -taste; and I shall be long ere I am reconciled to it. Perhaps Edinburgh -may please me better; I promise myself at least some satisfaction in my -nephews, of whom I hear a very good account; and it is surely more -suitable to one of my years to seek a retreat in my native country, than -to pass the dregs of life among the great, and among people who, though -they seem to have a friendship for me, are still strangers. I accustom -myself, therefore, to this idea without reluctance; and since I have -crossed the seas, I find my regret for the good company I left behind -me, less pungent and uneasy. . . . . - -"You will have heard by this time, that I have brought over with me the -famous Rousseau, the most singular man, surely, in the world. He applied -to me last summer to take him under my protection in England, as he -called it; but in the meanwhile, he was chased out of Switzerland, and -came to Strasburg, with an intention of going to the King of Prussia, -who pressed him earnestly to live with him. At Strasburg my letter -reached him, making him an offer of all my services; upon which he -turned short, and having obtained the King of France's passport, came -and joined me at Paris. I have lived with him ever since. He is a very -modest, mild, well-bred, gentle-spirited, and warm-hearted man, as ever -I knew in my life. He is also to appearance very sociable. I never saw a -man who seems better calculated for good company, nor who seems to take -more pleasure in it. Yet is he absolutely determined to retire and board -himself in a farmer's house among the mountains of Wales, for the sake -of solitude. He has refused a pension from the King of Prussia, and -presents from hundreds. I have been offered great sums for him, if I -could have prevailed on him to accept of them. Yet, till within these -three months, he was in absolute beggary. He has now about L70 -a-year?[309:1] which he has acquired by a bargain for his works. It is -incredible the enthusiasm for him in Paris, and the curiosity in London. -I prevailed on him to go to the play-house in order to see Garrick, who -placed him in a box opposite the king and queen. I observed their -majesties to look at him more than at the players.[309:2] I should -desire no better fortune than to have the privilege of showing him to -all I please. The hereditary prince paid him a visit a few days ago; and -I imagine the Duke of York called on him one evening when he was abroad. -I love him much, and shall separate from him with much regret."[310:1] - - -Hume writes to Dr. Blair on 11th February:-- - -"You have seen in the newspapers enow of particulars concerning my -pupil, who has now left me and retired to Chiswick. He is impatient to -get into the mountains of Wales. He is a very agreeable amiable man, but -a great humorist.[310:2] The philosophers of Paris foretold to me that I -could not conduct him to Calais without a quarrel; but I think I could -live with him all my life in mutual friendship and esteem. I am very -sorry that the matter is not likely to be put to a trial! I believe one -great source of our concord is, that neither he nor I are disputatious, -which is not the case with any of them. They are also displeased with -him because they think he overabounds in religion; and it is indeed -remarkable, that the philosopher of this age who has been most -persecuted, is by far the most devout. I do not comprehend such -philosophers as are invested with the sacerdotal character. I am, dear -doctor, yours _usque ad aras_."[310:3] - -The first attempt to find a settlement for Rousseau, was with the -French gardener at Fulham, already alluded to. The arrangement proposed -by Hume was, that the gardener was to receive from fifty to sixty pounds -a-year, as the consideration for boarding Rousseau and Mademoiselle, but -that he was only to draw twenty-five pounds from Rousseau, from whom he -was to keep the arrangement secret.[311:1] Rousseau rejected this -arrangement with disgust; and various other efforts to find him a -suitable home were equally unsuccessful. Hume, who, as Rousseau himself -tells Madame de Boufflers, was more anxious about his welfare than he -was himself, appears to have spent week after week, in the vain pursuit -of a resting place for the wanderer--no sooner framing a hopeful scheme -than it was contemptuously rejected. It does not appear, however, that -the inquiries were conducted precisely in the sphere in which Rousseau -liked to act. It is clear that he had not come to Britain to negotiate -with farmers at Chiswick, or French gardeners at Fulham. He undoubtedly -expected much more distinguished titles to be mixed up with his -arrangements; and we find that it was not till a rich man's well kept -country mansion was put at his disposal, that he deigned to be for a -moment satisfied. A letter to Blair, contains a very full narrative of -the subsequent proceedings. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR.[312:1] - - _Lisle Street, Leicester Fields, - 25th March, 1766._ - - DEAR DOCTOR,--I had asked M. Rousseau the question you propose - to me: He answered, that the story of his "Heloise" had some - general and distant resemblance to reality; such as was - sufficient to warm his imagination and assist his invention: - but that all the chief circumstances were fictitious. I have - heard in France, that he had been employed to teach music to a - young lady, a boarder in a convent at Lyons; and that the - master and scholar fell mutually in love with each other; but - the affair was not attended with any consequences. I think - this work his masterpiece; though he himself told me, that he - valued most his _Contrat Social_; which is as preposterous a - judgment as that of Milton, who preferred the Paradise - Regained to all his other performances. - - This man, the most singular of all human beings, has at last - left me; and I have very little hopes of ever being able, for - the future, to enjoy much of his company, though he says, that - if I settle either in London or Edinburgh, he will take a - journey on foot every year to visit me. Mr. Davenport, a - gentleman of L5000 or L6000 a-year, in the north of England, - and a man of great humanity and of a good understanding, has - taken the charge of him. He has a house called Wooton, in the - Peake of Derby, situated amidst mountains and rocks and - streams and forests, which pleases the wild imagination and - solitary humour of Rousseau; and as the master seldom - inhabited it, and only kept there a plain table for some - servants, he offered me to give it up to my friend. I - accepted, on condition that he would take from him L30 a-year - of board for himself and his gouvernante, which he was so - good-natured as to agree to. Rousseau has about L80 a-year, - which he has acquired by contracts with his booksellers, and - by a liferent annuity of L25 a-year, which he accepted from - Lord Marischal. This is the only man who has yet been able to - make him accept of money. - - He was desperately resolved to rush into this solitude, - notwithstanding all my remonstrances; and I foresee, that he - will be unhappy in that situation, as he has indeed been - always in all situations. He will be entirely without - occupation, without company, and almost without amusement of - any kind. He has read very little during the course of his - life, and has now totally renounced all reading: He has seen - very little; and has no manner of curiosity to see or remark: - He has reflected, properly speaking, and studied very little; - and has not indeed much knowledge: He has only _felt_, during - the whole course of his life; and in this respect, his - sensibility rises to a pitch beyond what I have seen any - example of: but it still gives him a more acute feeling of - pain than of pleasure. He is like a man who were stript not - only of his clothes, but of his skin, and turned out in that - situation to combat with the rude and boisterous elements, - such as perpetually disturb this lower world. I shall give you - a remarkable instance of his turn of character in this - respect: It passed in my room, the evening before his - departure. - - He had resolved to set out with his gouvernante in a - post-chaise; but Davenport, willing to cheat him and save him - some money, told him that he had found a retour chaise for the - place, which he might have for a trifle, and that luckily it - set out the very day in which Rousseau intended to depart. His - purpose was to hire a chaise, and make him believe this story. - He succeeded at first, but Rousseau afterwards ruminating on - the circumstances, began to entertain a suspicion of the - trick. He communicated his doubts to me, complaining that he - was treated like a child; that though he was poor, he chose - rather to conform himself to his circumstances, than live like - a beggar on alms; and that he was very unhappy in not speaking - the language familiarly, so as to guard himself against these - impositions. I told him that I was ignorant of the matter, and - knew nothing more of it, than I was told by Mr. Davenport, but - if he pleased I should make inquiry about it. "Never tell me - that," replied he, "if this be really a contrivance of - Davenport's, you are acquainted with it, and consenting to it; - and you could not possibly have done me a greater - displeasure." Upon which he sat down very sullen and silent; - and all my attempts were in vain to revive the conversation, - and to turn it on other subjects; he still answered me very - drily and coldly. At last, after passing near an hour in this - ill-humour, he rose up and took a turn about the room. But - judge of my surprise, when he sat down suddenly on my knee, - threw his hands about my neck, kissed me with the greatest - warmth, and bedewing all my face with tears, exclaimed, "Is it - possible you can ever forgive me, my dear friend? After all - the testimonies of affection I have received from you, I - reward you at last with this folly and ill behaviour: but I - have notwithstanding a heart worthy of your friendship; I love - you, I esteem you, and not an instance of your kindness is - thrown away upon me." I hope you have not so bad an opinion of - me as to think I was not melted on this occasion; I assure you - I kissed him and embraced him twenty times, with a plentiful - effusion of tears. I think no scene of my life was ever more - affecting.[315:1] - - I now understand perfectly his aversion to company; which - appears so surprising in a man well qualified for the - entertainment of company, and which the greater part of the - world takes for affectation. He has frequent and long fits of - the spleen, from the state of his mind or body, call it which - you please; and from his extreme sensibility of temper, during - that disposition, company is a torment to him. When his - spirits and health and good humour return, his fancy affords - him so much and such agreeable occupation, that to call him - off from it gives him uneasiness; and even the writing of - books, he tells me, as it limits and restrains his fancy to - one subject, is not an agreeable entertainment. He never will - write any more; and never should have wrote at all, could he - have slept a-nights. But he lies awake commonly; and to keep - himself from tiring, he usually composed something, which he - wrote down when he arose. He assures me, that he composes very - slowly, and with great labour and difficulty. - - He is naturally very modest, and even ignorant of his own - superiority. His fire, which frequently rises in conversation, - is gentle and temperate; he is never in the least arrogant and - domineering, and is, indeed, one of the best bred men I ever - knew. I shall give you such an instance of his modesty as must - necessarily be sincere. When we were on the road, I - recommended to him the learning of English, without which, I - told him, he would never enjoy entire liberty, nor be fully - independent, and at his own disposal. He was sensible I was in - the right, and said, that he heard there were two English - translations of his "Emile, or Treatise on Education;" he - would get them as soon as he arrived in London; and as he knew - the subject, he would have no other trouble, than to learn or - guess the words: this would save him some pains in consulting - the dictionary; and as he improved, it would amuse him to - compare the translations and judge which was the best. - Accordingly, soon after our arrival, I procured him the books, - but he returned them in a few days, saying that they could be - of no use to him. "What is the matter?" replied I. "I cannot - endure them," said he, "they are my own work; and ever since I - delivered my books to the press, I never could open them, or - read a page of them without disgust." "That is strange," said - I, "I wonder the good reception they have met with from the - world has not put you more in conceit with them." "Why," said - he, "if I were to count suffrages, there are perhaps more - against them than for them." "But," rejoined I, "it is - impossible but the style, and eloquence, and ornaments must - please you." "To tell the truth," said he, "I am not - displeased with myself in that particular: but I still dread, - that my writings are good for nothing at the bottom, and that - all my theories are full of extravagance. Je crains toujours - que je peche par le fond, et que tous mes systemes ne sont que - des extravagances." You see that this is judging of himself - with the utmost severity, and censuring his writings on the - side where they are most exposed to criticism. No feigned - modesty is ever capable of this courage. I never heard ---- - reproach himself with the ----: nobody ever heard you express - any remorse, for having put Ossian on the same footing with - Homer! - - Have I tired you, or will you have any more anecdotes of this - singular personage? I think I hear you desire me to go on. He - attempted once to justify to me the moral of his New Heloisa, - which, he knew, was blamed, as instructing young people in the - art of gratifying their passions, under the cover of virtue, - and noble refined sentiments. "You may observe," said he - "that my Julia is faithful to her husband's bed, though she is - seduced from her duty during her single state; but this last - circumstance can be of no consequence in France, where all the - young ladies are shut up in convents, and have it not in their - power to transgress: it might, indeed, have a bad effect in a - Protestant country." But notwithstanding this reflection, he - told me, that he has wrote a continuation of his "Emilius," - which may soon be published. He there attempts to show the - effect of his plan of education, by representing Emilius in - all the most trying situations, and still extricating himself - with courage and virtue. Among the rest, he discovers that - Sophia, the amiable, the virtuous, the estimable Sophia, is - unfaithful to his bed, which fatal accident he bears with a - manly superior spirit. "In this work," added he, "I have - endeavoured to represent Sophia in such a light that she will - appear equally amiable, equally virtuous, and equally - estimable, as if she had no such frailty." "You take a - pleasure, I see," said I, "to combat with difficulties in all - your works." "Yes," said he, "I hate marvellous and - supernatural _events_ in novels. The only thing that can give - pleasure in such performances is to place the personages in - situations difficult and singular." Thus, you see, nothing - remains for him but to write a book for the instruction of - widows! unless perhaps he imagines that they can learn their - lesson without instruction. Adieu, dear doctor; you say that - you sometimes read my letters to our common friends; but you - must read this only to the initiated.[317:1] - -Almost the only other matter which appears conspicuously in Hume's -correspondence during his intercourse with Rousseau, is the death of a -dear friend, often mentioned in his previous letters--Dr. Jardine. He -was a man of strong judgment, and much sarcastic wit; but his articles -in _The Edinburgh Review_ of 1755, are almost the only specimens of his -ability which he has left to posterity. He was born in Dumfries-shire -on 3d January, 1716, and he was minister of the Tron Church parish when -he died. The death was sudden; and Hume, overlooking the calamitous -consequences of such events to surviving relatives, and in harmony with -the opinions he had expressed on death in a still more appalling form, -seems to have considered its suddenness as fortunate. He thus writes to -Blair, on 5th June. - -"I cannot begin my letter without lamenting most sincerely the death of -our friend Dr. Jardine. I do not aggravate it by the circumstance of its -being sudden, for that is very desirable. But surely we shall ever -regret the loss of a very pleasant companion, and of a very friendly -honest man. It makes a blank which you must all feel, and which I in -particular will sensibly feel, when I come amongst you. I need not ask -you whether the miscreants of the opposite party do not rejoice, for I -take it for granted they do."[318:1] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[264:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[265:1] MS. R.S.E. In answer, Millar tells him that the prejudice is not -against the Scots, but against Lord Bute; that matters have now, -however, been all put right, for "it is generally believed that Mr. -_Greenville_ is a good manager of the finances, and in general means -well: as a proof of it, our stocks have been creeping up daily, and it -is now generally believed that 3 per cent will soon come to par if -affairs continue peaceable!" One possessed of better opportunities of -judging, and more capable of using them, joins in these anticipations of -success with which Grenville's disastrous career as a financier opened. -Elliot says, on 25th March, 1765: "To-morrow Mr. Grenville opens the -budget, as it is usually called, and I believe our revenue will appear -to be on a better footing than is usually believed. I hope we shall have -discharged as much debt without breach of faith as you have done in a -politer way. Not that I pretend to censure your method. You borrow at a -high interest during time of war, and it is understood you are to take -your own method in peace. Our mode of proceeding is the very reverse of -this. . . . Your negotiation with regard to the French prisoners you -must have heard, met with all the approbation it so well deserved." (MS. -R.S.E.) - -[268:1] Probably Valliere. The Duc de Valliere was supposed to be the -author of some anonymous theatrical pieces. - -[270:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[270:2] This gentleman is the same who afterwards distinguished himself -as a diplomatist, and who was so well known by the title of Sir Robert -Liston. - -[272:1] Minto MSS. - -[273:1] Mallet died on 21st April, 1765. - -[273:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[275:1] On account of his taxation system having caused the American -Revolution, Grenville is now generally ranked with statesmen of despotic -principles. He was, however, an avowed admirer of the democratic -portions of the constitution; and it was in truth his ill-directed -advocacy of popular rights, not an intentional departure from his avowed -principles, that made his administration so disastrous. His zeal for the -independent authority of Parliament, and for the curtailment of the -prerogatives of the Crown, induced him to struggle for the exercise by -parliament, in the colonies, of a power with which the crown could not -compete,--that of taxation. - -[275:2] Minto MSS. - -[276:1] Evidently the Abbe Morellet, who afterwards corresponded with -Hume on these subjects. He was born in 1727, and died in 1819. From his -great age and the cheerful social habits of his latter years, he was one -of the few members of the school of the Encyclopaediasts, whom men of the -present generation have been accustomed to meet in general society. -Morellet possessed two distinct titles to fame. He had written some -grave and valuable books on political economy and statistics; while in -lighter literature, and in Madame Geoffrin's circle, he enjoyed a high -reputation for playful and pungent wit. His friends likened him to -Swift; but as he sought to avoid malice in his sarcasms, and to make -them subservient to good principles in morals and religion, he might, in -this part of his character, be more aptly compared with Sydney Smith. He -had a great partiality for Scottish music; but it may be doubted if this -taste was either created or fostered by his intercourse with Hume. In -his very amusing Memoires, he describes a dinner with a musical party -near Plymouth, in the open air. Some young ladies, with their father and -mother, approached near enough to hear the music. The Abbe gallantly -carried them a basket of cherries. "Je les prie en meme temps de vouloir -bien chanter _some Scotish song_, dont, moi Francais, j'etais _very -fond_. Elles se regardent un moment: et des que nous fumes retournes a -nos places, comme si notre plus grand eloignement les eut rassurees, -elles se mettent a chanter toutes les trois a l'unisson, avec des voix -d'une extreme douceur, _The lass of Peatie's Mill_. Le temps, le lieu, -la singularite de la rencontre ajouterent quelques charmes a ce petit -concert." Vol. i. p. 209. - -[277:1] Memorials of Oswald, p. 81. - -[278:1] Mr. Elliot, in answer to the letter printed above, (p. 189,) -says, "So, my dear sir, you have at last, with no small reluctance, and -after many struggles, prevailed with yourself to acquaint some of your -friends that Lord Hertford means to desire that government would be -graciously pleased to bestow the character and emoluments of the -secretaryship upon the person who actually performs the functions of it. -At your time of life, with so much independency about you, and so unlike -all your former conduct, indeed I am not at all surprised that it cost -you near two pages of apology and explanation before you would even -intrust me with the secret. Were you less deep in the study of human -nature, and somewhat more an adept in the ways of men, I am apt to think -you would rather have filled your letter with excuses for not having -sooner made this application." - -He goes on to state, that he has been exerting himself in the matter, -but that on all occasions he had found himself anticipated by Lord -Hertford. He continues: - -"As to _ingrata patria ne ossa quidem habebis_, don't be at all uneasy. -Here I can speak more peremptorily; and notwithstanding all your errors, -mistakes, and heresies in religion, morals, and government, I undertake -you shall have at least Christian burial, and perhaps we may find for -you a niche in Westminster Abbey besides. Your Lockes, Newtons, and -Bacons had no great matter to boast of during their lives; and yet they -were the most orthodox of men; they required no godfather to answer for -them; while, on the other hand, did not Lord Hertford spread his -sevenfold shield over all your transgressions? Pray, what pretensions -have you, either in church or state; for you well know you have offended -both?"--MS. R.S.E. - -[279:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[280:1] Private Correspondence, p. 121. - -[281:1] Mrs. Elliot, who as an heiress preserved the name of Murray -Kynynmond. - -[282:1] Minto MSS. - -[282:2] Walpole, Memoirs of George III. i. 391. Walpole pretends that -Conway's dismissal was partly caused by revenge against Lord Hertford -for his conduct on this occasion, (ib. 402.) But from his own account of -it, the resolution to dismiss Conway had been taken before Hume's -appointment. - -[284:1] Lives of Men of Letters, &c. p. 225. - -[284:2] He was Lady Hertford's nephew. - -[286:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[286:2] See above, p. 172. - -[286:3] The Dauphin was then far advanced in the disease of which he -died. According to the ordinary French historians, he was at the same -time so completely subjected to the priestly influence of the Molinists, -as to justify the supposition, that the decay of his mind kept pace with -that of his body. Others give a totally different account of him, and -Walpole says, "To please his family, the prince went through all the -ceremonies of the church, but showed to his attendants after they were -over, how vain and ridiculous he thought them. Many expressions he -dropped in his last hours that spoke the freedom of his opinions; and to -the Duc de Nivernois he said, he was glad to leave behind him such a -book as 'Hume's Essays.'" Memoirs of George III. vol. ii. p. 242. The -Dauphin died on 20th December, 1765. - -[287:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[288:1] A general officer of reputation, making such an application, on -behalf of a friend, says:-- - -"The divine in question has a very good living, but in a quarter of the -world where he has not a creature to converse with. If his excellency -would enrol him among that million of the tribe of Levi, that attend at -the Castle of Dublin, who are called his chaplains, it would excuse his -attendance at quarters: And his general,--I mean, his bishop, would be -under the necessity of permitting him to be absent whilst he had the -honour to be about the commander-in-chief at headquarters."--MS. R.S.E. - -[289:1] Lord Hertford, writing to Hume, on 5th August, says:-- - -"DEAR SIR,--You will see, in the papers, that Barre is to be my -secretary; but it has no other foundation. If I had been at liberty, I -should have desired to continue with him whose abilities and ease in -business I have so long experienced; but the world will have it -otherwise, and it must be my son. He is popular in Ireland; and I am -invited, on all hands, to name him; at the same time that I am told the -great danger of indulging my own inclinations, that if I named you, with -the particular additional prejudice that prevails, at present, against -the Scotch, that I should condemn my own administration. I have, -therefore, made it the condition of my acceptance of the lieutenancy, -that you are immediately provided for in a manner less likely to subject -you to the inconvenience of party changes. I have explained, both to the -King and the ministers, how essential I thought it to my honour and ease -of mind; and it is resolved. I flatter myself I shall soon be able to -acquaint you, that I have been a good solicitor; and, as my private -friend, I beg leave to assure you that I shall always be most happy in -receiving you in Dublin, and every other part of the world, let the -prejudices and follies of mankind be what they will. I hope you will -consider me as your friend; and I will desire no other return for all -the services I may be able to do you, than such a portion of your time -as you can bestow upon me, consistently with your inclination. The Duke -of Richmond goes to France: I do not yet know upon what plan, having not -seen him. He is a pretty figure; is easy in his behaviour; and does not -want parts. I wish he may have temper, experience, and knowledge of men -for that place. I have talked to my brother, as it became a wellwisher -to peace, upon this occasion. You will receive, by the messenger which -carries this letter to France, an official one from my brother, drawn by -himself, by which you will be able to judge of his style. I need not add -any thing to it. Every thing which passed, in a very long conference we -had together with Guerchy, is fully stated in it; but, when you talk to -the Duke of Praslin upon it, you will, if you please, take an -opportunity of recommending from me, in a particular manner, the -indulgence required for the holders of the Canada bills. This point may -be essential to the good understanding between the two courts."--MS. -R.S.E. - -[290:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[291:1] Lord Hertford writes Hume, on 16th August;-- - -"The usher of the black rod, in Ireland, is in my disposal. It produces, -in the course of a session, from L800 to L900, as I am informed. If you -approve it, my intention is to give it to a gentleman who will be -extremely satisfied to accept of L300 a-year for his trouble, at most, -and the rest will be placed to your account, without interrupting the -benefit of the pension." - -And again, on September 5, after Hume's refusal:-- - -"The black rod you will give me leave to dispose of as I intended. You -shall, at the end of the session, refuse the emoluments I propose to -reserve out of it, if you see sufficient reason. L300 for doing the duty -of it should satisfy the person to whom I will give it."--MS. R.S.E. - -[292:1] _Lit. Gazette_, 1822, p. 711. Corrected from original in MSS. -R.S.E. - -[293:1] _Lit. Gazette_, 1822, p. 722. Corrected from original in MSS. -R.S.E. - -[293:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[295:1] We are told (vie de Rousseau par Musset Pathay, i. 102,) that a -certain M. Augar, having been here presented to the apostle of -education, said he was bringing up his son after the model of "Emile." -"So much the worse both for you and your son;" _tant pis pour vous et -pour votre fils_, said Rousseau. This must have been highly -satisfactory. Of all the theories to reconcile Rousseau's -contradictions,--to discover on what principle he preached up parental -care, and sent his own children to the foundling hospital, the best is -supplied by himself in a single sentence in the Heloise: "L'on sait bien -que tout homme qui pose des maximes generales, entend qu'elles obligent -tout le monde, excepte lui." This is certainly more intelligible than -the mystical theory of his eulogist, D'Escherny: "Il n'y a que les sots -qui ne se contredisent point, parce que leur esprit borne ne voit jamais -qu'un cote de l'objet." - -[295:2] He states, in the "Confessions," that when Wallace's work on the -Number of Mankind was passing through the press, Hume undertook the -revision of the proof sheets, though the work was written against -himself. I am not aware of any other authority for this anecdote. -Rousseau said he was charmed with it, because the conduct was so much -like his own! - -[296:1] Account of the Controversy between Hume and Rousseau. - -[297:1] "Un banc tres-massif, qui etoit dans la rue a cote de ma porte -et fortement attache, fut detache, enleve, et pose debout contre la -porte; de sorte que, si l'on ne s'en fut apercu, le premier qui pour -sortir auroit ouvert la porte d'entree, devoit naturellement etre -assomme."--_Confessions_, Liv. 12. - -[301:1] Hume, though habitually sceptical, was far from being -suspicious; and in his kindness to his new companion, he took every -thing in sincerity. "C'est un des malheurs de ma vie," says Rousseau, -"qu'avec un si grand desir d'etre oublie, je sois contraint de parler de -moi sans cesse;" but those who knew him better than Hume did at so early -a period of their intercourse, do not give him credit for desiring to be -either neglected or forgotten. Madame de Genlis professes to have been -much vexed and perplexed by having acted on a reliance similar to -Hume's. Rousseau had promised to accompany her to the Comedie Francoise, -on the condition that they were to occupy a _loge grillee_. When they -entered, madame flew to shut the grating; Rousseau opposed her; he was -sure _she_ would not like it to be closed, and he would be sufficiently -hidden, by sitting behind her. In the scuffle he was recognised; madame, -vexed and terrified, insisted that the grating should be closed; but he -was inexorable. The commencement of a popular piece soon relieved them -from notice, and when the eyes of the audience were averted from him, -Rousseau grew gloomy and rude. He afterwards professed himself deeply -offended at having been exhibited as a wild beast! _Memoires_, ii. 12. - -The same lady gives a more pleasing instance of his characteristics at -that time, in describing her first introduction to him. A friend told -her, that her husband intended to play a trick on her: to employ the -celebrated mimic Preville, the Foote of the French stage, to personate -Rousseau at his table. The expected guest appeared. His dress and -appearance were so unlike other people's, yet so like what would have -been expected in Rousseau--his conversation was so brilliant--that it -certainly must be a piece of wonderful acting. Thoroughly at her ease, -she laughed, and talked, and sang the airs of the Devin du village. It -was Rousseau himself! and not accustomed, in this the full blaze of his -reputation, to be received with so much freedom, by a young and -accomplished woman, he pronounced her to be the most lively and -unaffected of her sex. - -[303:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[304:1] It does not appear that Rousseau made any progress in English. -In a letter to Hume, from Wooton, he says, "J'ai eu hier la visite de M. -le Ministre, qui, voyant que je ne lui parlois que Francois, n'a pas -voulu me parler Anglois, de sorte que l'entrevue s'est passee a peu pres -sans mot dire. J'ai pris gout a l'expedient; je m'en servirai avec tous -mes voisins, si j'en ai; et dusse-je apprendre l'Anglois, je ne leur -parlerai que Francois, sur-tout si j'ai le bonheur qu'ils n'en sachent -pas un mot." - -[305:1] General Conway's wife. - -[305:2] Rousseau writes to Hume:-- - - _Le Lundi Soir._ - - Je vous supplie, mon tres cher patron, de vouloir bien - m'excuser aupres de Myladi Ailesbury et de Mr. Le General - Conway. Je suis malade, et hors d'etat de me presenter, et - Mademoiselle Le Vasseur, tres bonne, et tres estimable - personne, n'est point faite pour paroitre dans les grandes - compagnies. Trouvez bon, mon tres cher patron, que nous nous - en tenions au premier arrangement et que j'attende dans - l'apres midi le carrosse que M. Davenport veut bien envoyer. - J'arrive suant et fatigue d'une longue promenade: c'est - pourquoi je ne prolonge pas ma lettre: vous m'avez si bien - acquis et je suis a vous de tant de manieres que cela meme ne - doit plus etre dit. Je vous embrasse de toute la tendresse de - mon coeur. - - J. J. ROUSSEAU. - -Had Lady Aylesbury requested the honour of Mademoiselle le Vasseur's -company along with that of her keeper? Rousseau tells us what pleasure -it gave him to see Madame la Marechale de Luxembourg embrace her in -public. But if any English lady of rank and character offered to extend -her hospitality to such a person, there could be no stronger evidence of -the general consent to suspend all social laws in favour of Rousseau. - -[306:1] Of Lord Marischal he always spoke with respect. In the -Confessions, he says, "O bon Milord! o mon digne pere! que mon coeur -s'emeut encore en pensant a vous! Ah les barbares! quel coup ils m'ont -porte en vous detachant de moi! Mais non, non, grand homme, vous etes et -serez toujours le meme pour moi, qui suis le meme toujours." - -[306:2] Madame de Boufflers seems to have early apprehended mischief -from Walpole's letter. In the letter referred to, she says, "Je voudrois -savoir si une lettre du Roy de Prusse qui court Paris est vraie ou -fausse. On dit qu'elle est pleine d'ironie." She then proceeds to -describe the letter. Hume in answer says, "I suppose, that by this time -you have learned it was Horace Walpole who wrote the Prussian letter you -mentioned to me. It is a strange inclination we have to be wits, -preferably to every thing else. He is a very worthy man; he esteems and -even admires Rousseau; yet he could not forbear, for the sake of a very -indifferent joke, the turning him into ridicule, and saying harsh things -against him. I am a little angry with him; and I hear you are a great -deal: but the matter ought to be treated only as a piece of -levity."--_Private Correspondence_, p. 130. - -[307:1] Private Correspondence, p. 125-128. - -[308:1] Private Correspondence, p. 131-132. - -[309:1] The mark of interrogation is in the MS. - -[309:2] Writing to the Marquise de Barbantane, he makes the following -addition to this anecdote:-- - -"When the hour came, he told me, that he had changed his resolution, and -would not go: 'for--what shall I do with Sultan?' That is the name of -his dog. 'You must leave him behind,' said I. 'But the first person,' -replied he, 'who opens the door, Sultan will run into the streets in -search of me, and will be lost.' 'You must then,' said I, 'lock him up -in your room, and put the key in your pocket.' This was accordingly -done: but as we went down stairs, the dog howled and made a noise; his -master turned back, and said he had not resolution to leave him in that -condition; but I caught him in my arms and told him, that Mrs. Garrick -had dismissed another company in order to make room for him; that the -King and Queen were expecting to see him; and without a better reason -than Sultan's impatience, it would be ridiculous to disappoint them. -Partly by these reasons, and partly by force, I engaged him to -proceed."--_Private Correspondence_, p. 144. - -[310:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[310:2] The word appears not to be used in its modern popular sense, but -as meaning a person full of caprice. - -[310:3] MS. R.S.E. - -[311:1] In his narrative of the controversy, Hume says, "I wrote -immediately to my friend Mr. John Stewart of Buckingham Street, that I -had an affair to communicate to him, of so secret and delicate a nature, -that I should not venture even to commit it to paper, but that he might -learn the particulars of Mr. Elliot. . . . . Mr. Stewart was to look out -for some honest and discreet farmer in his neighbourhood, who might be -willing to lodge and board M. Rousseau and his gouvernante. . . . . It -was not long before Mr. Stewart wrote me word he had found a situation, -which he conceived might be agreeable," &c. - -In confirmation of this narrative, there is the following letter in the -MSS. R.S.E. Mr. Stewart is probably the "Jack Stewart," frequently -alluded to in Hume's letters. - - "MY DEAR SIR,--Mr. Elliot told me the affair you recommended - to him. Since his arrival I have tried every farmer in our - side of the country, and can find no proper place. Some have - not room, some hate foreigners, some don't chuse boarders, and - the major part of all are such beings as he could not live - with in any comfortable manner. There is an old Frenchman who - has been here since a child, and has a sort of a garden farm - at Fulham. To him I proposed the thing without mentioning - names, and to oblige me he will take such a boarder: but still - I could wish to find a place where he would be more agreeably - situated, for this man keeps only a single maid, eats very - plain, and his house is as dirty as a Frenchman's in France. - The farmer himself is about sixty years old, unmarried, a - cheerful honest creature, of a very obliging disposition. - Consider whether this will suit your purpose, or if I should - try in other counties. Adieu, my worthy good sir. Believe me - eternally, your devoted servant, - - "J. STEWART." - -[312:1] Blair had written on 24th February,-- - -"I received both your letters; and am exceedingly indebted to you for -the many curious and entertaining anecdotes you gave me concerning -Rousseau. They bestowed upon me somewhat of the same importance which -you say your connexion with Rousseau himself bestowed upon you in Paris, -by having so much information to give my friends from you concerning so -extraordinary a personage. Your accounts pleased me the more, that they -coincided very much with the idea I had always formed of the -man--amiable but whimsical. Strong sensibilities joined with an oddly -arranged understanding. He is a proof of what I always thought to be a -possible mixture in human nature, one being a sceptic from the turn of -their mind, and yet an enthusiast from the turn of their heart; for this -I take to be his real character--a man floating betwixt doubts and -feelings--betwixt scepticism and enthusiasm: leaning more to the latter -than the former; his understanding strangely tinctured by both." He -desires Hume to ask Rousseau, whether the principal scenes in his -"Heloise" were not founded on real events.--MS. R.S.E. - -[315:1] This anecdote is told in substantially the same manner to Madame -de Boufflers, to whom its spirit would be doubtless far less -incomprehensible than to Dr. Blair.--_See Private Correspondence_, p. -150. - -[317:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 731, corrected from original, MS. -R.S.E. - -[318:1] MS. R.S.E. Blair writes on 12th June:-- - -"Poor Jardine--I knew you would join with us in dropping very cordial -tears over his memory. What pleasant hours have I passed with you and -him. We have lost a most agreeable companion, as it was possible for any -man to be, and a very useful man to us here, in all public affairs. I -thought of you at the very first as one who would sensibly feel the -blank he will make in our society, when you come again to join it. But -when are you to come?"--MS. R.S.E. - - - - -CHAPTER XV. - -1766-1767. AEt. 55-56. - - Rousseau at Wooton--Mr. Davenport--Negotiations as to - Rousseau's pension--Origin and rise of his excitement against - Hume--Proper method of viewing the dispute--Incidents - illustrative of Rousseau's state of mind--His charges against - Hume--Smith's opinion--Opinion of the French friends--Hume's - conduct in the publication of the papers--Voltaire--Rousseau's - flight and wanderings--Hume's subsequent conduct to him. - - -The place where Rousseau found a retreat, was the mansion of Wooton in -Derbyshire, surrounded by scenery, not unlike that which he had left -behind him in the Jura. It was a late addition to the extensive -ancestral estates of its proprietor, Mr. Davenport of Davenport. How -successful Hume had been, in finding a man of generous, warm, kindly -nature, to be the protector of his exiled friend, some letters from Mr. -Davenport, printed in the course of this narrative will attest.[319:1] - -That Rousseau might be induced to live in his house, it was necessary -that Mr. Davenport should agree to accept of a sum of money in the shape -of board, and he good-humouredly conceded to Hume, that the amount -should be fixed at L30 a-year. "If it be possible," says Hume, "for a -man to live without occupation, without books, without society, and -without sleep, he will not quit this wild and solitary place; where all -the circumstances which he ever required, seem to concur for the -purpose of making him happy. But I dread the weakness and inquietude -natural to every man, and, above all, to a man of his character. I -should not be surprised that he had soon quitted this retreat."[320:1] -It appears that Mr. Davenport intended, if Rousseau became attached to -Wooton, to leave him a life lease of the house.[320:2] - -Rousseau reached Wooton about the middle of March. On the 22d he wrote -to his _cher Patron_ Hume, informing him that his new place of residence -was in every way delightful; and that its charms were enhanced by the -reflection, that he owed all the happiness of his new position to his -dear friend.[320:3] Doubtless Hume, who must now have been a little -tired of the caprices which had so constantly baffled his friendly -exertions, felt this acknowledgment to be very gratifying. On the 29th -he received a letter, still friendly and grateful, but not quite so -warm, in which Rousseau, while he complains of the inconvenience of not -being understood by the servants, congratulates himself on his ignorance -of the English language, as saving him from the annoyance of -communication with his neighbours.[320:4] - -While all seemed thus serene, dark thoughts were gathering in the -exile's mind: and if Hume, relieved of his troublesome duties, and -probably satisfied with his own conduct, had known the nicer tests of -the state of that variable and tempestuous temper, he might have -calculated, by some indications, that the storm was about to burst. The -letter of Horace Walpole had, for some time, been lying at the bottom of -Rousseau's mind, not forgotten, though hidden from view; and it seems to -have formed the nucleus round which his diseased imaginations gathered, -and put themselves into shape.[321:1] On the 7th of April, Rousseau -sent a letter to the editor of the _St. James's Chronicle_, in which it -had appeared, denouncing it as a forgery concocted in Paris, and saying -that it rent and afflicted his heart to say, that the impostor had his -accomplices in England. That it was not then, or for many weeks before, -that he first became acquainted with this _jeu d'esprit_, is clear from -a letter to Madame de Boufflers, of 18th January, in which he states, -that Hume had just informed him of its existence.[323:1] He appears to -have then attributed it to Voltaire. He afterwards imputed it, with -great confidence, to D'Alembert; and the ultimate discovery, that it was -not written by any literary rival and conspirator, but by an English -gentleman partial to such wicked amusements, appears to have been the -most galling circumstance connected with it. - -It seems to have been believed, by some of those who knew Rousseau's -character, that his brooding over Walpole's letter would have been -insufficient to cause the commotions that followed, without the -malicious assistance of Mademoiselle Le Vasseur.[323:2] This woman, who -seems to have possessed all the vices to which her sex is liable, -without one of its virtues,--who had just enough of intellect to assist -the cunning of her depraved heart,--is said to have had an influence -over the philosopher of education, of which it is certainly difficult to -credit the extent. It will be seen, in the letters of Mr. Davenport, -that she had a dispute with his venerable housekeeper, concerning a -kettle and cinders! What was the exact nature of the dispute, is now, it -may be feared, buried in eternal oblivion; and we are left to conjecture -whither an influential cause in a literary quarrel, which interested all -Europe, may possibly have been a kettle and cinders. On the 12th of -May, Rousseau wrote to General Conway, acknowledging the king's goodness -in bestowing on him a pension; saying he thought himself armed against -all disasters, but that a new and unimagined one had arisen, which so -troubled his spirit, that he had not the necessary presence of mind to -decide on the conduct he ought to adopt as to the pension. He expressed, -at the same time, sorrow that he could not publicly acknowledge his -obligations. This appeared to Hume and Conway to be an intimation, that -the pension would not be accepted if it were to be secret.[324:1] - -While his mind was thus blackening within, he preserved a cheerful -exterior; and Mr. Davenport wrote to Hume, on 14th May, from Wooton: "I -came on Friday, and had the satisfaction of finding M. Rousseau in -perfect health. He seems to like the place; amuses himself with walking -when the weather is fair; if raining, he plays upon the harpsichord and -writes: is very sociable, and an excellent companion."[325:1] There is -evidence, however, that he had entertained all his evil thoughts of Hume -at a much earlier period. His second letter to him, in the capacity of -_Cher Patron_, is dated, as we have mentioned, 29th March. On the 31st -he wrote to M. D'Ivernois, saying that he found Hume allied with his -most dangerous enemies, and if he were not a rascal, he himself would -owe him many reparations for unjust suspicions entertained of -him.[325:2] - -Resolved to bring the matter of the pension to a conclusion, Hume wrote -to Rousseau thus:-- - - -"_Lisle Street, Leicester Fields_, _June 16, 1766_. - -"As I have not received any answer from you, sir, I conclude that you -persevere in the resolution of refusing all marks of his majesty's -goodness, as long as they must remain a secret. I have, therefore, -applied to General Conway to have this condition removed; and I have -been so fortunate as to obtain his promise, that he would speak to the -king for that purpose. It will only be requisite, said he, that we know -previously from M. Rousseau, whether he would accept of a pension -publicly granted him, that his majesty may not be exposed to a second -refusal. He gave me authority to write to you on the subject; and I beg -to hear your resolution as soon as possible. If you give your consent, -which I earnestly entreat you to do, I know that I can depend on the -good offices of the Duke of Richmond to second General Conway's -application; so that I have no doubt of success. I am, my dear sir, -yours, with great sincerity."[326:1] - - -This brought on the first gust of the storm. On 23d June, Rousseau wrote -his celebrated letter, beginning with the observation, that his silence, -interpreted by Hume's conscience, must have convinced the latter that -the whole of his horrible designs were discovered. In this letter -nothing is more remarkable than the contrast between the frantic -bitterness of the language, and the elaborate neatness of the -penmanship, which, if handwriting conveyed a notion of character, would -represent a calm, contented mind, gratifying itself by the exercise of -the petty art of caligraphy. A fac-simile of the concluding paragraph is -given, that the reader may have an opportunity of marking this singular -contrast. - -[Illustration] - -Hume, now thoroughly angry, wrote as follows:-- - - -HUME _to_ ROUSSEAU. - -"_June 26, 1766._ - -"As I am conscious of having ever acted towards you the most friendly -part, of having always given you the most tender and the most active -proofs of sincere affection, you may judge of my extreme surprise on -perusing your epistle. Such violent accusations, confined altogether to -generalities, it is as impossible to answer, as it is impossible to -comprehend them. But affairs cannot, must not, remain on that footing. I -shall charitably suppose that some infamous calumniator has belied me to -you. But, in that case, it is your duty, and, I am persuaded, it will be -your inclination, to give me an opportunity of detecting him, and of -justifying myself; which can only be done by your mentioning the -particulars of which I am accused. You say, that I myself know that I -have been false to you; but I say it loudly, and will say it to the -whole world, that I know the contrary; that I know my friendship towards -you has been unbounded and uninterrupted; and that though I have given -you instances of it, which have been universally remarked both in France -and England, the public as yet are acquainted only with the smallest -part of it. I demand, that you name to me the man who dares assert the -contrary; and, above all, I demand, that he shall mention any one -particular in which I have been wanting to you. You owe this to me; you -owe it to yourself; you owe it to truth, and honour, and justice, and to -every thing deemed sacred among men. As an innocent man--for I will not -say, as your friend; I will not say, as your benefactor; but I repeat -it, as an innocent man, I claim the privilege of proving my innocence, -and of refuting any scandalous falsehood which may have been invented -against me. Mr. Davenport, to whom I have sent a copy of your letter, -and who will read this before he delivers it, will, I am confident, -second my demand, and tell you that nothing can be more equitable. -Happily I have preserved the letter you wrote me after your arrival at -Wooton; and you there express, in the strongest terms, in terms indeed -too strong, your satisfaction in my poor endeavours to serve you. The -little epistolary intercourse, which afterwards passed between us, has -been all employed on my side to the most friendly purposes. Tell me, -then, what has since given you offence. Tell me, of what I am accused. -Tell me the man who accuses me. Even after you have fulfilled all these -conditions to my satisfaction, and to that of Mr. Davenport, you will -still have great difficulty to justify your employing such outrageous -terms towards a man, with whom you have been so intimately connected, -and who was entitled, on many accounts, to have been treated by you with -more regard and decency. - -"Mr. Davenport knows the whole transaction about your pension, because I -thought it necessary that the person who had undertaken your settlement -should be fully acquainted with your circumstances; lest he should be -tempted to perform towards you concealed acts of generosity, which, if -they accidentally came to your knowledge, might give you some grounds of -offence. I am, sir," &c.[328:1] - - -In here exhibiting a few of the prominent features of the quarrel -between Hume and Rousseau, there is no intention of entering on a -defence of Hume, or a full examination of the conduct of the parties. -Viewing it as a picturesque incident in literary history, the reader -will probably feel an interest in such new light as may be thrown upon -it on the present occasion; but, it is presumed that few who have made -themselves acquainted with the material circumstances of the dispute, as -they have been already made known, will expect any thing to be said that -can alter their appreciation of the conduct of the parties. Where there -are personal disputes, there is no cause so hopelessly bad as to be -without partisans; and when no other motive comes into action, a feeling -of generosity towards one who seems to have forfeited the good opinion -of his kind, calls forth a few vindicators and supporters. It was -natural that Rousseau, a man of great genius, whose writings had -produced a prodigious influence on his age,--one who had shown, in many -instances, the outward manifestations of a kind unselfish disposition, -and who had discarded, with an air of magnanimous scorn, all the -grovelling ties that bind the human creature to the earth on which he -crawls,--should have champions and supporters in any dispute in which he -might be involved, be his conduct what it might. Thus he had a few -vindicators, chiefly of the female sex, while he lived: but gradually, -when feelings of personal sympathy had died away, the conduct of the -disputants ceased to be weighed against each other in the same scales. -People did not inquire which of them had acted more fairly and justly -than the other; but, putting Rousseau's conduct out of the question as a -criterion, they asked, whether that of Hume was kind and magnanimous -towards the unfortunate monomaniac?[329:1] Although this view is plainly -to be traced in the sentiments of those who have fugitively touched on -the dispute, it is to be gathered more from the general tone of their -remarks, than from any direct avowal of belief, that Rousseau was a -monomaniac.[331:1] There is a majesty in genius, that makes us reluctant -thus to ally it with the debasement of the human intellect. Yet, too -often, some portion of the most brilliant mind is thus eclipsed, though -the brightness of what is clear prevents our seeing easily the blackened -spot. In Rousseau's case, there has been, perhaps, a disinclination to -admit the "plea of insanity," on account of the wonderful practical -sagacity that accompanied his aberrations. Though apparently surveying -the world with a sick and careless eye, he occasionally penetrated into -the depths of the human heart, and marked its secrets, with an accuracy -that made the practised and systematic observer's survey seem but a -superficial glance. He had a mind at times eminently practical,[332:1] -and suited to estimate men's conduct and character: and thus appearing -before the world, there has been much hesitation to pronounce, that the -sincerity of insanity accompanied all his vile charges against a man -whose heart could not have been for one moment visited by the atrocities -of which he is accused. - -It is clear, that whatever had been Hume's conduct in the affair, -Rousseau's rage was a storm predestined to burst upon him. Its elements -were in the mind of "the self-torturing sophist," not in the conduct of -any other person; and whoever was the object nearest to his thoughts at -the moment, as being most associated with the circumstances in which he -was placed, had to stand the shock. In this view, Hume's conduct is no -more to be tested by that of Rousseau, than the keeper's by that of his -patient. We are thus rid of the unpleasant employment of comparing -things which cannot bear comparison; and of the sickening task of -enumerating instances of kindness, attachment, persevering good offices, -and charitable interpretations of conduct on the one side, met by black -ingratitude, contempt, and deadly injury on the other. - -If we look for that over-excited propensity which may have caused this -mental disease, it appears, beyond doubt, that it was vanity.[333:1] -All Rousseau's avowed misfortunes are the calamities of celebrity. At -one time he is the victim of princes and prime ministers; at another, of -an assembled clergy; at another, of half the learned men of Europe. That -he is neglected and forgotten is never among his ostensible complaints; -though there is good reason to believe that it was at the bottom of his -most conspicuous fits of fury. The English people, though they were at -first somewhat curious about the remarkable stranger, did not incommode -themselves about him, and obstinately abstained from following him into -the wilderness. In his long letter of charges, he cannot help bitterly -remarking the apathy of the public; but he states it as an accusation -against Hume,[333:2] whom he supposes to have said, like Flavius, - - I'll about - And drive away the vulgar from the streets: - So do you too, where you perceive them thick. - These growing feathers, pluck'd from Caesar's wing, - Will make him fly an ordinary pitch, - Who else would soar above the view of men, - And keep us all in servile fearfulness. - -Had the solitudes of Wooton been peopled by multitudes anxious to catch -a passing glance of the "apostle of affliction," he would doubtless have -let loose his half-appeased discontent in some querulous letters about -the impossibility of his finding repose and solitude; but he would not -have courted such a conflict as he rushed into in the bitterness of his -solitude. Although his character stands without parallel in its own vast -proportions, it is not without abundance of exemplifications on a -smaller scale. There are few who have not, in their journey through -life, encountered one or more small Rousseaus, in men of ravenous and -insatiable vanity, who, unlike the ordinary good-natured vain men, are -perpetually rejecting the incense offered to their appetite, and -demanding some new form of worship. In these, as in the chimney-piece -models of celebrated statues, may we view the proportions of the great -self-tormenter's mind; and when it is found that the peculiarity is -generally accompanied with some observable amount of intellectual -acquirements, which place the individual a degree above those who -surround him, the resemblance is the more complete. Vanity being its -source, the shape assumed by his monomania was a dread of conspiracies -in all shapes; and he was as sincere a believer in their existence, as -any unfortunate inhabitant of bedlam has ever been in the creations of -his diseased mind.[334:1] - -Hume had difficulty in extracting an answer to his letter of 26th June; -and probably it would not have been opened without the intervention of -Mr. Davenport. It was one of Rousseau's whims for some time not to -receive any letters; he said they were one of the methods by which his -enemies had persecuted him. On his first arrival he was to open none but -those which passed through the hands of his _Cher Patron_;[335:1] a -convenient arrangement, as it afterwards enabled him to accuse Hume of -tampering with his correspondence. - -Two letters were received from Mr. Davenport, before Rousseau drew up -his charge. - - -MR. DAVENPORT _to_ HUME. - - _Davenport, June 30, 1766._ - - DEAR SIR,--The receipt of your two last gave me much - uneasiness, which was augmented by some letters received - yesterday from Rousseau, along with yours, directed for me at - Wooton. Surely there must have been some excessive great - mistakes. It appears to me a heap of confusion, of which I can - make neither head nor tail. His letter to you is perfectly - astonishing: never any thing was so furious; so--I protest I - don't know what to call it! I long to see him: he certainly - will tell some reason or other that could induce him to write - in that manner. Till I have seen him I can give no sort of - answer to your queries, as he never spoke one syllable to me - about any difference at all. I can't, possibly, before - Saturday's post; as in this part of the country we have only - three days in a week to send letters to town. You desired me - to burn the duplicate after reading. That signifies nothing, - for I can send you the other which I received yesterday from - Wooton. Good God, he must be most excessively out of the way - about this pension! In short, I have not patience to add one - word more, till I hear what he can possibly have to say; and - then I'll immediately acquaint you. - - I can't help being troubled at seeing your uneasiness, and - will with great pleasure do all in my power to assist in - freeing you from it; at least I'll do my best endeavours. I - am, your most obedient humble servant, - - R. DAVENPORT. - - - _6th July, 1766._ - - DEAR SIR,--I went over to Wooton on Tuesday: had a long - conference with Mr. Rousseau on the subject of your last - letters; gave into his hands yours addressed to him, (which he - had not read before:) showed him those I received from you; - and in the most earnest manner insisted upon his giving you an - open answer to all your questions, which I told him you had - certainly a right to ask, and he could not have any pretence - whatever to refuse. His spirits seemed vastly fluttered. - However, he told me a long history of the whole affair. I - said, that as my knowledge of the French language was very - imperfect, I might easily misrepresent things, so begged him - to write down the whole matter. Before he began his discourse, - I could not help speaking a deal to him on the subject of the - pension, and expressed my astonishment at his even ever having - had the least thought of refusing the favours of the greatest - king in the world. To my infinite surprise, he directly - returned this answer, That he never had refused, or any thing - like it; spoke with the greatest respect and veneration of his - majesty, and with all sort of acknowledgments of gratitude to - General Conway, &c. You may well imagine my surprise - increased. He then began his story: but that I entirely leave - to his pen, as he has faithfully promised to perform. I am - really sorry for him; he's uneasy, frets perpetually, and - looks terribly. 'Tis almost impossible to conceive the oddness - of his extreme sensibility; so that I conclude, when he's - guilty of an error, his nerves are more in fault than his - heart. Things vex him to the utmost extent of vexation, which - would not even move such a dull soul as mine is. In short, I - perceive his disorder is jealousy: he thinks you are fond of - some _savans hommes_, whom he unfortunately calls his enemies. - It will give me the greatest satisfaction to hear that you - have received a satisfactory answer, and that every thing is - set right again.[337:1] - -At last came the full outpouring of the long-treasured wrath, in a -letter dated the 10th of July, as long as an ordinary pamphlet, and -penned with the same neat precision as its predecessor. The reader will -not expect a document so well known and easily accessible to be -reprinted; and an abridgment would fail to give any notion of the rabid -eloquence with which the most paltry incidents are made to assume the -appearance of portentous charges; until, through vehemence of expression -and multitude of powerful words, they seem for the moment to acquire -substantial shape. Many of the charges contained in this "indictment" -have been already alluded to. The document begins with a statement of -its author's candour,[337:2] and hatred of every kind of artifice; and -no one can read the charges which follow, monstrously absurd as they -are, without seeing that they are made in the perfect sincerity of a -mind that saw all things through its own diseased medium. The following -is one of the substantive charges:-- - - I was informed that the son of the quack Tronchin,[338:1] my - most mortal enemy, was not only the friend of Mr. Hume, and - under his protection, but that they both lodged in the same - house; and when Mr. Hume found that I knew this, he imparted - it in confidence to me; assuring me that the son by no means - resembled the father. I lodged a few nights myself, together - with my governante, in the same house; and from the kind of - reception with which we were honoured by the landladies, who - are his friends, I judged in what manner either Mr. Hume, or - that man, who, as he said, was by no means like his father, - must have spoken to them both of her and me. - - All these facts put together, added to a certain appearance of - things on the whole, insensibly gave me an uneasiness, which I - rejected with horror. - -The description of the following scene must have been, to those who knew -Hume personally, irresistibly ludicrous. The picture of the phlegmatic -reserve of English manners, is made perfect by contrast. It appears from -Hume's letter, that the scene arose out of the dispute about the return -chaise. - - One evening, after supper, as we were sitting silent by the - fireside, I caught his eyes intently fixed on me, as indeed - happened very often; and that in a manner of which it is very - difficult to give an idea. At that time he gave me a - steadfast, piercing look, mingled with a sneer, which greatly - disturbed me. To get rid of my embarrassment, I endeavoured to - look full at him in my turn; but, in fixing my eyes upon his, - I felt the most inexpressible terror, and was soon obliged to - turn them away. The speech and physiognomy of the good David - are those of an honest man; but where, great God! did this - honest man borrow those eyes which he fixes on his friends? - - The impression of this look remained with me, and gave me much - uneasiness. My trouble increased even to a degree of fainting; - and if I had not been relieved by a flood of tears, I must - have been suffocated. Presently after this I was seized with - the most violent remorse: I even despised myself; till at - length, in a transport, which I still remember with delight, I - sprang on his neck, and embraced him eagerly; while, almost - choked with sobbing, and bathed in tears, I cried out, in - broken accents, "No, no, David Hume cannot be treacherous; if - he be not the best of men, he must be the basest." David Hume - politely returned my embraces, and gently tapping me on the - back, repeated several times, in a placid tone, "Why, what, my - dear sir! Nay, my dear sir! Oh, my dear sir!" He said nothing - more. I felt my heart yearn within me. We went to bed; and I - set out the next day for the country. - -There is another charge against Hume, of once muttering in his sleep the -words _Je tiens J. J. Rousseau_; which he did not deny, saying, that he -could not feel certain as to what he might or might not have done when -asleep, though he doubted if it was his practice to dream in -French.[339:1] The proffered hospitalities and kindnesses of Hume are a -running charge throughout; wound up with the conclusion, that as he must -have seen that Rousseau was estranged from him, "If he supposed that in -such circumstances I should have accepted his services, he must have -supposed me to have been an infamous scoundrel. It was then in behalf of -a man whom he supposed to be a scoundrel that he so warmly solicited a -pension from his majesty."[340:1] - -Hume's answer to this charge was as follows: - - -HUME _to_ ROUSSEAU. - - _Lisle Street, Leicester Fields, July 22, 1766._ - - SIR,--I shall only answer one article of your long letter: it - is that which regards the conversation we had the evening - before your departure. Mr. Davenport had contrived a - good-natured artifice, to make you believe that a retour - chaise was ready to set out for Wooton; and I believe he - caused an advertisement be put in the papers, in order the - better to deceive you. His purpose only was to save you some - expenses in the journey, which I thought a laudable project; - though I had no hand either in contriving or conducting it. - You entertained, however, a suspicion of his design, while we - were sitting alone by my fireside; and you reproached me with - concurring in it. I endeavoured to pacify you, and to divert - the discourse; but to no purpose. You sat sullen, and was - either silent, or made me very peevish answers. At last you - rose up, and took a turn or two about the room, when all of a - sudden, and to my great surprise, you clapped yourself on my - knee, threw your arms about my neck, kissed me with seeming - ardour, and bedewed my face with tears. You exclaimed, "My - dear friend, can you ever pardon this folly? After all the - pains you have taken to serve me, after the numberless - instances of friendship you have given me, here I reward you - with this ill-humour and sullenness. But your forgiveness of - me will be a new instance of your friendship; and I hope you - will find at bottom, that my heart is not unworthy of it." - - I was very much affected, I own; and I believe a very tender - scene passed between us. You added, by way of compliment no - doubt, that though I had many better titles to recommend me to - posterity, yet perhaps my uncommon attachment to a poor, - unhappy, and persecuted man, would not be altogether - overlooked. - - This incident was somewhat remarkable; and it is impossible - that either you or I could so soon have forgot it. But you - have had the assurance to tell me the story twice, in a manner - so different, or rather so opposite, that when I persist, as I - do, in this account, it necessarily follows, that either you - are, or I am, a liar. You imagine, perhaps, that because the - incident passed privately without a witness, the question will - lie between the credibility of your assertion and of mine. But - you shall not have this advantage or disadvantage, whichever - you are pleased to term it. I shall produce against you other - proofs, which will put the matter beyond controversy. - - First, You are not aware, that I have a letter under your - hand, which is tolerably irreconcilable with your account, and - confirms mine.[343:1] - - Secondly, I told the story the next day, or the day after, to - Mr. Davenport, with a view of preventing any such good-natured - artifices for the future. He surely remembers it. - - Thirdly, As I thought the story much to your honour, I told it - to several of my friends here. I even wrote it to Madame de - Boufflers at Paris. I believe no one will imagine that I was - preparing beforehand an apology, in case of a rupture with - you; which, of all human events, I should then have thought - the most incredible, especially as we were separated, almost - for ever, and I still continued to render you the most - essential services. - - Fourthly, The story, as I tell it, is consistent and rational: - there is not common sense in your account. What! because - sometimes, when absent in thought, (a circumstance common - enough with men whose minds are intensely occupied,) I have a - fixed look or stare, you suspect me to be a traitor, and you - have the assurance to tell me of such black and ridiculous - suspicions! For you do not even pretend that before you left - London you had any other solid grounds of suspicion against - me. - - I shall enter into no detail with regard to your letter: you - yourself well know that all the other articles of it are - without foundation. I shall only add in general, that I - enjoyed about a month ago an uncommon pleasure, in thinking - that, in spite of many difficulties, I had, by assiduity and - care, and even beyond my most sanguine expectations, provided - for your repose, honour, and fortune. But that pleasure was - soon imbittered, by finding that you had voluntarily and - wantonly thrown away all those advantages, and was become the - declared enemy of your own repose, fortune, and honour: I - cannot be surprised after this that you are my enemy. Adieu, - and for ever.[344:1] - -Hume did not profess to submit to these attacks with the meekness of the -dove, as a few letters to his friends will show. Of the two following -letters to Blair, the one was written before, the other after the -reception of Rousseau's "indictment." - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Lisle Street, 1st July, 1766._ - -"You will be surprised, dear Doctor, when I desire you most earnestly -never in your life to show to any mortal creature the letters I wrote -you with regard to Rousseau. He is surely the blackest and most -atrocious villain, beyond comparison, that now exists in the world, and -I am heartily ashamed of any thing I ever wrote in his favour. I know -you will pity me when I tell you that I am afraid I must publish this to -the world in a pamphlet, which must contain an account of the whole -transaction between us.[344:2] My only comfort is, that the matter will -be so clear as not to leave to any mortal the smallest possibility of -doubt. You know how dangerous any controversy on a disputable point -would be with a man of his talents. I know not where the miscreant will -now retire to, in order to hide his head from this infamy. I am," -&c.[345:1] - - -"_15th July, 1766._ - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--I go in a few hours to Woburn; so can only give you the -outline of my history. Through many difficulties I obtained a pension -for Rousseau. The application was made with his own consent and -knowledge. I write him, that all is happily completed, and he need only -draw for the money. He answers me, that I am a rogue and a rascal; and -have brought him into England merely to dishonour him. I demand the -reason of this strange language; and Mr. Davenport, the gentleman with -whom he lives, tells him that he must necessarily satisfy me. To-day I -received a letter from him, which is perfect frenzy. It would make a -good eighteen-penny pamphlet; and I fancy he intends to publish it. He -there tells me, that D'Alembert, Horace Walpole, and I, had, from the -first, entered into a combination to ruin him, and had ruined him. That -the first suspicion of my treachery arose in him while we lay together -in the same room of an inn in France. I there spoke in my sleep, and -betrayed my intention of ruining him. That young Tronchin lodged in the -same house with me at London; and Annie Elliot looked very coldly at him -as he went by her in the passage. That I am also in a close confederacy -with Lord Lyttelton, who, he hears, is his mortal enemy. That the -English nation were very fond of him on his first arrival; but that -Horace Walpole and I had totally alienated them from him. He owns, -however, that his belief of my treachery went no higher than suspicion, -while he was in London; but it rose to certainty after he arrived in the -country; for that there were several publications in the papers against -him, which could have proceeded from nobody but me, or my confederate, -Horace Walpole. The rest is all of a like strain, intermixed with many -lies and much malice. I own that I was very anxious about this affair, -but this letter has totally relieved me. I write in a hurry, merely to -satisfy your curiosity. I hope soon to see you, and am," &c.[346:1] - - -There could have been no incident better calculated than this to create -a sensation in the coteries of Paris. Immediately on receiving the first -angry letter, Hume sent an indignant account of the ingratitude and -malevolence of Rousseau to the Baron D'Holbach, which proved a -delightfully exciting morsel to a party assembled at his house; for the -baron had told him, from the beginning, that he was warming a serpent in -his bosom.[346:2] The very rapid celebrity which the story received does -not seem to have been anticipated by Hume, and he says, apologetically, -to Madame de Boufflers,--"I wrote, indeed, to Baron D'Holbach, without -either recommending or expecting secrecy: but I thought this story, like -others, would be told to eight or ten people; in a week or two, twenty -or thirty more might hear it, and it would require three months before -it would reach you at Pougues. I little imagined that a private story, -told to a private gentleman, could run over a whole kingdom in a moment. -If the King of England had declared war against the King of France, it -could not have been more suddenly the subject of conversation."[346:3] -Between the rupture and the publication of the narrative regarding it, -Hume seems to have written very abundantly on the subject, to his -friends in Paris. The following is one of his letters:-- - - -HUME _to the_ ABBE LE BLANC. - - _Lisle Street, Leicester Fields, 12th August, 1766._ - - MY DEAR SIR,--I have used the freedom to send to you, in two - packets, by this post, the whole train of my correspondence - with Rousseau, connected by a short narrative. I hope you will - have leisure to peruse it. The story is incredible, as well as - inconceivable, were it not founded on such authentic - documents. Surely never was there so much wickedness and - madness combined in one human creature; nor did ever any one - meet with such a return for such signal services as those I - performed towards him. But I am told that he used to say to - Duclos, and others, that he hated all those to whom he owed - any obligation. In that case I am fully entitled to his - animosity. - - I am really at a loss what use to make of this collection. The - story, I am told, is very much the object of conversation at - Paris. Though my conduct has been entirely innocent, or - rather, indeed, very meritorious, it happens, no doubt, as is - usual in such ruptures, that I will bear a part of the blame; - from which a publication of these papers would entirely free - me: yet I own I have an antipathy and reluctance to appeal to - the public; and fear that such a publication would be the only - blame I could incur in this affair. You know that nobody's - judgment weighs farther with me than yours: think a little of - the matter. If M{me.} De Dupre were in town, I would desire - her to give these papers a perusal, and tell me her opinions. - Unhappily M. Trudaine would only understand the French part, - which is by far the most considerable. What would his friend - Fontenelle have done in this situation? - - I am as great a lover of peace as he, and have kept myself as - free from all literary quarrels; but surely neither he nor any - other person was ever engaged in a controversy with a man of - so much malice,--of such a profligate disposition to lies, and - such great talents. It is nothing to dispute my style or my - abilities as an historian or philosopher; my books ought to - answer for themselves, or they are not worth the - defending;--to fifty writers who have attacked me on this - head, I never made the least reply. But this is a different - case; imputations are here thrown on my morals and my conduct; - and, though my case is so clear as not to admit of the least - controversy, yet it is only clear to those who know it; and I - am uncertain how far the public in Paris are in this case. At - London, a publication would be regarded as entirely - superfluous. - - I must desire you to send these papers to D'Alembert after you - have read them: M. Turgot will get them from him. I should - desire that _he_ saw them before he sets out for his - government. - - Does not M{me.} de Montigny laugh at me, that I should have - sent her, but a few weeks ago, the portrait of Rousseau, done - from an original in my possession, and should now send you - these papers, which prove him to be one of the worst men, - perhaps, that ever existed, if his frenzy be not some apology - for him. I beg my compliments to M. and M{me.} Fourqueux; and - am, with great truth and sincerity, my dear sir, your most - affectionate humble servant.[348:1] - -To Adam Smith, who was then in Paris, he wrote the following letter, -without date:-- - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"You may see in M. D'Alembert's hands, the whole narrative of my affair -with Rousseau, along with the whole train of correspondence. Pray, is it -not a nice problem, whether he be not an arrant villain, or an arrant -madman, or both. The last is my opinion, but the villain seems to me to -predominate most in his character. I shall not publish them unless -forced, which you will own to be a very great degree of self-denial. My -conduct in this affair would do me a great deal of honour, and his would -blast him for ever, and blast his writings at the same time; for as -these have been exalted much above their merit, when his personal -character falls, they would of course fall below their merit. I am, -however, apprehensive that in the end I shall be obliged to publish. -About two or three days ago, there was an article in the _St. James's -Chronicle_, copied from the _Brussels Gazette_, which pointed at this -dispute. This may probably put Rousseau in a rage. He will publish -something, which may oblige me for my own honour to give the narrative -to the public. There will be no reason to dread a long train of -disagreeable controversy. One publication begins and ends it on my side. -Pray, tell me your judgment of my work, if it deserves the name. Tell -D'Alembert I make him absolute master, to retrench or alter what he -thinks proper, in order to suit it to the latitude of Paris. - -"Were you and I together, dear Smith, we should shed tears at present -for the death of poor Sir James Macdonald. We could not possibly have -suffered a greater loss, than in that valuable young man. I am," -&c.[349:1] - - -There is a letter by Smith on the subject, kind and honest. It must be -kept in view, that it was written not only before the series of -documents, mentioned in Hume's letter, had been sent to France, and -before the French friends had recommended Hume to publish, but before -the date of Rousseau's indictment. We shall, hereafter, find that Smith -seems to have withdrawn his objection to the publication. - - -ADAM SMITH _to_ HUME. - - _Paris, 6th July, 1766._ - - MY DEAR FRIEND,--I am thoroughly convinced that Rousseau is as - great a rascal as you and as every man here believes him to - be; yet let me beg of you, not to think of publishing any - thing to the world, upon the very great impertinence which he - has been guilty of to you. By refusing the pension which you - had the goodness to solicit for him with his own consent, he - may have thrown, by the baseness of his proceedings, some - little ridicule upon you in the eyes of the court and the - ministry. Stand this ridicule, expose his brutal letter, but - without giving it out of your own hand, so that it may never - be printed; and if you can, laugh at yourself, and I shall - pawn my life, that before three weeks are at an end, this - little affair, which at present gives you so much uneasiness, - shall be understood to do you as much honour as any thing that - has ever happened to you. By endeavouring to unmask before the - public this hypocritical pedant, you run the risk of - disturbing the tranquillity of your whole life. By letting him - alone, he cannot give you a fortnight's uneasiness. To write - against him is, you may depend upon it, the very thing he - wishes you to do. He is in danger of falling into obscurity in - England, and he hopes to make himself considerable, by - provoking an illustrious adversary. He will have a great - party: the Church, the Whigs, the Jacobites, the whole wise - English nation, who will love to mortify a Scotchman, and to - applaud a man who has refused a pension from the king. It is - not unlikely, too, that they may pay him very well for having - refused it, and that even he may have had in view this - compensation. Your whole friends here wish you not to - write--the Baron,[350:1] D'Alembert, Madame Riccoboni, - Mademoiselle Rianecourt, M. Turgot, &c. &c. M. Turgot, a - friend every way worthy of you, desired me to recommend this - advice to you in a particular manner, as his most earnest - entreaty and opinion. He and I are both afraid that you are - surrounded with evil counsellors, and that the advice of your - English literati, who are themselves accustomed to publish all - their little gossiping stories in newspapers, may have too - much influence upon you. Remember me to Mr. Walpole, and - believe me, &c. - -Smith was thus in consultation on the subject with the excellent Turgot, -who gave Hume his opinion at great length. On the 27th July, before he -could have heard of the long "indictment," he wrote[351:1] that he could -trace the rage of Rousseau to two causes: first, Hume being the author -of one of the sarcasms in Walpole's letter, a rumour which Turgot -appears to have believed; and second, the interpreting the letter to Mr. -Conway as a refusal of the pension, which it was not intended by -Rousseau to be. If the latter was one of Rousseau's grievances, he did -not make it a count in the indictment. Turgot was ignorant of the -strength of provocation which Hume received. He says, that it is a -mistake to suppose Rousseau's conduct the effect of deliberate -design,--a view in which every one not in the vortex of the dispute must -have coincided with him; and on the ground that no sensible person will -believe that he is guilty of the charges his excited enemy may make -against him, he advises Hume not to treat them seriously. He even hints -that Hume should acknowledge that he misinterpreted the letter about the -pension, and should endeavour to coax Rousseau back to good humour, as a -public exposure would be unpleasant to both parties. On the 7th -September, after having seen all the documents, he preserved the same -tone in speaking of Rousseau; recommending forbearance towards him: but -at the same time he expressed an opinion that Hume might find it -necessary to publish a narrative of the transaction.[352:1] - -We find that Smith was also in communication with Madame de Boufflers, -who wrote to Hume at considerable length, in the knowledge of the first -angry letter, but not of the "indictment." She assumes a tone much the -same as that of Turgot, when he wrote in the same circumstances. She -expresses many regrets that Hume should have written so condemnatory a -letter to the Baron D'Holbach. He is told that those who _profess_ to be -his friends in France will abet him, because he is proving himself to be -a mere ordinary human being, instead of continuing to show his -superiority to the common frailties of humanity. He is entreated to look -compassionately on a man who has overwhelmed himself with calamities, -and to treat one who is capable only of injuring himself with generous -pity. While making these recommendations, she, as well as Turgot, -believed that one of the sarcasms in Walpole's letter had been suggested -by Hume.[354:1] The same tone was taken up by Lord Marischal; who, -writing on the 15th August from Potsdam, seems not to have perused the -"indictment." "You did all in your power," says this kind old soldier, -"to serve him; his ecart afflicts me on his account more than yours, who -have, I am sure, nothing to reproach yourself with. It will be good and -humane in you, and like Le Bon David, not to answer."[354:2] - -D'Alembert was at first opposed to a publication, and to an exposure of -the follies of the wise before "cette sotte bete appelee le public." So -early, however, as the 21st of July, he communicates the solemn opinion -of himself and other friends in Paris, that after the publicity which -the dispute has acquired, it will be necessary for Hume to print a -narrative.[354:3] He states that this is the opinion of all intelligent -people. He says at the same time, that he had been speaking with Adam -Smith on the subject, and though his name is not among those of the -committee who recommended the publication, it may be presumed that he -had at length admitted it to be necessary. - -In connexion with the letter from D'Alembert, Hume wrote thus to -Walpole:-- - - DEAR SIR,--When I came home last night, I found on my table a - very long letter from D'Alembert, who tells me, that on - receiving from me an account of my affair with Rousseau, he - summoned a meeting of all my literary friends at Paris, and - found them all unanimously of the same opinion with himself, - and of a contrary opinion to me, with regard to my conduct. - They all think I ought to give to the public a narrative of - the whole. However, I persist still more closely in my first - opinion, especially after receiving the last mad letter. - D'Alembert tells me that it is of great importance for me to - justify myself from having any hand in the letter from the - King of Prussia. I am told by Crawford, that you had wrote it - a fortnight before I left Paris, but did not show it to a - mortal, for fear of hurting me; a delicacy of which I am very - sensible. Pray recollect if it was so. Though I do not intend - to publish, I am collecting all the original pieces, and I - shall connect them by a concise narrative. It is necessary for - me to have that letter and Rousseau's answer. Pray, assist me - in this work. About what time, do you think, were they - printed? I am, &c.[355:1] - -Hume, afterwards, sent to Paris all the documents connected with -Rousseau's attack, to be published or not, at the discretion of his -friends; and they were published. If it be asked how he permitted so -cruel a thing to be done, the answer is, that he was human, and had been -deeply injured; that he had a reputation to preserve, and did not -consider himself bound to sacrifice it to the peace of his assailant. -Rousseau had triumphantly written, hither and thither, that Hume dared -not publish the "indictment." He had said, that if he did not see David -Hume exposed ere he died, he would cease to believe in Providence. He -was occupied in writing his celebrated Confessions, and had -significantly hinted to Hume that he would find himself pilloried there. -It is possible to create an ideal image of a mind that would have calmly -resisted all these impulses, and let the traducer proceed unnoticed in -his frantic labours. It is probable that if he had adopted this course, -Hume would in the end have been as completely absolved from the -accusations of Rousseau, as he was by the publication of the accusation. -Had he thus scorned to adopt the usual means of protecting his good -name, his character would have appeared, to all who believed in his -innocence, more magnanimous than it was. But it certainly would not have -been so natural; and many of those who seemed to have expected that the -metaphysician should be above the influence of ordinary human passions, -appear to have forgotten, that there are few even of the men whose -office it is to teach that those smitten on the one cheek should present -the other, who would have shown even as much forbearance on the occasion -as David Hume. - -The editing of the French version of these documents was committed to -Suard, the author of the Melanges de Litterature. In answer to a letter -of 2d November,[357:1] announcing the publication, Hume wrote to him in -the following terms, admitting, as the reader will perceive, that he had -used harsh expressions, and approving of their being softened. - - -HUME _to_ M. SUARD. - - I cannot sufficiently express, my dear sir, all the - acknowledgments which I owe you for the pains you have taken - in translating a work, which so little merited your attention, - or the attention of the public. It is done entirely to my - satisfaction; and the introduction in particular is wrote with - great prudence and discretion in every point, except where - your partiality to me appears too strongly. I accept of it, - however, very willingly as a pledge of your friendship. You - and M. D'Alembert did well in softening some expressions, - especially in the notes; and I shall take care to follow these - corrections in the English edition. My paper, indeed, was not - wrote for the public eye; and nothing but a train of - unforeseen accidents could have engaged me to give it to the - press. I am not surprised, that those who do not consider nor - weigh those circumstances, should blame this appeal to the - public; but it is certain that if I had persevered in keeping - silence, I should have passed for the guilty person, and those - very people who blame me at present, would, with the - appearance of reason, have thrown a much greater blame upon - me. This whole adventure, I must regard as a misfortune in my - life: and yet, even after all is past, when it is easy to - correct any errors, I am not sensible that I can accuse myself - of any imprudence; except in accepting of this man when he - threw himself into my arms: and yet it would then have - appeared cruel to refuse him. I am excusable for not expecting - to meet with such a prodigy of pride and ferocity, because - such a one never before existed. But after he had declared war - against me in so violent a manner, it could not have been - prudent in me to keep silence towards my friends, and to wait - till he should find a proper time to stab my reputation. From - my friends, the affair passed to the public, who interested - themselves more in a private story, than it was possible to - imagine; and rendered it quite necessary to lay the whole - before them. Yet, after all, if any one be pleased to think, - that by greater prudence I could have avoided this - disagreeable extremity, I am very willing to submit. It is not - surely the first imprudence I have been guilty of.[358:1] - -Among other distinctions, the publication of the controversy brought -Hume a letter from Voltaire, in which the patriarch gave the history of -his own grievances against Rousseau, with all his usual sarcasm; and -said, of that absorbing vanity for which he might have had more fellow -feeling, that Rousseau, believing himself worthy of a statue, thought -one half of the world was occupied in raising it on its pedestal, and -the other in pulling it down.[358:2] - -This little collection, bearing the title, "Expose succint de la -contestation qui s'est elevee entre M. Hume et M. Rousseau, avec les -pieces justificatives," was soon afterwards published in English, under -Hume's own superintendence. He judiciously observed, that a translation -would undoubtedly appear, and that it was more honest, and at the same -time more conducive to his reputation, that he should himself -superintend the publication. - -He had intimated, that as Rousseau would probably impugn the genuineness -of the letters as they appeared in print, he would deposit the originals -in a public library. In this view, he addressed the following letter to -the librarian of the British Museum. - - -"_Edinburgh, 23d Jan. 1767._ - -"SIR,--As M. Rousseau had wrote to several of his correspondents, that I -never dared to publish the letters which he had wrote me; or if I -published them they would be so falsified that they would not be the -same, I was obliged to say in my preface, that the originals would be -consigned in the Museum. I hope you have no objection to the receiving -them. I send them by my friend M. Ramsay. Be so good as to give them the -corner of any drawer. I fancy few people will trouble you by desiring a -sight of them. All the world seems to be satisfied concerning the -foundation of that unhappy affair. Yet notwithstanding, I own, that I -never in my life took a step with so much reluctance as the consenting -to that publication. But as it appeared absolutely necessary to all my -friends at Paris, I could not withstand their united opinion. I have -also sent the original of M. Walpole's letter to me, which enters into -the collection. I am, sir, your most obedient, and most humble -servant."[360:1] - - -It appears that the trustees of the British Museum, for some one or -other of the inscrutable reasons which occasionally sway the counsels of -such bodies, declined to receive this very curious collection of -documents. Dr. Maty, writing to Hume on 22d April, 1767, says, "I longed -to have some conversation with you on the subject of the papers, which -were remitted to me by the hands of M{r.} Ramsay, and as our trustees -did not think proper to receive them, to restore them into yours. With -respect to these papers, give me leave to assure you, that I had never -any doubt about the merits of the cause. I have long ago fixed my -opinion about R----'s character, and think madness is the only excuse -that can be offered for his inconsistencies."[360:2] - -Those original letters connected with the controversy, which were -addressed to Hume, whether by Rousseau or others, are among the papers -in possession of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. They bear marks of -having been much handled.[360:3] Of the letters addressed to Rousseau, -which of course were written in French, it is to be presumed that Hume -preserved the duplicates, which afterwards enabled him to show copies of -the documents on both sides. The originals probably do not exist; for -Rousseau, who held his own part in a controversy as the only important -one, appears not to have kept the letters addressed to him, though he -retained copies of his own. - -The dispute with Rousseau very nearly produced a subsidiary discussion -with Horace Walpole. He said, alluding to the advice which had been -transmitted to Hume by D'Alembert, "Your set of literary friends are -what a set of literary men are apt to be, exceedingly absurd. They hold -a consistory to consult how to argue with a madman; and they think it -very necessary for your character, to give them the pleasure of seeing -Rousseau exposed; not because he has provoked you, but them. If Rousseau -prints, you must; but I certainly would not, till he does." - -Walpole evidently looked on this quarrel as a small dispute between -small people;--something on a par with the wrangling of country -gentlemen about their preserves and their swing gates.[361:1] Yet, when -he found that his own name appeared to be connected with it, he thought -it right to publish "a narrative of what passed relative to the quarrel -of Mr. David Hume and J. J. Rousseau, as far as Mr. Horace Walpole was -concerned in it." He very distinctly absolves Hume from any connexion -with the fictitious letter of the King of Prussia. The only wrong of -which he had to complain was, that Hume published this exoneration, of -which it seems a publication was not expected, though the letter -contained the words, "You are at full liberty, dear sir, to make use of -what I say in your justification, either to Rousseau or any body else;" -and that, in printing the letter, the passage above cited, reflecting on -the literary circle of Paris, had been, from motives of delicacy towards -all parties, suppressed.[362:1] - -The only portion of Walpole's pamphlet that appears to possess any -interest, contains Hume's remarks on his friend, D'Alembert. They were -intended as an answer to Walpole's spiteful sneers; but, though -eulogistic, and apparently just, they by no means exhibit a violent -encomiastic zeal. - - D'Alembert is a very agreeable companion, and of - irreproachable morals. By refusing great offers from the - Czarina and the King of Prussia, he has shown himself above - interest and vain ambition. He lives in an agreeable retreat - at Paris, suitable to a man of letters. He has five pensions: - one from the King of Prussia, one from the French King, one as - member of the Academy of Sciences, one as member of the French - Academy, and one from his own family. The whole amount of - these is not six thousand livres a-year; on the half of which - he lives decently, and gives the other half to poor people - with whom he is connected. In a word, I scarce know a man, - who, with some few exceptions, (for there must always be some - exceptions,) is a better model of a _virtuous_ and - _philosophical_ character. - - You see I venture still to join these two epithets as - inseparable, and almost synonymous, though you seem inclined - to regard them almost as incompatible. And here I have a - strong inclination to say a few words in vindication, both of - myself and my friends; venturing even to comprehend you in the - number. What new prepossession has seized you, to beat in so - outrageous a manner your nurses of Mount Helicon, and to join - the outcry of the ignorant multitude against science and - literature? For my part, I can scarce acknowledge any other - ground of distinction between one age and another, between one - nation and another, than their different progress in learning - and the arts. I do not say between one man and another, - because the qualities of the heart and temper, and natural - understanding, are the most essential to the personal - character; but being, I suppose, almost equal among nations - and ages, do not serve to throw a peculiar lustre on any. You - blame France for its fond admiration of men of genius; and - there may no doubt be, in particular instances, a great - ridicule in these affectations; but the sentiment, in general, - was equally conspicuous in ancient Greece; in Rome, during its - flourishing period; in modern Italy; and even, perhaps, in - England about the beginning of this century. If the case be - now otherwise, it is what we are to lament and be ashamed of. - Our enemies will only infer, that we are a nation which was - once, at best, but half civilized; and is now relapsing fast - into barbarism, ignorance, and superstition. I beg you also - to consider the great difference, in point of morals, between - uncultivated and civilized ages. But I find I am launching out - insensibly into an immense ocean of commonplace. I cut the - matter, therefore, short, by declaring it as my opinion, that - if you had been born a barbarian, and had every day cooked - your dinner of horse flesh, by riding on it fifty miles - between your breech and the shoulder of your horse, you had - certainly been an obliging, good-natured, friendly man; but, - at the same time, that reading, conversation, and travel, have - detracted nothing from these virtues, and have made a - considerable addition of other valuable and agreeable - qualities to them. I remain, not with ancient sincerity, which - was only roguery and hypocrisy, but very sincerely, dear sir, - &c. - -Rousseau did not resign his pension, and made it be very distinctly -known that he would insist upon his claims to be paid what had been -promised; but he would not owe it to the intervention of David Hume. He -continued to reside for several months at Wooton, where he made some -progress in his renowned "Confessions." "He is, I am sure," says Mr. -Davenport, in one of his letters, "busy writing; and it should be some -large affair, from the quantity of paper he bought." Like other mental -patients, when long separated from his favourite excitement, his mind -became attuned to less tumultuous movements; and he ceased, in some -measure, to feel the want of notoriety. The visions of conspiracy and -treachery gradually disappeared, and now we find him, in his letters, -only saying; "Je n'ai rien a dire de M. Hume, sinon que je le trouve -bien insultant pour un bon homme, et bien bruyant pour un philosophe." -He had a genuine love of nature and of rural pursuits; and he appears to -have varied his literary labours, by joining in some projects of Mr. -Davenport for the cultivation of forest lands. - -Writing to Blair, on 14th February, 1767, Hume says:-- - - -"General Conway told me, on my arrival, that Rousseau had made an -application to him, through the canal of Mr. Davenport, to have his -pension granted to him. The general's answer was, that I was to be in -town in a few days; and, without my consent, and even full approbation, -he would take no step in that affair. You may believe that I exhorted -him to do so charitable an action. I wish he may not find a difficulty -with the King, who is very much prejudiced against Rousseau.[365:1] This -step of my old friend confirms the suspicion which I always entertained, -that he thought he had interest enough to obtain the pension of himself; -and that he had only picked a quarrel with me in order to free himself -from the humiliating burden of gratitude towards me. His motives, -therefore, were much blacker than many seem to apprehend them. - -"A gentleman told me that he heard, from the French ambassador, that his -most Christian Majesty had given an arret, prohibiting, under the -severest penalties, the printing, vending, or dispersing, any paper of -Rousseau, or his partisans, against me. I dine with the ambassador -to-day, so shall know the truth of the matter, which scarce appears -credible. It is surely very honourable for me; but yet will occasion -that strange man to complain, that he is oppressed with power all over -the world. I am,"[365:2] &c. - - -At length, on the 31st of April, 1767, Rousseau and Mademoiselle Le -Vasseur suddenly disappeared from Wooton together. Hume thus describes -the incident in a letter to Blair:-- - -"You may, perhaps, have heard that Rousseau has eloped from Mr. -Davenport, without giving any warning; leaving all his baggage, except -Mademoiselle, about thirty pounds in Davenport's hands, and a letter on -the table, abusing him in the most violent terms, insinuating that he -was in a conspiracy with me to ruin him.[366:1] He took the road to -London, but was missing for about a fortnight. At last he emerges at -Spalding in Lincolnshire, whence he writes a letter to the Chancellor, -informing him that the bad usage he had met with in England, made it -absolutely necessary for him to evacuate the kingdom, and desiring his -lordship to send him a guard to escort him to Dover--this being the last -act of hospitality he will desire of the nation. He is plainly mad, -though I believe not more than he has been all his life. The pamphlet -you mention was wrote by one as mad as himself, and it was believed at -first to be by Tristram Shandy, but proves to be [by] one Fuseli an -engraver. He is a fanatical admirer of Rousseau, but owns he was in the -wrong to me. The pamphlet I sent to you was wrote by an English -clergyman, whom I never saw; a man of character, and rising in the -church,[366:2] for which reason it is more prudent in me to conceal his -name. When would _you_ have done so much for me."[367:1] - -As Rousseau did not favour the world in his "Confessions," with the -adventures he encountered during this flight, it is of some interest, in -the absence of a personal narrative, to mark the impression produced by -the incident on an onlooker, whom it seems to have filled with mingled -feelings of compassion and astonishment. The following are some extracts -from Mr. Davenport's letters to Hume:-- - - -MR. DAVENPORT _to_ HUME. - - _Davenport, 13th May, 1767._ - - DEAR SIR,--After all my inquiries, I can't, for the life of - me, find out to what part my wild philosopher is fled. I sent - after him some papers, thinking they would most certainly find - him in London. No such matter: he is not to be found there. - They scarce took any thing along with them, but what they - carried on their backs. All the trunks, &c. are at Wooton; and - this odd man has just packed up his things, and left the keys - dangling at the locks of his boxes. No sort of direction for - me, though he knows I am in his debt between L30 and L40; and - I want, of all things, to inform him what he has to do in - relation to his majesty's bounty, which I am sure he will with - great satisfaction receive, because I have it so positively - under his own hand. You shall have the joy of perusing his - letter; but one dated about six days before must be added to - it. At present my gout is too much upon me to write copies of - them. Pray, if you hear where he is, do me the pleasure to - inform me. I am, &c. &c. - - P.S.--I protest I pity him more and more, as I certainly - conclude that his head is not quite right. - - - _Davenport, Monday 18th._ - - I can't help giving you the trouble of this. Last night I - received a most melancholy letter from poor Rousseau, dated - Spalding in Lincolnshire. How, or on what account, he got to - that place, I can't for the life of me guess; but this I - learn, that he is most excessively sick of his situation, and - is returning to Wooton, as soon as, I suppose, he can well get - there. He has been all the time at an inn in that town. Pray, - was the place you mentioned to me in that county, any where - near Spalding? I own to you, I was quite moved to read his - mournful epistle. I am quite confirmed in my opinion of him: - this last from him, is entirely different in style, from any I - ever yet received. I have in my answer, desired he would write - to some friend of his in town, to authorize him to receive his - majesty's bounty, as it becomes due. I have told him that his - agent must apply, and show his letter to Mr. Lounds of the - Treasury. Poor Rousseau writes of nothing but his misery, - illness, afflictions; in a word, of his being the most - unfortunate man that ever existed. Good God! most of those - distresses are surely occasioned by his own unhappy temper, - which I really believe is not in his power to alter! so, let - him be where he will, I fear he is certain to be uneasy. His - passion for Botany has, as I conjecture, almost left him. If I - am right in my guess, I have no sort of doubt, but he will - again take to his pen, as 'tis impossible for his imagination - to remain idle. I am, &c. - - - _Davenport, May 25, 1767._ - - DEAR SIR,--'Tis with the greatest satisfaction I hear, this - poor unfortunate man will enjoy the pension. I am sure he lies - under a thousand obligations to you, and am extremely glad he - has wrote to General Conway. I hope he made use of at least - some expressions of gratitude and respect to that gentleman, - whose goodness of heart obtained this favour from his majesty. - - I am sure you'll do your endeavour to save him from the - Bastile, or (which I more fear) the Archbishop of Paris' - prison. - - He wrote me a letter from Spalding, dated 11th, in which he - says, I have great reason to be offended at his manner of - leaving Wooton. He says,-- - - Je preferois la liberte, au sejour de votre maison; ce - sentiment est bien excusable. Mais je prefere infiniment le - sejour de votre maison a tout autre captivite, et je - prefererois toute captivite a celle ou je suis, qui est - horrible, et qui, quoiqu'il arrive ne sauroit durer. Si vous - voulez bien Monsieur me recevoir derechef chez vous, je suis - pret a m'y rendre au cas qu'on m'en laisse la liberte, et - quand j'y serois apres l'experience qui j'ai faite, - difficilement serois-je tente d'en ressortir pour chercher de - nouveaux malheurs. Si ma proposition vous agree, tachez, - Monsieur de me le faire savoir par quelque voie sure, et de - faciliter mon retour d'ici chez vous. - - He repeats the same request of sending to him two or three - times. This which he sent on the 11th, I received on the 17th. - On the 18th I despatched a servant to Spalding: instead of - staying for my answer, behold, on the 14th he set out for - Dover, and on that morning wrote again by the post to me, in - which he says, that if he had any assurance this letter of the - 11th would come to me, and that I would agree to his - proposals, and again receive him, he should certainly stay for - an answer; but as he despaired of my receiving his, so he was - determined to pass the Channel, and I should hear from him - when he reached Calais, and quite sure of his liberty; that he - would write from thence and make me a very singular - proposition. He professes the greatest regard for me, &c. The - next is dated, Dover, 18th May, where he says, that he chose - to write to me from that place; that seeing the sea, and - finding he was in reality a free man, and might either go or - stay,--then, says he, I stopped, and intended to return to - you; but by chance seeing in a public paper how my departure - from Wooton was treated, caused him immediately to renounce - that idea. He finishes with many compliments, but without - telling me where to write to him, and I long to know how to - address my letters. Before he left Wooton, he disposed of - several long gowns amongst the poor people, went off in an old - French dress, and got a blue coat made for him at Spalding. - Pray, can you inform me who he has authorized to receive his - majesty's bounty; because I think I may pay into their hands - the money I have of his in mine. I should be pleased if you - could be so kind as to inform me what date his letter bore, - which he wrote to the Lord Chancellor. I am, dear sir, &c. - - - _4th July, 1767._ - - This week I received a letter from Rousseau, dated, Fleury - under Meudon, wrote with great complaisance; he returns a - thousand thanks for all the civilities he received from me at - Wooton; says that he is not fixed as to the place of his - future residence, but that he will inform me as soon as he has - made choice of one. - - The style of this is vastly different from some of the last of - those which he wrote in England; no mention of captivities, no - wild imaginations of any kind, but entirely calm and composed. - I heartily wish he may continue so, then sure he will be - somewhat happy. I am, &c. - - - _6th July, 1767._ - - The good woman who is called my housekeeper was my nurse, near - ninety, and more than three parts blind. Mad{lle} and she - never could agree. I have heard something of the story of the - kettle and cinders,[370:1] but am inclinable to believe my - philosopher's resolutions were determined before that fray - happened. His governante has an absolute power over him, and - without doubt more or less influences all his actions. You - certainly guess right about the unaccountable quarrel with - you, to whom he has so many and great obligations: nay, I am - almost sure he very heartily repents and inwardly wants to be - reconciled. He has desired to hear from me often, and promises - to let me know how he goes on, as soon as ever he is the least - fixed. What he was writing, is the same he mentioned to you, - will be a large work, containing at least twelve volumes. I - am positively certain that when I left him, he had not - entirely finished one. There's nothing in it which in any - shape relates to state affairs or to ministers of state. - - You shall see his letter the first opportunity; but, God help - him! I can't, for pity, give a copy; and 'tis so much mixed - with his own poor little private concerns, that it would not - be right in me to do it. . . . I am, dear sir, &c.[371:1] - -In the following letters, Hume narrates these events to his Northern -friends, having been so frequently desired to give explanations of the -rumours regarding Rousseau's escapades which occasionally reached -Scotland, that he found it most expedient to answer miscellaneous -inquiries by general chronological narratives. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_27th May, 1767._ - -"Since you are curious to hear Rousseau's story, I shall tell you the -sequel of it. A few days after his letter to the Chancellor, of which I -informed you, I got a letter from Davenport, who told me that he had -just received a letter from Rousseau, dated at Spalding, wherein that -wild philosopher, as he calls him, appeared very penitent, and contrite, -and melancholy; and expressed his purpose of returning immediately to -his former retreat at Wooton. The same day, and nearly the same hour, -General Conway received a long letter from him, dated at Dover, about -two hundred miles distant from Spalding. This great journey he had made -in two days; and had probably set out immediately after writing the -letter above-mentioned to Davenport.[372:1] This letter to General -Conway is the most frenzical imaginable. He there supposes that he was -brought into England by a plot of mine, in order to reduce him to -infamy, derision, and captivity. That General Conway, and all the most -considerable personages of the nation, and the nation itself, had -entered into this conspiracy. That he is at present actually a state -prisoner in General Conway's hands, and has been so ever since his -arrival in the kingdom. He entreats him, however, to allow him the -liberty of departing; warns him that it will not be safe to assassinate -him in private; as he is unhappily too well known not to have inquiries -made, if he should disappear on a sudden; and promises that if his -request be granted, his memoirs shall never be printed to disgrace the -English ministry and the English nation. - -"He owns that he has wrote such memoirs, the chief object of which was -to deliver a faithful account of the treatment he has met with in -England; but he promises, that the moment he sets foot on the French -shore, he shall write to the friend in whose hand the manuscript is -deposited, to deliver it to the General, who may destroy it if he -pleases. He adds, that as it may be objected, that after recovering his -liberty he may do as he pleases, he offers, as a pledge of his -sincerity, to accept of his pension; after which he thinks no one will -imagine he could be so infamous as to write against the king's ministers -or his people. Amidst all this frenzy, he employs these terms as if a -ray of reason had for a moment broke into his mind. He says, speaking -of himself in the third person, 'Non-seulement il abandonne pour -toujours le projet d'ecrire sa vie et ses memoires, mais il ne lui -echappera jamais, ni de bouche ni par ecrit, un seul mot de plainte sur -les malheurs qui lui sont arrives en Angleterre; il ne parlera jamais de -M. Hume, ou il n'en parlera qu'avec honneur, et lorsqu'il sera presse de -s'expliquer sur quelques indiscretes plaintes, qui lui sont quelquefois -echappees dans le fort de ses peines, il les rejettera sans mystere, sur -son humeur aigrie et portee a la defiance, et aux ombrages par ce -malheureux penchant, ouvrage de ses malheurs, et qui maintenant y met le -comble.'[373:1] - -"We hear that notwithstanding his imagined captivity, he has passed over -to Calais; where he is likely to experience what real captivity is. I -have, however, used my persuasion with Mons{r} de Guerchi to represent -him to his court as a real madman, more an object of compassion than of -anger. We shall no doubt see his Memoirs in a little time: which will be -full of eloquence and extravagance, though perhaps as reasonable as any -of his past productions; for I do not imagine he was ever much more in -his senses than at present. I think I may be entirely without anxiety -concerning all his future productions."[374:1] - - -The following letters to Smith appear to have been intended as a -comprehensive history of the flight of Rousseau. The reader will readily -excuse the repetition of some incidents already mentioned, and may -perhaps find an interest in comparing the impressions produced by the -events as they were successively occurring, with this general retrospect -of the whole. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_London, 8th October, 1767._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I shall give you an account of the late heteroclite -exploits of Rousseau, as far as I can recollect them. There is no need -of any secrecy: they are most of them pretty public, and are well known -to every body that had curiosity to observe the actions of that strange, -undefinable existence, whom one would be apt to imagine an imaginary -being, though surely not an _ens rationis_. - -"I believe you know, that in spring last, Rousseau applied to General -Conway to have his pension. The General answered to Mr. Davenport, who -carried the application, that I was expected to town in a few days; and -without my consent and approbation he would take no steps in that -affair. You may believe I readily gave my consent. I also solicited the -affair, through the Treasury; and the whole being finished, I wrote to -Mr. Davenport, and desired him to inform his guest, that he needed only -appoint any person to receive payment. Mr. Davenport answered me, that -it was out of his power to execute my commission: for that his wild -philosopher, as he called him, had eloped of a sudden, leaving a great -part of his baggage behind him, some money in Davenport's hands, and a -letter on the table, as odd, he says, as the one he wrote to me, and -implying that Mr. Davenport was engaged with me in a treacherous -conspiracy against him! He was not heard of for a fortnight, till the -Chancellor received a letter from him, dated at Spalding in -Lincolnshire; in which he said that he had been seduced into this -country by a promise of hospitality; that he had met with the worst -usage; that he was in danger of his life from the plots of his enemies; -and that he applied to the Chancellor, as the first civil magistrate of -the kingdom, desiring him to appoint a guard at his own (Rousseau's) -expense, who might safely conduct him out of the kingdom. The Chancellor -made his secretary reply to him, that he was mistaken in the nature of -the country; for that the first post-boy he could apply to, was as safe -a guide as the Chancellor could appoint. At the very same time that -Rousseau wrote this letter to the Chancellor, he wrote to Davenport, -that he had eloped from him, actuated by a very natural desire, that of -recovering his liberty; but finding he must still be in captivity, he -preferred that at Wooton: for his captivity at Spalding was intolerable -beyond all human patience, and he was at present the most wretched being -on the face of the globe: he would therefore return to Wooton, if he -were assured that Davenport would receive him. - -"Here I must tell you, that the parson of Spalding was about two months -ago in London, and told Mr. Fitzherbert, from whom I had it, that he had -passed several hours every day with Rousseau, while he was in that -place; that he was cheerful, good-humoured, easy, and enjoyed himself -perfectly well, without the least fear or complaint of any kind. However -this may be, our hero, without waiting for any answer, either from the -Chancellor or Mr. Davenport, decamps on a sudden from Spalding, and -takes the road directly to Dover; whence he writes a letter to General -Conway, seven pages long, and full of the wildest extravagance in the -world. He says, that he had endured a captivity in England, which it was -impossible any longer to submit to. It was strange, that the greatest in -the nation, and the whole nation itself, should have been seduced by one -private man, to serve his vengeance against another private man: he -found in every face that he was here the object of general derision and -aversion, and he was therefore infinitely desirous to remove from this -country. He therefore begs the General to restore him to his liberty, -and allow him to leave England; he warns him of the danger there may be -of cutting his throat in private; as he is unhappily a man too well -known, not to have inquiries made after him, should he disappear of a -sudden: he promises, on condition of his being permitted to depart the -kingdom, to speak no ill of the king or country, or ministers, or even -of Mr. Hume; as indeed, says he, I have perhaps no reason; my jealousy -of him having probably arisen from my own suspicious temper, soured by -misfortunes. He says, that he wrote a volume of Memoirs, chiefly -regarding the treatment he has met with in England; he has left it in -safe hands, and will order it to be burned, in case he be permitted to -go beyond seas, and nothing shall remain to the dishonour of the king -and his ministers. - -"This letter is very well wrote, so far as regards the style and -composition; and the author is so vain of it, that he has given about -copies, as of a rare production. It is indeed, as General Conway says, -the composition of a whimsical man, not of a madman. But what is more -remarkable, the very same post, he wrote to Davenport, that, having -arrived within sight of the sea, and finding he was really at liberty to -go or stay, as he pleased, he had intended voluntarily to return to him; -but seeing in a newspaper an account of his departure from Wooton, and -concluding his offences were too great to be forgiven, he was resolved -to depart for France. Accordingly, without any farther preparation, and -without waiting General Conway's answer, he took his passage in a packet -boat, and went off that very evening. Thus, you see, he is a composition -of whim, affectation, wickedness, vanity, and inquietude, with a very -small if any ingredient of madness. He is always complaining of his -health; yet I have scarce ever seen a more robust little man of his -years. He was tired in England; where he was neither persecuted nor -caressed, and where, he was sensible, he had exposed himself. He -resolved, therefore, to leave it; and having no pretence, he is obliged -to contrive all those absurdities, which he himself, extravagant as he -is, gives no credit to. At least, this is the only key I can devise to -his character. The ruling qualities above-mentioned, together with -ingratitude, ferocity, and lying,--I need not mention eloquence and -invention,--form the whole of the composition. - -"When he arrived at Paris, all my friends, who were likewise all his, -agreed totally to neglect him. The public, too, disgusted with his -multiplied and indeed criminal extravagancies, showed no manner of -concern about him. Never was such a fall from the time I took him up, -about a year and a half before. I am told by D'Alembert and Horace -Walpole, that, sensible of this great alteration, he endeavoured to -regain his credit by acknowledging to every body his fault with regard -to me: but all in vain: he has retired to a village in the mountains of -Auvergne, as M. Durand tells me, where nobody inquires after him. He -will probably endeavour to recover his fame by new publications; and I -expect with some curiosity the reading of his Memoirs, which will I -suppose suffice to justify me in every body's eyes, and in my own, for -the publication of his letters and my narrative of the case. You will -see by the papers, that a new letter of his to M. D., which I imagine to -be Davenport, is published. This letter was probably wrote immediately -on his arrival at Paris; or perhaps is an effect of his usual -inconsistence: I do not much concern myself which. Thus he has had the -satisfaction, during a time, of being much talked of, for his late -transactions; the thing in the world he most desires: but it has been at -the expense of being consigned to perpetual neglect and oblivion. My -compliments to Mr. Oswald; and also to Mrs. Smith. I am," &c.[378:1] - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_London, 17th October, 1767._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I sit down to correct a mistake or two in the former -account which I gave you of Rousseau. I saw Davenport a few days ago, -who tells me, that the letter inserted in all the newspapers, was never -addressed to him. He even doubts its being genuine; both because he -knows it to be opposite to all his sentiments with regard to me, to whom -he desires earnestly to be reconciled, and because it is too absurd and -extravagant, and seems to be contrived rather as a banter upon him. -Davenport added, that Rousseau was retired to some place in France, and -had changed his name and his dress:[379:1] but wrote to him that he was -the most miserable of all beings; that it was impossible for him to stay -where he was; and that he would return to his old hermitage, if -Davenport would accept of him. Indeed, he has some reason to be -mortified with his reception in France; for Horace Walpole, who has very -lately returned thence, tells me, that though Rousseau is settled at -Cliche, within a league of Paris, nobody inquires after him, nobody -visits him, nobody talks of him, every one has agreed to neglect and -disregard him: a more sudden revolution of fortune than almost ever -happened to any man--at least to any man of letters. - -"I asked Mr. Davenport about those Memoirs, which Rousseau said he was -writing, and whether he had ever seen them. He said, yes, he had; it was -projected to be a work in twelve volumes; but he had as yet gone no -farther than the first volume, which he had entirely composed at Wooton. -It was charmingly wrote, and concluded with a very particular and -interesting account of his first love, the object of which was a person -whose first love it also was. Davenport, who is no bad judge, says, that -these Memoirs will be the most taking of all his works; and, indeed, you -may easily imagine what such a pen would make of such a subject as that -I mentioned. Meanwhile it appears clearly, what I told you before, that -he is no more mad at present, than he has been during the whole course -of his life, and that he is capable of the same efforts of genius. I -think I may wait in security his account of the transactions between us. -But, however, this incident, which I foresaw, is some justification of -me for publishing his letters, and may apologise for a step, which you, -and even myself, have been inclined sometimes to blame, and always to -regret."[380:1] - - -So ended Rousseau's wild sojourn, in what he termed "l'heureuse terre, -ou sont nes David Hume et le Marechal d'Ecosse." When the wounds -inflicted on his benefactor by ungrateful actions and uncharitable -interpretations had been healed by time, and the conduct of him who had -occasioned them was seen no longer through the excited medium of -lacerated feelings, the hour had come for the just understanding to aid -the kind heart, in estimating the character of the assailant; for -finding that, deep as were the wounds he might inflict on others, there -was an arrow still more deeply buried in his own bosom; that -commiseration should take the place of resentment; and that the -wanderer's footsteps should be accompanied by the prayer, that peace -might revisit his disturbed spirit. Hume felt, perhaps, what he could -not have expressed so well as one whose mind had too much in common with -that which he describes, - - His life was one long war with self-sought foes; - Or friends by him self-banished; for his mind - Had grown Suspicion's sanctuary, and chose, - For its own cruel sacrifice, the kind, - 'Gainst whom he raged with fury strange and blind. - But he was frenzied,--wherefore, who may know? - Since cause might be which skill could never find; - But he was frenzied by disease or woe, - To that worst pitch of all, which wears a reasoning show. - -Hume was not a man given to the clamorous expression of contritions or -regrets. It is in his silence and his subsequent acts that we find him -desirous to compensate for the punishment he had inflicted on his -assailant. The letters of his French friends, during the summer of 1767, -show that he had earnestly exerted himself to protect Rousseau from the -vengeance of the government;[381:1] and there is all reason to believe, -that it was through this intervention that the wanderer was permitted to -pursue his course in peace. On the other hand, when the dark cloud had -completely passed away, the monomaniac appears to have awakened to a -distressing consciousness of what he had done. He afterwards attributed -his conduct in England to our foggy atmosphere, which had filled his -mind with gloom and discontent; and the work at which he laboured busily -with the fierce excitement of him who forges a weapon to avenge his -wrongs, stopped short at the very point where his narrative of injuries -was to commence. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[319:1] It might be expected, from the nature of Mr. Davenport's -letters, that his descendants should be in possession of letters, either -by Hume or Rousseau bearing on this curious passage of literary history. -I believe I am committing no breach of private confidence in saying, -that this family, to whom I am indebted for many polite attentions, lost -all such documents, along with other valuable papers. They were -destroyed by an attorney,--who at the same time put an end to his own -life. - -[320:1] This letter was written in French; and the person to whom it was -addressed is not known. It was published in a miscellany, of which a -translation (from which the above extract is made) appeared in 1799, as -"Original Letters of J. J. Rousseau, Butta Fuoco, and David Hume." - -[320:2] Private Correspondence, p. 153. - -[320:3] Expose Succinct. - -[320:4] See above, p. 304. One of Rousseau's favourite amusements was, -drawing a vehement picture of his misfortunes and his poverty; and after -having thus laid a sort of trap, catching some benevolent person in the -act of secretly attempting to aid him. Many of his letters are like -those of a petty dealer, who is afraid of being imposed on, and must see -that all the consignments are exact, as per invoice and account. The -matter of the return chaise already alluded to, slightly tinges the good -humour of the former of these letters. In the other, there are some -remonstrances about a model of a bust of himself, which he will not take -from the artist unless it is to be paid for. The same letter contains -the following passage, which the editors of the "Expose Succinct" did -not think it necessary to print. It illustrates Rousseau's occasional -attention to small matters. - -"Je vous suis oblige d'avoir bien voulu solder le memoire de M. Stuart. -J'y trouve deux articles qui ne sont pas de ma connoissance. L'un de L1 -14 pour du cafe, et l'autre de 5 sh. pour un moulin. Il est vrai que M. -Stuart avoit bien voulu se charger de ces commissions, mais je ne les ai -point recues ni avec mon bagage ni autrement, et n'en ai aucun avis que -par son memoire." - -[321:1] Though it has been repeated in so many other places, it seems -necessary, for the distinctness of the narrative, here to print this -famous letter. - - "Mon cher Jean Jacques, - - "Vous avez renonce a Geneve, votre patrie. Vous vous etes fait - chasser de la Suisse, pays tant vante dans vos ecrits; la - France vous a decrete; venez donc chez moi. J'admire vos - talens; je m'amuse de vos reveries qui (soit dit en passant) - vous occupent trop et trop longtemps. Il faut a la fin etre - sage & heureux; vous avez fait assez parler de vous, par des - singularites peu convenables a un veritable grand homme: - demontrez a vos enemis que vous pouvez avoir quelquefois le - sens commun: cela les fachera sans vous faire tort. Mes etats - vous offrent une retraite paisible: je vous veux du bien, & je - vous en ferai, si vous le trouvez bon. Mais si vous vous - obstinez a rejetter mon secours, attendez-vous que je ne le - dirai a personne. Si vous persistez a vous creuser l'esprit - pour trouver de nouveaux malheurs, choisissez-les tels que - vous voudrez; je suis roi, je puis vous en procurer au gre de - vos souhaits; et, ce qui surement ne vous arrivera pas - vis-a-vis de vos ennemis, je cesserai de vous persecuter, - quand vous cesserez de mettre votre gloire a l'etre. Votre bon - ami, - - FREDERICK." - -Rousseau thought it worse than strange, that the person who wrote this -letter should have been intrusted with the conveyance of a parcel to -him, holding it to be clear that Walpole must necessarily be a person -who could not be intrusted with his property. M. Musset Pathay, in his -"Vie de Rousseau," makes a serious charge against Hume, in connexion -with Walpole's conduct. Hume confessed his being present when one of the -pleasantries of the letter was uttered in conversation. "Horace -Walpole's letter," he says to Madame de Barbantane, "was not founded on -any pleasantry of mine. The only pleasantry in that letter came from his -own mouth in my company, at Lord Ossory's table, which my lord remembers -very well." (_Private Correspondence_, p. 146.) On this passage, M. -Musset says: "Elle prouve que l'historien Anglais s'est permis une -plaisanterie contre Jean Jacques, au moment meme ou, lui temoignant le -plus grand interet, il se preparait a l'emmener en Angleterre. Ainsi, a -l'epoque ou David donnait a Rousseau les plus grandes marques d'amitie, -il contribuait d'un cote a le rendre un objet de ridicule, par un bon -mot qui fit partie du persiflage d'Horace Walpole," (i. 115.) If the -reader thinks he here finds a French statesman announcing the rigid -doctrine of sincerity, that no man should patiently hear his friend's -foibles laughed at, he will find, on examining the passage, that M. -Musset has chosen to speak of Hume as the _author_ of the jest. In -harmony with this view he, innocently it is to be presumed, translates -the above sentence in Hume's letter thus:--"La seule plaisanterie que je -me sois permise relativement a la pretendue lettre du roi de Prusse, fut -faite _par moi_ a la table de Lord Ossory!" - -[323:1] Private Correspondence, p. 133. - -[323:2] Madame de Boufflers writes on 6th May:-- - -"Je ne puis croire que le violent chagrin dont parle J. J. vienne de la -lettre de M. Walpole, quoique surement elle l'a du beaucoup affecter. Je -crains bien plutot que quelque degout de M{elle.} Le Vasseur ou quelques -querelles entre eux n'en soit la cause; eclaircissez cela de grace, et -otez moi du l'inquietude ou vous m'avez prise."--MS. R.S.E. - -[324:1] That Hume was, in the meantime, quite unconscious of any cause -of offence against himself, is evident from his writing to Madame de -Boufflers, on 16th May: - -"As to the deep calamity of which he complains, it is impossible for me -to imagine it. I suppose it is some trifle, aggravated by his melancholy -temper and lively fancy. I shall endeavour to learn from Mr. Davenport, -who is just gone to that neighbourhood. Lady Aylesbury and General -Conway believe that it is Horace Walpole's letter which still torments -him. That letter was put into our newspapers; which produced an answer, -full of passion, and indeed of extravagance, complaining in the most -tragical terms of the forgery, and lamenting that the impostor should -find any abettors and partisans in England. Mr. Walpole has wrote a -reply, full of vivacity and wit, but sacrifices it to his humanity, and -is resolved that no copy of it shall get abroad. He assures me that he, -as well as Madame du Deffand, were entirely innocent of that publication -at Paris: it was a lady, a friend of yours, who gave the first copy." -_Private Correspondence_, pp. 170-171. - -[325:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[325:2] Musset Pathay, Vie de Rousseau, vol. i. p. 116. This gentleman -concludes that, within the space of twenty-four hours, Rousseau must -have had reason to change from the extremity of confidence in Hume, to a -full conviction of his guilt. But with all his desire to vindicate -Rousseau, his account of the manner in which this conclusion had been -reached, does not tend to convince one that it was well founded. - - "Mais, d'apres l'etude du caractere de Rousseau, d'apres - l'observation qui prouve que, dans la solitude, l'imagination - s'effarouche aisement, il est plus naturel de croire que, - tout-a-coup, une multitude de circonstances s'offrirent a la - fois a la memoire de Jean Jacques, et, quoique minutieuses en - elles memes, qu'elles devinrent, par leur nombre, et leur - coincidence, importantes et graves. Il ne fallait qu'un - incident pour les rendre telles, comme une goutte suffit pour - faire deborder un vase plein d'eau." - -[326:1] Printed documents of the controversy--Ritchie's Life of Hume. - -[328:1] Documents of the controversy, &c. - -[329:1] There is certainly one important exception to this method of -viewing the matter, and that in a book otherwise of merit. One would -hardly expect to meet with a work of the nineteenth century, containing -a serious vindication of Rousseau, as a sane man who was in the right in -this quarrel, while Hume was in the wrong. Yet some such task has been -undertaken in the "Histoire de la Vie et des Ouvrages de J. J. -Rousseau," by the late M. Musset Pathay, (1821,) which may be ranked -among the boldest efforts of that school of biographers, whose principle -is, that the hero of their tale must not be admitted to have had any -vice or weakness. M. Musset's charges against Hume are much of the same -mystical character with those made by Rousseau himself, and amount to -this, that there was something in the whole aspect of affairs not quite -satisfactory. He deals with some small matters of fact,--he is very -indignant that Hume should, as he confesses, have tried to prevent -Rousseau from plunging into a distant solitude; and we have already seen -the effect which his zeal has had on his discrimination, in the affair -of Walpole's letter. He makes one discovery, of which it would be unjust -to deny him the full merit. Hume says, in his Vindication, "It is with -reluctance I say it, but I am compelled to it. I now know of a -certainty, that this affectation of extreme poverty and distress was a -mere pretence, a petty kind of imposture, which M. Rousseau successfully -employed to excite the compassion of the public: but I was then very far -from suspecting any such artifice." In a letter to Madame de Boufflers, -he says, "I should be glad to know how your inquiries at M. Rougemont's -have turned out. It is only matter of mere curiosity: for even if the -fact should prove against him, which is very improbable, I should only -regard it as one weakness more, and do not make my good opinion of him -to depend on a single incident." (_Private Correspondence_, p. 130.) Now -Rougemont was a banker, and M. Musset infers that Hume had been making -inquiries as to Rousseau's pecuniary affairs. Perhaps, when he found a -man proclaiming his destitution to all Europe, and flinging back, in the -faces of the givers, the assistance his importunities extracted from the -compassionate, it was not a very great crime to endeavour to ascertain -the truth of any rumour, that the misery was not so extreme as the -sufferer painted it, and the necessity for their intervention not so -great as the compassionate believed it to be. There is one letter from -M. Rougemont among the MSS. R.S.E. dated 5th March, 1766. If it does not -contradict, it certainly does not confirm the theory of M. Musset. It is -too long and commonplace to be here inserted in full. There is not a -word in it about money matters; and it appears to be written in answer -to some high praise of Rousseau by Hume. The banker says: - -"L'opinion que vous avez de M. Rousseau ne me laisse plus aucun doute: -et c'est avec la plus grande satisfaction que je vois que mon -enthusiasme ne m'a point aveuglee; les details que vous me faites, me -persuadent encore plus de la verite d'une observation que vous avez -faite un soir; c'est, qu'il n'est qu'un homme ordinaire quand son coeur -ne sent rien." MS. R.S.E. - -One might indeed infer, that Hume's inquiries were to discover whether -the solitude of Wooton would be likely to be favourable to Rousseau. M. -Rougemont thinks it would not. "La solitude," he says, "qui peut cesser -quand on veut, peut avoir des charmes; mais je ne puis croire qu'il ne -soit pas fort malheureux d'etre necessairement prive de toute societe." -The rest of his letter is devoted to Parisian literary gossip, with -which the banker appears to have been ambitious of showing his -acquaintance. - -It is not when reviewing the conduct of Hume, but when recalling such -observations as those made by Dr. Johnson on Rousseau, that one is -tempted to sympathize with M. Musset. Of the rigid moralist's opinions, -Boswell gives us the following sketch: - -"One evening, at the Mitre, Johnson said sarcastically to me, 'It seems, -sir, you have kept very good company abroad: Rousseau and Wilkes!' I -answered, with a smile, 'My dear sir, you don't call Rousseau bad -company: do you really think _him_ a bad man?' Johnson. 'Sir, if you are -talking jestingly of this, I don't talk with you. If you mean to be -serious, I think him one of the worst of men; a rascal who ought to be -hunted out of society as he has been. Three or four nations have -expelled him; and it is a shame that he is protected in this country. -Rousseau, sir, is a very bad man. I would sooner sign a sentence for his -transportation, than that of any felon who has gone from the Old Bailey -these many years. Yes, I should like to have him work in the -plantations.'"--Boswell, vol. ii. p. 314, ed. 1835. - -[331:1] A scientific gentleman, whose writings on medical jurisprudence -are of high authority, and who had read the Hume and Rousseau -controversy, observed to me, that Rousseau's case should have been -treated as one of monomania. - -[332:1] Whoever would notice the practical sagacity of Rousseau's -genius, may compare the early part of "Emile," with "Combe on the -Management of Infancy," and observe in how many things the theorist and -the scientific inquirer coincide. - -[333:1] "We have had," says Burke, in his Reflections on the French -Revolution, "the great professor and founder of the philosophy of vanity -in England. As I had good opportunities of knowing his proceedings, -almost from day to day, he left no doubt on my mind that he entertained -no principle, either to influence his heart or guide his understanding, -but vanity: with this vice he was possessed to a degree little short of -madness." - -[333:2] D'Alembert writes to Hume, on 4th August: - -"Il y a dans la drole de lettre de _ce joli petit homme_, comme vous -l'appelliez autrefois, une phrase sacramentelle ou sacramentale, a -laquelle vous n'avez peut-etre pas fait autant d'attention qu'elle le -merite; c'est que _le public, qui d'abord avoit ete fort amoureux de -lui, commenca bientot apres a le negliger_. Voila ce qui le fache -veritablement, et il s'en prend a qui il peut. Vous vous etes charge de -montrer l'ours a la foire; sa loge qui d'abord etoit pleine, est bientot -restee vuide, et il vous en rend responsable. Il est d'ailleurs tres -certain, et je le scais de Duclos son ami, a qui il l'a dit, ainsi qu'a -bien d'autres, qu'il _ne peut pas souffrir toutes les personnes a qui il -a obligation_: et sur ce pied la, vous avez bien des droits a sa haine." -MS. R.S.E. - -[334:1] During his sojourn in England, he was in dread of being -kidnapped. The late Professor Walker remembered being asked by Lord Bute -to accompany Rousseau on a botanizing excursion on the banks of the -Thames, and that he was just explaining something about marine plants -being acrid, when a Cockney pic-nic party of youths, dressed as sailors, -landed. Rousseau instantly took to his heels! The professor being -responsible for his safe restoration, followed, and, after a -considerable chase, succeeded in running him down. Rousseau, seeing that -there were no other pursuers, passed the matter off by the observation -that marine _men_ were acrid. After his return from England, an account -for nine francs, which it appears he was not due, was presented against -him by a tradesman. He called on all Europe to witness this conspiracy -to destroy his character, and raised such an outcry as must have -effectually frightened sober tradesmen from overcharging interesting -solitaries. - -[335:1] Even his trusted friend, Du Peyrou, writing to Hume on 13th -February, after many eulogiums on his kindness to the unfortunate, -says:-- - -"C'est sous votre couvert qu' M. Rousseau m'a marque, Monsieur, que je -devois lui ecrire: voudriez vous donc avoir la complaisance de lui faire -parvenir l'incluse a son adresse." MS. R.S.E. - -[337:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[337:2] He was a cordial hater of all uncandidness in others, whatever -he might be in his own case. Morellet tells a laughable anecdote of -Rousseau's presence on an occasion when some of the wicked wits of Paris -were what is commonly called "trotting out" a vain poet, and making him -say ridiculous things of his own genius. Rousseau, after walking -restlessly about the room, burst into a rage, told the poet that he was -a poor paltry idiot, and the company were only encouraging him to make -game of him. - -[338:1] An incident had just happened to make the name of the "quack -Tronchin," peculiarly offensive. This distinguished physician had -received public honours at Parma. After strenuous popular opposition, he -had been permitted to practise the new precautionary remedy of -inoculation on the young prince Ferdinand. The experiment had been -successful; all Parma, excited by loyal joy, petitioned the Grand-duke -to admit the physician to the rank of citizen. A tablet, commemorating -the triumph of science, was erected in the town hall, and a medal with -suitable devices was struck in honour of the operator. He was a relation -of Tronchin the Procureur General of Geneva, author of _Lettres ecrites -de la Campagne_, which Rousseau answered in _Lettres de la Montagne_. -See him mentioned above, p. 186. - -[339:1] Morellet questions if he _could_ have done so, i. 106. - -[340:1] The following jeu-d'esprit, which was printed in some of the -periodicals of the day, is really a pretty accurate abridgment of -Rousseau's paper. It has the appearance of having been written by a -Scottish lawyer:-- - - -_Heads of an Indictment laid by J. J. Rousseau, philosopher, against D. -Hume, Esq._ - - 1. That the said David Hume, to the great scandal of - philosophy, and not having the fitness of things before his - eyes, did concert a plan with Mess. Tronchin, Voltaire, and - D'Alembert, to ruin the said J. J. Rousseau for ever, by - bringing him over to England, and there settling him to his - heart's content. - - 2. That the said David Hume did, with a malicious and - traitorous intent, procure, or cause to be procured, by - himself, or somebody else, one pension of the yearly value of - L100 or thereabouts, to be paid to the said J. J. Rousseau, on - account of his being a philosopher, either privately or - publicly, as to him the said J. J. Rousseau should seem meet. - - 3. That the said David Hume did, one night after he left - Paris, put the said J. J. Rousseau in bodily fear, by talking - in his sleep; although the said J. J. Rousseau doth not know - whether the said David Hume was really asleep, or whether he - shammed Abraham, or what he meant. - - 4. That, at another time, as the said David Hume and the said - J. J. Rousseau were sitting opposite each other by the - fireside in London, he, the said David Hume, did look at him, - the said J. J. Rousseau, in a manner of which it is difficult - to give any idea: That he, the said J. J. Rousseau, to get rid - of the embarrassment he was under, endeavoured to look full at - him, the said David Hume, in return, to try if he could not - stare him out of countenance; but in fixing his eyes against - his, the said David Hume's, he felt the most inexpressible - terror, and was obliged to turn them away, insomuch that the - said J. J. Rousseau doth in his heart think and believe, as - much as he believes any thing, that he, the said David Hume, - is a certain composition of a white-witch and a rattlesnake. - - 5. That the said David Hume on the same evening, after - politely returning the embraces of him, the said J. J. - Rousseau, and gently tapping him on the back, did repeat - several times, in a good-natured easy tone, the words, "Why, - what, my dear sir! Nay, my dear sir! Oh, my dear sir!" From - whence the said J. J. Rousseau doth conclude, as he thinks - upon solid and sufficient grounds, that he the said David Hume - is a traitor; albeit he, the said J. J. Rousseau, doth - acknowledge, that the physiognomy of the good David is that of - an honest man, all but those terrible eyes of his, which he - must have borrowed; but he the said J. J. Rousseau vows to God - he cannot conceive from whom or what. - - 6. That the said David Hume hath more inquisitiveness about - him than becometh a philosopher, and did never let slip an - opportunity of being alone with the governante of him the said - J. J. Rousseau. - - 7. That the said David Hume did most atrociously and - flagitiously put him, the said J. J. Rousseau, philosopher, - into a passion; as knowing that then he would be guilty of a - number of absurdities. - - 8. That the said David Hume must have published Mr. Walpole's - letter in the newspapers, because, at that time, there was - neither man, woman, nor child, in the island of Great Britain, - but the said David Hume, the said J. J. Rousseau, and the - printers of the several newspapers aforesaid. - - 9. That somebody in a certain magazine, and somebody else in a - certain newspaper, said something against him, the said John - James Rousseau, which he, the said J. J. Rousseau, is - persuaded, for the reason abovementioned, could be nobody but - the said David Hume. - - 10. That the said J. J. Rousseau knows, that he, the said - David Hume, did open and peruse the letters of him, the said - J. J. Rousseau, because he one day saw the said David Hume go - out of the room, after his own servant, who had, at that time, - a letter of the said J. J. Rousseau's in his hands; which - _must_ have been in order to take it from the servant, open - it, and read the contents. - - 11. That the said David Hume did, at the instigation of the - devil, in a most wicked and unnatural manner, send, or cause - to be sent, to the lodgings of him, the said J. J. Rousseau, - one dish of beefsteaks, thereby meaning to insinuate, that he, - the said J. J. Rousseau, was a beggar, and came over to - England to ask alms: whereas be it known to all men by these - presents, that he, the said John James Rousseau, brought with - him the means of subsistence, and did not come with an empty - purse; as he doubts not but he can live upon his labours--with - the assistance of his friends; and in short can do better - without the said David Hume than with him. - - 12. That besides all these facts put together, the said J. J. - Rousseau did not like a certain appearance of things on the - whole. - -[343:1] "That of the 22d of March, which is full of cordiality, and -proves that M. Rousseau had never, to that moment, entertained any of -those black suspicions of perfidy which he publishes at present. There -is only in that letter a peevish passage about the affair of his -chaise."--Hume. - -[344:1] Documents of the controversy. - -[344:2] Such was his first impulse. He evidently, after viewing the -matter more coolly, was disinclined to publish, but he was finally -prevailed on to do so. - -[345:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[346:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[346:2] Morellet, i. 105. - -[346:3] Priv. Cor. 204. - -[348:1] Voltaire et Rousseau par Henry Lord Brougham, App. No. IX. Lord -Brougham twice honoured me with an intimation that he had obtained -letters of David Hume, in Paris, which were too late for his own "Lives -of Men of Letters," and were to be sent to _me_. While thankfully -waiting for their arrival, I observed, on the title page of his -lordship's French lives of Voltaire and Rousseau, that the book -contained "Lettres entierement inedites de _Hume_." Thinking it not -impossible that the letters destined for my use, had thus, by some -accident, been diverted from their destination, I have printed them in -this book, according to their dates, in the fullest assurance of his -lordship's cordial concurrence. - -[349:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[350:1] D'Holbach. - -[351:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[352:1] - -"_A Paris, le 7 Septembre, 1766._ - -"J'ai trouve ici, monsieur, votre lettre de 5 Aout, a mon retour d'un -voyage que j'ai ete faire en Normandie. D'Alembert, qui venoit alors de -recevoir votre recit de l'Histoire de Rousseau avec les lettres que vous -y avez inserees, me l'a communique. Je vous crois a present si ennuye de -cette affaire que je ne sais si je dois encore vous en parler. M. De -Montigni m'a cependant dit que vous desiriez de savoir ma facon de -penser. Vous imaginez bien qu'elle ne peut pas etre douteuse sur le fond -de l'affaire, et je crois qu'excepte Rousseau, et peut-etre M{lle.} Le -Vasseur, il n'y a personne dans le monde qui s'imagine, ni qui eut -jamais imagine, que vous ayez mene Rousseau en Angleterre pour le -trahir, et a qui sa longue lettre et ses demonstrations ne fassent -pitie. Mais je vous avoue que j'y vois toujours plus de folie que de -noirceur. J'y vois des sophismes dont une imagination se sert pour -empoisonner les circonstances les plus simples et les transformer au gre -de la manie qui l'occupe. Mais je ne crois point que ces extravagances -soient un jeu joue, et un pretexte pour secouer le poids de la -reconnoissance qu'il vous doit. Il paroit sentir lui meme que personne -ne le croira, et qu'il se couvre d'opprobre du moins pour le moment aux -yeux du public. Il avoue qu'il sacrifie et son interet et meme sa -reputation: et il est certain que cette affaire lui fait un tort -irreparable, l'isole du genre humain, et lui ote tout appui contre les -persecutions auxquelles ses opinions et encore plus ces traits de sa -misanthropie l'exposeront toujours. Je persiste donc a ne le croire que -fou, et je suis afflige que l'impression trop vive qu'a faite sur vous -sa folie vous ait mis dans le cas de la faire eclater et de la rendre -irremediable; car le bruit qu'a fait votre lettre au Baron, est pour -Rousseau une demonstration que ces conjectures etoient fondees sur la -verite meme. Il a bien mande a Madame de Boufflers qu'il ne se plaignoit -pas, et que cette lettre qui vous a donne lieu de le diffamer comme le -dernier des hommes n'etoit ecrite qu'a vous. L'eclat que vous avez fait, -lui a fait tout le mal possible, et sa lettre ne vous en a fait aucun. . -. . . . . Apres vous avoir dit aussi franchement mon avis, vous serez -surpris peut-etre de me voir presque revenu a l'avis de faire imprimer. -La folie de Rousseau est telle qu'il a ecrit ici differentes lettres -dans lesquelles il regarde votre trahison comme si constante, et les -demonstrations comme si terrassantes pour vous, qu'il vous defie de -publier les pieces sans vous deshonorer, a moins que vous ne les -falsifiez; ce ne sont pas ses termes mais c'en est le sens. Si cette -espece de defi devenoit public a un certain point, et faisoit plus -d'impression en Angleterre qu'il n'en peut faire en France, peut-etre -serez-vous oblige d'imprimer. Mais en ce cas je voudrois retrancher tout -recit, toute imputation de mensonge, toutes notes excepte quelques unes -necessaires pour retablir simplement les faits importans, comme celui de -la scene qui s'est passee la veille de son depart pour Wooton. Encore -voudrois-je que dans ces notes vous disiez simplement le fait, sans -traiter Rousseau de menteur, sans vous abaisser a le prouver. Vous devez -etre cru sur ce que vous direz, et vous le serez. Je ne mettrois autre -chose a la tete, si non que les discours repandus sur la querelle, &c. -et l'espece de defi que M. Rousseau vous fait d'en publier ce qui s'est -passe, vous obligent a regret a publier les accusations de M. Rousseau -contre vous, et que vous croyez leur publication une reponse suffisante. -Voila quel est actuellement mon penchant. Mais comme je ne vois a cela -rien de presse, je crois que vous ferez bien de vous donner tout le tems -d'y reflechir. Plus vous mettez dans cette affaire de moderation et meme -d'indifference, plus le tort de Rousseau deviendra evident."--MS. R.S.E. - -[354:1] The original of this letter is in the MSS. R.S.E. It is printed -in Priv. Cor. p. 187. - -[354:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[354:3] "Le hasard a voulu que la plus part de vos amis, et surtout ceux -a qui vous me conseillez de lire votre lettre, se soient trouves -rassembles chez M{lle.} de L'Espinasse presque au moment que je l'ai -recue; Mr. Turgot, Mr. L'Abbe Morellet, Mr. Roux, Mr. Saurin, Mr. -Marmontel, Mr. Duclos. Tous unanimement, ainsi que M{lle.} de -L'Espinasse et moi sommes d'avis, que vous devez donner cette histoire -au public, avec toutes ses circumstances. Voici ce que nous vous -conseillons--je dis nous, car je parle ici au nom de tous. Vous -commencerez d'abord par dire que vous savez que Rousseau travaille a ses -memoires, qu'il fera sans doute mention de sa querelle avec vous, qui a -fait trop de bruit pour qu'il ne cherche pas a la tourner a son -avantage, que les memoires pourront paroitre ou apres votre mort ou -apres la sienne: que dans le 1{er} cas, comme vous l'observez vous-meme, -personne ne pourra vous justifier; que dans le second, votre defense -seroit sans force; que vous avez donc cru devoir donner vous meme toute -cette histoire au public, afin que Mr. Rousseau reponde s'il le peut. -Ensuite vous entrerez dans le detail, et dans le plus grand detail, mais -surtout, et c'est une chose absolument essentielle et que nous vous -recommendons tous--vous vous bornerez aux faits, exprimes simplement et -nettement, sans aigreur, sans la moindre injure, sans meme de reflexions -sur le caractere de Rousseau et sur ses ecrits; vous rapporterez vos -lettres et les siennes; celle qu'il vous a ecrite le 23 juin suffiroit -seule pour le faire condamner, vous ne direz point, du moins trop -souvent, que vous etes son bienfaiteur--tout le monde le sait assez. -Enfin mon cher ami, nous vous recommendons, et nous vous conjurons de -mettre dans cette brochure la plus grande moderation mais en meme temps -la plus grande clarte."--MS. R.S.E. - -[355:1] Walpole's "Narrative." - -[357:1] "Vous devez etre bien etonne, Monsieur, de n'avoir encore recu -aucune lettre sur la publication de votre memoire, et il y a en cela -beaucoup de ma faute. J'avois dit a M. D'Alembert que j'aurois l'honneur -de vous ecrire. Il a compte sur moi. Le Baron D'Holbach a compte sur -nous deux, et moi j'ai compte aussi sur eux; voila ce qui fait qu'il n'y -a rien que d'avoir plusieurs domestiques pour etre mal servi." - -Stating, that he has sent a copy of the collection by post, he proceeds: - -"Vous avez desire que je fusse votre traducteur, et je n'avois pas -besoin de tous les sentimens qui m'attachent a vous, pour me charger de -ce travail, avec plaisir. Votre cause me paroisoit celle des honnetes -gens et surtout celle des amis de la philosophie. Il y a long-tems que -je regardois Rousseau comme un profond et dangereux charlatan, qui avoit -passe sa vie a recevoir des bienfaits de tout le monde, et a faire tout -le mal qu'il avoit pu a ceux qui lui avaient fait le plus de bien. . . -Vous trouverez sans doute, Monsieur, qu'on a pris bien des libertes avec -votre texte: il y a beaucoup de passages alteres, et suprimes: mais il -n'y a aucun changement qui n'ait ete fait par M. D'Alembert ou de son -consentement, et toujours pour des raisons que vous aprouverez -vraisemblement." - -[358:1] New Monthly Magazine, (original series,) No. 72. - -[358:2] The letter is dated Ferney, 24th Oct. 1766. Oeuvres de Voltaire, -ed. 1789, lxiv. 495. Probably Hume never received this letter. It is not -in the MSS. R.S.E., and Voltaire was known to be in the habit of writing -to people through the press. Hume, however, states, in a note to the -narrative of his controversy, that he had had a letter from Voltaire -about three years before. There is no trace of it among his papers. - -[360:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[360:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[360:3] Among those who were eager to peruse these documents, Hume says, -writing to Madame de Barbantane, "The King and Queen of England -expressed a strong desire to see these papers, and I was obliged to put -them into their hands. They read them with avidity, and entertain the -same sentiments that must strike every one. The king's opinion confirms -me in the resolution not to give them to the public, unless I be forced -to it by some attack on the side of my adversary, which it will -therefore be wisdom in him to avoid." _Private Correspondence_, p. 210. - -[361:1] He says, in a subsequent letter,--"What are become of all the -controversies since the days of Scaliger and Scioppius, of Billingsgate -memory? Why, they sleep in oblivion, till some Bayle drags them out of -their dust, and takes mighty pains to ascertain the date of each -author's death, which is of no more consequence to the world than the -day of his birth. Many a country squire quarrels with his neighbour -about game and manors, yet they never print their wrangles, though as -much abuse passes between them, as if they could quote all the -Philippics of the learned." We have an instance of what he considered a -really important dispute, when he was baffled in his attempt to get his -nephew, Lord Orford, married to Miss Nicol, "the vast fortune." "Thus," -he says, "had I placed him in a greater situation than even his -grandfather hoped to bequeath to him,--had retrieved all the oversights -of my family,--had saved Houghton, and all our glory." "I have been -forced," he says, writing to Horace Mann, "_to write a narrative_ of the -whole transaction; and was with difficulty kept from publishing -it."--_Letters_, ii. 401. - -[362:1] He did not lose the opportunity afforded by the publication of -his pamphlet, for again expressing his contempt of men whose sole claim -to notice rested on the greatness of their genius: "For Monsieur -D'Alembert," he says, "I said that I was mighty indifferent about seeing -him. That it was not my custom to seek authors, who are a conceited -troublesome set of people." And hearing that Freron, the same who was so -sharp a thorn in Voltaire's side, had made some remarks on him, which -displeased the Duchesse de Choiseul, he says, "I immediately wrote to -Paris, to beg the duchess would suffer Freron and D'Alembert, or any of -the tribe, to write what they pleased, to get what money they could by -abusing me." - -[365:1] This is repeated in a letter to Robertson, of 19th March, and is -followed by the statement, "The King, when applied to, said, that since -the pension had once been promised, it should be granted, -notwithstanding all that had passed in the interval. And thus the affair -is happily finished, unless some new extravagance come across the -philosopher, and urge him to reject what he has anew applied -for."--_Stewart's Life of Robertson._ - -[365:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[366:1] The letter is in the usual editions of Rousseau's works, dated -30th April. - -[366:2] The pamphlets produced in England on this subject, were not -nearly so numerous as those published in France. Fuseli, whose mind was -well suited for such a paradoxical championship, wrote "A defence of M. -Rousseau, against the Aspersions of Mr. Hume, Monsieur Voltaire, and -their associates." The other pamphlet alluded to in the letter, was, -perhaps, "A letter to the Honourable Horace Walpole, concerning the -dispute between Mr. Hume and M. Rousseau," by the Rev. Ralph Heathcote, -D.D. Hume says, in a letter to Madame de Boufflers, "Agreeably to the -licence of this country, there has been a great deal of raillery on the -incident, thrown out in the public papers, but all against that unhappy -man. There is even a print engraved of it: M. Rousseau is represented as -a Yahoo, newly caught in the woods; I am represented as a farmer, who -caresses him and offers him some oats to eat, which he refuses in a -rage; Voltaire and D'Alembert are whipping him up behind; and Horace -Walpole making him horns of _papier mache_. The idea is not altogether -absurd."--_Private Correspondence_, p. 234. - -[367:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[370:1] Walpole, whose capacity for acquiring information on such -matters was unrivalled, seems to have at least made a near approach to -the discovery of this point. He says in his narration, "The chief cause -of his disgust has been a long quarrel between his housekeeper and Mr. -Davenport's cook-maid, who, as Rousseau affirmed, had always dressed -their dinner very ill, and at last had sprinkled ashes on their -victuals." - -[371:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[372:1] These incidents are also narrated in a letter to Madame de -Boufflers.--_Priv. Cor._ p. 241. And some of them in a French letter to -a person unknown, ib. p. 220. - -[373:1] See the letter following that of 30th April to Mr. Davenport, in -the ordinary editions of Rousseau's works. The only material divergence -in the passage cited above is in the last clause, and the words -"quelques indiscrettes plaintes qui lui sont quelquefois echappees dans -le fort de ses peines," to which the corresponding clause in Rousseau's -Works, is "les plaintes indiscrettes, qui dans le fort de ses peines, -lui sont quelquefois echappees." These discrepancies were probably -between Rousseau's preserved copy, and the letter sent. That this letter -was printed from a copy preserved by Rousseau, is shown by the editors -of his Works not knowing to whom it was addressed. Hume repeats his own -version of the passage in a French letter already referred to. See -_Private Correspondence_, p. 222. - -[374:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[378:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 649. Corrected from original MS. -R.S.E. - -[379:1] He assumed the name of Renou. - -[380:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[381:1] On 1st June, 1767, Turgot writes, in answer to a letter from -Hume: "Je me hate d'y repondre par ce courier, quoique je n'aie encore -fait aucune demarche pour le malheureux homme auquel, il est si digne de -vous de prendre encore interet. Le degre de folie qu'il montre -aujourdhui est en verite preferable a une folie moins exaltee, qui le -laissoit charge de tout l'odieux d'un exces d'ingratitude envers vous et -M. Davenport. Une pareille ingratitude reflechie et meditee ne peut me -paroitre dans la nature. . . . Je vous remercie de m'avoir choisi parmi -vos amis de ce pays-ci pour m'associer a la bonne action que vous voulez -faire en lui rendant service. J'y mettrai certainement tout le zele dont -je suis capable et a cause de son infortune, et a cause de l'interet que -vous y prenez." He continues to say, that to get him a safe passage may -be easy: to find him a permanent asylum in France, would be a more -difficult matter. "La chose est possible hors du ressort du Parlement de -Paris, mais il faut que le Roi y consente. Il n'y a que l'interet meme -que vous prenez, et la singularite de cette circonstance qui puisse -peut-etre adoucir le Roi sur le compte de Rousseau en faisant demander -la chose en votre nom par M. de Choiseul." - - - - -CHAPTER XVI. - -1766-1770. AEt. 55-59. - - Hume Under Secretary of State--Church Politics--Official - abilities--Conduct as to Ferguson's book--Quarrel with - Oswald--Baron Mure's sons--Project of continuing the History-- - Ministerial convulsions--Hume's conduct to his Family--His - Brother--His Nephews--Baron Hume--Blacklock--Smollett--Church - Patronage--Gibbon--Robertson--Elliot--Gilbert Stuart--The - Douglas Cause--Andrew Stewart--Morellet--Return to Scotland. - - -The quarrel with Rousseau seems to have so fully occupied the attention -of Hume, during its continuance, that he scarcely alluded to any other -subject in his correspondence; and thus, though the preceding chapter is -devoted entirely to that event, a very slight retrospect from the point -of time reached at its conclusion, will suffice for whatever else, -worthy of notice in his life or correspondence, has been preserved. - -In the summer of 1766, he made a short visit to Scotland. "I returned," -he says, in his "own life," "to that place, not richer, but with much -more money, and a much larger income, by means of Lord Hertford's -friendship, than I left it; and I was desirous of trying what -superfluity could produce, as I had formerly made an experiment of a -competency. But, in 1767, I received, from Mr. Conway, an invitation to -be under-secretary; and this invitation, both the character of the -person, and my connexions with Lord Hertford, prevented me from -declining." - -He was thus solicited to undertake the very responsible duties of this -office, by one who had good opportunities of knowing his capacity for -public business; and the simple fact of the appointment is a testimony -to the ability with which he had performed the analogous functions of -his office in France. He was indeed at all times a man of punctual -habits, and his unwearied industry had not yet begun to slacken. He had -a mind of that clear systematic order which was well fitted for the -composition of official documents; and his triumphs in philosophical and -historical literature never inflated him with the ambition of -considering any business which he consented to undertake too -insignificant to deserve his full attention. Some official documents, -connected with the successive offices which he held, have been -preserved, by collectors, as autographs of so celebrated a man: and they -generally arrest the attention of every one who examines them, by the -clearness and precision of the language, and not a little by the -neatness of the handwriting. - -After the resignation of the Marquis of Tweeddale, in 1746, there was no -longer a principal secretary of state for Scotland; and it became usual -to consult the Lord Advocate, or any other ministerial officer, locally -connected with the north, as to the policy to be pursued in Scottish -affairs. None of the principal members of the Grafton ministry were -Scotsmen; and there can be little doubt that Hume must then have -exercised a large influence in all affairs connected with his native -country.[383:1] He held his office until the 20th of July 1768, when -General Conway was superseded by Lord Weymouth. - -The following letter contains a brief sketch of the general current of -his official life. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_1st April, 1767._ - -"My way of life here is very uniform, and by no means disagreeable. I -pass all the forenoon in the secretary's house, from ten till three, -where there arrive, from time to time, messengers, that bring me all -the secrets of the kingdom, and, indeed, of Europe, Asia, Africa, and -America. I am seldom hurried; but have leisure, at intervals, to take up -a book, or write a private letter, or converse with any friend that may -call for me; and from dinner to bed-time is all my own. If you add to -this, that the person with whom I have the chief, if not only -transactions, is the most reasonable, equal tempered, and gentleman-like -man imaginable, and Lady Aylesbury the same, you will certainly think I -have no reason to complain; and I am far from complaining. I only shall -not regret when my duty is over; because, to me, the situation can lead -to nothing, at least in all probability; and reading, and sauntering, -and lounging, and dosing, which I call thinking, is my supreme -happiness. I mean my full contentment. - -"I thank you for the acquaintance you offer me of Mr. Percy; but it -would be impracticable for me to cultivate his friendship, as men of -letters have here no place of rendezvous; and are, indeed, sunk and -forgot in the general torrent of the world. If you can therefore -decline, without hardship, any letter of recommendation, it would save -trouble both to him and me."[385:1] - - -In the beginning of the year 1767, Ferguson published his "Essay on the -History of Civil Society," a work which speedily acquired a wide -reputation through Europe. The allusions which Hume has been found -making to some work of a similar character, so early as 1759,[385:2] -probably refer to a particular portion of this book. Immediately before -its publication, he recommended Ferguson's friends to prevail on him to -suppress the work, as likely to be injurious to its author's literary -reputation: one of the few instances, if it be not the only one, in -which he discouraged a fellow-countryman, desirous of casting his lot -into the competition for literary distinction. He ultimately found that -his advice was erroneous, as the book soon obtained a high character. -But, had his own opinion of its merits coincided with the suffrages of -the public, it would not have been so honourable to his memory, as the -satisfaction he expressed on the discovery that the verdict of the -reading world was against him. Writing to Blair on 24th February, 1767, -he says:-- - -"I happened yesterday to visit a person three hours after a copy of -Ferguson's performance was opened, for the first time, in London. It was -by Lord Mansfield. I accept this omen of its future success. He was -extremely pleased with it; said it was very agreeable, and perfectly -well wrote; assured me that he would not stop a moment till he had -finished it; and recommended it strongly to the perusal of the -Archbishop of York, who was present. I have wrote the same article of -intelligence to Ferguson himself; but as he is the likeliest person in -the world to suppress it, I thought it safest to put it into your hands, -in order to circulate it."[386:1] - -Again:-- - -"I hear good things said of Ferguson's book every day. Lord Holderness -showed me a letter from the Archbishop of York, where his Grace says, -that in many things it surpasses Montesquieu. My friend, Mr. Dodwell, -says that it is an admirable book, elegantly wrote, and with great -purity of language. Pray, tell to Ferguson and to others all these -things."[386:2] - -Again, writing to the same correspondent, on 1st April, he says:-- - -"The success of the book, dear Doctor, which you mention, gives me great -satisfaction, on account of my sincere friendship for the author; and so -much the rather, as the success was to me unexpected. I have since begun -to hope, and even to believe, that I was mistaken; and in this -persuasion have several times taken it up and read chapters of it. But, -to my great mortification and sorrow, I have not been able to change my -sentiments. We shall see, by the duration of its fame, whether or not I -am mistaken. Helvetius and Saurin both told me at Paris, that they had -been consulted by Montesquieu about his 'Esprit des Loix.' They used the -freedom to tell him, as their fixed opinion, that he ought to suppress -the book; which they foresaw would very much injure his reputation. They -said to me that, no doubt, I thought they had reason to be ashamed of -their judgment. But still, added they, you may observe that the public -are very much returned from their first admiration of that book; and we -are persuaded that they will daily return still more. - -"I hope that I shall be found a false prophet as much as these -gentlemen; for though the 'Esprit des Loix,' be considerably sunk in -vogue, and will probably still sink farther, it maintains a high -reputation, and probably will never be totally neglected. It has -considerable merit, notwithstanding the glare of its pointed wit, and -notwithstanding its false refinements, and its rash and crude positions. -Helvetius and Saurin assured me, that this freedom of theirs never lost -them any thing of Montesquieu's friendship. I believe the like would be -my case; but it is better not to put it to a trial. On that account, as -well as others, I recommend to you secrecy, towards every person except -Robertson."[388:1] - -A letter from Adam Smith, desiring that his friend, Count Sarsfield, -might be introduced to Hume's circle of acquaintance, called forth the -following narrative of a very amusing incident:-- - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_London, 13th June, 1767._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--The Count de Sarsfield is a good acquaintance of mine, -from the time I saw him at Paris; and as he is really a man of merit, I -have great pleasure whenever I meet him here. My occupations keep me -from cultivating his friendship as much as I should incline. I did not -introduce him to Elliot, because I knew that this gentleman's reserve -and indolence would make him neglect the acquaintance; and I did not -introduce him to Oswald, because I fear that he and I are broke for -ever; at least he does not seem inclined to take any steps towards an -accommodation with me. - -"I am to tell you the strangest story you ever heard of. I was dining -with him, above two months ago, where, among other company, was the -Bishop of Raphoe.[388:2] After dinner we were disposed to be merry. I -said to the company, that I had been very ill used by Lord Hertford; for -that I always expected to be made a bishop by him during his -lieutenancy! but he had given away two sees from me, to my great -vexation and disappointment. The right reverend, without any farther -provocation, burst out into the most furious, and indecent, and -orthodox rage that ever was seen: told me that I was most impertinent; -that if he did not wear a gown, I durst not, no, I durst not, have used -him so; that none but a coward would treat a clergyman in that manner; -that henceforth he must either abstain from his brother's house, or I -must; and that this was not the first time he had heard the stupid joke -from my mouth. With the utmost tranquillity and temper I asked his -pardon; assured him, upon my honour, that I did not mean him the least -offence: if I had imagined he could possibly have been displeased, I -never should have mentioned the subject; but the joke was not in the -least against him, but entirely against myself, as if I were capable of -such an expectation as that of being a bishop! my regard for himself, -and still more for his brother, with whom I had long been more -particularly connected, would certainly restrain me from either joke or -earnest, which could be offensive to him; and that, if I had ever -touched on the same topic before, I had entirely forgot it, and it must -have been above a twelvemonth ago. He was nowise appeased; raved on in -the same style for a long time. At last I got the discourse diverted, -and took my leave, seemingly with great indifference and even good -humour. I was nowise surprised nor concerned about his lordship; because -I had, on other occasions, observed the same orthodox zeal swell within -him, and it was often difficult for him to converse with temper when I -was in the company. - -"But what really surprised and vexed me was, that his brother kept -silence all the time. I met him in the passage when I went away, and he -made me no apology. He has never since called on me; and though he sees -that I never come near his house, though formerly I used to be three or -four times a-week with him, he never takes the least notice of it. I own -this gives me vexation, because I have a sincere value and affection for -him. It is only some satisfaction to me to find, that I am so palpably -in the right as not to leave the least room for doubt or ambiguity. Dr. -Pitcairne, who was in the company, says that he never saw such a scene -in his lifetime. If I were sure, dear Smith, that you and I should not -some day quarrel in some such manner, I should tell you that I am, yours -very affectionately and sincerely."[390:1] - - -The world levies certain penalties on the enjoyment of a character for -good nature and kindness, and Hume seems to have paid them to their most -ample extent, in the shape of executing commissions, and performing -general petty services for his friends. We have witnessed the zeal with -which he attended to the education of Mr. Elliot's two sons. A teacher -of languages, possessing the distinguished name of Graffigny, and -professing to be in the confidence of celebrated literary people in -Paris, appears to have excited the suspicion of Baron Mure, whose sons -he was employed to instruct. Hume undertook to make some inquiries -regarding him; and his brief reports, from time to time, have some -interest from their containing a few of his opinions on education. - - -HUME _to_ BARON MURE. - -"_London, 1st July, 1767._ - -"DEAR BARON,--I believe I told you, that D'Alembert disclaimed all sort -of acquaintance with him. I have this moment received a letter from -Helvetius, doing the same. It was in answer to one I wrote him at Lord -Hertford's desire. I know not from what quarter we had heard that he had -given to Lord Harcourt, or Lord Newnam, a good character of Graffigny: -but it must have been a mistake; for to me he says, that he knows no -such man; that his wife, who was niece to the famous Ma{me} de -Graffigny, and educated with her, never saw or heard of such a man: nor -can they imagine who he may be. After this second imposture, it is -certain that Lord Hertford will not put his sons to him; nor do I think -it fit yours should longer remain. He is an empty, conceited fellow, -full of chimeras and pretensions; and I think you are at no great loss -for parting with him. The question [is,] what to do next?" - - -(_Undated._) - -"DEAR BARON,--He is indeed a conceited man, full of whimseys and -affectations, reasoning always in the clouds about the most obvious -things, and hunting after novelties and singularities of which his -genius is incapable. What, for instance, can be more whimsical than his -method of teaching Latin? He gives his boys a long list of words, which -they are to get by heart, like the muster-roll of a regiment, and a -great heap of grammar rules, which are to them unintelligible. After he -has laid this foundation of a language, as he imagines, he begins them -with the most difficult of all the Latin poets; and for this plan of -education, he will give you a galimatias of reasons, clothed in the -smoothest language, and delivered with the softest accent." - - -(_Undated._) - -"DEAR BARON,--In my conversation with your young folks yesterday, I -endeavoured to inform myself concerning their progress in Latin. I find -that they are not taught any Latin grammar; they are only instructed in -the sense of single detached words, which they learn, both in Greek and -Latin, at once. Accordingly they told me water, aqua, and +hudor+; but -though I tried them in about half a dozen more words, I could not find -their learning extended so far. All this appears to me very whimsical; -and I doubt a dead language can never be learned in this manner without -grammar. In a living language, the continual application of the words -and phrases teaches at the same time the sense of the words, and their -reference to each other; but a list of words got by heart, without any -connected sense, easily escapes the memory, and is but a small part of -the language."[392:1] - - -There are several indications that Hume still retained the half-formed -intention of continuing his History through a portion of the period -succeeding the Revolution. In a brief undated letter, written to Smith -in Paris, he says:-- - -"Some push me to continue my History. Millar offers me any price. All -the Marlborough papers are offered me: and I believe nobody would -venture to refuse me. But _cui bono_? Why should I forego idleness, and -sauntering, and society, and expose myself again to the clamours of a -stupid factious public? I am not yet tired of doing nothing; and am -become too wise either to mind censure or applause. By and bye I shall -be too old to undergo so much labour. Adieu."[392:2] - -Smith's opinion is thus reported by Andrew Millar, on 22d November, -1766. - -"He is of opinion, with many more of your very good sensible friends, -that the History of this country, from the Revolution, is not to be met -with in books yet printed; but from MSS. in this country, to which he is -sure you will have ready access, from all accounts he hears from the -great here; and therefore you should lay the ground-work here, after -your perusal of the MSS. you may have access to, and doing it below will -be laying the wrong foundation. I think it my duty to inform you the -opinion of your most judicious friends, and I think he and Sir John -Pringle may be reckoned amongst that number."[393:1] - -Millar, indeed, seems to have scarcely ever relaxed from urging this -project; and perhaps it was his perseverance, and not any -self-originating desire to pursue the task, that kept the design alive -in Hume's mind. He had written to his worthy publisher on 8th October, -1766:-- - -"I shall probably do as you advise, and sketch out the outlines of the -two or three subsequent reigns, which I may finish at London, after I -find that there remains no farther obstacles to this work, and that it -is favoured, I do not say by every body, (for that is impossible,) but -by the generality of the world." - -At a later date he thus expressed his views:-- - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_London, 17th July, 1767._ - -"DEAR SIR,--We are still in as unsettled a condition as when you left -us. There will certainly be a considerable alteration in the ministry; -and I do not at present reckon my principal's situation more precarious -than that of any other minister. He speaks, however, like a man who is -to be out of office in a few days. I have also taken the precaution to -desire him to request of the king, in my name, the liberty, after my -dismission, of inspecting all the public records, and all the papers in -the Paper-office. His majesty was pleased to say, that he very willingly -complied with my request, and was glad to hear of my intentions. But my -chief view is to run over such papers as belong to the period which I -have already wrote, in order to render that part of my History as little -imperfect as possible. It would be folly to think of writing any more; -and even as to correcting, were it not an amusement, to what purpose -would it serve, since I shall certainly never live to see a new -edition?"[394:1] - - -On the same subject, and in the same tone, he writes to his brother, on -6th October:-- - -"As to myself, I pass my time, as I told you, in an agreeable enough -kind of business, and not too much of it. My income, also, is at present -very considerable--above L1100 a-year, of which I shall not spend much -above the half. Notwithstanding, I sometimes wish to be out of -employment, in order to prosecute my History, to which every body urges -me. When Mr. Conway was on the point of resigning, I desired him to -propose to the king that I might afterwards have the liberty of -inspecting all the public offices for such papers as might serve to my -purpose. His majesty said, that he was glad that I had that object in my -eye; and I should certainly have all the assistance in his power. He was -also pleased, some time after, to send to me the Baron Behr, minister -for Hanover, to tell me that he had ordered over some papers from -Hanover, to be put into my hands, because he believed they would be of -use to me. I believe I have told you that the use of the Marlborough -papers had been promised me by Lord and Lady Spencer; but Marchmont, who -had some pretence of authority over them, as trustee, delayed giving -them up, suspecting, I suppose, the use they intended to make of -them."[395:1] - -Though it was as part of Lord Rockingham's administration that Conway -became secretary of state, and his political connexions attached him to -that leader, he had been prevailed on to retain office on the formation -of the Grafton and Chatham cabinet, in August 1766. In the summer of -1767, that ministry seemed likely to be formidably assailed by the -united efforts of the Rockingham and Bedford parties, whose meetings and -resolutions at Newcastle House are matters well known in history. -General Conway's resignation would have terminated Hume's tenure of -office; and we find, in his correspondence, a few indications of -interest in the political movements of the time; yet so calm and -modified, that even the possession of office seems scarcely to have -affected the stoic philosophy with which he contemplated ministerial -revolutions. - -He says to his friend Blair, on the 18th of June:-- - -"We are all again in confusion. Negotiations for a new ministry; the -fatal month of July approaching; a new settlement to be made, which will -be no settlement. I fancy I return, in a few weeks, to my former -situation."[395:2] - -And to Smith, on 14th July:-- - -"DEAR SMITH,--I send you the enclosed, with a large packet for Count -Sarsfield. This is the last ministerial act which I shall probably -perform; and with this exertion I finish my functions. I shall not -leave this country presently. Perhaps I may go over to France. Our -resignation is a very extraordinary incident, and will probably occasion -a total change of ministry. Are you busy?"[396:1] - -His official life, however, was not so near a conclusion as he thought -it was. The following letter is more full and explicit, in regard to -these matters:-- - -_London, 28th July, 1767._ - -"DEAR BROTHER,--Were my present situation any object of anxiety, I -should have been very unhappy of late: so uncertain has my continuance -appeared every moment, and so near did my ministerial functions seem to -draw towards their conclusion. But as the matter was very nearly -indifferent to me, I neither felt anxiety for my past danger, nor do I -experience any joy from my present establishment; for we are now -established, for some time at least, and all apprehensions of a change -are removed to a distance. The history of our late transactions is, in -short, as follows: About this time twelvemonth, when the last revolution -of ministry took place, Mr. Conway staid in, though Lord Rockingham, and -most of his friends, were turned out: But it was with reluctance, and -only on the earnest entreaties of the king and Lord Chatham, and on -their giving him a promise that several of his friends and party should -still continue to hold their places. This engagement was broke last -winter. Some of these gentlemen were turned out; and Mr. Conway, after -protesting against this usage, declared, that though he would keep his -office during the session, not to disturb the king's business, he would -resign as soon as the parliament should rise. He accordingly desired the -king, about six weeks ago, to provide him a successor, and was -entreated only to keep the seals till a proper person should be thought -of. When the matter came to be discussed, it was found very difficult. -The Duke of Grafton declared, that being deprived of Lord Chatham's -support, he could not continue to serve without Mr. Conway: and a total -dissolution of the ministry seemed to be the effect of the incident. -Negotiations were accordingly set on foot with the leaders of the -opposition, and a great meeting of them was held last week, at Bedford -House. It was found that they could not, by any means, agree in their -demands; and they separated in mutual discontent. Every body thinks that -Mr. Conway has now satisfied, to the full, the point of honour, in which -he is very scrupulous, and that he will cordially resume his functions, -especially as he stands so well with the king and his fellow ministers, -and has brought it within the choice of his old friends to accept of the -ministry, if they had thought proper. I was beginning to wish for our -dissolution; but upon this turn of affairs, I resume my occupations with -cheerfulness."[397:1] - -The remainder of this letter is devoted to a matter in which we have -already frequently found him taking interest--the education of his -nephews. From his earliest to his latest days, his connexion with his -elder brother was cordial and affectionate. On the 6th of October we -find him writing, in a tone which indicates a sympathy with some -domestic calamity which his brother must have suffered:-- - -"The time of your going to Edinburgh approaches, which makes a great -change in your way of life, and will naturally make yourself, as well as -all your friends, anxious about the issue of it. However, I cannot but -think that you will there live more cheerfully, with all your children -about you, than in the country, during the winter, when your boys were -absent. At first only, as your spirits are not very strong at present, -you may feel uneasy at the alteration, as you are at present somewhat -apprehensive about it."[398:1] - -There was apparently but one point in which the two brothers differed; -and it was a subject on which Hume seems to have been at war with all -his clan. The Laird of Ninewells, notwithstanding all the lustre that -had now gathered round the name of _Hume_, would not adopt it in place -of that of _Home_, which his father had borne. He was a simple, -single-hearted man, moderate in all his views and wishes, and neither -ambitious of distinction nor of wealth. He passed his life as a retired -country gentleman; and while Europe was full of his brother's name, he -was so averse to notoriety, that he is known to have objected to the -domestic events of births, marriages, and deaths, in his family, -obtaining the usual publicity through the newspapers.[398:2] His eldest -son, Joseph, frequently mentioned in the following correspondence, -succeeded him in his estate and retired habits, but not entirely in his -disposition; for he indulged in many of the eccentricities and -peculiarities so often exhibited by the Scottish gentry,--a -characteristic they seem to derive from the circumstance, that, in the -British empire, there is no person less liable to encounter an equal, -and to be thwarted in his small exercise of absolute power, than a -Scottish laird. It is evident from his uncle's letters, that Joseph -obtained an excellent education. He was for some time placed under the -charge of poor Blacklock,--an arrangement by which Hume sought to -perform a double act of beneficence.[399:1] Joseph died unmarried, on -14th February, 1832, and was succeeded by his brother David, whose -career was more public and distinguished. He was born on 27th February, -1757,[401:1] and died on 27th July, 1838. He was successively sheriff of -the counties of Berwick and Linlithgow. He was professor of Scots law in -the university of Edinburgh, and a principal clerk of Session. He -subsequently resigned these offices, on his being appointed a Baron of -the Scottish Exchequer. His works are of great authority in the -practical departments of the law. While he taught in the university, his -students zealously collected notes of his lectures; and, as he refused -to permit any version of them to be published, the well preserved -collections of these notes have been considered valuable treasuries of -legal wisdom. In 1790, he published "Commentaries on the law of -Scotland, respecting trials for crimes;" and, in 1797, "Commentaries on -the law of Scotland respecting the description and punishment of -crimes," forming, in four quarto volumes, a comprehensive treatise on -all the departments of the criminal law of Scotland, which has now -passed through three editions. It has been justly remarked, that lawyers -of the present generation, can, with difficulty, appreciate the merit -of this work, because, from its having converted the whole subject it -embraces into a system, the chaotic mass, from which the present -comparatively orderly criminal code of Scotland was constructed, has -disappeared.[402:1] - -Few literary reputations have been more unlike each other than those of -the two David Humes, uncle and nephew. The former hated legal details -and the jargon of technical phraseology; to the latter they were the -breath of his literary life. The one, as a philosopher, saw, throughout -a wide circumference of vision, the relations to each other of the most -distant objects of human knowledge; the latter saw nothing beyond the -bounds of the professional details before him; but these he noted with -an unrivalled accuracy. The strength, clearness, and beauty of the -philosopher's language have been a lasting object of admiration; the -lawyer's diction was clumsy, rude, and ponderous, without being either -strong or clear. On one point only did they agree--their political -opinions; and yet, on this subject, they seem not always to have been in -unison. From a very curious letter, which will be found a few pages -farther on, it appears that Hume thought it necessary seriously to warn -his nephew against republican principles. Few, who are only acquainted -with the opinions of Baron Hume's later life, will be inclined to -believe that this danger could ever have been serious. He was a -supporter of all those parts of the criminal law of Scotland,--in his -day not a few,--which put the subject at the mercy of the crown and of -the judges; and a warm admirer of his sagacity and learning, as a -lawyer, cannot quit this subject without regretting that these qualities -should have been brought to aid the promulgation of arbitrary -principles. - -The education of his nephews, occupies, as has been already stated, the -remainder of the letter by Hume to his brother above cited. - -"My present situation revives those reflections which have frequently -occurred to me concerning the education of your sons, particularly of -Josey, whose age now advances, and seems to approach towards a crisis. -The question is, whether he had better continue his education in -Scotland or in England. There are several advantages of a Scots -education; but the question is, whether that of the language does not -counterbalance them, and determine the preference to the English. He is -now of an age to learn it perfectly; but if a few years elapse, he may -acquire such an accent, as he will never be able to cure of. It is not -yet determined what profession he shall be of: but it must always be of -great advantage to speak properly: especially if it should prove, as we -have reason to hope, that his good parts will open him the road of -ambition. The only inconvenience is, that few Scotsmen, that have had an -English education, have ever settled cordially in their own country; and -they have been commonly lost ever after to their friends. However, as -this consequence is not necessary, the superior recommendations of an -English education ought not to be neglected. I have been making -inquiries for some time, and on the whole I find Eton the best place for -the education of youth. He would there be able to form connexions with -many young people of distinction; though the whole expense would -scarcely exceed L70 a-year, which I fancy is little more than he costs -you at present. I suggest, therefore, this idea to you that you may -weigh it at leisure, and determine upon it. I know you do not like to be -hurried, and therefore the more time for reflection the better. His -friend and companion, young Adam, is coming up soon, but is going to -Westminster school, which is a place that I find some objections to. - -"I hope Mrs. Home is perfectly recovered. I am glad to hear such good -news of Jock. I had a letter from Davie last week, which gave me -pleasure. I am, dear brother, yours sincerely."[404:1] - -On 13th October, in a letter of which a portion has been cited above, -Hume writes further on the same subject: - -"DEAR BROTHER,--I never prognosticated well of Josey's genius for the -mathematics, from his great slowness in learning arithmetic: and I am -not surprised to find that his progress in Euclid has not been so great -as might have been expected from his quickness and his capacity in other -particulars. There is indeed something very unaccountable in his turn; -so childish in many cases, and yet so manly, and quick, and sensible in -others. The presence of strangers, above all, seems to make him -recollect himself, and he is exceedingly taking among them. His address -in particular, is remarkably good, and he seems to have a turn for the -world and for company. However, I do not think him by any means -deficient in his talents for literature. It appeared to me that he -always read his books with a very good taste, Latin as well as French -and English; and I imagine that he will make at least a very -gentlemanlike scholar. I wish therefore he had a further trial of the -Greek; and if that will not do, I think with you that the Italian is an -easy and genteel acquisition, which will furnish him with occupation for -this winter."[405:1] - -Hume expressed no high respect for the historical abilities of Dr. -Smollett, nor could he have well expected credit for sincerity if he had -done so. With the works in which the novelist let loose his native -genius, it is not likely that the philosopher could have had much -sympathy. But two letters addressed by him to Smollett, show that the -successful and affluent man of letters was substantially kind and -friendly to his less fortunate countryman. - - -HUME _to_ TOBIAS SMOLLETT. - -"_London, July 18, 1767._ - -"DEAR SIR,--I have had a conversation with Lord Shelburne concerning -your affairs: he told me that he had long been pre-engaged for the -consulship of Nice to the Spanish ambassador, and could not possibly get -free of that obligation. I then mentioned the consulship of Leghorn; but -he said he was already engaged for that office to a friend of Mr. -Dunning, the lawyer. On the whole, I cannot flatter you with any hopes -of success from that quarter; even supposing his lordship were to remain -in office, which is very uncertain, considering the present state of our -ministry. For of all our annual confusions, the present seems to be the -most violent, and to threaten the most entire revolution, and the most -important events. As Lord Chatham's state of health appears totally -desperate, and as Lord Shelburne's connexion is supposed to be chiefly, -if not solely, with him, many people foretell a short duration to the -greatness of the last named minister. Every thing is uncertain: there is -a mighty combination to overpower the king. The force of the crown is -great; but is not employed with that steadiness which its friends would -wish. I pretend not to foresee, much less to foretell, the consequences. -I am, dear sir, your most obedient, and most humble servant," &c.[406:1] - - -It has been a matter of speculation, if not of dispute among -ecclesiastical politicians, how far Hume had an influence in the -dispensation of church patronage in Scotland. The following letters, -having however a more immediate reference to state politics, may be held -to afford some light on this question. - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT.[406:2] - -"_London, 13th August, 1767._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I am told that the minister of Kirkton, in the -Presbytery of Jedburgh, is either dying, or is to be removed, and that -the living is in the gift of the crown. I have spoke to General Conway -desiring that, in case no unexpected difficulties occur, he may give it -to my nephew's tutor; and he has agreed to it. I have since heard, that -the living, though it stands in our list as a crown presentation, is -alternately in the gift of Sir John Elliot of Stobs, and Cavers Douglas. -I shall be much obliged to you, if, without mentioning the reason, you -could make inquiries, and give me information. - -"You have heard, no doubt, that all our negotiations have vanished, and -that our present ministry is settled on a firmer basis than ever. Mr. -Conway's delicacy of honour was satisfied, by bringing his old friends -the Rockinghams to have an offer; and as it was impossible for them to -concert a ministry, he has agreed to act cordially with the Duke of -Grafton: the king is very happy that no changes are to have place. I do -not reckon the change in Ireland for any thing, because Lord Bristol -goes out at his own earnest and repeated desire. I am told that Lord -Townsend openly ascribes his own promotion entirely to the friendship of -Lord Bute. Charles Fitzroy lately, in a great meeting, proposed Lord -Bute's health in a bumper. It will be a surprise to you certainly, if -that noble lord should again come into fashion, and openly avow his -share of influence, and be openly courted by all the world. I am, dear -Sir Gilbert, yours sincerely."[407:1] - - -"_10th Sept. 1767._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--Lord North has refused the office of Chancellor -of the Exchequer; though it was earnestly pressed upon him, and -though he professed an entire satisfaction with every person in the -administration. He dreads the labour of the office, especially as it -obliges him to take so great a part in the business of the House of -Commons. It will not probably be offered to any Scotsman, for fear of -popular reflections concerning the influence of the Thane. The same -objection, as well as others, lie against Dyson, who has been thought -of. I see the ministry in some perplexity; perhaps this incident may -draw on new resignations and negotiations, and cabals. I think one -defect of the present situation of our government is, that nobody -desires much to have any share in the administration, except -adventurers, of whom the public is naturally distrustful. The pecuniary -emoluments are of no consideration to men of rank and fortune. You have -often more personal regard from being in the opposition. The protection -of the law is at all times sufficient for your security; and by -acquiring authority you are exposed to insults, instead of gaining the -power to revenge them.[408:1] Why, then, should a man of birth, fortune, -and parts, sacrifice his fame and peace to an ungrateful public? Such is -the defect that arises from the perfection of the most perfect -government."[408:2] - -The next in the chronological order of Hume's letters, reverts to the -prospect of his continuing his History. - - -HUME _to_ ANDREW MILLAR. - -"_19th October, 1767._ - -"DEAR SIR,--The picture which Donaldson has done for me is a drawing; -and, in every body's opinion, as well as my own, is the likest that has -been done for me, as well as the best likeness. Since you still insist -that an engraving should be made from it, we are [thus] more likely to -have a good engraving made than by any other means. I shall, however, be -glad to sit to Ferguson.[409:1] I intend to give up all my leisure time -to the correction of my History, and to contrive more leisure than I -have possessed since I came into public office. I had run over four -volumes; but I shall give them a second perusal, and employ the same, or -greater accuracy in correcting the other four. I shall read carefully -all the records in the Paper Office, as far back as they go, and shall -leave nothing untried that may bestow the greatest exactness upon it. -For this reason, as well as many others, I would not have you -precipitate this edition, which is probably the last that I may have -occasion to make. I would wish to leave that work as little imperfect as -possible to posterity. I am," &c.[409:2] - - -Gibbon tells us, in his amusing autobiography, that with the assistance -of his friend Deyverdun, he had written in French a portion of a history -of Switzerland, and that the opinions he heard expressed when a fragment -of it was anonymously read before a society in London, prompted him to -abandon the work, and burn the portion he had written. "I delivered," he -says, "my imperfect sketches to the flames." Yet, singularly enough, he -seems to have confounded the intention with the fulfilment, for they -were discovered after his death, but were not thought worthy of being -published by his literary executor, Lord Sheffield.[409:3] Gibbon had -endeavoured to find for his friend Deyverdun some employment in -England, picturesquely observing, that his own "purse was always open, -but it was often empty." They wrote in company some numbers of a -periodical, now very rare, called "Memoires Litteraires de La Grande -Bretagne," and Gibbon informs us that these specimens of their labours -introduced them to the notice of Hume,[410:1] in whose office Deyverdun -held an appointment at the date of the following letter:-- - - -GIBBON _to_ HUME. - - _Baiton, 4th October, 1767._ - - SIR,--A six years' residence in Switzerland inspired me with - the design of writing a general history of that brave and free - people, so little known to the rest of Europe, but whom I had - studied with some attention. This design was dropt almost as - soon as conceived, from the almost insurmountable difficulty - of procuring proper materials, as they were mostly in German, - a language I am totally unacquainted with. A Swiss gentleman, - and intimate friend of mine, has removed that difficulty. Mr. - Deyverdun, who passed the summer with me in the country two - years ago, approved very much my design, and offered to assist - me by translating what was most difficult, himself, and by - superintending a German translator, as to the remainder. He is - now returning to London after a much shorter visit than I - desired; and as he has the happiness of supporting some - connexion with you, I flattered myself that you might indulge - a wish, perhaps presumptuous, that I had conceived, and that - you would condescend to glance your eye over the sheets of - this History, which I had already drawn up in a language - indeed foreign to an Englishman, but which the favourable - reception of a former essay engaged me to make use of. - - Give me leave, sir, to add, that I must beg you to consider - this liberty as a proof of my respect; and that I shall - consider your severity as a mark of your esteem. If you - advise me to burn what I have already wrote, I shall - immediately execute your sentence, with a full persuasion that - it is just. Let me say, however, I have perhaps vanity enough - to make so unlimited a sacrifice to no man in Europe but to - Mr. Hume. I am, sir, with the greatest esteem, your most - obedient humble servant, - - E. GIBBON, Junior.[411:1] - - -HUME _to_ GIBBON. - -"_London, 24th October, 1767._ - -"SIR,--It is but a few days since Mr. Deyverdun put your manuscript into -my hands; and I have perused it with great pleasure and satisfaction. I -have only one objection, derived from the language in which it is -written. Why do you compose in French, and carry fagots into the wood, -as Horace says, with regard to the Romans who wrote in Greek? I grant, -that you have a like motive to those Romans, and adopt a language much -more generally diffused than your native tongue: but have you not -remarked the fate of those two ancient languages in following ages? The -Latin, though then less celebrated, and confined to more narrow limits, -has, in some measure, outlived the Greek, and is now more generally -understood by men of letters. Let the French, therefore, triumph in the -present diffusion of their tongue. Our solid and increasing -establishments in America, where we need less dread the inundation of -barbarians, promise a superior stability and duration to the English -language. - -"Your use of the French tongue has also led you into a style more -poetical and figurative, and more highly coloured, than our language -seems to admit of in historical productions: for such is the practice of -French writers, particularly the more recent ones, who illuminate their -pictures more than custom will permit us. On the whole, your History, in -my opinion, is written with spirit and judgment; and I exhort you very -earnestly to continue it. The objections that occurred to me on reading -it were so frivolous, that I shall not trouble you with them, and -should, I believe, have a difficulty to collect them. I am, with great -esteem," &c.[412:1] - - -Some remarks communicated to Dr. Robertson, on his "History of Charles -V." while that work was passing through the press, have deservedly -attracted notice by their unconstrained and natural playfulness. - - -HUME _to_ DR. ROBERTSON. - - I got yesterday from Strahan about thirty sheets of your - History to be sent over to Suard, and last night and this - morning have run them over with great avidity. I could not - deny myself the satisfaction (which I hope also will not - displease you) of expressing presently my extreme approbation - of them. To say only that they are very well written, is by - far too faint an expression, and much inferior to the - sentiments I feel. They are composed with nobleness, with - dignity, with elegance, and with judgment, to which there are - few equals. They even excel, and, I think, in a sensible - degree, your "History of Scotland." I propose to myself great - pleasure in being the only man in England, during some months, - who will be in the situation of doing you justice,--after - which you may certainly expect that my voice will be drowned - in that of the public. - - You know that you and I have always been on the footing of - finding in each other's productions _something to blame, and - something to commend_; and therefore you may perhaps expect - also some seasoning of the former kind; but really neither my - leisure nor inclination allowed me to make such remarks; and I - sincerely believe you have afforded me very small materials - for them. However, such particulars as occur to my memory, I - shall mention. _Maltreat_ is a Scoticism which occurs once. - What the devil had you to do with that old fashioned dangling - word _wherewith_? I should as soon take back _whereupon_, - _whereunto_, and _wherewithal_. I think the only tolerable - decent gentleman of the family is _wherein_; and I should not - choose to be often seen in his company. But I know your - affection for _wherewith_ proceeds from your partiality to - Dean Swift, whom I can often laugh with, whose style I can - even approve, but surely can never admire. It has no harmony, - no eloquence, no ornament; and not much correctness, whatever - the English may imagine. Were not their literature still in a - somewhat barbarous state, that author's place would not be so - high among their classics. But what a fancy is this you have - taken of saying always _an hand_, _an heart_, _an head_? Have - you _an ear_? Do you not know that this (n) is added before - vowels to prevent the cacophony, and ought never to take place - before (h) when that letter is sounded? It is never pronounced - in these words; why should it be wrote? Thus, I should say, _a - history_, and _an historian_; and so would you too, if you had - any sense. But you tell me that Swift does otherwise. To be - sure there is no reply to that; and we must swallow your - _hath_ too upon the same authority. I will see you d----d - sooner. But I will endeavour to keep my temper. - - I do not like this sentence in page 149: _This step was taken - in consequence of the treaty Wolsey had concluded with the - Emperor at Brussels, and which had hitherto been kept secret._ - Si sic omnia dixisses, I should never have been plagued with - hearing your praises so often sounded, and that fools - preferred your style to mine. Certainly it had been better to - have said, _which_ Wolsey, &c. That relative ought very seldom - to be omitted; and is here particularly requisite to preserve - a symmetry between the two members of the sentence. You omit - the relative too often, which is a colloquial barbarism, as Mr - Johnson calls it. - - Your periods are sometimes, though not often, too long. Suard - will be embarrassed with them, as the modish French style runs - into the other extreme.[413:1] - -Turgot, at the instigation of some Italian friends, had applied to Hume -to recommend a scholar, who would undertake to teach the English -language and literature at Parma. He selected Robert Liston; but he had -overlooked an objection which the enlightened promoters of the scheme in -Italy appear to have considered too obvious to require preliminary -explanation, that Liston was a Protestant! In returning thanks to Hume -for the unavailing recommendation, Liston discovers the bent of his -genius, by desiring that, if an opportunity should occur, Hume would -recommend him as secretary of legation to any of the secondary -embassies. The fate of the Parma scheme was thus communicated to Elliot. - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT. - -"_London, 5th July, 1768._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I beg of you to direct the enclosed to poor Liston, -who will be disappointed in the scheme for Parma: they will have nothing -but a Papist. Such fools! Let the Pope excommunicate them on the one -hand: I will do so on the other. - -"I have seen a book newly printed at Edinburgh, called 'Philosophical -Essays:' it has no manner of sense in it, but is wrote with tolerable -neatness of style: whence I conjecture it to be our friend, Sir -David's.[414:1] I am obliged to him for the treatment which he destines -me, to be locked up for five years in a dungeon, and then to be hanged, -and my carcass to be thrown out of Scotland. He supports himself, -indeed, by the authority of Plato, whom I own to be truly divine. Pray, -have you seen the book? Is it Sir David's? I think it has not so many -attempts at humour, as that pious gentleman would employ. - -"We are all very quiet here; as quiet as you are at Minto, though -perhaps not so busy. No more noise of Wilkes and Liberty. Lord Mansfield -said to me, that it was impossible for him to condemn him to the -pillory, because the attorney-general did not demand it. Yesterday he -represented to the Spanish ambassador, that moderate sentence, as a -refinement in politics, which reduced the scoundrel the sooner to -obscurity. It would be a strange cause, which he could not find -plausible reasons to justify. - -"I beg to be remembered to Lady Elliot, and to any of your family who -may be at Minto. I ever am, dear Sir Gilbert, yours sincerely."[415:1] - - -SIR GILBERT ELLIOT _to_ HUME. - - "_Minto, 11th July, 1768._ - - "I am sorry, my dear sir, for poor Liston's disappointment. I - am told he thought himself secure. I have seen the book you - mention; but you do injustice to our friend Sir David. He is - not the author; but a very moral and worthy man, who, I - believe, once had the honour to attend you in some of your - writings before,--his name James Balfour--at least I am told - so. The young feudal author, Gilbert Stewart, is just now in - my neighbourhood; and, his father tells me, impatient, to a - great degree, for your letter. It seems he is much your - admirer. However, I hope my criticisms, on some parts of his - work, may keep him from carrying his admiration, on some - points, too far. Not that I mean to close with my friend, Mr. - Balfour, in his candid proposition for treating you after the - manner of the divine Plato. I rest entirely on you for - politics, changes of ministry, foreign politics, and domestic - occurrences. I have now no correspondents; and I did not think - it prudent to engage with any ministerial men; as I might be - led, in such a correspondence, to commit mistakes, which may - be inconvenient next winter. Farming, I find, is very - expensive--days' wages now at a shilling; but our fields are - green, and the hedges thrive. I hope to see your brother this - autumn. He is very orthodox, I am told, so far as husbandry - goes. I hope to hear your love affair, and your King William, - are in a good way. My wife not yet arrived. Yours," &c.[416:1] - -Gilbert Stuart, then unknown to fame, whether good or bad, and still -possessed of any small portion of modesty he had ever been endowed with, -was about to publish his little work on the British constitution, the -temporary celebrity of which had so prejudicial an effect on his -subsequent career. We shall afterwards have an opportunity of noticing -him on an occasion when he seems to have thought that the relation which -Hume and he bore to each other, in 1768, of humble admirer and -distinguished patron, was reversed in his favour. - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT. - -"_22d July, 1768._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I send you my letter enclosed to Mr. Stewart; which -I hope is calculated to encourage a young man of merit. Without -overstraining the compliment, it were better, however, for him, and for -every body, to pursue, in preference to the idle trade of writing, some -other lawful occupation, such as cheating like an attorney; quacking -like a physician; canting and hypocrising like a parson, &c. &c. &c. It -is for very little purpose to go out of the common track. Does he -expect to make men wiser? a very pretty expectation truly! - -"I fancy the ministry will remain; though surely their late remissness, -or ignorance, or pusillanimity, ought to make them ashamed to show their -faces, were it even at Newmarket. There are fine doings in America. O! -how I long to see America and the East Indies revolted, totally and -finally,--the revenue reduced to half,--public credit fully discredited -by bankruptcy,--the third of London in ruins, and the rascally mob -subdued! I think I am not too old to despair of being witness to all -these blessings. I approve of your farming scheme, notwithstanding the -expense; though your situation, as well for markets as means of -improvement, is not advantageous. My brother's advice may be of use to -you; but you are always to remember that he is of the sect of the -_medecin tant pis_; had he possessed enterprise, proportioned to his -industry and skill, he might have gone far in that way.[417:1] - -"I continue my parasitical practices; that is, of dining at all the -great tables that remain in London. We are likely to be plagued with -this King of Denmark; though not so much as formerly with Canute the -Great. I have some thoughts of paying a visit to France this autumn; -that is, if I can collect enough of resolution to leave the present -place of abode. - -"When I wrote last, I did not know that Lady ---- had eloped; that -practice continues very fashionable here; and it is to be hoped will -spread itself more and more every day! - -"I thought Sir David had been the only Christian that could write -English on the other side of the Tweed. I did not think of Balfour. It -is very true he would fain, I see, be candid, and civil, as in his other -book; if his zeal for the house of the Lord would permit him. - -"Lord Bute certainly sets out this day se'ennight, and, it is said, is -in a very bad state of health. - -"Lord Chatham is a greater paradox than ever:--is seen at home by no -human creature;--absolutely by none! rides twenty miles every day,--is -seen on the road, and appears in perfect good health; but will now speak -to no creature he meets. I am much persuaded, all is quackery;--he is -not mad; that is, no madder than usual."[418:1] - - -Towards the end of the year 1768, poor Smollett, with his spirit crushed -by the united calamities of a broken constitution and ruined fortunes, -sought to retrieve his health, by travelling in Italy. Before commencing -his journey, he wrote the following letter; in which the too apparent -tone of despondency is yet insufficient to damp the kindly warmth of his -feelings:-- - - -TOBIAS SMOLLETT _to_ HUME. - - _London, 31st August, 1768._ - - DEAR SIR,--Perhaps I overrate my own consequence when I - presume to recommend to your acquaintance and good offices, - the bearer, Captain Robert Stobo; a man whose very - extraordinary services and sufferings in America, have - merited, and obtained the most ample and honourable - testimonials, which he will gladly submit to your perusal. I - can safely say from my own knowledge, that he is not less - modest and sensible in the conversation and occurrences of - civil life, than enterprising and indefatigable in his - military capacity. All these good qualities, united to an - extensive knowledge of our American concerns, cannot fail to - engage the friendship and regard of Mr. David Hume, from what - quarter so ever they may come recommended. - - With respect to myself, I am sorry I cannot have the pleasure - of taking leave of you in person, before I go into perpetual - exile. I sincerely wish you all health and happiness. In - whatever part of the earth it may be my fate to reside, I - shall always remember with pleasure, and recapitulate with - pride, the friendly intercourse I have maintained with one of - the best men, and undoubtedly the best writer of the age; if - any judgment in distinguishing either character or capacity - may be allowed to, dear sir, your very humble servant, - - T{S} SMOLLETT. - - Nos patriam fugimus: tu, Tityre, lentus in umbra, - Formosam resonare doces Amaryllida silvas.[419:1] - - -HUME _to_ TOBIAS SMOLLETT. - -"_Ragley,[419:2] September 21, 1768._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--I did not see your friend, Captain Stobo, till the day -before I left Cirencester, and only for a little time; but he seemed to -be a man of good sense, and has surely had the most extraordinary -adventures in the world. He has promised to call on me when he comes to -London, and I shall always see him with pleasure. - -"But what is this you tell me of your perpetual exile, and of your never -returning to this country? I hope that as this idea arose from the bad -state of your health, it will vanish on your recovery; which, from your -past experience, you may expect from those happier climates to which you -are retiring; after which the desire of revisiting your native country -will probably return upon you, unless the superior cheapness of foreign -countries prove an obstacle, and detain you there. I could wish that -means had been fallen on to remove this objection; and that at least it -might be equal to you to live any where, except where the consideration -of your health gave the preference to one climate above another. But the -indifference of ministers towards literature, which has been long, and -indeed always, the case in England, gives little prospect of any -alteration in this particular. - -"I am sensible of your great partiality, in the good opinion you express -towards me; but it gives me no less pleasure than if it were founded on -the greatest truth, for I accept it as a pledge of your good will and -friendship. I wish an opportunity of showing my sense of it may present -itself during your absence. I assure you I should embrace it with great -alacrity, and you need have no scruple, on every occasion, of having -recourse to me. I am, my dear sir, with great esteem and sincerity, your -most obedient, and most humble servant," &c.[420:1] - - -Of the following remarkable letter, the first paragraph, relating to the -success of John Home's new play, has already been published.[420:2] The -remainder will probably be as surprising to the reader as it is new. It -is very evident that Hume exercised towards the great Chatham, Dr. -Johnson's virtue of honest hatred. There was indeed little love lost -between these great contemporaries; for Chatham fiercely attacked the -constitutional doctrines of the History of England, and Hume looked upon -the national idol as an unprincipled demagogue. The words with which -the observations on the Douglas cause conclude, are evidence of the -contempt which, amidst all his Tory prepossessions, Hume preserved for -merely hereditary rank, and indeed for all nominal and outward marks of -distinction, which were not allied to intellectual superiority. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Park Place, London, 28th March, 1769._ - -"DEAR DOCTOR,--'The Fatal Discovery' succeeded, and deserved it. It has -feeling, though not equal to 'Douglas,' in my opinion. The versification -of it is not enough finished. Our friend escaped by lying concealed; but -the success of all plays in this age is very feeble; and people now heed -the theatre almost as little as the pulpit.[421:1] History now is the -favourite reading, and our other friend[421:2] the favourite historian. -Nothing can be more successful than his last production; nor more -deservedly. I agree with you, it is beyond his first performance, as was -indeed natural to be expected. I hope, for a certain reason, which I -keep to myself, that he does not intend, in his third work, to go beyond -his second, though I am damnably afraid he will, for the subject is much -more interesting. Neither the character of Charles V., nor the incidents -of his life, are very interesting; and, were it not for the first -volume, the success of this work, though perfectly well writ, would not -have been so shining. - -"This madness about Wilkes excited first indignation, then apprehension; -but has gone to such a height that all other sentiments with me are -buried in ridicule. This exceeds the absurdity of Titus Gates and the -Popish plot: and is so much more disgraceful to the nation, as the -former folly, being derived from religion, flowed from a source which -has from uniform prescription acquired a right to impose nonsense on all -nations and all ages. But the present extravagance is peculiar to -ourselves, and quite risible. However, I am afraid my mirth will soon be -spoilt, and affairs become quite serious; for I am well assured that -Lord Chatham will, after the holidays, creep out from his retreat and -appear on the scene. - - Depositis novus exuviis, nitidusque juventa, - Volvitur ad solem et linguis micat ore trisulcis. - -"I know not if I cite Virgil exactly,[422:1] but I am sure I apply him -right. This villain is to thunder against the violation of the Bill of -Rights in not allowing the county of Middlesex the choice of its -member! Think of the impudence of that fellow,[423:1] and his -quackery--and his cunning--and his audaciousness: and judge of the -influence he will have over such a deluded multitude. - -"I was struck with a very sensible indignation at the decision of the -Douglas cause,[423:2] though I foresaw it for some time. It was -abominable with regard to poor Andrew Stuart, who had conducted that -cause with singular ability and integrity; and was at last exposed to -reproach, which unfortunately never can be wiped off. For the cause, -though not in the least intricate, is so complicated, that it never will -be reviewed by the public, who are besides perfectly pleased with the -sentence; being swayed by compassion and a few popular topics. To one -who understands the cause as I do, nothing could appear more scandalous -than the pleadings of the two law lords. Such gross misrepresentation, -such impudent assertions, such groundless imputations, never came from -that place. But all was good enough for their audience; who, bating -their quality, are most of them little better than their brethren the -Wilkites in the streets. - -"I am very much obliged to you for giving me the acquaintance of your -cousin, Mr. Blair,[423:3] who seems, indeed, to me, a very accomplished -young man. The death of your brother-in-law is a great loss to you, and -even to us all. I comprehend myself; for I intend to visit you soon, and -for good and all. Indeed, I know not what detains me here, except that -it is so much a matter of indifference where I live; and I am amused -with looking on the scene, which really begins to be interesting. I had -taken one of Allan Ramsay's houses;[424:1] but gave it up again, on the -representation of some of my friends in Edinburgh, who said that a -house, on the north side of a high hill, in the 56th degree of latitude, -could not be healthful. But I now repent it, though I have my old house -to retreat to till I get a better. I am glad you like my nephew. He is, -indeed, clever, though, I am afraid, a little giddy.[424:2]" - - -Andrew Stuart, who is noticed in the preceding letter, and has -frequently been referred to in Hume's correspondence, was a man of great -talent. His letters to Lord Mansfield, on the Douglas cause, remarkable -for their solemn asperity, belong to a species of literature, of which -the English language scarcely boasts of any other instance,--a -systematic and serious arraignment of the conduct of a Judge in the -highest court in the realm, by the law agent of a litigant! Stuart -conducted the investigations in France, on which the evidence that the -children said to be born to Lady Jane Douglas were spurious, was -founded; and from the strange circumstances brought forward in the -evidence, we can imagine that, if Stuart had left a diary of his -adventures and inquiries, few works of fiction could be more -interesting. His arraignment of the judge was accompanied by an act -almost equally anomalous: his challenging the counsel on the other -side--who was Mr. Wedderburn, afterwards Lord Loughborough--on account -of the manner in which his conduct had been spoken of in the appeal -case. The challenge was accepted; but neither party was wounded. From -occasional allusions, in Hume's correspondence, he and Stuart appear to -have been early friends; and many of the letters, which he preserved, -within a few years of his death, are from Stuart, who, occasionally, -appears to write in acknowledgment of pecuniary advances. Among Hume's -papers, there is a letter, of which the address has not been preserved, -but in which there is a note, in Baron Hume's handwriting, that it was, -"respecting his friend Stuart--Andrew, I suppose." The letter has a -sufficient interest in itself. It is as follows:-- - - -"MY DEAR SIR,--Nothing can be more just than the sentiment you have -expressed in your letter. I am to be envied for having had it in my -power to contribute to the happiness of the best man, and the most -intimate friend I have ever had in the world. There is nothing else in -the possession of a fortune that deserves the least envy or the least -consideration. Every man is independent who thinks himself so. But every -man has not been blessed with such a friend, or with the power of -showing, in some small degree, the value he puts upon worth, delicacy, -attachment, and ability like his. It adds to my happiness not a little, -that your sentiments coincide so entirely with mine. You have known -Stuart enough to value him as much as I do; and he has too much -discernment not to put the same high value upon you, which you have -commanded from every one of your friends." - - -Hume received a letter from the Abbe Morellet, dated 15th May -1769,[426:1] requesting him to accept of a copy of his forthcoming -"Prospectus d'un Nouveau Dictionnaire de Commerce;" and to distribute -some others among a list of names, including those of Adam Smith and -Benjamin Franklin. The comprehensive work of which the Abbe thus -developed what he considered the proper principles, was never written by -him. He was too much occupied with fugitive literature, and the -absorbing politics of the time, to be able seriously to pursue a project -involving so much steady industry. Hume answered as follows:-- - - -HUME _to the_ ABBE MORELLET. - - _London, 10th July, 1769._ - - That part of your prospectus, in which you endeavour to prove - that there enters nothing of human convention in the - establishment of money, is certainly very curious, and very - elaborately composed; and yet I cannot forbear thinking that - the common opinion has some foundation. It is true, money must - always be made of some materials, which have intrinsic value, - otherwise it would be multiplied without end, and would sink - to nothing. But, when I take a shilling, I consider it not as - a useful metal, but as something which another will take from - me; and the person who shall convert it into metal is, - probably, several millions of removes distant. You know that - all states have made it criminal to melt their coin; and, - though this is a law which cannot well be executed, it is not - to be supposed that, if it could, it would entirely destroy - the value of the money, according to your hypothesis. You have - a base coin, called billon, in France, composed of silver and - copper, which has a ready currency, though the separation of - the two metals, and the reduction of them to their primitive - state, would, I am told, be both expensive and troublesome. - Our shillings and sixpences, which are almost our only silver - coin, are so much worn by use, that they are twenty, thirty, - or forty per cent. below their original value; yet they pass - currently; which can arise only from a tacit convention. Our - colonies in America, for want of specie, used to coin a paper - currency; which were not bank notes, because there was no - place appointed to give money in exchange: yet this paper - currency passed in all payments, by convention; and might have - gone on, had it not been abused by the several assemblies, who - issued paper without end, and thereby discredited the - currency. - - You mention several kinds of money, sheep, oxen, fish, - employed as measures of exchange, or as money, in different - parts of the world. You have overlooked that, in our colony of - Pennsylvania, the land itself, which is the chief commodity, - is coined, and passes in circulation. The manner of conducting - this affair is as follows:--A planter, immediately after he - purchases any land, can go to a public office and receive - notes to the amount of half the value of his land; which notes - he employs in all payments, and they circulate through the - whole colony, by convention. To prevent the public from being - overwhelmed by this fictitious money, there are two means - employed--first, the notes issued to any one planter, must not - exceed a certain sum, whatever may be the value of his land: - secondly, every planter is obliged to pay back into the public - office every year one-tenth part of his notes; the whole, of - course, is annihilated in ten years; after which, it is again - allowed him to take out new notes to half the value of his - land. An account of this curious operation would enrich your - dictionary; and you may have a more particular detail of it, - if you please, from Dr. Franklin, who will be in Paris about - this time, and will be glad to see you. I conveyed to him your - prospectus, and he expressed to me a great esteem of it. - - I see that, in your prospectus, you take care not to disoblige - your economists, by any declaration of your sentiments; in - which I commend your prudence. But I hope that in your work - you will thunder them, and crush them, and pound them, and - reduce them to dust and ashes! They are, indeed, the set of - men the most chimerical and most arrogant that now exist, - since the annihilation of the Sorbonne. I ask your pardon for - saying so, as I know you belong to that venerable body. I - wonder what could engage our friend, M. Turgot, to herd among - them; I mean, among the economists; though I believe he was - also a Sorbonnist. - - I sent your prospectus to Dr. Tucker, but have not heard from - him since. I shall myself deliver copies to Dr. Robertson and - Mr. Smith, as I go to Scotland this autumn. - - And now, my dear Abbe, what remains to me but to wish you - success in your judicious labours? to embrace you, and through - you, to embrace all our common friends, D'Alembert, Helvetius, - Buffon, Baron d'Holbach, Suard, Mlle. L'Espinasse? Poor Abbe - Le Bon is dead, I hear. The Abbe Galliani goes to Naples: he - does well to leave Paris before I come thither; for I should - certainly put him to death for all the ill he has spoken of - England. But it has happened, as was foretold by his friend, - Caraccioli; who said that the Abbe would remain two months in - this country, would speak all himself, would not allow an - Englishman to utter a syllable; and after returning would give - the character of the nation during the rest of his life, as if - he were perfectly well acquainted with them. - - Pray make my compliments to M. Maletete. Tell him, that Prince - Masserane says, that he has saved much effusion of blood to - this country. It is certain that M. Maletete had a great - curiosity to see a riot here, and yet was resolved to keep his - person in safety. For this purpose, he hired a window; and - proposed to be present at one of the mad elections of Wilkes, - and to divert himself with the fray. Somebody got a hint of - it, and put it into the newspapers; asking the freeholders if - they were so degenerate as to make themselves a laughing - stock, even to the French, their enemies, whom they despised. - Prince Masserane alleges that this incident made that election - so remarkably peaceable! - - Are you acquainted with Crebillon? I am ashamed to mention his - name. He sent me over his last work, with a very obliging - letter: but as I must write to him in French, I have never - answered him. If all the English were as impertinent as I am, - the Abbe Galliani would have reason to abuse us.--I am, dear - Abbe, after asking your blessing, yours sincerely.[428:1] - -"I returned to Edinburgh in 1769," says Hume in his "own Life," "very -opulent, (for I possessed a revenue of L1000 a-year) healthy, and though -somewhat stricken in years, with the prospect of enjoying long my ease, -and of seeing the increase of my reputation." He had thus finally -triumphed over the temptations which assailed him abroad, and resolved -to spend the remainder of his days among the friends of his youth. He -had received very strong solicitations from Madame de Boufflers and -others, to take up his abode at Paris. In one letter she informs him -that there is a house prepared for him in the Temple, and another with a -large garden near the Bois de Boulogne.[429:1] To these pressing offers -he seems not to have trusted himself with rendering a direct answer, -leaving his projects undefined, until, by returning to Edinburgh, he -rendered the acceptance of such invitations impracticable. Fairly -re-established in his old house in James's Court, and enjoying its -magnificent prospect, we find him thus writing to Smith:-- - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_James's Court, 20th August, 1769._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I am glad to have come within sight of you, and to have a -view of Kirkaldy from my windows: but as I wish also to be within -speaking terms of you, I wish we could concert measures for that -purpose. I am mortally sick at sea, and regard with horror, and a kind -of hydrophobia, the great gulf[429:2] that lies between us. I am also -tired of travelling; as much as you ought naturally to be of staying at -home. I therefore propose to you to come hither, and pass some days with -me in this solitude. I want to know what you have been doing; and -propose to exact a rigorous account of the method in which you have -employed yourself during your retreat. I am positive you are in the -wrong in many of your speculations, especially where you have the -misfortune to differ from me. All these are reasons for our meeting, and -I wish you would make me some reasonable proposal for that purpose. -There is no habitation on the island of Inchkeith, otherwise I should -challenge you to meet me on that spot, and neither of us ever to leave -the place, till we were fully agreed on all points of controversy. I -expect General Conway here to morrow, whom I shall attend to Roseneath, -and I shall remain there a few days. On my return, I expect to find a -letter from you, containing a bold acceptance of this defiance. I am, -dear Smith, yours sincerely."[430:1] - - -The letters addressed to Hume at this time, show that he had made -inquiries with the view of continuing the education of his nephews at -one of the English universities. The following letter explains the -reason why this plan was not adopted. - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT. - -"_Edinburgh, 16th October, 1769._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I am very much obliged to you for the pains you have -taken to give me an account of your sons' expenses and management at -Oxford. I found my brother undetermined, or rather averse, to the -project. He thinks his son rather inclines to be dissipated and idle; -and believes that a year or two at Oxford would confirm him thoroughly -in that habit, without any other advantage than the acquiring of a -little better pronunciation; for this reason he seems rather inclined to -try him a year in the Law College here, before he makes him so much his -own master. - -"I have been settled here two months, and am here body and soul, without -casting the least thought of regret to London, or even to Paris. I think -it improbable that I shall ever in my life cross the Tweed, except -perhaps a jaunt to the north of England, for health or amusement. I live -still, and must for a twelvemonth, in my old house in James's Court, -which is very cheerful, and even elegant, but too small to display my -great talent for cookery, the science to which I intend to addict the -remaining years of my life! I have just now lying on the table before -me, a receipt for making _soupe a la reine_, copied with my own hand: -for beef and cabbage, (a charming dish,) and old mutton, and old claret, -nobody excels me. I make also sheep-head broth, in a manner that Mr. -Keith speaks of it for eight days after; and the Duc de Nivernois would -bind himself apprentice to my lass to learn it. I have already sent a -challenge to David Moncreif: you will see that in a twelvemonth he will -take to the writing of history, the field I have deserted; for as to the -giving of dinners, he can now have no further pretensions. I should have -made a very bad use of my abode in Paris, if I could not get the better -of a mere provincial like him. All my friends encourage me in this -ambition; as thinking it will redound very much to my honour. - -"I am delighted to see the daily and hourly progress of madness, and -folly, and wickedness in England. The consummation of these qualities -are the true ingredients for making a fine narrative in history, -especially if followed by some signal and ruinous convulsion,--as I -hope will soon be the case with that pernicious people! He must be a -very bad cook indeed, who cannot make a palatable dish from the whole. -You see in my reflexions and allusions, I shall mix my old and new -professions together. I am, dear Sir Gilbert, your most obedient humble -servant," &c.[432:1] - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT. - -"_Edinburgh, 5th February, 1770._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I do not know whether you be good for any thing, or -at all worth the applying to; I rather suspect not: but in case you are, -I make you the following application in favour of Christopher Tate, -probationer, who was tutor to my nephews. You know I resigned my -pretensions on the presentation of Humbie to your nephew's tutor; but -under promise, that you would assist me in a like case. This kirk is a -king's presentation; it is within your county, and I very earnestly -desire success in this application, and trust much to your friendship in -it. - -"The last unexpected incident strikes us mute with astonishment; either -the Duke of Grafton is much to blame for leaving us so abruptly in so -very critical a time, or a greater than he, if he got any just cause for -it. I carry my view to very dismal consequences, especially as I suspect -the last to be the case. I fancy we shall have curious scenes, worthy -the pen of the greatest historian. I am tired and disgusted with -conjecture. My compliments to Lady Elliot. Believe me to be very -sincerely, your affectionate humble servant," &c.[432:2] - - -To Smith, whose "Wealth of Nations" was now supposed to be nearly ready -for the press, we find the following letter:-- - - -"_6th February, 1770._ - -"What is the meaning of this, dear Smith, which we hear, that you are -not to be here above a day or two, on your passage to London? How can -you so much as entertain a thought of publishing a book full of reason, -sense, and learning, to those wicked abandoned madmen? - -"I suppose you have not yet got over your astonishment at this most -astonishing resignation. For my part, I knew not at first whether to -throw the blame on the Duke or the King; but I now find it is entirely -and completely the Duke's own; and I think him dishonoured for ever." - - -This refers to the Duke of Grafton's resignation, of which he proceeds -to quote an account from "a very good hand," prophesying tranquillity -and the restoration of confidence. - -"So far my friend--whose prophecy I hope will be fulfilled; though, for -my part, I am rather inclined to give myself up to despair. Nothing but -a rebellion and bloodshed will open the eyes of that deluded people; -though, were they alone concerned, I think it is no matter what becomes -of them."[433:1] - -In the following letter, we have a farther, and a very strong instance -of Hume's dislike of the English as a people. We find him again busy in -sifting his History of all remains of popular principles; and there is a -tone throughout the letter, as if it were satisfactory to him to be able -to overturn the objects of popular idolatry, which a people he so -heartily disliked had endeavoured to set up, in the alleged antiquity of -their constitution. - - -HUME _to_ SIR GILBERT ELLIOT. - -"_Edinburgh, 21st February, 1770._ - -"DEAR SIR GILBERT,--I am glad of your victories; though I look upon them -all as temporary and imperfect, like the fallacious recoveries of a -hectic person, who is hastening to his dissolution. Our government has -become a chimera, and is too perfect, in point of liberty, for so rude a -beast as an Englishman; who is a man, a bad animal too, corrupted by -above a century of licentiousness. The misfortune is, that this liberty -can scarcely be retrenched without danger of being entirely lost; at -least the fatal effects of licentiousness must first be made palpable, -by some extreme mischief resulting from it. I may wish that the -catastrophe should rather fall on our posterity; but it hastens on with -such large strides, as leave little room for this hope. - -"I am running over again the last edition of my History, in order to -correct it still further. I either soften or expunge many villanous, -seditious Whig strokes, which had crept into it. I wish that my -indignation at the present madness, encouraged by lies, calumnies, -imposture, and every infamous act usual among popular leaders, may not -throw me into the opposite extreme. I am, however, sensible that the -first editions were too full of those foolish English prejudices, which -all nations and all ages disavow. - -"The present firm conduct of the king, and his manly resentment, afford -some glimpse of hope. We, at a distance, are not acquainted with these -matters; and few even at London; but there still appears something -mysterious in the Duke of Grafton's resignation. I hope it proceeded -only from his discontents with Bedford House. - -"But I detain you too long. I shall only conclude, that, though I reckon -myself among the _sepoliti_, I cannot forbear expressing my hearty good -wishes to your cause and you. I am, very sincerely, dear Sir Gilbert, -your obliged humble servant."[435:1] - - -"_Edinburgh, 5th April, 1770._ - -"I am sorry to inform you, that all we statesmen in this town condemn -loudly the conduct of you statesmen in London, especially in allowing -those insolent rascals, the mayor and sheriffs, to escape with impunity. -We were much disappointed not to find them impeached, and a bill of -pains and penalties passed upon them. The tumults which might have -ensued in London, we thought rather an advantage; as it would give -government an opportunity of chastising that abominable rabble. But you -have thought otherwise; and it is pretended that these lenient maxims -are succeeding; that faction abates, the tide turns, and the heroes of -opposition are in despair. I am heartily glad of it: but this is a new -experiment to reconcile such extreme license with government; and if, in -a case where popular complaints had not the smallest shadow of pretence, -the king and parliament have prevailed, after a long struggle, and with -much difficulty, what must it be, where there is some plausible -appearance, and perhaps some real ground of complaint, such as it is -natural to expect in all governments? However, I repeat it, I am glad of -the present appearance of tranquillity; and, indeed, distant dangers are -not to be too anxiously provided against. I am," &c. - - -Hume seems to have now commenced the building of the house, in the New -Town of Edinburgh, in which he died. It was the commencement of the -street leading southward from St. Andrew's Square, now called St. David -Street.[436:1] - - -HUME _to_ BARON MURE. - -"_Edinburgh, 2d October, 1770._ - -"DEAR BARON,--I am sorry that I should correspond so ill to your very -obliging letter, by telling you, that I cannot propose to see you till -you come to town next winter. I am engaged in the building a house, -which is the second great operation of human life: for the taking a wife -is the first, which I hope will come in time; and by being present, I -have already prevented two capital mistakes, which the mason was falling -into; and I shall be apprehensive of his falling into more, were I to be -at a distance. I must therefore renounce the hopes of seeing you at your -own house this autumn, which, I assure [you,] I do with much regret. My -compliments to Mrs. Mure and the young ladies. Please tell Miss Kitty, -that my coat is much admired, even before I tell that it is her livery. -For her sake I shall be careful that it never meet with any such -accident, as the last. I am, dear Baron, yours very sincerely.[436:2] - -"P.S.--Mr. Moore's verses are really very elegant." - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[383:1] In the conclusion of Hume's letter to Dr. Blair, of 27th May, -1767, cited above, there is the following paragraph:-- - -"Pray, how has the General Assembly passed? I have had a long letter -from Mass David Dickson, complaining of your injustice. Has John Home -any thoughts of coming up? Tell Robertson that the compliment, at the -end of General Conway's letter to him, was of my composing, without any -orders from him. He smiled when he read it, but said it was very proper, -and signed it. These are not bad puffs from ministers of state, as the -silly world goes." I inferred from this that the letter in question was -the King's letter to the General Assembly of 1767; but I find no -allusion to Robertson in that document, and am not aware of any letter, -generally known at the period, which answers the above description. It -is clear that Hume refers to some official communication from the -secretary of state. The letter from Dickson is a long complaint about -the conduct of some judicatories as to a forgotten church dispute. It -begins with the statement;--"I am informed that His Majesty's letter to -the General Assembly, of this year, is issued from the secretary's -office, under your direction." As it is pretty generally believed that -the policy of the Home-office, in its communications with the Church of -Scotland, was directed by Hume, during the period when he was under -secretary, the following extract from the King's letter to the General -Assembly, in 1767, is given, that the reader may judge for himself -whether the style and matter are characteristic of Hume's pen:-- - -"Convinced, as we are, of your prudence and firm resolution to concur in -whatever may promote the happiness of our subjects, it is unnecessary -for us to recommend to you to avoid contentious and unedifying debates; -as well as to avoid every thing that may tend to disturb that harmony -and tranquillity which is so essential in councils solely calculated for -the suppression of every species of licentiousness, irreligion, and -vice. And, as we have the firmest reliance on your zeal in the support -of the Christian faith, as well as in the wisdom and prudence of your -councils, we are thoroughly assured that they will be directed to such -purposes as may best tend to enforce a conscientious observance of all -those duties which the true religion, and laws of this kingdom require, -and on which the felicity of every individual so essentially -depends."[383:A] - - [383:A] MS. R.S.E. - -[385:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[385:2] See above, p. 56. - -[386:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[386:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[388:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[388:2] John Oswald, brother of Mr. Oswald of Dunnikier, who was -translated from the see of Dromore to that of Raphoe in 1763. - -[390:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[392:1] Copies in R.S.E. The originals are in possession of Colonel -Mure. - -[392:2] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 666. Original, MS. R.S.E. - -[393:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[394:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[395:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[395:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[396:1] _Literary Gazette_. MS. R.S.E. - -[397:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[398:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[398:2] An early acquaintance with this characteristic, might have saved -the present writer some fruitless investigations. - -[399:1] There are two letters from Blacklock to Hume, remarkably -characteristic of the timid and excitable character of the blind genius. -After an exordium on the tone which he hopes their intercourse will -maintain, full of nervous susceptibility; the fear of being too profuse -in correspondence alternating with the dread that he may be thought -cold, negligent, or ungrateful; he gives an account of the education of -his pupil, Joseph, and then turns towards his own dark prospects. - -"It was not indeed without some fear that I undertook the office. The -vivacity of his disposition, and even the quickness of his genius, -inspired me with terror that I should not be able to manage the one, or -make any lasting impression upon the other. But how agreeable was my -disappointment to find his temper, though lively, extremely amiable and -flexible, and his apprehension, though quick, yet distinct and -retentive. He applies with a diligence not often found in people of his -age and character. As during this winter we had a pretty numerous -family, most of whom were gentlemen of parts and spirit, I have seen -numberless instances in which his passions, though warm and sensible, -were governed with a discretion worthy of mature age and experience, yet -in such a manner as to preserve his dignity, and betray no degree of -complaisance unworthy of his spirit, or inconsistent with his ingenuity. -You cannot imagine but such an object must pre-engage every susceptible -heart. He is really admired by all the young gentlemen of our family who -know him. I love him, and Mrs. Blacklock doats on him; yet there are -not, perhaps, two in the human species who have it in their power to vex -me in the same degree, if at any time he should be more remiss and -careless than usual. He is now reading French with Mons{r} Cauvin, and -the Satires of Horace, and Homer's Iliad, with me. - -"Mr. Alexander's account of my situation, in general, was right. I have -indeed got clear of a parish where I could have never been happy, even -though their malice had been less implacable than I found it. But when I -left that vindictive place, my poetical vanity was not quite -extinguished; and it is natural for those who have felt the oppressive -hand of unprovoked injury, to expect a kinder and more human reception, -where civility, politeness, and gentler manners prevail. These -sentiments, too sanguinely indulged, might perhaps have raised my hopes -too high, and taught me to anticipate a greater degree of notice from -the people of taste and learning in this place, than I have either -obtained or deserved. Be that as it will, I am at present almost an -absolute recluse; and when I meet with any of the virtuosi in public -places, (where, indeed, I do not commonly appear,) their behaviour seems -more cool and reserved than I could have thought. Not that all my -self-importance can flatter me with any degree of merit in this way; but -surely it was not unnatural to hope the enterprises which I attempted in -the circumstances in which I was involved, might have attracted some -degree of attention, and impressed some faint prepossessions in my -favour, when not opposed by any vice or immorality in my character. For -these reasons, as well as the private and disinterested attachment of my -heart, you will naturally imagine the pleasure I feel from the prospect -of your arrival in Edinburgh, and from my promised intercourse with one, -who, though he might do honour to the republic of letters in any period, -yet descends to honour me with the name of a FRIEND." - -In the other letter, dated 2d May, 1767, he states that he has been -overworking himself; and says, "My old nervous complaints have been like -to return, and unhinge all our schemes; but, thank God, they are a -little better again." He then details, with some minuteness, the reasons -for feeling that his pecuniary prospects are precarious; and ascribes -his exertions to his wish "to do something, if possible, for these -approaching contingencies," which, he says, "the natural gloom" of his -mind has made "not very distant." He continues:-- - -"You was so kind as hint your friendly intention towards a church -settlement. That, I begin to think, I am unfit to encounter with again; -for the ten thousand hardships and disagreeable things which I met with -in my short but dear-bought experience of that kind of life, brought me -a great way on in my journey down hill; so that if any one of them -should again occur in another trial, I would certainly soon reach the -foot of the precipice. This event is matter of no great thought to -myself, but as it may concern one not undeservedly dear to me." - -These letters are written with great precision, in a small, neat, -regular hand; and, though duly signed, "Thos. Blacklock," it is clear -that they cannot be the penmanship of their sightless author. - -Appended to the second, and in a bolder and more masculine looking hand, -is the following:-- - -"Mrs. Blacklock begs leave to offer her compliments to Mr. Hume, -herself; and to supplicate some easy thing, if it can be procured, -(without giving Mr. Hume much trouble,) for her friend, whom she has -been a good deal apprehensive for this spring, by reason of his close -study. Our college has acquired a new professor for natural history. Do -you think one for poetry could be added, with a moderate salary to -it?"--MSS. R.S.E. - -[401:1] The dates of the births of John Home's children, as entered in -the Kirk-session Record of Chirnside, are:--Joseph, 24th June, 1752; -John, 21st April, 1754; Helen, 22d August, 1755; David, 27th February, -1757; John, 29th April, 1758; Catherine, 9th November, 1760; Agnes, 7th -October, 1763; Agatha, 31st December, 1764. His wife was Agnes Carre, -daughter of Robert Carre of Cavers, in Roxburghshire. - -[402:1] "Hume carried the torch into all the recesses of actual -practice. He not only made himself familiar with all the scattered -matter that had been published, though much of it had been hid in places -not commonly explored; but he was the very first who went systematically -to the records, and filtered these fountain heads."--_Ed. Rev._, January -1846, p. 197. - -[404:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[405:1] A comparison of the two brothers, Joseph and David, is thus made -by their father in a letter to his brother of 21st November, 1768. He -begins with David: "He still shows the same talents and temper, and an -attention and keenness for what he is employed about, and might go very -far in any profession if he was properly directed, and quite in a -different manner from any of the rest, particularly from Josey, whose -trifling superficial talents makes him never apply to any thing -thoroughly, nor do I ever expect he will. He this winter is at Mr. -Ferguson and Blair's classes, and the Italian, which completes his -university education. I am totally at a loss what to do with him after. -Law will never do with him. The army he inclines not to, though that, as -he has address and behaviour, is best calculated for him."--MS. R.S.E. - -[406:1] _Scots Magazine_, 1807, p. 247. - -[406:2] Sir Gilbert had succeeded to the baronetcy on the death of his -father, in 1766. - -[407:1] Minto MSS. - -[408:1] This is probably in allusion to Wilkes having obtained his -verdict of L1000 damages against the Secretary of State for the seizure -of his papers. - -[408:2] Minto MSS. - -[409:1] A Scottish artist, whose productions are known to collectors, -but who has not been handed down to posterity by the critics and -biographers. - -[409:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[409:3] Milman's edition of Gibbon's Life, p. 216. - -[410:1] Deyverdun had (in a letter, MS. R.S.E.) acknowledged himself to -be the author of an attack on Rousseau, which the latter attributed to -Hume. - -[411:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[412:1] Life of Gibbon. - -[413:1] Stewart's Life of Robertson. - -[414:1] The "Philosophical Essays" were not written by Sir David -Dalrymple, as here hinted, but as Sir Gilbert explains, by James -Balfour, who has already been mentioned, (see vol. i. p. 160, 345.) The -Essays were mainly directed against Kaimes' "Essays on Morality and -Natural Religion." - -[415:1] Minto MSS. - -[416:1] MS. R.S.E. I can find no light on the meaning of the words "love -affair." - -[417:1] Mr. Home was a very cautious farmer, and carried his dislike of -novelties and innovations to the unprecedented extent of declining the -higher rents he might have obtained from enterprising tenants. - -[418:1] Minto MSS. - -[419:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[419:2] Perhaps a false transcript for Hagley, the seat of Lord -Lyttelton. - -[420:1] _Scots Mag._, 1807, p. 248. - -[420:2] In Mackenzie's Account of Home. - -[421:1] Blair, writing on 11th March, says,-- - -"I long exceedingly to hear of the success of 'The Fatal Discovery,' and -am much pleased with what I have already heard. I read it a twelvemonth -ago, and thought highly of it. I will not pronounce it quite equal to -'Douglas,' but inferior only to it. Mr. Garrick told me, when last in -London, that he approved highly of it, and sent a message to the author -by me, advising him to take measures for bringing it on. I am infinitely -diverted with the trick which our friend has played to John concerning -it. How foolish will he look when he finds how he has been imposed on. I -beseech you write me how it goes on with the public." - -[421:2] Dr. Robertson, of whom Blair says in the letter above cited: - -"What an excellent performance has Robertson given us. What a treasure -of curious and instructive historical information! I think it much -superior to his former work. He is a little deaf at present, which I -have told him is a thorn in the flesh wisely sent him, that he may not -be too much lifted up with hearing the voice of applause. Your History -of England, and his as an introduction to the History of Europe, form a -perfect historical library. I congratulate myself on living in an age, -when our own country and our friends have done such honour to -literature. For myself I continue piddling still about my Lectures." - -[422:1] Not very. The lines he intended to cite are: - - Cum positis novus exuviis, nitidusque juventa - Volvitur, aut catulos tectis aut ova relinquens - Arduus ad solem, et linguis micat ore trisulcis. - -[423:1] It is possible that the words "that fellow," apply to Wilkes, -but the context makes it more likely that they are intended for Chatham. - -[423:2] The decision was given on 27th February, 1769. - -[423:3] Apparently Robert Blair, afterwards Lord President of the Court -of Session. Dr. Blair, in his letter of introduction, says:-- - -"He is one of the most accomplished and most promising young men who, -for some time, have appeared at the bar; and will certainly go very high -in his profession. His reputation, in that line, is already far -advanced; and he has, besides this, many great virtues, both as a man -and a scholar. As he is my near relation, he has been, all along, my -pupil; and I have great credit in him." - -[424:1] The line of houses, near the castle of Edinburgh, called Ramsay -Gardens. His friend, Mrs. Cockburn, strongly dissuaded him from living -in this part of the town. - -[424:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[426:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[428:1] _New Monthly Magazine_, original series, No. 72. - -[429:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[429:2] The Firth of Forth. - -[430:1] _Literary Gazette_, 1822, p. 691. Collated with original MS. -R.S.E. - -[432:1] Minto MSS. - -[432:2] Minto MSS. - -[433:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[435:1] Minto MSS. - -[436:1] When the house was built, and inhabited by Hume, but while yet -the street, of which it was the commencement, had no name, a witty young -lady, daughter of Baron Ord, chalked on the wall, the words "ST. DAVID -STREET." The allusion was very obvious. Hume's "lass," judging that it -was not meant in honour or reverence, ran into the house much excited, -to tell her master how he was made game of. "Never mind, lassie," he -said; "many a better man has been made a saint of before." - -[436:2] MS. R.S.E. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII. - -1771-1776. AEt. 60-65. - - Hume's social character--His conversation--His disposition-- - Traditional anecdotes regarding him--Correspondence--Letter - about the Pretender--Gilbert Stuart's quarrel with Dr. Henry-- - Commercial State of Scotland--Letter to his nephew on - Republicanism--Smith's "Wealth of Nations"--Hume's illness-- - His Will--Smith appointed Literary Executor--Strahan - substituted--His journey to England with Home--Prospects of - Death--Communications with his Friends and Relations--His - Death--General view of his influence on Thought and Action. - - -It is to the period from the year 1770 to his death, when he lived among -his early friends in Edinburgh, that we ought to refer such traditional -accounts of Hume's private life and social habits, as are not expressly -connected with any known event in his history. He was, it is true, a -distinguished man when he left his native city, in 1763. He had then, -indeed, performed all the services which entitled him to immortality. -But his foreign celebrity, and his official honours, had since added -many ostensible glories to his name, and introduced him to a wider -sphere of public notice than the substantial fruits of his genius and -industry would have of themselves secured. When we remember that this -was the most celebrated period of his life, and was the only one of -which persons who are still, or who have lately been alive, could have -any recollection, we naturally refer to it those traditional notices and -incidents which have no distinct place. - -The impression of Hume's character, acquired by one who has sought it in -the tenor of his works, and the history of his literary career, is quite -different from that which we derive from those who knew him, and were -connected with the social circle in which he lived. The former is -solitary, self-relying, and unimpressible even to sternness; the latter -is good, easy, simple, social, and amenable to the sway of gentle -impulses. These two representations are not without a harmony of -principle. In all serious matters, in his projects of literary ambition, -in the philosophy he taught mankind, in all that was to connect him with -posterity and the intellectual destiny of the human race, he was -resolute and uncompromising. But the exhibition of his strength was -reserved for the arena of his triumphs; and in domestic and social -intercourse he put aside his helmet, with its nodding plumes; feeling, -that the intellectual exhibitions suited for _that_ sphere, should -spring from whatever Nature had bestowed on him of sweet, and peaceful, -and kind,--whatever was fitted to drive rancour or angry emulation from -the bosom, and to render life delightful. Hence, to appear in the social -circle as an intellectual gladiator, does not appear to have been his -wish; he was content if he gave himself and others pleasure. - -This view of his character is confirmed by Mackenzie, who, when a young -man, enjoyed the high distinction of mingling in that group, of which he -was the principal figure. - - But the most illustrious of that circle was David Hume, who - had a sincere affection for his poetical namesake,--an - affection which was never abated during the life of that - celebrated man. The unfortunate nature of his opinions with - regard to the theoretical principles of moral and religious - truth, never influenced his regard for men who held very - opposite sentiments on those subjects; subjects which he - never, like some vain and shallow sceptics, introduced into - social discourse: On the contrary, when at any time the - conversation tended that way, he was desirous rather of - avoiding any serious discussion on matters which he wished to - confine to the graver and less dangerous consideration of - cool philosophy. He had, it might be said, in the language - which the Grecian historian applies to an illustrious Roman, - two minds; one which indulged in the metaphysical scepticism - which his genius could invent, but which it could not always - disentangle; another, simple, natural, and playful, which made - his conversation delightful to his friends, and even - frequently conciliated men whose principles of belief his - philosophical doubts, if they had not power to shake, had - grieved and offended. During the latter period of his life, I - was frequently in his company amidst persons of genuine piety, - and I never heard him venture a remark at which such men, or - ladies, still more susceptible than men, could take - offence.[439:1] - -The late Lord Chief Commissioner Adam was another of the young men who -were so fortunate as to be admitted to this circle. In a curious little -collection of notices of eminent persons, called "The Gift of a -Grandfather," privately printed at his own press at Blair-Adam, he says -of Hume: - - He was an intimate friend and acquaintance: and in all the - intercourse of life, and in all he said, and wrote, and did, - when not employed in his unnecessary metaphysical scepticism - (well named, by a friend of mine, intellectual rope-dancing,) - was innocent, playful, and moral, and most natural in his - conversation: equally pleasing and instructive to the young - and old of both sexes. . . . . . . . . . - - His simple unaffected nature, and kindly disposition, exalted - him as much as the singular powers of his mind, and his - talents for expressing in writing what he contemplated--so - well described by Gibbon, as careless inimitable beauties of - style; which, when he read, he laid down the book in despair - that he should ever be able to imitate them. - - I have before shown that he never introduced, in conversation, - his abstruse or sceptical speculations; that all his - sentiments were moral and natural and pleasing, and even - playful in the extreme. This is evinced by his letters, which - are perfect in their kind. He could bring himself down, - without effort, to the most familiar playfulness with young - persons, and particularly delighted in the conversation of - youthful females. - - Mr. Hume was one of our constant visiters, making, as was the - custom of those days, tea-time the hour of calling. In the - summer he would often stroll to my father's beautiful villa of - North Merchiston. On one occasion--I was then a boy of - thirteen--he, missing my mother, made his tea-drinking good - with two or three young ladies of eighteen or nineteen, (his - acquaintances,) who were my mother's guests. I recollect - perfectly how agreeably he talked to them; and my recollection - has been rendered permanent by an occurrence which caused some - mirth and no mischief. - - When the philosopher was amusing himself in conversation with - the young ladies, the chair began to give way under him, and - gradually brought him to the floor. - - The damsels were both alarmed and amused, when Mr. Hume, - recovering himself, and getting upon his legs, said in his - broad Scotch tone, but in English words, (for he never used - Scotch,) "Young ladies, you must tell Mr. Adam to keep - stronger chairs for heavy philosophers." - - This simple story is a good specimen of the man. He was above - all affectation. I was a companion of his eldest nephew, and - saw much of him when I was very young. As I grew up he used to - invite me to dinner, and I took great delight in his - conversation. I continued in and about Edinburgh long enough - to be able to relish it, and perhaps to join in it. On one - particular occasion I met him at tea at Professor Ferguson's; - it was at the period of my attending Dr. Blair's class on - rhetoric and belles lettres: their conversation became very - interesting to me, as it bore upon subjects which had an - affinity to what I was in the habit of hearing prelected upon. - They discussed particularly the Henriade of Voltaire; they - were not displeased with any want of brilliancy in the - versification, but they condemned the choice of the subject. - Mr. Hume said, "He should never choose for an epic poem - history, the truth of which is well known; for no fiction can - come up to the interest of the actual story and incidents of - the singular life of Henry IV.;" and Professor Ferguson added, - "What epic poet could improve upon the chivalrous life of - Chevalier Bayard, or on the event of his extraordinary - romantic death?" - -"I always lived," says James Boswell, in a passage where he has to -record some of his great patron's expressions of contempt and dislike, -"on good terms with Mr. Hume, though I have frankly told him I was not -clear that it was right of me to keep company with him; 'but,' said I, -'how much better are you than your books!' He was cheerful, obliging, -and instructive. He was charitable to the poor;[441:1] and many an -agreeable hour have I passed with him." - -The testimony which Adam Smith bore to his character and disposition, in -the letter which accompanies his autobiography, though so well known, -must not here be omitted. - - His temper seemed to be more happily balanced, if I may be - allowed such an expression, than that perhaps of any other man - I have ever known. Even in the lowest state of his fortune, - his great and necessary frugality never hindered him from - exercising, upon proper occasions, acts both of charity and - generosity. It was a frugality founded, not upon avarice, but - upon the love of independency. The extreme gentleness of his - nature never weakened either the firmness of his mind, or the - steadiness of his resolutions. His constant pleasantry was the - genuine effusion of good nature and good humour; tempered with - delicacy and modesty, and without even the slightest tincture - of malignity, so frequently the disagreeable source of what is - called wit in other men. It never was the meaning of his - raillery to mortify; and, therefore, far from offending, it - seldom failed to please and delight, even those who were the - objects of it. To his friends, who were frequently the objects - of it, there was not, perhaps, any one of all his great and - amiable qualities which contributed more to endear his - conversation. And that gaiety of temper, so agreeable in - society, but which is so often accompanied with frivolous and - superficial qualities, was, in him, certainly attended with - the most severe application, the most extensive learning, the - greatest depth of thought, and a capacity in every respect the - most comprehensive. Upon the whole, I have always considered - him, both in his lifetime, and since his death, as approaching - as nearly to the idea of a perfectly wise and virtuous man, - as, perhaps, the nature of human frailty will permit. - -Of any description of his character, his own account of it must form a -material feature. The mere circumstance that a man should have thus -written about himself, is a noticeable element in his mental history. He -says, in his "own life:" - - To conclude, historically, with my own character. I am, or - rather was, (for that is the style I must now use in speaking - of myself, which emboldens me the more to speak my - sentiments,)--I was, I say, a man of mild disposition, of - command of temper, of an open, social, and cheerful humour, - capable of attachment, but little susceptible of enmity, and - of great moderation in all my passions. Even my love of - literary fame, my ruling passion, never soured my temper, - notwithstanding my frequent disappointments. My company was - not unacceptable to the young and careless, as well as to the - studious and literary; and as I took a particular pleasure in - the company of modest women, I had no reason to be displeased - with the reception I met with from them. In a word, though - most men, any wise eminent, have found reason to complain of - calumny, I never was touched, or even attacked by her baleful - tooth: and though I wantonly exposed myself to the rage of - both civil and religious factions, they seemed to be disarmed, - in my behalf, of their wonted fury. My friends never had - occasion to vindicate any one circumstance of my character and - conduct: not but that the zealots, we may well suppose, would - have been glad to invent and propagate any story to my - disadvantage, but they could never find any which they thought - would wear the face of probability. I cannot say there is no - vanity in making this funeral oration of myself, but I hope - it is not a misplaced one; and this is a matter of fact which - is easily cleared and ascertained. - -We have here a generous testimony to the tolerant spirit of his age: And -yet his history and correspondence show, that he did not always feel -himself safe from the influence of political or polemical resentment. He -seemed, however, to take a pride in contrasting his own personal -reception, by the world, with that of his writings; the one being all -courtesy, the other all prejudice and dislike. A late eminent judge -remembered meeting him at dinner with Black, Smith, and others, a few -months before his death. Smith was speaking of the ingratitude, -perversity, and intolerance of human nature. Hume said he differed with -him. There was he, who had written on history, on politics, and on -morals--some said on divinity; yet, in discussing these exciting topics, -he had not made a single enemy; unless, indeed, all the Whigs, and all -the Tories, and all the Christians! As, in his playful conversation -among his intimate friends, he was inclined to indulge in practical -humour, he made the general unpopularity of his opinions a common theme -of amusement; picturesquely exaggerating the more offensive features, -and exhibiting them as bugbears to frighten the well-meaning. Asking his -friend, Clephane, to look for lodgings for him in London, he represents -the person who is to inhabit them as "a sober, discreet, virtuous, -frugal, regular, quiet, good-natured man--of a bad character." This "bad -character," he seems to have occasionally used as a method of gently -alarming innocent females. A lady, of strictly evangelical principles, -walking home from church, through a crowded part of Edinburgh, was -rather surprised by the zealous attention with which he proffered his -arm. After they had passed through the crowd, he gave his reason for -being so obsequious--it was, that she might be congratulated, by her -friends, on having been seen walking on Sunday with "Hume the Deist." -Mackenzie relates the following incident, which shows that he was not, -however, always proof against the effect of jocular attacks on his -principles by others. - - In the same _bonhommie_, Mr. Hume bore with perfect good - nature the pleasantries which humorous deductions from his - theoretical scepticisms sometimes produced. Once, I have been - told, he was in a small degree ruffled by a witticism of Mr. - John Home's, who, though always pleasant, and often lively, - seldom produced what might be termed or repeated as wit. The - clerk of an eminent banker in Edinburgh, a young man of - irreproachable conduct, and much in the confidence of his - master, eloped with a considerable sum with which he had been - intrusted. The circumstance was mentioned at a dinner where - the two Humes, the historian and the poet, and several of - their usual friendly circle, were present. David Hume spoke of - it as a kind of moral problem, and wondered what could induce - a man of such character and habits as this clerk was said to - possess, thus to incur, for an inconsiderable sum, the guilt - and the infamy of such a transaction. "I can easily account - for it," said his friend, John Home, "from the nature of his - studies, and the kind of books which he was in the habit of - reading." "What were they?" said the philosopher. "Boston's - Fourfold State," rejoined the poet, "and Hume's Essays." David - was more hurt by the joke than was usual with him; probably - from the singular conjunction of the two works, which formed, - according to his friend's account, the library of the - unfortunate young man.[444:1] - -As appropriate to his popularity among women and young people, the -following anecdotes from the pen of one who has gained no little -celebrity by her genius, cannot fail to give interest. They are -contained in a letter by Lady Anne Lindsay, authoress of the song _Auld -Robin Gray_, when she was a young lady living in her grandmother's house -in Edinburgh, to her sister Margaret:-- - - Dinners go on as usual, which, being monopolized by the - divines, wits, and writers of the present day, are not - unjustly called the Dinners of the Eaterati, by Lord Kellie, - who laughs at his own pun till his face is purple. - - Our friend, David Hume, along with his friend, Principal - Robertson, continue to maintain their ground at these - convivial meetings. To see the lion and the lamb lying down - together, the deist and the doctor, is extraordinary; it makes - one hope that some day Hume will say to him, "Thou almost - persuadest me to be a Christian." He is a constant morning - visiter of ours. My mother jested him lately on a circumstance - which had a good deal of character in it. - - When we were very young girls, too young to remember the - scene, there happened to be a good many clever people at - Balcarres at Christmas; and as a gambol of the season, they - agreed to write each his own character, to give them to Hume, - and make him show them to my father, as extracts he had taken - from the pope's library at Rome.[445:1] - - He did. My father said, "I don't know who the rest of your - fine fellows and charming princesses are, Hume; but if you had - not told me where you got _this_ character, I should have said - it was that of my wife." - - "I was pleased," said my mother, "with my lord's answer, it - showed that at least I had been an honest woman." - - "Hume's character of himself," said she, "was well drawn and - full of candour; he spoke of himself as he ought;" but added, - what surprised us all, that, "plain as his manners were, and - apparently careless of attention, vanity was his predominant - weakness. That vanity led him to publish his Essays, which he - grieved over; not that he had changed his opinions, but that - he thought he had injured society by disseminating them." - - "Do you remember the sequel of that affair?" said Hume. - - "Yes, I do," replied my mother, laughing: "you told me that, - although I thought your character a sincere one, it was not - so; there was a particular feature omitted that we were still - ignorant of, and that you would add it; like a fool I gave you - the manuscript, and you thrust it into the fire, adding, 'Oh, - what an idiot I had nearly proved myself to be, to leave such - a document in the hands of a parcel of women!'" - - "Villain!" said my mother, laughing, and shaking her head at - him. - - "Do you remember all this, my little woman?" said Hume to me. - - "I was too young," said I, "to think of it at the time." - - "How's this? have not you and I grown up together?" - - I looked surprised. - - "Yes," added he, "you have grown tall, and I have grown - broad."[446:1] - -It may give us some farther idea of the refined simplicity that made his -conversation agreeable to intellectual and right thinking women, to -observe the manner in which he was addressed in the following very -lively letter from Lady Elliot Murray, the wife of his friend, Sir -Gilbert. - - _Minto, 12th October, 1772._ - - I am resolved to take the reins of government into my own - hands. I don't know what has made me such a humble subservient - animal hitherto. I will dictate from this time forth. I will - give the law, and insist on an implicit obedience to my - superior wisdom; for am I not wiser than the wisest? did I not - foretell what has come to pass, that Mons. De Guigne would not - reach Edinburgh before the middle of this week? and did I not - prove my judgment surpassing that best of historians, who is a - mere pedler in understanding to me? Had he taken my advice, he - need not have jumbled himself seventy long miles over - mountains and plains in one day, and left a family who were - happy in his company, and exchanged the cheering blaze of a - good coal fire, for the dreary glimpses of a clouded moon. - But, however, he had the pleasure of gratifying a sense which - few people are much troubled with, a delicacy and ardour in - politeness; and as that is pretty near akin to benevolence, I - believe the indulgence of it may be a full recompense for the - trouble. But that last principle will lead you back the road - you went; for you left three ladies mourning for your - departure, and the good man of the house has been in a - vexation ever since, and can only be contented by a renewal of - your kind intentions towards us, of passing some quiet days - under our roof. Sir Gilbert came home from Jedburgh, and had - seen your brother there, who told him he would find you here - when he came back. - - Enter Sir Gilbert. Where is Mr. Hume?--Answer: He is gone. - When did he come?--About one o'clock. And when did he go - away?--About five. What! have you quarrelled?--Yes. He and I - had some little difference about his _byeuks_, and I tried to - persuade him to burn them all, and write the other way; for, - as I said, I was sure he would be a shining light, and equal - the author of the "Pilgrim's Progress," or Mr. Ebenezer - Erskine, if he would only take the right side; and he flew in - a passion and went away in a huff! How could you think he - would be persuaded by you? Pooh! though I am but a simple - woman, before it be long he may be convinced I can see farther - into a millstone than he can do; and if he had taken my - advice, he might have rested his bones here this night in - quiet, in place of rumbling along in the dark in a post - chaise; and so in other matters too, I might perhaps do him a - service if he would be ruled by me. My dear, how can you be so - wild? And, my dear, where is the harm in telling one's mind, - when you think you can do good by it, to a good worthy - creature that is only a little mistaken or so? Good by it, - what a chimera! but come, there is some other reason than this - for his going away? None that I know; except a fine flim-flam - letter that he received from the French Ambassador, saying, he - expected to have the exquisite joy of beholding him at - Edinburgh to-morrow. Ah, now I understand it. But when does he - come back? Why he either comes back with Mons. De Guigne, or - after he has done the last duties to him at Edinburgh. So you - see, if you do not come, you will have brought me in for the - lesser excommunication; for you will have been the cause of my - deceiving my husband, and telling him a lie: although, for - that matter, neither you nor I _lukelly_ have any thing to - fear now-a-days, for either the greater or lesser - excommunication: For, as you justly observe, line 12, first - page of your letter, how are things changed! Old prejudices - are done away, but behold new ones arise; and the last errors - I am afraid are worse than the first: but, for my own part, I - would willingly have stood before the kirk-session, to have - shown any respect and regard to Mons{r.} L'Ambassador, who is - a man we all esteem in this house, and from whom we have - always received every possible civility, of which we retain a - grateful sense. But we perceive he is travelling in his public - capacity, and unless Sir Gilbert had had it in his power to go - to town to wait of him, and give him welcome from us to our - house, should it suit his conveniency to rest here upon his - road to England, we think any other invitation would appear - improper and abrupt; and as it so happens he cannot possibly - accomplish this at present, for we are to have company with us - most part of this week; and after that we go to our visits, - which will take us most of next week; and then we shall be - chez nous till our journey southwards, when we will require - from you to restore us your good society, else we shall verily - believe your flying visit was all a hum, and we won't be - _Humed_ so! - - Bless me, I thought I was writing to my poor good Harry. How - does he do, sanctified soul? I have really hopes of you, now - that he and you are come hand to fist at a conversation; as he - tells me you are very often with him, and he really thinks you - are a saint in your nature; and I say that is a great pity, - for tho' I cannot deny the fact, I deplore it for the - consequences of it; but give my best wishes to him, and tell - him I long to hear of better prospects for him. I am really - confounded, when I think what a parcel of nonsense I have - wrote you: But learn to prefer the truth and sincerity of a - Scots wife, to the pernicious flattery of Les Dames - Francaises, of which you have had enough in your days; and so - it is fit you should be made to hear on the other side of the - head. And so wishing you all health and happiness, and - clearness of understanding, I remain, sir, your well wisher, - friend, and obedient servant, - - AG. ELLIOT MURRAY. - - P.S. I don't think the quiet Euthanasia of England will happen - in the year 1773, the mayoralty of J. W. Esq. - -Hume had been for many years very corpulent. In a letter to Sir Harry -Erskine, in 1756, he complains of this tendency to obesity. He -occasionally alludes to his partiality for plain food, and to his being, -to use his own sufficiently distinct expression, "a glutton, not an -epicure."[449:1] We have found him telling Sir Gilbert Elliot, that for -beef and cabbage, which he calls "a charming dish," and old mutton, no -one could excel him; and that the Duc de Nivernois would become -apprentice to his "lass," to learn how she made sheeps'-head broth. The -zest with which he returned to the simple food of his native country, -after the diplomatic feasts of Paris, seems to have been characteristic -of all his habits. Burke is said to have affirmed, that, "in manners he -was an easy unaffected man, previous to going to Paris as secretary to -Lord Hertford; but that the adulation and caresses of the female wits of -that capital had been too powerful even for a philosopher, and the -result was, he returned a literary coxcomb." But the saying is not in -harmony with the characteristics noted by others; and it is not quite -clear that it was ever uttered by Burke.[450:1] All who speak as having -been familiarly acquainted with him, concur in describing his manners as -kind, simple, and polite. He had, as no one who has read his -correspondence can fail to see, a good heart, ever ready to do -benevolent acts where occasions for their performance came under his -notice; and his exterior appearance and manner corresponded with this -part of his character. One occasionally meets with venerable persons who -remember having been dandled on Hume's knee, and the number of these -reminiscences indicates that he was fond of children.[450:2] - -The broad Scottish pronunciation, in which, by all accounts, he -indulged, was a rather singular habit in one who desired to throw off -all marks of provincialism. Yet we are told that in this rude Doric garb -he clothed a very pure English colloquial style. We must take this -statement with allowances: He never probably in his most finished -writings completely divested his style of Scotticisms; and the English -he spoke must have been pure only in comparison with the language of his -fellow countrymen. But it may be remarked, that provincial broadness of -pronunciation in Scotland is far from being incompatible with a very -pure and unprovincial style of language. It has often been observed, -that in those parts of the country where the speech of the uneducated is -most peculiar, English, when spoken at all, is found in greatest -purity. Thus, an inhabitant of the border districts makes his southern -tones, though hardly distinguishable from those of his English -neighbours, the vehicle of intense Scotticisms; while beyond the -Grampians, the deep broad Teutonic pronunciation sometimes gives voice -to uncontaminated English, as established by literary and colloquial -rules. - -Hume had very clearly two kinds of conversation, one for strangers and -the world at large, the other for his chosen friends with whom he was at -ease, and who could understand the good humour of that jocularity which -a contemporary pronounced to have something in it perfectly infantine. -His friend John Home was somewhat renowned for a warlike and romantic -pomp in his ideas, like those which pervade his own tragic personations. -In Hume's conversation we may believe that there was nothing either -heroic or enthusiastic. A good humoured sly application of the fugitive -subjects of discussion, to the peculiarities of the guests; an -occasional vigorous and apt remark; a fantastic wit sometimes let loose -to wander where it pleased, and choose whatever it thought fit for its -object,--seem to have constituted the charm of his society. Yet the tone -of his thoughts sometimes rose to enthusiasm. Thus the son of his valued -friend Ferguson, remembers his father saying, that, one clear and -beautiful night, when they were walking home together, Hume suddenly -stopped, looked up to the starry sky, and said, more after the manner of -"Hervey's Meditations" than the "Treatise of Human Nature," "Oh, Adam, -can any one contemplate the wonders of that firmament, and not believe -that there is a God!" - -In a late collection of casual reminiscences, there is the following -notice of his social habits. - -"Major M----, with whom I dined yesterday, said that he had frequently -met David Hume at their military mess in Scotland, and in other parties; -that he was very polite and pleasant, though thoughtful in company, -generally reclining his head upon his hand, as if in study; from which -he would suddenly recover, however, with some indifferent -question;[452:1] extremely inquisitive, but quite easy to himself and -all around him. One is glad to catch personal notices, however slight, -of memorable men and of speculative philosophers. I know no one so -memorable as Hume. He seems to have so far outstripped the spirit of the -times in his original and profound researches, that the world is in no -condition at present to do justice to his merits."[452:2] - -Those who know him solely by his philosophical reputation, will perhaps -believe him to have been - - Parcus deorum cultor et infrequens. - -But this does not seem to have been the case, at least in his outward -conduct. We find him, in writing home from France, casually mentioning -his not having seen Elliot's sons "in church;" and on another occasion -making a like allusion, indicative of his having been a pretty regular -attendant at the ambassador's chapel. He is said to have been fond of -Dr. Robertson's preaching, and not averse to that of his colleague and -opponent, John Erskine. A lady, distinguished in literature, remembers -that in a conversation with a respectable tradesman's wife, who had been -a servant to Hume, she said that her master one day asked her very -seriously, why she was never seen in church, where he had provided seats -for all his household. At that time there were very few of the humbler -classes in Edinburgh, who did not belong to the Church of Scotland. The -woman's defence was, that she belonged to a dissenting congregation; and -it was admitted to be quite satisfactory. - -Social in his habits, and living the life of a wealthy bachelor, it was -natural that Hume should connect himself with the societies, whether of -a literary or convivial character, which brought the good company of -Edinburgh together. He appears to have been a pretty active member of -the Philosophical Society. In a letter, of which part has already been -printed, and which would probably in strict chronological order belong -to an earlier period, we find him with mild dignity enforcing the -tolerance and philosophical equanimity, that ought to reign wherever men -of different sentiments meet each other in intellectual discussion. - - -"_Tuesday Forenoon._ - -"SIR,--I am so great a lover of peace, that I am resolved to drop this -matter altogether, and not to insert a syllable in the Preface, which -can have a reference to your Essay. The truth is, I could take no -revenge but such a one as would have been a great deal too cruel, and -much exceeding the offence: for, though most authors think, that a -contemptuous manner of treating their writings is but slightly revenged -by hurting the personal character and the honour of their antagonists, I -am very far from that opinion. Besides, I am as certain as I can be of -any thing, (and I am not such a sceptic as you may perhaps imagine,) -that your inserting such remarkable alterations in the printed copy, -proceeded entirely from precipitancy and passion, not from any formed -intention of deceiving the Society. I would not take advantage of such -an incident to throw a slur on a man of merit, whom I esteem, though I -might have reason to complain of him. - -"When I am abused by such a fellow as Warburton, whom I neither know nor -care for, I can laugh at him. But if Dr. Stewart approaches any way -towards the same style of writing, I own it vexes me; because I -conclude, that some unguarded circumstance of my conduct, though -contrary to my intention, had given occasion to it. - -"As to your situation with regard to Lord Kames, I am not so good a -judge. I only think that you had so much the better of the argument, -that you ought, upon that account, to have been more reserved in your -expressions. All raillery ought to be avoided in philosophical argument, -both because it is unphilosophical, and because it cannot but be -offensive, let it be ever so gentle. What, then, must we think with -regard to so many insinuations of irreligion, to which Lord Kames's -paper gave not the least occasion? This spirit of the inquisitor is, in -you, the effect of passion, and what a _cool_ moment would easily -correct. But where it predominates in the character, what ravages has it -committed on reason, virtue, truth, liberty, and every thing that is -valuable among mankind! I shall now speak a word as to the justness of -your censure with regard to myself after these remarks on the manner of -it. I have no scruple of confessing my mistakes. You see I have owned -that I think Lord Kames is mistaken in his argument; and I would sooner -give up my _own_ cause than my _friend's_, if I thought that imputation -of any consequence to a man's character. . . . .[455:1] - -"As I am resolved to drop this matter entirely from the Preface, so I -hope to persuade Lord Kames to be entirely silent with regard to it in -our meeting. But in case I should not prevail, or if any body else start -the subject, I think it better that some of your friends should be -there, and be prepared to mollify the matter. If I durst pretend to -advise, I should think it better you yourself were absent, unless you -bring a greater spirit of composition than you express in your letter. I -am persuaded that whatever a person of Mr. Monro's authority proposes -will be agreed to: though I must beg leave to differ from his judgment -in proposing to alter two pages. That chiefly removes the offence given -to me; but what regards Lord Kames is so interwoven with the whole -discourse, that there is not now any possibility of altering it. I am, -sir, your most obedient humble servant," &c. - -"P. S.--I hope you are very zealous in promoting the sale of Blacklock's -Poems. I will never be reconciled to you unless you dispose of at least -a score of them; and make your friends Sir John Maxwell and Lord Buchan -pay a guinea a piece for their copy."[455:2] - - -The Poker Club, occasionally mentioned in these pages, seems to have -had no other direct and specific object but the consumption of claret. -The duty laid on that national wine, by "the English statesman," so -pathetically commemorated by John Home, was a heavy blow and great -discouragement to the club; but it rallied, and returned to its old -esteemed beverage; and, indeed, it is a somewhat curious circumstance, -that the national taste, created by the early intercourse with France -and the consequent cheapness of French wines, still lingers in Scotland, -where claret is much more generally consumed than in England. The club -met in Fortune's tavern every Friday. It was the practice, at each -meeting, to name two to be, what were called, "attendant members;" an -arrangement, probably, designed to form a nucleus round which those -whose attendance was uncertain, but who might drop in occasionally in -the course of the evening, could form themselves; and to prevent any -general desertion of the club, or, what might be, perhaps, more -calamitous, the accident of any individual finding himself, for the -night, its sole and solitary representative. We find Hume duly taking -his turn in these attendances, and keeping the minutes according to -rotation. On the 20th January, 1775, there is this emphatic entry, in -his handwriting, "As Mr. Nairne was one of the attendant members, and -neglected his duty, the club sent him the bill." The last meeting of -the club, attended by Hume, appears to have been that of 8th December, -1775.[457:1] - -It does not appear to be necessary that traditional anecdotes, such as -the few we possess of Hume, must either be authenticated, or excluded -from such a work as the present. It seems to entitle them to a place, -that they were current among those who knew his character and habits. -They thus afford all that is expected from such sources--passing fancy -sketches, recognised as likenesses. Like several others that have -appeared in these pages, as mere traditions, the following anecdote, -which is eminently natural and curious, has no farther authentication -than the general belief, in Edinburgh, that it "was like the man." - -About the commencement of his last illness, a female member of the -respectable Berean congregation, in Leith, presented herself at his -door, with the information that she had been intrusted with a message to -him from on High; and, becoming very urgent, succeeded in obtaining -admission. "This is a very important matter, madam," said the -philosopher, "we must take it with deliberation;--perhaps you had better -get a little temporal refreshment before you begin. 'Lassie, bring this -good lady a glass of wine.'" While she was preparing for the attack, -Hume entered, good-humouredly, into conversation with her; and, -discovering that her husband was a chandler, announced that he stood -very much in want, at that time, of some temporal lights, and intrusted -his guest with a very large order. This unexpected stroke of business at -once absorbed all the good woman's thoughts; and, forgetting her -important mission, she immediately trotted home to acquaint her husband -with the good news. - -There is an anecdote, which has appeared in numerous collections of such -literary scraps, which represents him as having slipped into the boggy -ground at the base of the castle rock, and called to a woman to help him -out. In his unwieldy and infirm state, during his latter years, the -accident is not improbable. The anecdote proceeds to say, that the -female called on had great doubts of the propriety of helping "Hume, the -Deist," out of that slough of despond into which it had pleased -Providence to cast him. "But, my good woman, does not your religion as a -Christian, teach you to do good, even to your enemies?" "That may be," -said she, "but ye shallna get out o' that, till ye become a Christian -yersell: and repeat the Lord's Prayer and the Belief," a feat which is -said to have been very rapidly performed, much to the worthy catechist's -astonishment. - -Some of his witticisms have a tone of sarcastic severity, which he does -not appear to have been disposed to suppress, even when women were the -victims, if it was called forth by affectation or folly. To a celebrated -"fine woman" of his day, who said she was often pestered to tell her -age, and desired his opinion what answer she should give: he is reported -to have said, "Madam, say you are not yet come to years of discretion." -To the same lady, who, when crossing one of the ferries of the Firth of -Forth, during a fresh breeze, was making a loud outcry about danger, he -remarked, with much coolness, that they would probably soon be food for -fishes; "and who," said the frightened belle, probably a little confused -by the horrors of their position, "who will they begin with?" The answer -she received was, "Why, madam, those of them that are gluttons will -begin with me; those that are epicures with your ladyship." - -We now resume Hume's correspondence. The letters of the last five years -of his life, which have been preserved, are comparatively few; a -circumstance which may be accounted for from his living, during that -period, among his correspondents. On 28th January, 1772, he writes to -Smith, that he would be glad to receive a visit from him; but that his -house would be rather dull, from his sister having fever. In -continuation he says:-- - - -"I shall not take an excuse from your own state of health; which I -suppose only a subterfuge invented by indolence and love of solitude. -Indeed, my dear Smith, if you continue to hearken to complaints of this -nature, you will cut yourself out entirely from human society, to the -great loss of both parties. - -"P.S.--I have not yet read 'Orlando Inamorato;' but intend soon to do -it. I am now in a course of reading the 'Italian Historians,' and am -confirmed in my former opinion, that that language has not produced one -author who knew how to write elegant correct prose, though it contains -several excellent poets."[459:1] - - -In the following letters, we find several details about that remarkable -revulsion in the state of trade in Scotland, which, at the present day, -is chiefly known by the quantity of decisions on points of bankruptcy -law, with which it filled the Reports. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 27th June, 1772._ - -"We are here in a very melancholy situation, continual bankruptcies, -universal loss of credit, and endless suspicions. There are but two -standing houses in this place--Mansfields and the Coutses--for I -comprehend not Cummin, whose dealings were always very narrow. Mansfield -has paid away L40,000 in a few days: but it is apprehended that neither -he nor any of them can hold out till the end of next week, if no -alteration happen. The case is little better in London. It is thought -that Sir George Colebroke must soon stop; and even the Bank of England -is not entirely free from suspicion. Those of Newcastle, Norwich, and -Bristol, are said to be stopped. The Thistle Bank has been reported to -be in the same condition. The Carron Company is reeling, which is one of -the greatest calamities of the whole, as they gave employment to near -ten thousand people. Do these events any wise affect your theory, or -will it occasion the revisal of any chapters? - -"Of all the sufferers, I am the most concerned for the Adams, -particularly John. But their undertakings were so vast, that nothing -could support them. They must dismiss three thousand workmen, who, -comprehending the materials, must have expended above L100,000 a-year. -They have great funds; but if these must be disposed of in a hurry, and -to disadvantage, I am afraid the remainder will amount to little or -nothing. People's [compa]ssion I see was exhausted for John, in his last -calamity, and every body asks why he incurred any more hazards. But his -friendship for his brothers is an apology; though I believe he has a -projecting turn of his own. To me the scheme of the Adelphi always -appeared so imprudent, that my wonder is how they could have gone on so -long. - -"If Sir George Colebroke stop, it will probably disconcert all the -plans of our friends, as it will diminish their patron's influence; -which is a new misfortune. - -"On the whole, I believe that the check given to our exorbitant and ill -grounded credit, will prove of advantage in the long run, as it will -reduce people to more solid, and less sanguine projects, and, at the -same time, introduce frugality among the merchants and manufacturers: -what say you? Here is food for your speculation."[461:1] - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 23d Nov. 1772._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I should agree to your reasoning, if I could trust your -resolution. Come hither for some weeks about Christmas; dissipate -yourself a little; return to Kirkcaldy; finish your work before autumn: -go to London; print it; return and settle in this town, which suits your -studious independent turn, even better than London. Execute this plan -faithfully, and I forgive you. - -"Ferguson has returned, fat and fair, and in good humour, -notwithstanding his disappointment, which I am glad of."[461:2] - - -In 1772, Macpherson published a quarto volume, called "An Introduction -to the History of Great Britain and Ireland," of which Pinkerton, -indignant at the Celtic spirit it displayed, said, "The empty vanity, -shallow reading, vague assertion, and etymological nonsense, in this -production, are truly risible." In a letter to Colonel Dow,[461:3] we -find Hume criticising this book in a rather less emphatic manner. - -"My compliments to Ossian. He has given us a work last winter, which -contains a great deal of genius and good writing; but I cannot assent to -his system. I must still adhere to the common opinion regarding our -origin, or rather your origin; for we are all plainly Danes or Saxons in -the low countries. But these subjects I reserve to a discussion over an -evening fire on your return. I charge you not to think of settling in -London, till you have first seen our New Town, which exceeds any thing -you have seen in any part of the world."[462:1] - -With the following letter, many readers may perhaps be familiar, but to -those who have not already seen it, the curious historical incident it -details, will give it much interest. - - -HUME _to_ SIR JOHN PRINGLE. - - _St. Andrew's Square, Edinburgh, - Feb. 10, 1773._ - - MY DEAR SIR,--That the present Pretender was in London, in the - year 1753, I know with the greatest certainty; because I had - it from Lord Marischal, who said, it consisted with his - certain knowledge. Two or three days after his lordship gave - me this information, he told me, that the evening before, he - had learned several curious particulars from a lady, (who I - imagined to be Lady Primrose,) though my lord refused to name - her. The Pretender came to her house in the evening, without - giving her any preparatory information; and entered the room - when she had a pretty large company with her, and was herself - playing at cards. He was announced by the servant under - another name. She thought the cards would have dropped from - her hands on seeing him. But she had presence enough of mind, - to call him by the name he assumed; to ask him when he came to - England, and how long he intended to stay there. After he and - all the company went away, the servants remarked how - wonderfully like the strange gentleman was to the prince's - picture, which hung on the chimney-piece, in the very room in - which he entered. My lord added, (I think from the authority - of the same lady,) that he used so little precaution, that he - went abroad openly in day-light, in his own dress; only laying - aside his blue riband and star; walked once through St. - James's, and took a turn in the Mall. - - About five years ago, I told this story to Lord Holderness, - who was secretary of state in the year 1753; and I added, that - I supposed this piece of intelligence had at that time escaped - his lordship. "By no means," said he, "and who do you think - first told it me? it was the king himself, who subjoined, 'And - what do you think, my lord, I should do with him?'" Lord - Holderness owned that he was puzzled how to reply; for if he - declared his real sentiments, they might savour of - indifference to the royal family. The king perceived his - embarrassment, and extricated him from it, by adding, "My - lord, I shall just do nothing at all; and when he is tired of - England, he will go abroad again." I think this story, for the - honour of the late king, ought to be more generally known. - - But what will surprise you more, Lord Marischal, a few days - after the coronation of the present king, told me, that he - believed the young Pretender was at that time in London; or at - least had been so very lately, and had come over to see the - show of the coronation, and had actually seen it. I asked my - lord the reason for this strange fact. "Why," says he, "a - gentleman told me so that saw him there; and that he even - spoke to him, and whispered in his ears these words: 'Your - royal highness is the last of all mortals whom I should expect - to see here.'--'It was curiosity that led me,' said the other; - 'but I assure you,' added he, 'that the person who is the - object of all this pomp and magnificence is the man I envy the - least.'" You see this story is so near traced from the - fountain head, as to wear a great face of probability. Query, - What if the Pretender had taken up Dymock's gauntlet? I find - that the Pretender's visit in England, in the year 1753, was - known to all the Jacobites; and some of them have assured me, - that he took the opportunity of formally renouncing the Roman - Catholic religion, under his own name of Charles Stuart, in - the new church in the Strand; and that this is the reason of - the bad treatment he met with at the court of Rome. I own that - I am a sceptic with regard to the last particulars. - - Lord Marischal had a very bad opinion of this unfortunate - prince; and thought there was no vice so mean or atrocious of - which he was not capable; of which he gave me several - instances. My lord, though a man of great honour, may be - thought a discontented courtier; but what quite confounded me - in the idea of that prince, was a conversation I had with - Helvetius at Paris, which, I believe, I have told you. In case - I have not, I shall mention a few particulars. That gentleman - told me, that he had no acquaintance with the Pretender; but, - some time after that prince was chased out of France, "a - letter," said he, "was brought me from him, in which he told - me that the necessity of his affairs obliged him to be at - Paris; and, as he knew me, by character, to be a man of the - greatest probity and honour in France, he would trust himself - to me, if I would promise to conceal and protect him. I own," - added Helvetius to me, "although I knew the danger to be - greater of harbouring him at Paris than at London; and - although I thought the family of Hanover not only the lawful - sovereigns in England, but the only lawful sovereigns in - Europe, as having the full and free consent of the people; yet - was I such a dupe to his flattery, that I invited him to my - house; concealed him there, going and coming, near two years; - had all his correspondence pass through my hands; met with his - partisans upon Pont Neuf; and found, at last, that I had - incurred all this danger and trouble for the most unworthy of - all mortals; insomuch that I have been assured, when he went - down to Nantz, to embark on his expedition to Scotland, he - took fright and refused to go on board; and his attendants, - thinking the matter gone too far, and that they would be - affronted for his cowardice, carried him, in the night time, - into the ship, pieds et mains lies." I asked him, if he meant - literally? "Yes," said he, "literally. They tied him and - carried him by main force." What think you now of this hero - and conqueror? - - Both Lord Marischal and Helvetius agree, that with all this - strange character, he was no bigot; but rather had learned, - from the philosophers at Paris, to affect a contempt of all - religion. You must know that both these persons thought they - were ascribing to him an excellent quality. Indeed, both of - them used to laugh at me for my narrow way of thinking in - these particulars.[465:1] However, my dear Sir John, I hope - you will do me the justice to acquit me. - - I doubt not but these circumstances will appear curious to - Lord Hardwicke, to whom you will please to present my - respects. I suppose his lordship will think this unaccountable - mixture of temerity and timidity, in the same character, not a - little singular. I am yours very sincerely.[465:2] - -If there should be any doubts of the genuineness of this letter, from -its having first appeared, unauthenticated, in a periodical work, they -will be removed by the perusal of the following answer by Sir John -Pringle, printed from the original manuscript. - - -SIR JOHN PRINGLE _to_ HUME. - - _London, 5th November, 1773_. - - DEAR SIR,--I was much obliged to you for your letter of the - 10th ult., as it furnished me with sufficient means for - maintaining my credit with Lord Hardwicke, a person I have not - the honour to be well known to; and I had the more occasion - for such a testimony as yours, as the other earl, mentioned in - your letter, has thought proper, (I presume since he has once - more become a courtier,) to deny his knowing any thing of the - story, when one of the company, (where I told the anecdote to - Lord Hardwicke,) inquired of him about it. - - Lord Hardwicke, not being in town when yours came to hand, I - charged his intimate friend, Mr. Wray, who was going to visit - him, with it. Yesterday, that gentleman returned, and, with - the letter, sent me a line, expressing his lordship's great - satisfaction in the communication; and with many thanks to us - both for it. I understand he is very curious in picking up - such historical facts; and, if so, he certainly never met with - any thing of that kind more suited to his genius. The most - extraordinary circumstance is, that of the _pied et poing - lies_; and yet your authority seems to be unexceptionable. - What could be expected from an adventurer whom they had been - obliged to treat in that humiliating manner? and whose - timidity, they must believe, was every now and then to recur, - to affront those that set him upon the enterprise? I know that - _our_ people were at great pains to decry his courage, after - the battle of Culloden; but that I considered always as done - upon a political, rather than an historical principle. I had - good evidence for believing that, at Derby, he was, of the - council of war, the person who stood longest out against the - motion for returning, and not advancing to London. Again, he - was for standing at the Spey; and, lastly, he did not retire - from Culloden till his whole band was put to flight. It is - true he never advanced nearer than the corps de reserve; but - which corresponded to our second line, in which the Duke of - Cumberland placed himself. I may add, that both of us have - been informed, that he betrayed no unmanly concern, when he - skulked so long with his female heroine; and then, surely, he - was daily in the greatest danger of his life; had he been - taken he would have met with no quarter. But, after all, these - testimonies, in favour of his courage, must yield to such - proofs as you bring to the contrary.[466:1] - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 24th Feb., 1773._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--There are two late publications here which I advise you to -commission. The first is Andrew Stuart's Letters to Lord Mansfield, -which they say have met with vast success in London. Andrew has eased -his own mind, and no bad effects are to follow. Lord Mansfield is -determined, absolutely, to neglect them. The other is Lord Monboddo's -treatise on the Origin and Progress of Language, which is only part of -a larger work. It contains all the absurdity and malignity which I -expected; but is writ with more ingenuity and in a better style than I -looked for."[467:1] - - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 10th April, 1773._ - -"To-day news arrived in town, that the Ayr Bank had shut up, and, as -many people think, for ever. I hear that the Duke of Buccleuch is on the -road. The country will be in prodigious distress for money this term. -Sir G. Colebroke's bankruptcy is thought to be the immediate cause of -this event. - -"Have you seen Macpherson's Homer? It is hard to tell whether the -attempt or the execution be worse. I hear he is employed by the -booksellers to continue my History. But, in my opinion, of all men of -parts, he has the most anti-historical head in the universe. - -"Have you seen Sir John Dalrymple? It is strange what a rage is against -him, on account of the most commendable action in his life. His -collection[467:2] is curious; but introduces no new light into the -civil, whatever it may into the biographical and anecdotical history of -the times. - -"Have you seen 'Alonzo?' Very slovenly versification, some pathetic, but -too much resembling 'Douglas.'"[467:3] - - -We have found Gilbert Stuart deferentially courting Hume's notice of his -earlier literary efforts. A few years of popularity as an author, and -the command of a periodical work, had in the meantime changed the man's -character, by developing all its arrogance, jealousy, conceit, and -vindictiveness. He was one of those who indulge in the comfortable -consciousness, that any comparison between their own genius and that of -any other given person is supremely ludicrous; and as some one said of -La Harpe, it might have proved a good speculation to buy him at what he -was worth, and sell him at his own estimate of his value. Sick of the -praises he heard bestowed on Robertson and the other eminent historians -of his age, he thought it his duty to show the world how the lamp of -such industrious drudges would grow pale before the lustre of true -genius; and thus he favoured the public with some historical efforts, in -which the curious reader of the present day, who takes them from -forgotten shelves, is somewhat surprised to find how effectually -well-turned periods, and a certain audacity of opinion, keep out of view -the meagreness of the author's inquiries. - -In 1773, Stuart began to edit the _Edinburgh Magazine and Review_. -Periodical literature was the proper sphere for exhibiting his powers; -which consisted in the ready acquisition of a superficial view of any -subject, and a rapid, yet elegant style; occasionally magniloquent, and -at other times descriptive or sarcastic. No other periodical work of -that day equalled the _Edinburgh Magazine and Review_, in genius and -originality. But the editor made it the vehicle of his tyrannical and -vindictive spirit; and the purse and person of the proprietor--it might -almost be said the peace of society, were endangered by so formidable a -weapon remaining in such hands.[468:1] - -At this time, the Rev. Robert Henry was publishing his valuable History -of Britain, volume by volume. Stuart had vowed that he would crush this -work; and the critical columns he concentrated against it, do great -credit to his ability as a tactician. Hume was promised the privilege of -reviewing the book in _the Magazine_, and probably Stuart thought that -to arm him against an interloper in his own province was excellent -policy; but when the article was written, and put in proof, it was found -not adapted to the editor's purpose. We find him thus writing to a -confederate: - - David Hume wants to review Henry; but that task is so - precious, that I will undertake it myself. Moses, were he to - ask it as a favour, should not have it: yea, not even the man - after God's own heart. I wish I could transport myself to - London, to review him for the _Monthly_: a fire there and in - the _Critical_, would perfectly annihilate him. Could you do - nothing in the latter? To the former I suppose David Hume has - transcribed the criticism he intended for us. It is precious - and would divert you. I keep a _proof_ of it in my cabinet - for the amusement of friends. This great philosopher begins to - dote.[470:1] - -A review of Henry's work _did_ appear in _The Monthly Review_, but from -a very different pen. The _proof_, however, which gave Stuart so much -amusement, has fortunately been preserved. After giving a favourable -analysis of Henry's second volume, it concludes with the following -sentences, in many respects remarkable. - - The reader will scarcely find in our language, except in the - works of the celebrated Dr. Robertson, any performance that - unites together so perfectly the great points of entertainment - and instruction. It is happy for the inhabitants of this - metropolis, which has naturally a great influence on the - country, that the same persons who can make such a figure in - profane learning, are intrusted with the guidance of the - people in their spiritual concerns, which are of such - superior, and indeed of unspeakable importance. These - illustrious examples, if any thing, must make the infidel - abashed of his vain cavils, and put a stop to that torrent of - vice, profaneness, and immorality, by which the age is so - unhappily distinguished. - - This city can justly boast of other signal characters of the - same kind, whom learning and piety, taste and devotion, - philosophy and faith, joined to the severest morals and most - irreproachable conduct, concur to embellish. One in - particular, with the same hand by which he turns over the - sublime pages of Homer and Virgil, Demosthenes and Cicero, is - not ashamed to open with reverence the sacred volumes; and - with the same voice by which, from the pulpit, he strikes vice - with consternation, he deigns to dictate to his pupils the - most useful lessons of rhetoric, poetry, and polite - literature.[470:2] - -Hume was an early friend of Benjamin Franklin, whom he was instrumental -in introducing to his Parisian friends.[471:1] The celebrated -publication of the papers revealing the policy of the ascendency party, -and the scene at the council board, of which Franklin so deeply -cherished the memory, are thus alluded to in a letter to Smith, of 13th -February, 1774:-- - -"Pray, what strange accounts are these we hear of Franklin's conduct? I -am very slow in believing that he has been guilty in the extreme degree -that is pretended; though I always knew him to be a very factious man, -and faction, next to fanaticism, is of all passions the most destructive -of morality. How is it supposed he got possession of these letters? I -hear that Wedderburn's treatment of him before the council was most -cruel, without being in the least blameable. What a pity!"[471:2] - -The following, among the very few letters which Hume appears to have -written at this period of his life, is addressed to John Home. - - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 4th June, 1774._ - -"DEAR JOHN,--The enclosed came to hand to-day, and, as I take it to be -directed to you, I have sent it you. If on opening it you find it -otherwise, you may return it to me, that I may find the true owner. - -"You have seen, no doubt, the specimen of a Scotch review.[472:1] My -first conjecture was that Carlyle was the author; but Dr. Blair has -convinced me that it is much more probably the production of your -spiritual guide, Tom Hepburn;[472:2] but, whoever be the father, the -child has a great deal of salt, and spirit, and humour. I wish he would -continue, though at the hazard of my getting a rap over the knuckles -from time to time; for I see in this hero the spirit of a Drawcansir, -who spares neither friend nor foe. I think I can reckon about twenty -people, not including the king, whom he has attacked in this short -performance. I hope all his spleen is not exhausted. I should desire my -compliments to him, were I not afraid that he would interpret the -civility as paying black mail to him. I am, dear John, yours -sincerely."[472:3] - - -The following appears to be the earliest letter in which Hume expresses -himself conscious of some unpleasant feelings, systematic of a decay of -the physical functions. - - -HUME _to_ COLONEL EDMONDSTOUNE. - -"_Edinburgh, 23d March, 1775._ - -"CARO GIUSEPPE,--No request can be more obliging than yours; and no -party could have been proposed to any place, or with any company, more -agreeable to me. But you remember what a plague I was to every body and -to myself on my last journey; and you may recollect that I made a vow, -in the bitterness of my distress, never more to leave my own house, nor -lie out of my own bed. This vow I have religiously kept, except two or -three days last autumn, when I went to my brother's; and though I could -scarcely there esteem myself from home, I resolved never more to pay -them a visit. You have not a bed cool enough for me, which proceeds not -from any distemper or disorder, but from a peculiarity of constitution, -that has been gradually increasing on me these last twelve years. I am -in very good health: but let me tell you, that you express yourself -strangely when you say I have been _complaining_. How could you imagine -that I could ever complain, even though _fractus illabatur orbis_? I -beseech you, know better the people to whom you speak, and the force of -the terms you make use of. Miss Keiths desired me to tell you, that some -time ago they had a letter from Sir Basil, by which they learn that your -request with regard to Maillet's friend, is complied with. - -"My compliments to Mrs. Edmondstoune; embrace Jean Jacques in my name. -Dear Guidelianus, I am ever yours."[473:1] - - -Colonel Edmondstoune's answer to these excuses is not a little curious. - - DEAR OBSTINATE DAVID, - - _Pravum_ et tenacem propositi virum - Non civium ardor _recta_ jubentium - Non vultus instantis _Baronnae_ - Mente quatit _stolida_. - - Will nothing move you, you obdurate philosopher? Your reasons - are not worth a straw; and I'll prosecute you for scandalizing - my house. The room next to your last is as cool as any room - ought to be. It looks to the north, and you was put into a - south room, merely because it was thought that the sun's - vivifying ray would be of use to a man that had been worn out - and so much epuise in France. Besides, you scrub, have I not - seen you basking for hours together in the sun, contemplating - Shellie, and burning with envy at his prowess? and I heard - nothing about your being heated till we came to Killin, and - that was Crichen's doing, to season you for still a hotter - place.[474:1] - - -HUME _to his Nephew_.[474:2] - -"_St. Andrew's Square, 30th August, 1775._ - -"DEAR DAVY,--Your letter gave me satisfaction, and I approve very much -of your course of study. But I think you are unreasonably diffident of -yourself with regard to the _copia verborum_: you are not wanting in -that particular [consider]ing you as a beginner; and the course you take -will tend very much to [produce] greater facility as well as correctness -of expression. Stylus est optimus [magis]ter eloquentiae. These, if not -the words, are the sense of Quinctilian, for I cite from memory. You -know that the Roman stylus was the same as the pen. - -"I had a letter to-day from Mr. Millar,[474:3] who tells me that he -expects to see you on the first Monday of November. - -"I do not go to Inverara as soon as I proposed: it will be next week -before I set out. I think I am the better for jaunting; though in the -main I should like better to stay at home. - -"My compliments to your mother; I am glad she has heard from Josey; but -I wonder what has detained him so long at Paris. - -"I fancy you and Jock are very happy at present in your field sports; -and your father will not be displeased to see the favourable progress of -the harvest. I am, dear Davy, your affectionate uncle."[475:1] - - -HUME _to_ JOHN HOME. - - _St. Andrew's Square, Sept. 20th, 1775._ - - DEAR JOHN,--Of all the vices of language, the least excusable - is the want of perspicuity; for, as words were instituted by - men, merely for conveying their ideas to each other, the - employing of words without meaning is a palpable abuse, which - departs from the very original purpose and intention of - language. It is also to be observed, that any ambiguity in - expression is next to the having no meaning at all; and is - indeed a species of it; for while the hearer or reader is - perplexed between different meanings, he can assign no - determinate idea to the speaker or writer; and may, on that - account, say with Ovid, "Inopem me copia fecit." For this - reason, all eminent rhetoricians and grammarians, both ancient - and modern, have insisted on perspicuity of language as an - essential quality; without which, all ornaments of diction are - vain and fruitless. Quinctilian carries the matter so far, as - to condemn this expression, _vidi hominem librum legentem_; - because, says he, legentem may construe as well with _librum_ - as _hominem_; though one would think that the sense were here - sufficient to prevent all ambiguity. In conformity to this - way of thinking, Vaugelas, the first great grammarian of - France, will not permit that any one have recourse to the - sense, in order to explain the meaning of the words; because, - says he, it is the business of the words to explain the - meaning of the sense--not of the sense to give a determinate - meaning to the words; and this practice is reversing the order - of nature; like the custom of the Romans (he might have added - the Greeks,) in their Saturnalia, who made the slaves the - masters; for you may learn from Lucian that the Greeks - practised the same frolic during the festival of Saturn, whom - they called +Chronos+. - - Now, to apply, and to come to the use of this principle: I - must observe to you, that your last letter, besides a - continued want of distinctness in the form of the literal - characters, has plainly transgressed the essential rule - above-mentioned of grammar and rhetoric. You say that Coutts - has complained to you of not hearing from me; had you said - either James or Thomas, I could have understood your meaning. - About two months ago, I heard that James complained of me in - this respect; and I wrote to him, though then abroad, making - an apology for my being one of the subscribers of a paper - which gave him some offence. I was afraid he had not received - mine. The letter of Thomas, I conceived to be only a circular - letter, informing me of a change in the firm of the house: and - having answered it a few days ago, by giving him some - directions about disposing of my money, which proved that I - intended to remain a customer to the shop; it happens, - therefore, luckily, that I had obviated all objections to my - conduct on both sides. - - In turning over my papers, I find a manuscript journal of the - last rebellion, which is at your service. I hope Mrs. Home is - better, and will be able to execute her journey. Are you to be - in town soon? Yours without ambiguity, circumlocution, or - mental reservation.[476:1] - -Hume, though we have found him censuring the conduct of Franklin, was -opposed to any attempt to coerce America. "I always thought," says Sir -John Pringle, when writing to him, "you were in the wrong, when you -supposed these colonies wanted only a pretext to shake off their -subjection."[477:1] This subjection he seems to have thought they were -entitled to throw off; for he was far more tolerant of the sway of -individuals over numbers, which he looked upon as the means of -preserving order and civilization, than of the predominance of one -territory over another, which he looked upon as subjugation. -Unfortunately, few of his opinions on this subject can be better -ascertained than by the reflex light of the letters addressed to him, in -answer to his remarks. With Strahan, the eminent printer, he carried on -an extensive correspondence on political matters, of which the letters -on his own side have unfortunately been lost.[477:2] The sentiments -which Hume had expressed on the American war, are thus described, by -contrast, in the words of that member of Parliament, to whom Franklin -addressed his celebrated letter of defiance. - - -WILLIAM STRAHAN _to_ HUME. - - I differ from you _toto coelo_ with regard to America. I am - entirely for coercive methods with those obstinate madmen; and - why should we despair of success? Why should we suffer the - empire to be so dismembered, without the utmost exertions on - our part? I see nothing so very formidable in this business, - if we become a little more unanimous, and could stop the - mouths of domestic traitors, from whence the evil originated. - Not that I wish to enslave the colonists, or to make them one - jot less happy than ourselves; but I am for keeping them - subordinate to the British legislature; and their trade, in a - reasonable degree, subservient to the interest of the mother - country; an advantage she well deserves; but which she must - inevitably lose, if they are emancipated, as you propose. I am - really surprised you are of a different opinion. Very true, - things look oddly at present; and the dispute hath, hitherto, - been very ill managed; but so we always do at the commencement - of every war. So we did, most remarkably, in the last. It is - perhaps owing to the nature of our government, which permits - not of those sudden and decisive exertions frequently made by - arbitrary princes. But, so soon as the British lion is roused, - we never fail to fetch up our lee-way, as the sailors say. And - so I hope you will find it in this important case.[478:1] - -The following letter, which is not, however, written in a spirit of -entire earnestness or sobriety, has some reference to his views on the -American question. - - -HUME _to_ BARON MURE. - -"_St. David's Street, Oct. 27th, 1775._ - -"OH! DEAR BARON,--You have thrown me into agonies, and almost into -convulsions, by your request. You ask what seems reasonable,--what seems -a mere trifle; yet am I so unfit for it, that it is almost impossible -for me to comply. You are much fitter yourself. That address, by which -you gained immortal honour, was done altogether without my knowledge; I -mean that after the suppression of the late rebellion. Here is Lord Home -teazing me for an address from the Merse; and I have constantly refused -him. Besides, I am an American in my principles, and wish we would let -them alone to govern or misgovern themselves, as they think proper: the -affair is of no consequence, or of little consequence, to us. If the -county of Renfrew think it indispensably necessary for them to -interpose in public matters, I wish they would advise the king, first to -punish those insolent rascals in London and Middlesex, who daily insult -him and the whole legislature, before he thinks of America. Ask him, how -he can expect that a form of government will maintain an authority at -three thousand miles' distance, when it cannot make itself be respected, -or even be treated with common decency, at home. Tell him, that Lord -North, though, in appearance, a worthy gentleman, has not a head for -these great operations; and that, if fifty thousand men, and twenty -millions of money, were intrusted to such a lukewarm coward as Gage, -they never could produce any effect. These are objects worthy of the -respectable county of Renfrew: not mauling the poor infatuated Americans -in the other hemisphere."[479:1] - - -It has already been said, that Hume appears to have suspected that his -nephew, David, was imbibing republican principles. It is well worthy of -remark, that he does not appear to have considered the training of his -young nephews, in political opinions different from his own, as at all -to be deprecated; and David, to whom the following letter is addressed, -was boarded with Professor Millar, afterwards author of the "Historical -View of the English Government," who had even then shown himself as one -of the most powerful antagonists of Hume's constitutional doctrines. It -must be regretted that the letter is much mutilated; but enough of it is -preserved to show how lightly Hume's political opinions hung on him--how -little they possessed the character of a creed--how tolerant he was of -any system of politics which bore the air of philosophy, and how -curiously he could let his reason vibrate between opinions of the most -opposite character in practical politics. - - -HUME _to his_ NEPHEW. - -"_Edinburgh, 8th December, 1775._ - -"DEAR DAVY,--All your letters, both to me and to your father, have -[given] great satisfaction, particularly your last; and, in return, I -must give you [the] satisfaction of telling you, that Mr. Millar is very -well pleased with you, [-----] no less than you with him. He complains -only of one thing, which [is not the] usual complaint of tutors against -their pupils; to wit, that he is afraid you [apply too] close, and may -hurt your health by too assiduous study. I should not men[tion this] if -I had the least apprehension that a hint of this nature would m[ake you] -relax too much. But I cannot forbear saying, that every day, fair or -foul, [you] ought to use some exercise. Relaxation from [for?] -amusement, you may use, [or not,] as you fancy; but that, for health, is -absolutely necessary. When I was [of your] age, I was inclined to give -in to excesses of the same kind; and I remember [an anecdote] told me by -a friend, the present Lord Pitfour. A man was riding, with [great] -violence, and running his horse quite out of wind. He stopt a moment to -[ask when] he might reach a particular place. In two hours, replied the -countryman, [if you] will go slower; in four if you be in such a hurry. -Bad health, be[sides other] inconveniencies, is the greatest interrupter -to study in the world. - -"I cannot but agree with Mr. Millar, that the republican form of -government is by far the best. The ancient republics were somewhat -ferocious and torn [-----] by bloody factions; but they were still much -preferable to the monarchies or [aristocracies] which seem to have been -quite intolerable. Modern manners have corrected this abuse; and all the -republics in Europe, without exception, are so well governed that one is -at a loss to which we should give the preference. But what is this -general subject of speculation to our purpose? For, besides that an -established government [-----] without the most criminal imputation, be -disjointed from any speculation, [-----] is only fitted for a small -state; and any attempt towards it can, in our [-----] produce only -anarchy, which is the immediate forerunner of despotism [-----] tell us -what is that form of a republic which we must aspire to? Or [-----]stion -be afterwards decided by the sword. [One] great advantage of a -commonwealth over our mixed monarchy, is, that it [would consid]erably -abridge our liberty; which is growing to such an extreme as to be -incom[patible wi]th all. Such fools are they who perpetually cry out -liberty, [and think to] augment it by shaking off the monarchy. - -"I have not heard from Josey for some time, which, you may believe, has -produced [-----] reflections in some of your friends. But to show you -that you are not forgotten [-----] I showed Mr. Millar's letter to your -mother. I am afraid, said she, that [-----] some symptoms of a -consumption in poor Davy. - -"[I a]m far from thinking Mr. Millar's demands in point of money -unreas[onable.] On the contrary, I believe that I never laid out money -to better purpose. - -"[Ha]rrington is an author of genius, but chimerical. No laws, however -rigorous, [would ma]ke his Agrarian practicable. And as the people have -only a negative, the [-----] would perpetually gain ground upon them. -You remember that Montesquieu says, that Harrington establishing his -"Oceana" in opposition to the English constitution, is like the blind -men who built Chalcedon on the opposite [-----] to the seat of -Byzantium. I ask your pardon for not writing to you [sooner,] but beg -the continuance of your correspondence. My compliments to [Mr. Millar,] -to whom I owe a letter. I am, your affectionate uncle."[482:1] - - -HUME _to_ JOHN HOME. - -"_Edinburgh, 8th February, 1776._ - -"DEAR TYRTAEUS,--It is a remark of Dr. Swift's, that no man in London -ever complained of his being neglected by his friends in the country. -Your complaint of me is the more flattering. - -"Two posts ago, I received, under a frank of General Fraser's, a -pamphlet, entitled _A letter from an officer retired_. It is a very good -pamphlet; and I conjecture you to be the author. Sallust makes it a -question, whether the writer or the performer of good things has the -preference? and he ascribes the greater praise to the latter. It is -happy for you, that you may rest your fame on either. I here allude to -what you have done for Ferguson. - -"But, pray, why do you say, that the post of Boston is like the camp of -Pirna? I fancy our troops can be withdrawn thence without any -difficulty. - -"I make no doubt, since you sound the trumpet for war against the -Americans, that you have a plan ready for governing them, after they are -subdued: but you will not subdue them; unless they break in pieces -among themselves--an event very probable. It is a wonder it has not -happened sooner. But no man can foretell how far these frenzies of the -people may be carried. Yours," &c.[483:1] - - -The following letter exhibits a feeling of impatience for the appearance -of the long promised "Wealth of Nations." It shows, in discussing some -questions in political economy, that, with his usual sagacity, Hume -predicted that the loss of British supremacy over America, would not -have that dire effect on our commercial prosperity, which had been -anticipated. - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Edinburgh, 8th Feb. 1776._ - -"DEAR SMITH,--I am as lazy a correspondent as you, yet my anxiety about -you makes me write. By all accounts your book has been printed long ago: -yet it has never yet been so much as advertised. What is the reason? If -you wait till the fate of America be decided, you may wait long. - -"By all accounts, you intend to settle with us this spring: yet we hear -no more of it: What is the reason? Your chamber in my house is always -unoccupied. I am always at home. I expect you to land here. - -"I have been, am, and shall be probably in an indifferent state of -health. I weighed myself t' other day, and find I have fallen five -complete stones. If you delay much longer I shall probably disappear -altogether. - -"The Duke of Buccleuch tells me that you are very zealous in American -affairs. My notion is that the matter is not so important as is -commonly imagined. If I be mistaken, I shall probably correct my error -when I see you, or read you. Our navigation and general commerce may -suffer more than our manufactures. Should London fall as much in its -size as I have done, it will be the better. It is nothing but a hulk of -bad and unclean humours. Yours," &c.[484:1] - - -It is not perhaps uncharitable to suppose, that the following eulogium -would have been more warm, had the person it was addressed to not been -one of "the barbarians who inhabit the banks of the Thames." - - -HUME _to_ GIBBON. - - _Edinburgh, 18th March, 1776._ - - DEAR SIR,--As I ran through your volume of history with a - great deal of avidity and impatience, I cannot forbear - discovering somewhat of the same impatience in returning you - thanks for your agreeable present, and expressing the - satisfaction which the performance has given me. Whether I - consider the dignity of your style, the depth of your matter, - or the extensiveness of your learning, I must regard the work - as equally the object of esteem; and I own, that if I had not - previously had the happiness of your personal acquaintance, - such a performance, from an Englishman in our age, would have - given me some surprise. You may smile at this sentiment; but - as it seems to me that your countrymen, for almost a whole - generation, have given themselves up to barbarous and absurd - faction, and have totally neglected all polite letters, I no - longer expected any valuable production ever to come from - them. I know it will give you pleasure (as it did me,) to find - that all the men of letters in this place concur in their - admiration of your work, and in their anxious desire of your - continuing it. - - When I heard of your undertaking, (which was some time ago,) I - own I was a little curious to see how you would extricate - yourself from the subject of your two last chapters. I think - you have observed a very prudent temperament; but it was - impossible to treat the subject so as not to give grounds of - suspicion against you, and you may expect that a clamour will - arise. This, if any thing, will retard your success with the - public; for in every other respect your work is calculated to - be popular. But, among many other marks of decline, the - prevalence of superstition in England, prognosticates the fall - of philosophy and decay of taste; and though nobody be more - capable than you to revive them, you will probably find a - struggle in your first advances. - - I see you entertain a great doubt with regard to the - authenticity of the poems of Ossian. You are certainly right - in so doing. It is, indeed, strange, that any men of sense - could have imagined it possible, that above twenty thousand - verses, along with numberless historical facts, could have - been preserved by oral tradition during fifty generations, by - the rudest, perhaps, of all European nations; the most - necessitous, the most turbulent, and the most unsettled. Where - a supposition is so contrary to common sense, any positive - evidence of it ought never to be regarded. Men run with great - avidity to give their evidence in favour of what flatters - their passions, and their national prejudices. You are, - therefore, over and above indulgent to us in speaking of the - matter with hesitation. - - I must inform you, that we are all very anxious to hear that - you have fully collected the materials for your second volume, - and that you are even considerably advanced in the composition - of it. I speak this more in the name of my friends than in my - own; as I cannot expect to live so long as to see the - publication of it. Your ensuing volume will be more delicate - than the preceding, but I trust in your prudence for - extricating you from the difficulties; and, in all events, you - have courage to despise the clamour of bigots. I am, with - regard, &c.[485:1] - -At length appeared the long looked for work, in which the parent of the -first elucidations of political economy was to see his own offspring -eclipsed; and to see it with pride. One must be familiar with the -unenvious friendship which Hume ever bestowed, on the fellow countrymen -who joined him in the noble path of philosophical inquiry, to appreciate -the genuine satisfaction with which he thus hailed the appearance of -"The Wealth of Nations." - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_Edinburgh, 1st April, 1776._ - -"EUGE! BELLE! DEAR MR. SMITH,--I am much pleased with your performance; -and the perusal of it has taken me from a state of great anxiety. It was -a work of so much expectation, by yourself, by your friends, and by the -public, that I trembled for its appearance, but am now much relieved. -Not but that the reading of it necessarily requires so much attention, -and the public is disposed to give so little, that I shall still doubt -for some time of its being at first very popular. But it has depth, and -solidity, and acuteness, and is so much illustrated by curious facts, -that it must at last take the public attention. It is probably much -improved by your last abode in London. If you were here at my fireside, -I should dispute some of your principles. I cannot think that the rent -of farms makes any part of the price of the produce, but that the price -is determined altogether by the quantity and the demand.[486:1] It -appears to me impossible, that the King of France can take a seignorage -of eight per cent upon the coinage. Nobody would bring bullion to the -mint; it would be all sent to Holland or England, where it might be -coined and sent back to France, for less than two per cent. Accordingly, -Necker says, that the French king takes only two per cent of seignorage. -But these and a hundred other points are fit only to be discussed in -conversation; which, till you tell me the contrary, I still flatter -myself with soon. I hope it will be soon; for I am in a very bad state -of health, and cannot afford a long delay. I fancy you are acquainted -with Mr. Gibbon. I like his performance extremely, and have ventured to -tell him, that, had I not been personally acquainted with him, I should -never have expected such an excellent work from the pen of an -Englishman. It is lamentable to consider how much that nation has -declined in literature during our time. I hope he did not take amiss the -national reflection. - -"All your friends here are in great grief at present, for the death of -Baron Mure, which is an irreparable loss to our society. He was among -the oldest and best friends I had in the world."[487:1] - - -In April, 1776, the disease of which Hume subsequently died, had made -alarming progress. The little autobiographical sketch, called "my own -Life," was finished on the eighteenth of that month; and he there speaks -of the rise and progress of his disorder, and of his feelings under the -expectation of a speedy termination of his life, in the following -terms:-- - - In spring, 1775, I was struck with a disorder in my bowels, - which at first gave me no alarm, but has since, as I apprehend - it, become mortal and incurable. I now reckon upon a speedy - dissolution. I have suffered very little pain from my - disorder; and what is more strange, have, notwithstanding the - great decline of my person, never suffered a moment's - abatement of my spirits; insomuch, that were I to name the - period of my life which I should most choose to pass over - again, I might be tempted to point to this latter period. I - possess the same ardour as ever in study, and the same gaiety - in company. I consider, besides, that a man of sixty-five, by - dying, cuts off only a few years of infirmities; and though I - see many symptoms of my literary reputation's breaking out at - last with additional lustre, I knew that I could have but few - years to enjoy it. It is difficult to be more detached from - life than I am at present. - -It was probably early in the year, and before the disease had made such -progress, as to make his friends in general anticipate its fatal -conclusion, that Dr. Black wrote the following undated letter on the -subject to Smith:-- - -"I write at present, chiefly to acquaint you with the state of your -friend David Hume's health, which is so bad that I am quite melancholy -upon it, and as I hear that you intend a visit to this country soon, I -wish if possible to hasten your coming, that he may have the comfort of -your company so much the sooner. He has been declining several years, -and this in a slow and gradual manner, until about a twelvemonth ago, -since which the progress of his disorder has been more rapid. One of his -distresses has been a sensation of excessive heat, chiefly in the night -time, and which was only external, for it occasioned no internal -distress, or anxiety, or thirst." - -Black then proceeds to describe with more minuteness, than would be -either pleasing or instructive to unscientific readers, a series of -symptoms from which he infers that the most serious part of his -patient's disorder, is a hemorrhage in the upper part of the -intestines.[488:1] He continues,-- - -"His mother, he says, had precisely the same constitution with himself, -and died of this very disorder; which has made him give up any hopes of -his getting the better of it." He concludes by saying,-- - -"Do not, however, say much on this subject to any one else; as he does -not like to have it spoke of, and has been shy and slow in acquainting -me fully with the state of his health." - -In preparation for the event, which could not be far distant, he had -executed a settlement of his estate, so early as the 4th of January. He -left the bulk of his fortune to his brother, or, in the case of his -predeceasing him, to his nephew David, burdened in the latter case with -special legacies to his other nephews and his nieces. He left his sister -L1200. Along with some legacies to a few obscure private friends and to -his servants, he left L200 to D'Alembert, and the same sum to Adam -Ferguson.[489:1] He appointed Smith his literary executor, in the -following terms:[490:1] "To my friend Dr. Adam Smith, late Professor of -Moral Philosophy in Glasgow, I leave all my manuscripts without -exception, desiring him to publish my 'Dialogues on Natural Religion,' -which are comprehended in this present bequest; but to publish no other -papers which he suspects not to have been written within these five -years, but to destroy them all at his leisure. And I even leave him full -power over all my papers, except the Dialogues above mentioned; and -though I can trust to that intimate and sincere friendship, which has -ever subsisted between us, for his faithful execution of this part of my -will, yet, as a small recompense of his pains in correcting and -publishing this work, I leave him two hundred pounds, to be paid -immediately after the publication of it." - -Smith subsequently refused to receive payment of the legacy; and it was -the cause of a long friendly discussion with Mr. Home of Ninewells, who, -in opposition to his argument, that it was bequeathed as a remuneration -for editorial labours, which by a subsequent alteration of the bequest -did not require to be performed, urged such pleas as this, "My brother, -knowing your liberal way of thinking, laid on you something as an -equivalent, not imagining you would refuse a small gratuity from the -funds it was to come from, as a testimony of his friendship."[490:2] But -he pleaded in vain; and Smith continued to refuse the bequest, with all -the firmness of his unmercenary nature. - -Previous to his journey to Bath, which has to be presently narrated, -Hume appears to have informed Smith of the desire expressed in his will, -that he should undertake the publication of the "Dialogues on Natural -Religion." The intimation was probably verbal, as it does not form part -of any letter among Hume's papers. Elliot was opposed to the publication -of this work. Blair pleaded strongly for its suppression; and Smith, who -had made up his mind, that he would not edit the work, seems to have -desired that the testamentary injunction laid on him might be revoked. -Hume, however, before his death, took effectual steps to guard against -its suppression. - -Thus, after having good-naturedly abstained, for nearly thirty years, -from the publication of a work, which might give pain and umbrage to his -dearest friends; at the close of life, and when the lapse of time since -it was written might have been supposed to render him indifferent to its -fate,--because there appeared some danger of its final suppression, he -took decided and well pondered steps to avert from it this fate. Such -was the character of the man! - - -HUME _to_ ADAM SMITH. - -"_London, 3d May, 1776._ - -"MY DEAR FRIEND,--I send you enclosed an ostensible letter, conformably -to your desire. I think, however, your scruples groundless. Was Mallet -any wise hurt by his publication of Lord Bolingbroke? He received an -office afterwards from the present king and Lord Bute, the most prudish -men in the world; and he always justified himself by his sacred regard -to the will of a dead friend. At the same time, I own that your scruples -have a specious appearance. But my opinion is, that if upon my death you -determine never to publish these papers, you should leave them sealed up -with my brother and family, with some inscription that you reserve to -yourself the power of reclaiming them whenever you think proper. If I -live a few years longer, I shall publish them myself. I consider an -observation of Rochefoucault, that a wind, though it extinguishes a -candle, blows up a fire. - -"You may be surprised to hear me talk of living years, considering the -state you saw me in, and the sentiments which both I and all my friends -at Edinburgh entertained on that subject. But though I cannot come up -entirely to the sanguine notions of our friend John, I find myself very -much recovered on the road, and I hope Bath waters and farther journeys, -may effect my cure. - -"By the little company I have seen, I find the town very full of your -book, which meets with general approbation. Many people think particular -points disputable; but this you certainly expected. I am glad that I am -one of the number; as these points will be the subject of future -conversation between us. I set out for Bath, I believe, on Monday, by -Sir John Pringle's directions, who says, that he sees nothing to be -apprehended in my case. If you write to me (hem! hem!) I say if you -write to me, send your letter under cover to Mr. Strahan, who will have -my direction."[492:1] - - -The "ostensible letter" which was to serve as Smith's justification, if -he should decline to follow the injunctions of the will, is as -follows:-- - - -"_London, 3d May, 1776._ - -"MY DEAR SIR,--After reflecting more maturely on that article of my will -by which I left you the disposal of all my papers, with a request that -you should publish my 'Dialogues concerning Natural Religion,' I have -become sensible that, both on account of the nature of the work, and of -your situation, it may be improper to hurry on that publication. I -therefore take the present opportunity of qualifying that friendly -request. I am content to leave it entirely to your discretion, at what -time you will publish that piece, or whether you will publish it at all. - -"You will find among my papers a very inoffensive piece, called "my own -Life," which I composed a few days before I left Edinburgh; when I -thought, as did all my friends, that my life was despaired of. There can -be no objection, that the small piece should be sent to Messrs. Strahan -and Cadell, and the proprietors of my other works, to be prefixed to any -future edition of them."[493:1] - - -Smith did not absolutely refuse to edit the "Dialogues," but Hume saw -pretty clearly that it was a task that would not be performed by him. -That he was correct in this supposition, appears by a letter from Smith -to Strahan after Hume's death, where he says: - -"I once had persuaded him to leave it entirely to my discretion either -to publish them at what time I thought proper, or not to publish them at -all. Had he continued of this mind, the manuscript should have been most -carefully preserved, and upon my decease restored to his family; but it -never should have been published in my lifetime. When you have read it, -you will perhaps think it not unreasonable to consult some prudent -friend about what you ought to do."[494:1] - -By a codicil to his will, dated 7th August, he thus altered the -arrangement referred to in these letters. "In my later will and -disposition, I made some destinations with regard to my manuscripts: All -these I now retract, and leave my manuscripts to the care of Mr. William -Strahan of London, member of Parliament, trusting to the friendship that -has long subsisted between us, for his careful and faithful execution of -my intentions. I desire that my 'Dialogues concerning Natural Religion' -may be printed and published, any time within two years after my death." -After making the bequest to John Home which is mentioned farther on, -leaving to Blair, Smith, Home, and Edmondstoune, "all of them persons -very dear to me, and whose affection to me I know by repeated proofs to -have been mutual," each a copy of the new edition of his works, and to -Miss Ord, ten guineas to buy a ring, "as a memorial of his friendship -and attachment to so amiable and accomplished a person," the codicil is -signed. There is then a new paragraph appended as follows: - -"I do ordain that if my 'Dialogues,' from whatever cause, be not -published within two years and a half after my death, as also the -account of my life, the property shall return to my nephew, David, whose -duty in publishing them, as the last request of his uncle, must be -approved of by all the world."[494:2] - -Both Hume and Smith seem to have thought that Strahan would undertake -the publication as a mere matter of business. But this book, like the -little hunchback in the "Arabian Nights," was a commodity which every -one seemed anxious to transfer to his neighbour. Strahan declined to -undertake the task, and the "Dialogues" did not appear until 1779, when -they were published by their author's nephew. - -Smith cheerfully agreed to undertake the superintendance of the new -edition of his friend's works, then at press. They appear to have been -all in a state of very finished preparation for the press, and an -edition of the "Inquiries" and the miscellaneous essays was published in -1777, from a copy in which the author had completed that removal of -passages of a democratic tendency, which has been so frequently alluded -to. - -By the entreaties of several friends, who believed that travelling might -have a favourable influence on his health, Hume undertook a journey to -London towards the end of April. At Morpeth he met with Adam Smith and -John Home, on their way from London, to visit him in Edinburgh, in -consequence of a letter which the former had received from Ferguson, who -says, "David, I am afraid, loses ground. He is cheerful and in good -spirits as usual; but I confess that my hopes, from the effects of the -turn of the season towards spring, have very much abated." - -Smith proceeded to Edinburgh, but Home went back to London with his -friend, and fortunately preserved a diary of the journey, so very -interesting, and containing so lively a picture of Hume's state of mind -and habits, that, though already published,[495:1] the reader would not -excuse its omission on this occasion. - - -_Note by_ MR. JOHN HOME. - - Soon after Mr. Home received the letter from Dr. Ferguson, he - left London, and set out for Scotland with Mr. Adam Smith. - They came to Morpeth on the 23d of April, 1776, and would have - passed Mr. David Hume, if they had not seen his servant, - Colin, standing at the gate of an inn. Mr. Home thinks that - his friend, Mr. David Hume, is much better than he expected to - find him. His spirits are astonishing: he talks of his - illness, of his death, as matters of no moment, and gives an - account of what passed between him and his physicians since - his illness began, with his usual wit, or with more wit than - usual. - - He acquainted Mr. Adam Smith and me, that Dr. Black had not - concealed the opinion he had of the desperateness of his - condition, and was rather averse to his setting out. "Have you - no reason against it," said David, "but an apprehension that - it may make me die sooner?--that is no reason at all." I never - saw him more cheerful, or in more perfect possession of all - his faculties, his memory, his understanding, his wit. It is - agreed that Smith shall go on to Scotland, and that I should - proceed to Bath with David. We are to travel one stage before - dinner, and one after dinner. Colin tells me that he thinks - Mr. Hume better than when he left Edinburgh. We had a fine - evening as we went from Morpeth to Newcastle. David seeing a - pair of pistols in the chaise, said, that as he had very - little at stake, he would indulge me in my humour of fighting - the highwaymen. Whilst supper was getting ready at the inn, - Mr. Hume and I played an hour at picquet. Mr. David was very - keen about his card-playing. - - - _Newcastle, Wednesday, 24th April._ - - Mr. Hume not quite so well in the morning--says, that he had - set out merely to please his friends; that he would go on to - please them; that Ferguson and Andrew Stuart, (about whom we - had been talking,) were answerable for shortening his life one - week a-piece; for, says he, you will allow Xenophon to be good - authority; and he lays it down, that suppose a man is dying, - nobody has a right to kill him. He set out in this vein, and - continued all the stage in his cheerful and talking humour. It - was a fine day, and we went on to Durham--from that to - Darlington, where we passed the night. - - In the evening Mr. Hume thinks himself more easy and light, - than he has been any time for three months. In the course of - our conversation we touched upon the national affairs. He - still maintains, that the national debt must be the ruin of - Britain; and laments that the two most civilized nations, the - English and French, should be on the decline; and the - barbarians, the Goths and Vandals of Germany and Russia, - should be rising in power and renown. The French king, he - says, has ruined the state by recalling the parliaments. Mr. - Hume thinks that there is only one man in France fit to be - minister, (the Archbishop of Toulouse,) of the family of - Brienne. He told me some curious anecdotes with regard to this - prelate; that he composed and corrected without writing; that - Mr. Hume had heard him repeat an elegant oration of an hour - and a quarter in length, which he had never written. Mr. Hume, - talking with the Princess Beauvais about French policy, said - that he knew but one man in France capable of restoring its - greatness; the lady said she knew one too, and wished to hear - if it was the same. They accordingly named each their man, and - it was this prelate.[497:1] - - - _Thursday, 25th._ - - Left Darlington about nine o'clock, and came to Northallerton. - The same delightful weather. A shower fell that laid the dust, - and made our journey to Boroughbridge more pleasant. Mr. Hume - continues very easy, and has a tolerable appetite; tastes - nothing liquid but water, and sups upon an egg. He assured me, - that he never possessed his faculties more perfectly; that he - never was more sensible of the beauties of any classic author - than he was at present, nor loved more to read. When I am not - in the room with him he reads continually. The post-boys can - scarcely be persuaded to drive only five miles an hour, and - their horses are of the same way of thinking! The other - travellers, as they pass, look into the chaise, and laugh at - our slow pace. This evening the post-boy from Northallerton, - who had required a good deal of threatening to make him drive - as slow as we desired, had no sooner taken his departure to go - home, than he set off at full speed. "_Pour se dedommager_," - said David. - - - _Friday, 26th, Boroughbridge._ - - Mr. Hume this morning not quite so well. He observes, and I - see it, that he has a good day and a bad one. His illness is - an internal hemorrhage, which has been wasting him for a long - time. He is so thin that he chooses to have a cushion under - him when he sits upon an ordinary chair. He told me to-day, - that if Louis XV. had died in the time of the regency, the - whole French nation were determined to bring back the King of - Spain to be King of France,--so zealous were they for - preserving the line of succession. This evening Mr. Hume not - quite so well, and goes to bed at a more early hour than he - used to do. - - - _Ferrybridge, Sunday, 28th._ - - Mr. Hume much better this morning. He told me, that the French - nation had no great opinion of Cardinal Fleury; that the - English had extolled him, in opposition to their own minister - Sir Robert Walpole; but that Fleury was a little genius, and a - cheat. Lord Marischal acquainted Mr. Hume with a piece of - knavery which his lordship said nobody but a Frenchman and a - priest could have been guilty of. The French ambassador at - Madrid came to Lord Marischal one day, and told him, that he - had a letter from the French minister at Petersburgh, - acquainting him that General Keith was not pleased with his - situation in Russia, and wished to return to the Spanish - service, (where he had formerly been;) that it would be proper - for Lord Marischal to apply to the court of Spain. Lord - Marischal said nothing could be more agreeable to him than to - have his brother in the same country with him; but that, as he - had heard nothing from himself, he could not make any - application in his name. The French minister still urged him - to write to the Spanish minister, but in vain. When the - brothers met, several years after, they explained this matter. - Keith had never any intention of coming into the Spanish - service again; and if Lord Marischal had applied to the court - of Spain, measures were taken to intercept the letter, and - send it to the court of Russia. General Keith, who commanded - the Russian army in the field against the Swedes, would have - been arrested, and sent to Siberia; and the moment he had left - the army, the Swedes were to attack the Russians. Mr. Hume - told me, talking of Fleury, that Monsieur Trudent,[499:1] who - was his eleve, acquainted him with an anecdote of that - minister and the late French king, which he, Mr. Hume, - believes Trudent had never ventured to tell to any body but - him; and he (David) had never told it to any body but me. Now, - since Fleury, Trudent, and Lewis, are all dead, it may be - told. Trudent took the liberty of observing to Fleury, that - the king should be advised to apply a little more to business, - and take some charge of his own affairs. Fleury, the first - time Trudent spoke to him upon this subject, made him no - answer; but upon his speaking again on the same subject, he - told him, that he had entreated the king to be a man of - business, and assured him that the French did not like an - inactive prince; that in former times, there had been a race - of indolent princes who did nothing at all, and were called - _Les Rois Faineants_; that one of them had been put into a - convent. The king made no reply; but some time afterwards, - when Fleury resumed the subject, the king asked him, whether - or no the prince that was put into the convent had a good - pension allowed him?[499:2] - - Mr. Hume this day told me, that he had bought a piece of - ground; and when I seemed surprised that I had never heard of - it, he said it was in the New Church-yard, on the Calton Hill, - for a burying-place; that he meant to have a small monument - erected, not to exceed in expense one hundred pounds; that the - inscription should be - - DAVID HUME. - - I desired him to change the discourse. He did so; but seemed - surprised at my uneasiness, which he said was very - nonsensical. I think he is gaining ground; but he laughs at - me, and says it is impossible; that the year ('76,) sooner or - later, he takes his departure. He is willing to go to Bath, or - travel during the summer through England, and return to - Scotland to die at home; but that Sir John Pringle, and the - whole faculty, would find it very difficult to boat him, - (formerly an usual phrase in Scotland for going abroad, that - is, out of the island, for health.) This day we travelled by - his desire three stages, and arrived with great ease at - Grantham. - - - _Monday, 29th._ - - From the treatment Mr. Hume met with in France, he recurred to - a subject not unfrequent with him--that is, the design to ruin - him as an author, by the people that were ministers, at the - first publication of his History, and called themselves Whigs, - who, he said, were determined not to suffer truth to be told - in Britain. Amongst many instances of this, he told me one - which was new to me. The Duke of Bedford, (who afterwards - conceived a great affection for Mr. Hume,) by the suggestions - of some of his party friends, ordered his son, Lord Tavistock, - not to read Mr. Hume's History of England; but the young man - was prevailed upon by one of his companions (Mr. Crawford of - Errol) to disobey the command. He read the History, and was - extremely pleased with it. - - Mr. Hume told me, that the Duke de Choiseul, at the time Lord - Hertford was in France, expressed the greatest inclination for - peace, and a good correspondence between France and Britain. - He assured Lord Hertford, that if the court of Britain would - relinquish Falkland Island, he would undertake to procure from - the court of Spain the payment of the Manilla ransom. Lord - Hertford communicated the proposal to Mr. Grenville, who - slighted it. Lord Hertford told Mr. Hume the same day an - extraordinary instance of the violence of faction. Towards the - end of Queen Anne's reign, when the Whig ministers were turned - out of all their places at home, and the Duke of Marlborough - still continued in the command of the army abroad, the - discarded ministers met, and wrote a letter, which was signed - by Lord Somers, Lord Townshend, Lord Sunderland, and Sir - Robert Walpole, desiring the duke to bring over the troops he - could depend on, and that they would seize the queen's person, - and proclaim the Elector of Hanover Regent. The Duke of - Marlborough answered the letter, and said it was madness to - think of such a thing. Mr. Horace Walpole, Sir R. Walpole's - youngest son, confirmed the truth of this anecdote, which he - had heard his father repeat often and often; and Mr. Walpole - allowed Mr. Hume to quote him as his authority, and make what - use he pleased of it. When George I. came to England, he - hesitated whether to make a Whig or a Tory administration; but - the German minister, Bernstorf, determined him to take the - side of the Whigs, who had made a purse of thirty thousand - guineas, and given it to this German. George I. was of a - moderate and gentle temper.--He regretted all his life, that - he had given way to the violence of the Whigs in the beginning - of his reign. Whenever any difficulty occurred in parliament, - he used to blame the impeachment of the Tories,--"Ce diable de - impeachment," as he called it. - - The Whigs, in the end of Queen Anne's reign, bribed the - Emperor's ministers, not to consent to the peace, and to send - over Prince Eugene with proposals to continue the war. - - This anecdote from Lord Bath. Another anecdote Mr. Hume - mentioned, but distrusted the authority, for it was David - Mallet who told Mr. Hume, that he had evidence in his custody - of a design to assassinate Lord Oxford. - - Prior, after the accession, was reduced to such poverty by the - persecution he met with, that he was obliged to publish his - works by subscription. Lord Bathurst told Mr. Hume, that he - was with Prior reading the pieces that were to be published, - and he thought there was not enough to make two small volumes. - He asked Prior if he had no more poems? He said, No more that - he thought good enough.--"What is that," said Bathurst, - pointing to a roll of paper. "A trifle," said Prior, "that I - wrote in three weeks, not worthy of your attention or that of - the public." Lord Bathurst desired to see it. This neglected - piece was _Alma_. - - - _Tuesday, 30th._ - - Last night, when Mr. Hume was going to bed, he complained of - cold. One part of his malady had been a continual heat, so - that he could not endure a soft or warm bed, and lay in the - night with a single sheet upon him; he desired to have an - additional covering. Colin observed to him, that he thought it - a good symptom. Mr. Hume said he thought so too, for it was a - good thing to be like other people. This morning he is - wonderfully well; which is visible in his countenance and - colour, and even the firmness of his step. Talking of the - state of the nation, which he continually laments, he - mentioned an anecdote of the former war. He was at Turin with - General Sinclair, after the peace of Aix-la-Chapelle, and, - considering the superiority which the French arms had gained, - he could not conceive why France granted such good terms to - Britain. He desired General Sinclair to touch upon that - subject with the King of Sardinia. That prince, who was very - familiar with the General, said he was at a loss to give any - account of that matter; but, many years after, when Hume was - minister in France, and lived in great intimacy with Monsieur - Puysieux, Secretary of State, who had negociated the peace of - Aix, Mr. Hume asked him the reason of the conduct of France at - that time? Puysieux told him, that it was the king's aversion - to war; that he knew more of it than any man alive, for, the - year before the peace, he was ordered by the king to propose - pretty near the same terms. He remonstrated against making the - offer; said that at least the proposal should come from - England; and that there was always some advantage to be gained - by receiving, rather than propounding terms. The king was - impatient, and obliged Puysieux to write the letter, (which - General Ligonier carried,) with those terms which next year - were agreed to by the British court. Mr. John Home said he - knew that the King of France promoted the peace of Paris from - the aversion he had to war; and the peace was made at a time - when it seemed impossible for Britain to carry on a war of - such extent, and retain her scattered conquests. Mr. Hume - mentioned another singular anecdote concerning the beginning - of the last war. When a squadron of the English fleet attacked - and took two French men of war, the Alcide and the Lys, Louis - XV. was so averse to war, that he would have pocketed the - insult; and Madame Pompadour said it was better to put up with - the affront, than to go to war without any object but the - point of honour. It is known, that neither the king nor the - ministers of England wished for war. The French king abhorred - the thought of war!--What then was the cause? Chiefly the fear - of the popular clamour, and of the opposition, in the Duke of - Newcastle's mind. Mr. Hume thinks Lord North no great - minister, but does not see a better; cannot give any reason - for the incapacity and want of genius, civil and military, - which marks this period. He looks upon the country as on the - verge of decline. His fears seem rather too great, and things - are not quite so bad as he apprehends; but certainly the first - show of statesmen, generals, and admirals, is, without - comparison, the worst that has been seen in this country. I - said to Mr. Hume, that I thought the great consideration to be - acquired by speaking in Parliament, was the cause of that want - of every other quality in men of rank: they do speak readily, - but there are many orators who can neither judge nor act well. - - - _Wednesday, 31st April._ - - Arrived in London, where we saw Sir John Pringle, who thought - Mr. Hume much better than he expected to see him, and in no - immediate danger. We staid a few days in London, and then set - out for Bath. - - In travelling from London to Bath, we had occasion frequently - to make our observations on the passengers whom we met, and on - those who passed us, as every carriage continued to do. - Nothing occurred worthy the writing down, except Mr. David's - plan of managing his kingdom, in case Ferguson and I had been - princes of the adjacent states. He knew very well, he said, - (having often disputed the point with us,) the great opinion - we had of military virtues as essential to every state; that - from these sentiments rooted in us, he was certain he would be - attacked and interrupted in his projects of cultivating, - improving, and civilizing mankind by the arts of peace; that - he comforted himself with reflecting, that from our want of - economy and order in our affairs, we should be continually in - want of money; whilst he would have his finances in excellent - condition, his magazines well filled, and naval stores in - abundance; but that his final stroke of policy, upon which he - depended, was to give one of us a large subsidy to fall upon - the other, which would infallibly secure to him peace and - quiet, and after a long war, would probably terminate in his - being master of all the three kingdoms. At this sally, so like - David's manner of playing with his friends, I fell into a fit - of laughing, in which David joined; and the people that passed - us certainly thought we were very merry travellers. - -We have the following account from his own pen of his sojourn at Bath. - - -HUME _to_ DR. BLAIR. - -"_Bath, 13th May, 1776._ - -"MY DEAR DOCTOR,--You have frequently heard me complain of my physical -friends, that they allowed me to die in the midst of them without so -much as giving a Greek name to my disorder: a consolation which was the -least I had reason to expect from them. Dr. Black, hearing this -complaint, told me that I should be satisfied in that particular, and -that my disorder was a hemorrhage, a word which it was easy to decompose -into +aimos+[504:1] and +regnymi+. But Sir John Pringle says, that I -have no hemorrhage, but a spincture in the colon, which it will be easy -to cure. This disorder, as it both contained two Greek appellations and -was remediable, I was much inclined to prefer; when, behold! Dr. Gustard -tells me that he sees no symptoms of the former disorder, and as to the -latter, he never met with it and scarcely ever heard of it. He assures -me that my case is the most common of all Bath cases, to wit, a bilious -complaint, which the waters scarcely ever fail of curing: and he never -had a patient of whose recovery he had better hopes. - -"Indeed the waters, in the short trial which I have made of them, (for I -have been here only four days,) seem to agree very well with me; and two -days ago I found myself so well, that, for the first time, I began to -entertain hopes of a reprieve. Yesterday I was not so well, from a -misunderstanding in new lodgings with regard to my bedding. My -whimsicalness in this particular surprises Dr. Gustard, and he knows not -what to make of it. By the by, this Dr. Gustard is an excellent kind of -man, very friendly, and I believe very intelligent. He assures me, as do -several others, that the summer is the best time for Bath waters: and if -they continue to agree with me I shall probably pass here that season. I -promised to General Conway, and Lady Aylesbury, that if I had recovered -so much health as to venture myself in company, I should pass some weeks -of the autumn at Park place. This is the only retardment I can foresee -to my return to Scotland before winter. My wishes carry me thither; -though the grievous loss we have suffered in friends makes the abode in -that country less pleasing to my fancy than formerly. - -"You must have heard of the agreeable surprise which John Home put upon -me. We travelled up to London very cheerfully together, and thence to -this place, where we found Mrs. Home almost quite recovered. Never was -there a more friendly action, nor better placed; for what between -conversation and gaming, (not to mention sometimes squabbling,) I did -not pass a languid moment; and his company I am certain was the chief -cause why my journey had so good an effect: of which, however, I suppose -he has given too sanguine accounts, as is usual with him.[505:1] - -"Be so good as to read this letter to Dr. Black and to Mr. Ferguson. -When I write to one, I suppose myself writing to all my friends: and I -also wish to comprehend the Principal in the number. Pray tell him that -Mrs. Macauley is settled in Bath, and though her muse seems now to be -mute, she is, if not a more illustrious, yet a more fortunate historian -than either of us. There is one Dr. Wilson, a man zealous for liberty, -who has made her a free and full present of a house of L2000 value, has -adopted her daughter by all the rites of Roman jurisprudence, and -intends to leave her all his fortune, which is considerable. - -"Two ladies of my acquaintance have laid a scheme of bringing Lady -Huntingdon and me together, for her or my conversion. I wish I may have -spirits to humour this folly."[506:1] - - -On 10th June, Strahan wrote to Adam Smith, to say that he finds in a -letter from Sir John Pringle, giving an account of Hume's health, "that -all the good symptoms that attended his first trial of the Bath waters -are now vanished. His distemper has returned with its usual violence, so -he intends to leave that place and try Buxton."[506:2] He seems not to -have attempted this change, but returning straight from Bath, he sent, -on the way, invitations to a party of his friends to meet him at dinner. -The note addressed to Dr. Blair is as follows: - -"Mr. John Hume,[506:3] alias Home, alias The Home, alias the late Lord -Conservator, alias the late minister of the gospel at Athelstaneford, -has calculated matters so as to arrive infallibly with his friend in St. -David's Street, on Wednesday evening. He has asked several of Dr. -Blair's friends to dine with him there on Thursday, being the 4th of -July, and begs the favour of the Doctor to make one of the -number."[507:1] - -Thus did this knot of men, united in friendship by the greatness of -their talents, and their superiority to all things small and mean, meet -for the last time round the social board, to bid, as it were, a farewell -to him who had been the chief ornament and distinction of their circle. -The eyes of these affectionate friends sedulously and anxiously watched -the expiring flame--their pens have recorded the last scenes of its -existence, and leave to the ordinary biographer only the task of -embodying their statements in deferential silence. Nothing, therefore, -remains, but to put together, along with the few remaining letters by -Hume himself, the accounts furnished us by those who had the best means -of knowing the manner in which he spent the last few days of his life. - -The following is his last letter to John Home. - - -"_Edinburgh, 6th August, 1776._ - -"MY DEAR JOHN,--I shall begin with telling you the only piece of good -news of the family, which is, that my nephew, in no more than two days -that he has staid here, has recovered so surprisingly, that he is -scarcely knowable, or rather is perfectly knowable, for he was not so on -his first arrival.[508:1] Such are the advantages of youth! His uncle -declines, if not with so great rapidity, yet pretty sensibly. Sunday, -ill; half of yesterday the same; easy at present; prepared to suffer a -little to-morrow; perhaps less the day after. Dr. Black says, I shall -not die of a dropsy, as I imagined, but of inanition and weakness. He -cannot, however, fix, with any probability, the time, otherwise he would -frankly tell me. - -"Poor Edmondstoune and I parted to-day, with a plentiful effusion of -tears; all those _Belzebubians_[508:2] have not hearts of iron. I hope -you met with every thing well at Foggo, and receive nothing but good -news from Buxton. In spite of Dr. Black's caution, I venture to foretel -that I shall be yours cordially and sincerely till the month of October -next."[508:3] - - -Next in date is the following affectionate and considerate letter to -his nephew. - - -"_Edinburgh, 15th August, 1776._ - -"DEAR DAVY,--You need not doubt but your company, as well as your -father's, would have been very agreeable to me, especially at present, -for the consolation of your company; but I see the immediate -inconveniences that attend it. You cannot be well spared from Josey, -whose state of health, I am sorry to find, is still somewhat precarious; -and there is no immediate call for your being here. For besides that you -would but pass a melancholy time with me, however your affection might -cover it and relieve it, I am weakening very gradually, and am not -threatened with any immediate incident. I shall probably have more -warning, in which case I shall not fail to summon you; and I shall never -die in satisfaction without embracing you. I doubt not but my name would -have procured you friends and credit, in the course of your life, -especially if my brother had allowed you to carry it, for who will know -it in the present disguise? But as he is totally obstinate on this head, -I believe we had better let him alone. I have frequently told him, that -it is lucky for him he sees few things in a wrong light, for where he -does he is totally incurable. I am very much at my ease to-day. I beg my -compliments to all your family. Your affectionate uncle."[509:1] - - -Of the manner in which he conducted himself when he had come near to the -end of his days, Adam Smith tells us:-- - - His cheerfulness was so great, and his conversation and - amusements run so much in their usual strain, that, - notwithstanding all bad symptoms, many people could not - believe he was dying. "I shall tell your friend, Colonel - Edmondstoune," said Dr. Dundas to him one day, "that I left - you much better, and in a fair way of recovery." "Doctor," - said he, "as I believe you would not choose to tell any thing - but the truth, you had better tell him, that I am dying as - fast as my enemies, if I have any, could wish, and as easily - and cheerfully as my best friends could desire." Colonel - Edmondstoune soon afterwards came to see him, and take leave - of him; and on his way home, he could not forbear writing him - a letter, bidding him once more an eternal adieu, and applying - to him, as to a dying man, the beautiful French verses in - which the Abbe Chaulieu, in expectation of his own death, - laments his approaching separation from his friend, the - Marquis de la Fare.[510:1] Mr. Hume's magnanimity and firmness - were such, that his most affectionate friends knew that they - hazarded nothing in talking or writing to him as to a dying - man, and that so far from being hurt by this frankness, he was - rather pleased and flattered by it. I happened to come into - his room while he was reading this letter, which he had just - received, and which he immediately showed me. I told him, that - though I was sensible how very much he was weakened, and that - appearances were in many respects very bad, yet his - cheerfulness was still so great, the spirit of life seemed - still to be so very strong in him, that I could not help - entertaining some faint hopes. He answered, "Your hopes are - groundless. An habitual diarrhoea of more than a year's - standing, would be a very bad disease at any age: at my age it - is a mortal one. When I lie down in the evening, I feel myself - weaker than when I rose in the morning; and when I rise in the - morning, weaker than when I lay down in the evening. I am - sensible, besides, that some of my vital parts are affected, - so that I must soon die." "Well," said I, "if it must be so, - you have at least the satisfaction of leaving all your - friends, your brother's family in particular, in great - prosperity." He said that he felt that satisfaction so - sensibly, that when he was reading, a few days before, - Lucian's Dialogues of the Dead, among all the excuses which - are alleged to Charon for not entering readily into his boat, - he could not find one that fitted him; he had no house to - finish, he had no daughter to provide for, he had no enemies - upon whom he wished to revenge himself. "I could not well - imagine," said he, "what excuse I could make to Charon in - order to obtain a little delay. I have done every thing of - consequence which I ever meant to do; and I could at no time - expect to leave my relations and friends in a better situation - than that in which I am now likely to leave them. I therefore - have all reason to die contented." He then diverted himself - with inventing several jocular excuses, which he supposed he - might make to Charon, and with imagining the very surly - answers which it might suit the character of Charon to return - to them. "Upon further consideration," said he, "I thought I - might say to him, 'Good Charon, I have been correcting my - works for a new edition. Allow me a little time, that I may - see how the public receives the alterations.' But Charon would - answer, 'When you have seen the effect of these, you will be - for making other alterations. There will be no end of such - excuses; so, honest friend, please step into the boat.' But I - might still urge, 'Have a little patience, good Charon; I have - been endeavouring to open the eyes of the public. If I live a - few years longer, I may have the satisfaction of seeing the - downfal of some of the prevailing systems of superstition.' - But Charon would then lose all temper and decency. 'You - loitering rogue, that will not happen these many hundred - years. Do you fancy I will grant you a lease for so long a - term? Get into the boat this instant, you lazy loitering - rogue.'" - - But, though Mr. Hume always talked of his approaching - dissolution with great cheerfulness, he never affected to make - any parade of his magnanimity. He never mentioned the subject - but when the conversation naturally led to it, and never dwelt - longer upon it than the course of the conversation happened to - require.[512:1] - -How much his mind continued to be occupied with all that it had taken -interest in, in the days of his health and enjoyment, the following -letter, written five days before his death, will show:-- - - -HUME _to the_ COMTESSE DE BOUFFLERS. - -"_Edinburgh, 20th of August, 1776._ - -"THOUGH I am certainly within a few weeks, dear madam, and, perhaps, -within a few days of my own death, I could not forbear being struck with -the death of the Prince of Conti--so great a loss in every particular. -My reflection carried me immediately to your situation in this -melancholy incident. What a difference to you in your whole plan of -life! Pray write me some particulars; but in such terms that you need -not care, in case of decease, into whose hands your letter may fall. - -"My distemper is a diarrhoea, or disorder in my bowels, which has been -gradually undermining me these two years; but, within these six months, -has been visibly hastening me to my end. I see death approach -gradually, without any anxiety or regret. I salute you, with great -affection and regard, for the last time."[514:1] - - -Smith, proceeding with his narrative, says, "He had now become so very -weak, that the company of his most intimate friends fatigued him; for -his cheerfulness was still so great, his complaisance and social -disposition were still so entire, that when any friend was with him, he -could not help talking more, and with greater exertion, than suited the -weakness of his body. At his own desire, therefore, I agreed to leave -Edinburgh, where I was staying, partly upon his account, and returned to -my mother's house here, at Kirkaldy, upon condition that he would send -for me whenever he wished to see me; the physician who saw him most -frequently, Dr. Black, undertaking, in the mean time, to write me, -occasionally, an account of the state of his health. - -"On the 22d of August, the Doctor wrote me the following letter:-- - -"'Since my last, Mr. Hume has passed his time pretty easily, but is much -weaker. He sits up, goes down stairs once a-day, and amuses himself with -reading, but seldom sees any body. He finds that even the conversation -of his most intimate friends fatigues and oppresses him; and it is happy -that he does not need it, for he is quite free from anxiety, impatience, -or low spirits, and passes his time very well with the assistance of -amusing books.' - -"I received, the day after, a letter from Mr. Hume himself, of which the -following is an extract. - - -'_Edinburgh 23d August, 1776._ - -'MY DEAREST FRIEND,--I am obliged to make use of my nephew's hand in -writing to you, as I do not rise to-day. . . . . . . . - -'I go very fast to decline, and last night had a small fever, which I -hoped might put a quicker period to this tedious illness; but, -unluckily, it has, in a great measure, gone off. I cannot submit to your -coming over here on my account, as it is possible for me to see you so -small a part of the day; but Doctor Black can better inform you -concerning the degree of strength which may, from time to time, remain -with me. Adieu,' &c.[515:1] - -"Three days after I received the following letter from Doctor Black:-- - - '_Edinburgh, Monday, 26th August, 1776._ - - 'DEAR SIR,--Yesterday, about four o'clock, afternoon, Mr. Hume - expired. The near approach of his death became evident in the - night between Thursday and Friday, when his disease became - excessive, and soon weakened him so much that he could no - longer rise out of his bed. He continued, to the last, - perfectly sensible, and free from much pain or feelings of - distress. He never dropped the smallest expression of - impatience; but, when he had occasion to speak to the people - about him, always did it with affection and tenderness. I - thought it improper to write to you to bring you over, - especially as I heard that he had dictated a letter to you - desiring you not to come. When he became very weak, it cost - him an effort to speak; and he died in such a happy composure - of mind that nothing could exceed it.'" - -The world is fortunately in possession of an account of this event, by -another scientific man of no less eminence, the great Dr. Cullen. From a -letter which he wrote to Dr. Hunter, on 17th September, the following -extracts are made: - - You desire an account of Mr. Hume's last days, and I give it - you with some pleasure; for, though I could not look upon him - in his illness without much concern, yet the tranquillity and - pleasantry which he constantly discovered did, even then, give - me satisfaction; and, now that the curtain is dropped, allows - me indulge the less alloyed reflection. It was truly an - example "des grands hommes qui sont morts en - plaisantant;"[516:1] and to me, who have been so often shocked - with the horrors of the superstitious on such occasions, the - reflexion on such a death is truly agreeable. For many weeks - before his death, he was very sensible of his gradual decay; - and his answer to inquiries after his health was, several - times, that he was going as fast as his enemies could wish, - and as easily as his friends could desire. He was not, - however, without a frequent recurrence of pain and uneasiness; - but he passed most part of the day in his drawing-room, - admitted the visits of his friends, and with his usual spirit - conversed with them upon literature, politics, or whatever - else was accidentally started. In conversation he seemed to be - perfectly at ease, and to the last abounded with that - pleasantry, and those curious and entertaining anecdotes, - which ever distinguished him. This, however, I always - considered rather as an effort to be agreeable, and he at - length acknowledged that it became too much for his strength. - For a few days before his death, he became more averse to - receive visits; speaking became more and more difficult for - him; and, for twelve hours before his death, his speech failed - altogether. His senses and judgment did not fail till the last - hour of his life. He constantly discovered a strong - sensibility to the attention and care of his friends, and, - amidst great uneasiness and languor, never betrayed any - peevishness or impatience. . . . . .[516:2] - - These are a few particulars, which may perhaps appear - trifling, but to me no particulars seem trifling that relate - to so great a man. It is perhaps from trifles that we can best - distinguish the tranquillity and cheerfulness of the - philosopher, at a time when the most part of mankind are under - disquiet, anxiety, and sometimes even horror. I consider the - sacrifice of the cock as a more certain evidence of the - tranquillity of Socrates, than his discourse on - immortality.[517:1] - -The death and burial of so distinguished a fellow citizen, were -naturally the objects of much attention among the inhabitants of -Edinburgh. On the one hand his unpopular opinions; on the other, the -blameless character of his life and his great genius, excited -conflicting opinions, and these giving zest to public attention and -curiosity, attracted crowds to witness his funeral, and to look with -mingled feelings, on the spot where his remains were, by the injunctions -of his will, deposited.[517:2] - -On the declivity of the Calton Hill there is an old grave-yard, which -seventy years ago was in the open country beyond the boundary of the -city of Edinburgh, and even at the present day, when it is the centre of -a wide circumference of streets and terraces, has an air of solitude, -from its elevated site, and the abrupt rocky banks that separate it from -the crowded thoroughfares. There, on a conspicuous point of rock, -beneath a circular monument built after the simple and solemn fashion of -the old Roman tombs, lies the dust of David Hume. Whither the immortal -spirit that gave life to it is gone, let no man too presumptuously -pronounce; but let us rather contemplate with respectful awe, that -unseen essence which the Deity had imbued with so great a power over the -intellects of men, and believe that this wide sway over the destinies of -the human species had its own wise and beneficent design, and was no -produce of malign influences or untoward accidents. Fallacies may be the -brilliant insects of a day, but truth is eternal; and when the searcher -in philosophy groping amid the darkness of man's imperfect reason, -produces falsehoods, they are speedily forgotten; but if he develop -great truths, they live to bless his species for ever. There are few who -will now deny that mankind have learned many valuable truths of David -Hume. The wide influence of his mind over thought and action, during the -last hundred years, is expressed in the mere naming of the systems of -which he was the author or suggester. - -His Metaphysical labours gave birth to two great schools of philosophy. -The one rising at his own door, endeavoured by powerful and earnest -efforts to reconstruct in a more rational and substantial form the old -system which he had sapped--the other in a distant land, where new -lights of science had begun to burn, sought to raise mental philosophy -from its original elements, purified of the dross and rubbish that had -rendered the old materials cumbrous and unsafe, and to endow the whole -with fresh life and a new form and structure.[519:1] - -In Ethics he was the first to make an Utilitarian morality assume the -aspect of a theoretical system, which it was the task of a great -successor, aided by subordinate labourers, to apply to the practical -operations of mankind, and to spread widely over the earth. - -In History he was the first to divert attention from wars, treaties, and -successions, to the living progress of the people, in all that increases -their civilization and their happiness. The example thus set has been -the chief service of the "History of England;" yet, with all the faults -of its matter, its purely literary merits have been so great, that, as a -classical and popular work, it has hitherto encountered no rival.[519:2] - -But his triumphs in Political Economy are those which, in the present -day, stand forth with the greatest prominence and lustre. In no long -time, a hundred years will have elapsed from the day when Hume told the -world, what the legislature of this country is now declaring, that -national exclusiveness in trade was as foolish as it was wicked; that no -nation could profit by stopping the natural flood of commerce between -itself and the rest of the world; that commercial restrictions deprive -the nations of the earth "_of that free communication and exchange, -which the author of the world has intended by giving them soils, -climates, and geniuses, so different from each other_;" and that, like -the healthy circulation of the blood in living bodies, Free Trade is the -vital principle by which the nations of the earth are to become united -in one harmonious whole.[520:1] Those who, with a reverential eye, have -marked the wonders of the animal structure, and discovered beauty, -utility, and harmonious purpose, where presumptuous ignorance has found -uselessness or deformity; or have seen the lower animals, each working -in its own blind ignorance, gregariously constructing a fabric more -perfect, on philosophical principles, than human science can -create,--have thence drawn vivid pictures of the wisdom and goodness -with which the world is ordered. May we not extend this harmony to the -social economy of the globe, and say, that the spirit of activity and -enterprise, harmonizing with the dispersal of the different bounties of -Providence in the distant regions of the globe, are part of the same -harmonious system; that the love of commerce and the desire of -aggrandisement, which in the eye of a narrow philosophy assume the air -of selfish and repulsive passions, represent themselves, when they are -left to their legitimate course, as motives implanted in us for the -great purposes of securing mutual dependance and kind offices, and their -fruits, peace and good-will, throughout the great family of mankind. To -be the first to teach that the earth is not doomed to the eternal curse -of rivalry and strife, and to open up so wide a prospect of beneficence, -may be an atonement for many errors, and in the eye of good taste may -justify the brief assumption of conscious superiority, in which the -subject of this memoir indulged, when he desired that the inscription on -his monument should contain only his name, with the year of his birth -and of his death. _Leaving it to posterity to add the rest._ - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[439:1] Account of Home, p. 20. - -[441:1] It has been said that, having once given a guinea by mistake to -a beggar, the man, who was a respectable member of his trade, returned -and explained the mistake. He was permitted to keep the coin, the -philosopher observing, "Oh, Honesty--how poor a dwelling-place hast thou -found!" - -[444:1] Account of John Home, p. 20-21. - -[445:1] See, on this amusement of character drawing, vol. i. p. 226. - -[446:1] Lives of the Lindsays. By Lord Lindsay. Vol. ii. p. 183. - -[449:1] Among the traditional anecdotes of his habits, one is, that -going to sup with Mrs. Cockburn, and not arriving until after the choice -of the good things had been consumed, when some effort was made to cater -for him, he said, "Trouble yourself very little about what you have, or -how it appears; you know I am no epicure, but only a glutton." Mr. -Chambers says, (Scottish Jests, p. 171,) that he took down this anecdote -from one who was present. - -These literary parties at Mrs. Cockburn's, appear to have been frequent -and agreeable. A gentleman still living, was present at many of them -when a youth, and particularly recollects one occasion when a tipsy -relative of that lady chose to lock the door of the room where the -walking habiliments of the guests were preserved. A general borrowing of -articles of clothing from surrounding neighbours took place, and those -which fell to Hume's lot, happened to produce a peculiarly ludicrous -effect. - -[450:1] It is given without reference to authority, in Prior's Life of -Burke, vol. i. p. 98. - -[450:2] In one instance, a vivid recollection was preserved of the -difficulty, from his fatness, of getting sufficient room on his knee, -and the necessity of keeping fast hold of the corner of his laced -waistcoat. - -[452:1] He seems, from this and other notices, to have been occasionally -absent in his habits; but there is no such collection of practical -illustrations of this failing, as we possess in the case of Smith and -others. I only remember having heard of one trifling instance, of which -I had an account from an eye-witness. Hume had been dining with Dr. -Jardine, and there had been much conversation about "internal light." In -descending the stair leading from the Doctor's "flat," when he left the -party, Hume failed to observe that after so many flights which reached -the street door, there was, according to a not uncommon practice, -another flight of stairs leading to the cellars. He continued his -descent, accordingly, till the very end, where some time afterwards he -was found in extreme darkness and perplexity, wondering how it was that -he could find no outlet. The circumstance bore rather curiously on some -opinions he had been maintaining, and Jardine said, shaking his head, -"Oh David! where is your internal light?" - -[452:2] Diary of a Lover of Literature.--_Gentleman's Magazine_, N.S. i. -142. - -[455:1] The passage here omitted will be found above, vol. i. p. 97. - -[455:2] MS. R.S.E. In citing this letter above, vol. i. p. 98, it is -stated that on one MS. there is noted a supposition that it was -addressed to Dr. Traill--on another that it was addressed to Gilbert -Stuart. I now think it must have been addressed to Dr. John Stewart, -Professor of Natural Philosophy in the University of Edinburgh, and that -it related to his "Remarks on the Laws of Motion and the Inertion of -Matter," published in "Essays and Observations physical and literary, -read before a Society in Edinburgh." - -[457:1] Minute-book of The Poker Club, in possession of Sir Adam -Ferguson. - -[459:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[461:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[461:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[461:3] Of the East India Company's service, author of "The History of -Hindostan, translated from the Persian," 1803. - -[462:1] _Edinburgh Monthly Magazine_, Sept. 1810. - -[465:1] See above, p. 220. - -[465:2] _Edinburgh Magazine_, 1788, p. 340. - -[466:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[467:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[467:2] Memoirs of Great Britain and Ireland, from the dissolution of -the last parliament of Charles II. until the sea battle of La Hogue, 3 -vols. 4to. - -[467:3] MS. R.S.E. - -[468:1] William Smellie, the respectable printer of the Magazine, seems -to have led an uneasy life, between the quarrels and the dissipation of -his editor, of which he has left some picturesque memorials. Having come -one night to Smellie's house on magazine business in a very advanced -stage of intoxication, Stuart was charitably put to bed. Roused in the -middle of the night by an immense outcry from the awakened editor, -Smellie rushed to the bedroom in his night clothes. Stuart sitting up in -bed and glaring around him, immediately associated the respectable -printer's presence with the places in which he was himself accustomed to -waken, and said,--"Smellie, I never expected to find _you_ in such a -place: put on your clothes, and go back to your wife and family, I shall -never say a word about this." A journey of six miles, from Edinburgh to -Musselburgh, made by Stuart and some of his companions, in which, by -reason of the abundance of good cheer on the way, they occupied several -days, seems to have been fruitful in adventures. One of the party -falling asleep among the ashes of a steam engine, wakened in the night, -and found himself in the presence of a great red furnace, surrounded by -dusky figures clanging bolts and chains. Associating the exhibition with -the course of life he had been running, and its probable reward, he was -heard to exclaim, "Good God, is it come to this at last!"--See _Kerr's -Memoirs of Smellie_. - -[470:1] D'Israeli's Calamities of Authors, ii. 67. The letter, after -such exhortations as the following,--"Strike by all means: the wretch -will tremble, grow pale, and return with a consciousness of his -debility," winds up with the assurance, "When you have an enemy to -attack, I shall in return give my best assistance, and aim at him a -mortal blow, and rush forward to his overthrow, though the flames of -hell should start up to oppose me." - -[470:2] The _proof_, with Hume's corrections, is in the possession of -John Christison, Esq., who has kindly allowed me to make this use of it. -The last paragraph is a manuscript addition made in correcting the -proof. The substance of Hume's praise was probably given to Henry in -some other form; for a portion of the analytical part of the review is -printed in a memoir of Henry, in _The Gentleman's Magazine_, (vol. lxxi. -p. 907,) as written by "one of the most eminent historians of the -present age, whose history of the same period possesses the highest -reputation." - -[471:1] Madame Geoffrin, in writing to Hume, notices Franklin's -imperfect acquaintance with the French language; this must have been one -of the difficulties which his matchless perseverance conquered. - -I may mention that, aware that Hume had written to Franklin, I thought -it not unlikely that the letters might be incorporated in the elaborate -edition of his "Life and Correspondence" by Sparkes. Unfortunately -trusting to the copy in the British Museum, I found, at the last moment, -that that copy was imperfect, and did not afford the means of -ascertaining whether they were published in the work. - -[471:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[472:1] A specimen of the _Scots Review_, a thin duodecimo pamphlet, is -now very rare. Its chief object of attention is "that great necromancer -and magician David Hume." It is not inaptly described by the _Scots -Magazine_:-- - -"It professes to give a prospectus, and a specimen of an intended new -review; but the whole object seems to have been to laugh at some -individuals obnoxious to the writer, and particularly to ridicule the -virulence, and to lower the pretensions of those who had signalized -themselves by their attacks upon the philosophical writings of Mr. Hume; -a promise is held out, that this arch-infidel is himself to be reviewed -in the first place; and next, those authors who have waged a holy war -against him; of whom a list is given, with their characters, the -delineation of which, in no very favourable colours, appears, as already -mentioned, to have exhausted the main object of the piece, though one or -two gentle hits are aimed at the historian himself." - -[472:2] Rev. Thomas Hepburn, minister of Athelstaneford. - -[472:3] _Scots Mag._ New Series. Vol. i. - -[473:1] Original in possession of the Cambusmore family. - -[474:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[474:2] Addressed, "Mr. David Hume, at Ninewells, with a great coat." - -[474:3] Professor Millar of Glasgow. - -[475:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[476:1] Mackenzie's account of Home, p. 158. - -[477:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[477:2] Strahan's letters were carefully preserved by Hume. On -application to those who would be likely to possess Hume's side of the -correspondence, if it existed, I was informed that it was Mr. Strahan's -practice to destroy all the letters addressed to him; but I was very -politely favoured with a copy of one of his own letters, which Mr. -Strahan had preserved. - -[478:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[479:1] _Lit. Gazette_, 1822, p. 637. Corrected from original MS. R.S.E. - -[482:1] MS. R.S.E. Addressed, "Mr. David Hume, at Mr. Professor -Millar's, at Glasgow." The blanks are caused by a stripe having been -torn off the side of the letter. - -[483:1] Mackenzie's Account of Home, p. 160. - -[484:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[485:1] Life of Gibbon. - -[486:1] From this it would appear that Hume had opened up in his own -mind, the theory of rent, afterwards successively suggested by Dr. -Anderson and Ricardo, without the latter, it is believed, knowing that -he had been anticipated by the author of the _Bee_. - -[487:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[488:1] The letter is of such a character, as one medical man might be -supposed to write to another. Black was no pedant, and he writes as if -his correspondent knew the technicalities of the science in their full -practical meaning,--an addition to the many illustrations of the varied -range of scientific knowledge, at the command of the master of political -economy. - -[489:1] The following provision is in a codicil: "I also leave for -rebuilding the bridge of Churnside the sum of a hundred pounds; but on -condition that the manager of the bridge shall take none of the stones -for building the bridge from the quarry of Ninewells, except from that -part of the quarry which has been already opened." With reference to -this, Dr. Cullen, in the letter cited, p. 516, says, "In the -neighbourhood of his brother's house, in Berwickshire, is a brook, by -which the access in time of floods is frequently interrupted. Mr. Hume -bequeaths L100 for building a bridge over this brook, but upon the -express condition that none of the stones for that purpose shall be -taken from a quarry in the neighbourhood, which forms part of a romantic -scene, in which, in his earlier days, Mr. Hume took particular delight." -This is the only authenticated instance that I remember to have met with -of Hume's attachment to local scenery. It is a tradition in Edinburgh, -that he was fond of walking along the base of Salisbury Crags. - -[490:1] In 1773, Smith, apparently in bad health, wrote to Hume, -desiring him to take charge of his manuscripts in case of his own -predecease, (MS. R.S.E.) This, and some other letters by Smith, I might -have been tempted to print in this work, had I not the satisfaction of -knowing that they are likely soon to be published under the auspices of -Lord Brougham. - -[490:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[492:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[493:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[494:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[494:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[495:1] In the Appendix to Mackenzie's Account of the Life of Home. - -[497:1] It is curious to observe, that the object of this united -prediction was that same Lomenie de Brienne, who was put at the head of -affairs before the outbreak of the revolution, and who left behind him -so undisputed a character of utter incapacity to be a statesman in -difficult times. - -[499:1] Probably M. Trudaine de Montigny, frequently mentioned above, -whose son translated Hume's "Natural History of Religion." See above, p. -167. - -[499:2] This anecdote is told nearly in the same words, in one of -Walpole's posthumous works. Memoirs of George III. vol. ii. p. 240. - -[504:1] +aima.+ - -[505:1] This paragraph is printed by Mackenzie. - -[506:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[506:2] MS. R.S.E. - -[506:3] David Hume, as many of his letters must have shown, persisted in -spelling his friend's name thus. To commemorate this dispute, and Home's -dislike of port wine, he added this codicil to his will on 7th August:-- - -"I leave to my friend Mr. John Home of Kilduff, ten dozen of my old -claret, at his choice; and one single bottle of that other liquor called -port. I also leave to him six dozen of port, provided that he attests -under his hand, signed John _Hume_, that he has himself alone finished -that bottle at two sittings. By this concession, he will at once -terminate the only two differences that ever arose between us concerning -temporal matters." The original is in the MSS. R.S.E. - -[507:1] Subjoined to the card, there is this note in Dr. Blair's -handwriting:--"_Mem._--This the last note received from Mr. David Hume. -He died on the 25th of August, 1776."--_Mackenzie's Account of Home._ - -[508:1] His nephew, Joseph, had just returned from abroad in very bad -health. - -[508:2] Colonel Edmondstoune was a member of what was called the Ruffian -Club; men whose hearts were milder than their manners, and their -principles more correct than their habits of life. _Mackenzie._ - -[508:3] Mackenzie's Account of Home. On the 13th he wrote thus to his -brother:-- - -"DEAR BROTHER,--Dr. Black tells me plainly, like a man of sense, that I -shall die soon, which was no disagreeable news to me. He says I shall -die of weakness and inanition, and perhaps give little or no warning. -But though I be growing sensibly weaker every day, this period seems not -to be approaching; and I shall have time enough to inform you, and to -desire your company, which will be very agreeable to me. But at this -time your presence is necessary at Ninewells, to settle Josey, and -comfort his mother. Davie will be also very useful with you. I am much -pleased with his tenderness and friendship. I beg, therefore, that -neither you nor he may set out; and as the communication between us is -open and frequent, I promise to give you timely information."--_Lit. -Gaz._ 1822, p. 746. MS. R.S.E. - -[509:1] MS. R.S.E. - -[510:1] Colonel Edmondstoune's letter has been preserved, and is as -follows:-- - - "_Linlithgow, Wednesday._ - - "MY DEAR, DEAR DAVID,--My heart is very full. I could not see - you this morning. I thought it was better for us both. You - can't die, you must live in the memory of all your friends and - acquaintances, and your works will render you immortal. I - could never conceive that it was possible for any one to - dislike you or hate you. He must be more than savage who could - be an enemy to a man of the best head and heart, and of the - most amiable manners. - - O toi, qui de mon ame es la chere moitie; - Toi, qui joins la delicatesse - Des sentimens d'une maitresse - A la solidite d'une sure amitie, - _David_, il faut bien-tot que la parque cruelle - Vienne rompre des si doux noeuds, - Et malgre nos cris et nos voeux - Bien-tot nous assuirons une absence eternelle. - - Adieu! adieu!"--MS. R.S.E. - -[512:1] It is from more, perhaps, than the mere force of contrast, -that, after reading this account of the manner in which the dying -philosopher's thoughts were occupied,--the spelling of the family name, -the imagined interview with Charon, &c. the following letter, addressed -to him by a distant friend, possesses a peculiarly solemn interest. - - -WILLIAM STRAHAN _to_ HUME. - - "MY DEAR SIR,--Last Friday I received your affectionate - farewell, and therefore melancholy letter, which disabled me - from sending an immediate answer to it, as I now do, in hopes - this may yet find you, not much oppressed with pain, in the - land of the living. I need not tell you, that your corrections - are all duly attended to, as every particular shall be that - you desire or order. Nor shall I now trouble you with a long - letter. - - "Only permit me to ask you a question or two, to which I am - prompted, you will believe me, not from a foolish or fruitless - curiosity, but from an earnest desire to learn the sentiments - of a man, who had spent a long life in philosophic inquiries, - and who, upon the extreme verge of it, seems, even in that - awful and critical period, to possess all the powers of his - mind in their full vigour, and in unabated tranquillity. - - "I am more particularly led to give you this trouble, from a - passage in one of your late letters, wherein you say, _It is - an idle thing in us to be concerned about any thing that shall - happen after our death; yet this_, you added, _is natural to - all men_. Now I would eagerly ask, if it is _natural to all - men_, to be interested in futurity, does not this strongly - indicate that our existence will be protracted beyond this - life? - - "Do you _now_ believe, or suspect, that all the powers and - faculties of your own mind, which you have cultivated with so - much care and success, will cease and be extinguished with - your vital breath? - - "Our soul, or immaterial part of us, some say, is able, when - on the brink of dissolution, to take a glimpse of futurity; - and for that reason I earnestly wish to have your _last - thoughts_ on this important subject. - - "I know you will kindly excuse this singular application; and - believe that I wish you, living or dying, every happiness that - our nature is capable of enjoying, either here or hereafter; - being, with the most sincere esteem and affection, my dear - sir, faithfully yours."--MS. R.S.E. - - "London, _August 19, 1776_." - -This letter, if it ever reached him for whom it was designed, must have -done so too late to receive an answer. But if he did peruse it, with his -mind so collected and clear, yet so close on the point of being severed -from those objects of literary ambition which had been its chief glory -and occupation, how valuable would have been the first thought that -passed across it, when the great question was brought thus so distinctly -before his understanding! - -[514:1] _Edinburgh Review_, xvii. 306. - -[515:1] This letter, and Dr. Black's, are in the MSS. R.S.E. - -[516:1] In reference to a work so entitled, published at -Amsterdam.--_Dr. Thomson._ - -[516:2] The passage here omitted describes the conversation about -Lucian, and other incidents which have been already narrated. - -[517:1] Thomson's Life of Cullen, p. 607. - -[517:2] In a little book, called "Supplement to the Life of David Hume, -Esq." there is the following curious statement. - -"The anxious attention with which the public viewed every circumstance -respecting Mr. Hume's illness was not terminated even by his death. From -the busy curiosity of the mob, one would have presumed them to entertain -notions that the ashes of Mr. Hume were to have been the cause or the -object of miraculous exertion. As the physicians of London and Edinburgh -were divided about the seat of his disorder, those of the city where he -died proposed that his body should be opened; but this his brother, who -was also his executor, agreeably to the orders of the deceased, would -not permit. It is hardly to be credited that the grave-diggers, digging -with pick-axes Mr. Hume's grave, should have attracted the gaping -curiosity of the multitude; that, notwithstanding a heavy rain which -fell during the interment, multitudes of all ranks gazed on the funeral -procession, as if they had expected the hearse to have been consumed in -livid flames, or encircled with a ray of glory; that people in a sphere -much above the rabble would have sent to the sexton for the keys of the -burying-ground, and paid him to have access to visit the grave. And that -on a Sunday evening, (the gates of the burying-ground being opened for -another funeral,) the company from a public walk in the neighbourhood -flocked in such crowds to Mr. Hume's grave, that his brother actually -became apprehensive upon the unusual concourse, and ordered the grave to -be railed in with all expedition." - -[519:1] On peut dire que Hume est la fantome perpetuel de Kant. Des que -le philosophe Allemand est tente de faire un pas en arriere, dans -l'ancienne route, Hume lui apparait et l'en detourne, et tout l'effort -de Kant est de placer la philosophie entre l'ancien dogmatisme et le -sensualisme de Locke et de Condillac, a l'abri des attaques du -scepticisme de Hume.--_Cousin, Lecons sur la Philosophie de Kant_, 18. - -[519:2] While this sheet is passing through the press, the French -newspapers announce a new translation of Hume's History, "precedee d'un -essai sur la vie et les ecrits de Hume, par Campenon, de l'academie -Francaise." - -[520:1] In one of his epistles to the great Frederic, Voltaire says of -the distribution of the fruits of the earth:-- - - Il murit, a Moka, dans le sable Arabique, - Ce caffe necessaire aux pays des frimats; - Il met la fievre en nos climats, - Et le remede en Amerique. - -But the policy of the earth's distribution, with many other truths not -to be at once penetrated, even by the keenest mortal vision, were -mysteries to the auto-theist, and being so, were therefore to his -self-sufficient wisdom, absurd and ludicrous. Could that be right of -which the sage of Ferney could not understand the ruling principle! - - - - -INDEX. - - - Abercrombie--General James, i. 212, 222, 311. - - Abingdon--Lord, ii. 185. - - Adam--John, architect, ii. 174, 187, 195, 286. - - ----, William--Lord Chief Commissioner, ii. 174. - His notices of Hume, 439. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 174, 286. - - Advocates' Library. - Hume as librarian, i. 367. - Its extent, 373. - French works removed from, as improper, 395. - Hume resigns librarianship of, ii. 18. - - Aiguillon--Duchesse de, ii. 175. - - Albemarle--Lord, i. 245-246. - - Alembert--D', i. 94; ii. 181. - Hume's friendship with, 218, 270, 323, 345, 348, 350, 354, 355, 377, - 489. - - Allen--Dr., his inquiry into the rise and progress of the royal - prerogative, ii. 122. - - Amelia--The Princess, ii. 292. - - Ancient Nations--Essay on the populousness of, i. 363. - - Anderson--Revd. George, i. 425. - His writings against Hume and Lord Kames, 428. - His death, 432. - - Anderson--Dr. Walter, i. 424. - - Annandale--Marquis of. - His invitation to Hume, i. 170. - His mental condition, 172. - Hume's residence with, 170, _et seq._ - - ----, Marchioness-Dowager of, i. 185. - Letter to, 203. - - Anson--Madame, ii. 236. - - Anstruther--General, i. 383. - - Antiquaries. - Their use to the historian, ii. 122-123. - - Antiquity, the populousness of. - Dissertation on, i. 326. - - Aquinas--His theory of association, i. 286. - Its alleged similarity to Hume's, 287. - - Argyle--Duke of, ii. 55. - - Armstrong--Dr., ii. 64, 148. - - Arnauld--Antony, i. 432. - - Artois--Comte d', ii. 178. - - Assembly--General. - Its proceedings against Hume, i. 429. - Overture to, regarding him, 430. - - Association--Hume's theory of, i. 286. - - Aylesbury--Lady, ii. 305, 385. - - - Bacon--Lord, ii. 67. - - Balance of trade--Hume's opinions on, i. 358. - - Balcarras--Earl of, letter to, i. 412. - His appearance, 413. - - Balfour--James of Pilrig, i. 160, 345; ii. 192, 414, 415. - - Bank--Cash credit in. - Its nature, i. 359. - - Banking--Hume's remarks on, i. 359. - - Barbantane--Marquise de, ii. 280, 309, 322, 360. - - Barre--Colonel, ii. 150, 289. - - Bastide--M., ii. 236, 241. - - Bath--Hume's visit to, ii. 495, _et seq._ - - Bayard--The Chevalier, ii. 441. - - Beauchamp--Lord, ii. 161, 162, 171, 183, 204, 245, 268, 287. - - Beauvais--Princess, ii. 497. - - Beauveau--Madame de, ii. 206. - - Beccaria, i. 121. - - Bedford--Duke of, ii. 279, 280, 285, 290. - - ----, Duchess of, ii. 279. - - Bellman's Petition, i. 315, 317. - - Belot--Madame, her translation of Hume's works, ii. 176. - - Bentham, i. 121, 384. - - Berri--Duc de, ii. 178. - - Bertrand--Professor, ii. 187. - - Betham--Mr. and Mrs., i. 411. - - Birch--Dr., i. 416, 436; ii. 82. - - Black--Joseph. - Letters from, ii. 488, 514-515. - - Blacklock--Thomas, i. 385. - Hume's first acquaintance with, 388. - His ideas of light and colours, 389. - Account of his early life, 390. - Publication of his poems, 392. - Miscellaneous notices of, 393, 398; ii. 164, 454. - Letters from, 399. - - Blacklock--Mrs., ii. 401. - - Blackwell--Hume's criticism on his Court of Augustus, i. 434. - - Blair--Dr., i. 427; ii. 86, 115, 117, 139, 153, 167, 175, 192, 198. - Letters to, 180, 181, 193, 229, 265, 267, 286, 288, 297, 310, 312, - 318, 344, 365, 371, 386, 395, 421, 472. - - ----, Robert, President of the Court of Session, ii. 423. - - Blanc--Abbe le, i. 365. - His translations from Hume, 366. - Letter to, 406, 409; ii. 347. - - Bologna--University of, i. 151. - - Bon--Abbe le, his death, ii. 428. - - Bonne--Hume's account of, i. 249. - - Boswell--James, received Johnson in Hume's house, ii. 138, 139, 307, - 441. - - Boufflers--Madame de, ii. 72. - Account of, 90. - Her letters to Hume, 94, 99, 106, 110. - Letters to, 114, 205, 246, 247. - Notice of, 251, 279, 280, 298, 303, 323, 330, 346, 352, 353, 429. - Last letter to, 513. - - Bourges--University of, i. 151. - - Bower--Archibald, ii. 58. - - Boyle--The Honourable Mr., i. 293. - - Brand--Mr., ii. 225. - - Breda--Hume's account of, i. 244. - - Brest, ii. 63. - - Brienne, Archbishop of Toulouse, ii. 283, 497. - - Bristol--Lord, ii. 407. - - Brodie--George, ii. 66. - - Brougham--Lord, ii. 348. - His opinion of Hume's Political Discourses, i. 354. - - Brown--Dr. John, ii. 23. - - Browne--Sir Thomas, i. 94. - - Bruce--Professor, ii. 192. - - Bruyere--La, i. 148. - - Buccleuch--Duke of, ii. 58, 227, 467. - - Buchan--Lord, ii. 455. - - Buckingham--Mrs., ii. 186. - - Buffon--M. de, ii. 181, 299. - - Bunbury--Mr. afterwards Sir Charles, ii. 159, 164, 189, 239, 277, 280. - - ----, Lady Sarah, ii. 239. - - Burke--Edmund, i. 351, 353; ii. 59, 333, 449. - - Burnet--James, Lord Monboddo, i. 394; ii. 204, 231. - - Bute--Lord, ii. 34, 149, 159, 162, 163, 187, 258, 265, 282, 290, 334, - 407; ii. 418. - - Butler--Samuel, ii. 90. - - ----, Bishop, i. 64, 143. - - - Caldwell--Sir James, i. 260. - - Calton Hill--Hume's monument on, ii. 518. - - Campbell--Dr. George, ii. 115, 116. - Letter to, 118. - Letter from, 119. - Notice of, 154. - - Carlyle--Dr., ii. 88, 164, 266, 472. - - Carraccioli, ii. 53. - - Carre--George, of Nisbet, i. 115. - - Cause and Effect--Hume's views of, i. 79. - Their effect on Kant, ib. - - Causes--unseen, aptly illustrated by Hume, i. 83. - - Charles Edward--his insurrection, i. 175. - Anecdotes of, ii. 462. - - Charlemont--Lord. - Description and anecdotes of Hume by, i. 270, 394; ii. 116, 223. - - Chatham--Lord, ii. 396, 406, 418. - Hume's dislike to, ii. 420, 422. - - Chaulieu, 510. - - Chesterfield--Lord, ii. 131, 160. - - Cheyne--Dr. George, i. 42. - His work, "The English Malady," i. 43. - - Chivalry--Essay on, i. 18-25. - - Choiseul--Duc de, ii. 228, 500. - - ----, Duchesse de, her civilities to Hume, ii. 169. - - Choquart--Abbe, ii. 242, 261, 262, 271, 273. - - Christianity--cannot be injured by theories purely metaphysical, i. - 86, 88. - - Church--Catholic. - Hume's treatment of, ii. 5. - - ----, Scottish Episcopal. - Its condition in Hume's time, ii. 6. - - ----, English. - Hume's sympathies with, ii. 9. - - Churchill--Charles, ii. 148. - - Chute--Mr., ii. 225. - - Cicero--Orations of. - Essay on, i. 144, 145. - - Clagenfurt in Carinthia. - Hume's account of, i. 264. - - Clairaut--M., ii. 295. - - Clarendon--as a historian, i. 404. - - Clark--General, ii. 172, 195. - - Clarke--Dr. Staniers, ii. 179. - - Cleghorn--William. - Appointed Professor of Moral Philosophy, i. 170. - - Clephane--Dr. - Letters to, i. 314, 376, 379, 381, 384, 397, 408, 433; ii. 38, 443. - - Clow--Mr., Professor of logic in the University of Glasgow, i. 351; - ii. 199. - - Club--The Poker. - Its proceedings, ii. 456. - - Coblentz--Hume's account of, i. 249. - - Cockburn--Mrs. - Letter from, ii. 230, 424, 449. - - Coke--Sir Edward, ii. 69. - - Colebroke--Sir George, ii. 460, 467. - - Coleridge--His charge against Hume, i. 286. - How disproved, 287. - - Cologne--Hume's account of, i. 248. - - Conde--Prince of, ii. 92. - - Constitutional theories--Hume's, ii. 65, 67, 73. - - Conti--Prince of, ii. 90, 221, 246, 297, 307. - - ----, Princess of, ii. 245. - - Conway--Marshal, ii. 156-157, 283, 284, 305, 307, 324, 326, 351, 365, - 371, 374. - - ----, Appoints Hume under-secretary, ii. 382, 396, 407. - - Corby castle, i. 226. - - Corneille, ii. 196. - - Coutts--Provost, i. 165. - - ----, Thomas, ii. 476. - - ----, James, ii. 476. - - Cowley, ii. 90. - - Craigie--Professor, i. 350. - - Crawford--James, i. 233; ii. 149, 500. - - Crebillon--His "L'Ecumoire," i. 395; ii. 428. - - Crowle--Anecdote regarding, i. 306. - - Cudworth, i. 94. - - Cullen--Dr. - Letter to, i. 350, 418. - Notice of, 411; ii, 199. - Letters from, ii. 488, 489, 515. - - Currency--Hume's views on, ii. 426. - - - D'Angiviller--M., ii. 216. - - Dalrymple--Sir David, i. 395; ii. 415, 416. - - ----, Sir John, ii. 37, 467. - - Dauphin of France--His attentions to Hume, ii. 177-178. - Notice of, 286. - - Davenport--Richard, ii. 313. - Gives Rousseau a retreat at Wooton, 319. - Notice of, 323, 327, 328. - Letter from, 335, 336, 343, 345, 364, 367, 368, 370. - Notice of, 374, 378, 379. - - Deffand--Madame du. - Character of, ii. 214. - Her quarrel with Mademoiselle de L'Espinasse, 215. - - De Lolme, i. 137. - - D'Epinay--Madame. - Anecdote from, ii. 224. - - Dettingen--Battle-field of, i. 252. - - Deyverdun, ii. 410. - - Dialogues concerning Natural Religion--Their characteristics, i. - 328-330. - Account of them in a letter to Sir Gilbert Elliot, 332; ii. 490. - - Dickson--David, ii. 383. - - Diderot, ii. 181, 220. - - D'Ivernois--M., ii. 325. - - Divine right--Hume's opinions on, i. 123-124. - - Dodwell--Mr., ii. 386. - - Donaldson--Alexander, i. 431; ii. 4, 82. - - Douglas--Mr., ii. 204. - - ----, Dr., afterwards Bishop of Carlisle, ii. 78, 87. - - ---- cause, ii. 150, 163, 203, 421, 423. - - ---- of Cavers, ii. 407. - - ----, Duchess of, ii. 232. - - ----, Lady Jane, ii. 424. - - ----, Tragedy of. Hume's criticism on, i. 419. - Rehearsal of, 420. - - Dow--Colonel, ii. 461. - - Duclos, ii. 181, 347. - - Dupre de St. Maur--Madame, ii. 168, 347. - - Durand--M., ii, 378. - - Dysart--Mrs., of Eccles. - Hume's correspondence with, i. 337. - - Dyson--Mr., ii. 132, 408. - - - Earthquakes--Fears regarding, i. 298. - - Economy--Political. - See Political Economy. - - Edmondstoune--Colonel, i. 212, 397, 409. - Letter to, ii. 182. - Letter from, to Hume, 185. - Letters to, 187, 473. - Letter from, 474, 508. - - Education--On the influences of, i. 85. - - ----, State of, in Scotland, in 17th and 18th centuries, i. 151. - - Egmont--Countess of, ii. 299. - - Election--Westminster, in 1749, i. 305. - - Elibank--Lord, letters to, i. 192, 387; ii. 167, 252, 256, 257, 260. - - Elliot--Sir Gilbert, of Minto. - Hume's intercourse with, i. 320. - Letters to, 321, 324. - His criticism on Hume's Dialogue, 323. - Hume's reply to, 324. - Account of the "Epigoniad" to, ii. 25. - Letter to, 32. - Letters to, 144, 159, 189. - Letter from, 233. - Reply, 235. - Letters to, 240, 244, 261, 270, 273, 280, 406, 407, 414. - Letter from, 415. - Letters to, 432, 434. - - ----, Gilbert, younger of Minto, afterwards Governor-general of India, - ii. 233, 262, 271, 273, 281. - - Elliot--Sir John, of Stobs, ii. 407. - - ----, Anne, ii. 345. - - ----, Hugh, ii. 262, 271, 273, 281. - - ----, Lady, ii. 415, 446. - - ----, Miss, ii. 62, 90. - - ----, Peggy, ii. 62 - - "Emile"--Criticism on, ii. 114. - - England--History of. - Rapidity with which it was composed and printed, i. 381; ii. 121. - - "English Malady," by Dr. Cheyne--Extracts from, i. 43-46. - - Entails--Device for breaking, ii. 32. - - Epicurean--The. - Remarks on, i. 142. - - Epicurus, i. 142. - - "Epigoniad." - Some account of, ii. 25. - Hume's partiality to, 31. - Its rejection by the public, 34, 37. - - Eriot--Professor, ii. 241. - - Erskine--Sir Harry, i. 212. - Letter to, 219. - His illness, 264, 397, 409; ii. 159. - - Erskine--John, ii. 453. - - Essay--Historical, on chivalry and modern honour, i. 18, 25. - - Essays--Moral and Political, when published, and how, i. 136. - Their success, 143. - Third edition of, 289. - - ---- on Suicide and the Immortality of the Soul, ii. 13. - - ---- on Political Economy, i. 354, 363. - - Eugene--Prince. - His palace, i. 262; ii. 501 - - - Fairholms--Bankruptcy of, ii. 195. - - Falconer--Sir David, of Newton, i. 1. - - Farquhar--John, ii. 154. - - Ferguson--Sir Adam, ii. 451, 457. - - ----, Professor Adam. - Hume's commendation of, ii. 32. - Notice of, 34. - Appointed Professor of Natural Philosophy, 45. - Notice of, 56. - "Sister Peg" attributed to him, 83. - Hume's mystification on the subject, 88. - Letter to, 172. - Letter from, 175. - His Essay on the History of Civil Society, 385, 409, 440, 461. - - ----, a painter, ii. 409. - - Fitzmaurice--Mr., ii. 163, 171. - - Fitzroy--Charles, ii. 407. - - Fleche--La. - Hume's residence in, i. 57. - Jesuit's College of, ib. - - Fleury--Cardinal, 498. - - Fontaine--La, Les Contes de, removed from the Advocates' Library, i. - 395. - - Forester--Colonel James. - His connexion with the Marquis of Annandale, i. 174. - Verses on his traveling to the Highlands of Scotland, ib. - - Fourqueux, ii, 348. - - France--State of morality in, during Hume's time, ii. 91. - - ----, Manners in, i. 53-54, 55-56; ii. 208. - - Frankfort--Hume's account of, i. 251, 252. - - Franklin--Benjamin, ii. 426, 427, 471, 476. - - Fraser--James, i. 305. - Hume's character of, 308. - - Free Trade--Hume as the founder of the principles of, ii. 520. - - French literature. - Its licentious features, i. 395. - - - Galliani--Abbe, ii. 428. - - Garden--Francis, ii. 204. - - Garrick--David, ii. 141, 309, 421. - - Gascoigne--Chief-justice, ii. 69. - - Genlis--Madame de, ii. 221, 301. - - Geoffrin--Madame. - Her position in Paris, ii. 210. - Specimen of her handwriting, 211. - Character of, 212, 471. - - Geometry and Natural Philosophy--Dissertation on, i. 421. - - Gerard--Alexander, ii. 55, 154, 155. - - Gibbon--Edward, ii. 409. - Letter from, 410. - Letter to, 411, 484. - - Gillies--Adam, ii. 138. - - Glamorgan--Lord, ii. 77, 78. - - Glanvill--Joseph, i. 83. - - Glover--Richard, ii. 141. - - Goodall--Walter, i. 374. - Anecdote regarding him, ib.; ii. 254. - - Gordon--Father, ii. 201. - - Government--Monarchical. - Hume's partiality for, i. 140. - - Gower--Earl, i. 305. - - Graffigny--M., ii. 390. - - ----, Madame de, ii. 391. - - Grafton--Duke of, ii. 284, 397, 407, 432. - - Grammont--Madame de, ii. 206. - - Gregory--Dr., ii. 154, 155. - - Grenville--George, ii. 191, 226, 265, 272, 274, 282. - - Greville--Mrs. - Her Ode to Indifference, i. 228. - - Grimm--Baron de, ii. 168, 223. - - Guerchy--M. de, ii. 290, 373. - - Guichiardin, i. 113. - His character of Alexander VI. 113-114. - - Guigne--M. de, ii. 446. - - Gustard--Doctor, ii. 504. - - - Hague--The. - Hume's account of, i. 243. - - Hamilton--Duke of, i. 417. - - ----, Sir William, i. 288; ii. 153. - - Halifax--Lord, ii. 160, 277. - - Hall--Edward, ii. 72. - - Hallam--Henry, ii. 66. - - Hardwicke--Lord, ii. 465. - - Harrington--Hume's opinion of, i. 361; ii. 481. - - Hawke--Admiral, ii. 63. - - Hay--Secretary to Prince Charles Edward, ii. 203. - - Helvetius--His "De l'Esprit," i. 121; ii. 52. - Proposes Hume to translate it, 52. - Hume excuses himself, 53. - Notice of, 54, 57, 168, 131, 387. - His intercourse with Prince Charles Edward, ii. 464. - - Henault--President, ii. 181, 266, 269. - - Henry--Robert. - His History of Britain, ii. 469. - Hume's review of it, 470. - - Hepburn--Rev. Thomas, ii. 472. - - Herbert--Mr., ii. 162. - - Hertford--Marquis of. - His appointment to the French Embassy, ii. 156. - Invitation to Hume, 156, 158. - Notice of, 159, 161, 164, 171, 172, 181. - Hume's opinion of, 183, 188, 197, 205, 232, 258, 269, 272, 274, 278. - Appointed lord-lieutenant of Ireland, 282, 284, 388. - - ----, Marchioness of, ii. 92, 161, 171, 280. - - Hervey--Lady, ii. 225. - - Historians--Benefit to, from being familiar with military service, i. - 218, 221. - - ----, Knowledge requisite in, ii. 123-127. - - History--Essay on, ii. 123, 126. - - ---- of England--Hume's. - Preparation of, i. 378. - Rapidity of composition, 381. - Its reception, 414. - - Hobbes--Hume's remarks regarding, i. 77, 94. - - Holbach--Baron d', ii. 346, 353, 357. - - Holderness--Lord, ii. 194, 386, 463. - - Holingshed--Raphael, ii. 73. - - Holland--Lord, i. 403; ii. 239. - - Home--Alexander, Solicitor General, i. 208. - - ----, Alexander, of Whitfield. - Letter to, i. 2-3. - - ----, Lord. - His relationship to the Humes, i. 3. - - ----, Henry. - Letters to, i. 62, 105, 144. - Letter from, 204. - His Essays, 426. - Anderson's writings against, 428. - Attacked in the General Assembly, 429. - His Law Tracts, ii. 56, 131, 195, 454. - - ----, John. - His "Douglas" noticed, i. 316, 392, 411; ii. 17. - Hume's interest in him, i. 418. - Hume's opinion of his "Douglas," i. 419; ii. 32. - Suppressed dedication to, 16. - His "Siege of Aquileia," 81, 159, 166, 188, 191, 199, 383, 444, 456, - 475, 482. - His diary of a journey with Hume, 495. - Bequest of port wine to, 506, 507. - - ---- of Ninewells. - _See_ Hume. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 404. - - ----, Sir James, of Blackadder, i. 3. - - Hope--Lord, ii. 56. - - Human Nature, treatise of, i. 66. - Character of the work, 66, 97. - Its Style, 91. - - ----, Understanding, Philosophical Essays concerning, i. 271. - Inquiry concerning, 271. - - Human Actions, as the object of inductive philosophy, i. 275. - Application of this theory to history, 276. - - Hume--David, his birth and parentage, i. 2-3. - Account of his family, 2-7. - His opinions on the philosophy of family pride, 5. - Scenes of his boyhood, 8-9. - Account of his early years, 10-11. - Education, ib. - Early correspondence, 12-16. - Ambitious projects, 17. - Early writings, 18-19. - Essay on chivalry, 18-25. - Deserts the law, 26. - Letter to a physician, 30-39. - Goes to Bristol, 39. - Leaves Bristol for France, 48. - Visit to Paris, 49. - Residence at Rheims, 51-56. - Residence at La Fleche, 57. - Correspondence with Home, 62-65. - Preparing his treatise for press, 65. - Treatise of Human Nature, 66. - Treatise on the Passions, 99. - Review of Treatise in "Works of the Learned," 109. - Anecdote on the subject, 110. - Intercourse with Hutcheson, 112. - Application for a situation, 115. - Treatise on Morals, 120. - Extracts from memorandum book, 127-135. - Moral and Political Essays, their publication, 136. - Their character, 137-143. - His partiality for monarchical government, 140. - Opinions on the liberty of the press, 137-139. - Criticism on Cicero, 144-146. - Correspondence with Hutcheson, 146. - Correspondence with Mure, 153, 158. - Thoughts on religion, 162. - On prayer, 163. - Endeavours to obtain the professorship of moral philosophy, 165. - Opposition, 168-169. - Unsuccessful, 170. - Residence with the Marquis of Annandale, ib. - Dissension there, 182-190. - Its effect on Hume, 191. - He resigns the appointment, 193. - Different views of his resignation, 194. - State of society in Scotland at that time, 196. - Difficulty of means of subsistence, 196-197. - Position of the poor scholar, 199. - Offer from General St. Clair of the Secretaryship accepted, 208. - Expedition to the coast of France, 210. - One of the historians who have been familiar with military service, - 218. - Letter to Sir Harry Erskine, 219. - To Henry Home, 220. - To Col. Abercrombie, 222. - Desponding remarks on public affairs, 224. - Returns to Ninewells, 225. - Supposed character of himself, found amongst his papers, 226. - His poetical attempts, 227-229. - Question whether he was ever in love, 231. - Poetic epistle to John Medina, 234. - Appointment as secretary to the mission to the court of Turin, 235. - Letter to James Oswald, 236. - Views regarding history, ib. - Disinclination to leave his studies, 239. - New edition of his Essays, ib. - Philosophical Essays, ib. - His position with General St. Clair, 240. - Extracts from the Journal of his journey to Italy, 240-271. - Hague, 242. - Breda, 244. - Nimeguen, 247. - Bonne, 249. - Coblentz, ib. - Frankfurt, 251. - Wurtzburg, 252. - Ratisbon, 255. - Vienna, 257. - Knittlefeldt, 262. - Trent, 264. - Mantua, 265. - Turin, 266. - Publication of his Philosophical Essays, 271. - Inquiry concerning Human Understanding, 272. - Doctrine of Necessity, 275. - Doctrines on Miracles, 279-285. - His mode of treating the subject, 281. - Leading principle of his theory concerning, 282. - Third edition of Essays, Moral and Political, 289. - His mother's death, 291. - Silliman's story, 292. - Disproved, 293. - Correspondence with Dr. Clephane, 296. - Westminster election, 305. - Document regarding James Fraser, 308. - Letters to Col. Abercrombie, 311, 312. - To Dr. Clephane, 314. - Bellman's Petition, 315, 317. - Correspondence with Sir Gilbert Elliot, 324. - Dissertation on the Populousness of Antiquity, 326. - Dialogues concerning Natural Religion, 328. - Their character and tendency, 330. - Writes to Elliot regarding them, 331. - His brother's marriage, 337. - Letter to Mrs. Dysart, ib. - The independence of his mind, and moderation of his wishes, 340. - Letter to Michael Ramsay, 342. - His domestic arrangements, 344. - His theory of morals, 346. - Utilitarian system, 344. - Limited extent to which Hume carried it, 347. - Charge against it, 349. - Publication of Political Discourses, 350. - Is unsuccessful in his application for the chair of logic in - Glasgow, 350. - Letter to Dr. Cullen, 350. - Unfitness to be a teacher of youth, 352. - Political Discourses, 354. - Political economy, 355, 366. - Appointment, as keeper of the Advocates' Library, 367. - Letter to Dr. Clephane, 369, 376. - Account of domestic arrangements, 377. - Preparation of the History, 378. - Letter to Dr. Clephane, 379, 381. - Absorbing nature of his studies, 382. - Kindness to Blacklock, 385. - Letter to Joseph Spence, 388. - To Adam Smith, 393. - Gives Blacklock his salary as librarian, 393. - History of the Stuarts, 397. - Letter to Dr. Clephane, 397. - Conflicting opinions regarding the History of the Stuarts, 400. - Misapprehension regarding state of constitution, 403. - Inconsistencies between his philosophical and historical works, 405. - Letter to the Abbe le Blanc, 406. - To Dr. Clephane, 408. - To William Mure of Caldwell, 409. - To Mrs. Dysart, 410. - To Andrew Millar, 415. - To Adam Smith, 417. - Criticism on Home's "Douglas," 419. - _Edinburgh Review_, 422. - Attacked by Anderson, 429. - By the church courts, 430. - The second volume of the History of the Stuarts, ii. 5. - Its reception, ib. - Apologies for his treatment of religion, 10. - Unpublished preface, 11. - Essay on Suicide, 13. - Natural History of Religion, ib. - The suppressed Essays, ib. - Resigns the office of librarian, 18. - Dedication to Home, 21. - Third volume of the History, 22. - "Epigoniad," 25. - Warburton's attack, 35. - Goes to London, 47. - Correspondence with Dr. Robertson, 48. - Returns to Scotland, 65. - History of the Tudors, ib. - His constitutional theories, 67. - Alterations of the History in the direction of despotic principles, - 73. - Specimens of alterations, 74-77. - Specimens of alteration in style, 79, 80. - Letter to Millar, 81. - To Robertson, 83. - Macpherson's "Ossian," 85. - Letter to Dr. Carlyle, 88. - To Adam Smith, 89. - Madame de Boufflers, 90. - Correspondence with Madame de Boufflers, 94-98, 102. - Rousseau, 102. - Letters from Earl Marischal, 104. - Criticism on "Emile," 114. - Publication of the History anterior to the accession of the Tudors, - 120. - Intention to write an Ecclesiastical History, 130. - Correspondence with Millar, 132. - Residence in James's Court, 136. - Corrections of his works, 144. - His projects, 144-146. - Douglas cause, 150. - Criticisms on Reid's "Inquiry into the Human Mind," 153. - Accepts the office of secretary to the French embassy, 157. - Correspondence on the occasion, 157-160. - His celebrity in Paris, 167. - Feelings on the occasion, 171-172. - Attentions of the dauphin, 177. - Memoirs of James II., 179. - Advice to a clergyman, 185. - Secretaryship of the embassy, 188. - His pension, 191. - Letters from Paris, 193. - Madame de Boufflers, 205. - Social position in France, 207. - Notices by H. Walpole, 225. - Takes charge of Elliot's sons, 235. - Settles them in Paris, 244. - Liability to anger, 251. - Letter to Lord Elibank, 252. - Care of Elliot's sons, 273. - Secretaryship of legation, 278-281. - Is appointed to it, and to receive the salary, 284. - Expects to be secretary to Lord Hertford, as Lord-lieutenant of - Ireland, 287. - Is disappointed, 289. - Rousseau, 293. - Hume's first opinion of him, 299. - Brings him to England, 303. - Settles him at Wooton, 319. - Rousseau's quarrel, 326-330. - Publication of it, 354-360. - Walpole, 361. - Kindness to Rousseau, 381. - Appointed under secretary of state, 382. - His amiability of character, 390. - Compared with his nephew, Baron Hume, 402. - His interest in the education of his nephews, 403. - Influence in church patronage, 406. - His picture, 408. - Criticism of Robertson's Charles V., 412. - Views on currency, 426. - Returns to Edinburgh, 429. - Education of his nephews, 430. - His dislike of the English, 433. - His social character, 437. - Temper and disposition, 441. - His own account of his character, 442. - His conversation, 451. - Traditional anecdotes, 457. - Incidents regarding Prince Charles Edward, 462. - Review of Henry's History, 469. - Political opinions, 479. - Impatient for Smith's "Wealth of Nations," 483. - His last illness, 487, _et seq._ - His will, 489. - Disposal of his manuscripts, 490. - Publication of the "Dialogues on Natural Religion," 491-493. - Negotiations with Smith on the subject, ib. - His journey to Bath, 495, _et seq._ - John Home's account of their journey, ib. - His return, 506. - Party to bid him farewell, 507. - Correspondence, ib. - Smith's account of his latter days, 514. - Account of his death by Dr. Black and Dr. Cullen, 515. - His funeral and monument, 517-518. - Influence of his works on the opinions of the world, 519. - - Hume, or Home of Ninewells--Anecdote of, i. 6, 7. - - ----, John of Ninewells, brother to Hume, i. 213. - Narrative of the Expedition to the coast of France, addressed to, - 213-217. - His marriage, 337. - Letters to, ii. 290, 308, 396. - His character, 398. - - ----, David, afterwards Baron, ii. 400. - Compared with his uncle, 402, 405, 425, 474, 479, 480. - - ----, Joseph, of Ninewells, i. 1. - - ----, Joseph, younger. - His education, ii. 174, 175, 292, 398, 403, 404. - - ----, Director, i. 387. - - ----, John. - _See_ Home--John. - - ----, Mrs., verses by, i. 295. - - ----, Frank, ii. 199. - - Huntingdon--Lady, ii. 506. - - Hurd--Warburton's letter to, ii. 35. - Notice of, 50. - - Hutcheson--Francis, i. 111. - Hume's correspondence with, 112. - His reflexions on Hume's papers, 112. - Letter to, 117, 146. - - - Ideas--Hume's theory of, i, 70. - - Impressions--Hume's theory of, i. 73. - - Inquiry concerning the Principles of Morals, i. 344. - Its tendency, ib. - - ---- concerning Human Understanding, its publication, 273. - Views developed in it, 274. - - Irvine--Colonel, ii. 160. - - - James II.--Memoirs of, ii. 179, 200. - - James's Court--Hume's residence in, description of, ii. 136. - - Jardine--Dr., ii. 197, 230, 286. - His death, 317, 318. - - Jeffrey--Lord, i. 403. - - Jenyns--Soame, ii. 55, 59. - - Johnson--Dr., ii. 122. - Anecdote of, 138, 420. - - Johnstone of Hilton--Anecdote of, i. 6, 7. - - ----, Colonel John, i. 185. - - ----, Sir James--of Westerhall, i. 175, 176. - Letters to, 182, 184, 192. - Letter to, from Henry Home, 204. - - Johnstone--Sir William, ii. 168. - - Journal--Hume's, of his journey to Italy, i. 240, 271. - - Judge Advocate--Hume appointed, i. 212. - Claim for half-pay, 222. - - Justice Clerk--The, ii. 47. - - - Kames--Lord. - _See_ Home--Henry. - - Kant--Effect of Hume's Theory of Cause and Effect on, i. 79. - His justification of Hume, 88. - - Keith--Mr., ii. 431. - - Keith--General, ii. 498. - - Kenrick--William Shakspere, editor of _The London Review_, i. 110. - - Kincaid--Alexander, i. 431; ii. 4, 81, 82. - - Kirkpatrick--James, i. 387. - - Knittlefeldt in Styria, Hume's account of it, i. 262. - - Knox--John, ii. 58. - - - La Chapelle, ii. 270. - - La Harpe, ii. 468. - - Lansdowne--Lord, ii. 146. - - Larpent--Mr., ii. 245, 271. - - Law and government--first principles of, Hume's remarks on, i. 122. - - Leechman--Dr., i. 160. - Hume's criticism on his sermon, 161, 411. - - Legge, H. B., ii. 54. - - Leslie--Sir John. - His professorship, i. 89. - - L'Espinasse--Mademoiselle de. - Her position with Madame du Deffand, ii. 215. - D'Alembert's attachment to her, ib. - Notice of, 237. - - Lestock--Admiral Richard, i. 210. - - Leyden--University of, i. 151. - - Lindsay--Lord, i. 413. - - ----, Lady Anne. - Her remembrances of Hume, ii. 445. - - Liston--Mr., afterwards Sir Robert, ii. 245, 270, 271, 273, 280, 414. - - Literature, French--State of, ii. 166. - - Locke, i. 94; ii. 68. - - Logic--chair of, in Glasgow, i. 350. - - L'Orient--Port of, i. 211. - Expedition against, i. 211. - - Loughborough--Lord, ii. 425. - - Louis XV--Anecdotes of, 499. - - Lounds--Mr., ii. 368. - - Lyttelton--George Lord, i. 391, 433; ii. 55, 58, 79, 82, 226, 345. - - Luze--M. de, ii. 303-305. - - - Macdonald--Sir James, ii. 228, 229, 257, 267, 272, 349. - - Mackenzie--Henry, i. 58. - His ideas of Hume, ii. 438, 444. - - Mackenzie, Stuart, ii. 258, 259. - - Mackintosh--Sir James, i. 287. - - Macpherson--James, i. 462; ii. 85, 461. - - Malesherbes, ii. 219. - - Maletete--M., ii. 428. - - Mallet--David, ii. 3, 79, 82, 131, 140, 141. - Letter from, to Hume, 142. - Notice of, 144, 187, 232. - His death, 273. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 62, 141, 200, 232. - - Malthus, i. 364. - - Mansfield--Lord, ii. 163, 386, 415, 424, 466. - - Mantua--Hume's account of, i. 265. - - March--Lord, ii. 240, 241, 242, 245. - - Marchmont--Lord, extraordinary adventure of, i. 237. - - Marischal--Lord, ii. 103. - Letters from, 104, 105. - Notice of, 113, 139, 175, 179, 182, 217, 293, 295, 306, 313, 354, - 464, 465. - - Markham--Sir George, ii. 146. - - Marlborough--Duke of, ii. 141. - - ----, Duchess of, ii. 141. - - Marmontel, ii. 181, 196. - - Martigny, ii. 52. - - Masserane--Prince, ii. 428. - - Mathematics. - Hume's application of, i. 73. - - Mauvillon--Eleazar, i. 365. - - Maxwell--Sir John, ii. 455. - - Mead--Dr., i. 316. - - Medina--John, poetic epistle to, by Hume, i. 234. - - Memorandum book--Hume's. - Extracts from, i. 126-135. - - Mesnieres--President, ii. 177. - - Metaphysics. - Theories purely such not dangerous to religion, i. 86, 88. - - Millar--Andrew, i. 415. - His views for Hume, ib. - Correspondence with, 421; ii. 2, 22, 34. - Notice of, 57, 64, 81. - Letters to, 130, 134, 135, 136, 138, 143, 147, 179, 199, 200, 231, - 263, 264, 272, 393, 408. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 180, 200, 232. - - ----, Professor, ii. 474, 479, 480, 481. - - Milton--Lord, ii. 46, 199. - - Minto--Lord, i. 320; ii. 233. - - Mirabeau, the elder, i. 365, 366. - - Miracles--Doctrines on, i. 279-286. - - Mirepoix--Madame de, ii. 244, 245. - - Monarchical character--sacredness of, Hume's ideas on, ii. 70. - - Monboddo--Lord, ii. 467. - _See_ Burnet. - - Moncrief--David, ii. 431. - - Money--Letter on the value of, i. 301. - - ----, Elements of the value of, according to Hume, i. 358-360. - - Montesquieu, i. 92, 139. - His Esprit des Loix, i. 304. - His appreciation of Hume's critical works, 305, 365, 387. - Letters from, to Hume, 426. - - Montigny--Trudaine de, letter from, ii. 167, 352. - - ----, Madame, ii. 348. - - Moore--Mr., ii. 436. - - Moral and Political Essays, their publication, i. 136. - - ---- Sentiments--Theory of, by Adam Smith, ii. 55. - Hume's appreciation of it, ib. - - Morals--Treatise on, i. 120. - Principles of, inquiry concerning, 344. - The utilitarian, limited extent to which it was carried by Hume, - 347. - Charge against it, 349. - - Morellet--The Abbe, ii. 276, 337, 425. - Letter to, 426. - - Morrice--Corbyn, ii. 147. - - Mount Stuart--Lord, ii. 184. - - Muirhead--Mr., i. 411. - - Mure--William, of Caldwell, i. 380. - Letters to, i. 153, 158, 162, 165; ii. 19, 158, 165, 199, 200, 390, - 391, 436, 478. - - Murray--Lady Elliot, letter from, ii. 446. - - ----, Alexander, i. 306; ii. 93, 101, 168, 258, 259. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 281. - - ----, of Broughton, i. 167. - - Musset Pathay, ii. 322, 325, 329, 330. - - - Nairne--Mr., ii. 456. - - National characters--Essay on, i. 290. - - Nationality--Hume's spirit of, ii. 31. - - Natural Philosophy--Hume's notes on, i. 95-96. - - Natural Religion--Dialogues concerning, i. 328, 330. - Arrangements regarding their publication, ii. 490-493. - - Necessity--Doctrine of, i. 275. - - Necker, ii. 487. - - Neville--Mr., ii. 171. - - Nicholas--Sir Harris. - His chronology of history, ii. 123. - - Nicol--Miss, ii. 361. - - Niebuhr, i. 218. - - Nimeguen--Hume's account of, i. 247. - - Ninewells, family residence of the Humes, i. 1, 8. - - Nivernois--Duc de, ii. 286, 431, 449. - - Nominalism--Hume's, a system of, i. 73. - - North--Lord, ii. 479. - - Norwich--Bishop of, ii. 54. - - Note-book--Hume's, extracts from, i. 126-135. - - - Obedience--Passive, Hume's opinions on, ii. 70. - - Orange--Prince of. - His popularity, i. 242. - - Ord--Baron, ii. 436. - - ----, Miss, ii. 436, 494. - - Original Contract--Essay of the, i. 290. - - Orleans--Duke of, ii. 269. - - ----, Duchess of, ii. 269. - - Ormond--James Butler, Duke of, ii. 77. - - Ossian's Poems, ii. 85. - Essay on the authenticity of, 86. - Notice of, 180. - - ----, Papers regarding, i. 462. - - Ossory--Lord, ii. 322. - - Oswald--Sir Harry, ii. 188, 191. - - ----, James, of Dunnikier, i. 156, 222. - Letter to, 236, 301, 380. - Notice of, ii. 58. - Letter to, 149. - Notice of, 188. - Letter to, 275. - - - Page du Boccage--Madame de, ii. 213. - - Paley--William, i. 152. - - Palgrave--Sir Francis, ii. 122. - - Paoli, King of Corsica, ii. 307. - - Paris--Abbe, miracles at his tomb, i. 49-50. - - ----, Hume's first visit to, i. 49-51. - - ----, University of, i. 151. - - Passions--Treatise on, i. 99. - Some account of, 104. - Dissertation on, 421. - - Passive obedience--Essay of, i. 220. - - Percy--Bishop, ii. 385. - - Peyrou, du, ii. 335. - - Philosophical Essays concerning the Human Understanding. - When published, i. 271. - - Philosophy--System of, in the Treatise of Human Nature, i. 66, 97. - Its characteristic, 97. - - Physician--Letter to, i. 30-39, 41, 42. - - Piozzi--Mrs., ii. 139. - - Pitcairne--Dr., ii. 390. - - Pitfour--Lord, ii. 480. - - Pitt--William, i. 392; ii. 63, 159, 160, 162, 163. - - Platonist--The, i. 141. - - Pluche--The Abbe, i. 52. - - Plutarch--Hume's project of translating, i. 415, 417. - - Poetry by Hume, i. 228. - - ---- by Mrs. Home of Ninewells, i. 295. - - ---- By Miss A. B., to Mrs. H----, by her Black Boy, i. 296. - - Political Discourses--Publication of, i. 350. - Their character, 354. - - ---- Economy. Hume's ideas on, i. 355. - How received, 356. - State of opinion on, in the time of Hume, i. 355-356. - Effect of the French Revolution on, 357. - - Political Doctrines--Hume's, i. 123. - Their inconsistency with his historical works, 405. - - Pompadour--Madame de, ii. 169. - - Populousness of Ancient Nations--Essay on, i. 326, 363. - - Praslin--Duc de, ii. 172, 283, 290. - - ----, Duchess de, ii. 173. - - Press--Liberty of, i. 137-138. - - Prevot--Abbe, i. 408; ii. 52. - - Primrose--Lady, ii. 462. - - Pringle--Sir John, president of the Royal Society of London, i. 165. - Letter to, ii. 162. - Letter from, 465, 476. - - Protestant Succession--Essay on, i. 365. - - Provence--Comte de, ii. 178. - - Prussia--King of, ii. 306, 309, 363. - - Prynne--William, i. 405. - - Puysieuls--Mons. de, ii. 204, 266. - - - Quesnay, i. 365. - - - Rabutin--Bussy, i. 306. - - Ralph--Mr., ii. 148. - - Ramsay--Allan, i. 421; ii. 135. - - ----, The Chevalier, i. 12, 53. - - ----, Michael, an early correspondent of Hume's, i. 11, 51, 107, 116. - Letter to, ii. 342. - - Ratisbon--Hume's account of, i. 255. - - Raynal--The Abbe, i. 365. - - Record Commission. - Works prepared by, ii. 121. - - Reid--Dr. Thomas; his "Inquiry into the Human Mind," ii. 151. - Intercourse with Hume, 153. - Letter from, 154. - - Religion--Hume's thoughts regarding, i. 162-164, 279. - His treatment of, ii. 5. - Tone in speaking of the Roman Catholic religion, ii. 6. - - ----, Hume's apologies for his treatment of, ii. 10. - - ----, Natural. - Dialogues concerning, i. 328; ii. 490. - Their character and tendency, i. 330. - - Republicanism--Hume's estimate of, ii. 481. - - _Review_--The original _Edinburgh_. - Its origin, i. 422. - - Rheims--Hume's residence in, i. 51-56. - - Rianecourt--Madame, ii. 351. - - Riccoboni--Madame, ii. 350. - - Richmond--Duke of, ii. 282, 290, 326. - - Riviere, i. 365. - - Robertson--Dr. William. - Hume's commendations of, ii. 32, 43. - Letter to, regarding Queen Mary, 48. - Correspondence with Hume, 49-55. - Notice of, 58. - Correspondence and notices, 83, 100, 176, 229, 252, 266, 270, 286, - 383. - Remarks by Hume on his History of Charles Fifth, 412, 445, 453, 470. - - Robinson--Sir Thomas, i. 257. - - Roche--La. - Story of, i. 58. - - Rockingham--Lord, ii. 282, 395, 396. - - Rodney--Admiral, ii. 61. - - Rohan--Louis, Prince de, ii. 221. - - Rollin, ii. 50. - - Romilly--Sir Samuel, ii. 220. - - Rougemont--M., ii. 330. - - Rousseau--Jean Jacques, ii. 102, 110, 112-113, 114, 187. - Takes up his abode at Motier Travers, 293. - Removes to St. Pierre, 294. - Goes to Strasburg, 296. - To Paris, ib. - The enthusiasm for him at Paris, 299. - Goes to England, 303, 308, 311, 312. - Hume's account of him, 315. - His judgment on his own works, 316. - Settlement at Wooton, 319. - Walpole's letter, 321. - Pension from the King of England, 324. - Quarrel with Hume, 326-380. - - Ruat--Professor, ii. 56, 62. - - Ruddiman--Thomas, i. 367; ii. 19. - - Russel--J., ii. 192. - - Rutherford--Dr., ii. 199. - - - Saducismus Triumphatus, i. 83. - - Sandwich--Lord, ii. 160. - - Sarsfield--Count, ii. 388. - - Saurin, ii. 387. - - Sceptic--The, i. 141. - Character of, 143. - - Scholar--The poor. - His position in Hume's time, i. 199. - - Scott of Scotstarvet, i. 416. - - ----, Sir Walter. - His remarks on Hume's poetical attempts, i. 226, 227; ii. 137. - - Selwin--George, ii. 240. - - Shaftesbury--Lord, i. 384. - - Sharp--Matthew, of Hoddam. - Letter to, i. 178-180, 386. - - Sheffield--Lord, ii. 409. - - Shelburne--Lord, ii. 405, 406. - - Short--Mr., ii. 64. - - Silliman--the American traveller. - His story regarding Hume, i. 291-293. - - Smellie--William, ii. 469. - - Smith--Adam. - His first introduction to Hume, i. 117. - His appointment to the chair of Moral Philosophy, 350. - The method of his political economy, 361. - Letters to, and notices of, 375, 393. - His correspondence with Hume, 417. - Letter to, ii. 16. - Hume's commendation of, 32. - Notice of, 58, 59. - Correspondence with, 89, 148, 150, 157, 160, 168, 227, 228, 348, - 349, 353, 388, 390, 395, 426, 429, 432, 433, 459, 461, 466, 471. - Letter to, on his "Wealth of Nations," 486. - Appointed Hume's literary executor, 490. - Letters to, 491. - Revocation of the nomination, 494. - His account of Hume's last moments, 509. - - Smollett--Tobias, ii. 53. - Hume's interest in, 405. - Letter from, 418. - Letter to, 419. - - Solitude--Hume's opinion on, i. 99. - - Spence--Joseph. - Letter to, i. 388. - Notice of, 435. - - Spinoza, i. 89. - - St. Clair--General. - His invitation to Hume, to act as secretary to the expedition to the - Coast of France, i. 208. - His expedition, ib. 440. - Appoints Hume secretary to the mission to the Court of Turin, 235, - 372. - - Stanislaus Augustus, King of Poland, ii. 91. - - Stevenson--John, ii. 46. - - Stewart--Dugald, i. 88, 89. - - ----, John, ii. 168, 180, 311, 321. - - Stobo--Captain Robert, ii. 418. - - Stoic--The, i. 141. - - Strahan--William, ii. 82-83, 412. - Hume's papers left to the charge of, 494. - Letters from, 477, 512. - - Stuart--Andrew, ii. 168, 175, 203, 423, 424, 466. - - ----, Dr., ii. 454. - - ---- Mackenzie, Mr., ii. 258. - - ----, Gilbert, ii. 414, 416, 456, 467. - His opinion of himself, 468. - Anecdotes regarding, 469. - His malignity, ib. 470. - - Stuarts--History of the, i. 399. - Character of the work, ib. - Conflicting opinions regarding, 400. - Charge brought against, 401. - Tendency, 402. - Its reception, 414. - Second volume, ii. 2. - - Suard--M. - Letter to, ii. 357. - - Suicide--Hume's ideas on, ii. 15. - - Sympathy--Criticism on Smith's ideas on, ii. 60. - - - Tate--Christopher, ii. 432. - - Tavistock--Lord, ii. 239. - - Teacher of youth--Hume's unfitness for, i. 352. - Qualifications requisite, ib. - - Temple--Lord, ii. 163. - - Tesse--Countess of, ii. 206. - - Thomson--Dr. John, i. 351, 353. - - Torbay, ii. 63. - - Townsend--Lord, ii. 407. - - ----, Charles, ii. 58, 132, 133, 134, 304, 305. - - ----, Mrs., ii. 305. - - Trade--Free. - _See_ Free Trade. - - Tragedy--Dissertation on, i. 421. - - Trail--Dr., ii. 204, 245, 456. - - Treatise of Human Nature, when published, i. 66. - Character of the work, 66-97. - Its service to philosophy, 90. - Characteristics of the system, 97. - Hume's condition during its composition, 96. - Its reception, 107-109. - Treatise on the Passions, some account of, 99. - Treatise on Morals, its character, 120-123. - - Trent--Hume's account of, i. 264. - - Trentham--Lord, i. 305. - - Tronchin, ii. 186, 338, 345. - - Tucker. - His Light of Nature, i. 150. - - ----, Dr., ii. 428. - - Turgot, i. 365. - Hume's friendship with, ii. 219, 351, 354. - Letters from, 352, 381, 428. - - Tweeddale--Marquis of, ii. 383. - - - Understanding--The Treatise on, i. 99. - - Universities--foreign. - The resort of Scottish youth, i. 150. - - Utilitarian system--Hume's development of, i. 121, 344. - Limited extent to which he carried it, 347. - - - Vain man--Hume's character of, i. 104. - - Valliere--Duc de, ii. 268. - - Vandeput--Sir George, i. 105. - - Vauban, i. 365. - - Vasseur--Therese le, ii. 294, 299, 305, 307, 323, 352, 366, 370. - - Verdelin--Madame de, ii. 295. - - Vienna. - Hume's account of the court there, and his introduction, i. 257-259. - - Vincent--Captain Philip, i. 177, 180. - His position with the Marquis of Annandale, 181, 186-189. - Letter from, 189. - Terms specified by, of Hume's engagement with the Marquis of - Annandale, 201, 203. - - Voltaire, i. 219; ii. 57, 126, 166, 184, 195, 323, 348, 358. - His "Henriade," Hume's opinion of, 440. - - - Walker--Professor, ii. 334. - - Wallace--Dr. Robert, i. 364, 387; ii. 193. - - Walpole, Lady, ii. 138. - - ----, Sir Robert. - Hume's character of, i. 289. - - ----, Horace. - Anecdote from, i. 197; ii. 54, 55, 159. - His notices of Hume, 226. - Account of his own reception in Paris, 226. - His letter in the name of the King of Prussia, 306, 321. - His Memoirs of George III., 282, 345, 351. - Letter to, 355, 361. - - Warburton--Bishop. - His letter to Hurd, i. 285. - Notice of, ii. 35. - His letter against Hume, ib. - His Remarks on Hume's essays, ib. - Notice of, 38, 64, 454. - - Warton--Thomas, ii. 51. - - Wealth of Nations--Hume's opinion of the, ii. 486. - - Wedderburn--Alexander, i. 379; ii. 471. - - Westminster election, in 1749, i. 305. - - Weymouth--Lord, ii. 384. - - Wilkie--William. - His "Epigoniad," ii. 25, 29. - His education, 26. - - Wilkes--John, ii. 148, 202, 282, 422. - - Wilson--Mr., type-founder, ii. 59. - - Wood--Mr., ii. 63, 182. - - Worcester--Marquis of. - _See_ Glamorgan--Lord. - - Wray--Mr., ii. 465. - - Wroughton--Mr., ii. 272. - - Wurtzburg--Hume's account of, i. 252. - - - York--Archbishop of, ii. 386. - - ----, Duke of, ii. 310. - - Yorke--Mr., ii. 59. - - - - -ERRATA. - - -Vol. i. p. 361, for _Harrison_ read _Harrington_. - -Vol. ii. p. 14, in the reference in the note, p. 246, read p. 216. - ----- p. 215, for _protege_ read _protegee_. - - - - -TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES: - - -The following explanation of the different kinds of blockquotes used in -this volume can be found on page xiv of Vol. I of this series: - - "It may be right to explain, that the two sizes of type, used - in this work, were first adopted with the design of presenting - all letters addressed to Hume, all extracts, and all letters - from him with which the public is already familiar, in the - smaller type, in order that the reader coming to a document - with which he is already acquainted, might see at once where - it ends. This arrangement was accidentally broken through, - several letters having been printed in the larger that should - have appeared in the smaller type."[A] - - [A] Burton, John Hill. Life and Correspondence of - David Hume.</cite> Vol. I. Edinburgh: William Tait, - 1847. - -The following words use an oe ligature in the original: - - coelo - coeur - diarrhoea - Foedera - Phoenix - -Text in French has been preserved as printed. - -Corrections listed in the Errata have been made. The Errata is included -for completeness. - -The following corrections have been made to the text: - - Page 1: Nationalism--Warburton--Colonel Edmondstoune[original - has "Edmonstoune"] - - Page 44: and that a man cannot[original has "connot"] employ - himself - - Page 57: more decisive than he used[original has "uses"] to be - in its favour - - Page 58: he would put the Duke of Buccleuch[original has - "Buccleugh"] - - Page 58: conclude with--Your humble servant.[original has - extraneous quotation mark] - - Page 84: once entertained thoughts of attempting.[84:1] - [Footnote anchor added by transcriber] - - Page 150: the enclosed to Colonel Barre[original has "Barre"] - - Page 160: Some[original has "some"] pretend that the present - - Page 167: Madame Dupre de St.[period missing in original] Maur - writes - - Page 178: by express order from the D.[178:1][Footnote anchor - added by transcriber] - - Page 178: the Comte d'Artois, afterwards Charles[original has - "Charle"] X. - - Page 192: any civilities you show the Colonel."[quotation mark - missing in original] - - Page 197: point vous etes cheri en France.'[quotation mark - missing in original] - - Page 199: Literary classes of the university[original has - "unversity"] - - Page 202: imprudent for me to lend them to him.[quotation mark - missing in original] - - Page 207: Aristocracy--Madame Geoffrin[original has - "Geofrin"]--Madame Du Page - - Page 213: Madame le Page du Boccage[original has "Bocage"] - - Page 223: "[quotation mark missing in original]From what has - been already said of him - - Page 239: no new ground of attachment to England."[quotation - mark missing in original] - - Page 243: every body, by which you desire . . . ."[quotation - mark missing in original] - - Page 249: without withdrawing from a friendship[original has - "frendship"] - - Page 275: sir, your most obedient servant."[quotation mark - missing in original] - - Page 282: with whom he and his connexions[original has - "connexious"] were not - - Pages 308-9: and came to Strasburg,[original has a period] - with an intention - - Page 312: [original has extraneous quotation mark]Lisle - Street, Leicester Fields - - Page 312: [original has extraneous quotation mark]DEAR - DOCTOR,--I had asked M. Rousseau - - Page 325: [original has extraneous quotation mark]_June 16, - 1766_ - - Page 369: de faciliter mon retour d'ici chez vous.[transcriber - removed extraneous footnote anchor] - - Page 375: assured that Davenport would receive him.[original - has a comma] - - Page 407: I am, dear Sir Gilbert, yours sincerely."[quotation - mark missing in original] - - Page 421: HUME _to_ DR.[period missing in original] BLAIR. - - Page 426: otherwise it would be multiplied[original has - "mutiplied"] without - - Page 429: "[quotation mark missing in original]_Minto, 11th - July, 1768._ - - Page 429: "[quotation mark missing in original]I am sorry, my - dear sir - - Page 444: Mr.[original has "Hr."] Hume bore with perfect good - nature - - Page 446: adding, 'Oh, what an idiot I had nearly proved - myself to be, to leave such a document in the hands of a - parcel of women!'"[both single quotes missing in original] - - Page 468: proprietor--it might[original has "it ght"] almost - be said - - Page 477: for coercive methods with those obstinate[original - has "ohstinate"] madmen - - Page 484: would have given me[original has "given m"] some - surprise - - Page 485: I am, with regard,[original has extraneous quotation - mark] &c. - - Page 506: may have spirits to humour this folly."[quotation - mark missing in original] - - Page 507: the Doctor to make one of the number."[quotation - mark missing in original] - - Page 512: about any thing that shall happen[original has - "hoppen"] - - Page 523: Aiguillon[original has "Aguillon"]--Duchesse de, ii. - 175. - - Page 523, under "Alembert--D'": Hume's friendship with, 218, - 270, 323, 345, 348, 350, 354, 355, 377, 489[original has - "589"]. - - Page 524: Calton Hill--Hume's monument on, ii.[volume number - missing in original] 518. - - Page 525: Conti[original has extraneous comma]--Prince of, ii. - 90, 221, 246, 297, 307. - - Page 525: Crebillon[original has "Crebillon"]--His - "L'Ecumoire," i. 395; ii. 428. - - Page 525: under "Cullen—Dr.", Letters from, ii. 488, - 489, 515[original reads "489, 515; ii. 488"]. - - Page 526: under "Eugene—Prince" His palace, i. 262; - ii.["ii." missing in original] 501. - - Page 526: Fitzroy[original has "Fitz-roy"]--Charles, ii. 407. - - Page 526: Gower--Earl[original has "Lerd"], i. 305. - - Page 528: under "Hume--David", "Extracts from the Journal of - his journey to Italy", Wurtzburg[original has "Wurtzburgh"], - 252 - - Page 528: under "Hume--David", Letters from Earl - Marischal[original has "Marishal"], 104. - - Page 530: Keith—General, ii.[original has "i."] 498. - - Page 530: Mesnieres[original has "Mesnieres"]--President, ii. - 177. - - Page 531: Musset Pathay, ii. 322, 325[original has - "322,-325"], 329, 330. - - Page 533: Vasseur--Therese[original has "Therese"] le, ii. - 294, 299, 305, 307, 323, 352, 366, 370. - - [5:2] written by Daniel Macqueen, D.D.,[comma missing in - original] the chief object - - [6:1] "[quotation mark missing in original]_By one who - personally knew him._ - - [141:1] I desire to be known by that appellation.'[quotation - mark missing in original] - - [187:2] Sic[original has extraneous period] in MS. - - [216:1] Maitre Janotus de ses chausses."[quotation mark - missing in original] - - [221:2] He makes great account of his works[original has - "vorks"] - - [226:1] (Ib. 130-131.)[closing parenthesis missing in - original] - - [226:1] self-satisfied account of the distinctions - conferred[original has "conerred"] - - [238:1] interest taken by the Comtesse de Boufflers[original - has "Boufilers"] - - [239:1] methods often hostile, always indelicate[original has - "indolicate"] - - [301:1] "[quotation mark missing in original]C'est un des - malheurs de ma vie," says Rousseau - - [301:1] having been exhibited as a wild beast![original has - extraneous quotation mark] - - [309:1] mark of interrogation is in the MS.[original has - "M.S."] - - [329:1] expect to meet with a work of the nineteenth[original - has "nineteeth"] century - - [329:1] one letter from M. Rougemont[original has "Rougement"] - among the MSS. - - [329:1] "[quotation mark missing in original]L'opinion que - vous avez de M. Rousseau - - [331:1] degree little short of madness."[quotation mark - missing in original] - - [421:2] Dr.[period missing in original] Robertson - - [421:2] piddling still about my Lectures."[quotation mark - missing in original] - - [452:2] _Gentleman's Magazine_, N.S. i. 142.[period missing in - original] - - [472:1] aimed at the historian himself."[quotation mark - missing in original] - -Punctuation has been standardized in the Index. - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Life and Correspondence of David Hume, -Volume II (of 2), by John Hill Burton - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DAVID HUME, VOLUME II *** - -***** This file should be named 42844.txt or 42844.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/2/8/4/42844/ - -Produced by Adrian Mastronardi, Michael Zeug, Lisa Reigel, -and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at -http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images -generously made available by The Internet Archive/Canadian -Libraries) - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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